Spencer's Cove

by Missouri Vaun

  “Look, Egor—”

  “Evan.”

  “Sorry, Evan, the Bay Area Coven takes full advantage of the technological advances of our sisters in Silicon Valley. We are wired, new tech. We aren’t living in the Dark Ages like—”

  “I think I’ve heard enough from y—”

  “Okay, okay, everyone just take a breath.” Jai stepped between Dena and Evan. “Dena, remember how I told Evan we were here to help? Those sorts of comments aren’t helping.”

  “You sound more like a therapist than an understudy.” Evan was starting to get really pissed. If Jai hadn’t stepped in she’d have shown Dena the door, with her boot. Elder or no elder.

  “I have a degree in social work. Sometimes it comes in handy.”

  Was Jai making a joke? Either way, her intervention had lightened the mood. Dena was circling the entry now, checking out all the paintings and tapestries on the walls.

  “Is Abby here?” Jai’s fingers brushed Evan’s exposed arm lightly.

  Her arm tingled from Jai’s touch. She focused on Jai’s beautiful face, her lips, the dark pools of her eyes. For a moment, Evan wondered if Jai’s powers were more advanced than she was letting on.

  “She’s not here.” The words sounded far away, inside Evan’s head.

  “Snap out of it, Romeo.” Dena pierced Evan’s ear curtly.

  Evan’s temper launched like a rocket from zero to a hundred. She was about to say something she’d regret, but Dena spoke again.

  “She shouldn’t be allowed to leave the estate unprotected. Not right now.”

  “No shit.” Evan wasn’t bound in any way to Dena. She didn’t have to make nice, and she certainly didn’t have to take any direction from her. “It’s not like I have her on a leash. Besides, she’s with her keeper.” At least Evan hoped that was the case.

  “You mean Foster?” Did Jai know every secret Evan thought she’d been keeping?

  “How do you know Foster?”

  “We met briefly at the coffee shop. She’s cute, in a nerdy, bookworm sort of way.”

  “Okay, rewind.” Evan pinched the bridge of her nose. She was trying desperately to regain control and focus. “This dark matter… You need to fill me in.”

  “What dark matter?” Foster asked. She and Abby stood in the open doorway.

  The only person who’d noticed their arrival was Dena. Abby had a look of wide-eyed surprise. Foster was openly holding Abby’s hand as if her life depended on it. Evan shook her head. She needed to get back on point. She strode to the door and ushered Abby and Foster inside.

  Foster was surprised to see Dena outside her natural habitat. Jai from the coffee shop was here too. It seemed that Abby hadn’t expected company when they returned to the estate any more than she had. Cora didn’t seem to be about. Abby squeezed her hand.

  “What are you guys doing here? And why are we talking about dark matter?” Foster asked again.

  “Dark matter accounts for about eighty percent of all the matter in the universe and about a quarter of the universe’s total energy density.” Dena stepped closer as she delivered one of her librarian info dumps. “Dark matter is composed of subatomic particles.”

  “I thought that was hypothetical.” Foster looked at Evan for some clue about why they were getting a science lecture from Dena in the entry hall. Evan’s expression was hard to read, but Foster was fairly certain Evan was annoyed.

  “Nice to see someone has read the occasional science journal.” Dena crossed her arms and quirked the side of her mouth up.

  “I like to read.”

  “The established scientific community is slow to believe what we already know. Dark matter has not been directly observed by the nongifted, but its presence is impossible to deny. A variety of astrophysical observations, including gravitational effects that cannot be explained unless more matter is present than can be seen prove its existence. Dark matter is ubiquitous.”

  Everyone was quiet for a moment.

  “Who’s we?” Foster was a journalist at heart and she needed details, facts.

  “Witches.” Abby spoke for the first time. She released Foster’s hand. “It’s going to be okay.” She touched Evan’s arm and Evan visibly relaxed.

  “Hello, Abby. It’s good to finally meet you.” Dena was suddenly transformed into a gracious guest. Her tone softened and she took Abby’s hand between hers. “I’m Dena and this is Jaiden, Jai for short. I don’t believe we’ve ever formally been introduced.”

  “And you’re here for me?”

  “We’re here to help you…and Evan and Foster.” Dena’s demeanor had completely changed, suddenly sweet, almost maternal.

  “Well, heavens above.” Cora appeared out of nowhere, standing at the hallway on the other side of the grand staircase. She must have come from the back entrance by the kitchen. She held two brown paper bags, one balanced on each hip. “Something told me I should prepare a large evening meal, and I can see I was right. Can someone help me retrieve the rest of the groceries from the car?”

  Chapter Eighteen

  Foster decided to go in search of Abby. She found Abby standing just inside one of the horse enclosures on the lower part of the property. It was late afternoon. A chilly breeze gusted from the west. Foster buttoned the front of the Levi’s jacket Abby had given her. She tilted the fleece collar up against the wind. Abby turned and smiled as she drew close. It seemed since their lunch outing that Abby was no longer trying to keep Foster at arm’s length. Abby was letting Foster in, little by little.

  “How are you feeling?” She knew it was stressful for Abby to have a house full of people she didn’t know very well.

  Dena and Jai had been invited to stay for dinner. Evan had left them alone in the house with Cora while she brought in firewood and spread fresh hay in the barn stalls and probably a bunch of other daily tasks that had to be done regardless of how much dark matter was imminent. Besides, Evan had clearly needed to cool off. She’d been completely on edge since they’d returned to the house after lunch.

  Abby walked back to the fence and leaned against the top rail, facing the horses. Foster leaned against the fence from the other side.

  “I’m okay. Thanks for asking.” Abby’s hair was back, pulled into a ponytail that hung above the turned-up collar of her heavy cotton jacket.

  “What gave you the idea to start rescuing horses?” Foster thought maybe talking about the horses would take Abby’s mind off the stress of everything else.

  “Hmm, I think ever since I was a little girl I wanted to rescue the world, but I decided to start with horses…and just rescue one small part of the world.”

  “What’s her name?” Foster’s chin rested on the back of her hand on the top rail as she watched the brown mare grazing about thirty feet away.

  “That’s Callie. She’s ten.”

  “What’s her story?” Foster knew she had one. All the horses seemed to, and she’d already met Boots and Journey.

  “Her owner was a victim of the economic downturn. She could no longer afford her and, coupled with a foreclosure, well, Callie was going to be without a home. The owner contacted us through a good friend of Iain’s.”

  “What would have happened if you hadn’t taken her?”

  “Callie would have ended up at an auction yard which is a one-way ticket to slaughter.”

  Foster let that terrible thought run through her head for a minute. That was probably a sad reality for many horses whose situation became upended.

  “What about him?” Foster wanted to know everything about the things Abby cared about, and that certainly included the horses.

  The stallion was pretty far across the pasture, but he raised his head and looked at them, as if he’d heard Abby call his name. He was dark in color, a rich, espresso brown, with a white blaze on his face.

  “A woman discovered him starving, dehydrated, and neglected on private property near Hayward. After asking around, she finally discovered that someone had abandoned him on
the property.” Abby kept watching the horses as she talked. She wasn’t looking at Foster. “The property owner wasn’t willing to feed him so he was slowly dying from lack of food and water.”

  “Seriously?” That sort of cruelty and neglect was hard to imagine. What kind of person could stand by and watch an animal waste away from starvation?

  “The woman negotiated his release and called our rescue because she knew nothing about how to take care of a starving horse.”

  “Jeezus.”

  “It’s never easy to see the results of suffering. His extremely gaunt frame and physical weakness were quite a shock. I’d never seen anything like it.” Abby faltered, as if she were reliving the moment. “It took everything I had to walk up the ramp into the trailer when he arrived.”

  “And look at him now. He looks terrific.”

  “Yes, he’s really healthy now. He’s the only other horse I ride besides Boots.”

  “He’s lucky to be here…and lucky he met you.”

  “I call him Brother, because in this case, I am my brother’s keeper.”

  Foster was touched by the story. Abby had such a good heart and such a gentle way. How could these wounded animals not fall madly in love with her. Foster wondered the same thing about herself.

  “Is a horse scarred for life after something like that?”

  “Initially, they’re flawed, wounded in body and spirit.” Abby rotated to face Foster, bracing an elbow on the railing. “But don’t flaws make a thing more beautiful? A flaw creates something singularly unique and powerful.”

  “I suppose flaws do deepen the beauty and character of a thing sometimes.” Foster thought of some of her favorite objects, family heirlooms, scratched and worn from use, cherished for their scuffs and scars, roadmaps of their journey.

  “I believe the shape of each soul is crafted by small flaws and imperfections.” Abby caressed Foster’s arm. Foster was mesmerized, glimpsing a part of Abby she hadn’t known before. “Flaws hold wisdom, life lessons…broken dreams.”

  She wasn’t sure they were talking about horses any longer. Abby was sharing some deeper truth, some personal ethos, and Foster was swept away by it. She angled her face close to Abby’s and kissed her.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Abby sat in the chair next to Foster at the long, rectangular table in the kitchen. There was a formal dining room in the house, but Abby always preferred the coziness of the kitchen. Foster and Evan sat at opposite ends of the table, and there were five people seated for dinner, six if she counted herself.

  How had she let this happen? A house full of people, dinner guests, some of them she knew only from extremely brief encounters in town. She’d interacted with Dena once at the library, but she’d never really spoken with her or Jai before, and now both of them were in her kitchen about to share a meal. The two of them could not seem more different from each other. As a matter of fact, this gathering couldn’t be more eclectic—a mystery writer, an Irish cook, a surly groundskeeper, an angry librarian, a sexy barista, and…who was she becoming? Yet again, she had the sensation of being someone else, of existing outside herself. Her social anxiety should have kicked into high gear, but for some reason Abby felt oddly at ease.

  “Now isn’t this nice. I love cooking for a crowd.” Cora was thrilled to host a dinner party.

  Abby normally preferred solitude. She was sure this rare event was going to be the highlight of Cora’s year. Abby wondered how long it would take for Cora to become curious about why this strange menagerie of visitors had convened. And then what? Abby felt an obligation to tell Cora the truth. Cora was like family. Plus, she was at risk of being swept along by whatever was coming. The shadow of dread, of some unwelcomed thing, hovered at the back of her mind. She knew that Evan sensed it too.

  “What strategy have you made?” The question was for Evan. Dena wasn’t one for ignoring the elephant in the room. It seemed that if Cora had any curiosity about this gathering she was about to find out what was really happening.

  Evan leaned on the edge of the table and glared at Dena.

  “What? You don’t want to talk in front of Cora?” Dena served herself a second helping of green beans. “She needs to be informed so that she can help us.”

  Cora perked up, her eyes brightened, but she didn’t say a word. She looked back and forth from Dena to Evan, waiting expectantly.

  “Cora, tomorrow night, at nine p.m. on Abby’s thirtieth birthday, she’ll become a witch. It’s gonna be a big, scary lightshow event that could go terribly wrong. Dena’s a witch, Jai’s a witch in training, I’m a member of the protectorate, and Foster is Abby’s soul keeper. There, I think that catches you up on everything.” Evan turned to Dena. “How was that?”

  “Would anyone care for another biscuit?” Cora held the basket up.

  “Cora, did you hear what I said?” Evan furrowed her brow.

  “Yes, yes, dear…Abby’s a witch. I’ve suspected it all along. I’m so happy you’re finally coming out, dear. Biscuit?”

  Abby couldn’t help laughing. The entire scene was so utterly absurd. Her laughter was contagious. After a few seconds, everyone except for Dena and Evan was laughing. It felt so good to laugh in the face of the unknown. Laughter lightened the air all around them.

  “Okay, settle down, everyone.” Dena was all business. “We need to take this seriously. Evan, you didn’t answer my question.”

  “I considered relocation.”

  “I don’t think that’s wise.” Dena adjusted her glasses. “We’re too close to the hour of ascension. If Abby were to shift while traveling that wouldn’t be good. We need a safe space. Somewhere we can control and protect.”

  Evan knew in her gut that Dena was right, despite Lisel’s urgent advice to flee. It would be hard to defend a position that was in motion.

  “I think you might be right about staying put.” Evan relaxed in her chair for the first time. Finally acknowledging that she needed help took some of the stiffness from her shoulders. “There’s a completely subterranean wine cellar beneath the kitchen. I think that might be our most defensible space for the transmutation.”

  “Any windows?” Dena spoke around a mouthful of mashed potatoes.

  “One…small.”

  “Not bad. That might work.” Dena threaded her fingers and chewed thoughtfully, looking upward at nothing. “What about the ring of fire?”

  “There’s an earthen floor, and I’ve already been working on digging out the trench. I stopped working on it when I thought we might vacate, but it wouldn’t take much to finish it.”

  “You mean there will literally be a ring of fire?” The question escaped before Abby could stop it.

  “This is so exciting.” Cora held her teacup in both hands as she sat on the edge of her seat. “It sounds just like a coronation…you know, except that those mostly happen above ground.” Cora reached across the table and patted Abby’s hand. “Your parents would be so proud.”

  “Would they?” Abby couldn’t imagine it.

  “I know your mother worried that this…gift…might be hard for you, because you’d be different from the other girls, but your father always knew you’d be able to handle this when the time came.” Cora touched Abby’s hand again. “Parents just want their children to be happy. That’s all that really matters.”

  Abby had begun to wonder why her parents never gave her one clue about their family’s link to witchcraft. And now it seemed Cora had some knowledge of it all along. Foster had uncovered a connection that began in Salem in the 1600s. Not merely a connection but a conviction that had resulted in Mercy Howe being hanged. Her parents must have known this. Surely her grandfather had known. She’d discovered the mentions of Mercy in his journal. She’d assumed at first that he meant mercy, as in grace, but now she knew he wasn’t searching for clemency; he’d been in search of a long-lost lineage, a thread connecting Abby to the dark matter, the sacred calling. She’d have to read further in his journal to discover what he knew.
There was also the book they’d found in the trunk in the attic. She’d let Foster read it first, but she wanted to examine that text as well. She felt for the amulet just inside her open collar. The stone was cool against her skin.

  Abby had so many questions; most of them would have to wait it seemed.

  “At some point, are you planning on filling the rest of us in on what’s supposed to happen tomorrow night?” Foster looked at Evan and then Dena. “Oh, and can we circle back to the whole topic of dark matter so that you can explain how exactly you’ve been tracking it.”

  Evan had to give Foster points for paying attention. Just when Evan was in the mood to shout obscenities at her for being too cavalier about the entire situation, she’d show up with her head in the game.

  “This is a tracker.” Jai held up the rectangular electronic device with a case featuring a design of tiny pink skulls.

  “That’s a cell phone. Nice case, by the way.” Foster leaned forward for a closer look.

  “Thanks, but this isn’t a cell phone. It just happens to be in a cell phone casing.” Jai held her thumb over the touch key for a few seconds and the device came to life. Jai swiped up, and a grid appeared. Definitely not a cell phone. Evan got out of her chair and moved closer for a better look.

  “This tracking software is designed to trace movement of dark matter.” Jai zoomed in on the grid, and the outline of the California coast became obvious.

  “How?” Foster asked the question, but Evan wanted to know too.

  “It imports data readings of electromagnetic radiation, more specifically cosmic background radiation, the oldest radiation in the universe. Using an imbedded mapping tool, it cross-references calculations of slight variations in the gravitational field, giving us a point of origin, a path, and a projected terminus.”

  “I thought you said you majored in social work.” The science Jai had just spouted was way over Evan’s head.

  “With a minor in physics.” Jai smiled. “Listen, I can explain more about how this works later. What you really need to see is this.” She punched in a sequence of numbers and then set the device on the table so the others could see it too.