Diggin up crones, p.67
Diggin' Up Crones, page 67
“I’ve let go of some of the horror of that time,” I assured him. “The memories are something I’ll never be able to shake.”
“You’re in a melancholy mood this morning.”
“Melancholy or troubled?”
“Don’t make fun of my word choices.”
“I can’t help it. I need to find something to lighten the mood. When we get to Patsy Hamilton’s house … .”
Gunner nodded. He knew what we would find at Patsy’s as well as I did. “We’ll take it one step at a time.”
There was a leader out there we’d yet to lay eyes on and I was champing at the bit to get my hands on him. We knew at least part of the why. They wanted these key things and Bonnie’s power. The big picture had yet to fill in, however. I both needed to know and feared the answer.
GRAHAM WAS ALREADY INSIDE WHEN we parked in front of the house. It looked old, although well maintained. It was a log cabin design and all the flower beds in front were clean and free of weeds. It could have used some updates, but it was a cute house in a pretty location.
Unfortunately, something very ugly had taken place inside.
The woman on the floor — Patsy, I assumed — had tried to escape. It was obvious from the way the coffee table had been shoved against the wall and the couch had been moved away from its normal spot in front of the television. Patsy lay in the center of the rug, her eyes staring at the ceiling. Like the others, she’d been stabbed through the heart.
“How long?” I asked as I stared down at the woman. Nothing about her stood out.
“I guess she died around midnight,” Graham replied. His men had filtered outside when we arrived, checking the woods for tracks. “The medical examiner will be able to pin that down.”
I pursed my lips. “She was married to a shifter at one point,” I said, picking up the thread of my earlier conversation with Gunner. “Are her kids shifters?”
“Two daughters,” Graham replied, nodding. “I believe Kate has shifted, but she doesn’t have anything to do with the pack. She’s about thirty.” He looked to Gunner for confirmation. “You dated her, right?”
Gunner glared at him. “Thanks.”
“Oh, an ex-girlfriend.” I tried to force a teasing smile. “I guess I’ll have to fight her to the death.” Even saying it was a waste. I didn’t have it in me to feign jealousy.
“The other girl, Kelly, never shifted,” Graham continued. “She’s twenty-six or so. She lives in Wisconsin.”
Gunner nodded. “I forgot about that.”
I gave him a look. “Did you date both of them?”
Gunner grimaced. “No. I remember when she was leaving. Everyone made fun of her because she was going to have to root for Green Bay. It was a whole thing.”
“Right.”
“Football,” Gunner prodded.
“I’m well aware of what football is,” I assured him. “I’ve even watched a game here or there.” Watching sports wasn’t my favorite thing but I could follow them easily enough. “You don’t have to pity me.”
“People should pity me,” he muttered. “I fell in love with a woman who ruins football season for me. It’s the worst.”
“There, there,” I teased, patting his arm. Then I went back to studying the cabin. “Where’s her bedroom?”
“You think that she had one of those keys Cernunnos warned you about,” Graham surmised.
“It’s the only assumption we have to go on,” I replied.
He considered it. “You have two. Something was taken from Edna Hawkins’s house. If something was taken from here, that’s all four.”
“We’re assuming they got a key from Edna’s house,” I replied. “Maybe they didn’t. Maybe they took something else.”
Graham didn’t look convinced. “We agreed something had been taken from that shelf.”
“But there’s no way of knowing what.” I leaned closer. “And, I got a whiff of magic in the closet. It was different from when I got these.” I removed the keys from my pocket.
“Okay, I’ll bite,” Graham said. “How was it different?”
He was putting me on the spot, but I had opened my big mouth. “These smell like cedar and clove.” I held up the keys so he could scent them himself. “Whatever was in Edna’s house had a distinct smell of lavender … and maybe a little anise.”
Graham’s face was blank. “I don’t know why that’s important.”
“Clove is used for exorcisms and healings. It’s used in a lot of love spells. Cedar is often used in protection spells. It repels enemies.”
Graham focused on the keys in my hand. “So they’re trying to protect someone from being possessed by the devil?”
“I don’t know if the answer will be that easy, but sure.”
“And the star anise?” he prodded.
“It’s to generate power. It can also help with visions. It’s often used when seeking prophecies.”
Understanding dawned on Graham’s face. “Whatever they grabbed from Edna’s house was to help them find the keys.”
“They’ve already lost two keys,” Gunner pointed out. “Why not give up? They’ll never get them back.”
“They obviously don’t believe that.” I shook my head. “They’re trying to get the other two — one of which I believe they got their hands on last night — and then they’re going to come for me.”
A muscle worked in Gunner’s jaw. “Why do you look so excited at the prospect?”
“I much rather they come for me than innocent people,” I answered honestly. “We’ve had no problem fighting them off so far.” I could have left it there but I didn’t. It simply wasn’t my way. “Of course, we haven’t met Makishi yet. He’s made sure of that.”
Gunner went ramrod straight. “Why are you smiling? Why do you look excited about fighting the big bad?”
“You know why.” I left him to stew in the living room, certain his father was about to get an earful, and found Patsy’s bedroom. Her closet door was open and I looked inside. Her clothes had been ransacked. On the shelf above the rod there was an open space.
I looked behind me, at the bed, and saw a jewelry box. It was made of cedar — I could smell it from several feet away — and when I looked inside I found several pieces of jewelry. They were simple pieces, a gold chain and cross, diamond earrings, and an old engagement ring. The key, if it was ever in the box, was gone.
It was here.
I nodded, as if responding to my inner voice, and then left the bedroom with the box. A woman was with Graham and Gunner when I emerged. She was pretty and blond, although not as tall as me. Her eyes were red-rimmed and puffy. Someone — Graham I was guessing — had thrown a sheet over the body.
Kate, I assumed. They said the younger daughter had moved away.
“You shouldn’t be here, Kate,” Graham said in a comforting voice as he patted the woman’s back.
“She’s my mother,” Kate gritted out around sobs. “I have to be here.”
“There’s nothing you can do for her.” Graham said. “Being here is torture for you.”
Kate’s eyes narrowed when she saw the box in my hand. “Who are you?” she barked.
I had no recollection of this woman. If I’d ever met her, it had been brief. Given the size of Hawthorne Hollow, it was likely that we’d crossed paths at some festival or other. But I had no doubt she recognized me. My relationship with Gunner was still the talk of the town. Apparently, he was a womanizer — although he denied it — before my entrance into his life. People were fascinated by the woman who had tamed Gunner’s wandering eye. I had no doubt that Kate, who had dated Gunner, knew exactly who I was.
“This is Scout,” Graham, looking uncomfortable, said. “She’s consulting with us.”
Kate looked insulted. “You really expect me to believe that?”
I strode forward. “I need you to tell me if something is missing from this jewelry box.”
Kate’s forehead creased. “Excuse me?”
“You heard me.” I felt bad for her — she’d just lost her mother — but I needed confirmation.
Kate narrowed her eyes. “I don’t answer to you.”
“Let’s not turn this into a pissing match,” I said. “You know I’m not a consultant. You’re part shifter. You understand there’s something bigger going on here.”
Kate opened her mouth, then shut it. “What are you?” she asked finally, accepting the box.
“Witch,” I replied succinctly. It was the easiest answer.
“And you’re helping Graham and Gunner on this?”
“They’re helping me.”
Graham made a face. “Geez,” he complained, “your ego.”
I waved him off and kept my focus on Kate.
“My mom didn’t have a lot of expensive jewelry,” she said. “These are all the big pieces.”
“What about something that looks like this?” I pulled the bookmark out of my pocket.
Kate instinctively reached for it but then pulled back her hand when I shook my head. “This is not from this house. It came from somewhere else. There are four of them. We know where two of them are. I need to know if your mother had one.”
Kate nodded. “It didn’t look exactly like that. It was more like a bracelet. My father gave it to her. She said it was the reason she agreed to marry him even though she knew it was a bad idea. It was at a carnival and he bought the leather part of the bracelet at a craft show and made the other part, the one with the symbol.”
“Did he tell her what the symbol represented?” I asked.
“He said that it was a symbol of protection for his people.”
I glanced at Gunner and he shook his head.
“I don’t recognize the symbol,” Gunner said. “It’s not a symbol of protection for our people.”
“But Hal Shipman got his hands on it somehow and gave it to his wife,” I said.
“Do you think he knew it was a key?” Graham asked.
“I’ve never met the man.”
Kate let loose a hollow laugh. “Trust me, if my father knew that thing was at all valuable, he would have sold it or kept it. The fact that he gave it to my mother suggests he was just talking out of his ass when he gave it to her.”
“I wonder where he got it,” Gunner said.
“Can you call him and ask?” I asked Kate.
She shook her head. “I haven’t seen my father in years. We saw him sporadically when we were kids, after my parents separated. Heck, we barely saw him when they were married. He was much more interested in running around on our mother than being a father.”
My heart went out to her. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s fine. I don’t have particularly fond memories of what I do remember.” She exhaled heavily. “We saw him about once a month when he was still in town after the divorce. By his third marriage, we never saw him. He didn’t even recognize me when he saw me downtown one day. That’s how long it had been.”
“Do you have his number?” Graham asked.
“It’s around here somewhere,” Kate said. “I can probably track it down if it’s important.”
“It’s a loose end we need to chase,” Graham replied apologetically. “We won’t make you talk to him. We just need to know where he got that bracelet.”
“Other than a cheap engagement ring, it’s the only thing he ever gave my mother,” Kate said bitterly. “And it’s the reason she’s dead.”
“I’m sorry,” I said again.
“Gawd, if I didn’t already hate that man.” She grimly shook her head. “I’ll find the number. Can I take this with me when I go?” She lifted the jewelry box.
“Yes,” Graham replied. “Is there anything else you need to get out of here?”
“Mom had a binder of information for when she died. She was always uber prepared for stuff. She even prepaid for a burial plot. I need that binder.”
Graham bobbed his head. “Find the number and I’ll help you get the binder. We’ll handle the rest.”
Kate didn’t respond. Her eyes were on me. “Are you going to kill whoever did this?”
There was no hesitation when I answered. “It certainly looks that way.”
“Make it hurt.”
“I’ll do my best.”
21
TWENTY-ONE
Ialready knew that Hal Shipman was a tool before he even picked up the phone. Graham put him on speaker when he made the call. I wanted to reach through the phone and kill the man less than sixty seconds in.
“That’s my property,” he insisted when Graham explained about the bracelet. “I want it back.”
“I just told you we don’t have it,” Graham pointed out in an even voice. I had no idea how he did it. If I had to deal with idiot people on a daily basis, I would go insane. Or, more likely, I would purposely drive them insane.
“I don’t believe you.” Hal didn’t sound entitled. “That shrew. She was always taking from me.”
Irritation kicked me in the stomach. “Listen here, you walking skid mark,” I hissed.
Graham tried to nudge me back but I was having none of this.
“I’m going to rip your gallbladder out and shove it down your throat and make you swallow it over and over until you die,” I threatened. “You can live forever without your gallbladder so it will take a long time. I’m just that patient.”
The silence on the other end of the call stretched so long I assumed Hal had hung up. When he spoke, it was with reverence. Unfortunately, he was still himself.
“Are you hot?” he asked. “You sound hot. How old are you?”
“The same age as one of the daughters you abandoned,” I spat. “Where did you get that bracelet?”
“I’ll only tell you if you return it to me when you get it back.” Hal sounded defiant. Kate had been right. He only cared that he might get something for the bracelet.
“We can’t promise that,” Graham started.
I sent him a terse headshake to stop him from finishing. “If we get it back, we’ll give it to you,” I lied. The only thing I would be giving this man was a never-ending burns-when-he-pees hex. “You’ll have to come get it. We’re not bringing it to you.”
“Aw, come on,” Hal cajoled. “Munising is beautiful this time of year.”
I had no idea what a Munising was. “You have to come here. We all have jobs and don’t have time to cater to you being the dirty end of a turd sandwich. If you want it, come and get it.”
“I’m between cars,” Hal hedged.
For a moment, I imagined myself opening a plane door behind this guy just to kick him in the ass. Then I remembered I could actually do that. I thought about it and decided it would be a gross waste of magic. “Worth it,” I said to myself.
I opened a plane door and walked through. “Scout!” was the last thing I heard Gunner yelp as I disappeared.
Weirdly, I heard him cry out my name from the other end of the call when I appeared behind Hal. He was exactly as I imagined, greasy hair surrounding a prominent bald spot to go along with his filthy white T-shirt.
“Hey,” I said, causing Hal to jolt. We were in the middle of a messy apartment. “You’re not getting the bracelet back and you are going to tell me where you got it,” I growled. Then, just because I could, I kicked him in the butt.
He yelped and dropped his phone. I caught it. “I’ll be home in just a minute,” I assured Graham and Gunner.
“You went there?” Graham was incredulous.
I shrugged. “It’ll be faster than arguing with this walking butt zit. I’ll be home before you know it.” I ended the call and advanced on Hal, who was edging toward the door. “Where did you get the bracelet?”
He was so white he was almost transparent. “I don’t remember,” he chirped.
“Liar.” I raised a hand and ignited it with threatening red fire. I wasn’t outing myself to this guy. He was already familiar with magic. Besides, if he tried to tell anyone about this interaction, they wouldn’t believe him. “I will burn your teeny-weenie until it’s nothing more than a nub,” I threatened, lowering my hand and pointing it toward his crotch. “It’s probably close to that as it is, but I’ll enjoy it.”
Hal’s eyes couldn’t get any wider. “Don’t do that!”
“Then tell me where you got that bracelet.”
“I stole it,” Hal replied. “I went into a big house after I knew the owner was killed and ransacked it looking for items to sell. I didn’t think the bracelet was worth selling.”
“You got a tip that someone had been killed and decided to steal from the dead,” I translated. “The bracelet was with the other items you took.”
He bobbed his head. “I thought it looked cool. I was dating Patsy at the time. She was interested in the shifter stuff.”
“And you knew you could tell her anything and she would believe it.”
“Don’t judge me.” Hal’s eyes narrowed. “A man in love will do almost anything.”
I wasn’t going to fall for that. “You’ve never loved anyone but yourself. What else did you steal from that house?”
“Nothing good. It had already been picked over. I got some sterling silver candlesticks and some expensive looking art. All in all I got about five-hundred bucks for the stuff I stole.”
“Who was the owner of the bracelet?”
Hal balked. “I don’t remember.”
Liar. “Tell me or I’ll make it feel as if you’re sitting on a telephone pole for the rest of your life.”
“You wouldn’t!”
“I certainly would. I loathe you.”
He swallowed hard. “You’re evil, aren’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Why do you want the bracelet?”
“That’s none of your concern. I’ll tell you what I’m going to do if you don’t cooperate though, and it’s not pretty.” I leaned close. “I will hex you with a thousand paper cuts on your penis.” I reconsidered almost immediately. “There’s no way it’s big enough for a thousand paper cuts. Let’s go with a hundred. Then I will make it so five times a day it feels as if you’re putting that penis in a glass of lemon juice.”
