The Candle (Haunted Series Book 23)

by Alexie Aaron

  “After Mia left the farm, my memory came back,” he explained. “I consulted with Mother Nature, and I’ve been granted my 2018 powers temporarily. I have until the full moon to help you,” he told Mia.

  “That’s all the time we have, so thank you. I know how much you had to put aside to come to my aid. It will not be forgotten.”

  The three looked at the pair, an underweight preteen and a dusty farmer. For the most part, magically, they could fly under the radar of the houses of power. They may actually succeed.

  “Mia, besides this gentleman, how did you defend yourself in 2018?”

  “I had a sword and shield made of angel steel,” she said. “I had developed my powers of bilocation, telekinesis, and mind-reading. I can’t perform any of these tasks currently.”

  “You’re young, that’s understandable,” Quazar said. “Gerald, do we have any angel steel on the premises?”

  “No, but we do have some lightweight daggers that may be better. We can put on a concealment spell along with a pairing one to connect them to Mia.”

  “I don’t understand. What does pairing mean?” Mia asked.

  “We bond the two of you together, you and your weapon. It will always return to you when called,” Quazar explained.

  Mia remembered another sword that did that. She didn’t mention that it belonged to Altair, Wyatt’s fallen name, for obvious reasons. “What will it cost me?”

  “Mia, I’ll sponsor the purchase,” Wyatt said. “Money is no object.”

  “I could do this all for just a favor?” Quazar led.

  “No, I will purchase it. If this doesn’t resolve itself, I don’t want Mia starting out this timeline with a favor owed.”

  Quazar bristled but nodded. “Gerald, see to it that she’s equipped. Mia, because of your physical age, there are limitations to your gifts. I’m afraid there is nothing I can do about that. To rush the natural talent would be harmful. I’m thinking some extras like jump-back jacks and a whiplash jump rope. These toys will not be noticed.”

  “I’m not six!”

  “She can’t jump rope. She’ll break an arm,” Murphy said. “She can’t row either.”

  “Thanks a lot, Murph. It’s always wise to let people know my disadvantages.”

  Murphy felt uncomfortable hearing Mia call him her pet name. He fussed with his axe until the feeling subsided.

  “You don’t have to play with these things,” Quazar commented. “Gerald will show you their magical uses. They could get you two out of a jam.”

  “Thank you, I’m sorry I was so bratty,” Mia said.

  Quazar was taken in by Mia’s feigned contriteness. Murphy and Wyatt weren’t fooled.

  “Follow me to the arms room,” Gerald said. He opened the hidden doors in the bookcase and motioned for them to join him.

  Mia left the room, followed by Murphy.

  Quazar waited until the doors were shut before speaking. “She’s the assassin the Council of Women have bred.”

  “What gave that away?” Wyatt asked.

  “Orion Stavros. He was seduced by Fredericka Cooper. Charles Cooper has some latent abilities, but the lion’s share must have gone to his daughter. I bet her mother’s pedigree is very interesting. Gerald tried to read her mind, and she stopped him. She may not have the physicality to be dangerous, but her mind is. How’d you end up helping her?”

  “She came to me with a story that was too wild to be believed. But she knew too much to discount her as a nut job.”

  “Why are you helping her? She’s Abigor’s end. That’s the prophecy.”

  “I’m not that fond of Abigor, are you?” Wyatt asked.

  “He’s a bit flashy for my tastes. But now, I’m honor bound to help her. She came to us and asked for help to outfit her for her quest. If she doesn’t succeed, I will want to collect her. I will pay you a handsome finder’s fee.”

  “Is that how you got Gerald? Who sold him to you?”

  “No one. He arrived on my doorstep inquiring about the position of apprentice. He was older than I normally take on, but he has picked up very quickly.”

  “I hope you know what you’re doing. He seems rather ambitious for my comfort.”

  “I’m not worried. If he gets out of hand, I know a guy who knows a guy who will take him off my hands.”

  In the middle of an instructional session on using the jacks, Gerald closed his eyes a moment and was still. Murphy was going to jostle him, but Mia grabbed his arm and hissed, “He’s listening.”

  Gerald opened his eyes, and even though his expression said otherwise, he still spoke kindly to Mia. “Do you have any questions?” he asked when they finished with the instructions for the toys.

  “No. Are you alright?” she asked.

  “Mia, am I there in the future?”

  “Yes.”

  “What kind of man am I?”

  “One who has lost in love but still is compassionate. Above all, you’re the biggest wheeler-dealer I know of. You’ve always been kind to me. I consider you a friend.”

  “That’s who he is,” Murphy said, placing his palm to his forehead. “He’s the man who knows a man. I didn’t recognize him. He’s so young.”

  “It’s a façade,” Gerald said. “I’m older than I look.”

  “So am I,” Murphy said and smiled.

  “But no wiser,” Mia said. “So, I’m going to get a dagger…” she led.

  “Yes, come over here, and let’s find a good match.”

  “Is it like matching a wand?” Mia asked.

  “Mia, that is fiction, this is life,” Gerald scolded and then whispered, “I do love those books. I’ve read two already.”

  “Two…” Mia kept her mouth shut. She didn’t want to give Gerald too much information, even if it did just involve books yet to be written.

  He walked over to a rack of weapons. He looked at Mia’s size and pulled out a few contenders and set them on the workbench. While his back was turned, a dagger flew off the rack and ended up on the table, its steel tip connecting with a twin.

  Gerald turned and stared. “That must be a joining set. Daggers only penetrate so deep. You can injure a foe, but if you want to kill him, you need something for a through and through. You toss this pair at the foe. One will circle behind the opponent and stab him from behind joining the steel. Great assassin’s set.”

  Mia’s face fell. She turned and walked away from the table.

  “What did I say?” Gerald asked Murphy.

  “It’s baggage. You’ve done nothing wrong. Mia, come back here. We don’t have a lot of time.”

  Mia did as Murphy requested. She walked back and held her hand out, and the assassin set disappeared from the table and reappeared in her hand.

  “Do they have names?”

  “Names?”

  “Names, so I can call them if we get separated.”

  “Oh, I think they’ll come to whatever you say. Daggers, knives…”

  Mia looked down at the ornate deadly duo and asked, “How about Romeo and Juliet?”

  The daggers glowed and disappeared.

  “They’ve bonded with you. They are inside you. You may set off a few loss-prevention scanners, so I’d leave them home before you go to the mall,” Gerald advised. “Mia, why Romeo and Juliet?”

  “Their love killed each other,” she said. “A broken heart is just as deadly as these daggers.”

  Murphy looked at her sharply. It was hard to see the Mia he knew trapped in the child before him. They needed to talk, but now was not the time.

  “You speak of something personal, yet I understand and have felt the same betrayal of heart,” Gerald said. “I do hope that, in some way, I was of service to you in the future.”

  “You made everything impossible, possible. You’re the man who knows a man…”

  Chapter Six

  Murphy, Mia, and Wyatt climbed into the awaiting sedan. Although Nordin sensed the ghost sitting beside him in the vehicle, he did nothing but ask if t
he farmer would be traveling all the way with them or could he drop him off somewhere?

  “He’s going to be traveling with us,” Wyatt said. “Stephen Murphy, this is my most trusted butler, Nordin. Nordin, this is Mia’s friend and bodyguard.”

  Murphy formed a hand and shook the butler’s.

  “Nordin, you are so cool,” Mia said. “Does anything ruffle your feathers?”

  Nordin smiled and ignored the question. “Sir, I have most of the information you asked for. I’m still working on locating Orion Stavros. And Burt Hicks, I only have his present address. No one has seen him for a few days. You’ll find their dossiers in this folder,” he said, handing Wyatt a leather organizer.

  Wyatt opened it and noticed that Nordin had placed Audrey McCarthy’s information first. “I see she’s at school not far from here. Mia, do you think you can infiltrate a Catholic girls’ school?”

  “Not dressed like this.”

  “The school’s uniform is in the bag at your feet,” Nordin told her.

  Mia opened the bag. “I’m not going to ask you how you did all this in the time we were in there, but man, you’re amazing.”

  “Mia, don’t flatter him. He’ll just get more annoying,” Wyatt warned. “I would go with you into the school, but I’m not sure having a demon walk the halls of Notre Dame High School is going to be good for its reputation.”

  “It’s not a school anymore,” Mia said. “Audrey told me they closed in 2016.”

  “Still, let’s not cause an early closure due to demon infestation. I doubt they are equipped…”

  “Actually, Father Alessandro would be the go-to guy. I think you’re right to wait for me out here. Or should Murph and I find another way back?”

  “No, we’ll chance it. Now I’ll avert my eyes so you can get changed.”

  Mia, who already had pulled the pleated skirt over her pants, grinned. There wasn’t much to hide. She’d be lucky to pass for a freshman with her flat body. She transferred the contents of her pockets to the blazer before pulling it over the starched white blouse. The knee socks and shoes went on. “How did you know my shoe size?” she mumbled.

  “I’m a good guesser,” Nordin said. “In the bottom of the bag is a headband. I wasn’t sure of the hair regulations of this school, but let’s assume that a ponytail is a no.”

  Wyatt, who had put up with Mia’s arms and legs invading his space in the process of changing, sighed.

  “What?” Mia asked. “Did I get something wrong?”

  “You need a cross.”

  “Maybe it’s under my blouse?”

  “Do you know how to cross yourself.”

  “I’m not planning on attending church. I’m just going to wait in the hall until I can connect with Audrey. But I have spent some time in the company of Jesuits and Roman Catholics. Wyatt, you are dealing with a woman in her third decade.”

  “I keep forgetting that. Mia, I see a child. A trusting child.”

  “I should remember what I look like and recreate this persona when I OOB,” Mia said thoughtfully.

  “No,” Murphy said firmly. “Time to go.”

  Mia winked at Wyatt. “You heard the man.”

  Nordin pulled up to the front of the school. He exited and walked around and opened Mia’s door.

  “They’re going to think I’m a rich kid,” Mia said through her teeth.

  “I find that wealth opens doors,” Nordin said.

  Mia walked up the steps, and the doors were indeed opened. The sister who stood there didn’t even ask her a question about why she had arrived so late in the day.

  Mia volunteered, “Dentist appointment.”

  “Wait quietly in the hall until the next class,” the nun instructed.

  “Yes, Sister,” Mia said.

  Murphy walked beside Mia, stopping only to tip his hat to the spirit remains of a former teacher. Mia had seen her too but averted her eyes. She did not have time for an uncomfortable conversation.

  Mia found a bench halfway down the main hall on the first floor. Mia lowered her voice and spoke to Murphy, “I’m not sure exactly what Audrey will look like. I assume red curly hair and pleasant freckled face. And no nails. She would have bitten them off. I remember her telling me that the nuns frightened her more than the ghosts we’ve run into.”

  “I’ll go through the classrooms. How old is she?”

  “She’d be a junior. She’s just about Burt’s age.”

  Murphy nodded and moved through the tidy line of lockers into the first classroom.

  Mia sat with her hands folded in her lap, knees together, ankles crossed. A duo of nuns moved down the hall coming towards her. Mia started sweating, expecting to be interrogated, but they just kept moving past her.

  The bell rang overhead. Mia stood up and scanned the hall for Audrey.

  Murphy had reached the end of the hall, moving quickly through the classes on the east side with no success. There were a few redheaded students, but upon closer look, they weren’t Audrey. He had just started to cross the hall when the bell rang. He concentrated his search on the students exiting the west-side classrooms.

  Mia’s height was a disadvantage. She was just starting to climb the bench to get a better look when she heard a familiar laugh. Mia turned around and followed the sound.

  Audrey McCarthy was a positively delightful person already at sixteen. Her hair had been pulled back tightly and two clips helped to hold the curls flat to her head. But the radiance that was Audrey’s true positive nature could not be cowed by the severe hairdo nor the uniform. She was taller than Mia, and when Mia waved her hand in front of her face, she looked down at the pale blonde with amusement.

  “Who do we have here?” she said to her companions. “Are you the transfer student from Norway? Or did you have a problem with a bottle of bleach?”

  Mia wrinkled her face and almost forgot why she was there. “Are you Audrey McCarthy?”

  “Yes.”

  “Sister Mary Margaret asked me to fetch you.”

  “Why would the gym teacher need to see me?”

  “I’m just the messenger. She said to fetch you,” Mia replied. She hadn’t known what class this particular Sister Mary Margaret taught. She only used the name because Father Santos had assured her that if you call out Mary Margret into a group of women born in the fifties, four would raise their hands.

  “Very well.” She turned to her chums. “I must have left something undesirable in my gym locker. See you in class.”

  Audrey turned on her heel, and Mia had to run to keep up with her as Audrey walked quickly to the gymnasium.

  Murphy fell in line beside Mia.

  Audrey looked back at Mia annoyed. “I’m going to the gym. You don’t have to follow me.”

  “I’m just doing as ordered,” Mia replied. “Audrey, don’t you recognize me?” she asked.

  “No, should I?”

  “I thought we had met before.”

  “I’d remember that hair. It really is different. I’m surprised that you’re allowed it, unless it’s natural.”

  “It’s natural. I tried dyeing it…”

  Audrey stopped and turned around. “Your mother lets you dye your hair?”

  “No, but it didn’t stop me from trying.”

  “My mother helped me straighten my hair once. It lasted two weeks, and some of it fell out.”

  “Ouch.”

  “Thank goodness it was on school break or I’d be in Sister Bonaventure’s office doing penance for the sin of vanity.”

  “Audrey, Sister Mary Margaret doesn’t want to see you. I lied.”

  “What! Oh, that’s a relief,” Audrey said, putting her hand on her chest. “I left my cigarettes in my gym locker.”

  “You smoke?”

  “Just started. All my friends do. So why did you lie?”

  “I needed to talk to you privately.”

  “Okay, privacy… Where can we find privacy? I got it. The science block is empty this hour.”

&n
bsp; Mia followed Audrey down another hall, and as they walked, the students thinned out. They turned another corner, and the hall was empty. Audrey tried the first door and found it locked. She took a hairpin out of her hair and jammed it in the lock and opened the door. She put the hairpin back and ushered the impressed Mia into the classroom.

  Audrey pulled down the shade to cover the window in the door before putting on the lights. “I’ve got library this hour. They don’t take attendance,” she explained. “Okay, out with it.”

  Mia pulled out the picture of the candle from her pocket and handed it to Audrey. “Do you have this on you?”

  “No.”

  “Do you have one at home?”

  “Yes, a scented one. I don’t want my room smelling of cigarettes.”

  “But it doesn’t look like this one?”

  “No. Why are you asking me this?”

  “It’s important. Next question, if someone could grant you a wish with no strings attached, what would the wish be?”

  Audrey narrowed her eyes. “I’d like to have natural blonde hair. Not like yours. I wish to have long, silky, straight blonde hair.”

  “You wouldn’t want to be, let’s say, sixteen forever?”

  “Are you out of your flipping mind!” Audrey exclaimed. “This is torture! Pimples, periods, gym class, pimples… Did I mention pimples?” Audrey asked.

  “Yes, twice.”

  “Why would anyone want to be sixteen again?”

  “A thirty-six-year-old.”

  “Not a sane one. Take my aunt Cathy for example. She’s my mother’s youngest sister. She has a house, a husband, and a dear little baby. She’s thirty-six and has it all. I’d rather be her. So maybe I’d wish to be a married lady with a dear little baby and a husband who dotes on me.”

  Mia smiled. “I thought so, but I had to ask.”

  “You’re a strange creature. You don’t really belong here, do you?”

  “Just visiting.”

  “Why are you asking me these questions?”

  “Because of all the girls in this school, I knew you’d tell me the truth.”

  “You’re not going to tell on me about the cigarettes, are you?”

  “No.”