by Ainsley Shay
Blacwin had wanted to come with me to the cemetery, but I needed time alone. I planned to meet him at the house where he was staying, after I visited my dad. The house he was occupying belonged to Adelina deBlays. She was known as the Carving Witch and was the woman who severed my head in my nightmare. I had seen her in a previous nightmare and remembered the manic, comic-like expression on her pale, pretty face. Shivers raced through me. Although, she was not to be trifled with, she was the one everyone was in search of: Blacwin, Chandler, Penemuel, and Lord Darenfys. The Carving Witch supposedly had answers to cursed and guarded mysteries some would kill for. But, she had vanished without leaving any hint as to where she went. Her house was a mystery all of its own; it was filled with dozens of statues she had carved. They were both beautiful and haunting. And each time I saw them I was awe-struck. She would have to come back one day, wouldn’t she?
The sun was rising over the small hill. Its glaring rays seeped through the limbs and leaves of the old oak. Their shadows pushed along the ground like brittle snakes. It was after nine when I looked at my phone. I was meeting Blacwin at ten. There had always seemed I had all the time in the world with my dad. And now, all that time had collapsed in on itself. All there really was were the unfolding moments of our limited hours and minutes, not the infinite forever I had always imagined as a child. I closed my eyes and breathed in the scents of damp earth and flowers I didn’t know the names or colors of. Time...what a sad and inexcusable measure of life.
When I opened my eyes and the tears finally stopped their insistent flow, I told my dad he had a son. I leaned into the stone and rested my head against the side. “Dad, he’s just as annoying as I imagined a brother would be.” I smiled. The day after my father’s funeral, Chandler had bumped into me—he would argue I was the one who bumped into him—nevertheless, since that day he had shadowed me. It seemed everywhere I went he was there. It was creepy at first, then it became irritating; after that, it would seem I had no choice but to relent and accept his protectiveness. Since graduating from the former animosity, our relationship had been tolerable. Also, he was dating Snow.
“So, yeah. That’s what has been going on here. I miss you more than you know. If the colors come back, I’ll let you know.” Kissing the tips of my fingers, I touched the tombstone. “I’ll be back soon.”
The shadows crept toward me, almost touching the tips of my shoes. Over two and a half hours had passed since I’d been here. I stood and wiped the dirt from my jeans. Turning to leave, I saw a girl. It was difficult to know for sure, but she looked to be my age. I thought she looked familiar, but I couldn’t place her. She was looking in my direction. Her hair was long and dark. She was standing on the hill next to the oak with her arms crossed over her chest. Something was in her hand, but from this distance, I couldn’t make out what it was. I would have to walk by her to get to my car. I wasn’t freaked out, but I sensed she was here to see me.
I started toward her. She unfolded her arms and set what she was holding on the ground at her feet. She gave me an off kilter nod and walked away. My pace quickened to see what she had left on the ground. I climbed the hill and slowed. She could be waiting for me on the other side. I crept up the hill and peeked over the edge. No one was there. I saw only my car and the caretaker of the cemetery filling a bird feeder. I looked down. Next to the base of a large oak was a cloth with thin cord tied around it. I knelt and picked it up. What if whatever was in the cloth wasn’t meant for me? But, the unhinged feeling in my stomach and the intended nod from the girl told me it was. That damned, get-you-in-trouble curiosity won over my feeling of hesitation. My heart thumped wildly as I untied the cord.
A twinge of regret sparked when my hand wrapped around something cool with ridges. The cloth fell away and the sun gleamed off the slick surface of a blade. I stared in disbelief at the dagger I held. Shock froze me in place. My head reeled with a thousand thoughts, reasons, and images, none of which made sense. Then, as clear as glass, a single idea seeped through all the other nonsense filling my head: wrap the knife back in the cloth and put it exactly where I found it. It was as easy as that, wasn’t it? Obviously, the package was intended for someone else; people make mistakes, and the girl clearly had proven that. I looked around again to see if I saw anyone. There was only me; not even the caretaker was to be seen.
I picked up the cloth; eager to wrap it around the knife, and set it back where I found it. A piece of paper floated out from the fabric to the ground. As soon as I saw the initials at the bottom, chills covered my entire body, but I hadn’t dropped the knife. Without picking up the note, I read the large bold letters that stared up at me: 54 days. ~ C.W.
C.W., the Carving Witch.
2
I hastily wrapped the cloth around the dagger. Grabbing the note and cord, I hugged them to my chest and ran to my car. My phone buzzed as soon as I was seated in the driver’s seat. Out of breath, I answered in a shaky voice, “Blacwin.”
Blacwin’s voice was full of tension on the other line. “What’s wrong?”
“I’ll tell you when I get to your house, I’m leaving the cemetery now.”
“You sound frantic. Stay on the line with me until you get here.”
I glanced at the floor on the passenger side to where I threw the knife. “She’s back,” was all I could say.
“Who?”
I hadn’t wanted to say her name aloud. “I’ll be there in ten minutes.” Before I could press the end button, I heard Blacwin yell my name. The main drag was empty of vehicles when I pulled out. Shifting as fast as I could, I raced toward the Carving Witch’s house. My phone buzzed again and again, but I ignored Blacwin’s calls. I couldn’t have the distraction of the dagger, my own hectic thoughts, and a phone conversation while trying to pay attention to the road.
Blacwin was out on the porch waiting for me when I pulled into the drive, and he was at the driver’s door before I came to a stop. He yanked open the door. “What happened?” I hadn’t had a chance to answer before his attention shifted from me to the floorboard. The dagger had slid out of the cloth. “What the—”
“At the cemetery—I didn’t know—she was watching me—”
“Who?” he asked, and helped me out of the car. He went around to the passenger side and picked up the strewn items.
“I don’t know.” I couldn’t stop shaking.
Blacwin wrapped his arm around my shoulder and guided me to the house. “Calm down, baby. Let’s go inside, get some water and, then you can tell me.”
We climbed the porch steps and walked into Adelina deBlays’ house. The shock of seeing all the statues never faded. Blacwin laid the partially wrapped dagger with the note on a side table. I followed him into the kitchen. The house was dimly lit and cool. My heated skin chilled. He filled a glass with water and handed it to me. Motioning me to a chair, I sat. He pulled the other kitchenette’s chair in front of me and sat down. Taking my hands in his, he spoke very gently, “Tell me from the beginning.”
I took a deep breath and slowly let it out. “There was this girl at the cemetery. At first, I thought she was there for the same reason as I was, visiting someone. But, as I watched her, it didn’t take me long to realize she was staring at me. When I started toward her, she laid—” I nodded to the cloth on the table, “—that—on the ground and then she was gone. Disappeared as if I had only imagined seeing her at all.”
Blacwin slid back his chair, stood, and went to get the dagger. I took another sip of water. The cool liquid washed down the bile rising in my throat. Realization was slowly replacing the improbability of what happened. When he returned, he sat, and pushed away the cloth and stared at the dagger; he picked up the note and read it silently. When he looked at me, his face was full of worry and concern.
“I have no idea what it means, but it can’t be good—not with her initials on it. Whatever happens in 54 days can’t be good,” he repeated. He looked around the house and his gaze fell on one of the statues. It was of
a woman. Her arms were at her side, and she held a knife in her left hand. “Have you told Chandler?”
I shook my head. “No, not yet.”
Blacwin reached into his pocket, pulled out his cell phone, and speed dialed Chandler. When Chandler answered, Blacwin said, “Come to Adelina’s house as soon as you can.”
I could hear Chandler on the other end of the line. “Is Iris all right?”
“She’s fine.”
“We’ll be there in fifteen,” said Chandler. The line went dead.
How desperately I wanted answers. But, I was also afraid to know what happened in less than two months. “Can we go outside, I don’t want to be in her house right now.” I wasn’t sure why Blacwin still chose to live in this creepy house, surrounded by all of her statues. I knew he wanted answers, too; maybe he felt like there was something here, waiting to be found, that would give them to him. I hadn’t had as much hope. Whatever was going on, Adelina made sure she was the only one who knew what it was. My hands were still shaking when we walked onto the porch. I sat on the top step and looked out across the yard. Blacwin sat down next to me and I rested my head on his shoulder. “What does she want from me?”
“I don’t know.” He set his hand on my thigh and lightly squeezed. “Whatever is going on, we’ll figure it out.” His hand caressed my leg. I nodded solemnly. “What did the girl look like?”
“She was far away when I saw her, but she had long, dark, straight hair, and a thin frame.” Blacwin’s hand stopped moving and looked at me. “What?”
“Carina.” He said the name without any emotion.
“Who’s Carina?”
“Adelina’s sister. She was the one I met a few weeks ago at the café. I thought she could tell me where to find Adelina. The only thing she said that was of any use was her sister would come back to Gradywoods. She just hadn’t known when, only soon. What I thought was interesting…she told me she hadn’t seen her sister in six years.” He shook his head. “I knew I shouldn’t have trusted her to tell the truth.”
That’s why she seemed familiar. She was the one I saw Blacwin with when Snow met him for the first time. I had never seen Carina’s face, but her hair was the same as the girl I saw today. “Do you think Adelina is close?”
“I’m not sure. The last time I saw her was over fifty years ago in Paris.” He dragged his hand through his hair. “I just want to know what she’s up to.”
It was obvious he was as frustrated with Adelina’s twisted game as I was. Actually games: hide and seek, riddle me this, and Who Done It? all came to mind. Now, her game had a deadly playing piece.
We heard the purring of Chandler’s Porsche before he pulled into the drive. Screeching, he pulled to a stop. Dust flew in a whirlwind around the car. He was out of the car in a nano-second and at my side. Snow climbed out from the passenger side and headed toward us.
“What happened?” Chandler demanded.
Blacwin spoke first, “It’s better if we show you.” He went inside to get the dagger and the note.
Snow sat down and hugged me. “You look like hell.”
“Thanks.” Leave it to your best friend to tell you like it is. “It’s been a rough morning.”
When Blacwin came back out of the house, the screen door slammed shut behind him. I watched Chandler’s eyes settle on the dagger in Blacwin’s hand. He looked dumbstruck.
“What the...” It wasn’t like Chandler to be rendered speechless, but he was.
“That’s a really big knife,” Snow said. “Like big enough to—”
“Whatever you’re going to say, please don’t,” I requested. There was something I was supposed to do with the dagger, but I hadn’t wanted to start thinking of what it might be. So far, all thoughts had been outlandish and irrational at best. Daggers like this one, with its intricately dark carved hilt and partially serrated blade were made for only one thing…killing.
Blacwin handed the dagger and the note to Chandler. “We don’t know what it means.”
Chandler read the note. “54 days?”
Blacwin shrugged. “Mean anything to you?”
“Not a damn thing.” Chandler flung the dagger on the porch as if it suddenly scorched him. “Where’d it come from?”
“Carina left it at the cemetery for Iris.”
“Carina? You saw her?”
I nodded. “Yeah, from far away. I was standing at my dad’s grave and she was on the hill; that’s where she left that thing, by the Oak.” Just remembering the way she glared at me caused me to shiver in the heat of the day. Another eerie thought came to me; she had to have been following me. Was she there, watching me, the entire time I was with my dad?
“What the hell? What is she, Adelina’s personal assistant?” Chandler was fuming. “I thought Carina hated her sister—she was jealous of her or something.”
“I thought so, too.” Blacwin said. “But, I guess a lot can change in a few hundred years.”
“Is she a witch too?” I asked.
“No. And, that part has never made sense. You’d think something like that would run in the family. Even though Carina’s not a witch, she’s very clever with using hypnotic suggestion to get people to do what she wants,” Blacwin said. “She can make you see things that aren’t really there or paralyze you to stand in front of a moving truck.”
Those were things to be frightened of. I cleared my throat. “Do you think we can find her if she’s still in town?”
Chandler answered. “Carina is like Adelina, she’ll only be found if she wants you to find her.” He held out his hands in a questioning gesture. “Why the hell would you want to find her?”
“So we can find out what she expects me to do with that thing.” I nodded toward the deadly game piece. “She has to know something.”
“That’s a good idea,” Snow said.
“Wait! What did you say?” Chandler scooped up the dagger.
“I said, that’s a good idea—” she started to repeat.
“Stop being so supportive of her not-so-bright-ideas,” he said to Snow. Then, he thrust the dagger in my direction. “You, little sis, are not doing anything with this thing. Blacwin and I will handle this. You’ve already been through enough.”
I know he was just being protective, but it was damned frustrating. I was on my feet and in front of him in two quick strides. “I’m not helpless, you know.” I sounded braver than I felt. Puffing up my chest like I was challenging him to a fight, I stood my ground. The dagger was between us, its tip pointed directly at me. His light eyes were glazed with fury. “I refuse to be Adelina’s or your little stringed puppet.” With the back of my hand I eased the blade aside, away from me. “I won’t just sit around waiting for her.”
His breaths were shallow and short heaves. I could see the crack in his hardened expression; my unleashed words categorizing him with Adelina stung. He pushed aside the blow and his lingered fissure of hurt dissolved. “I know.” Chandler looked in Blacwin’s direction for backup.
Blacwin pursed his lips. “I think she has a point. Carina might know something.”
“Yeah, I get that. But, that doesn’t mean Iris needs to be the one to track her down and question her.”
I looked at Blacwin. I didn’t like the expression on his face. He was totally siding with Chandler...I could tell, even before he said anything. “Iris—”
“Don’t say it,” I blasted.
“Just listen,” Blacwin pleaded. “Why don’t you let Chandler and me see if we can find out if Carina is still in town? If she is and we can find her, you can come with us when we go to talk to her.”
Chandler was ready to say something to argue, but he closed his mouth when he saw Snow had laid her hand on mine. I hadn’t realized she was standing next to me. When I looked at her, I saw she too, was taking their side. Her apologetic look said as much. “Iris, they’re right. Let them handle this. I mean, for God’s sake, it’s an effing knife! You cut yourself when you slice an apple. God knows what damage
you would do with that blade.” She pointed to the dagger in Chandler’s hand.
After a scornful look at each of them, I agreed. “Fine.” It was, I guessed, a fair enough bargain. When the intensifying pressure of the moment faded and Chandler wrapped the knife in the cloth and set it on the porch, I stared at the flimsy sheath and asked under my breath and to no one in particular, “Do you think I’m supposed to kill someone with it? I mean, why else would she give it to me?” No one said anything. I eased down next to Blacwin. He laced his fingers with mine and kissed the back of my hand.
“If Adelina wanted someone dead, she’d do it herself. Believe me, she’s no stranger to killing,” Chandler said.
That little tidbit of info was disturbing. It was stressful enough to know she was involved in this, but now her sister as well. It wasn’t fair I had no idea how I fit into all this, but I had a feeling it wouldn’t be long before I found out. And, I’ll probably had wished I was still in the dark.
3
Chandler and Snow stayed at Blacwin’s for the next couple of hours. We were all burnt out trying to think of possible places where Carina might be staying, and ways to contact her. At the end, we came up with nothing any of us found to be useful.
On their way out, Chandler asked Blacwin, “Why the hell do you stay in this creepy house?”
“There’s something here, answers, clues, I don’t know...there has to be.” This last part he said under his breath.
“The only thing the Carving Witch left behind are those freaky statues.” Chandler took Snow’s hand and led her to his car. “Well, if you find any of those answers or anything comes up, call me,” he called over his shoulder.
“I will,” Blacwin said.