by Ross Homer
Staring at her, I had a sudden, sickening, thought. “Nissa, please tell me I didn’t make him this way.”
Her great gray eyes went wide, and she laughed, surprising me. “Tell me you didn’t just say that! That you made him that way? I thought you were smarter than that. Since we’re talking about it, did anybody make you bisexual? No. Of course not. It is part of who you are, just like the color of your hair or your skin. Your beautiful, curvy figure. That smile. Sorry, but he was born that way.”
She was completely right. I felt like a complete idiot sitting there. So, I took another sip of water, then said, “He is seriously disturbed and obviously a murderer. We saw him kill Paula but those other people? The hard part is proving any of it.”
“Without him walking into Sorcha’s office and confessing to all of it, you’re right. There is nothing we can do.” Then she looked at me steadily. “Legally.”
I knew what she meant as I nodded in agreement.
“Shit!” she said as she jerked her cellphone out of her bag and said to me, “We got to talking and forgot about his wife! I’m going to have someone go by his house and do a welfare check. I pray what we saw was wrong.”
It wasn’t. Twenty minutes later dispatch called her and told her to go to his house. I drove because I knew where he lived. It was a drive that seemed to get longer each passing second the closer we came.
Sorcha was there to meet us. “It’s bad, Nissa, Jo. As bad as it can be.”
I didn’t want to see what I knew was going to be there.
I was wrong, oh so wrong.
She led us to the bathroom first. Bob’s wife lay dead in an overflowing, blood and water filled tub. The walls and ceiling were also splattered with blood. Her head lolled back over the side, eyes open, and staring blindly at the ceiling. There was a gaping wound in her neck.
The ME, Brenda Hall, was kneeling in the blood and said to us, “He cut her several times.” She pointed at the bone. “This white you see here is her spine.”
Sorcha nodded and then said angrily, “The kids are upstairs.”
I could smell the blood before we saw the bodies. Each child was lying on his or her bed in a wide pool of their own blood. Like their mother, their throats had been cut. Unlike her, each had a Bible in their hands.
“Brenda thinks he drugged them first,” Sorcha commented quietly as we looked in on the third and oldest child. She had been ten. “I sure as hell hope so. I don’t care what religion you belong to; evil is evil. I want this sorry son of a bitch and I’ll make it my duty to catch him.”
To Nissa, Sorcha said, “I need you here to run the investigation. Jo, you can leave. I’ll bring Nissa with me when we leave.”
I nodded. “Okay. I think he’ll come after me next.”
She agreed. “Be careful.”
“Count on it.”
I looked at the oldest girl and was afraid for my life now. I tried to hide it but with a telepath for a friend it was impossible. She took my hand and said, “Easy, girl. We know who he is and that is going to be a great help to you. Can’t you cast a spell of protection?”
All my life I’ve been a tough, smart, girl then woman. I’m big, physically fit, and I am damned strong. I can fight and I have. I think for the first time that I can remember, I was truly afraid of losing my life. It was an unusual feeling and I hated it.
“I think so,” I replied. “I’ll go home and consult my books. But Nissa, you live with me and he could conceivably get to Elsa. I can’t spread spells around like that, in spite of me telling you how wonderful a witch I am.”
Sorcha interjected, “We’ll double the police protection on Elsa. I’ll do it in a moment. You go home, set up a cast iron ward and keep your eyes and ears open when you’re out and about.”
“I will. Thanks and we will catch this bastard.”
Driving back to my house, I now knew what it felt like when people say ‘I felt like I was in someone’s sights’. It was terrible! I kept moving my head and body around as I drove just knowing that in the next second a bullet was going to take me out.
It didn’t.
I parked in my garage and instantly recast a deadly ward around the house. Before I got out, I took my Sig out of the glove compartment and then cast a spell to see if anyone was inside my house thus inside the ward. The answer was no.
I didn’t put my gun back, though.
Clearing a house by yourself is nerve wracking to say the least. I guess I never realized just how big my place was and how many doors there are in it. However, I carefully opened each one and made sure I was alone. It took a while to do all three floors, but I felt a lot better when I was done. This was the first time ever that I didn’t trust one of my spells and honestly, I should have known better.
I carried a glass of white wine into the living room and began to sit in my favorite chair. I changed my mind and turned it a little so I could see out the window. I wanted to know if Bob would be so stupid as to come for me at home. A shot at me through a window would be stopped by the ward. I hoped. I knew that it would stop people and animals. But a bullet? I realized that I didn’t want to know. If he shot me, it would be a fatal shot and I would never know about it. On the other hand, if I saw him first, then I could do something to stop him.
I tried to relax and trust in my abilities. Like not really understanding the size of my house, I guess I didn’t realize just how tense I was, and it was catching up with me. There were several things I could do to relieve it, but I didn’t think having fun with a solo session was the answer just then. I was sitting here, frightened half out of my wits, and my lover was lying in the hospital between life and death. No, it was the wrong time for that kind of thing.
I sipped my wine and tried to will myself to relax. It kind of worked. It helped that it had gotten nicer outside, too. The trees were budding, and things were turning green.
I knew the house was safe and empty but every sound I heard or imagined I heard, was Bob trying to get in. Or he was already inside and trying to sneak up on me. I got up several times to investigate some sound or other before I caught myself and sat back down. I was as safe as I could possibly be. I knew I was safe, but my brain just wouldn’t let me relax.
After sipping about half the glass, I forced my brain out of panic mode and into thinking about this situation. Bob Albertson was out there somewhere. I find people. Ergo, I was certain I could find him. I had two slugs he’d touched. But to ensure I could, I needed something he wore.
I called Nissa. “Nissa, if you’re still at Bob’s house, see if you can find something he wore. Look in a hamper if you must but please, no underwear. I can find his murdering ass and then we can take care of him.”
“Got it,” she replied. “I’ll be back to your place in thirty or less.”
“Okay. Call me when you enter in the driveway. You don’t want to try and come in by yourself. See you.”
I took another sip of wine and as I set my phone down then the horror of what I’d seen finally caught up with me.
Hard!
I froze as I felt my consciousness drifting into some unknown black place. I couldn’t stop it! The harder I tried, the farther it slipped out of my grasp. It was like trying to hold onto a soapy balloon.
The thought of what could happen to me crept into my already panicking mind. Like Bob shooting me like he did Elsa and not killing me outright. I knew he’d sit out there and watch me bleed to death.
I struggled to block that image, but it kept roaring back over and over!
The wards were set on kill, not stun. No one could enter my house while I was breathing. But…I couldn’t move! I sat rigid in my chair. I was going to sit in my grandmother’s chair and starve to death! Oblivion was coming for me! I fought it as one would fight demons. The darkness pulled at me; dragged me to some unknown oblivion. I was losing!
No!
This was all in my head. I knew it and yet, my mind kept going there. To the edge.
I was o
n my hands and knees, fighting my way back from the edge. But it kept pulling me! Closer and closer!
I was falling.
Chapter 12
I pulled into Jo’s driveway and stopped. As I turned off the car, I tapped her phone number into my cell. It rang eight times and then went to voice mail.
“Hi! This is Jocelyn Palmer. Leave a message and I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.”
I looked up at her old house and could see lights on inside. I thought she might be in the bathroom or taking a shower as I replied, “Jo? I’m here in the driveway. Where are you?”
There was no answer, so I disconnected and got out. The feeling I was getting was not good. I didn’t see any other cars around that might indicate Albertson was in the neighborhood. But then, neither of us saw him before he shot Elsa.
With the comforting weight of my gun in my hand, I still carefully looked around for him as I went up on the porch. At about two feet from the door I could feel the wards reacting to my presence. I knew that if I touched the door, or anywhere on the house, my first warning would be the ‘landing on my ass in the yard’ effect. The second would kill me.
I peered through the windows around the door as well as I could and saw Jo’s shoulder bag, the one with the bright Brazilian design on it, sitting on a small chair. It was the one she’d had at Albertson’s house. She was home. I knew she was rattled when she left the murder scene so maybe she was in the shower after all.
Walking back out towards the street, I saw that her bedroom lights upstairs were off. None of the upstairs lights were on. A wave of fear washed over me. Was I too late? Had Albertson somehow gotten in while we were at the scene?
I waited two minutes and still saw no sign of her, so I called again and got the same recording. I dropped the phone in my bag and walked slowly to my left in her yard and came to the living room window. Standing on tiptoe, I looked in and saw her sitting in her grandmother’s chair facing the window. I wondered why she moved it.
“Jo!” I called out and waved. She didn’t react. As far as I could tell, she didn’t even blink. Just stared into some intermediate space. I could see the slow rise of her chest, so she was breathing but it was like she was in a trance.
This time I picked up some gravel from the street and tossed several small rocks against the window. Anything larger would have been resisted by the ward. I heard them hit the glass, but it made no difference since there was no reaction from inside.
Jo continued to sit as if paralyzed.
I worked my way around the house still feeling the warning not to get too close. Now standing at the living room window again, I tried to focus my thoughts at her.
There was nothing but a black void when I reached for her. I tried a couple of more times and started to get a headache from my fruitless exercise.
This was when I realized that I was being blocked from her! It couldn’t be her ward, could it? I became frightened for her. If I couldn’t come up with some way to break the block, the only thing I could do was watch and pray. I knew there was absolutely no way I could get through Jo’s wards and my dying wouldn’t help her at all.
I holstered my gun then waved both arms and hollered and got no response. I became more and more frightened because of it. There had to be something I could do.
<<<<<>>>>>
The blackness was right there! At the end of my fingers. It was still drawing me. I was going to enter it…
Someone was calling my name! “Jo! Turn around! Jocelyn Palmer! Turn around! Don’t go there!”
But I desperately wanted to go that last few inches.
“Turn around now!”
A motion caught my eyes. It was…why was a naked woman jumping up and down outside? I felt her drawing me away from the darkness, but I fought it. The darkness wanted me! I wanted it!
That voice called again, “Turn around, Jocelyn!”
The woman continued to jump up and down and wave. I began to see her more clearly.
The blackness began to angrily retreat as I broke away from it and moved towards the naked woman. I shivered and became aware of where I was. I was in my living room. I was sitting on my chair. But, when did I move it? There’s my big screen. The coffee table and the end tables are where they belong. The latest Taagen Davis book I was reading, face down on the coffee table. When had I last done any reading? Goddess! How long had I been sitting here?
Standing, I saw Nissa out in the yard, her blouse and bra off, and looking relieved. What the hell? Why was she standing there like that? Half-naked in my front yard? What would my neighbors think?
Then it hit me. It was her I’d seen! I rushed over and opened the front door. I watched as she picked up her blouse and bra from off the grass. Then she came up on the porch and pulled me tight.
“Goddamnit, Jocelyn! You scared the living shite right straight out of me!”
I held onto her tightly. No! I clung to her tightly. “Oh, Nissa,” I cried. “Oh, my Goddess! I…I’m so sorry. Honest to Gaia I am. I was going to die! I was staring Death straight in the face. It was your voice I heard. I saw you jumping up and down like that. You saved my life.”
She stroked my hair and said, “It’s okay now. You’re safe. Let me put my clothes back on and then you can tell me what happened.”
“Okay. Wine?” I carefully let go of her, hoping I wasn’t imagining all this and hoping I wouldn’t collapse to the floor. No, she was still standing there and so was I.
She said, “Please.”
While she pulled her blouse back on, I conjured two glasses of merlot. She sat opposite me in the living room as I told her what had happened. “I don’t know, Nissa. What I saw at Bob’s house was horrendous and when I left, I was scared about half to death knowing he’s out there somewhere. Then I got here. This house is safe but it’s old and makes all kinds of noises. I’m normally used to them but now? Every single one of them was Bob sneaking around. I guess I was overwhelmed. I sat down and relaxed which may or may not have been a mistake.
“The next thing I saw was the vision of death or something. I…I don’t know what to call it. It was calling me and the closer I got to it, the stronger the pull became.” I took a long drink and then laughed. “And then I heard a voice calling me. Yours. I think that broke the spell. To add to it, I saw this naked silver-haired woman jumping up and down outside and waving her arms at me. Damn, girl. That was ballsy but it worked.” I smiled at her and asked, “What on Earth made you think of doing that?”
She laughed and replied, “Motion. Your eye can see something moving from quite a ways. It can break up a deep concentration or trance. It did this time, too.”
“Thank the Goddess. I’ll have to remember that. Umm, you should know that I can make your breasts a lot firmer than they are. I’ve done it for Elsa and me.”
That made Nissa laugh with relief. But she fake-grumped anyway, “I will have you know my breasts are neither old nor floppy. They are about perfect for a woman my age and their size.” She cupped them through her blouse and added, “Besides, it worked didn’t it? You’re here, aren’t you?” She paused and then nodded, “But yeah, sure. Maybe you fix them a little. I don’t want my husband to come back and think I got a boob lift while he was gone.”
I couldn’t help it. I began crying and laughing at the same time. “Nissa,” I said between sniffles, “you and they are beautiful, and it’s done.”
After a minute and another glass of conjured wine, I managed to pull myself somewhat back together. “I know that we are up against something powerful and unknown. I told you my Gran called me and warned me. She said I was strong enough to fight it. I think she’s wrong. I think it’s going to take at least you and me to fight it. It took you to save me, for instance.” I thought about it a moment. “Do you think we could call on Sorcha to help? Does she have any abilities?”
“I honestly don’t know. Shifting from human to seal and back may be it.” She smiled at me and stood. Surprising me, she took off h
er blouse and bra again and faced the mirror on the living room wall. “Wow!” she said. “I kind of felt them move a moment ago. I haven’t looked this good since I was twenty. Thanks.” Dressing again, she said, “I think we may need to help Elsa heal a lot more than I’d originally thought. Her ability in this might be a godsend.”
“I agree and you’re welcome. There have been times when I was younger when I wished I was smaller so I could look like some of those mostly flat chested girls and women in their hip clothes. But these are what nature gave me and having listened to far too many girls grouse about being small, I love them. I love being shapely, too. So does Elsa. And, of course, a touch of magic keep’s ’em like they should be.” I was feeling a lot better now, talking about breasts instead of the fear that surrounded both of us.
I got up and found my cellphone and called my grandmother. Shit. No answer. I left a message for her to call me immediately, but I had a feeling that she wouldn’t. I abruptly bounced back to angry and threw my phone at the couch. “Goddamnit! Just when I need her the most!”
Nissa came over to me and hugged me again. “Jo, please breathe. No one can think when they’re angry and upset. Come. Sit. Close your eyes and let all this shit go. I’m here with you and I will keep you grounded. Please?”
She looked deep into my eyes and I knew she had to be doing something inside my head because I immediately slowed way down.
I nodded, deflated. “You win.”
We sat on the couch together with me stretching my legs out onto the coffee table. I conjured more wine. As I did precisely what Nissa suggested, I held tightly to her free hand and just let go.
A little later, as I was trying to pull myself together, I realized that I’d done more crying and sobbing in the last week than in my entire life.
Still sniffling a little, I asked Nissa, “Did you bring me something of Bob’s?”
