Body Bags & Blarney

by Shaw, J. D.

  “But there are more diamonds on the map.” Vivienne pointed out. “What else could be on there?”

  “It wouldn’t be complete without a circle cast around it.” Octavia replied.

  Vivienne pointed to a diamond on Spruce Street. “Clara’s Diner, where Clara found a rare coin last week.”

  Octavia set her pencil on the diamond and awaited the next address. “Where to?”

  “Let me think.” Vivienne pointed to the location of Trade Winds Clothier. “There was the theft of the jewelry from Kathy’s store.”

  Octavia started to put her pencil down when Vivienne stopped her.

  “No, that’s not right. There was the miracle shot made at the basketball game at the high school before that.” Vivienne pointed to a diamond closer to the location of Clara’s Diner.

  “Okay, first the high school and then Clara’s Diner?” Octavia asked. “Are you sure?”

  “Yes.” Vivienne nodded. “Joshua told me about it yesterday morning when he was reading the paper. We didn’t find out about Kathy’s store until a little bit later.

  Octavia carefully followed the locations and curved the lines around the end points of the inverse pentagram. “Is there anything else?”

  “No.” Vivienne took a deep breath. “Are there any more diamonds?”

  “Just the two in front of your home.” Octavia pointed to the middle of the star. “Placing you right in the center.”

  Vivienne sighed. “So I’m part of this?”

  “The circle isn’t finished.” Octavia pointed out. “Five points to the star, five locations around each to complete the circle.”

  “Each one of these voids that marks the points on the pentagram has resulted in some sort of wild surge of magic that results in random luck striking whoever happens to be nearby.” Vivienne puzzled out. “So we can pretty much conclude that whoever is doing this is following the steps to casting a complex ritual.”

  “That’s got to be it.” Octavia agreed. “I’m willing to bet that each of these steps was timed according to an astrological reading, utilizing the moon phases and planetary alignments.”

  “Casting something of this magnitude would require a massive amount of magical energy. There isn’t a talisman in the world capable of holding that much.” Octavia reasoned. “It would need to be recharged with the purest form of magic.”

  “My grimoire?” Vivienne asked.

  “Exactly.” Octavia snapped her fingers. “Every time that you unlock a new spell in that grimoire, you are increasing the power of generations of family magic that is stored within. Think of it like a rose, slowly opening each petal until it hits peak bloom. That magic is undiluted, pure as pure can get. The portals are unrefined sources, good and bad mixed together in a witch’s brew of conflicting energies. Whoever is doing this knows that and has been specifically targeting your grimoire.”

  “How do I stop them from stealing my magic?”

  “There’s not a place in town you can safely hide it without being found. It is detectable by even the most novice of sorcerers.” Octavia warned her.

  Vivienne stared at the map. “Any guesses as to what exactly our stalker is planning to do with this ritual?”

  “This is a huge symbol, encompassing nearly the entire town.” Octavia looked at the map with dismay. “We’re talking a major spell being powered here. I think I better take this to the Elder Council right away while we still have time.”

  “As much as it pains me to say it, I have to agree with you.” Vivienne spoke softly. “But, you need to take my grimoire with you.”

  “Taking it to the Elder Council would be the only place that would safely conceal it from discovery.” Octavia protested. “But you’ll be at a terrible disadvantage when it comes to casting spells for self-defense.”

  “I’ll have what I can recall from memory.” Vivienne did her best to smile. “Makes me wish I had been studying a bit more before this all happened.”

  Octavia reached out and pulled Vivienne into a warm embrace. “Honey, I have no doubt that you will be able to take care of yourself. But remember, your grimoire recharges your own magical energy within your body. When it is taken away, you’re not going to be able to recharge your battery so to speak.”

  “There’s no other choice.” Vivienne hugged her back. “Maybe the Elder Council will be able to figure out what is going on and send help before anything happens?”

  Miss Octavia sniffed back some tears. “I hope so, child. Goddess knows you deserve so much better than what you’ve had to endure here in Cayuga Cove.”

  “I’m going to miss you so much.” Vivienne sniffed back tears of her own. “Let’s go get my grimoire before any more of this ritual can be completed.”

  “Yes, but I want you to swear that you will not let anything happen to you before I get back.” Miss Octavia held out her right hand and wiggled her pinky finger. “Pinky swear?”

  Vivienne couldn’t help but smile at the silly gesture. She did the same and they entwined pinky fingers. “Pinky swear.”

  “Ain’t no magic more powerful than the pinky swear.” Miss Octavia smiled. “So don’t even think about breaking it.”

  Vivienne grinned. “I think someone left that page out of my grimoire.”

  “Every school child knows that, Vivienne.” Octavia led them both to the front door and turned the open sign around to read ‘closed’.

  Vivienne grabbed their winter coats from the floor rack. “Now let’s put a stop to this madness before it’s too late.”

  They bundled their coats up and stepped out into the chilly mid-afternoon sunshine.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  It had been seven days since Vivienne had last seen or heard from Miss Octavia as she journeyed into the realm between worlds where the Elder Council kept court. As she waved goodbye to Stephanie after another busy Monday, she locked the back door and returned to the work area where they had kept their calendar of store orders and other town events on a large board near the computer and cash register.

  So much had happened as she glossed over the past days. Last Tuesday, one part of the sad twist of events had been laid to rest. With no concrete evidence to point to foul play, the medical examiner had ruled the death of Father William undetermined and released the body for burial. The next day, he was given a proper funeral and laid to rest on a beautiful spring-like afternoon when the weather actually topped forty degrees. The service at Our Lady of the Lake was subdued and graceful, celebrating the life of a remarkable man who never drew attention to the good deeds he graced Cayuga Cove with over the years. Vivienne had introduced herself to the new priest who seemed somewhat unsure of how to proceed with the parish. She gently suggested that he resurrect the Luck of the Irish Carnival committee to honor his predecessor and ease the fears of the church members who were fearful of sudden change.

  Taking her advice, Father Daniel O’Reilly, fresh out of seminary school, stepped into his new role as church leader with the blessing of the Mother Superior and the nuns. With his baby-faced light brown hair and blue eyed looks, quite a few of the parish members were skeptical about his ability to lead the congregation. But, he soon proved them wrong by jumping right into what Vivienne suggested and appointed her in charge of the food vendors. She took it upon herself to honor Father William, pooling money and resources to ensure that everything would run smoothly for the Carnival which was scheduled to run on the Saturday and Sunday before Saint Patrick’s Day. It wasn’t easy trying to balance her business with the carnival planning, but she found a way to make it work. Also, staying busy kept her mind off of the shadow sorcerer who it seemed had suddenly had their ritual casting come to a halt with the removal of the energy source they had been pilfering from her grimoire.

  By Friday, it had seemed like things had returned to the calm normal that everyone longed for. Hunter Arkins, who had been living secretly at Joshua’s home, continued following leads that he hoped would solve the mystery of who broke into Kathy’s s
tore and removed all the costume jewelry from the display case. Yet, the trail had gone as cold as the weather when a polar vortex swung down from Canada and put a deep chill on Cayuga Cove and many other Northeastern states. Alexis Warner did turn over the missing store key when questioned by Officer Drexler, but there was no proof linking her to the crime and she was free to go about her business. Kathy vowed to have nothing more to do with her and let the whole incident go in an uncharacteristically live and let live gesture. She was suddenly more cheerful and bright-side looking than ever before.

  It came as no surprise to Vivienne when a double date with Kathy and Hunter was booked on her schedule for Saturday evening. It had started when he had offered to install a new lock and alarm system for her, warding off the chances of a future incident and giving her peace of mind.

  In return, Kathy had called Vivienne each night leading up to the date, dropping little hints here and there that something other than a professional collaboration had been blooming. It seemed the lock on the door hadn’t been the only one that Hunter had changed. Cynical, glass half-empty Kathy Saunders was actually finding the ability to throttle back and enjoy life again. Her heart, once cautiously guarded and off limits to anyone, was freed by Hunter’s zest for life and his free-spirited attitude.

  Joshua had been the most skeptical of all, especially when Vivienne confessed her feelings that his brother could be the sorcerer that had been stalking her. It had caused a little bit of tension between them, but it was soon put to rest when Joshua confirmed that the necklace she had seen on his neck was one that was given to him by their eldest sister, Lily, who lived in Santa Fe.

  Vivienne eradicated her doubts as to Hunter’s motives and apologized profusely by baking him a special Treavis cake after she discovered that one of his favorite flavors was pistachio. Not one to hold a grudge, Hunter laughed off the mere suggestion that he could wield magic as he demonstrated he couldn’t even shuffle a deck of playing cards without spilling them all over the table. He had also eased her fears about what Kathy would think if she discovered that Hunter was a werewolf. He assured her that he had years of covering his tracks and would not reveal his secret until he was absolutely sure that she was capable of handling such life-changing news. He promised that when the time came to let her know, he would make sure they were all together to provide support. That was all she needed to know that proved he was indeed a good man.

  They had awoken to four inches of fluffy white snow on Sunday morning, which led to an afternoon with the two couples enjoying a bit of sled riding out on Whiskey Hill, on the outskirts of town. Kathy and Hunter had provided a thermos of hot mulled cider and some smoked turkey and cheddar sandwiches for lunch, leaving Vivienne and Joshua to provide her homemade French macarons for dessert. Life, as Kathy was now frequently noting to anyone who would listen, was grand.

  As the sun set on the Western horizon, Vivienne looked over the schedule for the upcoming week while finishing her cleaning at the bakery. There was the last carnival planning meeting at the library on Wednesday night. On Thursday, she had a large order of butter cookie dough to make up and store in the cooler for shamrock cookies to sell at the carnival.

  Friday night was an early closing for the bakery so that the vendors could start setting up their booths and food trucks for the grand opening of the Carnival on Saturday afternoon. As head of the food vendors, she would do a final check to make sure all the health department papers and licenses were in order. Afterwards, she would join Joshua, Kathy, and Hunter for team trivia night at Slate’s Pub & Grill where they would battle through a few rounds of questions, beer, and chicken wings in the hopes of winning a twenty-five dollar gift certificate. It was the start of what Vivienne had hoped would be a couple’s date night.

  Satisfied that her week was planned to perfection, Vivienne turned off the lights inside the bakery and headed for the Monarch Grocery. Joshua was working the next two evenings on the night shift, which meant she could have dinner whenever she pleased. As she drove down Main Street, she was happy to see the new shamrock LED lighted decorations adorning the lamp posts. The town once again looked happy and festive, such a grand turnaround from the previous weeks.

  She had become so enamored with looking at the lights that she missed the turn off on Weyer Place to lead her to the Monarch. Rather than turn around right away, she instead decided to check out the amber glow sunset from the community park at the edge of town where she would drop off Joshua on full moon nights to run free in the woodlands. Only now, he would no doubt run with Hunter through the woods. She pulled into the deserted parking lot, staring at the spectacular layers of purple, yellow, and orange that the sunset was providing. Mother Nature put on such amazing spectacles for mortal eyes, yet so few ever took a moment to take in the wonder of it all. Perhaps if more people did, she thought to herself, the world would be a more peaceful place.

  She parked her car at the edge where tiny waves lapped at the shore, glimmering with a coating of ice on the smooth rocks along the beach. Although Cayuga Lake was a part of her life, she had never lived along the shore. Lake life, as those who were fortunate enough to own property with lawns and docks extending out into the clear blue water called it, was different from anything else in town.

  Here, during the warm weather months, neighbors slept with doors unlocked and mingled freely along narrow roads that wound around small waterfalls and creek beds that emptied into the lake. There was always a small gathering somewhere where cocktails were served and light appetizers enjoyed. The yards would be filled with strings of twinkling lights where fireflies would try in vain to compete against their electrified rivals for dominance in the lake-cooled summer breeze.

  It was a lifestyle that was far beyond the means of most of the citizens in Cayuga Cove. Property taxes were sky high, with even more outrageously priced properties that soared into the six digits for even the most modestly appointed cottage. Family properties had been sold to out-of-state summer dwellers from New York and the Jersey Shore who had the money to spend. Although they were always welcomed by the locals, there was an underlying resentment that many families felt after being driven off their ancestral land by the upper class from the coastal region.

  Vivienne’s family had never owned property along the lake, but they had vacationed at several rental cottages while she had grown up. Back in the day when a week’s rental was scarcely more than a few hundred dollars. As she relaxed in her Toyota Matrix, she wondered if perhaps she would be able to afford a place on the shore in the future. Maybe if things worked out with Kathy and Hunter, they could all go in on a summer property to enjoy the good life with? Of course, she chided herself mentally, that was a long way to go in the future. There were several more steps for her and Joshua to take to even consider that. She took a deep breath at the sunset once more and blamed her dreaminess on the relaxing state it had put her in.

  But her relaxation was short lived as she turned to leave for the Monarch Grocery and noticed her headlights reflect off something at the edge of the woods. She drove slowly forward, curious as to what it was. As she drove past rows upon rows of marked parking spaces in the lot, she saw that the simple chain strung between posts to mark off the lot perimeter was broken and resting on the pavement. Her eyes followed the path into the brush where she saw her lights reflect off the license plate of a black SUV.

  Vivienne pulled up as far as she could and turned off the ignition. She opened the door and heard the sound of the other vehicle’s engine running. “Hello?” She called out. “Do you need help?” There was no response.

  With her cell phone firmly in her grip, she proceeded forward through the brush and came upon a Cadillac Escalade. It was jammed against two trees, where the sides of the front hood were crumpled together. “Hello?”

  As she pushed through the last of the brush that partially obscured her view, her eyes locked onto the green garden hose that was stuffed into the tail pipe and threaded along into the back window whi
ch was rolled up just enough to keep the deadly fumes inside the passenger cabin. “Can you hear me?” Vivienne shouted with concern. She charged forward and reached for the passenger door handle. It was locked and did not open. She banged on the window and noticed a female passenger unconscious but still belted into the seat.

  Vivienne frantically scoured the area around the car and found a large rock about the size of her hand. She reached back with all her might and smashed it against the glass. It cracked but did not break. She pounded a few more times as the cracks spider-webbed outward before one final blow caused the entire window to smash inwards, covering the woman with glass.

  She carefully reached her hand into the cabin and pulled the handle to release the door lock. After pulling the woman away from the deadly fumes, she climbed into the cabin where a male passenger was slumped forward onto the steering wheel. She reached over and turned the engine off. She would have to go around and pull him out from the other side.

  Racing around the back of the vehicle, she pulled the driver door open and was about to free the man when she noticed the gaunt complexion to his skin. With wild eyes, now opened and dried out from the lack of moisture, he was long dead. As she stared in shock at the grisly discovery, his features became familiar. It was Johnny Guido.

  With sudden horror, Vivienne backed away and returned to the girl who she hoped was not Alexis Warner. As she knelt down to feel for a pulse, she fought back the urge to break down and cry. It was indeed, Alexis Warner. “What have you done?” She asked softly.

  Her fingers went down to her neck where she felt a weak pulse. “Oh Alexis, what in the world have you done?”

  Using her witch senses, she could feel that Alexis’ spirit was preparing to leave her body. She had been able to refrain from casting any spells for a week, conserving the energy inside her that would not recharge with the absence of her grimoire from the mortal plane of existence. “Stay with me.” She ordered as she pulled out her phone and dialed emergency services.