The Graves of Plague Canyon (The Downwinders Book 3)

by Michael Richan

  “What do you want us to do?” Deem asked Samaria.

  “Since you fucked it up, baby,” she said, taking a sip of coffee, “you need to make it right.”

  ▪ ▪ ▪

  After Samaria left, Deem and Carma moved to the drawing room to talk. Eventually Winn woke up and joined them. Deem filled him in on Samaria’s visit.

  “Whoa,” Winn said. “We just helped the enemy?”

  “Apparently so,” Deem replied.

  “And now she wants us to take care of Lizzy?” Winn asked.

  “Before we make another mistake,” Carma said, “I’m going to place a call to Brother Jorgensen and have a little talk. I’ve never heard of this Samaria before, and I’d like some confirmation. It’d be terrible if you two hunt down my niece’s daughter and it turns out she’s innocent.”

  “We’ll need a plan,” Winn said.

  “Don’t plan anything until I check with Moab and a few others,” Carma said. “I’m going to do my homework this time, like I should have last time. If I hadn’t been so busy planning the bombing with Lyman, this might not have happened at all.”

  Carma left the room to make her calls, and Winn turned to Deem.

  “What’s on your agenda for today?” he asked.

  “I made an appointment to talk with David at noon,” Deem said. “He deserves to know what I’ve found out. The poor kid is all alone in that house out in Ivins. I suspect he’s scared out of his mind.”

  “That’s gonna be a hard conversation,” Winn said. “Would you like some moral support?”

  “I would,” Deem said. “How do you tell a kid his parents are dead?”

  “I don’t know,” Winn said. “Never had to do it.”

  “After that, I have a date with Warren.”

  “Another date?” Winn asked.

  “A late lunch, after he gets off work.”

  “Would you like me to come along on that one too?” Winn asked, wickedly turning up a crooked smile.

  “No,” she said. “Definitely not.”

  “When do we plan out an approach to Lizzy?” Winn asked.

  “As soon as Carma says she’s confirmed things,” Deem replied. “I don’t want to waste my time again.”

  “At least you found those books at Left Hand,” Winn said. “That’s something. You’re a hundred thousand richer.”

  “If I sell it,” Deem replied. “I haven’t decided if I’m going to do that.”

  “You’re going to keep a Book of Mormon?” Winn asked. “Come on.”

  “It’s an original,” Deem said. “Joseph Smith touched it.”

  “Sacred artifact?” Winn sneered. “That’s stupid. I thought you were over Mormonism anyway. It’s just a piece of fiction.”

  “It’s a really rare piece of history,” Deem said. “And it’s my history, like it or not. I’ll sell it if I need to. For now, I don’t really need to.”

  “And the journal?” Winn asked. “Lorenzo what’s-his-name?”

  “That I’m keeping for sure,” Deem said. “I may not have my father’s journals, but now I’ve got Lorenzo’s, and Claude’s files. I intend to use them.”

  ▪ ▪ ▪

  Deem and Winn picked up some burgers and fries from Frostop and went to a park that was kitty-corner from the university to wait for David. They brought separate cars so Winn could return to Moapa, while Deem intended to meet Warren later at the Bear Paw.

  They walked to a park bench, Winn limping all the way. Once they were situated, Winn reached into the sack and retrieved a burger, which he began to eat.

  “A little rude, don’t you think?” Deem said.

  “I’m starving, and they’re warm,” Winn said. “In ten minutes, they won’t be. He won’t care. Do you want one?”

  “No,” Deem said, sipping on a diet Coke. “I’m too nervous about how he’s going to react. There he is — crossing the street.”

  David was approaching from the university. Once he made it across the street, he joined them at the table, sitting next to Winn and facing Deem.

  “David, this is Winthrop James, a friend of mine,” Deem said. “Winn, David.” The two shook hands.

  “Burger?” Deem offered.

  “Sure,” he said. Winn brought the bag over and opened it for him. David reached in and pulled one out.

  “Fries?” Deem said.

  “OK,” David replied, and Winn pulled out a tray of fries for him.

  “Winn lives in Moapa,” Deem said.

  “Oh,” David said. “Been there when we went to Lake Mead.”

  “David here is on the football team at the college,” Deem said to Winn. “He was All-State in high school.”

  “What position?” Winn asked.

  “Quarterback,” David replied.

  “Oh, you were from Dixie, right?” Winn said. “I remember seeing a couple of your games.”

  “One of the games we won, I hope,” David replied.

  “As I recall, you won most,” Winn said. “Getting any time on the field as a freshman?”

  “A little,” David replied. “Since DSU went four year it’s a little harder, but all you can do is stick it out and earn some cred, wait for a couple of years.”

  “True,” Winn replied.

  “So what’s up?” David asked. “I’ve only got twenty minutes before my next class.”

  Deem looked down at the table and sighed.

  “What?” David asked.

  “I just found out something,” Deem said. “I think I know what happened to your parents.”

  David put down the burger and stared back at Deem. “What?”

  Deem didn’t answer right away. She seemed to be re-ordering words in her head.

  “Tell me,” David said. “What?”

  “There are reports of a husband and a wife being killed in the desert on Highway 91, on the way to Littlefield,” Deem said. “A gifted husband and wife. They were buried out there.”

  Deem watched David’s face, hoping he’d be OK, but knowing he wouldn’t. Tears started to form in his eyes.

  “It could have been someone else,” David said. “We don’t know for sure.”

  “Yes, it could be,” Deem said. “But they lived in Ivins. How many other gifted husband and wife teams live in Ivins and have gone missing? The odds seem…” She drifted off, unsure how to finish.

  “You think they’re buried out on Highway 91?” David asked, his voice beginning to falter.

  “I think it’s very likely,” Deem said. “I talked to someone today who’s been tracking their killer. She thinks the same person who killed your parents has killed others in the area. Other gifteds, like us.”

  David turned to look at Winn. Deem was surprised to see Winn tearing up as well. “You have the gift?” David asked him.

  “Yes,” Winn replied. “I do.”

  David turned back to Deem. He seemed ready to ask another question, but nothing came out. She could tell he was sorting things out in his mind, trying to come to terms with the news.

  “I can’t just go with this,” David said, his voice breaking again. “I have to know. I can’t just assume this is true.”

  “You’re right,” Deem said. “If it were my parents, I’d be in the desert, finding out.”

  “Do you know where?” David asked.

  She handed him a piece of paper. “GPS coordinates, given to me by the woman who saw it happen. If you can wait until later tonight, I’ll go with you. If you’d rather go now, Winn can take you.”

  “I’m going now,” David said.

  “Do you have a car here?” Winn asked David.

  “No, I rode in with a friend,” David replied.

  “We’ll take my Jeep,” Winn said. “I’ve got the tools we need.”

  “Call me after, OK?” Deem asked.

  “I will,” David said, rising from the bench, abandoning his burger.

  She watched the two of them walk to Winn’s jeep. A slight breeze blew through the trees overhead, coolin
g things down for a brief moment, then the heat of the day returned.

  There’s a chance it won’t be them, she thought. But it’s a long shot.

  She watched as they drove down Tabernacle, heading west. Then she gathered up the food and dumped it all in a nearby waste bin.

  ▪ ▪ ▪

  “You saw me?” Deem said, her heart rate quickening. She looked down at her drink.

  “Yeah,” Warren said. “Once I saw the tent, I just camped out and watched. Eventually you and your friend broke camp, scaled the side, and went in.”

  “Did you watch until we came out?”

  “Nah,” Warren said. “I waited a little while, but I had other areas to check, so I came back later and you were gone.”

  “You were on the other side of the canyon, on the rim, weren’t you?” Deem asked.

  “I was,” Warren replied. “How’d you know?”

  “I felt you watching,” Deem said. “Or, someone watching. I didn’t know it was you.”

  “I ride the northern rim every morning,” Warren said. “Guess I didn’t tell you about that part. Told you everything else you needed to know.”

  She looked up at him, trying to gauge how angry he was. She couldn’t read him.

  “Did you steal anything from the ruin?” Warren asked. “’Cause if you did, I have to have it back.”

  “We didn’t take anything,” Deem said. “Well, anything you can touch.”

  “What does that mean?”

  Deem wracked her brain for an explanation she could give without lying. “We collected some air samples from the caves inside the mountain,” she said. “That’s all, we didn’t take bones or artifacts or anything.”

  “Air samples?”

  “Yes, air samples.”

  “I don’t believe you,” Warren said.

  The waitress approached. “Are you ready to order?” she asked.

  “We’re…” Warren started, but Deem cut him off.

  “No, we’re not ready, we need more time,” she said, and the waitress turned and walked off.

  “You don’t believe me?” Deem asked.

  “Why should I? You were just using me to find out how to get into the canyon. Right?”

  “No,” Deem replied. “I mean, yes, you told me the shifts and all, but that wasn’t why I’m dating you.”

  “I halfway expected you to not show today,” Warren said. “After all, you got what you wanted. Why pretend anymore?”

  “I’m not pretending, Warren,” she said. “I wanted to come to lunch with you today. Trust me, it’s been a hard morning for me…”

  “It’s been a hard morning for me, too,” he said, cutting her off. “Feeling like a chump all day yesterday, then wondering all day today if you’d even show.”

  Deem wasn’t sure what to say. Today was knocking her on her ass, leaving her speechless.

  “Why air samples?” Warren asked.

  “Winn studies them,” Deem lied. “At the college.”

  “He couldn’t get them himself?” Warren asked. “You had to go along?”

  “I’ve been helping him with his project, it was a kind of commitment.”

  “What kind of an idiot do you think I am?” Warren said. She looked up at him, expecting to see anger and knowing he was within his rights to be angry; she was lying to him, keeping things from him. Instead she saw kindness, the same kindness she’d seen in Lyman’s face the night before. She could tell he was frustrated, but he wasn’t angry, he wasn’t going to storm out of the café. He just wanted to understand.

  Best to get it over with, she thought. You’ll have to tell him at some point. If he can’t handle it now, he won’t handle it later, when it’ll be harder. If he decides I’m a freak and he dumps me, well, what else is new.

  “Alright,” Deem said, and let out a long sigh. “I’ll tell you.”

  The waitress approached again, and this time they placed an order. Once the waitress left, Warren turned his attention to Deem. “I’m waiting,” he said.

  “OK, so, you asked about Winn the other night,” Deem said. “He and I share an ability, a sort of skill. We can sense things, things most people can’t. That’s why we work together.”

  She glanced up at him, to see his face and gauge his reaction. He was impossible to read. His blue eyes distracted her, and it reminded her of how much she’d grown to like him.

  “A friend of a friend had become ill and needed something that we could only get in the cave behind those cliff dwellings. Winn and I went in there, collected some of it, and it saved her. Only, it turns out, she wasn’t worth saving, and it was all a big mistake. Does that make any sense?”

  “My father always told me that relationships are based on trust,” Warren said. “You must think I’m a complete idiot.”

  “Why would I make that up?” Deem said.

  “You’ve been making things up from the beginning,” Warren said. “You’ve lied to me from the start.”

  “I’m not lying to you, Warren,” Deem said. “I know it sounds odd, but it’s the truth. The woman’s name is Lizzy Tait, and she lives in Fredonia if you want to check on it. And we learned about the substance that would save her, and that it was in your canyon, from a woman who lives in New Harmony named Sister Batchelder. No lie.”

  “What could possibly be in a cave that you would need?” Warren asked. “Medicine comes from doctors, from the hospital. Why would you need to be collecting something from a cave?”

  “Because she wasn’t sick with her physical body,” Deem said, cringing a little as she said it, aware of how crazy it must sound to someone who had no experience with the River.

  “What was she sick with?”

  “Some kind of poisoning that attacks the part of her that can see what others can’t see.”

  “Oh,” Warren replied. “Like the part of you that can see what others can’t see.”

  “Right,” Deem said.

  “Look, I like you,” Warren said. “I really do. But how can you expect me to believe this load of horseshit?”

  “Give me a second,” Deem said, and closed her eyes. She let herself drift into the River, searching for anything she could use to prove herself to Warren. She drifted back to the kitchen, where she saw them preparing their plates. Then she dropped out of the River, and opened her eyes.

  “You ordered chips with your sandwich instead of fries, right?” Deem asked.

  “Yes,” Warren answered.

  “When they bring it, it’ll have fries,” Deem said. “They forgot to swap chips.”

  The waitress approached the table with their plates, and set them down. “Everything look OK?” she asked.

  “I believe he ordered chips instead of fries,” Deem offered quickly.

  “Oh, that’s right,” the waitress said, grabbing the plate to take it away. “I’ll fix that.”

  Warren stopped her. “It’s OK, I’ll take the fries.”

  “Are you sure?” she asked. “It’ll only take a second to fix it.”

  “No, I’m fine with the fries,” he said. “Thanks.”

  “Alright, I’ll check back in a bit,” the waitress said, and wandered to the next table.

  Deem could feel the broadness of her smile stretch her face as she looked at Warren expectantly.

  “They forget the chips all the time here,” Warren said. “Was that supposed to prove something?”

  “Urgh!” Deem exclaimed, frustrated.

  “What, you saw what they were doing in the kitchen? You expect me to believe that?”

  “Turn around and watch out the front window,” Deem said. Warren just stared back at her. “Please, just do it!” she asked.

  He turned around to look out the large glass windows that faced Main Street. Deem closed her eyes, dropped into the River, and came back out within a few seconds.

  “OK, keep watching,” she said. “A woman wearing a blue sweater will appear from the left. After that, a man with two kids from the right, one of them he’s
carrying on his shoulder.”

  The woman appeared from the left and walked across the windows. They waited for the man with the kids, but he didn’t show.

  “One for two,” Warren said.

  “Hold on,” Deem replied, dropping back into the River. She saw that the man with the kids had stopped at the window of the store next door. She dropped back out.

  “They got stalled next door,” Deem said. “A man wearing a Hawaiian shirt is coming from the left.”

  They watched as the man with the Hawaiian shirt appeared and walked into the café. Then the father with his two children passed from the right. He still had one of them on his shoulders.

  “There!” she said.

  Warren turned back, still looking skeptical. He placed his hand under the table. “How many fingers am I holding up?” he asked.

  Deem closed her eyes and came back within a second. “Two,” she said.

  “Now?” he asked.

  She closed her eyes again. “Four,” she replied.

  “Now?” he asked.

  “None,” she said. “You’ve got your hand in a fist.”

  Warren leaned back in his chair, staring at her. “That’s creepy,” he said. “How do you do that?”

  “I can close my eyes and enter a place called the River,” she said. “There’s all this movement going on there, things normal people can’t see. I can leave my body a little, and view things. When I predicted who would walk by, I just drifted up above the building, and saw them coming.”

  “And you drifted under the table, to see my fingers?”

  “Exactly.”

  “Can you predict the future?” he asked.

  “No,” she replied. “Only what’s going on now.”

  “Can you read my mind?”

  “I wish.”