Chapter 17
Seventeen
Bex
“Nina!” I shout and hobble my way toward her. She turns from the oversized wolf by her side and jogs, meeting me halfway. Our arms wrap around one another, and we squeeze, tears streaming down my cheeks. “I thought they were going to take you.”
“I thought so too,” she says softly, exhaustion weighing heavy in her voice. Leaning away, still holding on to me, she explains, “When the piano music started playing, Hunter reacted as if something dangerous was coming.”
“You heard Sheamus playing the piano from underground?”
“There’re pipes behind the piano that lead underground to different parts of our hidden community.” Maureen comes over, keeping a watchful eye on the wolf, hesitant to get too close. “It’s our way of letting those underground know what’s happening up here.”
“Clever,” I admit.
“Hunter, can you hear me?”
The wolf stays perfectly still, staring up at the woman.
Nina breaks away from my embrace and runs a hand over his thick fur.
“He hears you, but things aren’t as clear.
I’ve tried to help as much as I can, so his mind isn’t completely lost in the dark.
It’s like when you talk to a dog—they only know certain words and the rest sounds like a foreign tongue. ”
A warm breeze sweeps over us, swirling around Nina, gently rippling the bottom hem of her dress. Then it rushes over me before hitting Maureen. The older woman’s loose brown hair streaked with gray flutters for a second as the air swirls around her.
Maureen reaches out as if to touch the winds themselves. When the winds fade, she looks to my sister. “Was that them?”
“Yes,” Nina answers. “They’re also the ones that led me to him.” She kneels beside the giant wolf, stroking the top of his back. “I didn’t realize he was a werewolf at first. But then we met in a dream, and Hunter explained his situation.”
“Did he?” Maureen holds a hand out to the wolf. Hunter turns away and heads back to the barn. Swallowing her pride, she nods and says, “I miss my son.”
“Hunter is your son?” I rub my back, the ache growing into what I know will be a sizable bruise.
Maureen doesn’t answer. Instead, she offers Nina her gratitude with a small smile before turning on her heels and heading over to where Booker and Garrett stand.
“What were you thinking?” I ask in a tone more scolding than curious.
Then, not wanting to sour the mood, I think about what Nina must be feeling right now.
It appears she’s formed a bond with the wolf, and if that’s important to her, then it’s important to me too.
“So, why isn’t Hunter in human form like the other werewolves? ”
Nina shrugs. “I don’t know why he’s stuck in this wolf’s body. Something we’ve yet to figure out, I guess.” She loops her arm through mine and says, “You know, it would be easier for us to take our horses and ride home. Avoid any of this bloodshed.”
We start walking toward the inn. I pat my sister’s arm, agreeing with her. “We could, and be done with this place. We delivered Persephone’s message, and I’ve got what I need in regard to this magic inside me.”
Nina doesn’t look at me; she stares straight ahead. Her voice holding a weight of sorrow as she asks, “So we leave tomorrow?”
“Do you want to leave?” I already know I don’t, but if she does I would understand.
“I’d rather not be claimed and towed off by a malevolent alpha werewolf in seven days.”
“If you leave, they’ll eventually find you.” Booker comes over and meets us on our way to the inn. “They’ve got your scent. And I think that witch has a special interest in you, which means they’ll come for you wherever you hide.”
I look at Nina. She’s in danger either way. Whether we stay or whether we go. “So, we stay,” I suggest, hoping she understands our chances are better here with people who understand the ways of this land. “Maybe not permanently, but for now…we stay.”
Nina squeezes my hand perched on her arm. “We stay. But I’d like to return to our home and collect some of our belongings. There’s something there I want that I think I’ll need in the days to come.”
I stop right before the wood platform. “Okay, then we ride home and come—”
“No. I’ll ride home, and you stay here and learn more about how to control your powers. We have seven days before Cletus returns. That means I can leave tomorrow and be back just in time.”
“No!” I protest, but Maureen’s quick to cut in and say, “I’ll send a few of the sheriff’s deputies to accompany you.”
“Thank you,” Nina says, then starts walking toward the barn. “I’m going to check on Hunter. Don’t wait up!”
“Wait!” I protest. “I don’t want to part ways again.”
This time it’s Garrett who speaks as he walks by us, heading to the barn with Nina.
“No. You stay here. We have a lot to go over—about the laws of this land.” He’s too far gone for me to argue with him, and I think that’s exactly what he wanted.
To say his piece and not give me a chance to argue. Damn him.
“Booker”—Maureen turns to her friend—“would you mind staying for a few more days?”
“How about I stay the week?” he counters.
“That would be lovely. Come on, let me show you to your room,” she says, walking away. I’m left alone, everyone heading inside. Maureen calls to me, “You best not stay out here. One evil has left town, but there are others lurking in the shadows waiting for the right opportunity to strike.”
Not wanting to find out what she means, I hurry to follow her and Booker into the inn.
Glancing over my shoulder, I catch Garrett staring at me as he closes the barn door shut.
I want to go with Nina, yet I also want to spend some time with the sheriff.
Dammit. One day I’ll have the intimidation and respect that Persephone had, and then no one will question my decisions.
I sit at one of the empty tables in the parlor while Maureen shows Booker upstairs to his room. The piano music comes to an abrupt stop before Sheamus plays another slow melody. Curious, I move to the piano’s side and search for these pipes.
“You won’t see the pipes unless you move the piano.” His voice is hoarse. Thin strands of white hair cross over the bald spot on top of his head. Age spots speckle his pale face while small spectacles rest on the tip of his nose.
“Where do they lead?”
“Did Miss Maureen tell you about the pipes?” he inquires with a narrowed gaze. The skin around his eyes pinches, and there’s a faint haze shrouding his brown irises.
“Yes, she did.”
He nods, as if disappointed. “Well, then”—he continues playing his soft melody—“the pipes go to various parts of the community below. It’s our way of alerting people of danger or the sun’s setting, or the arrival of a guest. Each song has its own meaning.”
“What does this one mean?” I ask, trying to identify the tune but failing.
“Oh, this one—means all is safe. The next one I’ll play will tell everyone to settle down in their homes for the night.”
“Clever,” I admit. “And what happens if you’re not here to play the music?”
“There are a few others whom I’ve taught to play. In case something happens to me.”
Lowering myself into the wooden chair next to the piano, I say, “This place sure is impressive. I mean, I have no idea how you get fresh water out here or where you get rations and supplies, but you all have thought of everything to keep the dangers out and the town safe.”
A smile spreads across the old man’s face. The music ends, and with a wink, he jumps right into playing the next tune. I’ll need to look about more closely the next time I’m down in the tunnels to see if I can spot the other end of the pipes.
“You ready for bed?” Nina asks, stepping out from the back hallway door. “I’m exhausted and want to get a good night’s sleep before we leave in the morning.”
I stand and rest a hand on Sheamus’s shoulder. “Good night, and I look forward to hearing you play more tomorrow.”
“Good night, Miss Rebecca.”
“Bex is fine.”
“Yes, well then, good night, Miss Bex.”
Before I can correct him again, not needing the Miss part, I give in and follow Nina up the stairs.
We pass by Maureen and Booker quietly talking in his guest room, and when she sees us, she moves past him and closes the door.
No good night or talk to you tomorrow. Just closes the door as if she can’t deal with us right now.
Though, it’s probably more me than Nina.
Nina has helped bring Maureen closer to her son and may even help Hunter shift out of his wolf state.
I, on the other hand, keep messing up—making things worse.
Maybe Garrett is right. My staying behind gives me more time to learn the laws of this land.
I want to do right—to save my sister from that heathen Cletus but also do my part to protect the townsfolk from other aberrant threats.
Inside our bedroom, Nina’s already heating a giant bucket of water.
The pump in the back corner is quite convenient rather than going outdoors and lugging heavy buckets of water up three flights of stairs.
It’ll take some time to get a full tub of hot water, so in the meantime, I browse through the books shelved on the narrow bookcase.
“They’ve got some classics and some I’ve never heard of.”
Nina doesn’t answer. When I look over my shoulder, she’s at the window, staring down.
“What is it?” I ask, hoping there isn’t anything evil lurking outside.
“This wasn’t what I was expecting to find out here in Graveyard Territory.”
I’m about to pluck a book from the shelf but leave it to address her concerns. “I shouldn’t have lied to you about why we were coming out here.”
She doesn’t seem to hear my apology and instead says, “When I was a kid, and I made my escape from the north, I traveled this land, hearing the screams at night. The winds guided me to where I could rest and hide from being a victim of whatever evil was causing those screams. Yet, every moment I was out here, I swear I felt a familiar presence trying to call me—needing me to rescue them. I could’ve searched harder to find whoever it was, but I was too scared. ”
I stand next to her at the window. “The winds saved you, Nina. If you had wandered off to find the mysterious person or thing that beckoned you, well then, you might have never found our farm. And that means you wouldn’t be my sister.”
This snaps her out of whatever trance holds her attention. “I never thought of it like that.”
“You survived the worst of the worst out here and found your way into our life. Now much older and wiser, we’ve returned to the land that once beckoned you. Maybe it was meant to be this way. Our being here together.”
“Maybe.” She goes to the bucket, checks the temperature, and then dumps the water into the copper tub.
A few more bucketfuls and it’ll be full.
She fills up another bucket from the water pump in the corner while I find clean towels folded on the dresser.
“The winds tell me we’re safe here, but there’s something else here that makes me feel like we’re not safe—that we’re exactly where we shouldn’t be.
There’s something in this town that everyone out in Graveyard Territory wants. ”
“That makes sense, especially given there’s a town full of people who don’t have to live out here. They must be here for a reason.”
Setting the bucket of water onto the iron stove, Nina nods. “And that’s what we need to find out before we decide about staying here on a longer-term basis. What secrets is Maureen hiding about this town?”
Despite the room’s increasing warmth, I want a steaming hot bath, so I add more chopped wood into the stove and then shut the iron gate.
“What did the witch whisper to you tonight?” I ask.
Nina perches on the edge of the copper tub and says, “She told me not to run. She said she’s been waiting a long time for…
” Her words trail off, as if she needs to choose them carefully.
Then she sniffles before continuing, “For me. She said with me, we might be able to stop the ancient evil trying to claim this land.”
“What? That doesn’t make any sense.”
She sighs. “Nothing makes sense out here, Bex.”
She’s not wrong about that.
“We’ll figure it out. One step at a time.”
“After my bath, I want you to tell me everything that happened while you were out there.” She gestures with a nod toward the window. “I saw you call on your power tonight—those amazing sandropes. I want to hear all about how you figured out how to do that.”
A chuckle escapes. “I’ll happily tell you everything. Even the part where I had to get naked in a hot spring deep in a cave with Garrett.”
This brings a wicked smile to Nina’s face. “What?! Oh, yes, you must tell me everything!”
“I will. But right now, you soak in the tub while I pick out a book to read.”
With a nod, she pours the last bucket into the tub and then undresses. I give her some privacy and return to the bookshelf. Instead of taking one of the classics, I drag my fingers along the spines until I reach one that isn’t familiar to me: Energies from Beyond.
What are energies from beyond? The opening lines read, All mystical elements originate from the ley lines that cross over from the beyond into our real world. It’s these pure energies that are the origins of life to aberrants.
I take the book over and lie in bed, absorbing the words on the pages, learning more about a secret world that hides in plain sight from the rest of the world.
These ley lines must be somewhere in Graveyard Territory, breached over from some other world beyond.
The list of questions grows longer and longer about whether we belong in this world or the na?ve one that doesn’t know aberrants exist.