Chapter 6
CHAPTER SIX
Faron called them and then, after agreeing to a midnight rendezvous, we finished dinner and headed home until it was time to meet them.
* * *
There was a small area of Starlight Hollow that was known as the Grimwold.
While there weren’t any slums in the town, there were areas that were better left unvisited.
While we didn’t usually have anything as serious as boat pirates or smugglers, there was a faction townsfolk that you just didn’t want to mess with.
And most of them lived down in the Grimwold.
Close to the water line on the south side of town, the neighborhood gave off a peculiar aura. My alarms sounded the moment we came within five hundred feet. It started at Edgewater Avenue and ended up at Wharf Street.
“I don’t like it here,” I said, glancing at Faron.
“Not many people do. There’s a reason the houses look uninhabited. Nobody wants anybody snooping around inside so they make them unappealing.”
I caught my breath. “I’m having a flashback,” I said.
Faron pulled over to the side, parking by what looks like an old antique shop that had closed up several months ago. “What kind? Are you all right?”
I shrugged. “All right, but the night Rian and I headed home, we were walking because we were too tipsy to drive, and we were in an area like this.” I shuddered. “Do we have any vampires in town?”
“I doubt it. I’ve been in and out of here numerous times, late at night. Don’t worry, Bran and I will take care of you and Bree. For that matter, my guess is that Bree can take care of herself. We’ll all go together.” He waited, not pushing.
At that moment, Bree and Bran pulled up behind us. Bran ran up to Faron’s window.
“Is everything okay?” He asked.
Faron nodded. “We were just waiting for you guys to catch up. In fact, I suggest that you get in the back of my car and we all go together for this one. Your truck should be all right here.”
Looking skeptical, Bran motioned for Bree to join us. After Bran locked up the truck, they slipped into the backseat and fastened their seatbelts. Faron eased back onto the street and we headed into the Grimwold district.
“It’s hard to believe this neighborhood belongs in Starlight Hollow,” Bree said. She craned her neck, staring out the window.
She wasn’t wrong. The houses in the Grimwold district looked old — not just in age, but in condition.
They were beyond weathered, falling apart, and here and there one of the bigger lots would serve as a junkyard for old cars, piled on the front lawn.
Even though it was winter, the lots were overgrown beneath the snow, a tangle of brush and vegetation that encroached from the surrounding woods.
“I can’t understand why the city council doesn’t do something about this,” Bran said.
“What can they do? If they try to enforce rules on cleanup, a lot of these people can’t afford it.
And frankly, there are several old hootenanny families here — you know the type.
Their forebears ran underground stills and speakeasies, and — if I remember right — at least three federal agents lost their lives trying to bring down the bootleggers.
” Faron kept his eyes on the road, but shook his head.
“Bran, do you remember Claude van Aucht?”
Bran frowned, crinkling his brow. “Tall guy, spindly but wiry? With a beard down to his belly and his hair pulled back in an old gray ponytail? He always wore a brown suede vest over ripped jeans, if I remember.”
Faron nodded. “That’s the guy. His family ruled the bootleggers’ market out here on the peninsula at one time. They were a bunch of bear shifters, and while I don’t know if they still live in the city limits, they pretty much kept control of the illegal whiskey trade.”
I bit my lip. “They don’t sound very pleasant.”
“They aren’t. The one thing I will tell you, some of the families out on this peninsula have been here since before the pilgrims landed over on the other side.
They made friends with the native tribes, or at least developed a mutual peace treaty between them.
But when the settlers started moving west, those families didn’t like it one bit.
They were mostly shifters and witches, and they liked having control over the resources here.
It was touchy going in a number of areas, for a long time. ”
He took a breath and continued. “The van Aucht family was one of those first immigrant families. Don’t get me wrong — they paid their bills, they donated to the church raffles, they even helped with barn raisings.
But the minute you stepped into the shadow side of things, they were in firm control. ”
I found the past history of the area fascinating.
And I realize that talking about the van Auchts and prohibition had taken my mind off my nervousness.
We had been weaving through several side streets, but now Faron pulled over into a driveway.
The house was a two-story craftsman, and while it didn’t look as old as some, it sure wasn’t new.
He motioned for us to get out and follow him toward the door, cautioning “let me take the lead on this. I mean it.”
Bran, Bree, and I all just gave a nod. None of us wanted to put ourselves in the limelight.
Faron knocked on the door four times, paused, and then knocked twice again.
After a moment, the door opened and a man about 5 foot 10 stood there, staring at us.
I wasn’t sure what to do, so I stayed quiet.
But after a beat, Faron gave him a two-fingered salute and said, “It’s a long night before a snowy day. ”
“There’s never enough snow for me,” the other man said, then stood back and opened the door wide so we could all come through.
As we entered the main room, it struck me that the house was much brighter and cleaner than it looked from outside.
“Faron, welcome,” the man said, grasping Faron’s hand and then pulling him in for a quick hug and a slap on the back. “It’s been a long time, bro.”
“You know why it had to be like that,” Faron said. “But now, I make my own rules. I need your help, bro. And I need you to be honest with me.”
Whoever he was, the man let us into what appeared to be a wide living room. The inside of the house had obviously been renovated, although not to the highest upgrades. But it looked surprisingly nice, and the living room was open and airy.
“Sit down, do you need anything to drink?” He asked.
After we all said no, Faron came right to the point.
“We’re here because we need to talk to you about the possibility of finding somebody.
There’s a collector on the loose, and he has someone near and dear to our hearts.
We need to find out where he and his partner are.
It could be a gang, because not only has our friend been kidnapped, but also two shifter women and several familiars. ”
The man — who still had not introduced himself — sat down beside Faron, a thoughtful look on his face.
“Locals?”
Faron shook his head. “I doubt it. I mean, there’s always that possibility, but I sincerely doubt it. They may be working with some local gang, but you know how collectors generally work. They never stay in one place too long because it’s too easy to get caught.”
“Anything to go on?” The other man asked. By now, two more men joined us, and they sat on the outskirts of the room, listening in.
“A green van, although we don’t have the make and model. And two men.” He looked over at me. “Did you by chance catch sight of them?”
“Did they try to kidnap you?” One of the men asked.
I wanted to ask what his name was but had the sense that would be a mistake. “Not exactly. I have a magical bond with my friend who was captured.” I hesitated for a moment, then decided to be upfront about it. “I’m a witch. And my friend is a dragonette.”
The three men sat still for a moment, then one let out a long sigh. “That makes it tricky. Dragonettes sell for so much on the black market, even though it’s stupid to try. Most can’t be re-bonded and die during the attempt, so it’s a true waste of energy, if you ask me.”
I wasn’t sure why, but that made me feel better. If he saw the folly of trying to kidnap a dragonette, chances were he wouldn’t ever bother doing so. Which meant that chances were even better of me getting Fancypants back, should they be able to find him.
“When did this happen?” Faron’s friend asked.
“Do you have something we can address you by?” Bran asked. “It doesn’t have to be your real name. It would just be easier than saying hey you.”
“You can call me Josh,” Faron’s friend said. “So, when did this happen?”
“This evening,” I said. “We were having dinner at my mother-in-law’s house, when Fancypants — my dragonette — let out a shriek that I felt all the way down the road.
He was the one who told me that it was two men with the green van.
But they drugged him before I could get any more information out of him.
” I hesitated for a moment, then added, “If you can help us, we’d appreciate it.
I know what happens to dragonettes who are auctioned off to the highest bidder.
Especially those who were stolen and who are already bonded. ”
“Yeah, it’s not pretty,” Josh said. “Let me make a couple phone calls. Meanwhile you all just rest here while I search for information.” He headed off into the other room, leaving his buddies with us.
Faron gave them the once over, then looked back at me. “How are you doing?”
I shook my head. “All right. Though my stomach has a lump the size of a baseball in it. Can he really help us?”
“If anybody’s got his finger on the seedy side of Starlight Hollow, it’s Josh. And that includes keeping track on scammers and other rogues passing through.” He arched an eyebrow. “If anybody can tell us anything, it will be him.”
“How the hell did you meet? I can’t imagine your father approving of the friendship.”
“You’d be surprised. A good leader knows that he has to keep his eye on his entire world, not just the side that’s all sunshine and roses.
Unfortunately, my brother doesn’t share the same sentiment.
I have some serious doubts about how he’ll do as the king, but that’s not my affair.
I’m out of it and if you have any doubts, you can send them packing.
” He took one of my hands, and Bran took the other.
We waited in silence. Bree seemed comfortable enough, she sat back against the sofa, closing her eyes. We were all tired, and I was a little worried about Faron’s new job. But it was a mere ten minutes before Josh returned.
“I have news,” he said before we could ask. “My sources tell me that the McFarland brothers are back in town.”
Faron shifted, letting go of my hand and straightening his shoulders. “The McFarland brothers? Wonderful.”
Even Bran seemed to recognize the name. “I thought they were run out of town twenty years ago. My father talked about them.”
I glanced over at Bree, but she looked as clueless as I felt. “Will someone tell me who they are?”
Bran glanced over at me. “The McFarland brothers used to run the underside of Starlight Hollow. They had more charges against them than a porcupine has quills. And they’re far more painful.
They had racked up charges from jaywalking to kidnapping to assault when they were run out of town. I wonder if Daisy knows about them.”
“I doubt it,” Josh said. “Daisy Parker’s a good sort, but she wasn’t the sheriff back then, and the McFarland brothers are good at remaining incognito.
However, I happen to have an address for them.
In fact, my source was about to call me and tell me about them because he just saw them this morning.
They must have just returned to town recently. ”
“Do you have anything you need to get out of them?” Faron asked. “In other words, do they leave anything?”
Josh shook his head. “I extracted it last time they came through town, which was seven years ago. They’re all yours.”
“Where are they staying?” Bree asked.
“Down by the Glassworks. There’s an old abandoned warehouse down there, and my source said that’s where they’re holed up. But I’d hurry. They’ll be on the move quickly. Especially since they’ve kidnapped a dragonette. They aren’t going to want to stick around to face an angry witch.”
“What are they?” I asked. “Shifters? Human?”
“They’re human,” Josh said. “But they have powerful friends and I have no doubt they employ thugs who are far more powerful than human. At least physically.”
Faron thanked Josh, as did the rest of us. As we headed toward the door, Josh stopped us with one last warning.
“The McFarland brothers have no qualms about murder. If you don’t go in quickly and nullify them, they’ll kill their captives just to spite you. As I said, I’d move on this. Once they leave town, you’ll never find them again.”
I glanced at Faron, knowing in my heart that Josh was right. “We have no choice. We have to go in. Should we call Daisy?”
“We’ll talk in the car, once were on our way. Let’s go,” Faron said. When we jogged out into the night, taking care not to slip on the ice as we headed back to the car. We were racing against time now, and I had a bad feeling about our chances.