High Priestess

by Wendy Hewlett

  “Why don’t we go inside?” Mick said.

  Raven looked around and it wasn’t just Tate watching the show now. Three constables stood there gaping at them. “Aren’t you people supposed to be doing something?”

  “Not really,” Tate answered. “We’re securing the scene. It’s looking pretty secure at the moment.”

  Mick helped Raven to her feet. Her face was on fire and it wasn’t from the road rash. She let Mick help her inside, her eyes on the man in front of her. He kept looking over his shoulder, offering a thin lipped smile and then turning to look where he was going again. The forensics team was working in the kitchen, so they went to the living room, or the front parlour as Ena called it.

  “I take it from your reaction Ena didn’t tell you about me either, love.” He stabbed his fingers through his hair then lowered himself into a black leather armchair. It fit him, like he belonged in that chair next to the fireplace.

  “When did you marry my mother? Why didn’t I know about it?”

  “Well, lass, you weren’t exactly on the best terms with your mum now, were you?”

  “You weren’t at her funeral.”

  “Ach, no. I couldn’t get back on time, could I? We were at sea in the Med.”

  “Who’s we?”

  “Sorry, pet, I should introduce myself. Chief Petty Officer Kiran Hayes, Her Majesty’s Royal Navy. And you? What’s your name then?”

  Did he just call her pet? “You’re married to my mom and you don’t know my name?” His hand slid through his ebony locks again and Raven found it oddly endearing. She had an idea now why people found her dark lashes and ice blue eyes so attractive. She couldn’t take her eyes off his.

  “God, I can’t believe this is happening. Why didn’t she say anything? Not a word? I knew she had a daughter, but she told me you didn’t talk, didn’t see each other. I’m afraid I don’t know anything about you, love.”

  “Will you stop calling me love?” How could Ena do this? Her father was right here and Ena never thought to tell them about each other? Who does that? “I’m Detective Constable Raven Sage Bowen, Ontario Provincial Police.”

  “Well, that’s fitting, isn’t it? Serving your country like your father.” His eyes sparkled as he grinned at her. “Aye, you’re mine through and through. Are you always so banged up, love?” He swiped his hand through his hair and laughed. “Sorry, I can’t help calling you love, for that’s what I’m feeling, yeah? God, you’re a bonnie sight, even if you look like you’ve been struck by a lorry.”

  “She was,” Mick said.

  Kiran’s eyes widened. “You were struck by a lorry? Are you alright then?”

  “Fine.” Raven’s headache was back with a vengeance. She had so many questions she didn’t know where to start. It was all too overwhelming. “You left before my mom learned she was pregnant with me. Why? Why did you leave?” If he’d stayed, Ena never would have ended up with that creep Gregor. How different things would have been if he hadn’t bailed.

  “I was twenty-five and madly in love with your mum. It was too much. I still had so much I wanted to do, aye? I went home to Scotland and then down to Portsmouth where I joined the Navy. I didn’t stay in touch, so I suppose it’s my fault. I was just so scared. Do you understand? For a young man to feel that much for a woman … well, I ran scared, didn’t I?”

  “Oh, Raven.” Mick lowered herself to the arm of Raven’s chair. “You can’t think of it like that. You can’t turn back the clock and change anything now.”

  “Would you shut up?” Raven growled through gritted teeth. “Go and get an update from the forensics team or something.”

  Mick pursed her lips and rose to her feet. “I was just trying to help.”

  Raven narrowed her eyes at her, her jaw muscles working back and forth. “You can help by getting an update on the search.”

  “How about I see if I can find something for your headache while I’m at it?” As she left the room, she muttered, “And something for your rotten mood.”

  “I heard that.”

  Kiran was on his feet and took a step closer to Raven. “I could mix you up a headache remedy, but they’ve banned me from the kitchen. Is it very bad?”

  Raven had a weird sensation in her belly. It rose up her chest to the back of her throat and her eyes burned. It must be from the concussion. She just wasn’t feeling herself. She dropped her head into her hands and breathed. When she felt a little steadier, she rose to her feet.

  “When she comes back in, tell her to send the update to my cell.” She turned to leave, knowing she was running. But, hey, apparently it ran in the family. She fled out the door with the image of Kiran standing there with his mouth open and his beautiful eyes bulging.

  She had one of the uniforms drive her home because Mick had her car keys. It wasn’t until she got to her door and the uniform was driving away that she realized her house key was also on the ring Mick had.

  * * *

  Mick found Raven curled up on a Muskoka chair on her deck.

  “That should teach you not to abandon your partner at a crime scene,” she said as she helped Raven to her feet.

  The cold must have seized her muscles up even more than they already were because Raven felt like a ninety year old, hunched over as Mick helped her to the front door. She was too tired and sore to be embarrassed though. Mick unlocked the door and Raven sighed as she stepped into the warmth. “Just take the car and pick me up in the morning.”

  “Don’t you want the update from forensics?” Mick stepped inside and closed the door behind her.

  “In the morning.” Mick was a big girl. She could see herself out. Raven headed straight for her bathroom and ran a nice, hot, lavender scented bath. She sat on the edge of the tub for a moment while the room filled with steam and let it warm her. It wasn’t that cold out, but she was chilled to the bone.

  She waited until the tub was filled before she stood and stripped down. Then she scowled at herself in the steamy mirror. Ignoring the bruises and scrapes, she focused on the features she shared with Kiran Hayes. “Hmmph.” There was no mistaking the jet black hair and blue eyes as pale as icebergs. But the shape of her eyes were also his, and the triangular jaw, minus the road rash. Her height was probably from him as well. Ena had been around five foot six, but Raven stood five feet ten. Kiran was well over six foot with wide shoulders and a narrow waist. He shared her love of working out by the looks of it. She wondered if he ran, too, then thought there probably wasn’t a lot of room on a navy ship for running.

  Ena hadn’t told her much about her father. Only that he left before she knew she was pregnant and she never heard from him again. She must have loved him if she married him. She never expressed an interest in marrying any of her other lovers.

  Remember I told you I had only ever felt love the way you love Riley once?

  Raven eased herself into the steaming hot bath. “You really don’t want to be around me right now. You think I was angry when I ran away from home? Why the hell wouldn’t you have told me he was here and that you married him?”

  Why didn’t you tell me about Gregor?

  “That’s not even close to the same thing.” Raven pulled her legs into her chest and let her head fall to her knees. “Go away.”

  I made a lot of mistakes and I’ve caused you a lot of pain, Rave. I’m sorry.

  “Go away,” Raven repeated. She tried to clear her foggy mind. There was too much stuff jumbled up inside of her head. She didn’t need Ena in there adding to the mix.

  I’m sorry, darling angel.

  Ena hadn’t called her that since she was a little girl. That weird feeling swirled around in her belly again, climbing up through her chest and catching in her throat. Her breath caught and she had to take some slow, deep breaths to steady her breathing again. She fisted her hands in her hair and let out a wild, primal scream. One of the advantages to living where she did was not having to worry about the neighbours hearing. Not that she screamed on a regular
basis, but sometimes you needed to let off some steam before you blew. And she was close to blowing.

  “Rave?”

  Raven jolted at the sound of Riley’s voice, surprised to see her standing in the bathroom doorway. For her not to notice someone come into her house, never mind into her bathroom, she had to be extremely distracted with everything buzzing around in her head. “What are you doing here?”

  “Mick called me.”

  Raven narrowed her eyes. “Why?”

  “Don’t get your panties in a twist. She was worried about you and for good reason by the looks of it.” Riley grabbed a white, fluffy towel from the rack. “Here. Let’s get you out of there.”

  “I can get myself out of the damn tub.” She batted away Riley’s arm and grabbed on to the sides of the tub to push herself up. She made it about six inches before her elbows gave out and she dropped with a splash. She batted Riley’s arm away again and managed to turn herself around and get to her knees.

  “You really don’t need to stand there and babysit me. It’s humiliating enough without you staring at me.” That sick feeling swirled through her stomach again, soaring up her chest and then sticking at the back of her throat. Her eyes burned and her breath caught. She wrapped her arms around her belly, leaned forward and groaned.

  “Did they take x-rays of your ribs, Rave?”

  “How the hell should I know? I was unconscious for most of it.” She didn’t think her ribs were broken anyway. It wasn’t that kind of pain.

  Riley sat down on the edge of the tub despite it being soaking wet. “It’s alright to cry, Rave.”

  Bracing a hand on the edge of the tub, Raven turned to glare at Riley. “Why the hell would I cry?” She pushed herself up from her knees to her feet and grabbed the towel from Riley’s lap. Her breaths were still ragged like she had no control over the sudden gasping.

  “You’re fighting it. You’re right on the edge of a good, sobbing cry and you’re fighting it.” Riley took Raven’s hand as she stepped over the edge of the tub.

  She didn’t cry. Not since she was a scared little girl. But, now she knew what that weird feeling in her belly, chest, and throat was. Raven dried herself off and grabbed her robe from a hook on the back of the door. She was about to shrug into it when Riley stopped her. “Let me take a look at your injuries first.”

  Raven hugged the towel to her body. “I’m fine, Ri. They released me from the hospital and they wouldn’t do that if I wasn’t okay.”

  “They released you with orders to take it easy for a few days.”

  “Why are you here? We’re not together anymore. You have no obligation to take care of me. Just go.” Oh, crap. That sensation was spreading through her again, making her eyes burn.

  “You need to learn to accept help even if you won’t ask for it. You don’t have to go through all of this alone, Rave. Yeah, we’re not together anymore, but that doesn’t mean I don’t still care about you.”

  Raven held her hand up, palm out. “Don’t come here and say stuff like that when you’re seeing someone else.”

  “Rave?”

  “Seriously, Ri. Just go. I don’t need your help.” She limped into the bedroom, dropped the towel and slipped under her duvet. She laid on her stomach because it seemed to be the least painful position and turned her head away from the bathroom. She could sense Riley still standing there, but she was too tired and sore to deal with her. Riley needed to take care of someone. She was a born nurturer, so being off work she probably figured she would nurse Raven back to health. She didn’t need a damn nurse.

  She heard someone come in the front door and walk across the living room. Then Mick’s voice called out, “I filled the prescription.” The rustling of a paper bag came from the doorway of the bedroom. “Ri? You still here?”

  “Yeah,” Riley whispered. “Raven? Mick filled your prescription for pain meds. I’m just going to leave it on your nightstand and we’re leaving.”

  “Fine. Bye.” She listened as Riley laid the bag on the bedside table and then walked out to the living room with Mick. Mick must have found the prescription on the kitchen counter and gone out to fill it. She wasn’t planning on getting it filled. Would they stop her from feeling like she was going to cry? She’d take them for that. She listened for the front door to open and close, but dozed off before she heard it.

  * * *

  It was still dark when Raven woke, although the sky had begun to lighten. Surprisingly, she’d slept quite well for a change. No nightmares, no tossing and turning, no waking up from pain. She felt like the tin man from the Wizard of Oz, though. A can of oil might help to loosen the stiffness in her muscles and joints. Sitting on the edge of her bed, she eyed the prescription bottle sitting on the bedside table. Did she take the risk of the pain medication making her loopy or persevere through the pain? She settled on a hot shower. By the time she dressed, she was moving a little easier.

  Heading to the kitchen, she found Riley passed out on her couch. She just shook her head and continued on. With a coffee in hand, she eased into her armchair and watched the day bloom over Fairy Lake, which seemed to match her mood – grey and dreary. She couldn’t comprehend why Ena hadn’t told her about Kiran. Even worse, Adara must have known about him and she hadn’t said a word either. That, somehow, hurt more than her mother keeping it from her. She hadn’t spoken to her mother in years, but she spoke to Adara every day.

  Raven finished her coffee, put on a warm jacket and started searching for her keys. She searched all the usual places before she remembered Mick still had them. She peeked out at the driveway to be sure. Riley’s car sat in her driveway, but the Charger was gone.

  She called for a taxi and left a note for Riley.

  Raven let herself in the back door and found Adara in the kitchen baking bread. She stood just inside the door for a moment inhaling the aroma and her stomach grumbled.

  “Oh, good morning, honey. How are you feeling?”

  Adara started across the kitchen and then stopped in her tracks as she studied Raven’s face. Her smile faded away and she wrung her hands in front of her. “What is it, hon?”

  “How long have Ena and Kiran been married?” Adara was the one person she trusted, the one person she thought had her back all this time. And she hadn’t.

  “Oh, dear. Well, I guess it must be coming up on ten years or so.”

  Heat shot up Raven’s neck and exploded onto her face. “My father has been here all these years and you never thought to tell me?”

  “Aah, but …” Her hands began to redden as she twisted them repeatedly. “He wasn’t here very often, was he? He was at sea more than he was home.”

  “Why didn’t you say anything? It’s not like it’s not obvious I was his. I can understand why Ena didn’t say anything, but you? I trusted you, Adara.”

  Adara’s eyes lowered and she spoke softly. “It wasn’t my place to tell you, now was it?”

  Raven swiped her hand through her hair then massaged the back of her neck. “Were you reporting back to Ena about me all these years?” Raven didn’t need to wait for a response, she saw her answer in Adara’s reaction. She winced a teeny bit. It was barely detectable, but she caught it. She spun around, opened the door, and was through it faster than she thought her battered body could move. She hadn’t realized how hard she pulled the door closed until she heard it slam behind her.

  Her heart pounded in her chest as if it was desperate to escape. She felt a little dizzy, but pushed through it. It wouldn’t do to pass out in the middle of the street. She’d let the taxi go, so she ploughed ahead, her adrenaline shrouding the pain.

  It took her about thirty minutes to walk to the detachment and pull herself together. The bullpen was quiet. Dayshift officers hadn’t arrived and the night shift had yet to come in from patrol for shift change. That gave her time to catch up on the reports from the autopsy and the search of Ena’s house. The report from the lab on whether Gregor’s DNA was a match for the evidence collected f
rom Emily McMurtrie, Charlene Brock, and Sandra Kelway should be coming in soon as well.

  She turned on her computer and went in search of caffeine while it booted up. A pot of coffee sat on the burner in the squad room that appeared to be more solid than fluid and smelled worse than it looked. She dumped it in the sink and got a fresh pot brewing. Leaning against the counter, she thought about Adara. She was the sweetest, most caring person Raven knew. But, now she was asking herself if she knew her at all. Adara had only taken her in at Ena’s request and that was so Ena could keep tabs on her. Why? She hadn’t cared what was happening to her under her own damn roof, but she wanted Adara to tell her everything going on in her life?

  Of course I cared what was happening to you. Why didn’t you say something?

  “Damn you. Not here. Not now.”

  You said I didn’t see you. Is that why you thought that? Because I didn’t see what happened? I’ll never forgive myself for that, for failing you, sweet angel.

  Raven fisted her hand in her hair and pulled. She was either going to scream bloody murder or lose control of the tears that were fighting to get out again. With her jaw clenched, she said, “If you really gave a shit, why didn’t you come for me?”

  I did. I followed you, but you wouldn’t have talked to me, Rave. Not in the state you were in. I figured you would talk to Adara and then we could work it out and you would come home. But, you didn’t talk to her. You didn’t talk to anyone, did you? Why, sweet angel? Why didn’t you say something?

  Raven started to push back against the memory that Ena’s questions evoked then stopped herself. If Ena wanted to know, she would let her see it, let her experience it. She closed her eyes tight and remembered Gregor’s stinking hand pressing over her mouth, his whiskey soaked breath filling her nose and curdling in her belly. His rusty voice whispering in her ear, ‘Make a noise and I’ll kill your mom. Wake her up and she’s dead.’

  She let the whole sordid rape play out in her head and then his breath, warm and sticky against her ear, ‘Tell anyone and she’s dead. It will be your fault, Raven. You will have killed her.’