Witch Eyes

by Scott Tracey

  Her lips thinned, and she nodded across the car. “Get in. I’ll give you a ride back into town.”

  Jade was the only one of them I actually trusted. Maybe because with her, what you saw was what you got. A few minutes later, we were pushing the speed limit in silence. “What’s my mother’s issue with you now?” she finally asked, once we were back in the safe haven of commercial property.

  I stared out the window, watching the yellow lines at the side of the road dip left and right as we accelerated. “Well, aside from the dinner party from hell, she kinda … threatened me, I guess.” I stopped. “Well, she didn’t actually threaten me, but you kinda had to be there.” I still didn’t know how much Jade knew about Catherine’s lifestyle, and getting into the magic stuff was way too much to handle right now.

  “Oh, I’m sure she was threatening you,” Jade said, like it was an ordinary occurrence. “That’s her style. Most kids have a father cleaning a shotgun to scare the boys off. We got my mother and her dinner parties.”

  “She was meeting with Lucien Fallon,” I added. “So the interrogation got cut shor—Jade, watch the road!”

  In the middle of my sentence, Jade had whirled on me. Her shock was matched only by my fear of the oncoming traffic we were drifting into.

  She focused back on the street, and turned the wheel so we slid back into our own lane. Angry horns trailed in our wake. “She was meeting with him? Again?”

  This wasn’t the first time? “I don’t know. I guess. He said he had to get back to town, though.”

  “Lucien’s their intermediary or something.” Jade’s tone was grim. “He shows up so she doesn’t have to deal with Jason.”

  “They seemed a little more friendly than that,” I said, thinking back to the exchange. “And I think she was offering him a job.”

  Jade’s hands tightened around the wheel like her brother’s. “Did you know he hit on me when I was a freshman? Got all pervy and kept talking about all the things he could show me.”

  “He’s slime,” I agreed. How many girls had he hit on over the years? It was extremely gross to think about. “It’s disgusting. He should stick to girls his own age, y’know?” I said it halfheartedly, secretly wondering how old he really was. Were there even girls his own age? He had to be over a hundred.

  She pulled into a parking spot in front of the hotel. “One of his secretaries was on the cheerleading squad a few years ago. Had a full ride to college and six months later, she walked away from it. She moved to Seattle to live with her aunt or something.” Jade pursed her lips. “I think I heard she was waitressing now. Just dropped out of school entirely.”

  After working with Lucien for only a few months? “Does that happen to all of them? I heard someone say that none of them last long.”

  “I dunno. Maybe. Most of the girls that go to work for him don’t know any better. They just see a hot, single guy that’s willing to pay them crazy money.”

  I thought about that after I got out of the car. What was Lucien’s obsession with young girls? Aside from the obvious, of course. Was there something more to it? Or was he just a pervert?

  ¤ ¤ ¤

  There was no sign of Jason when I got back to the hotel room, but maid service had been busy. Everything was neat and orderly—they’d even gone so far as to fold the clothes I’d left strewn over the bed. Or maybe Jason had done it. How long had he stayed here after I’d left?

  I ordered a hamburger from room service, and took a shower while I waited. Later, a much cleaner and fuller me curled up under the covers of the bed. Night was just starting to approach, but so much had happened today. I figured I could sleep for a few hours, and then get back up and try and make some headway on both schoolwork and the Lucien issue.

  Catching up on schoolwork didn’t take nearly as long as I thought it would. Half the things I had to finish up were in subjects I’d already gone through with John. I gave up about halfway through the math homework though. When I couldn’t even manage to finish the easy problems, I knew it was a lost cause.

  There also wasn’t anything to find out on the Lucien front. Everything I’d seen on the Net was the sum total of what was out there. I was still feeling anxious and nervous about the things that had happened today. Being set up by Trey, accosted by Catherine, and then having Lucien stroll in like it was no big deal.

  I’d never get back to sleep this way, unless I seriously tired myself out. John used to run, back when I was younger, but I’d never taken up the hobby. But now, it seemed like a great idea. It only took a few minutes to change into something warmer and slip on a pair of tennis shoes.

  There was only one car on the road when I finally got outside and crossed the street. It turned the same way I was heading, passing me by and allowing me only a momentary glimpse of the dark metallic color as it passed under a streetlight.

  I started running so I wouldn’t have to think. About Lucien, the feud, Grace, any of it. I crossed block after block, expecting any minute would be the one where I’d lose steam and need to stop. But I didn’t. I kept going, taking turns at random. Eventually, I ended up turning back toward the docks on the north side of town, far past Sather Park.

  A block down from me, a car turned to the left. Black chrome. I slowed my jog, feeling a moment of concern. Part of me wanted to shrug it off; it could have been anyone. Belle Dam wasn’t that big of a town, and if I’d learned anything, it was that it paid to be paranoid.

  Instead of continuing down the sidewalk, I crossed into the small car dealership next to me and watched. Sure enough, I could see a glimmer of red brake lights where the car had paused. Just out of sight from the street.

  Someone’s following me. I pulled the silver necklace from out of my shirt and rubbed it between my thumb and finger.

  “Hide me from their sight,” I murmured, releasing only a trickle of magic. Since I planned to run, it wouldn’t work very well this time. But it was better than nothing.

  I turned back the way I’d come and zigzagged along streets. I stuck to the shadows, running through darkened parking lots and run-down yards.

  My footsteps echoed all around me, louder and more distinct than they’d been when I was running for the fun of it. They’re still out there.

  I was almost back to the hotel, but from here to there the streetlights blazed. I’d gotten turned around with all the running, and was coming back from a different direction. There wasn’t a cover of darkness to hide behind.

  I stopped running, but the echo didn’t stop around me.

  “You run like a girl.” Drew jumped out of the shadows and shoved me into a row of bushes.

  Twenty-Eight

  “Stay down,” he grunted, keeping his dirt-crusted hand clenched over my mouth. The black car, some kind of foreign model, sped down the street in front of us. It circled around in front of the hotel and pulled up across the street. Right where it had been when I’d first seen it.

  “Someone’s curious about what you’re up to,” Drew said, releasing me. I had tiny little branches shoved in all sorts of hard-to-reach places.

  “Who is that?” I eyed the car and tried to remember if I’d seen one like it at the Lansings’.

  “Don’t know, don’t care. Maybe Boyfriend thinks you’re screwing around on him.”

  “Funny how you’re the one who keeps putting your hands on me,” I said as I dragged myself out of the bushes. I focused on the magic around me, drawing it closer. Just in case; I wouldn’t be caught off guard again.

  Drew made a clicking sound with his tongue, flashing his eyes at me. “You don’t back down, do you?”

  He was just a stupid jock, I reminded myself. Lecturing him about homophobia was a waste of time. “Why were you following me?” I demanded instead.

  “Riley seems to think you’re in some trouble. She didn’t say as much,
but she wants me to keep an eye out.”

  “You attacked me last night!” What was Riley thinking? “What do you care anyway?”

  Drew shrugged. “I don’t. But if it’ll piss Gentry off, then why the hell not?” He sniffed at the air, his face screwing up in disgust. “You stink. Cut it out with the mumbo jumbo bullshit.”

  “You smell like fire.” He’d said as much on the bus. “You can really smell it?”

  He rolled his eyes. “Do I need to be all silver and four-legged for you to figure it out?”

  “You’re not a witch,” I said with only a little certainty. I’d never looked that deeply at him, but changing shape wasn’t something a normal witch could do unless … “You’re a werewolf?”

  “You sure you’re not some sort of moron?” Drew pointed to a corner of the yard we were near, where two fences met. “I’m not a werewolf. Or did you forget there wasn’t a full moon out the other night?”

  He was right. “Then what are you?”

  He pulled out a cell phone and flipped it open. “You think the only thing lurking around town is a couple of witches? Don’t be naïve. All sorts of things will line up for the right amount of money. Ask Gentry. If he’ll tell you the truth.”

  Of course I knew there was more to the supernatural than just witches and warlocks. John used to tell me bedtime stories of things that really existed. I don’t think creativity was really his strong suit—most of my bedtime stories were true accounts of one nasty or another.

  But I’d also never met anything like Drew was talking about.

  Drew wasn’t content to let me work it out for myself. “I’m a Shifter. As in shape. Mostly animals, but sometimes other things if I really push myself.”

  The only thing I knew about shapeshifting was that there was always something that gave them away. “Your eyes glow when you’re about to change, don’t they? I saw them the other night.”

  Drew nodded. “Maybe you’re not all fluff up there.” He leaned up against the wooden fence and tilted his head to the sky. “That’s why they killed my dad. We won’t be tamed.”

  “Why are you telling me this now?” If I thought Trey was hard to figure out, then Drew was nearly impossible.

  “So you’ll watch yourself. Trey thinks I’m out to get him. He’s not entirely wrong. But he’s a waste of time. He wasn’t any more involved than I was. Cathy and Jay think I’m going to just run along and let them have their war, which you seem to be the poster boy for lately.”

  “I’m not. I’ve told them I don’t want any part.”

  He glanced at me with hooded eyes. “When’s that ever stopped them before? If they say you’re in—you’re in. Unless you’re planning to take them both on.”

  And that’s when I knew. I didn’t matter either. He was feeling me out, to see if I’d help him. “Isn’t that what you’re trying to do?” He could probably snap me in half, but I’d thrown him around a little bit, too. I wasn’t entirely helpless.

  “Someone has to step up,” he replied. “I take it that means you’re going to keep pretending you don’t have to pick a side?”

  I shook my head. “I’m here for my own reasons. But I don’t think it has anything to do with either one of them, or their feud. Or you.”

  He shrugged. “You’re just another tool to them. They’ll use you no matter what you want. They can’t help themselves.”

  “You know anything about some big spell they’ve got working over the town?”

  He stared at me with a blank expression. “A what?”

  “Some sort of spell,” I repeated. “It’s like this giant blanket of shadow pulled across the whole town.” There was no moment of recognition or understanding in his eyes, and my voice went flat. “Never mind. You don’t have any idea what I’m talking about.”

  There had to be someone who knew where the shadows I kept seeing had come from. Or why they kept taking the form of an eye. I didn’t know why that was important, just that it was.

  Drew couldn’t help me, but he wasn’t my enemy either. At least not yet. I gave him one last look, shook my head, and walked out of the yard.

  The black car was dark when I walked past, tinted windows preventing me from seeing inside. I knew they were there, though. And I think they knew I did.

  Dawn was still many hours away. I could go back to bed, and try and be ready for school in the morning. The mornings here had been extraordinarily cold for September, a fact that popped into my head as I hit the door.

  I glanced back at my stalker and narrowed my eyes. I pictured the motions in my mind, traced them over and over again.

  With the early morning frost, or even a decent fogging if they left the car running, they would understand. Letters traced on the glass that wouldn’t appear until I was deeply asleep.

  I See You.

  ¤ ¤ ¤

  It was Monday again. A week ago, I’d arrived on a bus. Now I was being pulled in a million different directions.

  I left for school early, so by the time Jade called to see if I needed a ride, I was already bumming around the front plaza. “I’ll see you at lunch or something,” I promised. I wanted to find Riley first, and talk to her about what was going on.

  She’d spoken to Drew on my behalf, and told him to keep an eye on me. What was that about?

  While I waited for her rattling bracelets, I hesitated with my phone still in hand. It couldn’t hurt anything, I reasoned.

  I dialed my uncle and held my breath. The phone rang and rang, but neither he nor the answering machine ever picked up.

  Almost as soon as I flipped it shut my ringtone went off, and I saw “Jason’s Cell” appear in the little screen. I certainly hadn’t programmed his number into my phone. But he had hours alone while you were sleeping yesterday to mess with it. “What?” I demanded, already irritated.

  “Stop antagonizing the boys, Braden.” Jason’s voice was cool across the phone with just a hint of distraction. I heard random sounds and static in the background, and quickly figured out he was in a car somewhere.

  “The boys?”

  I heard him sigh. My fingers tightened around the plastic phone. He sounded just like John. “They’re only there to make sure you’re safe. You seem bound and determined to uncover every viper’s nest in town, don’t you?”

  “The car? It’s yours?” I’d assumed it had something to do with Catherine. “Wait, you hired me security? Are you kidding?”

  “They’re only there to keep an eye out for you. Stop upsetting them.”

  So they’d seen my little display after all. My smile widened. “If that’s all it takes to freak them out, then I’d start looking for a refund.”

  Jason didn’t say anything. I waited, checking the phone twice to see if the call had dropped, but he was still there. Just not saying anything.

  “I need to talk to you,” I said, finally.

  There was only a moment’s pause. “I have meetings all morning. Lunch. One o’clock. I’ll have Lucien call the school and make the arrangements.”

  “Fine. Goodbye, Jason.” I hung up the phone before he could say anything back.

  By the time the first bell rang, I still hadn’t seen or heard Riley approaching anywhere. Before I knew it, it was time for lunch, and I still hadn’t run into her. Someone dropped off a note from the office, directing me to meet my guardian at the tiny restaurant across the street.

  I left the school and saw a small black car parked in the street, a different model than the one I’d seen the night before. This one didn’t have the same tinted windows.

  “I’m sorry, we’re closed for a private party,” the manager interjected as I stepped inside.

  “He’s with me, Frank.” Jason stood in a corner of the room, staring out the window. He glanced over his shoulder at me, and I was hit again
with how much he and Uncle John looked alike.

  Frank disappeared into the back, and we were left alone. “You rented out the whole place?” Never mind the fact that it wasn’t very big; even still, that seemed extreme.

  “It seemed appropriate. Now what is this all about, Braden?”

  I fell into one of the larger booths near Jason and leaned up against the wall with my knees in front of me. “You know something’s going to happen, don’t you.” It wasn’t a question, but a realization. Jason knew a lot more than I did, of that I had no doubt. “That’s why you’ve got people watching me.”

  Jason turned away from the window, and I saw the cup of coffee held between his hands. He sat across from me, upright where I was slouched. “I thought I’d see something of myself in you. My hair, or maybe my nose. But I look at you, and all I can see is her.”

  I heard the musing softness to his words, and understood something else about my father. “My mother?” He nodded once, almost a sharp jerk of his neck. Whatever else had made him this way, he’d loved her. The regret was there, in his voice and on his face.

  “What was she like?” I thirsted for it. Needed to know more. About both of them.

  “She was from a family like ours. And like ours, they’d lost their hold on the magic many years ago. Lucien introduced us, when I was just a little older than you are now. By then, things with Catherine had already started to crumble, and when I saw her … ” He trailed off, looking back to the window.

  Things with Catherine? “You and Jade’s mom?”

  Jason shook his head. “Never anything like that,” he said with a wave of his hand. “I thought, once, that I could love her. But even when things were on better terms, everything was always a struggle. Who was superior, who had more control, and who could achieve more.”

  I didn’t care about their history. I wanted to know more about the woman that had died after giving birth to me. “You said before, that she saw things. My mother. Before she died.”