by Martha Carr
“Dude, I’m going to introduce you to some Texas barbeque. That’s the real fast food. And fingers crossed, these people are more like that. Substance along with being wonderfully delicious, rooted in tradition. Not false hopes that just make your ass fat and your face break out.”
“Welcome, I’m Toni,” said the woman, as she held out her hand and helped pull Leira up onto the mesa. Correk followed behind her and stopped for a moment to take in the view.
“Earth is really very beautiful.” He turned around and around to get a better look at the rolling green landscape topped with groves of pine trees and the distant limestone cliffs.
“This part of Texas is called hill country. I take it you’re a recent immigrant? A real alien?” Toni offered an easy laugh, her hair bobbing gently in the breeze.
“So peaceful up here.” Leira felt her worries fall away.
“That’s a combination of the view and the energy that leaks out of this big ol’ rock,” said Toni, tapping it with her foot. “And maybe the wine we brought with us. Want a glass? It’s a Riesling. I thought it went with the view.”
Leira wasn’t sure if she should introduce herself. She wasn’t used to people jumping into the middle of conversations and taking her in like they’d been waiting for her to arrive.
“Sure, very good idea.” She cleared her throat, mentally kicking her butt for feeling so awkward. So much to learn. So much to get used to. “Leira Berens,” she said, pointing to herself like Toni might be confused. That just made Toni laugh again as she handed Leira a paper cup half full of wine.
“Sorry about the paper cup. No glass allowed on the rock. Safety hazard.” She pulled another cup out of a canvas backpack and poured, handing the wine to Correk.
“Now,” she said. “Let’s see if we can introduce you to a few more people. Leira, right? And?”
“Correk.” He said his name quickly before Leira had a chance to say Bert.
“Oh, Light Elf, of course. You too, I suppose. That was a groovy energy pulse you had going down there. A little intense but the backdraft was amazing! Come on,” she said, waving for them to follow her.
Chapter Nine
Folding canvas chairs were scattered in the middle of the plateau, and people were playing guitars or talking loudly, laughing and telling each other long stories. There was food in plastic containers and straight out of boxes.
Toni watched Leira taking it all in. “It’s our own small, weekly family reunion that helps to center our energy and remind us of who we are as a whole being. Not just human. This is how we stay connected.”
“And get recharged,” Leira added, feeling the hum through her feet.
“And stay recharged, as much as that’s possible.” The woman gave Leira a puzzled look. “Although, that doesn’t seem to be an issue for you.” She looked Leira up and down. “There’s something rarefied about you. Okay, enough of me pecking away at you,” said Toni, grabbing Leira by the arm. “You’re coming with me. Time to meet the local magnificent magical beings.”
Leira looked back at Correk, who was standing there, looking amused, sipping his wine. He shrugged at her, arching an eyebrow. She was getting used to that look.
“Jim, this is Leira, one of our kind,” she said, smiling and giving an exaggerated wink.
“I kind of gathered that,” he said, pointing with his cup at the troll poking out of Leira’s pocket. The troll trilled and jumped out, running toward the food.
“Yumfuck!” Leira gasped and lunged for him, still not sure if this was a good idea but everyone else just laughed.
“Love the name!” exclaimed Jim.
“You’ve been to Oriceran and you rescued the little thing, didn’t you,” said a small woman with long auburn hair wearing a long peasant dress and sandals. “Been there, did that. I’m Mary Ellen. Most people just call me Molly.” She stretched out her arm making the long line of silver bracelets on her arm slide down toward her hand with a tinkling sound.
“That’s Perry, and over there is Lucy, and the twins are Fran and Fern. And there’s more of us,” Toni explained.
“A lot more,” agreed a middle-aged man with a bushy mustache that was only outdone by the bushy hair on his head.
“That’s Eric. The philosopher of the group. He’ll help enlighten you.”
“So you finally see things my way,” he said, smiling as he sat down. He pulled off a small chunk of the cheddar cheese, and fed it to the troll.
“Mmmmm, mine. Yum fuck.”
“Aw, he knows his name!”
“He kind of named himself,” said Leira.
There was a chorus of laughter and Eric broke off another piece to see if the troll would do it again.
“Yum fuck! Yum fuck, mmmmm.” The troll chewed the cheese heartily, even going back to lick Eric’s fingers.
“I take it you swear a lot.” He smiled at Leira.
“Only when necessary, which is when I’m awake.”
“You’re going to fit right in!” yelled Molly. “Sit by me!”
“Who’s the big one hanging back over there?” Jim pointed at Correk.
“Come on, don’t make me pull you over too!” Toni waved at Correk. “Entire group, Correk. Correk, your home away from home.” She looked at him slyly. “You don’t usually hang in these parts, do you?”
Correk said nothing but gave her a half smile, and turned back to the view.
“No worries. No one here is a member of the Order and we’re not rats. We don’t need to do their job for them. What happens on the rock, or down in the parking lot,” she said, raising her cup, “stays in the parking lot!”
“Here, here!”
Leira settled into the chair next to Molly and sat back, watching everyone, absorbing it. Another tribe. It’s a lot to take in but I think I like this.
Mara Berens moved as quickly as she could through the thick, gelatinous ether that made up the world in between. The substance was there, and then it wasn’t, impeding movement and making it harder to reach out toward the living world just beyond.
There were malevolent forces living in the world in between who were using darker magic they brought with them to slice through the filmy substance and move rapidly, showing up in different places in only a heartbeat. Even though most of them no longer had a heartbeat.
The dead existed alongside the living on this side of the thin veil.
The world in between permeated the world of the living where time still passed in a linear progression, even if it didn’t in the void where Mara was trapped. The world in between stretched around and through and mingled with both Earth and Oriceran, giving a peculiar view to the myriad of inhabitants trapped there, watching time pass. Wanting it to pass for them again, or at least stop forever.
That was the misery of the world in between. Trapped beings could watch for centuries, millennia even, not aging if they fell in while still alive, or never going on to the afterlife if they were dead. But they couldn’t participate, couldn’t communicate with anyone on the other side.
All they could do was watch, and hide when necessary from the evil that coursed through the world in between.
Mara knew that well after four years trapped in the middle of nowhere and everywhere all at once. It took her well over a year to locate her daughter, Eireka in the psych ward but she still wasn’t sure how to get a message to her. Leira moved not long after Mara was trapped and Mara lost track of her altogether. Until she saw her on the street, walking with a Light Elf.
The fear clutched at her again. Oriceran had brought nothing but pain to her family from the start. Now, they had found her granddaughter. Mara was determined to find a way to warn her.
That meant dealing with the minions who moved throughout with the darker forces. The dead the humans called poltergeists that had learned just enough about how the world in between worked to cause trouble and dispense nightmares, but not enough to really harm anyone.
They were the nasty bullies of the world in between.
I can do this. I can do this for my granddaughter. Even if it’s the last thing I get to do.
It wasn’t unusual to barter with the poltergeists to reach the other side of the veil but every once in a while, the darkness was attracted to what was happening and intervened, taking over the mind of someone trapped in there. The living in the world in between were their favorite targets.
Mara knew she was risking madness.
I can do this. I know enough magic to at least glamour myself for an hour. Hide from everything, living or dead. Long enough.
The poltergeists were easy to spot. The energy surrounding them was erratic and tended to throw off sparks into the ether, creating popping bursts of light.
Mara saw what looked like a storm cloud in the distance and focused on it, pulling herself closer. Distances in the world in between were relative. They could be a few feet, a few miles or another world. It took the same amount of focus to pull a being from Sacramento, California to Rome, Italy as it did to roam over a square city block. The world in between didn’t follow time or space.
She pulled close enough that the sparks were flashing in her face. She knew the poltergeist was aware of her presence and it was best to wait for it to choose to pay attention to her. The negotiations would be easier that way. Mara made a point of spending the past four years wisely, gathering information, making allies when she could. It wasn’t easy. None of it was.
You must want something. The poltergeist turned and fixed glowing eyes on Mara. It was dressed in a brown suit, still wearing a woolen winter coat and leather Florsheims. A dead human man, killed on a workday. Part of his head was smashed in. Mara wondered if he realized he was dead.
She made a point of looking right back at him.
I want to barter.
What could you have that I want?
Time.
The dead man smiled, his broken teeth giving him the appearance of a jack o’lantern.
Car crash? Mara pushed for information, if only to show she wasn’t afraid. If only to convince herself. Fear was something everyone trapped in the world in between could feel. Strong enough and it could even be seen, radiating off someone for miles. That kind never lasted long.
Something like that. What has time got to do with this place?
I can give you some. Mara focused on remaining calm, serene, giving nothing away. The poltergeist’s energy swirled around her, probing for a sense of what she was up to.
Nothing. Impressive. You’re not a witch. I can tell you don’t play in the darkness. They often twist early, and into something permanently ugly. Let’s say you can give me time. What do you want in return?
Knowledge. I want to know how to send messages to the living.
Oh darling, that is going to cost you. Tell me what time is in this place and I’ll tell you if I want to teach you anything.
The energy swirled closer. A bitter, acrid smell filled her nose, surprising her. She didn’t know if it was possible to still use the sense of smell.
Of course it is. The dead man sensed what she was feeling. All your senses are still there. They just turn on and turn off differently and you have to know what you’re doing. You won’t figure a lot of this out accidentally. So tell me, what is time?
A space where you can hide from the darkness to pull off one trick without being seen.
You know how to glamour in here? I am impressed. You’ve been saving that one. Light Elf aren’t you.
The energy pulled back, sizing her up. And something more. He came in closer, again. Okay, deal. You first.
No. You teach me, I hide you, or we go watch the universe’s largest reality show for a billion more years, ducking and hiding. Mara let go of wanting this to work and centered her energy. Indifference, as much as she could manage it, was going to help her win.
Deal. But I choose the trick.
Deal. Show me how to leave a message. She did her best not to think about what the dead man might want to do and paid close attention to his instructions. She was determined to warn Leira.
Chapter Ten
Leira and Hagan sat outside the jewelry store, waiting for something, anything, to happen. They had a tip from an informant they both trusted, Pink Harry, that this was the next target. The store was known to have a lot of cash and diamonds on hand. They had a guard and a safe but details like that hadn’t stopped the burglars so far.
The Captain decided it would be less conspicuous to put his two detectives nearby rather than regular patrol cars.
Hours had already passed. Hagan was getting antsy.
“Are you telling me that you can’t ding dong something up and tell if the bad guys are on their way?” He was fluttering his fingers again, in front of his chest. It had become his signal for all things magical.
“What’s with the old man jazz hands?”
“Oh, that hurts, Berens. I could have taken the jazz hands part. You had to throw in old man. That wounds. Ah, and now the dead fish face. We’re going for broke.”
“You deserved it. We’ve talked about this. No magic.”
“They ain’t coming. I can feel it. I have a kind of magic all my own. A magical gut. Sometimes I even have a singing ass.” Hagan chortled at his own joke. “That one is really Rose’s joke. I should give her credit since she suffers through the consequences.”
Leira almost spit out her coffee, coughing for a few seconds. “We aren’t this familiar, are we? By the way, I already knew. We’ve been on a few stakeouts together. It’s why you’re banned from anything spicy for twelve hours before you get in the car. You did follow the rule this time, I so hope.”
Hagan made a small cross over his heart and gave the Boy Scout salute. “I swear. No singing asses tonight. By the looks of things, no nothing. Geez, we’re gonna end up here till that store closes.”
“Which is not too long from now. They don’t know we’re out here, right?”
“No, I have the same suspicion you do. Inside help. But how they would know at more than one store…I don’t know.” Hagan threw up his hands and shrugged. “Any doughnuts left?” He dove for the pink box on the floor.
“You’re the only one eating them. You tell me.” Leira picked up the small binoculars and watched an older woman scan the street before entering the store. “That was weird.”
“What?” Hagan took a bite of a cake doughnut, made a face and dropped the box. “Cake. Why bother. What’s happening,” he asked, picking up his pair of binoculars. “I don’t see anything.”
“Woman looked around before she walked in the store. It looked like she expected to see something or hoped she didn’t see it. You think we’ve been made?”
“She look in our direction?” He brushed off the front of his shirt.
“Hey, watch the crumbs. That’s not a trash can down there. And, no, she didn’t look directly at us but I got the impression she knew we were here somewhere. Someone tipped them off.”
“That’s not good. That leaves us with less than nothing and a leak.” Hagan tilted his head expectantly at Leira, raising his eyebrows.
“No. Not gonna do it. We are damn good detectives. We’ve figured out harder cases the old fashioned way for some time now. We don’t take fucking shortcuts!” Leira ran her hand through her dark hair and lifted up the glasses again. The woman came back out, stopped just outside the door to check her phone, and took another look around before she texted someone.
“There she is, doing the same damn thing. She’s the lookout. Maybe she gave them the all clear.”
“Well, we’ll know soon enough. Not too much time before they close and take all that money with them to deposit. Now or never.”
The woman held up her arm for a car service that pulled up right next to her. She opened the back door and got in, and the car drove off. Hagan took pictures of the license plate and the car. “If she’s in on it, they won’t have her real name. But at least we’ll have a good picture of her.”
“If they’re smart, the
y use different lookouts every time and they’ve been smart so far.”
Just then, a balding man ran out of the front of the store, waving his arms, calling for help. A call came over the police radio at the same time reporting a robbery at the same address they had been watching for hours.
“Dispatch, we are at this location,” said Hagan, doing his best not to sound embarrassed.
“Already?” said the startled operator. They both ignored the question and pushed opened their doors.
“What the fuck!” Leira barreled out, pulling her gun from the holster as she sprinted for the store. Hagan was right behind her.
“Goddamn motherfuckers! Make me look like a goddamn fool!” Hagan swore with every step he took, his face beet red. “Fucking amateur hour but it turns out we’re the fucking amateurs!” He spit out the last words as they reached the man, still frantically waving on the sidewalk.
“They came in the back!” he sputtered. “Three of them! Bing, bam, boom! Just like that!”
“You get a look at them?” Leira asked.
“No, not really. Ski masks. I couldn’t see much of anything. They took everything! How did this happen?”
“Good question,” Leira said grimly, pulling open the door to the store. “Very good question.” She felt the small traces of magic still in the room and a shiver went down her back. Something’s not right here.
“You look funny. What is it?” Hagan narrowed his eyes. “I know that look. You already found a fucking clue! Spidey senses?” He fluttered his hands again.
“There was nothing radioactive about my upbringing. At least, I don’t think so,” Leira replied, trying to ignore Hagan long enough to let herself feel the fading bits of magic still present. “Don’t do the fucking jazz hands again.” She turned away from him so she could concentrate. It’s there. I can feel it. Not smart thieves. Magical ones.
“We may have a problem.”
“You mean, besides sitting in front of a robbery in progress? There aren’t enough doughnuts in the world to live this one down. What else could make this worse?”