by M. J. Caan
As reluctant as Torie was to leave her, she knew that the sooner they got this info back to Jasmin, the closer they would be to solving these murders.
“Thank you,” said Torie. She scribbled down her number on another piece of paper and shoved it into Isla’s hand. “If you need anything at all; call me.”
With that, she and Elric left, heading down the hallway that led to the side entrance and her car.
“Christ that was scary,” she said, wringing her hands and waiting for her body to flush the increased adrenaline out of her system.
“You used your witchcraft,” said Elric. “I could smell it crackling all around you when I entered the building.”
“That was probably the most frightening thing about it,” she replied. “I have no idea where it came from.”
“Fight or flight,” said Elric. “Your body chose fight. Good for you.”
They were silent as she eased out of the parking lot and aimed her car at the main street that would take them out of this cursed town. She’d had enough of this dark place and wanted nothing more than to get back home and see the sunlight again. The information they had just received was far more important than anything the hospital might have offered.
“So, you have no idea what that was?” Torie asked.
“Not at all. Of course, that doesn’t mean much in a town like this. There are supernaturals here that even I have never heard of.”
Torie was shaking her head in disbelief. “Werewolves, witches, vampires…all the things I always thought were just make believe. They really are out there going bump in the night.”
“If it’s any consolation, I used to believe that humans were made up.”
Torie nearly choked as the shock of what he said hit her.
“What are you talking about? Of course we exist.”
“Max and I are from the dark dimension that runs parallel to your world. The two dimensions were forever separated by the Forbidding, the great barrier that split my world from that of man. The Forbidding was created long ago, before anyone in my lineage was born. It was reinforced by the witches of this world. They were tasked with keeping our world of darkness at bay.
“Not long ago, a great war erupted between a vampire and his werewolf clan, and the shifters that had become part of your world. A very powerful witch- one that pretty much controls Trinity Cove- created a new race of shifters to join her battle—”
“Wait, a new race of shifters? What do you mean?”
“Well, we are all born into what we are—wolf, tiger, bear, you name it—but this witch, she was a descendant of the witch line that had erected the Forbidding; powerful witches to say the least. So, in an effort to increase her army numbers against the vampire, she cast a spell that created totem shifters. Humans who long held a belief that they are only human on the outside, but their spirit was that of some other being; unicorn, harpy, mermaid…whatever they felt they were internally. Well, the spell that was cast focused on an item these humans carried with them—their totem—and it allowed them to shift into their inner form at will.
“With such a formidable army at her side, she defeated the vampire and in so doing, changed the law of the Forbidding locking the darkness over this town twenty-four seven.”
“But why would she allow the darkness here at all?”
“Because with the original containment spell broken, the darkness would have kept spreading, engulfing everything in its path. As powerful as this witch was, she couldn't stop it completely; but she could localize it. To Trinity Cove.”
“That’s incredible,” said Torie. “How come I’ve never heard this before? For that matter, why isn’t it all over the news?”
Elric smiled and gestured. “Magic. The town, while well known to paranormals and the humans that decided to stay here and make it their home, is largely hidden away from the rest of the world.”
“And you decided not to stay here? You and Max?”
Elric looked away, studying the view that was taking shape outside of his window as they drove out of the darkness.
“Sometimes, if you decide to dwell for too long in darkness, it becomes all you know. Everything becomes a shadow that you either run from or fight. We knew there had to be more out there, so we headed north; out of the dark and into the light of the mountains.” He turned and looked at Torie. “Hopefully, we will find something worth climbing out of the darkness for.”
Torie smiled, unsure what to say at that moment. Just then, her phone rang.
“This is Torie…Whoa, hold on…go slow, what are you talking about? Another murder? Oh my god…we’re on our way back now.”
Elric looked at her as she closed the call. “What is it? Who has been killed?”
Torie gritted her teeth and white-knuckled the steering wheel as they headed back into town.
“It’s Max. He’s been accused of killing Taylor.”
20
There was a frenzy in town the likes of which Torie had not seen outside of Black Friday at Nieman Marcus. She drove right to the town police station, a small, unassuming brick building, that looked more like a freestanding restaurant than a police station.
Outside, there was a throng of photographers shouting questions at a couple of officers who were working hard to keep them back from the station doors.
Torie parked the car at the rear of the parking lot then approached the building on foot with Elric in tow. As they approached the reporters, they heard a sharp “Pssst” hissed at them from the corner of the building.
It was Fionna, gesturing for them to come around to where she was standing out of sight of the mass of people. Well, by mass, it was probably a dozen people shouting, but by Singing Falls standards, it might as well have been a couple hundred.
“Fionna,” said Elric, “what the hell is going on? Where is Max?”
“He’s inside. They have him locked up,” she said, her eyes filled with tears, her voice trembling. “They think he killed Taylor.”
“Who’s they?” Torie asked.
“The police. They kept it quiet, but they called in some special agents and detectives from Trinity who have been working the case. They…they caught Max, with…with…” She burst into tears, unable to continue. Torie grabbed the shifter and pulled her close in a bear hug, rocking her gently.
“They have him locked up?” said Elric. “In a cage? No, he can’t take that. Plus, he would never hurt Taylor.”
He started to walk past Fionna, heading for a door on the side of the building.
“No,” she said, stretching out a hand to grab at his arm. “You can’t go in there. They think he had an accomplice and they are looking for you. They know you are both wolves, and right now they have half the town whipped into a blood frenzy. Plus, you’re half naked…you need clothes before someone sees you.”
Elric looked down at himself, shocked to remember that he was only wearing a hospital gown.
“Fine,” he said, shrugging out of the gown and shifting to his canine form in the blink of an eye. He looked up at Torie. I have to see Max.
“Okay, that’s probably even worse,” said Torie. She turned to Fionna. “Where is Jasmin?”
“She’s inside talking to the detective from Trinity. Someone named Barnes.”
Elric whimpered at the name.
He’s a wolf shifter from Trinity. Corrupt as night is black there. He always had it in for Max because Max is an alpha like him, and he refused to cede any of his territory to Barnes.
“Elric says there’s bad blood between this guy Barnes and Max,” she relayed to Fionna. “Says he’s a wolf shifter too.”
“What? Are you sure? There’s no scent coming off him. He smells like the rest of the humans.”
Torie looked at Elric. Could it be the same person that had broken into the vet’s office?
Elric growled in response.
“Look,” said Torie, bending down to stare into Elric’s yellow eyes. “If there is a possibility of a connection her
e, you can’t go in there. Let me go in. I’ll talk to Jasmin and see what’s going on. We’ll take care of Max, I promise. But you go back to my house and wait there, okay?” She sensed his reluctance; he didn’t need to verbalize anything to her. “Please, Elric. It won’t do either of you any good if you end up in a cell as well.”
Again the wolf growled. Against his better judgment, he turned and loped off in the direction of an open glen behind the station house before sprinting for the woods just on the other side of the clearing.
“So…when did that start?” asked Fionna, wiping at her tears. “The communication between the two of you.”
“By-product of our little adventure,” she replied. “I’ll have to fill you in later. First, we need to get in there and talk to Jasmin. Plus, I need to know what happened to Taylor.”
Just as they reached for the door, Torie stopped and looked at Fionna. “I’m sorry about Taylor. I know she was your friend, and I also know what you're feeling right now.”
Fionna’s eyes were red and swollen, but she still gave Torie a hard stare. “I’m sad and hurt. But most of all I’m pissed off. We’re going to get whoever did this. And Goddess help them when we do.”
Torie nodded, and together they passed through the door into the station. Voices, some angry and some calling for calm, filled Torie’s ears. They made their way through a dimly lit corridor that led to the back of a work area. A young deputy stood with her back to them, trying to calm down a group of men on the other side of the counter she manned.
“I’m sorry, Sir, I know who you are, but no one is authorized back there just yet,” she said.
“What’s going on? Who is that?” whispered Torie.
“Some hot shot lawyer supposedly. Wants to represent Max. Word’s gotten out that this town has a serial killer and they think he’s been caught. News and ambulance chasers have come out of the woodworks.”
She took Torie by the arm and pulled her around the hall, away from the front desk commotion, and down another corridor that led to a small office. Inside, Torie could make out Jasmin’s voice.
“Oh, come on, Dwayne, you know as well as I do that Max didn’t kill Taylor.”
“I don’t know any such thing,” came a gruff reply. “Jasmin, you know as well as I do that all of this started when those wolves came to town. As far as we know, this is shifter on shifter violence.”
“He was helping us! Why would he do that if he was the killer?” she said just as Torie and Fionna entered the room.
“I have no idea what goes on in the minds of psychopaths. Or wolves in human clothing…besides, there is nothing any of us can do at this point. Those officers from Trinity are like FBI or something. They have claimed jurisdiction of this case. They just went to get a signed order that will let them take Max out of here. Once that happens, maybe this town can get back to normal, and the residents can stop living in fear.”
“If they take him, he’s as good as dead,” Torie said.
“Who are you?” The man was tall and imposing, large of stature with a body that had seen one too many bowls of ice cream after dinner. He had a mustache and just the hint of a beard. He narrowed his eyes and locked them on Torie.
“This is Alva’s daughter, she just moved to the area. She’s a friend,” said Jasmin. “Torie, this is Dwayne. He’s the sheriff here. So how do you know Max is as good as dead?”
“I heard that the team that is here to take him back to Trinity is working for an alpha there who has it in for Max. That’s why he’s here…he’s trying to start his life over away from all the craziness down in Trinity Cove.”
“Oh?” said the sheriff. “And who told you this?”
Torie started to speak but stopped herself.
“Uh huh. Just what I thought. By any chance would you happen to know where his partner is? The beta that’s been running around with him? I’ve a feeling he hasn’t strayed too far from his master.”
“Dwayne Arsenio Smith!” scolded Jasmin. “You stop that kind of talk right now. I’ve certainly had my doubts about these wolves up until now, but I’m telling you they didn't do this.”
Torie eyed her friend. She was more than a little shocked to hear Jasmin defending Max and Elric.
“We caught him red-handed.”
“What exactly did you see him do?” questioned Torie.
The sheriff scratched his head. “We didn’t actually see it, but the evidence can’t be ignored.”
Jasmin turned to Torie. “He had just returned from…his work with Glen at the hospital,” she was careful to give Torie a look that told her not to reveal too much about what they had all been up to, “and he got this weird look on his face, per Glen. He told her something wasn’t right, and then shifted to wolf form and went sprinting up the road from where Glen and Fionna live.
“Taylor lives alone in a house just over the hillside from there. Glen knew something was wrong and called us. We got there just as this guy—” she shot a thumb towards Dwayne, “was hauling him out in handcuffs.”
“Don’t leave out the naked and bloody part,” said Dwayne. He eyed Jasmin and then turned to face Torie. “We received a call that someone was screaming and yelling for help, so we dispatched a deputy to Taylor’s residence. They heard a howling sound, kicked in the door, and found Max bent over Taylor’s body. She had been ripped to shreds and his hands were covered in her blood.”
Torie shuddered. She had never liked gory movies, and the fact that she now seemed to find herself front and center in one, made her stomach churn.
“Okay, first of all,” said Jasmin, “no one lives within earshot of Taylor’s house, so who made the call to you? Has this mysterious person shown up to make a statement? Don’t you find it suspicious that the call came just in time for one of your deputies to walk in on this scene? And you know as well as I do that one deputy could not have taken Max if he didn’t want to come along peacefully. Plus, you said Max hasn’t spoken once after bringing him in. Why is that? Because he’s in shock! He was in love with Taylor…we all knew that. Why would he do this to her?”
“Hell if I know, Jasmin. Maybe for the same reason he did it to all of the other shifters in the area that he’s killed.”
“You know that isn’t true,” said Jasmin, crossing her arms and turning her back to him.
Torie nodded. “He knows. Otherwise, why would he tell us so much about a case like this. Something isn’t sitting right with him either.”
Sheriff Smith didn’t say anything, only narrowed his eyes again at Torie.
“What are you?” Torie asked. “I mean, you’re obviously a supernatural because you know about everyone. Or are you one of the select few humans that are let in on the secret around here?”
“I’m a dwarf,” he said after a slight pause.
Torie arched her eyebrows. “Forgive me, but…I thought dwarfs were…vertically challenged?”
The sheriff looked indignant. “And I always thought all witches had long noses with a wart at the end of them.”
“Touché,” Torie replied. From now on she was going to keep what she thought she knew about the supernatural to herself. Had everything she had learned from Hollywood been a lie?
“So what now?” asked Jasmin. “You’re just going to give Max over to them and then what? Hunt down Elric and do the same?”
“Look, I don’t like this anymore than you do,” said the sheriff, lowering his voice to a whisper. “But the fact remains, he was caught with Taylor’s blood all over him at the scene of the crime. I’ve got a town filled with terrified people, someone called in the big dogs from Trinity, and now Max won’t tell us what happened. My hands are tied.”
“Wait,” said Torie, “someone called Trinity about this? You didn’t ask for their help?”
“Of course not. Those guys creep me out. I’d never call them in.”
“What do you want to bet it’s the same mysterious caller that alerted you to send a deputy to Taylor’s place?”
“Okay, maybe your hands are tied, but ours aren’t,” said Torie. “How long do we have before they come back with that order to take Max?”
“Twenty-four hours,” Dwayne replied. “And when they show up, there is nothing I can do at that point.”
“Come on then,” Torie said to Jasmin.
“Where to?”
“To catch a predator.”
“Oh, I used to love watching that…wait, are you thinking what I think you’re thinking?”
“Yep. We set up a sting. Now we just need the perfect bait.”
“Bait for what?” said Fionna as she stepped into the room. She had refused to stay by their side when the talk had turned to what happened to Taylor.
Torie and Jasmin looked at one another before turning their heads to Fionna.
21
“Are you crazy?” asked the sheriff. “There is no way I can condone this.”
“Oh hush, Dwayne,” said Jasmin. “The less you know the better. Let us handle this; you just look for a way to delay that court order in case we need a little extra time.”
He thought for a minute. “Well, the judge does owe me a favor after I landscaped his daughter’s wedding venue. You know we dwarfs have a way with stone-work. We—”
Jasmin waved him off, turning to face Fionna. “Listen to me, baby girl… we are going to get the bastard who did this to Taylor. Are you with us?”
Fionna’s eyes hardened, her features growing dark. “Whatever you need.”
“Good,” said Torie. “But it’s going to be very dangerous.”
“I’m fine with that,” Fionna replied. “This has to end. Now.”
“Okay, one last thing,” said Torie, turning to the sheriff. “I need to get in there and speak to Max.”
“Told you, he’s not talking.”
“He’ll talk to me,” she said. “Please.”
He looked around the office, letting out a deep sigh as he contemplated her request.
“Okay, but make it quick. And if anyone sees you back there…”
“They won’t, I promise,” Torie said.