This had to be illegal. It was completely dark, and Brooke just climbed over two chain-link fences. That’s two more than she ever climbed over in her life. Surely people only did that on television. But here she was with a flashlight in her hand, following a white rabbit. Who was she? Alice?
No, she wasn’t Alice, and this definitely wasn’t wonderland. Unless everyone who lost the head to the queen of hearts was buried here. The small rabbit darted across the graveyard. It bounced between headstones, nibbling flowers left for loved ones, only to stop in front of the mausoleum.
“Where are you going, little bunny?” Brooke asked, peeking from behind a tree.
The steps glowed as the rabbit hopped up to the door, each paw glowing the same color. Scared to move, Brooke kept still as possible. She had been following the rabbit for the last six hours after it escaped from her professor’s laboratory. Until this magic moment, she did not know why her professor was so under that it escaped. All it did was poop all over the lab and eat power cords. If anything, the rabbit’s escape was a blessing. At least it was to this broke college student. Who could afford to replace 80 dollar cables every other week?
With at least a decade’s worth of grime encrusted on the track, the door of the mausoleum creaked open. Silently, Brooke prayed the door wouldn’t shut before she got there. She couldn’t see a handle or a lock from where she stood. From all appearances, the mausoleum seemed sealed.
As if the universe heard her prayer, the door became stuck in the grime as it tried to close. Brooke raced from her hiding spot. Her heart pounded. She could hear the door almost freeing itself. Brooke slid in just in time as the door slammed shut.
The years of dust overpowered Brooke’s need for stealth. She coughed and gagged trying to catch her breath. And to make things worse… Her flashlight died.
Thankfully, whoever designed this house of the dead loved the moon. A rich glow poured in from the constellation windows that lined the ceiling. Brooke looked all over for the rabbit, but only found a large marble pedestal holding a black onyx coffin. Creeping around the coffin, Brooke saw tracks in the dust swooping out in a crescent pattern. However, there was no way a five-pound bunny would have been able to move the heavy coffin.
Brooke dropped to the ground. If the rabbit could activate whatever trip device moved the coffin, it would have to be on the floor. Brooke looked around for any sign of an unlevel tile, a button, a clue of some kind.
“Nothing better eat me,” she muttered to herself as her hand traced along the foot of the pedestal. “I don’t get paid enough for this.”
As she stood, her foot slipped on the dust, and she kicked the pedestal. Brooke desperately grasped for something to soften her fall, but there was nothing, not even the floor. The title had disappeared. Brooke plummeted into the darkness. Her screams echoing against the walls.
“What a horrible way to die.” Brooke thought. “Alone, afraid, body mangled, where no one will ever find me.”
But the sounds of crashing waves drowned her fears, replacing them with new ones. Brooke’s arms waved wildly by her side. Water meant she had to get her body in the correct position. If she wanted to avoid breaking any bones or knock herself out, Brooke had to enter the water with her toes pointed at a 45-degree angle, legs closed, and arms secured to her side. Drown was not the way she planned on dying. But Brooke was in the dark in more ways than one. She didn’t know how much time she had.
The sound grew closer. Brooke had stopped screaming long ago. She didn’t need her mouth hanging open to catch a mouth full of water. But that didn’t stop her from thinking how dead that rabbit was if it survived the fall. The salty mist stuck to her face. Quickly, she drew her arms to her side and pointed her toes. A wave crashed over head dragging her deeper under the water. Brooke tumbled under wave after wave, unable to tell which way was up. Her lungs burned from lack of oxygen and her eyes stung. She wanted to shut them to make the pain go away. As her vision blurred, four bright lights darted through the water. The rabbit.
Brooke kicked after the vexing bunny, finally breaking the surface, only to be smacked in the face by another wave. But a breath of soggy air was better than death. Brooked gasped, treading water. Every muscle burned, but that meant she was alive. A wave pushed her forward. Or where she thought forward would be. Where did she fall? Maybe this was wonderland after all.
The sky, or ground covering, wherever she was, was still dark. However, there was a faint glow in the distance. With a bit of salt oxygen in her lungs, Brooke paddled forward, hoping she was heading in the same direction as the phosphorescent rabbit.
Waves crashed harder as the horizon came into view. A sharp and dangerous reef was under Brooke. She protected her head as she dove with the waves. She felt like a dolphin, only there was no joy in her dives, only survival. A few times, panic set in her when kelp wrapped around her ankles. Brooke thought maybe a giant squid or octopus had attacked her. Only she had seen no living creature in the water aside from the troublesome bunny here and there.
At last her feet met the sea floor. Exhausted, she wasn’t sure if she should try standing, fearful that once she stopped swimming, she’d be unable to start again. Brooke was having a hard time making out the land ahead of her. She could see trees, but the waves still swallowed the beach. Finally, she stood. Waves broke on shore and gently receded. Satisfied that the shore wasn’t covered in rocks, she rode in the waves instead of swimming.
The final wave brought Brooke ashore. Laying in the shore break, Brooke started laughing. What had her life become? All she wanted to do was earn extra credit by finding the stupid rabbit. Not go on some wild adventure where the sand glistened.
Brooke rolled over. With her face close to the sand, she discovered it wasn’t the typical sand she had spent a lifetime looking at. Instead of being tan and white, these were particles of black, green, red, purple and blues. Sitting up, she scooped a handful of sand and let it run through her fingers. They felt like tiny little gem stones. But why didn’t they scratch her more than the sand at home did?
A vine trailed down the beach from the dunes, ending in front of Brooke. She trudged her way to the plant, only to find that it, too, was not normal. It possessed the flexibility of a plant, yet the strength of emeralds. Brooke stranded her eyes towards the forest ahead of her. That’s when she saw all the palms on the palm trees glistened like the sand. A breeze floated from the sea and into the forest. All the trees sounded like delicate wind chimes.
Another breeze blew, this time it caressed her face and whispered. “We’ve been waiting for you Brooke.”
Brooke’s eyes widened. There at the edge of the forest were a group of soldiers clad in gleaming armor. And in the arms of the leader was the illuminated rabbit.
I almost choked on my water. Was this guy serious? The look on his face and the fact that he was waiting for me to respond answered that question. This was officially the last internet date I was ever going on.
“What makes you say that?” I could have easily said no, but what would have been the fun in that?
He stared at me for a moment longer while he cut his meat. “Your hair is too perfect, and your skin glistens in the moonlight.”
I laughed behind my napkin. “Thank you. I’m not sure that the three hours of work I put into my hair should be what qualifies me as a fairy.”
“Also, you don’t wear any iron,” he said with a mouth full of well-done steak. Yep. He was officially nuts. “Would you excuse me for a moment?”
How could this guy be that much off his rocker? I could still hear him gnawing on the leather as I made my way to the bathroom. I was praying the bathroom would be a multi-stall so I could hide all the way in the back while making a phone call. That way, I wouldn’t have to worry about Mr. Fairy Hunter pressing himself against the door and listening.
The women’s door was the first in the hall. Why is this the one time that the emergency door is nowhere to be found? It would have been the perfect chance to slip right out and not have to go back to the crazy man.
I opened the door to find a perfectly pristine single bathroom. This would never happen if I really had to go. I pressed myself as far away from the door as possible and called my roommate.
“So, how’s the hot professor?” Sarah chirped.
“Awful. This guy is a lunatic.” The doorknob wiggled. “Someone’s in here!”
“I’m sorry, but your date is asking if you are alright.” The sixteen-year-old hostess yelled through the locked door, clearly embarrassed.
Sarah gasped. “Oh no, he didn’t!”
I think the hostess heard my palm smack against my forehead through the door. “Tell him I’ll be out shortly.”
“I’m so sorry.” She said again before running down the hall.
I flushed the empty toilet. “You heard that, right?”
“Dude, he is batshit.” She was so excited about my lousy date that I could hear her bouncing around on our couch.
“Sarah. He asked me if I was a fairy.” I knew from her laughing that she was now rolling around on the floor. “It’s not funny. He was serious.”
“Okay, okay.” She was choking back tears. “So, where am I picking you up from?”
“Cafe Chardonnay.” I just realized how stupid I had been. I had a total stranger pick me up from my house, and now he knows where I live. My father will chew me out the moment he gets wind of this.
Sarah started to salivate. “Oh, Caroline, please bring me your leftovers.”
If I hadn’t heard her car keys rattle, I would have been pissed by her request. But she was less than ten minutes away, and I didn’t want to give her any reason to be late or leave me stranded. “No can do. I’m feigning food poisoning.”
I dabbed some water across my hairline to make it look as though I’ve been sweating. I was already super pale, so I didn’t know how to make myself look any sicker besides having dead eyes. I slowly made my way to the table. I didn’t need to fake being sick anymore. Just as I saw him, my stomach started to churn. For a moment, I thought I might throw up.
“There you are. I was starting to worry about you, Caroline.” He held out my chair for me.
Why did he have to be crazy? He was polite, and until now, he was able to hold a decent conversation. Sitting across from him was easy since he was mildly attractive. He was about 5’10 with small shoulders. He kept saying how he lifted weights during our Skype conversation, but it seems he missed his upper body. But what annoyed me throughout dinner was his hair. I guess you can do only so much with so little hair. I would have loved to say he had a nice smile because that was the first thing that made me like his profile. But in person, when he introduced himself, there was something about his smile that just gave me the creeps.
“Yep, here I am,” I said in my wooziest voice.
“Are you alright? Here sit down.” He tried to force me into the chair.
I’m not sure how I was still standing. He was surprisingly strong. “Elliott, I hate to do this, but I have to go.”
He was alarmed and whispered, “Is it because I know?”
“No, no, not that.” I stopped myself from knocking him in the head. How could a thirty-five-year-old man believe in fairies? “It’s that I don’t feel well, and I’m not a fairy.”
Before he could protest, I was already heading to the door. I didn’t look back. I couldn’t. Even though he was strange, I felt bad for upsetting him. I wasn’t sure what was worse, getting stood up or having your date walk out on you. The bath I ran for myself did nothing for me. I couldn’t get the last look Elliott gave me out of my head. It was a mix of betrayal and disbelief. I knew I shouldn’t have looked back, but Sarah wouldn’t stop staring at him.
“Hot beverage?” Sarah asking knocking on my door.
“Sure, whatcha got?” But I knew Sarah didn’t believe in pills, so this was going to be interesting. “Because anything that would knock me out right now would be highly appreciated.”
“I promise it tastes better than it smells.” She handed over the smelly concoction. “It’s just honey, tea, and some herbs.”
“Thanks.” I tried to drink what smelled like old gym sock juices, but no matter how much I wanted to avoid it, I knew it would help me sleep. “Make sure you lock the windows.”
Sarah whined, “But it’s so nice out.”
“You’re the one who wanted to live on the first floor.” I almost shut the door before saying, “Thanks again for saving me.”
She smiled. “Now, you just owe me dinner.”
The following day was rough. I felt worse than I should have. Maybe Sarah’s tea didn’t mix well with my one glass of wine. Or perhaps it was the weird dreams. Whatever it was, I was taking it out on my toast.
Zombie Sarah came out with rollers still in her hair and only one eye of makeup done. She headed straight to the coffee pot.
“You look like shit,” I said. She gave me the stink eye. “Yeah, thanks to you and your late-night visitor.”
That unnerved me. I thought when I heard Elliott’s voice last night. It was in my dream. “No one was here. I passed out after I finished your magic juice.”
The zombie left as Sarah bolted to the front door. She stepped out and almost onto a vase of a dozen long stem roses. It was 6:30 in the morning, and there wasn’t anyone around who delivered flowers that early. Sarah picked up the card and read it. “I think you’re going to need a gun and a restraining order,” she said, handing me the card. Written on the back of a picture of me from earlier in the week was:
You’re the most beautiful dreamer.
– E
“Do you have anyone you can stay with?” I wasn’t going to subject her to my stalker.
“You know I’ve been saving up my vacation time. I might as well use it now.” Sarah dumped the water and roses into our bushes. “At least the vase is pretty.”
It was almost nine before the police arrived. They would have been called earlier if I hadn’t called my dad first. The ex-marine, now judge, did not take kindly to his baby girl being stalked. After an hour of arguing, I agreed to let him send Greg to pick me up.
“I trust him with my life.” He said when I finally gave in.
“Alright, Dad, have him here as soon as he can.” I needed to come home for a visit, but not like this. “I should be ready to come home by then.”
“Caroline, you’ll be breaking your lease.” He said flatly. “I’ll cover everything for you and Sarah’s new place.”
“Thanks, Dad.” I can’t say I wasn’t used to him making these decisions.
I had spent my life moving with him because of the Marines and a few more times because some crazy people found out where he lived and wanted to kill him. Sarah started packing as the police knocked on our door. After a few questions, they asked me for Elliott’s picture. I tried to pull up his dating profile, but it was gone. When I logged into my email, I saw I had a new Facebook notification. I couldn’t believe what I was reading. Do you agree with this relationship change?
The cops wrote down all his information before asking me about last night.
“What exactly did you hear?”
“I couldn’t really tell you.” I hated not having more to give them.
“I can tell you what happened.” Sarah came out of her room. “It was three in the morning, and I heard whisperings outside.”
“One voice or two?” The officer asked.
“Well, I thought it was Caroline, but I know now it wasn’t. So, I’m really hoping it was only one, or that’s going to make this even stranger.” Sarah shuttered. “I heard footsteps going past my window and to the patio. Someone rattled the door, but thank God for that stick.”
“Florida security at its finest,” the female officer joked. “Was there anything else?”
“No, I couldn’t really make out what he was saying.” Sarah was holding my hand. I was shaking.
The cops left after a nice long chat about internet dating safety. They told me they were placing an undercover officer to watch my door until Greg and I left. I didn’t hear a knock until eleven. There was a small part of me dreading looking through the peephole. Thankfully there was only one green eye smashed up against it.
“You got to move,” I called to him.
He stepped back, and I had to give the cop getting out of his car a thumbs up.
“Sargent Macoy, you’re looking well.” I bit down on my lip to keep myself from laughing.
“Alright, smart ass, get your stuff.” He looked at my four large duffel bags and sighed. “Moving?”
“Yep, you know, dad. The first sign of trouble I have to hide,” I shrugged.
Greg tossed one on each shoulder. “Well, maybe if you weren’t so small, he wouldn’t have to.”
“Because I can really help that.” I picked up a set of picture frames and followed him out the door. “I can still outrun you.”
We finished loading the truck before Sarah emerged from her room. “So that’s Greg?”
“Yep.” I wasn’t going to rehash everything with her when I had to spend four hours in a car with the person who broke my heart.
Greg came out of my room, wiping his brow. “Do you need to pack anything else before the movers come?”
“Nope, everything that matters is in the truck.”
“Or about to be,” Sarah whispered.
I hugged Sarah goodbye. I knew we would see each other in about two weeks, but this was the first time we would be apart since freshman year of college. With both of us being only children, we bonded to each other. She always said I was the sister she never had, and the same was true for me. The road trip was going to be a long one of corn, cows, and no talking. I’m not sure what possessed my father to send Greg, but the father knows best, right? Guess he forgot about the months of torment I went through after Greg sent me a Dear John letter while he was in Afghanistan.
“What’s up, little one?” He broke my train of thought.
My cheek was moist. Damn it. “Nothing. Just exhausted.”
I could feel his eyes on me and knew he was refraining from calling me out on my lie. “So tell me about your stalker. How did you meet him?”
After telling my dad and the cops the story, it just fell out. “We met online, talked on Skype for a week, and I gave him my number.”
“After only a week?” He was judging me.
If I had been driving, I would have hit the brakes. “Oh, because that is worse than a guy three years older than me grabbing my phone and putting his number in it?”
“We were in class together.” He didn’t like being compared to Elliott. “It’s not like I was some stranger.”
“Right.” I stared back out the window. “We talked for hours for a few nights and sent a bunch of texts. He seemed so normal. It was nice to talk to someone like that again, you know?”
“I don’t.” He wasn’t looking at me. He kept his eyes square on the road, both hands white-knuckled on the wheel.
“That was your choice, remember?” I can’t believe we were doing this now. I graduated from college and buried those feelings long ago.
“Caroline, we were young.” The wipers went across the windshield, wiping off the rain. He was still a man of little words.
“Yet here we are, years later, and you are still rescuing me from the bad guys.”
I don’t know how long we sat in silence because I fell asleep. I woke only when I heard the truck’s tires going over the gravel drive. All I needed next was to hear the howls of the foxhounds, and I would know I was home. My dad’s call was louder than the three dogs.
“Caroline!”
I was still groggy from the ride, but I tried to muster up the same excitement. “Hi, Daddy.”
Greg was already pulling my duffel bags from the truck bed. As I gathered my pillow and blanket, I noticed he had hidden something on his dash in front of his speedometer. The thing looked like it had been to hell and back, but I knew exactly what it was. I was surprised to see he kept it.
“Greg?” I stopped him before he grabbed another bag. I held up the bulldog that was now missing a leg. “Why did you keep it?”
He snatched it back and carefully placed it back in its spot. “You need to talk to your father.”
I didn’t move from that spot. I watched them both unload the truck before stopping to shake hands and talk a bit more. What had my father done? “Have you been to see your mother?” Dad asked as he poured me a glass of wine.
“I figured we could go together after dinner.” I liked goinguntil with Dad to visit Mom’s grave. He gave me the strength to talk to the cold stone.
It wasn’t until he brought out my favorite dessert that I finally asked him. “Why did you send Greg?”
“Like I said, I trust him with my life.” He served me a slice of warm apple pie.
“Even after how he broke up with me?” I watched my father, a judge who has dealt with murders and child molestation cases, become speechless. “Dad, what did you do?”
“He was going to propose, but you were only eighteen,” he stated. “You had so much going for you. I wasn’t going to let you waste your life being a military wife.”
“Are you saying Mom wasted her life on you?” I couldn’t believe this. I had grown up hearing him say that serving was the greatest honor of his life.
“No, but you aren’t your mother.” His tone signaled he wanted to end the conversation.
“I think you wanted to keep me close, and you knew with me moving around with Greg that wouldn’t happen. Me leaving would have been harder than you’d like to admit.” I waited for him to stop me. “I’m going for a run.”
Pick me up. I texted Greg.
I laced my shoes as I heard my dad talking to Greg downstairs. Thankfully, there wasn’t any yelling between the two of them. I pulled up the zipper on my jacket before skipping down the stairs. I was going to plant a giant kiss right on his lips just to piss off my dad. But when I hit the landing, the voice I heard wasn’t Greg.
“Young man, I don’t want to tell you again.” My dad was blocking Elliott from getting inside. “Get off my property before I let the dogs out on you.”
This couldn’t be happening. I didn’t see any cars following us on our way up. How did he know who my dad was and where he lived? I never told him anything that personal.
My phone vibrated. It was Greg. I did my best to make it up the stairs without making a sound. “He’s here,” I whispered into the phone.
“Caroline, hide. If you can, lock yourself in the attic.” He sounded as if he had thought this through before.
“You know I hate the attic.” But I ran and pulled the steps down.
I could see Greg’s truck pull into view as a gunshot went off.
“No, no, no.” I forced myself to stay upstairs. I had to keep from pacing. There was someone beneath me. No one called my name, so I knew it was the fairy hunter.
I heard the front door slam open, but it was too late. Elliott was pulling down the attic cord. The waving string probably gave away my hiding spot. I balanced myself on the window frame. If he came too close, I was going to jump.
“Don’t worry, little fairy. I’m not going to hurt you.” Elliott was holding a net in his hands.
“I’m not a fairy, you fucking creep!” I couldn’t hold back. He had ruined my life and shot my father. In what world was I not going to be afraid of him?
Elliott ran with the net, ready to ensnare me. I shoved the window open and let the frigid December air kiss my face as I fell. I quickly tucked my legs to my chest, allowing my body to rotate. I only had a few moments to get my head and arms ready to brace for the impact of the water.
“She flies!” I heard Elliott shriek from the darkness above.
The police sirens were muffled under the water. I looked up and saw Greg smiling at me through the ripples. “I knew you’d figure it out,” he said, pulling me from the water.
“Guess all those years of diving really paid off.” I shook a bit as we walked. “My dad?”
“He’s alive. I stopped the bleeding in his arm, but he’s going to need surgery.” He took off his jacket and wrapped it around my shoulders. “Doesn’t he know that you’re a mermaid, not a fairy?”
A police officer called me over. “Ms. Crommett, we would like to take your statement now, if you don’t mind.”
I passed Elliott, locked away in the car and shouting at me. The officers shook their heads, embarrassed for him since he didn’t have the sense to be on his own. My dad groaned as they lifted him into the ambulance.
“You okay?” I asked.
“Oh, this? It’s nothing.” He hurt his arm when he tried to laugh. “I told you I trusted him with my life.”
“So you did. I could have gone my whole life without knowing that.”
They shut the doors after I hugged him goodbye. There wasn’t much to go over with the authorities. I wasn’t sure how Elliott found my father’s house, and I didn’t care enough to find out. If I never saw him again, life would be grand, but the officer had already told me I’d probably have to be at this trial.
“I promise there is no need for you to stay, officer.” Greg stood next to me, holding my hand.
“I’m in good hands.”
“Are you sure? Because I don’t need Judge Crommett coming after me if anything were to happen to you.” Officer Stevens shook Greg’s hand.
Greg laughed at the look he was given. “Don’t worry, Mike. Things have been smoothed out.”
The police officers drove off, finally giving me the chance to change into something warm.
Greg called from the bathroom door. “Do you want to stay here or go to my place?”
As much as I would have loved to cuddle with him in my childhood bed like we did in high school, my house was giving me the creeps. “Yours.”
Greg picked me up the moment I came out of the bathroom. Our noses touched before he finally kissed me. “You know I never wanted to write you that letter.”
I smiled. “You never seemed like the Dear John type.”
With my arms wrapped around his neck, he carried me down the stairs. We went out through the back door instead of the front. The cleaning crew was coming in the morning, making it even better that we weren’t staying here tonight.
We picked up pizza and talked the entire night. It was as if the past six years had never happened. When we finally made it to bed, my phone vibrated. I ignored it since it was just Sarah checking in.
“Why did you join the military?” I had always wondered this.
“When your dad said I wasn’t good enough for you, he was right.” Greg turned the light off and kissed my forehead. “I was in college, but I was lost. I didn’t know what I wanted to do with myself other than be with you. So, I took a chance, hoping one day your father would change his mind.” There was a pride in his voice that I had heard a million times over with my father.
“Thank you,” I said, snuggling closer to him.
“For what?” he asked.
“For being you.” I drifted off to sleep fairly quickly after that. It was wonderful to have no dreams or fears that some lunatic was going to break into your home.
When I woke the next day, I picked up my phone. There were three messages.
I’m done with surgery. I don’t care what they say. I need out of here.
Dad -9:45 am
My dad was never one to handle hospitals well.
The other came from Sarah. However, I was already asleep by then.
Hey, how are things with you and lover boy?
Sarah – 2 am
Greg stirred next to me. He had already gone for a run, showered, and climbed back into bed. I couldn’t wait for her to really meet him.
The last message. The one I got right before I went to bed, I had to look at the time stamp four more times to be sure it said 10:00 p.m. But how could that be? The police picked up Elliott at 8:45. He should be rotting in jail right now. I opened the message to see a picture of Greg and me carrying out our pizza. The text read:
You’ll pay for this.
– E
“What do you mean he made bail?” I stuttered into the phone. “That doesn’t even make sense.”
“He must have had his lawyer on speed dial because he met us at the station,” Officer Stevens informed me.
I couldn’t stop pacing in the waiting room. “This is just bullshit. What am I supposed to do? Should I just sit around and wait for Stalky McStalker to show up at my door again?”
Officer Stevens let out a sigh. “Will you take the security detail now?”
“Fine.” I wasn’t thrilled with the idea of having a bodyguard again. At least it’s not going to frighten off Greg like it does with other guys. “Who’s it going to be?”
“Does it matter?” he asked sarcastically.
“Has it ever?” Greg took the phone from me before I could come up with something worse.
“Your dad wants to see you,” he said before walking off.
The door to the recovery room swayed open, exposing me to an overly sunny room. My dad, lying in his bed, looked older than I expected.
“Hi, Daddy.” He could still make me feel like I was five years old.
“Hey, Baby Girl.” He smiled.
“How’s your arm?” I sat at the edge of the bed. I wasn’t sure how to bring up anything from the past few hours.
“Greg is taking you to get a gun.” It was good to see that the bullet didn’t stop him from giving orders.
“Are you kidding?” It wasn’t so much that guns bothered me. It was the noise they made. “You know how I feel about those things.”
“Caroline, there’s no arguing. It’s happening.” His stern look bore right through me.
“Fine. But I’m getting a dog.” Dogs have been the subject of our never-ending fight since Mom died.
“No small yappers.” He sipped his water. “You need something big and loud to scare people away.”
“You know that chihuahuas bite more people than any other dog?” I retorted.
“Did you know that I could kick one across a football field?”
“You wouldn’t dare. You would succumb to its cuteness.” It was fun to banter as if nothing was wrong. “How much longer till you’re a free man?”
“They want to see how the surgery went. There’s a possibility of another one. “ He spoke as if he were getting his hair cut.
“Why don’t you get out of here? There’s no reason for you to be moping around this place. It’s already depressing enough.”
“Thanks, Dad,” I said sarcastically before tackling him into a bear hug.
As I was walking out the door, I noticed his reason for suddenly shooing me away. I said, “Hello,” as a nurse in her early fifties shuffled past me and took my place next to my father’s bed. I gave my dad the eye, and all he said was, “Bye, honey.”
As I left the room, I could hear his deep laugh behind me.
“I wonder if that’s Janet?” Greg asked, startling me. “Sorry. Thought you knew I was back.”
“It’s okay.” I relaxed my fists. “Who’s Janet?”
“A recent divorcee with no kids who just loves a man in uniform,” he repeated, doing his best impression of my father.
It was weirding me out how much Greg had changed. “How much time have you been spending with him?”
“How about that puppy?” he asked.
I squinted at him. What were those two plotting? “Aren’t you supposed to get me a gun?”
“That was your father’s idea. Besides, I just got you back, and I’d really love to keep you alive.” He didn’t even brace himself when I swatted at him. “I have enough guns for the both of us.”
Greg seemed to have the dog situation planned out way more than I did. The only dogs I had ever been around were my dad’s hunting dogs. I bet if he kept them in the house instead of the kennel out back, they would have eaten Elliott, and this whole mess would be settled.
Greg flicked his blinker on. “Mike is meeting us at the at the pound.”
“That’s my undercover cop?” I laughed. “What kind of b.s. is that? It’s just going to be high school all over again.”
“Who better to guard you than Officer Stevens? He already knows your house and every bit of your insanity.” Greg turned into the parking lot just as Mike was stepping out of his black Mustang.
“You finally ready to get that dog of yours?” He greeted me with a hug. These were going to be the strangest few months leading up to Elliott’s arraignment.
“Oh, you know it. How did you get this detail? Isn’t it under your pay grade?”
“Nah. Babysitting the Honorable Judge Crommett’s little angel will probably be the most dangerous job I’ve held.” At least that’s what I thought he said. Most of it was drowned out by the loud barking.
I hated coming to these places. I wanted to bring home every animal there. We walked down three rows of dogs, petting them and handing out treats as we went, but we couldn’t pick one.
Greg loved all the bully breeds, and there were so many to choose from. I walked past a dog jumping so high that he was banging into the roof of his cage. Past the jumping bean was a smallish dog resting in her bed. She was the only dog that hadn’t jumped up or barked at the gate. Her tag said she was a two-year-old beagle-chihuahua mix named Daisy. I put my hand up to the gate and called her name.
“She’s too small,” Greg told me as the black and white pup approached me and licked my hand.
“She might be better than a giant dog. Smaller ones bond quicker, and most places around here only allow the little ones in.” Mike stopped Greg from saying anything else. “Besides, what’s stopping you from getting your own dog?”
I got an attendant to bring Daisy out to the play area, hoping she would wake up a bit. The moment I saw her prancing next to her caretaker, I fell in love. Not once did she pull on the leash, and the moment she was unleashed, her nose went to the ground, sniffing everything she could.
I squealed in delight. “Yep. She’s mine.”
I stooped, and once Daisy got a good sniff of my hands and face, she planted herself next to me as if she approved of me as well. Greg found a tennis ball and threw it across the pen, but Daisy paused and looked up at me instead of chasing after it. It wasn’t until I gave her a “Go get it!” and she took off after the ball. Her sudden burst of energy surprised us all.
“Why is she here?” I asked the attendant.
“Her owner was killed in a drunk-driving accident, and her next of kin didn’t want her.” The woman could have tried sounding more heartbroken, but I was already sold.
“Can I take her home tonight?” I asked.
“There’s usually a forty-eight-hour hold-”
I interrupted her as I pulled out my father’s credit card. “What if I made a sizeable donation?”
She folded her fingers around the card. “I’m sure we could work something out.”
I felt victorious sitting on the couch with Daisy using my leg as her pillow. Mike had pulled out Elliott’s case file, and we were going over everything again. He was bent on proving that Elliott knew me from somewhere else besides the dating site.
“So, until you created the profile, you had never seen or heard of Elliott Hawking before?” Mike asked for the fifth time.
“Oh my god, no!” I said too loudly. Daisy scowled at me. “Sorry.”
Mike called out. “Greg, you need to feed her. She’s getting moody.”
“Like I told the other officer, Elliott was a former Calc professor at USF, and he was trying to get picked up by Lynn, which is why he moved down south.” I watched as Mike’s face scrunched up. “What?”
“When did you go to U.F. again?” he asked.
“I graduated in 2012, a little late since I traveled too much.” I was trying to think back, but nothing stood out to me.
“Caroline, he has no records for teaching anywhere other than U.F. How did they overlook this?” Mike was pissed. He was punching numbers on his phone as he left the room.
My dad’s hounds started barking in their kennel. Greg had just fed them, so they weren’t hungry. Then Daisy growled, and the fur on her back stood on end. I looked around, but Greg and Mike were both missing. Daisy ran to the front door, snarling. I thought for a second that the guys were playing a trick on me, and then something slammed into the front door, rattling the living room window. I screamed and scrambled for Daisy. She started barking furiously as we ran from the room.
The dining room curtains were drawn open, and the glowing overhead lamp illuminating inside made it impossible to see who was out in the dark. A howl came from the other side of the house. How many were out there?
Greg found me crouched under the table with Daisy guarding me. She snapped at him as he tried to reach for me.
“I’m not the bad guy,” he told her.
Greg pulled us from under the table. We heard Mike yell, “Stop!” outside the window. Without warning, three shots went off. I heard tires squeal as they kicked up gravel from the driveway.
Greg pressed himself against the wall nearest the window. “Mike, you alright?”
“I’m fine, but you guys are going to want to see this!” Mike yelled from the porch. “And use the side door. The front door is now a crime scene.” The flashing red and blue police lights reflected off a pool of blood on the porch where an officer, now covered in blood, was standing. He was holding a severed deer’s head that he had just removed from the front door. It was impaled there with a machete.
“Why is the head wrapped in iron?” He asked me.
I rolled my eyes. “Because fairies are supposed to be hurt by iron.”
I kept looking at the floor in the doorway. My father’s blood from the day before was now replaced by fresh deer blood. Another officer told me the kennel was encircled with blood as well.
“Caroline, we’re going to put you into protective custody.” Captain Reilly told me.
I nodded. I was numb. Mike said he had seen four guys jump into the cab, and he shot at five others who all came scrambling from different directions. They hopped into the back of a truck before it went peeling off. The captain handed me a note he found impaled on the deer’s head.
He gave me a skeptical glance. “Have you had any contact with Mr. Hawking?”
“No.” I unfolded the note to read. Burn the fairy. “This is bullshit.”
I didn’t speak during the car ride to the police station. I wasn’t allowed to ride with Mike or Greg because they were being questioned. Mike’s own unit was questioning him! He was on the phone with the station when everything went down. I felt all eyes on me as I walked to Captain Reilly’s office.
“Is there a reason why my case wasn’t being taken seriously?” I demanded.
“We didn’t see Mr. Hawking as a threat any longer. He was on house arrest and hadn’t even stepped foot outside the front door.” He gestured towards his computer monitor.
“I don’t know what that is. Look, he called me a fairy on our date. He left me flowers at my apartment with a picture he took of ME SLEEPING! And you are the one who gave me that burn the fairy note. I don’t know how many people you think consider me to be a fairy, but he’s the only one on my list.” I stared at my father’s so-called friend. “For crying out loud, he shot a judge!”
“Caroline, I don’t think you understand how connected Mr. Hawking is.”
“Enlighten me.” There was no way the captain was going to cover his ass.
“His half-brother is Congressman Bradford, and once Judge Haver heard that, she let him go.” He sounded defeated. “But that wasn’t until after she revoked his passport and put him on house arrest.”
“Are you even bringing him in?” I didn’t care who he knew. I didn’t want to spend the rest of my life fearing some weirdos who thought I was a fairy. I wished I were a fairy, if even for a moment, so I could at least make them disappear.
“He should be here any minute. We sent a patrol car to pick him up when your alarm system went off.” He quickly dialed a number on his cell phone and stepped away from his desk.
I watched him pace. In the quiet of his office, I could hear the phone ringing through the receiver. Whoever he was calling kept him waiting, and he would not make eye contact with me until he got someone on the other line.
“What do you mean he isn’t there?” he shouted. “His tracker still shows him at home!” No doubt, Elliot was just at my father’s house. This was the one time in my life where “I told you so” wasn’t a victory.
“Find him.” He hung up the phone.
I crossed my arms. “Yeah, if ya could go and let Greg and Mike out of custody, that would be great. Seeing as they are the only people I trust to actually handle this problem.”
“There’s no need for the attitude, Caroline,” he chided.
“There’s a reason for that and more, Carl. You guys have completely botched this whole thing. Not only has a man who is stalking me been set free, but he is also the same man that shot my father. At this point, you should consider yourself lucky that I haven’t called the media to tell them about the Congressman’s whack-job brother. I’m going to be pressing charges against that bitch, Haver. She flops for anyone who can help her move up in the world.” I slammed his door behind me.
It didn’t take me long to find Greg. He was sitting alone on a bench holding Daisy. He tried his best not to let his frustration show, but he never really knew how to get rid of his scowl.
“You alright?” he asked.
I let my shoulders drop. I had used the last bit of my facade on the captain. “As I’ll ever be.” I looked around and saw that Mike’s desk was empty. “Are they really still questioning him?”
“Nah, he’s in the media room. The officer who brought in Elliott said we had to listen to what his dashcam caught. Mike was just making sure there was nothing that would upset you.”
He stood and took my hand. I expected it to feel strange walking down the hall holding his hand again. I spent so many months after our breakup trying to figure out what went wrong. It was nice to know now that it was nothing between us. I wanted to be mad at my father, but he was right. We were too young to understand anything. I was happy that I had finished college. I might have done it sooner if I hadn’t spent my first semester as an emotional mess.
Greg looked down at me. “Where you at, little one?’
I squeezed myself tight against his arm. “Just thinking about how a great man you’ve become.”
“Are you saying that I wasn’t?” he teased.
“You were going down a questionable path.” I stuck my tongue out at him.
He held the door open to a windowless room. Mike was glowing in the monitor’s light. He unfolded his arms when he noticed us coming in. “How this guy made bail is beyond me,” he said, shaking his head.
“Easy. Judge Haver found out that Elliott’s half-brother happens to be Congressman Bradford.” I couldn’t wait to take that woman down.
“You’re shitting me. That bible thumper shares blood with this nut job?” Greg was stunned.
It was hard to believe the junior congressman from the great state of Florida would even want to tarnish his name by helping Elliott. He was already in deep water for failing to get the government to help with the last hurricane relief. He was also caught on tape right after the disaster, saying he was happy that Lake Okeechobee’s levees failed, washing away welfare dependents. He really didn’t need a gun-toting lunatic messing up what his P.R. team had already repaired.
Mike pulled out a chair for me to sit in. “Ready?”
“I don’t think I ever will be, so why not?” God, this chair felt like it was kept in a freezer.
The tech started the tape from the beginning. I watched myself walk by the front of the car. I hadn’t realized I had blood on me before. Most of what Elliott was yelling about made no sense until Officer Jeffreys got in the car.
“Mind calming down back there?” Officer Jeffreys asked.
Elliot lowered his voice. “You are ruining everything.”
“And what is that?” Jeffreys asked.
“The balance of the universe. We must sacrifice her before the harvest moon, or the gods will be furious.” Elliott spoke with conviction4
Jeffreys raised his voice. “Now, why would you want to go and sacrifice Ms. Crommett? Believe you me, there ain’t nothing magical about that girl. I’ve known that poor thing my whole life, and if she were what you think she is, she would have saved her mama years ago.”
“That’s just it. That bullet wasn’t meant for her mother. It was meant for Caroline. The order has been haunting her entire life.” Elliott was foaming at the mouth, being able to share his mission. “You see, changelings have been poisoning this world for centuries.”
“I do believe you were read your rights, and one was to remain silent. I suggest you do so.” Jeffreys had never been known for his patience. “Her mother was killed during a mugging. Your kind ain’t going to take credit for an already horrific act.”
“You know how I know she’s a fairy?” He wasn’t listening.
“No, and nor do I care to learn.”
“I’ve seen her fly.” Elliott sounded wicked.
“Son, she didn’t fly out of that window. She is a trained driver.”
“Not just tonight, but I have followed her. I’ve seen her fly from buildings. Her wings were glowing against the night sky.” Elliott stopped talking after that.
The police cruiser slowly rolled into the station’s parking lot. Jeffreys turned off the car and, with that, the video went black.
I stared at the computer, waiting for more. I wanted to hug Jeffreys for letting the madman rattle on, but it still didn’t tell us where I could have known him from.
“What did he actually teach?” I asked Mike.
“I double-checked your schedules with what he taught, and there was only one class that ever crossed.” He read the file. “He was a lab T.A. for your Anthropology class.”
“We had a lab? No wonder I got a C.” I thought back to the lecture. I tried to remember if there was anyone out of place. “Oh my god.”
“What?” they both asked.
“He was the annoying guy who stood in the back of the class during the test. He would clear his throat like forty times a class.” I was getting angry thinking about the sound.
“Did you ever speak to him?” Greg asked.
I shook my head. “Never. I couldn’t even stand being near him. I would move if he were behind me since he reeked of cigarettes. Usually, he spent most of the class outside chain-smoking. And the only time he said something to me was a smart-ass remark about how I was late to class. That was after I was stuck in the rain.”
“Can you explain why he thought he saw you fly?” Mike was a full-on cop.
“I did a few short movies for some film majors,” I asked the tech to pull up the online video. “They had me covered in LED lights, and I would free run across a few buildings.”
We watched as I hid behind bushes and snuck up on people while they walked down a dark hallway. At night I ran across the top of a parking garage and jumped to the closest building. I would do flips if space allowed me, or I would quickly run up walls. The lights on my black clothing would randomly change colors. If Elliott had seen this video, I could understand why he would confuse me with a ninja, but not a fairy.
“See, there’s nothing,” I said as the video finished.
Right before the tech closed the screen, something popped up at the end of the video. “Caroline, what’s that?” Greg asked.
Someone had tagged me in the free-running video recently. The tag attached my name to about fifty other videos that I had never uploaded. Some were of me walking around school, while another was of my first retail job during my freshman year of college. We pulled all fifty of them up. It was scary watching my life unknowingly documented.
The last video was of a group of friends and me at the Renaissance festival. We were blissfully unaware of the camera as we drunkenly danced around the maypole. We had peasant dresses on and flowers in our hair. As I spun around the pole, my blatantly fake wings glistened in the sun as a voice could be heard saying,“caught ya”
I didn’t know whether I was more creeped out or angry after watching everything. “So, about that gun training. When can we start because I’m shooting the next guy who points a camera at me”
“Let’s just start with you not cowering every time one goes off” Greg should have laughed. He always had before.
My third eye burned as the bell chimed overhead, alerting the tea shop workers to my presence . Even though no one was in sight, this was the right place. Pulling out the list from my pocket, I scanned the shelves for the ingredients I needed to complete the spell:
Molucca spice
Camphor
Curcuma
Klamath weed
Wergulu
“Damn,” I thought, looking about the store. There was nothing out here but normal teas. I’ll wring my informant’s neck the next time I see him. I don’t have time for wild goose chases.
“Excuse me. Can I help you with anything?” The deep, familiar voice startled me.
I almost fell off the ladder when I looked at him. It has been nearly two years since I’ve seen Evander’s chestnut hair and devilish smile. He quickly caught me by the hips before I fully toppled over.
“Thank you.” I removed his hands. “There was no one out here, so I tried to find some things I needed.”
“Sorry, we were reorganizing the supply room.” He eyed the shopgirl coming from the back.
Her hair was slightly disheveled, and her shirt was untucked in different places. He took my list; his lips disappeared as he read it. How long had I been searching for him? And only to find him at port in some crap new-age gift store.
“This way, please.” He said, leading me to the backroom. “Colette, could you finish filling the tea bins?”
The girl rolled her eyes at me. She probably thought I was about to do the same thing she had. Little did she know.
“An awaken spell? Who forgot who they were?” He asked, fishing for information.
“Someone I care for deeply.” Pain pushed the words out of my mouth.
“I doubt he could forget your face.” He said, throwing a cavalier smile over his shoulder.
“Oh, no, it wasn’t a man, it was, er, my sister.” Of all the situations that I had played out in my head for when I finally found him, this wasn’t one of them.
“How long are you in port for?” He asked, buried deep within a shelf.
“For a few days,” I answered with my words lingering just long enough to catch his full attention. “Would you know anywhere I could get dinner? As much as I love chef’s cooking, I could really go for a good cheeseburger.”
“There are a few places nearby,” he said with an armful of herb jars. “But if you’re up for an adventure, I can take you to the best burger on the island.” He turned bright red. “I promise I’m not a serial killer?”
“That certainly made you sound like one.” I laughed. “I’m Annora.”
He ground the herbs together in a mortar. The fumes were already unlocking the caged memories. “And are you honorable, Annora?”
“I might not be.” His smile was hypnotic. I knew I should have sent Henri in after him.
“Evander.” He introduced himself while handing me the potion in a small tin cylinder. “Want to grab that burger?”
“What about your shop?” I asked.
“Colette has been asking for a raise; I’ll let her earn it now.” The spark in his eyes gave away the devil within him.
The juice ran down my throat. Oh, he was right. This was a damn good burger, fried egg on top of an Angus beef burger with pepper jack cheese.
“Another beer?” Evander questioned me, waving down the waiter.
“Why not? You’re taking me back to my ship.” I told the man another round for the both of us. “Oh, could you bring a slice of the key lime pie?”
“So, Captain, what brought you to our tiny island? Not many ventures here.” He asked, sipping on the long neck. “Most consider this place to be dangerous.”
“I imagine the seventeen-year-old you’re trying to impregnate doesn’t feel that way.” I winked at him over the burger. He choked on his beer. “Excuse me?”
“Oh, I’m sorry; did I misconstrue what was happening?” With his eyes bulging out of his head, it was hard not to laugh.
“That obvious?” His fork sliced through what looked like the perfect piece of the pie.
“I’m not sure if it was how disheveled her hair was or her shirt that was hurriedly tucked in. But for sure, it was the death stare she gave when we left. She thinks you’re hers. Are you?” I asked with a mouthful of stolen pie.
“Hardly,” he said, watching me lick the whipped cream from my fingertip. “You ready to head back to your ship?”
I was thankful that I had brought my riding jacket with me. The crew called me the ice queen after Jaspers saw my arms covered in goosebumps during the melting heat. But the jacket wasn’t for the cold. It was to protect me from the razor-sharp saw palmettos that the four-wheeler was cutting through.
The brush opened up onto the lightly packed streets of Darby’s Rock. Evander took the turns hard, forcing me to hold on tighter to him. The port was littered with the most modern, sleek, and state-of-the-art yachts. The smaller boats were hidden not allowed to dock on this side.
“Which one is yours?” He eyed a few of the large ones.
I did my best to feign a laugh. “What makes you think you’re getting invited on?”
“Are you telling me I’m not?” He turned and faced me.
Still sitting on the four-wheeler, Evander’s face was coming closer to mine. The heat of his breath grazed my lips. I jumped off quickly before he could plant one on me. At this moment, I wanted to leave his trifling ass in the sand, but everyone was expecting him.
I took a deep breath. The salt air was a relief after the exhaust from the four-wheeler. “Fine, but you better act like a gentleman. I have enough salty dogs aboard my ship.”
He helped me into the dinghy, acting like the perfect gentleman. He even tried to take control of the little engine. But I wouldn’t let him. I still hadn’t told him which ship was mine. I thought the element of surprise might trigger more.
It wasn’t until we reached the outskirts of the harbor that he finally saw a massive three-deck, 18th-century frigate ship. The flags were up, awaiting our arrival. Even the cannons peeked from behind their flaps, all eighty-seven of them. Henri threw down the ladder as I landed the dinghy into its rig.
“You’re a fucking pirate,” he said, climbing after me. “A mighty sexy one at that.”
Henri’s eyes flashed red when he took my hand. “Welcome home, captain.”
I only smiled as I led Evander into my room. If the men were smart, they would have everything set up. But unfortunately didn’t.
“Did you come to Darby’s Rock to rape and pillage, Annora?” Evander questioned me by pulling my body flat against his. There was no question that he wanted to pillage me with what was pressed against his leg. A knock at the door gave me a second to breathe.
Bryce, the ever so thoughtful chef, came in quickly with a pot of peppermint tea and a tray full of sweet buttermilk scones.“Do try not to break anything.”
“Oh, I wouldn’t want to feel your wrath, darling.” I gave her a wink as I slipped her the small tin cylinder. “Would you like anything ca… sir?” Bryce asked cheerfully.
“You wouldn’t happen to have anything cold? I don’t think I could drink tea in this heat.” Evander had unbuttoned a few more buttons on his polo, exposing his tan hard chest.
“Of course we do. It would be downright cruel to the men if we didn’t. Would you like sweet or unsweetened tea?” Bryce quickly left with Evander’s order, leaving us alone again.
Luckily for me, he was enamored by everything that filled my room. I propped myself up in the window nook. Though living on a ship with brazen men, I tried my best to keep myself feminine.
Bryce came back, and Evander downed the sweet iced tea quicker than an overheated dog. He found room next to me on the cushioned bench. My heart raced. I wanted to punch him for doing this to me.
“Why have I never seen you at port, Ms. Annora?” His eyes worked their way from my face to my chest and all the way down.
A gentle breeze came through the window. It was welcomed, but it gave me chills. Evander leaned in and kissed me. My hands pressed against his chest. They were supposed to push him away, but instead, my nails dug in deep. My fingers quickly worked the buttons open as his mouth devoured mine.
“Hold on.” I barely got out the words.
I got up and made my way to the armoire. The idiot followed me. He couldn’t keep his hands off me. I’m not going to deny that it wasn’t what I wanted, but it wasn’t supposed to happen. I reached into the bottom of a black box and pulled out silk ropes.
“This is going to be fun.” Evander’s raspy words caress my neck.
I bound his hands and led him back to the bed. He fought me for a minute, actually overpowering my tiny frame. All 6’4 of him pulled me under him. “Shit,” I thought. This wasn’t supposed to go this way. He wraps the ropes around me and traps me with more kisses. Ducking out of the ropes, I tie him to the bedpost.
Mounted on top of him, I watched his eyes burn with a look that hadn’t filled them in years. I never imagined this much resentment. I should have left him on his rock with the little twit that thought the world of him. All my memories made it easier to leave him high and dry.
“Where are you going?” He was out of breath.
“I’ll be right back,” I said in my sweetest voice possible.
The men were all waiting for me outside the door. We waited. It wasn’t going to be long before his memory would come back. I savored my last bit of freedom. Evander was thrashing around in the room. I pounded back on the door with every pound of the bed on the ground.
“Annora!” Evander barked my name. “Annora, untie me.”
Henri waited to see when the spell would attach itself to me again. I collapsed into his arms. Too many memories filled my mind, driving the pain deep into my soul.
“You did the right thing.” Henri pressed his lips deep into my hair. He breathed in my scent, and it calmed me.
“I hope so, because I’m not going back there ever again. I don’t care how badly we need him back. He did this to himself.” I held onto the resentment. I was never going to forget that feeling again.
“Annora!” Evander’s voice pierced through me. “Annora, if you don’t untie me, I’m going to hand you over to the council myself!”
From the sound of it, we had our captain back. The crew of Darcy’s Revenge, who had been camped out during the whole escapade, let out a cheer. At least they were happy. Henri gritted his teeth as we both walked in to untie his brother.
Light from the street lamps struggled to penetrate the dense fog that filled the night. The fog lights on my Challenger weren’t doing the trick, either. Though I had driven these streets a million times since I was fifteen, I wasn’t going to speed through them. You never knew what might jump out at you, and that wasn’t a risk I was going to take.
Screeching tires broke the sounds of the main street. Headlights rushed towards my car. I swerved to the right, running over flowered bushes, praying that whatever idiot behind the wheel would gain control. But in my rearview mirror, I saw one of the worst things ever. A body was sent flying in the air. I threw my car into the park as fast as I could. Looking back at it now, the way my car was propped up on the curb sitting on destroyed bushes, I could understand what happened next.
“Did you just hit that man?” My accuser was a young waitress who just rushed out from a building.
“What? No. I was trying to avoid the other car.” But there was no sign of another car—just the mangled body of the man lying in the middle of the road.
“Don’t go anywhere. I called the cops.” Her command was lost on me when her voice shook.
It wasn’t as though I was going anywhere. I bent down to the man and checked his pulse. He was dead. I didn’t need to check his pulse, really. After working five years in the E.R., I could tell by just looking at the blood loss that he was dead. His left arm had the bone protruding from it. His legs were twisted around each other. I’d seen something similar to this before when I passed an accident on I95. But the driver was going easily over 80. There was no way this driver should have legally been going over 45, and with this fog, even 30 was too fast for my taste.
“Ma’am, could you come with me, please?” The officer walked us over to his car. “Could you tell me what happened, please?”
“Sure, I was driving when headlights came at me. I swerved to miss the car, and that’s when I saw that the other car had hit this man.” I watched as the officer wrote everything I said.
“Ma’am, where is your car?” He looked around but saw nothing.
“It’s right over here.” But when we got to where my car should be, it was gone. The bushes weren’t even touched. “What?”
“Ma’am, are you sure you left your car here?” He frowned at me like I was an idiot.
“No, sir, I am not. I just got off a twelve-hour shift at St. Lawrence hospital.” I saw him about to call me ma’am again. “Please, my name is Claire Wallace. You don’t have to call me ma’am.”
“The same Claire Wallace who was dating the mayor’s son?” The officer was getting flustered.
“Yes, but that was almost a year ago. Why does that matter?” This man was acting really weird, and I was exhausted. I don’t know why he kept asking so many questions.
“Ma’am, that is who the victim is. You’ll have to come with me.”
“Claire, what happened?” Trent finally asked when we left the station.
“They think I killed Chris.” It took me a moment, but I was sitting in my car. “How did you get my car?”
“Brad saw it on the side of the road. I picked it up before you even called. You scratched the hell out of the side.” Once he turned the key and the engine purred, I started to relax. “Let’s get you home before you do any more damage to this baby.”
The fog hadn’t lifted in the three hours since the accident. It was almost ten in the morning, and it was still covering our town. Before we pulled into the garage, I saw a cop car waiting down the road. It gave me the creeps.
“Guess they are seeing if you’re trying to skip town.” Trent locked the door behind him.
“I don’t know why they think I would want to kill him. I left the druggie, not the other way around.”
“I know, babe. But the Mayor is a wack job, and the apple doesn’t fall far from that tree.” The smell of fresh coffee had filled our house – I had the best boyfriend. Even when picking me up from the police station, he had thought of me. “What would you like to do today?”
“Try and figure out how two cars just disappeared this morning. I mean, there weren’t even tire tracks from the other car, and when the cop went looking for mine, he thought I was crazy.”
“Don’t get mad at me, but are you sure there was another car?” My death stare answered that question. “And did you do anything to your car?”
“What? No! Never in public. Not after how the Mayor reacted when she barely saw me use magic.” I had been so careful not to use magic. The Mayor had, for all intents and. They purposely started a witch hunt since she found out that magic was real.
Trent’s head snapped towards the back window. The blinds helped prevent people from seeing in and did wonders for exposing intruders on the other side. There was no doubt in my mind that the large build on the other side was a cop. This whole situation was getting weird. I was not going to be under surveillance for a crime I didn’t commit.
“Can I help you, officer?” I know I shouldn’t have used magic. The man was clearly startled. “Oh yeah, you shouldn’t stand on those rocks. They aren’t very sturdy.”
“I’m sorry, Ms. Wallace. I was just making sure you got home since you seemed a bit out of it at the station.” This wasn’t the same officer who brought me in. This man was larger and had an attitude about him.
“As you can see, I have made it home. And if you wouldn’t mind leaving, I have had a long night.” I walked back to the sliding glass door. “Next time, officer, please use the front door.”
I slept throughout the day and was only woken when I heard Trent’s keys unlock the door. He was at our bedroom door before I even had time to put my robe on.
“Pack your things. We’re leaving.” He was already pulling the suitcases from the closest. “What’s wrong?”
I stood there frozen.
“I overheard one of the partners today. The Mayor is coming after you. She is telling everyone you killed Chris with magic.” Trent’s magic was stronger than mine. His clothes were already filling his suitcase.
“You’re fucking with me. How does anyone believe her?” I couldn’t focus enough to use magic. I had to pack everything with my hands.
“Claire, we live in the deep south. Sometimes I wonder if these people know what century it is.”
Who knew someone I dated for six months would cause so much trouble? I could not believe we swiftly packed our lives away. We only brought pictures, our laptops, my jewelry, and some clothes. We could start somewhere else. After we pulled away from the house, three cop cars followed us. I ducked myself out of view till it hurt to be bent that way.
Once I knew I could sit up, I cloaked myself with invisibility, but it was making me sick. As we drove past a few cops, Trent would wave, and my heart would race. There were a bunch of them he knew from past cases. Then it happened—lights and the shrill of the siren. I kept yelling for Trent to floor it, make the car floor it, or at least something. Just not stop. The officer who was at the scene of the accident walked up to our car. A bright light shined into the car. I knew the light was dancing off of me. I could see the flicker. I could feel the invisibility wavering in and out. That is, all I needed was to show this man that the Mayor was right.
“Step out of the car, please.” Trent stepped out of the car, and the two men embraced. “Safe travel requested?”
My invisibility failed me as my mouth fell open. “Thank you, brother.” He didn’t mean as a blood brother. This officer was one of us.
“You know where the safe house is?” Trent nodded. “Good, they are waiting for you. Sister, you made the worst enemy.”
As he walked back, he called out to the other officers. “They are heading west on I-45 in a blue Chevy Tahoe.”
