by Les Goodrich
“Yeah,” Brit added. “We’ll be more careful.”
“Did you cast the Thought-Flood spell dear?” Carol asked Brit and Brit shook her head.
“No I did,” said Jordan. “But it was her idea.”
“Very good. Let’s not worry too much about this. I’ll send Doctor Covington to snoop around over there right away and we’ll find out for damn sure what they know and what they don’t. But here’s the thing you guys have got to understand before we go any further. As far as Shadowclan goes, we always expect them to be like us. We imagine them working hard and trying to race us to get to this painting in a fair contest. Forget that. We have to start thinking on a different level. Like the IWM.”
“The IWM?” Brit asked.
“International Witch Marshals,” Tanner said and Carol continued.
“Yes. We’ve all got to step it up. No more mister nice guy.”
“Tribe,” said Jordan and then so did Brit and Carol and finally Tanner said, “Tribe,” but his heart wasn’t in it and Carol noticed but just smiled with her eyes.
“Anything new on Aradia or Araja?”
“Yes,” Brit said, happy to be moving on. She took out her notebook and glanced to it as she spoke.
“Araja was definitely an Earthly manifestation of Aradia. She developed the mermaid spell for sure. We found an account of it in more than one study of pagan folklore. The story is that she traveled to a small village in the Italian interior to visit a hedge witch and she stayed there for a week before returning to the coast and casting the spell for the second time. Now we think the hedge witch must have had some herb, or plants, or knowledge of plant magick that Araja needed to complete the spell. She had tried it once before but apparently it didn’t work out too well.
“After her visit with the hedge witch the spell seems to have worked. She cast it three more times that we know of. Then, in Litha of the following year, she returned to the hedge witch’s cottage and stayed again for a week or so. Ten days. Depends on the source, but she did go there again. She made many trips to stay with the hedge witch over the years.”
“Okay this is good. We finally have some collaboration to confirm all of this. Do we know who the hedge witch was? Anything on her? Him? Any living relatives?” Carol asked and Brit answered.
“Her, as far as we can tell, but no. I’d love to dig more and find out, but honestly, I don’t think we need to right now. We know what we’re after and we know where it is, or we’re pretty sure we do. Once we get our hands on the goods we might need to know more about the hedge witch to learn ingredients. But maybe not.”
“Good thinking Brit. You’re right. I say we go for it now. Tanner, Jordan, are you prepared to do this? Go into the field I mean. It won’t be a pleasure cruise.”
“Yes,” said Tanner.
“I’m ready for anything,” Jordan said.
“Okay good. You two get in touch with Dan and see if he actually knows where this so-called boat is. Let him go find it if he’s not completely sure. I can’t afford to have the two of you traipsing around Miami for a week. Once he knows where it is by all means help him go steal it. Or steal it back. Once you have the boat call me before you do anything. Talk to Dan today but I want you down there as soon as possible.”
“Will do,” Tanner said and a group of customers, two couples, came in.
Carol and Tanner helped the customers and as the day passed Tanner got in touch with Dan. Dan had already been to Miami and he had found the boat where it was moored at a marina and he had even climbed aboard one night and snooped around. At Dan’s request, Tanner began work on a device that could start the motors without a key and he planned to test it on his neighbors boat. They would drive with Dan to Miami as soon as the hot-wiring gizmo was finished and proven reliable.
That night Carol summoned Doctor Covington with a few Miles Davis records. They had tea on her upstairs balcony and she told him everything they had learned so far.
“Excellent,” Doctor Covington said and he sipped his tea and crossed his legs. He wore a medium-height grey top hat and a grey tweed suit and on that night he carried his rosewood walking stick. “And Brit has come over to Light Tribe and does magick now I hear.”
“Indeed she has and I’m so proud of her. She’s very smart.”
“And Jordan?”
“Jordan is trying really hard to be a good example to Brit. Or at least a mentor. Jordan comes by the mentor thing naturally. She loves to help others. But she still has a wild side.”
“Perhaps she always will,” the doctor said.
“Perhaps she always will,” Carol said and smiled and sipped her tea.
“You love her don’t you,” Doctor Covington observed.
“Absolutely I do. Maybe it’s me who’s holding on to her, and not her who’s failing to move on.”
“Maybe, but she is with you now. Revel in your time together. I know you do.”
“I do,” Carol said. “I do. So let me know what you find out.”
“Always my dear,” Doctor Covington said and he stood and placed his cup on the tray. He took Carol’s hand and bent to kiss it. Carol took the tray inside and when she looked on the patio again the doctor was gone as she had expected. She stepped to the rail and looked down her lane to the main street. She did see him strolling on the little darkened lane away from her house and as he turned left onto Spanish Street he lifted his hand to wave back to her and she watched his form utterly vanish.
By Monday Tanner had fine-tuned his outboard motor hot-wiring device and tested it on a big four stroke motor that was similar to the stolen boat in Miami. Dan gathered the other items he imagined he would need and he drove to pick up Jordan and then Tanner and before the Sun was up the trio was on the road.
“Do you have a wand?” Jordan asked Tanner from her little camp in the back seat of Dan’s Tacoma Double Cab.
“Of course I have a wand,” Tanner said.
“I never see you with one, that’s all. Can I see it?”
Tanner dug in his backpack and pulled out his wand then passed it back to Jordan and Dan just drove.
“Oak?” Jordan asked.
“North Carolina Red Oak, and an epidote tip.”
“I see that. You know how to use this thing?”
“Give it back,” Tanner said and held his hand over his shoulder.
“Well do you?” Jordan asked giving the wand back and Dan slowed then stopped at what was the last red light before the interstate.
“Lida-Raido,” Tanner said and he flourished his wand deftly through the windshield and the light instantly turned green. Dan pulled away surprised and he looked at Tanner then Jordan in the mirror.
“That’s a bunch of bullshit!” Jordan said.
“Whatever,” Tanner said.
“Lida-Radio?” Jordan asked heavy with suspicion.
“Lida-Raido,” Tanner said. “Lida means go or move in old Norse. Raido is the journey rune but it can also mean vehicle. Lida-Raido moves you and your vehicle on your way. It removes obstacles.”
“That viking stuff, it’s not my forte. It’s cool though. The runes. Hey Starbucks! Starbucks! Right there. Get over, go go,” Jordan said and leaned forward as if she knew the lane was clear then she looked back to see that it was.
“Okay okay,” Dan said and he crossed the lane and parked and they all went inside. With fresh coffee in hand they were back on the road and the trip down was long but relatively smooth and they arrived in Miami after lunch time and they were all hungry. Dan took them to a spot downtown where they had to park in a parking garage and walk a few blocks to a Cuban cafe.
“Bring your gear. We’ll go eat then we can walk to the marina from there. It’s close. Ten blocks maybe.”
“Ten blocks is close? Why don’t we just come back and drive there?” Tanner asked.
“Because there’s no parking down there. Trust me,” Dan assured him and they took their bags and walked through the steaming Miami heat.
“I can’t believe h
ow much hotter it is down here,” Jordan said. They sat inside at a blue painted wooden bar and they ate Cuban sandwiches and Jordan drank strong iced Cuban coffee and the guys had beers. The servers, such as they were, only spoke Spanish and they largely ignored the three which was fine.
“How do we know the guy isn’t out on his boat?” Tanner asked. “What if it’s not even there?”
“The boat will be there,” Dan said. “Don’t be so negative all the time man.”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Tanner said and he finished his lunch then drained his beer. “Nothing like lukewarm beer when it’s hot as hell out. How do they get the bottle so cold but manage to keep the beer inside so warm?”
“I don’t know,” said Dan. “So, are you guys ready to do this?”
“Born ready,” Jordan said and she stood up.
Dan left money on the bartop for the food and drinks and the three headed back out into the heat.
They walked along the sidewalks and crossed streets and made their way to the marina on the west side of the bay. The parking lot was filled with Porsches and Rolls-Royces. Towering royal palms shaded the cars and pink hibiscus flanked the marina building where there was a ship’s store, bathrooms, and the offices of the dockmaster.
The building had a breezeway through it that led to the center dock. A landing skirted the building’s back side along the seawall and led to the other two piers. Along each of the three docks big sportfishing boats stood with their long outriggers angled high overhead. A very few sailboats. Three ample center consoles rode in slips at the basin corner and, although they were each at least thirty-one feet and would have stood proudly in any Saint Augustine marina, they looked like tenders among the South Florida yachts.
“She’s halfway down the last dock,” Dan said as they walked with shouldered bags and gear along the fence toward the main building. Dan quickened his pace. Tanner’s heart raced as did Jordan's. The reality of what they were about to do sunk in.
“This is crazy,” Jordan said.
“You two are rich rock stars. You’re in a band called Witchiepoo. I’m your boat captain. Captain Kirk if anyone asks.”
“Okay, here we go,” said Jordan and they walked through the breezway like they owned the place. Women were leaving the ship’s store and they said hi as the rockstars passed them in the big open hallway.
“This way,” Dan said and he turned right at the landing, then left onto the far dock. Tanner lagged behind and looked at the boats. Jordan walked between them.
“Right up here,” Dan said and as they approached the center console they saw a man stand up from bending at some work in the very boat they intended to drive away in.
“Shit!” Dan said but it was too late. The guy had stood up and looked right at them. He had no cause for alarm but he moved toward the stern of his boat to watch them walk up.
“What do we do now?” Tanner asked and stepped past Jordan to walk beside Dan.
“I don’t know,” Dan said and their steps slowed and Jordan looked to see if anyone else was on the dock behind them and there was not.
“Oh get out of the way!” she said as she pushed her way between them. “Amateurs.” She walked swiftly ahead and right up to the boat and the man in it seemed to be waiting for her to speak first, but in that awkward moment where anyone else would have already said something, the man’s expression changed from simple awareness to a slight concern.
“Hi there. What’s up?” the man asked wiping his hands on a towel. Jordan pulled her wand from her backpack.
“Two things,” Jordan said and the man lifted his eyebrows to hear them. He looked at the wand in her hand with both confusion and curiosity.
“What is that?” he asked.
“Thought-Flood,” Jordan said and she flicked the wand toward the guy and he shook his head and wiped his face. He looked around as if he were surprised to see a boat under him. He looked at the marina. He wondered where he was. Who he was. Who this girl on the dock was. The guys next to her.
“Mind-Garden,” Jordan said and she flourished her wand at the man again but with more of a swirl and the boat lunged on it’s tied lines and the man stumbled backwards and grabbed a rail on the console to steady himself. He looked up with a hollow expression and the boat’s rocking calmed and set small waves fading into the harbor.
“You climbed out of the boat,” Jordan said to him in methodical past tense. “You came up on the dock with us.”
The man climbed from the boat and walked up the gangway dock between his boat and the next and stopped where the group stood and looked around at them as if he waited for some decision to be revealed, or some plan he knew of but had not yet heard.
“You have you car keys?” Jordan asked. “Your wallet?”
The guy felt in his cargo short pockets. “Yeah.”
Jordan put her hand on his shoulder and turned him to face her. She looked directly into his eyes. “You don’t own a boat. You never did,” she said and the man nodded. “On your way out you told the dockmaster this was the last month you needed the slip. You know which car is yours. When you got in it, you recalled everything about your life. But not the boat and not us. You returned the money to your friend and that made you happy.”
“Yeah,” the man said and he turned and walked up the dock.
“Unbelievable,” Dan said.
“Mind-Garden?” Tanner asked and he watched the guy walk a bit shakily and swerve up the dock toward the marina building. Every few steps he would nod. “That’s a little close to the dark side for you, isn’t it?” he asked and turned to Jordan.
“Screw that guy,” Jordan said and she jumped down onto the boat’s gunnel and held the T-top rail. “I’m not giving him the chance to figure out who we are, or what we’re up to. Did you wanna waste time and talk to him for an hour?”
“Still,” Tanner said and Jordan hopped from the gunnel down onto the deck.
“Don’t steal your friend’s life savings and con them out of a house and a boat, and shit like that won’t happen to you. Are you guys coming or what?”
“I guess so,” Dan said and he jumped into the boat and Tanner handed down gear then minded the lines at the cleats while Dan looked over the console.
“Keys are even in it. We didn’t even need the hotwire thing,” Dan said and he started the engines. “A full tank of fuel too. Come on let’s get the hell out of here.”
Tanner threw the lines into the boat, Jordan coiled each line and slung them out of the way in corners of the deck. Tanner pushed away from the dock as he stepped aboard and the unlikely crew idled out of the marina basin and headed south like nothing had happened.
Chapter 17
Southbound
With Jordan and Tanner gone Brit was spending more time alone with Carol than she ever had. She was managing school and working when she could but Carol was working much of the time alone. The early November day was sunny and the air was a brisk sixty-eight degrees. The other retail stores in town were buzzing as they readied for black Friday but it was not much of a concern for Avalon Spellshop. The shop was indeed busier on that day after Thanksgiving but only because the entire shopping district saw such an increase in activity. No witches camped out in the alley to get the latest wand, and Avalon Spellshop did not adjust their hours for what Carol constantly referred to as the fiasco. Brit came in at two p.m. to close with Carol and the store had a few customers but nothing crazy.
“Hi there,” Brit said and moved behind the line to put her backpack on the front table.
“Hello dear,” Carol said from the register. “I have already counted out so you can just count right in and have the register. I need to get out from behind this counter.”
Brit moved around and they traded places. She began to count the drawer.
“Did you make your deposit already?”
“Of course,” Carol said. She waited until Brit closed the drawer then went to the back to use the bathroom. She spoke to a few shoppers on her way
back then stood at the side counter and talked to Brit.
“I talked with Jordan this morning. Well texted with Jordan. They got the boat.”
“Oh awesome. Everything’s okay?”
“So far. They’re still headed south. I think they’re gonna go to the Keys then head across from there.”
“Did your ghostfriend learn anything yet?”
“A few things. Gwen was furious when she learned that we figured out her coin scam.”
“How’d she know?”
“I think she put a trace on the spell. That’s my guess anyway.”
“Do they know about the island? Do they know Jordan and those guys are headed down there now?”
“I guess Jordan blasted those two Shadowclan girls pretty hard.”
“Darkspell.”
“Yes Darkspell. Is that really what you guys call them?”
“It’s what everyone calls them. They’re never apart and they never talk. They’re trouble.”
“Well Darkspell is a pretty cool name. You have to admit.”
“I hate those little creeps.”
“Why?” Carol asked.
“Why?” Brit said shocked.
“Yes why? I know they followed you that day and, okay, they’re creepy. I get that. But it seems like you have some deeper issue with them.”
Brit exhaled and looked around the shop to see who was in. She leaned over the counter and spoke in quick whispers.
“Did you know those girls grew up in Winter Park?”
“No.”
“Well they did. We went to elementary school together. They’re five years younger than me so they were in kindergarten when I was in fifth grade. We rode the bus together.”
“Did they talk? I mean back then.”
“Not a peep. They got on the bus at two different spots and they always sat together. They got off the bus at school together. Everyone just thought they were weird. They were.”
“How did they manage in school if they never talked?”
“I don’t know. I was only on the bus with them and just for one year. The next year I went to a new school when we moved across town.”