Chapter 20
The trip to Jet’s house proved fruitful. He hadn’t had a chance to pawn any of Tilly’s jewelry yet. And we found more—we found a book of his victims. He had noted down every detail he could find about them, as well as notations as to what stage their ‘relationships’ were at, and what their net worth was. Several of the women’s names had checkmarks after them. A quick search on my phone showed that at least a few of those women with checks had been found dead from unknown circumstances.
“I wish we could give this to the police, but we can’t tell them what happened to Jet.”
“We could send the book to them anonymously, but your aunt’s in here and that might lead them back to us,” I said.
“Well, we’ll keep it. Maybe there’s something we can do.” Dante sighed, bagging anything that seemed important. We made sure to wear gloves and disable any security cameras that might show us at the premises. “Maybe we can anonymously return some of these items if we can figure out who they belong to.”
I stared at the list of names. There were several hundred women on it, and the earliest dates were back in the early 1800s. “He’s been active for a long, long time.”
“Let’s head out. This is depressing,” Dante said.
I wished I could torch the place. I had no idea how long Jet had lived here, or if he owned it, but the residue slime from the choku-yi clung to every wall and surface. “I wonder if this house will absorb his energy. Will a revenant grow out of what’s happened here?”
“I don’t know,” Dante said. “Come on. Let’s get coffee and go see how Penn’s doing.”
I called the others and asked them to come over to our house that evening. “Pizza’s on me,” I said. “And ice cream. Donuts. Whatever you want.”
By the time everyone got there, it was six-thirty. Lazenti showed up carrying a sack filled with chips, nuts, and cookies. He winked at me as I invited him into the house.
“I bring tidings of junk food,” he said.
“Thanks. You’re sweet.” I realized that I meant it.
The vampire was growing on me. He’d done what he could to save Penn, he’d put himself out there when it mattered. My alarms about him had quieted to a low murmur, and I realized I was beginning to trust him, as much as I’d ever trust any vampire.
We told them what happened with Jet, and that we’d found Tilly’s jewelry and some of her money.
“I had a talk with her. I told her that we were done with secrets,” Dante said. “I love her, but I’m not going to stand by again if she decides to get involved with someone. I get to check him out. She agreed. She’s begged me not to tell my father. She’s afraid he’d try to have her committed to a retirement center. So we’ve worked out a deal. I also called off Elda-Care.”
“Good. I love Tilly and I’d hate to see her lose her independence.” I sighed. “Well, what else have we got to report?”
“I checked out Michael’s house,” Sophia said. “I took a friend with me, a talented medium. He said the house is clear. No more ghosts, not even on the periphery of the land. Michael and his family can move back in. My friend’s going to do a house cleansing for them, and a house blessing after that.”
“Thank gods. I was worried those creatures might have their hooks in Michael,” I said.
“I think they almost did, but it’s all good. He’s clear, too. He sends his thanks and he’ll bring a check to the office next week. His wife sends her gratitude, as well.” Sophia smiled, pleased to have some good news for once.
“Well, I got curious,” Carson said. “I’ve started doing more research into Brim Fire and whether any members go to any of the academies around here. It’s going to take some doing, but I think I can hack into the computer systems. That won’t give us definite proof, but I might be able to come up with something.”
“You really think they’re behind the bombing?” I asked.
“I don’t know, but I do believe that we’ve only seen the beginning of their attempts. From what I could see on the forums, there’s some prophecy they’re trying to fulfill. I have to go slowly so I don’t draw attention to myself, so it’s like walking on egg shells. But I’ll keep digging.”
I nodded, glad to hear he was on the job.
Penn, from where she was resting on the sofa, said, “Can someone bring me more pizza? I’m starved.”
Carson took her two more slices before anybody else could. Penn accepted them, smiling gratefully. “Thanks, Carson. I appreciate it.”
“Any time,” he said, kneeling by her side. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m healing fairly quickly,” she said.
Sophia glanced over at her. “Hecate must value you as her priestess. I know she came through you. Remember, I come from Greece, though Zeus cast me out.”
Orik frowned. “What do you mean? Hecate was here?”
“Hecate jumped Penn last night to destroy the revenant,” Sophia said.
“Is that true?” Lazenti asked, turning to her.
Penn nodded. “Yes. I can’t talk about it. I’m still processing everything that happened. All I know,” she said softly, “is that it changed me. And I can’t begin to tell you how. Can we talk about something else?”
Sophia changed the subject to the upcoming holidays, and I took the opportunity to go stand by the tree. Yule was coming, the longest night of the year.
The long dark night of the soul, I heard someone whisper. I turned to see Murdoch staring at me. He was sitting in front of Jangles, who was curled by the fireplace.
I stared at him for a moment. Was that you?
Yes, but you knew that.
Who are you, Murdoch? I know you were Letty’s familiar.
Let’s say she thought I was her familiar. Don’t worry yourself. You know I’m not harmful. Go enjoy your food. Enjoy your down time. You aren’t going to see much of it in the upcoming months. With that, he walked over to Jangles, waking her, and the two headed toward the bedroom before I could ask another question.
As I watched them go, a cold wind passed through me, chilling my heart. Murdoch was right. I could feel something looming in the future. A force far too familiar, yet alien as fuck. And it was aimed our way. I tried to shake it off. I was too tired to deal with whatever it might be right now.
I returned to the living room, to the glow of the Yule tree and the crackle of the fire. Outside, it was snowing lightly—the last day before this storm cleared out.
My friends were here—my comrades. As I surveyed the room, a fierce protection rose up within me. And that protection was fueled by my inner demon. These were my people and they were her people. I knew that someday soon, she would emerge and integrate herself into me.
And these people? These tribe members, clansmen, kin-of-choice? I’d do everything I could to make certain they were happy, healthy, and protected.
As I settled down on the floor beside Penn, she reached down and took my hand. She gazed into my eyes and mouthed, “I feel it, too.”
But we turned the conversation to our upcoming Lord of the Rings party, and everything else that was bright, cheery, and merry. After all, the future would come regardless of whether we were ready or not. There was nothing we could do to stop it. But for now, we could grab stolen moments of joy along the way.
If you enjoyed Shadow Scorching , then you can preorder the third book in the Shadow Blade Series : Shadow Dreaming . Start this series with Shadow Seeking . There will be more to come of Kyann’s adventures after that.