by C. M. Lance
Professor Herman and Giselle nodded agreement.
Sig described the previous night′s adventures. When he described the garbage they pelted him with, Rick looked queasy and held up his hand. "I don′t need the menu. I get the picture."
Giselle interrupted to ask, "The trolls said Dean Heathcoat is Dmitri′s father?"
Sig remained silent for a moment as he formulated a response. "Not directly, they said their Master was Dmitri′s father. I didn′t see their Master. When I woke up, he wasn′t in the room. We could assume that the Dean is their Master since it is his house, but strictly speaking, I don′t know."
"What woke you up? I couldn′t keep my eyes open. Even when you called and my phone rang, right under my ear, I could barely wake up. You say a 'feeling′ made you wake up?"
"Have you ever lost your cellphone with all your friends′ numbers, or walked out to find your car gone or a dear family member died? Like that, only ten times worse. I felt an aching sense of loss, almost physical, like a hole had been ripped in me."
They looked at him pensively. He could tell they remembered losses that hurt.
"Anyway, the ache receded immediately after a bright flash of light. After the flash, someone threw my medallion into the room."
"You levitated it into your prison cell?" asked the Professor.
"Yeah, kind of like real magic. I wouldn′t have thought to do it if Mom hadn′t told me that in her vision I said 'Aðalbrandr is part of me.′ First, I tried to change forms with the amulet across the room. That didn′t work. Then I remembered all the lessons from you and Grampa about levitating objects. When I spoke the words and concentrated on levitating, it just happened, like magic. And when it smacked into my hand…it felt so good."
Rick looked at him with raised eyebrows. "Don′t get a stiffy."
Sig blushed and laughed. "Not like that. It gave me a sense of relief, like coming together after being torn apart."
The Professor nodded. "Not having prescience myself, I have been amazed many times when a vision of the future makes the future happen, as your mother′s vision made you think of levitating Aðalbrandr. As if it were a self fulfilling prophesy."
Sig described what he saw in the room containing the bloody dress. Rick jumped up and paced the small office. He looked as angry as Sig felt yesterday. Giselle seemed both revolted and nauseated. The Professor′s face sagged into the same sad expression he had when Sig originally told him about it.
"The trolls said he needed another virgin before the full moon. When is the next full moon Rick?"
Rick stopped pacing and said, "In six days. Wait a minute, just because I′m a Were you think I always know when the full moon happens?"
"Well, don′t you?"
"Yeah, but you just assumed?"
Giselle cleared her throat. "I′ve continued to research Dean Heathcoat and found something interesting. I′d like to review it with you."
"By all means, my dear."
"The school records show that he was born in a small town in North Dakota, or I should say they were born. Birth records from the town show twins. One was named John, the other Gianni, G..I..A..N..N..I."
Sig looked at her and nodded. "Professor Riley mentioned one of his quirks; sometimes he wanted to be called John and other times he insisted on being called Johnny. I thought she said Johnny, but it could be Gianni. They′re pronounced the same."
"It took some work to find the birth records. When John and Gianni were five years old, the town burned down."
"The whole town?"
"Like I said they came from a small town. Records from that time show a population of seventy-seven. The population shrunk after it burned. Many people died, including the Dean′s parents. Apparently, Gianni also died since there′s no mention of him anywhere after the fire destroyed the town. John went to live with an uncle in Detroit. John shows up in grade school and high school records, Gianni doesn′t."
Giselle pulled three books out of her backpack and laid them on the Professor′s desk. "These are yearbooks from the Dean′s undergraduate days here at NU." She selected one and reached to a piece of red paper marking a spot in the book. "This is a photo of the chess team his sophomore year. There′s Dean Heathcoat on the end."
Sig pointed, "Look, there′s Professor Riley on the other end. Kind of attractive in a nerdy way."
"I plan to use these yearbooks to expand our research to friends and acquaintances from his college days. I also requested copies of his high school yearbooks."
Sig frowned as he stared at the picture of the chess club. He knew they were missing something but he couldn′t identify what it was.
Rick wanted to charge over to the Dean′s home and raid it immediately. He even phoned his uncle Jacob to help them. Professor Herman urged restraint.
Sig agreed that it would be a good idea to get more information on the Dean before they charged in. "After all, Jacob won′t be here for more than a day. Don′t you want to wait for him? Also, the full moon isn′t for six days."
"He has considerable field experience and strategic expertise for this type of incursion," the Professor agreed.
The meeting ended with an agreement to wait until uncle Jacob arrived.
Professor Herman stopped by Dean Heathcoat′s office several times a day to finalize the departmental budget. Eventually, the Dean′s administrative assistant informed him that the Dean called in sick, and no, she didn′t know when he would be in.
Giselle continued researching the Dean′s early days. She made a list of possible high school and college acquaintances. Sig assisted her in gathering contact information and calling them. Their profile information on the Dean remained consistent. Everyone who remembered him opined that he behaved oddly, but no one was close to him. Several people diagnosed him as bipolar, both those with credentials to render such a judgment and those without.
Two days after the group meeting with Professor Herman, Sig flipped yearbooks open to pages Giselle had marked with various colored tabs. Pictures on each page captured Dean Heathcoat′s youth. Sig studied the man he believed the trolls called 'Master′.
He fit the model of the brooding artist, lean body and face, long tapering fingers, and bony wrists stretching out of black sleeves. His all-black attire emphasized the stunning white streak running through his dark hair. Even in his high school photos, the streak blazed prominently.
Sig flipped back and forth between pictures and then stopped. Leaning forward, he closely studied a picture, turned to another, and studied it closely. He pulled another book out of Giselle′s pile and flipped through it, pausing to study photos.
After he lined up three books, he turned to Giselle. "Will you look at these pictures and give me an opinion?"
She laid down her pen. "I′ll be happy to. In my opinion, you are intentionally driving me nuts by flip, flip, flipping through those books while I′m trying to work. How about a second opinion? You′re nuts too."
Sig smiled at her. "I agree. I′m nuts about you."
She laid a hand on his. "If your gonna put it that way, how can I help?" She said with a smile.
"Please look at these pictures."
"OK." She studied each of the photos briefly. She closed the last book and said, "Yes, in my opinion, Dean Heathcoat is present in each of those pictures."
"Focus on the white streak in his hair."
"OK, it′s very distinctive but a little freaky… in my opinion."
"Notice anything different from one picture to the next?"
"This one is a picture of the chess club, and here′s a picture of the Dean playing chess. By Jove, I think you′re on to something! There are eight people in the picture of the chess club. There are only two in this picture. Something happened to the other six people. It′s turning into 'the case of the missing people′."
"Focus on the streak."
Giselle frowned. "It′s on the right in this picture, and the left in that picture." She smiled wryly at Sig. "You′ve uncover
ed incompetent year book editors. They flipped the negatives."
Sig pointed. "Look at the clock in this one and the writing on the sign in this one. If they flipped the negatives, either the clock or the writing would be backwards. Neither is."
With a quizzical glance, she leaned in again to look more closely.
Sig flipped to two more pictures. "Look at these, the streak changes sides, and markers like this sign" he pointed to one picture and pointed at another, "aren′t flipped. This is what has bothered me about the Dean. I couldn′t figure it out until I saw the pictures side-by-side."
"What are you suggesting?"
"Could there be two Heathcoats?"
Giselle remained quiet for several moments then looked into Sig′s eyes. "Occam′s razor. The simple answer is always correct. Somebody dying their hair is a lot simpler than mirror image twins living as one person, going to college, grad school, and running a Physics department."
"The simple answer is usually correct, but not always correct. Don′t forget the saying; all generalizations are incorrect, including this one. Besides, it′s not that simple. People keep saying he has multiple personalities. You′re suggesting he dyes his hair to match his personality. Don′t forget about wanting, at different times, to be called John and Gianni."
Giselle stared at the pictures Sig had shown her. "I would vote for a grieving twin so unbalanced at losing his brother that he developed multiple personalities before I′d vote for a hidden twin." She shook her head. "Let′s go see the Professor about this. If you′re right, it could change a lot of things."
Professor Herman flipped through the yearbooks laid out on his desk. "Amazing. I never had the slightest intimation. Identical twins, I wonder, are they mirror image? If so, one would be left handed and the other right." He stroked his moustache.
He wiggled his index finger as if lecturing. "Mirror image twins appear frequently in literature on Dark Magic. Did you know that the word sinister derives from the Latin word for left? In Italian, left hand translates to mano sinistra. Of course, the word 'righteous′ comes from right handed."
Sig leaned forward in his chair. "Does this make him more dangerous?"
Professor Herman chuckled. "Of course it does. Two dark mages instead of one? Oh yes indeed."
Sig glanced at Giselle. She remained stoic. He looked back to the Professor. "So, do we approach this differently?"
The Professor stroked his goatee as he considered the question. "Yes. Yes, we do, if I recollect my studies." He pivoted toward his overflowing bookshelves, reached into the midpoint of a tall pile of papers, and withdrew a thin pamphlet. Brittle pages crackled with age as he opened it. He flipped though several pages and his finger settled halfway down a page. "It says here that one of the twins is more powerful, usually the left handed one."
He smiled up at Sig. Then his smile faded. "However, we don′t know which one may have placed the magic limiting spell on you. We also don′t know if either of them invoked your Great-grandfather′s demon. There is much we don′t know, but we do know we must approach them with caution."
"So you believe there are two of them?"
"The trolls told you that their Master is a dark mage. When kidnapped, you awoke at Dean Heathcoat′s house. A logical assumption is Dean Heathcoat is their Master." He gestured toward Giselle with a smile. "Giselle′s research revealed that the Dean is a twin, but one twin has been missing since the big fire."
He pointed at Sig. "You have shown pictures to me in which the distinctive white streak in his hair switches sides. However, there are no pictures depicting two Heathcoats together. There aren′t records of a second Heathcoat for the last forty years. Finally, remember that it is not uncommon for a wizard to be able to change his appearance."
"So you don′t think there are two Deans?"
"You mean instead of one who combs the streak from one side to the other?"
With a small smile, Giselle raised her eyebrow at Sig.
"No, we should plan on there being two. Then if we discover only one, we′ll be delighted."
Sig looked at Giselle. She shrugged. He stuck out his tongue.
The Professor smiled benignly. "Let′s get together with Rick and Jacob this evening and formulate our plan."
†††
Jacob arrived in time for a war council over four-meat pizza that Rick brought. Professor Herman greeted Jacob warmly. "It is so good to see you again, my boy. How are Amanda and the children?"
"I didn′t know you knew each other." Sig said.
"I′ve known Jacob′s lovely wife Amanda since she was a tyke. I knew her parents long before her birth. It′s a never-ending pleasure when the children of friends form their own lovely families. Jacob and Amanda have one of the loveliest."
Jacob ducked his head and murmured. "Thank you, Arthur."
"Besides, Jacob and I have worked together on troubles in the past. His martial training is always invaluable. Magic is grand, but a good man with a rocket-propelled-grenade launcher can accomplish wonders. Jacob has also worked with your Great-grandfather Thorval."
Jacob looked at Sig with surprise. "Thor Arnsohn?"
Sig nodded.
"I didn′t realize Thor Arnsohn was your Great-grandfather. You have different last names. I haven′t seen him for years. How is he?"
"Not well, but we hope for the best."
"I′m sorry to hear that. He′s a great man and a brave warrior."
"Thank you. I have a lot to live up to."
In the dining room, pizzas boxes sat open on the sideboard and Giselle had maps of the Dean′s estate for everyone. She printed them out from Google Earth. In addition, her laptop displayed the site. She described what she had learned about the compound.
"The estate is almost ten acres. It′s deeper than most of the other properties in the area. It extends from the street in front to the street in back. In essence, it consists of two estates back-to-back. The home site occupies the middle of the front five acres. Thick woods cover the sides and the rear half of the lot. The footprint of the main house is seven thousand square feet. Sig said there are a basement and a subbasement in addition to the two floors aboveground. If the subbasement extends to the full footprint, that′s a total of twenty-eight thousand square feet. There is also a small outbuilding in the wooded area in the back. In this case, small means fifteen hundred square feet — above ground."
Rick whistled. "All that on a Dean′s salary." He looked at Professor Herman. "You guys have a real racket going."
"When people commented on the Dean′s home, he mentioned an inheritance."
"Nice inheritance for an orphan from a small North Dakota town," Sig said.
"Did I mention that his parents owned a twenty-five thousand acre farm?" Giselle asked.
"No you missed that tidbit."
"I discovered it yesterday."
"So much for the kindly uncle who took him, or them, under his wing. The proceeds from the sale of a twenty-five thousand acre farm can result in an outpouring of generosity and caring."
Giselle cleared her throat. "Let′s get back to the topic at hand."
Rick saluted. "Yes ma′am."
"An eight foot tall stone and iron fence surrounds the entire compound. According to Professor Herman, it is magically warded."
"That shouldn′t create an obstacle for you, Rick or Jacob, and Sig has already demonstrated that he can pass", said Professor Herman.
"Pass as human? I have a hard time believing that."
"No Rick, Sig can pass the wards in either form since his magic is limited to his body. The magical sensors don′t detect him."
"I was joking…"
"Astonishing, I wasn′t aware that you ever joked. I′ll retain that bit of information for future reference."
Rick smiled weakly.
"It would provide an impediment to me in ordinary circumstances. However, today I received a folder of documents for the Dean′s signature, from Virginia, his administrative barricade. S
he called ahead to let him know I will be dropping them off. He will have to drop the barriers to allow me to approach his house on official business."
Jacob nodded. "Brilliant. We need your wizardly support to make a successful assault."
"How are we going to do it?" Sig asked.
Jacob pointed at the map. "Rick and I will go over the back wall from the street here. If there are any motion sensors, we′ll trip them and warn of an intrusion from the back. We need to time it with your delivery of the folder, to create a distraction after you are on the premises. We can use our cell phones to signal our status. Sig will follow you in from the front when we scale the wall in back."
"What about me?"
With a steely look at Giselle, Jacob said. "I thought you were our research prime. We′ll be beyond research at that point."
Sig held up his hand. "You must not remember her prowess from the hunt. She made all the kills—on running animals. She′s the best bow…person I′ve ever seen. We need her cover fire."
Jacob looked at him. "You didn′t make any of the kills?"
"None. You killed the deer that I hit high in the shoulder."
"Then what are we bringing you along for?"
"The sword. Remember the sword?"
"Oh, right. I forgot."
Sig looked to the Professor. "I think it′s Were humor. I′m still getting used to it."
He turned back to Jacob. "When do we go in?"
"I prefer late at night for surprise, but Arthur needs to deliver the folder at a reasonable hour. Can we hit them tonight at nine o′clock?"
He looked around. Everyone nodded.
"Tonight it is." He looked at his watch. "Three hours. Let′s get busy checking weapons."
"Did you bring any?" Rick asked.
"I brought the Humvee. It′s loaded with RPGs, a launcher, and hand grenades."
"Now you′re talking."
"Not for this job. If there is a little girl held captive, we can′t use them. We don′t want to accidentally kill the one we′re trying to save. We can only take the sword," Jacob said with a nod to Sig, "the bow," another nod to Giselle, "and magic," nodding to Professor Herman. "We′ll go in bare Were," he told Rick.