Autumn Calling

by T. Lynne Tolles

  “It does. She got hurt because she’s close to me. I’ve drawn her into this battle between families that she doesn’t need to be a part of. Nick wants me to push her away to keep her out of harm’s way.”

  “I understand Nick being concerned about Victoria’s well-being, but I don’t see pushing her away as a means of keeping her safe. She’s a willful human and I think that would only make her more determined to be involved.”

  “Only if she knows my reasons.”

  “So you’re thinking about lying to Victoria?”

  “I think Nick’s right. She’s in the line of fire because of me and I have to try to fix that. If I end our friendship, then the Macabres have no reason to use her as collateral or accidentally hurt her in trying to kill me. I’d never forgive myself if she were killed in my place, so I have to do something.”

  “I don’t see this working the way you intend. And despite Nick’s protective prowess, lying to Victoria could backfire on both you and him.”

  “I know you can see the possible outcomes of my decisions and that you can’t tell me what those paths might be. But I would never feel good about myself if I didn’t do all in my power to keep the ones I love out of danger. So I have to do this.”

  “Okay, if that’s how you truly feel, then that is what you should do. I’ll back you no matter what your decisions are and be there at the end of your path, waiting. But you know I am in the occupation of protection, too, so I will do whatever I need to do to keep you safe, even if it goes against Father and destiny itself.”

  She wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly, kissing his neck under his earlobe and whispering, “Thank you, my angel. Thank you!”

  * * *

  Preoccupied by the weight of guilt, Summer rode her bike to the office to meet the accountant who’d been stood up by Tori due to her accident. They needed to get payroll out for Dr. Stuart’s staff. They all understood the delay, but life goes on and people need to get paid. The cool air felt good on her face as she pumped the pedals down the neighborhood streets into town.

  There were people about, mostly merchants making their way to their shops to get ready for their workday to begin. Summer was not really paying attention to them, but mulling over in her head how she was going to pick a fight with Tori to distance herself. She and Tori had never had such a fight. Oh sure, they had tiffs, but nothing that angered either one of them to the point of not wanting to be friends, or even staying away from one another for more than a day at most.

  The reason for the fight had to be believable too, and that’s where Summer was having a terrible time. What could it be about that would legitimate enough for Tori to not want to be friends? Another worry was if she did come up with something, what if it permanently damaged their relationship? Summer only wanted a temporary solution for keeping Tori away, but what if it blew up in her face and became permanent?

  The thoughts that jumbled up in her mind were giving her an awful headache when she slowed for a stop sign a few blocks from the office. She heard the caw of a crow in the distance, but it didn’t really register with Summer. She was thinking about Tori lying in that hospital bed. Summer hated lying, and worse, she hated lying to Tori. Of course Tori usually knew when Summer was lying, so that made it a no-brainer. But this fight, in order to be plausible, would have to have some basis of truth, or Tori would see right through it.

  “Hmm,” she thought. “What if it had to do with the fact that Nick’s the reason Jackson hasn’t called? Yes. And I could be angry because I think Tori had a hand in it too. That might work.”

  More birds could be heard squawking close by. Summer turned her head just as a crow swooped down, grabbing her hair with its sharp claws. It was just a graze, but it was way too close for Summer’s comfort. She looked over her shoulder and the sky was darkening with hordes of black-winged birds.

  “Oh my God,” she said to herself and started pedaling for her life. Unable to out-race the winged beasts, she found herself being hit and attacked from three sides. One hit almost ejected her from the bike, but she caught her balance. The shrieking of birds everywhere made Summer pump the pedals with fury.

  Pelted by beaks and razor sharp talons, tears ran down her face as she came to a small canopy of trees. It slowed the birds enough that she got a little headway as she shot like a bullet to the parking lot of the clinic.

  She saw the accountant’s car in the parking lot first; then saw him standing at the door with a coffee in one hand and a briefcase in the other. She could see in his eyes the fear as the cloud of birds followed behind her. He dropped his coffee at the staggering sight as she fished through her pocket in search of the keys to the office, still pedaling like crazy. She looked down to find the right key and glanced over her shoulder to see what the accountant was seeing. “Geez,” she said, finding a tiny bit more speed to race to the door.

  She jumped from the bike as it traveled on to crash into the side of the building, just missing the accountant, shoved the key into the lock, and turned it. Summer yanked the accountant by the arm, shoving him in the door and following behind, closing it with a slam as dozens of birds sped head-on into the glass, leaving bloody streaks and black feathers in their place. Thumping could be heard on walls and the roof as hundreds of birds set out on their Kamikaze flight to their deaths.

  “What in the world is going on?” the accountant said, wiping his forehead of anxious perspiration.

  “I wish I knew,” Summer said, peering out the door to see one last bird hitting it, this time making a sparkling spider web of a break. Thank God the bulk of the hits were over. If the break had happened with the first hit, they would not have been safe within their present sanctuary. She sat with a thump in one of the reception chairs and caught her breath. The headache was gone due to the adrenaline that pumped through her body, but she could tell by the numbness at the base of her skull and the knot forming there, it would be back in full force very soon.

  After they both took a little breather, the accountant went off to his chore and Summer grabbed a black garbage bag and gloves to pick up the pile of dead birds outside the door. Looking through the cracked glass at the distorted view of outside between the blood and plumage, she made sure the coast was clear before moving through the door and assessing the damage.

  She opened the door and the mound of fowl corpses collapsed inward onto the black entry mat. She deposited one dead bird after another into the garbage bag. It made her sad to see so many dead, and wondered why they had attacked her. When she had made her way through the heap, she stepped outside. Still wary of the sky and what might come at her from above, she saw the building had been peppered with red blotches and feathers, but the bulk of the birds were centralized around the door.

  A sickening thought ripped at her gut that this was the Macabres’ doing somehow. They obviously had no respect for life, whether it was hers or the hundreds of birds that littered the parking lot. She thought about Tori, and wondered: just how crazy were these people that they had no regard for what or who might get in the way of their getting what they wanted? The worst thing, though, was her sister was among them. Was she as bloodthirsty as their father and the rest of family? And if it had been her instead of her sister who had lived with their father, would she have turned as ruthless and uncaring as the Macabres seemed to be?

  Her headache was back and her stomach was nauseated. There was no going back now. Tori had to be lied to keep her safe. There were no hems or haws about it anymore. She supposed, in her sadness, that Nick would be very satisfied to see that he’d won his battle: Tori would stay away, Jackson was out of the picture, and Summer would be on her own. But she wondered what long-term cost there would be in implementing this deception.

  The last thing Summer did before taking a taxi home was call a painter to power wash the building and see if they knew a contractor who would replace the cracked glass in the door. She looked forward to the quiet of her little home and felt sure there’d
be another bout of crying this evening. But she was getting tired of crying, and with each new event that made her cry, she became angrier at the Macabres and the endless death that seemed to smear the path of their greed.

  Chapter 9

  Summer did everything she could to prevent herself from visiting Tori. It killed her not to do so, but she was also determined to follow what her instincts were telling her. She’d been receiving text message by the hundreds from Tori asking her about all sorts of things, but mostly why she hadn’t been by. It helped that Summer no longer had a car. The insurance company had called and said they could arrange for a rental until they could get all the paperwork done, but ultimately it wasn’t her car. It was Dr. Stuart’s, and so getting a new car squared away would have to wait for him to come back from vacation.

  As Summer had suspected, she did have a good cry the night before, and her guardian angel was there to dry her tears. But she didn’t want him to think she was some weak, useless crybaby either, so they did have an informal date at the local burger joint, where an angry-looking Nick spied them while picking up a takeout order. It seemed there was no pleasing him, and well, she was tired of his crabbiness. She had more important things to take care of than worrying about his feelings all the time.

  For a moment, Summer was even enjoying herself until she got another text from Tori, sucking her back into reality of the situation. Summer could tell Tori was getting upset with her for not returning her texts or for visiting her. Summer figured it was just more fuel for the charade she would have to commence soon, and now might be the time to get it over with.

  “Wish me luck,” she said to Daniel.

  “You’re sure about this?”

  “Yup.”

  “Okay. Good luck then,” he said taking another bite of his burger and enjoying it.

  Tori: “What’s up with you? Haven’t seen or heard from you in over twenty-four hours.”

  Summer: “Busy.”

  “Too busy to text me a single word.”

  “Sorry.”

  “That’s it? You’re sorry but you’re too busy?”

  “I’m not sure what you’d like me to say. I don’t have a car so it’s harder to get to you.”

  “I’m sure you could hitch a ride with Nick. He’s been here every day.”

  “Naw. I don’t think I want to do that.”

  “You have a problem with Nick?”

  “No, well yes, actually.”

  “Like what?”

  “Well for starters he told me in so many words that he’s the reason Jackson wouldn’t return my calls or emails.”

  “So…You’re with Daniel now, aren’t you?”

  “Yes, I guess. It just makes me wonder.”

  “Wonder what?”

  “Did you have anything to do with Jackson?”

  “Why would you think that?”

  “I don’t know. You’re with Nick now. He obviously has issues with me. Makes me wonder, why?”

  “Why do you care if Nick likes you or not?”

  “It’s hard to have a best friend whose boyfriend doesn’t particularly like you. He’s always looking down his nose at me and scrutinizing what I’m doing and who I’m doing it with. It’s frustrating and annoying.”

  “So my boyfriend annoys you.”

  “Yeah. I’ve given him no cause to be that way with me and now that I’m not with Jackson he seems to be pushing me away from you.”

  “Oh? So it’s his doing that you’re not here.”

  “Partially, yes.”

  “So what, in order to be friends with you I have to give up Nick?”

  “I didn’t say that, you did.”

  “You implied it.”

  “Just making an observation.”

  “I see. Well fine. If I have to choose right now, I’d have to say I choose Nick, since he’s been here for me through this horrible situation and you’re being so insensitive.”

  “Wow. I guess a lifetime of friendship doesn’t add up to a hill of beans to you in the long run.”

  “Not the way you’re acting.”

  “Okay then.”

  “Fine.”

  “Fine.”

  Summer turned off her phone. She’d had enough. The seed had been planted and the charade begun. Daniel could see the pain in her eyes and took her hand, caressing it with his thumb. She relished the warmth of his tenderness and forced a smile his way. At least she had him to fall back on now that Tori was out of the picture.

  * * *

  The following week Summer threw herself into her lessons with such vigor that even Morti commented on her enthusiasm, but it was all a facade. She was torn apart inside, and working hard at learning magic was the only way to end this madness and get on with her life.

  She’d even formed a fire ball for Morti without singeing a hair on him, and they moved forward to levitating. She snarked to Morti if this meant she could ride a broom, to which he was not impressed.

  “Broom riding is a myth. Witches show great respect to their besoms, but not as a means to travel,” he stated.

  “But it could be done, right?”

  “Yes. I suppose if one had the inkling to do such a thing, yes. It could be done.”

  “Cool. That’s what I want to do. If I have to be thrown into the role of being a witch, then there will be some fun even if it kills you or me for that matter.”

  Morti stuttered, appalled and astonished by such a statement, but he didn’t go back on his word.

  Aunt Myrtle was another matter. She missed Tori, almost as much as Summer missed her. Summer supposed she enjoyed working with someone who had the same passion for gypsy magic as she did. Knowing it wasn’t quite Summer’s cup of tea, they covered the basics and moved on to potions, tonics, and charms.

  This Summer enjoyed. She got to use her knowledge of plants and the herbology she’d learned the previous summer from revitalizing the herbal garden and talking with Dr. Stuart. He had become a valuable asset for finding lost old names of plants and determining what they now referred to.

  Aunt Myrtle enjoyed puttering around in the garden doing maintenance. She took daily strolls at twilight within the confines of the estate in a huge hat held down with a pale chiffon scarf, making her look like a Gibson girl right out of the pages of a 1890’s magazine. Every once in a while she’d pick a stem of herb or a flower and smell it as she sauntered on her way.

  Evenings were spent with Daniel, whether playing with Sully or talking on the porch under the stars.

  * * *

  It had been well over a week since Summer had her last words with Tori when she woke to find her coffee table leaning hard to the right.

  “What the heck?” she said as she inspected it closely. Deep gouges were gnawed into the disfigured leg as well as some singeing.

  “Sully. Did you do that?” she said angrily. His sad looking eyes looked at her finger then to the table leg and back to her as if to say, “Uh, yup.”

  “No chewing on the furniture, Sully. That’s a bad dog,” she reprimanded, tripping over a chew bone and a triple knotted rope. “It’s not like you don’t have things to chew on,” she said, picking up the toys that littered the area and depositing them into a heavy duty canvas bucket she’d found at a garage sale. It looked to her like it could handle some serious chewing; at least more than the grapevine basket that held Sully’s toys before that was more or less a nub of twigs after he got done with it.

  As she was picking up things, she found a book that looked like the back of a porcupine, as well as her favorite sunglasses that disappeared. At least she thought they were the remnants of her sunglasses.

  She stood with the evidence in hand and one hand on her hip in front of the obvious perpetrator.

  “What is this?” she said, holding the items in front of him. “Did you do this too?” she scolded. He cocked his head to the right, perking up his ears, and then licked her toes as if to apologize.

  “I like kisses, Sully. That’s a good
dog, but this,” she shook the mutilated book and sunglasses, “This is not all right. Don’t chew on my stuff, Sully. Okay?”

  He wagged his tail as his tongue hung out over his lower canines, and she couldn’t help herself; she patted him on the head. Sully had her wrapped around his dewclaw, and he and she both knew it. All he had to do was lick her or flash a sad face, and she melted. Of course, he had a perpetual sad face on all the time, so he basically got whatever he wanted.

  When she finished cleaning up Sully’s toys, he ran over to the bucket and started retrieving the items as if it were great fun to re-scatter them about the room. Summer ignored him, curled up on the couch, and read her emails for the morning as she sipped coffee.

  She often received funny antidotes or comics from Sister Margaret, so she didn’t think twice when she saw her name in her inbox. She clicked on the name only to find a short letter to her.

  “My dear Summer. You know I love you dearly.”

  Oh, no. Whenever Sister Margaret started a sentence with “You know I love you dearly,” there was always a “but” to follow with some kind of reprimand.

  Summer continued reading. “But I felt it necessary to intervene in this squabble you and Victoria have concocted. In my opinion, your actions are very unlike you. Why would you not find the time to visit your best friend in the hospital? Didn’t the sisters and I teach you better than that? I’ve never known you to be unsympathetic to those in need. I just don’t understand this change in you. Have you forgotten our teachings? God would be very disappointed in you, my child. I think he’d want you to mend your fences and repent for your misdeeds.”

  “I expect to hear happy tidings next time I speak with Victoria, instead of the sad scuttlebutt of our last communications. I hope you will agree.”

  “In all things glory be to God.”

  “Sister Margaret.”

  “Oh boy,” Summer thought. Tori must have given the sister an earful. She hadn’t expected that, but she didn’t know what the fallout would be of her exaggerated falsification. It brought the wound it had made to the forefront yet again, and made her heart ache. She hated having to be away from Tori, but she still felt she was doing the right thing in keeping her at arm’s length. Her best friend would not find herself in the hospital again just for associating with her.