Brendan turned again to the stone. Stephanie knelt at his left and David to his right. He spoke softly to each of them. “Aileen and Cowan, I am honored to have you both here with me tonight. Cowan, are you ready to document what I speak to you?”
With a smile and a nod of his head, David opened the journal to the first page and responded. “Yes, and with great pleasure.”
Brendan’s heart was pounding. “Then let us begin.”
With those four words, he reached up and removed the key. Flipping it over to the back side, he began to silently read in Latin what he told David to record in English; the titles of each of the six sections.
“Family.”
He paused as he rotated the key to read the next title.
“Royalty.” A turn of the stone.
“Land.” Another turn.
“Warriors.” Turn.
“Sea or Ocean.”
After turning the stone in his hands one last time, Brendan paused and just stared at the stone. After a few moments he flipped the stone over to look at the Pictish writing and then flipped it back over again. Brendan’s blood ran cold. No. … No, no, no, no, no. His breathing became heavy as his heart pounded in his chest. He fought to keep his composure and to not look over to either Aileen or Cowan.
David asked, “Brendan, you okay?”
“Uhh… yes. Sorry. I… I’m okay. Just a little bit of a memory lapse when it comes to my Latin usage.” He forced a smile. “Umm … the last title is Religion.”
Brendan again just stared. Think, Brendan! Think! You can salvage this situation. It’s okay. This can still work. Brendan reached up and put the key back into the key stone and made a show of kissing the key. He put a big smile on his face, got up and faced the crowd.
STEPHANIE KNELT NEXT to Brendan, excited to be this close to what was taking place. She looked across to David who also had a grin like that of a little boy receiving a big, wrapped birthday present.
Brendan … how to describe him? Giddy? On the verge of ecstasy? She wanted to laugh and give him a big hug.
He began to give David the titles of each section of the key and key stone.
“Family … Royalty … Land … Warriors … Sea or Ocean. …” then he stopped.
Stephanie was already looking up at Brendan when she saw him flinch. Was that fear?
“Brendan, you okay?” she heard David ask, but she didn’t look away from Brendan’s face.
“Uhh… yes. Sorry. I’m okay. Just a little bit of a memory lapse when it comes to my Latin usage.” He produced a smile that looked painted on; completely disingenuous. “Umm … the last title is Religion.”
Again Brendan stared at the stone.
What’s going on? She saw perspiration begin to form on his forehead. Stress!
Brendan then placed the key back into the standing stone and kissed it. He then turned around with a smile that appeared genuine, though she could tell that he was now having trouble controlling his breathing.
She and David both stood and moved to stand at Brendan’s sides.
Brendan looked over to David and quietly said, “Cowan, would you do the honors of reading the six areas of Picti life represented by the key and key stone? Let them know that each of these will be meticulously studied and translated.”
David followed the request as Stephanie witnessed sweat begin to roll down Brendan’s face, down his neck, and into his tunic.
Something terrible has just happened.
She, too, began to sweat.Brent knew that he had to raise a level of awareness in the mind of his captain, so he stood before his closed office door, took a deep breath, and knocked. The man had pretty much mocked him the last time they’d met and Brent had bit his tongue. What would happen this time?
Come in!”
Brent walked up to his superior’s desk and waited for him to look up from something that he was writing.
“Sergeant Lawton, what can I do for you?”
“Good morning, Captain. I’m afraid I’m back to make the same inquiry I did the last time I was in here.”
“Oh? Are you talking about your request to check the area for hobgoblins?” The captain sat back in his chair with a smirk that revealed he was pleased with his own sense of humor.
Brent wanted to contest his boss’s remark, but fought the urge. “So, you haven’t heard of anything strange, maybe occult-oriented, happening in the area?”
“You mean happening in this city, don’t you Sergeant?”
“In Millsville, yes, but also in the surrounding communities. Maybe news coming out of Pittston?”
Captain Morelli sat forward again, bringing his hands together and clasping them on his desk. “Pittston?”
Brent could tell that he wasn’t curious, but rather on the edge of becoming very perturbed.
“Yes, sir. One of my neighbors had been out in Pittston yesterday.” Brent felt a pang of guilt as he ‘stretched’ the truth. “He said he overheard some people claiming to be involved in some ritualistic occult activity there. I just thought it might be wise to look into it, just in case something might start crossing the city line into Millsville.”
The captain bored a hole into Brent’s skull with his stare for a few seconds then picked up the phone. He pulled out a laminated card from a desk drawer with the names and direct lines to the heads of local police and sheriff’s offices in the surrounding area. He punched in a phone number and waited.
“Chief Connor, Captain Morelli in Millsville.”
Pause.
“Doing well. You?”
Pause.
The captain chuckled. “Not that I’m willing to admit. Listen, I’ve got one of my sergeants in my office.” He rejoined eye contact with Brent. “He’s telling me that he’s gotten a complaint or two from visitors to Pittston; something to do with supposed occult activity. I’m sure it’s nothing to be worried about, but for the sake of my citizens I felt an obligation to just place a quick call to see if you’ve heard anything.”
Pause.
“Mmm-hmm. Okay. I appreciate that. Thank you, Chief. Have a good day.”
The captain hung up the phone.
“Well, Brent, according to the chief over there, there’s been no malicious activity that can be attributed to occult practices. He said that there are several people from Scotland staying at a hotel in town for a family reunion, but other than that, nothing out of the ordinary.”
Brent was deflated, but refused to let his captain know it. “Well, thank goodness. Sounds like my neighbor has gotten weirded out about nothing. Thanks for making that call, Captain. Time for me to get into my brand-new patrol car.”
“Ahh … Seen it already, have you?”
“Yes, sir. Thank the mayor for me.” Brent began to exit his captain’s office.
“Brent.”
Brent stopped at the doorway and turned back to look at the captain.
“Do me two favors. One: Stay out of Pittston. And two: Don’t break that car.”
Brent released a fake laugh and pulled the door closed behind him.
12:13 P.M.
TARA STOOD STARING blankly at the shelves stocked with what seemed like hundreds of brands of pain relievers. She was supposed to be grocery shopping, but after every couple of items she put into her cart her mind began to fog. She couldn’t seem to focus and her headache from two days ago persisted.
She had almost decided to do her shopping in Pittston. However, she knew she would accomplish little more in that town than a witch hunt. That thought should have struck her as funny, but nothing involving the word ‘witch’ was going to come close to producing a smile.
Instead of Pittston, she stuck to her favorite local store in Millsville where she … stared.
A faint awareness of a woman coming up beside her and looking for something on the same set of shelves was enough to bring her focus back. Okay, Aleve? Maybe the store’s generic…
“Excuse me.”
Tara turned to see a pretty woman,
maybe a few years older than herself, with blonde hair and fair skin looking her over.
“I’m sorry,” the blonde said, “but did I get the chance to meet you Friday morning?”
Tara tried to think back to what she was doing Friday and realized that she hadn’t left her house until that afternoon. “I don’t think so, unless we saw each other some other time in the day. But, to be honest, I don’t recognize you.”
“I’m sorry. I just figured that you must have been at the religious gathering that I attended.”
Tara thought back. Maybe this lady is mixed up on the day that they may have been in the same location. “Do you attend my church?”
The woman released a little snicker. “No, I don’t go to church. I’m sorry. My mistake. I just thought that since you had the same tattoo that you must have been with the others that I met in Pittston.”
Tara’s heart felt like it seized. “Pittston? You were at a religious event Friday morning in Pittston?”
“I probably shouldn’t have called it a religious event. It was more of a meet and greet cookout that my brother talked me into attending. The actual religious ceremonies were that evening, and I wasn’t invited.”
Tara had to somehow keep this woman talking. “That sounds interesting!” She played embarrassed and said, “I’m so sorry” She stuck out her hand. “My name is Tara Lawton.”
The woman laughed. “I’m sorry, too! My name is Donna McNeill.”
“It’s great to meet you, Donna. Do you live here in Millsville?”
“No, I actually live in Parma Heights, but I’ve got a client here in Millsville, so I thought I’d stop in here to pick up a few things.”
“What do you do?”
“I’m an assisted-living attendant. I work for a company that dispatches me to different people’s homes who have need of special care. Most of them are senior citizens, but I have a few, like the young lady here in Millsville, that I’m going to see, who are young but are enduring circumstances in which they aren’t able to fend for themselves.”
Tara was honestly impressed. “What a blessing you must be to people, Donna! Wow! And what a heart you must have.”
Donna smiled. “I’m just me. Sometimes I fall short in how I’m able to help. But at least most of my clients are glad to have me knock on their doors.”
“Do you have a business card?”
“I sure do!” Donna pulled her purse off her shoulder and dug for her business-card case. Opening it, she took one out and handed it to Tara. “That’s my cell number on the card.”
“Thank you. Would you mind too much if I gave you a call later? I’d really enjoy talking with you some more.”
“I’m free after 3:00 PM today if you’d like to give me a call after that.”
“Donna, expect a call.”
“Good meeting you, Tara. I look forward to talking with you again.”
“Same here.”
Donna smiled and walked away.
Tara watched her turn a corner and walk out of sight. Looking up to the ceiling she whispered with a smile on her face, “Lord, did You just set me up?”
3:07 P.M.
WHILE SHE DIDN’T want to seem anxious, Tara couldn’t wait any longer to give Donna a call. She had an idea that would hopefully help her to gather more information while in a relaxed setting. Maybe she could invite Donna over for some coffee. She just hoped Donna was still in the area.
Grabbing her cell phone off of her dining room table, she dialed the number on Donna’s business card. It rang.
“Hello? This is Donna McNeill.”
“Hi, Donna. This is Tara Lawton, we met at…”
“Hi, Tara! I was just talking about you.”
That struck Tara as a bit odd. “You were?”
“Yes, with my brother, David. I told him how weird a coincidence it was to meet someone with the same tattoo that wasn’t involved with their group.”
Oh, no, Tara thought. “What did he say?”
“He kind of shrugged it off. He said that as far as Celtic art goes, the tattoo that you have isn’t all that rare.”
“Well, there you go.”
“Yep, there you go.”
“The reason I called was to ask if you had plans for dinner.” Dinner? Tara rolled her eyes. Where’d that come from? She ventured forth with, “I was planning an early meal and thought that if you were still in Millsville you might enjoy an opportunity to relax after a hard day’s work. I would love to get to know you better, and with my husband coming home early, I was already planning something quick and easy.” Tara realized that she was rambling and probably pressing too hard for an opportunity to talk again. Shut up, Tara, and just let her answer you. Goodness! “Would you like to be my guest for dinner? I mean, our guest… here at our home?”
Donna let out a giggle. “Well, I am still in town, and if you hadn’t offered, it would have been another day of fast food. Tara, I’d enjoy that very much. What is your address?”
Tara gave her the address and they got off the phone. Now she had to come up with a quick dinner idea … that wasn’t fast food. Oh! And she had to call Brent!
Brent answered on the first ring. “Hi, babe!”
“Hi, Brent. When…” That was out of the ordinary. “Did you say ‘babe’?”
Brent laughed. “Just flew out of my mouth for some reason. So, what’s up?”
“First, you haven’t called me babe in a long time. But I think I approve.” She smiled. “Second, how fast can you come home?”
“Okay… First, good, I’m glad. Second, I’m just wrapping up some arrest paperwork. My shift is over in ten minutes. Why?”
“You are not going to believe who I ran into today!”
Brendan hoped that these two seemingly unrelated pieces of information were just that. Uilliam had called and indicated that some police sergeant in Millsville may be snooping around, and now, Cowan called to let him know that his sister had just run into a local woman with a tattoo that appeared to be just like that which most of the Picti had adopted as their symbol of faith.
It really could just be just coincidental timing.
But he couldn’t afford to risk it. Not now. Especially when they were about to take their greatest risk. Even now David was preparing for tomorrow night’s initiation and appeasement ceremonies—the blood-letting rite that would be performed, in part, as homage to Cailleach, the Hag.
He paced back and forth from the living room to the kitchen. Stephanie sat in the living room silently, but her eyes were on him every time he stepped back into her presence. The rest of the Home Coven and Picti were either enjoying the weather out on the farm property or taking advantage of their open schedules to go and investigate some of the interesting sights and sounds of Ohio. Tonight would be the final celebration of their new beginning. The Home Coven would pull out all of the stops when it came to prepared foods and entertainment.
Walking back into the living room for probably the seventh or eighth time he came to a stop before Stephanie. “Aileen, we may have a problem.”
“Who?”
That was pretty perceptive, Brendan thought. “Cowan’s twin. He told me that he got a call from her. She was apparently quite excited and called to relay that she had a chance meeting with a woman who has a triskele tattoo just like ours. The woman didn’t seem to know anything about our gathering. But if she was posed with a question or two about it, then she certainly does now!
“Aileen, we can’t have things like this happening! That damned woman opened her mouth and has potentially put at risk what we’re doing.”
Stephanie disagreed. “David—Cowan—is the one who put us at risk. That woman is just being an average, everyday dimwit. You can hardly blame her for this.”
Brendan knew she was right. “I’ll talk with Cowan. He needs to reign in his sister.”
“Okay, now that that’s somewhat settled,” said Stephanie, “what’s going on with you?”
Brendan knew instantly what she
was talking about, but wasn’t willing to admit it. “I’m sorry?”
“Last night on the mound, in front of the stone… What happened?”
“Nothing, Aileen. It was as I said. I grew frustrated by my lack of ability to remember some of the proper Latin translations.”
“You couldn’t remember the Latin word for religion? Come on, Brendan, talk to me.”
“Damn you, Aileen!” Brendan’s blood began to boil. This was not a subject that would be discussed this day. In fact, this was a subject that he intended to never have discussed. “There is nothing to talk about! Take me at my word!”
With that, Brendan walked out of the living room, threw open the front door to the porch, and marched off into the fields.
3:38 P.M.
BRENT PULLED UP to the house in the shiny, new cruiser and parked the vehicle in the street. Though his SUV was parked in their garage, the driveway was occupied by Tara’s minivan and the champagne-colored sedan of her new friend.
Brent had little doubt that this was going to be one very interesting dinner.
As he walked through the front door he nearly tripped over two backpacks; those of Jamie and Amy. Tara must have seen him come in.
“Sorry about that, hon. I’m the one who told the kids to put them by the door. Nana and Papa are coming to pick them up for hamburgers, a movie, and an overnight.”
Nicely done, my bride, he mused. “That sounds great! I’m sure they’re going to have a blast.”
Walking into the dining area, he came upon an attractive, middle-age blonde who was sitting in one of the dining room chairs and facing the kitchen where Tara was preparing their dinner. He said a passing hello as he walked up to Tara. “Hello, babe.”
Tara giggled. “Hi, baby.”
It was all he could do to keep from laughing, but he couldn’t prevent the big grin that he now displayed.
“Brent, allow me to introduce my new friend, Donna McNeill. Donna, this is my husband, Brent.”
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