Crow Moon, page 15
The next few days at school went well. Jake always attended with her, and when she’d make her way back to the car, he’d appear and blink inside the car before her, so she’d know he was ready to go.
She’d finished in her dad’s office, but Ned still wanted to meet for lunch. It became a new daily ritual. He seemed very excited about their date to see Macbeth. Leni wanted to go but wasn’t sure how she’d be able to talk her aunt into letting her go into the city. She had to admit, she did feel a bit exposed, even with Jake around.
No magical attacks happened at school, but then again nothing magical happened for Leni either. She was still a dunce when it came to witch class. She trained and she tried, but nothing. No feathers floated. No candle flames ignited. She doubted more and more she was the one her grandmother was searching for.
Each night she went to her room to sleep, but magic remained aloof and distant. She couldn’t get it out of her head that she couldn’t do what so many others before her had been able to do. She believed now, for the most part. She had it in her blood, but it just wasn’t coming.
She sat in bed, Emerson the teddy bear by her side, and took up her father’s journal again, the one she’d picked up in his office. Most of it was reflecting about her birth, outlining his hopes for his little girl. His thoughts on being a single father since her mother had left.
Her thoughts had drifted to Ned when her phone alerted her to a new text from him. “Can’t wait for tomorrow.”
She smiled. She couldn’t either. She replied with a smiley face, and then snuggled into bed.
She didn’t fear her grandmother. She hadn’t seen her. No one had except her mom, they said. What if—she hated to think it. What if her mother was in on all of this? What if her mother was trying to use her? Debra had shown a lack of interest in her once before. What if she was in cahoots with grandmother? The estate had been safe. Diana and Michaels, Leni’s grandfather, the weird birdman. No one had come to any harm.
Well, no one except the girls who had been taken before. She remembered Ginny telling her about them. Girls all her age, missing, found dead, found beaten with amnesia. Some never found.
Why wasn’t her family more interested in stopping that? Why weren’t the police crawling all over the place? Diana had said they feared repercussions from Grandmother, not only for themselves but for the police who investigated. What about the families of the girls who were left not knowing what had happened?
This wasn’t just about some family drama. This wasn’t just a witch thing. This was kidnapping and serial killing. How many years did it go back?
The next day at school, Leni hit the library between classes and started her investigation. Missing girls, Greater Kansas City area. Within an hour, she had pinpointed over a hundred girls in her age range who had gone missing. She checked the moon-phase almanac site and was able to narrow it down to eighty-one girls the right age taken within a day or two of a full moon.
Four of them had been found dead.
A whopping fifty-four had been found with no memory of what had happened to them. Police reports had chalked it up to being drunk or high, but Leni wondered.
Twenty-three were still unaccounted for.
Twenty-three represented a large number of people, with family and friends still waiting, hopeful for some kind of closure.
The first record of one of the missing girls who matched her grandmother’s MO was in 1978. From what Leni knew of her parents’ ages and what they’d told her of her grandparents’ ages, her grandmother would’ve been in her thirties at that time. Had grandma been that desperate for power back then?
Leni printed out the list of names and dates on a spreadsheet and took them with her. She and Ned weren’t meeting for lunch since they had dinner and the play that night, a fact that she’d avoided mentioning to her aunt.
She hurried home and hung the spreadsheet on her bulletin board. The grisly deaths of girls found with claw and bite marks, broken bones, and bruised bodies didn’t faze her emotionally. She wasn’t those girls. And though everyone kept telling her she was next on the list, she didn’t feel it. Somehow, it all oddly comforted her. It created a distance for her, however misplaced.
She put on a black sheath dress, sheer hose, and high black boots. She took her wavy hair down, letting it fall in natural curves down her back. She applied a bit of make up to her eyes and lips and felt ready to go. She found a small black bag for the necessities for her date. Her phone, her wallet, some mad money in cash.
Ned was meeting her for dinner off campus. She’d kept him from coming onto the estate for now. Visitors tended to set all off all the alarms and attracted unnecessary attention from Diana and Michaels.
She grabbed her coat as she walked out and headed to her car, just as she might do for school, but without Jake.
As she opened the door, a hand clamped down on her shoulder in a familiar manner. She gasped at what she saw. The birdman stood by her, the strange mask on his face, the odd feather cloak draping down his arms like wings. Her grandfather shook his head at her, saying nothing.
She jerked free and hurried to get in the car and shut him out. She barreled down the driveway, away from the accusing façade of the manor and the disapproving trees and turned back only to see the strange old man standing alone and still, watching as she drove away.
That’s my protector? Some old man is supposed to keep me safe? Leni shook her head at the absurdity of it. The absurdity of everything. She’d lived at the estate for weeks now and hadn’t seen her grandmother or anyone else to cause her any concern. If any of what they said about her grandmother was true, she was evil. Her mom was heartless to have abandoned her for fear of draining her husband and daughter of life energy or whatever it was. Her aunt was eccentric, living alone with her boyfriend in the barn outside. Clearly, her grandpa had issues. And she’d had her own bout of time in the mental ward of the hospital herself.
She wasn’t even sure what was real anymore.
She blocked it from her mind. Ned was real. Dinner and a play were real. It was time to start living in the real world. Why had her father sent her to her aunt’s? She’d been so much better off on her own in their house in the city.
The farther she drove from the estate, the more normal she felt. She was fine. All was safe. She focused on Ned and that was all.
When she stepped out of the car, Ned was waiting for her, leaned up against his blue Hyundai. “Hey, you,” he said, holding his arm out.
She smiled and accepted it.
“You look great,” he said to her. “Of course, you always do, but tonight even greater if that’s at all possible.”
“Thanks. So do you,” she said.
“Come on.” He led her inside to Mario’s where they were seated at a corner table for two.
“This is nice. I’ve never been here,” she admitted.
“It is nice. I haven’t been in a while, but it’s been here forever. I have to admit. I brought my prom date here.”
“Prom? Wow, fancy. And here I am on just a regular date.”
“Not a regular date, Leni. A first date. That’s important.”
“Is it?”
“Yes, if it crashes and burns, that’s it.” He grinned at her.
“Well technically, is it a first date if we’ve had lunch together every day for pretty much the last month?” She eyed him over the top of the menu.
“Hmmm, probably not. You’re right.”
They chatted and ordered way too much food. “So, prom. Where did you go to high school?”
“Overland Park.”
“Oh, you’re one of those,” she teased.
“One of those what?”
“One of those from the dark side. The Kansas side of things.”
“Oh yeah, that’s me. Dark and mysterious,” he said, dripping with sarcasm. “Unless you’re into that. I can be dark and mysterious. Totally. Whatever works.”
She laughed. “No, I’ve had my share of dark and mysterious lately. I’d appreciate some light transparency if you don’t mind.”
“That’s me. So transparent you can see right through me.”
Their food arrived on plates Leni would call platters, and she wondered how she’d ever eat all of it.
“Your prom. What was it like?” he asked her.
“Mine? Oh, I didn’t go. My prom isn’t for a few months yet.”
“A few months? Oh right, you finished early. You didn’t go to your junior prom then?”
She shook her head while she chewed.
“Are you going to go to your senior one this year?”
“Me? I doubt it. I don’t have many ties in high school anymore. I’ve moved on.”
“Moving on is good. There’s a formal dance we do at the dorm in a few months. It’s nice.”
“Is it?”
“Yes—sooo, I mean if you want to go to that–I could get you a ticket.” He shrugged like it was no big deal.
“Get me a ticket, huh?”
“Well yeah, I could probably also get you a date.”
“Oh no, that’s okay. I don’t need help getting a date,” she teased.
He laughed. “No, I’m sure you don’t. I guess I was kinda asking if you wanted to go with me, maybe.”
“We aren’t even through our first date yet. We don’t know if we’ve crashed and burned.”
“True. I mean, I feel good about it so far, but you never know what ridiculous thing you might say that would offend me and ruin the evening.” He smirked at her.
“This is true. Sometimes I’m out of control.”
Ned told her about the Spring Fling the dorm held as they finished their meal. He glanced at his watch. “We should get going.”
“Sure, I’ll just run to the bathroom really quick.”
Leni headed down the hallway to the restroom. When she finished, she checked her hair and made sure she didn’t have marinara sauce on her chin before heading back out. Just then the bathroom door burst open and a tall, slim man with dark hair stood blocking her way.
“I think you’re in the wrong room,” she said, waiting for him to leave. Then it registered what he was wearing. He stood dressed in black military attire. A black T-shirt, camo pants, combat boots, a doo rag, and fingerless army green gloves on his hands. He wasn’t dressed for a nice Italian dinner.
“I think I’m right where I want to be, witch.”
“Get out of my way or I’ll scream.”
“Oh, a banshee, are you?” With that, he turned on a flashlight. Some designs were drawn on the outer plastic lens, creating a depiction of runes on the floor around Leni’s feet with the light and the shadows. “Do your worst.”
Leni inhaled to scream, but no sound came out.
“I’m here to take you out.”
“I’m warning you, back off.” At least she could still speak.
“Not going to happen. I’ve been tracking you for weeks, and you’re here without your protections. I’m going to take you to the guild.”
Leni’s hand wandered to her neck where the gaudy necklace her aunt had given her earlier this week was, for the first time, not on her. Then she glanced to her small black purse that didn’t hold the protective stones her aunt had dropped into her backpack and school purse. She had no amulets, no spells on her, and no magic dog. She was on her own.
“What guild?” The only thing she could think to do was to stall until something came to her.
“The Hunter’s Guild,” he said, his eyes darkening.
“Look, I don’t know who you are or what you think I am. I think your Dungeons & Dragons friends gave you the wrong address.”
“This isn’t a game, witch. I’ll make it easy on you if you come willingly.” He reached out a hand toward her when someone knocked on the door.
“Leni? Are you about ready?” Ned asked from outside.
The flashlight designs kept her from screaming, so she backed away toward the small metal trashcan, picked it up and slammed it into the stall doors making a hell of a racket.
The hunter’s face screwed up in anger as Ned burst in the door.
“Hey, what the hell?” Ned asked, seeing the military guy closing in on his date.
“Just walk away, buddy,” the hunter said, “and nobody gets hurt.”
Ned glanced to Leni and held a hand to her. “Come on. We’re going to be late.”
Leni wasn’t sure what to do. Ned was no match for the muscle-bound hunter, but maybe he wouldn’t risk violence on an innocent non-witch. She took his hand.
“Fine. If you want to play it that way.” The hunter pulled a small handgun out of his thigh holster and raised it to aim at Ned.
“I’ve got this.” Ned said to Leni. He slowly reached into his jacket pocket, raising his eyebrows in the hunter’s direction for permission. Then he took out his wallet, and opened it, showing an ID card. “Eleventh division. I’ve got her.” The hunter’s expression changed to confusion. “This one’s mine,” he said again. Confusion spread to Leni.
The hunter lowered his weapon. “Eleventh division?”
“Affirmative. Stand down.”
The man raised his hands in surrender, backing out of the room. The door closed after him.
“What did you do?”
“I’ll explain later. We don’t have much time,” Ned spoken in a hushed tone. He peeked out of the bathroom, and then took Leni’s hand and pulled her through the tables out the front of the restaurant. “Do you have everything?”
“Uhhh, yeah I think so. What just—back there?”
“Get in the car.” He hustled her toward the Hyundai and opened the door for her, and then hurried to get into the driver’s side. He said nothing until the car was moving down the street.
Fed up, Leni demanded, “Ned, what is going on?”
“Wait a second. First,” Ned took a deep breath, “that was nice. The dinner. Don’t you think?”
“Ummm, yeah but—”
“Really good restaurant, don’t you agree?”
“I do, but—”
“Would you like to go there again sometime?”
Leni frowned. “What are you doing? Are you writing an article or something?”
Ned laughed. “No, I just want to make sure you enjoyed our first dinner date before we get into anything complicated.”
“Are you okay?” she asked.
He laughed again. “Of course, I’m okay. I should be asking if you’re okay.”
“Yes, you should. I was just accosted by some armed military guy in the bathroom who said he was going to take me to some weird guild!”
“But he didn’t.”
“No, but—”
“But he didn’t. You’re fine. Everything is fine,” Ned said, his voice calm.
“You talked him down. How did you do that?”
“Okay. Time to fess up,” Ned began.
Leni waited.
“Your father, Mr. Dev. He taught me everything I know.”
“About what?”
“About everything. About the world we live in.” Ned stared at the street ahead as he spoke.
“What does that mean?”
“The supernatural element.”
“How could my dad teach you about the supernatural element? He wasn’t a witch.”
“No, he wasn’t. Leni, your dad was a witch hunter.”
Leni stared at Ned, dumbfounded. “Excuse me?”
“Yes, your dad studied all kinds of magic and the occult. He was especially fascinated with African folk magic. Leni, your dad’s family practiced this magic. His mother is a priestess in Louisiana. She had quite the problem with it actually. To her, magic was an addiction. Still is from what I know.”
“So, you know that my father’s family, who he never told me about, practices magic, and my dad was a witch hunter?”
“He hated it. Hated what magic did to his family. It tore them apart. That’s why he left and cut all ties with them.”
“This makes absolutely no sense. Then why did he love my mother so much? Why did he send me to live with the Bentley witches if he was a witch hunter? And why do you know all of this?”
“Because your father told me. Your father taught me. And he asked me to watch out for you when he was gone.”
“Taught you what exactly?” Leni turned sideways in the seat, glaring at Ned.
“Everything. About the occult, the world, about hunting. When I found him that day with the book? He started my true training that day with the guild.”
“Stop the car.”
“What? No. Why?”
“Because I want the car to stop, so I don’t injure myself when I open the door and get out. Stop the car.”
“Leni, come on.”
“Fine then.” Leni put her hand on the door handle.
“Okay okay–” Ned pulled the car to the side of the street. “Just wait though. Tell me what’s wrong. Please.”
“At the top of the list is the fact you are a witch hunter, and I’m in training to be a witch.”
“I know how that must seem, but let me explain—”
She held up her hand to stop him before taking a minute to focus and regulate her breathing. “It’s not your fault. It’s just that you are one in a line of people my father trusted with secrets and truths he never trusted me with, and one in a long line of people he trusted to protect me rather than letting me protect myself. It boggles the mind how he could be the person I adored, loved, and believed in the most on this planet, yet he clearly never believed in me. I can see him trusting my aunt with my care and sharing secrets of my magical family line but now he’s trusting his students? Over me?”
“In my defense, I was his TA.”
“You were a student. He’d known you what? A few months? A year?”
“I’ve had your dad every year since I started. I met him three years ago.”
“Three years. He’d known me almost eighteen years and trusted you over me!”
