A Tangle of Secrets

by R. G. Thomas

  “Dulindir volunteered to go out and ask those he came across if they know of or have seen Lucian or the Bearagon or Azzo. He took that on himself because he feels guilty about having known Isadora so long ago.”

  “Maybe he should feel guilty about that,” Teofil said.

  Astrid’s mouth dropped open, but Miriam’s shouted “Enough!” stopped whatever comeback she might have been considering. Instead of responding, Astrid crossed her arms tight and glared at Teofil.

  Thaddeus took a deep breath and said, “Before this gets even more heated, can we explain what we found?”

  “Yes, good idea,” his father said.

  Before Thaddeus could begin, his stomach gave a loud rumble, and Miriam looked stunned.

  “Have either of you eaten?” Miriam asked.

  They shook their heads, and she turned away to open the refrigerator, saying from where she had her head stuck inside, “Go on with your story. This won’t take long.”

  Thaddeus explained about the bear-like animal that Albert had spotted in his yard in August. He touched on the clothing missing from the line and the fear Albert still seemed to be living with over what he’d seen. Teofil then explained about the Delaney house and the nacht macabre they discovered growing behind it, along with the claw marks on the boarded-up door. By that time Miriam had heated up a couple of meat pies and ushered Thaddeus and Teofil into the dining room.

  “So the Bearagon is most likely close by,” Thaddeus’s father said. “Here in Superstition or well on its way here.”

  Thaddeus nodded and swallowed a bite before he responded. “It looks that way.”

  “Where would it go to hide out in this area?” his mother asked.

  “Could be any number of places,” Rudyard said as he stroked his beard. His thick fingers came across some clumps of mud, and he teased them out of the whiskers. Before he could drop the mud on the dining room floor, he noticed Miriam watching him and folded it into a napkin one of the children had left on the table.

  “He can assume the form of Logan at will,” Thaddeus’s father said. “So he can blend in anywhere when he wants to.”

  “Yes, but he would need money or someone willing to keep him hidden away,” Miriam added.

  “So it would mean Lucian and Azzo would most likely be closer too,” Thaddeus said.

  “Azzo Eberhard,” Thaddeus’s mother said in a quiet voice. “Such a weak-willed man.”

  “Do you think Edgar was really Azzo?” Thaddeus asked.

  His father frowned at him. “Edgar Marcet? The owner of Superstition Sporting Goods?”

  “Right,” Thaddeus replied. “Edgar locked the store and kept me outside when Logan finally revealed he was the Bearagon.”

  “We can ask Vivienne if anyone in town has seen Edgar since that night,” his father said. “The store’s been closed for weeks, and from the looks of it, all the inventory has been returned.”

  “An expensive cover-up,” his mother said.

  “That group’s been looking for us all for a long time,” Rudyard grumbled. “We had no idea what they looked like, but we knew they were out there.”

  “Or living right among us,” Astrid said in a sad, quiet voice. She looked at Teofil, and Thaddeus could see that most of the anger had left her as she continued. “That’s why I really want to be involved. I know that Isadora is dead, but until we find the rest of them, there’s no hope of finding out what really happened to Fetter.”

  Thaddeus was glad to see Teofil’s expression soften before he nodded to his sister.

  “I know. I’m sorry for the mean things I said. I blame it on hunger.”

  A smile flickered across Astrid’s face. “You are mean when you get hungry. And I’m sorry too.”

  “There, that wasn’t so hard, was it?” Miriam said. “But still, extra work assignments for you both for the week.”

  “What?” Astrid blurted.

  “Not fair!” Teofil cried.

  “We can easily make it two weeks,” Rudyard said with a growl, and both Astrid and Teofil quieted down.

  “All right, this has been enough excitement for the day,” Thaddeus’s father said. “Let’s get ourselves home and let the Rhododendrons get the household ready for bed.”

  Thaddeus smiled at Teofil and gave his hand a squeeze, then thanked Miriam for dinner and bid goodbye to them all before he followed his parents out the door. The sun was down, and the fairies dipped and whirled around the yard. As they walked through the gate, Thaddeus peered into the dark woods beyond the fence, and a shiver went through him. The Bearagon could be waiting out in the trees and they wouldn’t know it. He thought about how scared he’d been as little as a few months ago when he’d seen the beast for the first time skulking in the dark between these trees. If he’d only known then what he knew now, things might be very different.

  “What did you think of Astrid and Teofil’s punishment?” Thaddeus’s father asked as they rounded the corner of the fence.

  Nervousness bubbled within Thaddeus. Was he going to be grounded now?

  “Seemed a little extreme,” Thaddeus said.

  “Oh?” His mother stopped in their backyard, halfway to the house.

  “Well, all we did was take a bus to a neighboring town,” Thaddeus said.

  “Northglenn is a lot farther than a neighboring town,” his father said. “And I think a punishment of your own might help reinforce the idea that you can’t go off by yourself. Not right now.”

  “What?” Thaddeus said, truly surprised. His father had rarely punished him over the years. Granted, Thaddeus had never had a boyfriend before, let alone a close friend he could get into trouble with, but still….

  “A week with no video games,” his father said.

  Thaddeus blew out a frustrated breath, but secretly he was relieved. He could live without playing video games, as long as he could still spend time with Teofil. And maybe read through more of Leopold’s journals as well.

  “Fine,” Thaddeus said. “Can I go?”

  His father shook his head. “Not yet.”

  Another stronger wave of nervousness went through him, coupled now with agitation. “Okay. Why not?”

  “How long has it been since we’ve worked on your magic?” his father asked.

  Thaddeus grinned and felt a cool rush of relief. He shrugged and said, “I don’t know. A week or two.”

  “That long?” his mother asked.

  “Yeah,” Thaddeus said, then quickly added, “but Dad’s been busy.”

  “With me, you mean,” his mother said. “I’m sorry, son.”

  “No, no, no,” Thaddeus said quickly. “He’s been trying to find a job, and I’ve had to get ready for school. It’s been hard for us to find the time.”

  “Well, it’s a Saturday evening,” his father said, “and we have no other plans. How about we go down to the basement and work on your skills?”

  “I’d like that.”

  “Good,” his father said. “Let’s go.”

  As the three of them started toward the house again, Thaddeus said to his mother, “I’m really glad you’re here with us.”

  She smiled and put an arm around his shoulders. “Me too.”

  First up in his lessons was summoning objects. His father had Thaddeus start with pulling an empty plastic gallon milk jug to him from the other side of the basement. It took a few tries for Thaddeus to summon the jug all the way across the concrete floor, but he finally accomplished it and gave his father a triumphant smile. His father grinned and picked up the jug, then filled it with water at the utility sink before returning it to the spot across the basement.

  “Why did you add water?” Thaddeus asked.

  “To make it heavier,” his father replied. “It’s like working your physical muscles. You need to increase the weight to start seeing results.” He smiled and waggled his eyebrows. “You’re also going to be sore tomorrow, similar to how you’d feel after a strenuous workout.”

  “Sore how?” Tha
ddeus asked.

  “Hard to explain,” his father replied. “But you’ll understand it better when we’re done.”

  The lessons lasted for a couple of hours, and by the time they decided to stop, Thaddeus was exhausted. He had managed to pull the full gallon jug to him and push it away from him across the basement. He thought he knew what his father had meant by feeling sore from his efforts. He could barely form complete sentences. A slight headache thumped in the back of his skull, and he wondered if that was where the magic truly came from. If he were to undergo an MRI, would the image reveal some abnormality inside his brain right around the currently tender spot?

  Though he was tired, Thaddeus was pleased with his progress, and he felt more confident with his abilities. As he slowly, wearily made his way up the steps behind his father, Thaddeus felt like he might one day make a very fine wizard.

  His mother stood in the kitchen by the sink, and she smiled as they came up the stairs. “How did it go?”

  “I think he did well,” Thaddeus’s father replied, looking back at him. “What about you?”

  “It did go well. I was able to move a gallon jug filled with water.”

  “Summoning and pushing,” his father added.

  “It’s a good start,” his mother said. “How do you feel?”

  “Tired,” Thaddeus admitted, then looked at the clock on the stove. “It’s only ten thirty? I was ready to go to bed!”

  “Almost sixteen and wanting to go to bed at ten thirty on a Saturday night?” his father said with a chuckle. “What kind of teenager have I raised?”

  “Well, not one who goes to bed that early on a weekend,” Thaddeus said and turned for the side door. “I’m going outside to watch the fairies for a while.”

  “Would you mind some company?” his mother asked. “Or are you hoping to meet up with Teofil?”

  Thaddeus had been thinking he might see Teofil at some point, but he didn’t want to turn down his mother’s offer. He shook his head. “I wasn’t hoping for anything other than to watch the fairies, so you’re more than welcome to join me.” He frowned and looked between his parents. “Unless this is some kind of protection in case the Bearagon is out there and you don’t think I can handle myself all alone.”

  His mother shook her head. “Not at all. I simply thought it would be nice for us to spend some time together.”

  “Well, I’m going upstairs for a shower,” his father said. “I helped Rudyard work on their room expansions today and got a bit more than I bargained for. You two enjoy.”

  Thaddeus led the way out into the yard to a pair of Adirondack chairs placed under the tree. The string of white lights had come on with the setting of the sun, and they sat in comfortable silence for a time, both of them watching the fairies drift in over the fence and dance around the tiny bulbs above them. Finally his mother started to speak in a quiet voice.

  “I don’t know how much your father has told you about our time in the village before your aunt and uncle attacked.”

  “He didn’t really tell me that much,” Thaddeus said, then shrugged. “When we found Isadora in the mine, she told me more than Dad ever did about our family history.”

  “I’m sorry you had to hear it from her,” his mother said. “And I know your father would have liked to have been able to tell you about it himself.”

  “I understand,” Thaddeus said, though he had to admit to himself he still harbored a little anger over his father’s habit of keeping secrets. “I just hope we can all do away with the secrets going forward.”

  “Do you think Leopold’s journals will help you and Teofil locate Lucian and his followers?”

  Thaddeus studied his mother’s profile in the gentle glow of electric and fairy lights. “I think it’s possible.”

  She turned to look at him, and he could see the hard line of her set jaw and the anger in her gaze.

  “I want you to keep me updated on your progress,” she said. “Would you do that for me?”

  “Mom, we don’t need protecting—”

  “It’s not about that,” she said. “It’s about me confronting Lucian for all the years I lost to him and his sister. I missed out on so much of your life, Thaddeus. And you and your father moving so many times must have been very difficult on you. You were never able to make any long-lasting friendships. And I have no idea how you’ve managed to keep your grades so high with so many disruptions.”

  “I got used to it,” Thaddeus said. “It wasn’t that bad.”

  “It was horrible, and you know it,” she said. “It’s all right to admit it. Your father knows it and wishes it could have been different, but he did what he felt was right to keep you safe.”

  Thaddeus felt the hot sting of tears in his eyes and in the back of his throat and looked away. “I know that. But things are different now, and we’re all together again.”

  “Yes, we are.” She placed a hand on his wrist, and the warmth of her touch made him look at her. “You said yourself that you’d like to do away with all the secrets going forward. That goes both ways, you know. Whatever you learn about Lucian or the Bearagon, I’d like you to share with me at least. We’re all together now, and I intend to keep us safe. Will you let me help you do that?”

  “Yes,” Thaddeus said. “I will. I promise.”

  “Good.” His mother’s smile in the darkness looked fierce, and it sent a shiver through him.

  Chapter NINE

  THADDEUS WAS tired Monday morning as he sat in his first-hour English class. His teacher, Mrs. Marshall, had them diagramming sentences, and the task was not helping Thaddeus stay awake. He had diagrammed sentences two years prior in a middle school far from Superstition. In between the assigned sentences, Thaddeus amused himself by using magic to quietly pull unused pushpins out of the bulletin board near the back of the room. The first one dropped to the floor before he could stop its descent, and a girl sitting next to the board frowned as she looked down at the fallen red plastic cap of the pin.

  After that, Thaddeus challenged himself to catch the pins in midair and float them to the back corner of the room, where he arranged them in a neat pile. His abilities were sharpening as he used them more often. His dad had been right about magic being like another muscle in the body; the more Thaddeus used his magic, the better he was becoming at it.

  Once class ended, Thaddeus merged with the rest of the kids in the crowded hallway and made his way toward his next class, introduction to Spanish with Mr. Ludkin. His route took him past Dixon Praise’s locker, and Thaddeus couldn’t resist using magic to slam the locker door seconds before Dixon reached inside. Dixon shouted in surprise, and a few of his ever-present jock buddies laughed as Thaddeus turned away to hide his own smile and blended into the crowd of students.

  The rest of the morning dragged on, including gym class, where Mr. Conner took them out to the track and made them run laps interrupted by jumping jacks and sit-ups. By the end of the hour, he and the rest of his classmates staggered back inside, sweaty and out of breath. Thaddeus kept his eyes averted from the other boys as he showered quickly, dried off, and then dressed as fast as he could. He already had enough trouble with Dixon. He didn’t want some kind of misunderstanding in the gym showers to start even more rumors and name-calling.

  In the cafeteria, Andy, Marty, and Crystal were not sitting in their usual spots at the last table on the right, so Thaddeus sat there all alone. He looked down at the hot dog and french fries on his tray and wondered if there might be some kind of spell to make food taste better. A bite of a fry made him wince: soggy and a bit cold in the middle. He sampled the hot dog and was happily surprised to find it tasted better than anticipated. Three bites later, it was gone, and he sat there by himself and looked out over the rest of the students sitting at other tables.

  Thaddeus wondered where Andy, Marty, and Crystal had gone and tried not to feel hurt they hadn’t invited him along.

  They’re talking about you, murmured that drab inner voice. They’re of
f somewhere and talking about what a loser you are.

  He didn’t really think that, did he? No. Crystal and Marty didn’t seem to be the type. And Andy had stood up to Dixon Praise on Thaddeus’s behalf the very first day of school. No, they were off somewhere else for today; that was all. It had nothing to do with him.

  Or everything to do with you.

  Thaddeus decided to keep himself busy and, glancing around to make sure no one was looking his way, he amused himself by using magic to flick french fries off his Styrofoam plate and onto the scratched surface of the tray beneath. A burst of rowdy laughter across the cafeteria startled him, and he jerked his head up, afraid he’d been seen. But it was only the table of jocks and cheerleaders, Dixon Praise sitting smack dab in the center of them, his mouth open in an enormous laugh as Joy, his girlfriend, snuggled up against him.

  “What a stupid ass.”

  The statement surprised Thaddeus, and he looked up as Andy sat down beside him.

  “Where have you been?” Thaddeus asked.

  Andy grinned. “Adventuring.” He lifted his chin in Dixon’s direction. “Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to do something to him without getting caught?”

  A shiver of excitement went through Thaddeus. He knew what Andy meant, but he needed to play dumb about it. “What do you mean?”

  “You know, like if you could dump that tray in his lap without being anywhere near him,” Andy said. “Or tie his shoelaces together or something, all while sitting right here in plain sight.” Andy’s laugh was low and mean, but his words had given Thaddeus some ideas.

  “I guess I’d better get some lunch,” Andy said, then sneered as he looked down at Thaddeus’s tray. “Although, if you haven’t touched your french fries, I’m really not looking forward to it.”

  Thaddeus watched Andy walk toward the cafeteria line, then let his gaze move over to the jock table. He knew it wasn’t a good idea, he really, truly did. But Andy’s suggestion had piqued his interest in observing what would happen. It couldn’t hurt if he did something small. Not dump Dixon’s whole tray in his lap or tie his shoelaces together. But what if he did something minor? Something that might possibly be able to be explained?