The End Of Desire argi-8

by M. R. Sellars

  “No problem,” I replied, an absent tone in my voice as I scanned the area where he indicated.

  Whole cloves were scattered across the floor where they had fallen from a large pile on the countertop. Next to the pile itself was a plastic container lying on its side, the dried flower buds spilling from the open mouth in a dark brown spread. The sharp aroma of the spice was even thicker here in the small room.

  I edged around the mess on the floor and leaned forward to peer closely at the other remnants of magick occupying the space near the sink. A slag of red wax with a small piece of blackened wick sat to one side. Near it was a pattern of drips, which at first glance also appeared to be wax but was black and had a much glossier sheen. Upon closer inspection, I could tell they had come from a very different type of candle besides simply the color. Next to these sat a bowl, which contained a rusted red substance that had the distinctive look of slowly coagulating blood. Drops of the dried liquid formed a trail across the surface of the counter. I followed it with my eyes until it ended at a roughly circular spot that was devoid of the scattered cloves.

  “Have the evidence technicians removed anything in here?” I asked.

  “No,” Martin replied. “Like I said, they haven’t made it this far except to set markers and take a few pictures.”

  “Something is missing,” I muttered.

  “What did you say?” Ben asked.

  “Something is missing,” I said louder, as I pointed to the clear spot. “Whatever she did, it involved a bottle or a jar maybe. See this round spot here that doesn’t have any cloves on it?”

  “Yeah,” he grunted. “So what’d she do?”

  “I can’t tell.”

  “Whaddaya mean ya’ can’t tell?”

  “I mean I can’t tell,” I repeated. “I’ve never seen this exact type of magickal working before. The basic components of a lust spell are here with the red candle and the cloves. But, by the same token, you also have blood, which I’m betting once belonged to Lewis. And, see these black droplets here? That’s sealing wax.”

  “You mean like the stuff they put on the back of fancy envelopes?” Martin asked.

  “Exactly. Whatever she did, she sealed it in a bottle or jar.”

  “So it’s some kind of Voodoo?” Martin asked.

  “Hoodoo, maybe. Even more likely, it’s some manner of old folk magick,” I told him.

  “Okay, well I hate to be a skeptic, Rowan, but what bearing does it really have on this investigation?”

  “For the police, probably nothing more than evidence that she was here.”

  “So it’s nothing,” he replied.

  “No, it’s something. I just don’t know what because it doesn’t make sense.”

  “Which part?” Ben asked.

  “The outward appearance of the spell in general. I don’t get why she would be doing some kind of convoluted sex magick because she killed him out of anger, not for the thrill.”

  “Do you think maybe you could be wrong about that part?” Martin asked.

  “I could be wrong about all kinds of things,” I replied. “But, I can guarantee you that I don’t feel any sexual energy emanating from this apartment, and that has always been the predominant psychic feature of all the others.”

  “Okay, so then what do you think the bottle or jar was for?”

  “Like I said, to contain whatever magick she performed, so that in itself creates another mystery. Sealing a magickal working into a bottle isn’t unusual, but it can be done for just about any type of spell, so it really doesn’t give us any clue as to exactly what she did.”

  “But, if I’m followin’ ya’, you’re sayin’ maybe she made ‘erself some lust in a bottle,” Ben interjected.

  “On the surface that’s what it looks like, but we’re talking about blood magick here, so I’m seriously out of my element. Even so, since the container isn’t here, I’d be willing to bet she either has it with her or she buried it somewhere.”

  “And that means what?” Ben asked.

  I dipped my head and gave him a half shrug. “Unfortunately, it means we aren’t going to find out what it is until it does whatever it’s supposed to do.”

  CHAPTER 31:

  “So what do we do now,” I asked.

  Ben and I had signed out of the crime scene shortly after Detective Martin had showed us the mysterious bit of magick Annalise had worked in the kitchen. My headache still hadn’t really subsided at this point, but a good amount of the tension had finally ebbed. The most important thing for me at the moment, however, was that my skin was no longer prickling with the unbridled anger that had been so prevalent throughout the apartment.

  “Whaddaya mean?” Ben returned. “It’s simple. We go back to your place, pick up Firehair and your luggage, then I take you two ta’ my place.”

  “I know that,” I said. “I meant, what do we do about stopping Annalise?”

  “Gotta find ‘er first, so unless you got some kinda Twilight Zone thing tellin’ us where ta’ look, it’s just gonna take police work and a bit of luck.”

  “Define police work.”

  “We ask around and hope somebody saw somethin’.”

  “That’s it?”

  “That’s where the luck comes in,” he grunted. “If we’re lucky, someone did and will be willin’ ta’ talk to us about it.”

  “That doesn’t sound terribly promising.”

  “Welcome to the real world, Row. The majority of the time, that’s how criminals get caught,” he said with a shake of his head. “That crap on TV is e’zactly that. Crap. Ain’t nobody gonna stick a piece of hair under a microscope and suddenly say, ‘Bingo! She’s standin’ at the corner of Fourth and Broadway, go get ‘er.’ When it comes to this kinda crime, real police work is three parts paperwork, one part luck. Truth is, right now Devereaux is really just a suspect. Until we catch up to ‘er and compare the DNA and all that shit… Well, you got the idea.”

  “It’s her. Believe me.”

  “I do. We just gotta make sure the evidence supports it.”

  “Okay, so what if nobody saw anything?”

  “Then we hope she uses a credit card or somethin’, and we get a hit.”

  “And if that doesn’t happen.”

  “Awfully goddamned negative today, aren’t ya’?”

  “I’m just worried.”

  “Yeah… I can tell…”

  “So? If she doesn’t use a credit card or something?”

  “Okay, I’ll play. If she keeps ‘er head down, doesn’t use one of the credit cards we’re trackin’, nobody saw anything, and nobody calls with a decent tip, then we’re kinda fucked until she makes some other move.”

  “Like coming after me or Felicity?”

  “Or killin’ some other poor bastard, yeah, that’s pretty much about it.”

  “That doesn’t make me feel any better, Ben.”

  “Hey, you were the one playin’ devil’s advocate, not me,” he replied as he turned the van onto Laclede and accelerated with the flow of traffic. “Who knows, maybe she’ll see the error of her ways and turn herself in.”

  “Yeah, right.”

  “It’s happened before.”

  “I wouldn’t count on it this time.”

  “Didn’t say I was countin’ on it,” he grunted. “Either way, look at the bright side. Ya’ played with your doll, and now the ghost bitch is leavin’ Felicity alone.”

  “Yeah,” I answered with a tired sigh. “There is that.”

  “Look, Row, it’s all gonna be good,” my friend offered. “We get you two outta sight so you’re safe, and Major Case’ll do the rest.”

  “I guess you’re right.”

  “Jeez, mark it on the calendar,” he half chuckled. “The injun gets ta’ be right for a change.”

  We rode along in relative silence for a few moments while I digested everything he had just said. I wasn’t overly excited about hiding out. I had no reason to believe that doing so this time would end
as badly as it had the last, but it still didn’t do anything for my anxiety level. I suppose the old idiom, “once bitten, twice shy,” was a good description of how I felt about the idea.

  Finally, out of idle curiosity, I turned to Ben and asked, “By the way, I’m sure I can probably guess, but what did Mike have to say when you two went in the back?”

  “Not much.”

  “I know better. It had something to do with me being there, didn’t it?”

  “Yeah, well he just wanted ta’ remind me that you weren’t s’posed ta’ be,” he grunted.

  “What did you tell him?”

  “That I already knew that.”

  “Do you think he’ll say anything?”

  “Martin?” He shook his head. “Prob’ly not. I wish he would, but it really doesn’t matter. Your name is on the log, so it’ll come ta’ somebody’s attention soon enough.”

  “What do you mean, you wish he would?”

  He simply shrugged in answer.

  “Well, how much trouble are you going to be in over this?” I asked.

  He shrugged again. “Dunno just yet.”

  “Could you lose your job?”

  “Not very likely. But if I’m lucky I’ll get at least a two week suspension.”

  “At least?”

  “It’d be even better if it was a thirty day.”

  “Better? You aren’t making sense.”

  “Yeah I am. You just don’t know it.”

  “Dammit, Ben, you shouldn’t have taken me there.”

  “I keep tellin’ ya’, White Man, don’t worry about it.”

  “How can I not? All that came from this was me standing there saying, ‘I don’t know.’”

  “Yeah, but whether ya’ realize it or not, now ya’ actually do know more than ya’ did before, even if ya’ don’t know exactly what she’s up to… If that makes any kind of sense. Either way, it’s a start.”

  “Not enough for you to risk your career.”

  “Yeah, well, those’re the breaks. Besides, I told ya’ I ain’t gonna lose my job.”

  “But you might get suspended, and I’m going to feel guilty about that.”

  “Don’t. A suspension for somethin’ like this really ain’t that big a deal.”

  “You’re being awfully calm about this,” I remarked, unable to keep the confusion out of my voice.

  “Uh-huh.”

  “Am I missing something here?”

  “Apparently.”

  I waited for him to expand on his answer, but he simply continued driving in silence. After a moment I prompted, “Well? Would you like to enlighten me?”

  “Look, it’s simple, Row,” he explained. “If I can get suspended, I’ll be freed up ta’ spend my time makin’ sure you and Firehair are safe instead of dependin’ on someone else ta’ do it while I’m off chasin’ dead end leads.”

  “So you’re trying to tell me this is all just part of your grand plan?”

  “Somethin’ like that.”

  “You’ve lost your mind.”

  “Yeah, probably,” he grunted. “That’s why I’m hopin’ for at least thirty days. I could really use the vacation.”

  *****

  The alarm system began to pulse out its countdown as we came through the front door. I stepped quickly across the room and stabbed in the disarm code on the keypad. It didn’t escape my notice that the display was reading that it had been enabled in the “away” mode, which meant the motion detectors scattered throughout the house were live. This certainly wasn’t the way it should be set if someone were home, which was supposed to be the case.

  “Felicity?” I called out then waited for an answer.

  We had been gone for almost two hours, and the crime scene van had no longer been parked in front of the house when we arrived. I had glanced around after climbing out of Ben’s vehicle but hadn’t seen any local police in the vicinity either, which bothered me quite a bit, given that Ben had arranged for them to be there keeping watch.

  Getting no reply, I called out again as I headed down the hallway to our bedroom. I was afraid to admit it to myself, but I knew she wouldn’t answer the second time either. The house simply felt empty except for the cats and dogs. I reached the end of the hall and poked my head in through the door. My wife’s overnight bag was sitting on the end of the bed, but judging from its misshapen profile it was obvious that she had yet to put much, if anything, into it.

  “Yo, Firehair!” Ben bellowed as I started back toward the living room.

  I could feel my heart rate beginning to rise. I opened the door to the basement and called down the stairs, “Honey, are you down there?”

  Again, there was no response.

  I shut the door then stepped into the living room where Ben was still standing. “She’s not here,” I said, my voice a twisted mix of anxiety and confusion.

  “Don’t panic, Row,” Ben said. “She set the alarm, so maybe she had to run out for somethin’.”

  “Maybe so,” I replied, trying to believe what he was telling me, but my heart rate continued to ramp upward as I felt the thumping in my chest. “But, she hasn’t even really started to pack, and we were gone for quite awhile. It doesn’t make sense.”

  I’m sure he could sense my growing agitation, and his words reflected as much. “I’m serious, Row. Don’t panic.”

  “Aren’t there supposed to be police watching the house?” I asked.

  “Maybe she’s with ‘em,” Ben suggested as he stepped around me and started toward the kitchen. “Give ‘er a try on ‘er cell phone, and I’ll check ta’ see if ‘er Jeep is here.”

  I nodded reply then advanced across the living room and snatched up the phone from the bookshelf. With a quick stab at the keypad, I quickly dialed her number. While I waited for the connection to be made, I heard the sound of the back door open as Ben headed out to the garage. After a soft click, the handset began to trill with the audible tone of the ringer. A heartbeat later, as the second ring issued into my ear, a syncopated tune began to play from the vicinity of the dining room. I stepped forward and to my left then looked through the archway. There, on the buffet, was my wife’s cell phone.

  Ben was just coming back around the corner as I was hanging up.

  “Jeep’s gone,” he said.

  “And, she left her cell phone here,” I told him, though I was certain he’d heard it.

  My heart now advanced beyond a fast jog and directly into a sprint as panic wrapped its icy grip around my gut. Apparently it was obvious in my face as well because Ben looked at me and held up his hands.

  “Stay calm, Row. Like I said, she probably just went to the store or something.”

  “Dammit, Ben, someone was supposed to stay with her!” I spat.

  “I’m sure they are, hold on a sec.”

  He pulled out his cell phone and flipped it open then thumbed in a number. Placing it up to his ear, he waited a moment then began to speak.

  “Yeah, this is Detective Storm with the Major Case Squad. Can you do me a favor and radio the unit you had watching the Gant household and check somethin’ for me?”

  He waited a moment, turning to face me and nodding reassurance. “It’s fine, Row,” he said. “She probably just needed some girl stuff or somethin’.”

  “No,” I said, shaking my head. “Something doesn’t feel right about this.”

  “Twilight Zone?”

  “It just doesn’t feel right,” I repeated.

  “Yeah, I’m here,” he said, turning his attention back to the phone. “What do you mean you hadn’t dispatched a unit yet? I called it in over two hours ago!”

  He listened for a few seconds then spat, “Yeah. Thanks.”

  “They didn’t send anyone to watch the house?” I asked, distress rising in my voice.

  I knew he wasn’t ignoring me, but he didn’t respond because his cell phone was pressed up against his ear once again, and he was already talking to someone else.

  “Yeah, this is St
orm,” he barked. “I need ta’ get a BOLO out on Felicity O’Brien right now…”

  CHAPTER 32:

  “Yeah, ya’ got that? Yeah, Victor, X-Ray, November… That’s right, black Jeep,” Ben said into his phone.

  My friend had made a circuit through the house while calling in the “Be On The Lookout” but hadn’t come up with anything he felt necessary to share. He was now standing back in the living room with his cell still firmly planted against his ear.

  “Yeah… She’s about five-two, around a hundred and five pounds,” he continued. “Long red hair. Really long, like waist length. Yeah. Green eyes. Uh-hmmm… No… Right now we aren’t sure. We have reason to believe she’s being stalked by a woman fitting the same physical description. Yeah, no kiddin’. No, there’s no evidence of it being an actual abduction, but we might wanna treat it as a possible. She was last seen at the house in Briarwood, and that was about an hour ago. Maybe an hour and a half… Yeah, by a coupl’a crime scene techs who were goin’ over the yard… Yeah, had ta’ do with the possible stalker… Yeah. Thanks. Call me at this number if ya’ get anything.”

  My friend folded the device and shoved it into his pocket then simply stared across the room at me. I was sitting on the edge of the sofa, making a concerted effort at remaining calm. So far I had been keeping myself on an even keel, but I wasn’t sure how much longer that would last.

  “What did they say?” I asked after a long pause.

  “In about two minutes, every cop on duty in the metro area is gonna be keepin’ an eye out for ‘er and the Jeep. It’s all good. They’re gonna find ‘er and she’s gonna be just fine.”

  “I hope you’re right.”

  “Look, Row,” he said. “I know you’re worried, but it’s gonna be fine. I’m tellin’ ya’ we’re pro’bly overreacting as it is.”

  “I’m all about overreacting when it comes to my wife’s safety.”

  “Believe me, I know that. Hell, ta’ be honest I’m impressed your head hasn’t spun all the way around yet.”

  “Give me a minute,” I replied. “It could still happen.”

  “Did ya’ check her schedule? Maybe she had an appointment or somethin’.”