by Claire Fogel
“Hello, Cara. Sean will be in the hospital for a few more days. He’ll be having surgery on his nose in the morning. Right now he’s having trouble breathing. He doesn’t have his phone with him, but you can call me any time. I’ll let Sean know you’ve been asking about him. By the way, Chief O’Donnell was here earlier. Ed Wilson is in police custody. He won’t be doing any more damage. The Chief told me you’d been injured too. How are you feeling?”
“I’m okay. I got hit in the head with a rock, but I didn’t even need stitches. I’ll be fine. Please tell Sean I wish him good luck with his surgery and that I’ll see him soon.”
He said he would.
I put my phone down and tried to find a comfortable place for my head on the pillow.
Life in Thornewood had been truly awful for weeks now. I didn’t even want to think about all the crimes Donald Gaynes had paid others to commit. Amy and I had been determined to enjoy our senior year. Instead, we were merely enduring it.
When I thought about Sean in the hospital facing surgery, I wanted to cry. I couldn’t help feeling responsible. It was just like last spring. If Sean hadn’t met me, he wouldn’t be dealing with all this pain. And there didn’t seem to be anything I could do about it. No one had been able to find Gaynes and lock him up.
I finally fell asleep, feeling totally depressed.
I woke up before my alarm went off, moved my head, and was relieved to find it wasn’t throbbing. The headache was gone, and the pain above my eye had dulled. It looked like I was definitely going to school today.
I made a conscious effort to dress in cheerful colors, pulling my one red shirt out of the closet and digging in a drawer for a red ribbon to tie around my ponytail. I had to smile when I was dressed. At least the red contrasted nicely with the white bandage over my eye. Don’t tell me I can’t coordinate.
When I walked into the kitchen, Mom smiled at me from the stove where she was making—you guessed it—pancakes, her favorite cure-all. Dad was sitting at the table, watching Mom with a smile on his face. Things felt almost normal.
My father looked at me with a tentative smile. “How’s the head this morning, sweetheart?”
“It’s not bad today. I think I’ll live. Pancakes! What’s the occasion?”
Mom just shrugged. “I guess we can celebrate the fact that we’re both feeling better. I may be crazy, but I have a strong feeling that everything will be better from now on. Like the worst is over, you know?”
I hoped she was right, but I thought it was just wishful thinking. Gaynes was still out there somewhere.
The three of us managed to polish off a dozen pancakes, and then I had to leave for school. “Thanks for the pancakes, Mom. You’re the best.” I hugged her and dropped a kiss on Dad’s cheek. “I’m hoping for a normal day at school today. See you two later.”
Ryan was waiting for me on the porch, and Kevin was already parked at the curb.
When Ryan and I climbed into the Jeep, Kevin grinned. “Glad to see your head’s still in one piece, short stuff. Feeling better?”
“I’m okay, Kev. Mom’s ESP thinks everything will be fine now. I don’t know about you, but I’m still waiting for that “fun” senior year to begin.”
“Me too, babe.” He shook his head, clearly as optimistic as I was.
We were a little early, so Kevin found a parking space in front of the school, actually in front of Mr. Weiss’ office window. When we got inside, we found Amy and Neal waiting for us in front of the principal’s office.
She grabbed me for a hug that almost lifted me off my feet. “I didn’t hear about your rock problem until this morning. Mr. McKay called early to let me know he and his wife were on their way to the hospital for Sean’s surgery. I’ve got Mom’s station wagon today. Sean’s dad said Wilson—that miserable excuse for a human—threw a rock at you. That’s a big bandage. How bad is it?”
“Not so big it’ll leave a scar, according to Kathleen. I was lucky she was visiting Mom when I got home. She put some of her magic herbs on the cut and promised me it would heal perfectly.”
She chuckled. “One of these days, I want to meet Kathleen. She must be some kind of wizard.”
I heard my name and turned to see Mr. Weiss in his doorway. After assuring him that I felt much better today, I handed over my knives.
“I was hoping you’d be early today, Cara. I have to leave for court. Wilson is being arraigned today and I promised his father I’d be there.” He shook his head, looking a little helpless. “I don’t know what they expect me to do. The boy will probably be locked up until he’s eighteen.”
Kevin asked, “Is Mr. Wilson still on the police force?”
“As far as I know, Kevin. I hope today will go smoothly for all of you, and for Sean as well. I’ll be speaking to his father sometime today.”
As I walked between classes, I got a variety of looks from kids I didn’t know. Some looked sympathetic, some resentful. Apparently, Wilson’s trash talk had been partially successful. In each class, several classmates sympathized about Wilson’s attacks on Sean and me. Everyone was angry about what had happened to Sean. After all, he wouldn’t be playing any football for a while, and everyone knew how valuable he was to the team.
I heard that five of Sean’s friends, all on the football team, had cornered Wilson’s two friends outside school this morning. Those two wouldn’t be threatening anyone else if they wanted to remain healthy. Apparently, the out-of-town troublemakers had been convinced to stay out of Thornewood by the police department. I heard that two of them looked a little worse for wear, thanks to Gabriel. Maybe all would be well if the negative talk stopped.
One of the bigger football players, Billy Herron, was in my English class. He leaned down and drawled, “I don’t know why anyone would want to throw a rock at a little thing like you, Cara. Sean would tear him apart.” Billy had spent his childhood in Alabama and it showed.
I said, “I don’t think Sean will get a chance. Wilson will probably be in jail.”
He nodded. “Good. We’re just hopin’ Sean makes a fast recovery. There’s some talk that Coach wants to recruit Gabe, that big friend of Sean’s. I hope he does. That guy can really move.”
That was an interesting thought, and I had to smile. An Elf with magical abilities on Thornewood’s football team! That would definitely be against the rules. If they knew about it.
When Kevin, Amy, and I met at lunch with our bodyguards, I shared Billy’s comment about Gabe filling in for Sean on the football team. Kevin and Amy were enthusiastic about the idea, but Ryan, Patrick, and Neal just looked at each other, obviously trying not to laugh.
I looked at our bodyguards. “Okay, guys, give. What do you know that we don’t?”
Ryan was trying to restrain a grin. “Well, lass, to say that Gabe would have an unfair advantage would be puttin’ it mildly.”
Patrick laughed. “First of all, Gabe is a bit older than the rest of the boys on the team. Secondly, his reflexes and eyesight are far better than humans consider normal. That’s why he’s the best archer in Elvenwood.”
Neal added, “Compared to the rest of the team, Gabe is like ‘Superboy.’ He’s bigger, faster, stronger, and thinks ahead like a champion chess player. He could probably win the game single-handedly. What I’m afraid of is people recognizing that Gabe’s not exactly a normal teenager.”
Kevin nodded. “It really wouldn’t be a good idea for Gabe to play in Sean’s place,
would it?”
All three bodyguards shook their heads.
“If Coach insists, how can Gabe refuse?”
They all shrugged.
The bell rang, and we left the lunchroom for our afternoon classes.
The resentful looks began to diminish as the facts about the real instigator of these attacks began to spread. More people were learning about Donald Gaynes and his attempted revenge against my father. People were talking, and for a change, that was a good thing.
When Kevin dropped me o
ff after school, the Chief’s new black cruiser was in front of my house. Kevin groaned. “What’s happened now?”
“Maybe the Chief came by to talk to Mom about her kidnapping. I’d better get inside. She wants me there when the Chief questions her.”
“Hope it goes well, short stuff. Give your mom a hug for me.”
Ryan stationed himself on the front porch while I went inside. I found Mom, Dad, and the Chief sitting at the kitchen table over coffee. Dad looked a bit tense, but Mom and the Chief seemed fairly relaxed.
Mom smiled as I walked in. “Hi, sweetheart. We’ve been waiting for you. I want to get this over with today. Pour yourself some coffee and sit down with us.”
Chief O’Donnell pulled out a small recorder. “Alicia, I have to record this, but, for obvious reasons I don’t want your dragon on this recording. I do want to know everything, including the dragon, but please say you need a drink of water when the dragon’s part in this comes up, and I can turn off the recorder.”
He turned the recorder on and nodded to Mom. “All right, let’s start with what happened Friday around five p.m. in front of The Crescent Moon.”
Taking a deep breath, Mom described how she ran to the mailbox.
“Most days there’s a police car on that block, but it was five o’clock and they must have left for change of shift. I think the men who grabbed me knew my schedule. They timed it perfectly. When I ran outside by myself, they had their chance. They drove their SUV up next to me, opened the back door and one of them grabbed my arm and pulled me in. It must have taken about three seconds. For a split second, I saw Arlynn’s shocked face through my store’s window. The man who’d grabbed me put plastic ties around my wrists and ankles, threw me on the floor, and moved up to the front seat with the driver. I tried to loosen the ties but when they cut into my skin and I could feel blood, I stopped struggling.
“They must have driven to the highway entrance first. I heard them swearing and I felt the car turn around abruptly. I guess the road was already blocked. Then they drove to the other road out of town, but they had to turn around again. They were yelling at each other. I guess it hadn’t occurred to them that they wouldn’t be able to get out of town after they grabbed me.”
She described how they spent a long time just driving from one back road to another, staying out of the populated areas, finally taking the road that ran along the south side of Blackthorne Forest.
“From the swearing I heard, I think they saw a police car with its lights on in the distance, so they pulled into the forest as far as the SUV would go until they ran into a group of trees too close together to drive through.
“They finally stopped yelling at each other and began talking in a normal tone of voice. I heard the driver say, ‘What are we supposed to do with her if we can’t leave town? And there were witnesses when we snatched her, so they know our car.’
“The other man said, ‘I’m going to call the boss and see what he wants us to do.’ I guess he didn’t get an answer because he said he’d try the number again in fifteen minutes.”
The Chief asked, “What were you doing while you were lying in the back of the car?”
“I was trying to stay calm, trying not to think about being killed.” She looked at me and my dad. “I was trying to focus on the people I love, trying not to panic.”
“Alicia, how long do you think you were parked in the woods?”
“I can’t be sure. I couldn’t see my watch, but it seemed like hours. They kept calling the person they called the boss, but I think it was several hours before they reached him. The driver put his phone on speaker and I could hear it clearly. The voice on the other end told them to wait until dark, kill me and bury me in the woods. Then he told them to drive the SUV to another location, as far as possible from where I was buried, and leave it, after wiping it down thoroughly. He told them they’d have to leave town on foot, through the forest, if necessary, but to stay clear of the main roads where the cops were parked. Then he wished them luck.” Her voice shook. I reached over and took her hand, squeezing it gently.
“The man in the passenger seat climbed into the backseat. He was horrible. He smelled bad. He kept smiling at me. His teeth were rotten, and I couldn’t stand to look at him. After telling me what he’d really like to do to me, he started waving a knife at me, running it up my arms and legs, putting it against my throat and laughing. He’d lean down and rub his face against mine, laughing and calling me names. Then he began telling me exactly how he was going to cut me up, which parts of me he’d cut off first.” She took a deep breath. “You don’t need to hear the rest.” I looked at my father. There was no color at all in his face.
“Tommy, I’d like a glass of water please.”
He turned off the recorder.
“That was when I heard Rowenna’s voice in my head. She told me she was flying above us and that my mate would see her and he would rescue me. She told me not to be afraid.” She nodded and the Chief turned the recorder back on.
“The driver, I think his name was Frank, said he’d only signed on for a kidnapping, and that he was no murderer. The other man said it didn’t make any difference to him, one way or the other. He just laughed and said he’d enjoy cutting me into small pieces.”
I looked over at my father. His face was white with anger, and his green eyes glittered dangerously.
The Chief glanced at my father and closed his eyes briefly. “Alicia, would you like to take a break?”
When she looked up at him, I could see anger in her blue eyes. I was relieved I didn’t see tears. I was trying hard to keep mine in, and my stomach hurt.
“No, let’s continue. I want this over with.”
He nodded.
“The two men argued. The driver was against killing me, but the other man said he could find something to strangle me with, that I was so small, it would be easy. He said the boss would have to pay him a lot more, so he didn’t mind. He laughed as he said he was looking forward to cutting me up in small pieces after I was dead, and burying the pieces all over the forest. He said they would never find all of me.”
“A glass of water please.”
The Chief turned the recorder off again, and Mom said, “Brian, you don’t have to sit here and listen to any more of this. Please go outside until we’re finished.”
My father looked like a corpse, an angry corpse. There was no color in his face at all.
“Dad, why don’t you go outside for a few minutes, get some fresh air and try to calm down. I know this is hard to listen to, but you’re freaking me out.”
He looked at me, frowned, and whispered, “I’m sorry, Cara. I’ll go out on the porch for a while.” He got up from the table and walked out the back door.
The Chief looked at me and said softly, “Thanks.”
“That was when I heard Rowenna’s voice again. She said, ‘Alicia, you are stronger than either of these men. You are a worthwhile human; they are not. Therefore, they cannot hurt you. Your mate is on his way. He’ll be with you in a few minutes. I won’t leave until he gets here.’
“That’s when I heard the police sirens, even though they sounded miles away. The two men heard them too. The driver said, ‘We’re getting out of here.’ He drove through the woods to the main road and I knew he’d try to outrun the police cars. Their sirens were louder and I knew they were closer. The SUV picked up speed and suddenly stopped short, the brakes screeched, and I got tossed against the front seats. The man in the passenger seat cried, “What the hell is that? Frank, Frank, what’s wrong with you? Oh, hell.”
“I heard Rowenna’s rough voice; it sounded like laughter. Then I heard her wings as she flew away. I’ve always wondered what the other man was thinking when he saw her land on the road.”
“You can turn the recorder back on now, Tommy.”
“When did you hear the police sirens, Alicia?”
“It was only a few minutes later. The driver drove out of the woods as fast as he could and tri
ed to speed up once he hit the road, but you were right there. Brian opened the SUV’s back door and found me on the floor. You gave him a blanket for me because I was cold and he wrapped me up and lifted me out. You cut the ties off of me and drove us home. I didn’t want to talk about any of this for a few days, Tommy. I appreciate your patience. That’s all I can tell you.”
The Chief turned off the recorder and sat back in the chair. “Alicia, I don’t suppose you’ve got anything stronger than tea?”
“Cara, you know where the brandy is. I think we can all use a drink. And you should take one out to your father.”
I filled three glasses and took one out to the back porch where my father stood at the railing, gazing out at the forest. It was early evening and the sun had sunk behind the tall pines. It was twilight. I could see a few stars in the dark blue sky.
“Mom’s finished making her statement.” I handed him a glass of brandy. “She wants you to drink this. She and the Chief are having a drink too.”
He tossed down the brandy immediately and put the glass on the railing. Turning to me, he asked, “And what about you, dear? Is there no brandy for my brave daughter?” He wrapped both arms around me and rested his cheek on my head.
“I’m too young to drink.” I sighed. Knowing that one man had been willing to murder and dismember my mother had just sunk in and I was cold on the inside.
“Sweetheart, your mother is the strongest person I know. I think she’s stronger than I am.” His voice sounded choked.
They needed to be together now. I had an idea.
“Dad, why don’t you take Mom into the woods to that area by the stream where I like to draw. You can sit on the flat rock and just be together. It’s a special place, peaceful and beautiful. Sean once said it was good for his soul.”
My father looked at me and I was relieved to see some color had returned to his face. “That’s an excellent idea, dear. The forest has its own healing energy. I think that’s what your mother and I both need.”
We went back into the kitchen where Mom and the Chief were having another glass of brandy. They both looked relieved to see my father looking more like himself.