The Light Who Shines (11 page)

“It’s possible the murderer is not the same person who had
the amulet and tortured the boy. I doubt it was the father, because what would
the father who hated magic be doing with an amulet? Could the boy have gotten
the amulet on his own? I don’t know. I think the amulet is the key to finding
out what really happened. I’d like to know more about it.”

Jack says with hooded eyes, “Tomorrow I’m going to the
Glenwood Charity Gala. They have a silent auction of magical artifacts. Everyone
who is anyone in the magical community will be there, including the most
knowledgeable of collectors. Why don’t you accompany me?”

“Isn’t that Gala to support the Green Tree Orphanage?”

Jack nods imperceptibly, and I wonder if he knows that I
grew up at Green Tree.

“I don’t know,” I hedge, more than slightly embarrassed.
“I’m not used to mixing with that crowd.”

Jack smiles warmly. “You’ll be fine. I’ll guide you in
anything you need to know. The invitation is exclusive, and the timing is kept confidential,
so please only share this information with those you trust. Dress in evening
attire, and I’ll pick you up at eight.”

“Okay,” I say, because of course I do think it’s an
excellent opportunity to meet a collector and gather more information on the amulet.
After all, it is never wise to collect all your information from one source.

Jack becomes serious as he gestures to his guest chair. “Now
sit down. We need to discuss the masked man in detail. First of all, why did
you leave through the alley entrance rather than the front door?”

I sigh. “Because the front door had a wet paint sign on it.
I assume he put it there to direct me to where he lay in wait. I should have
been alert, but I was in a rush. Inexcusable, I know.”

Jack ignores my self-berating and says, “Well, a murderer
obviously knows where you live, so we are going to have to keep an eye on your
place. In fact, we could have a man there to try to catch him. Is there
somewhere else you can stay for a while?”

I give Jack the evil eye, which I hope speaks louder than
words, but just in case I vehemently insist, “No way am I going to cower down
at someone else’s house. Nor are you putting a stranger in my place. If you
want to have someone drive by, that is fine. But remember I can sense souls.
The only reason I was surprised this time was because I was in a rush. I won’t
make that mistake again.”

Jack looks dubious but says nothing further, so I stand up
and excuse myself.

What does it say about me that on my way out, the question
that is most unsettling and terrifying to me is what in the world am I going to
wear to the freaking Gala?

Jack Tanner: May 27, 2022, Red Ages

When Blue leaves my office, I listen to her footsteps all
the way down the hall. Holy shit! I can’t believe Father O’Brennen told her what
happened with her aura and the Night-Crawlers in the alley!

As soon as I hear her enter her office, I pick up the phone
and dial. When a woman’s voice answers I announce myself. “This is Jack Tanner.
Is Father O’Brennen available?”

“Please hold. I’ll check,” says the voice. The phone goes
silent, and I try to calm myself down because I don’t really know what he told
her. It seems like she would have said something different to me if she really
knew.

I drill my fingers on my desktop until finally a calm, warm voice
answers, “Father O’Brennen speaking.”

“Father,” I say, “this is Jack Tanner.”

Father O’Brennen’s greeting is as warm as always. “Well
hello, Jack! It is so good to hear from you. It’s been ages since we’ve seen you.
Not since Blue reached her age of majority, I believe.”

“Thank you so much, Father. I’ll stop by next time I’m in
the area. But today I’m calling for a specific reason, if you don’t mind.”

“Sure, go right ahead.”

“Well, Blue was in my office today and asked me the most surprising
thing. She asked me if I had ever seen someone who had a strong enough aura to
chase away Dark Vampires. I didn’t know what you had told her, so I honestly didn’t
know what to say.“

“Yes,” Father O’Brennen says. “Last night, Blue paid me a
visit. She asserted that she was a mature adult and should no longer be
protected like a child. She said she had a right to know more about her family
and her past, and frankly, I agree with her. I told her the story of how a
Daylight Vampire found her the day her parents died, but I didn’t say it was
you.”

I breathe a huge sigh of relief. “Father, I would never ask
you to lie. However, if the question should arise and you can avoid telling her
that it was me, in a way that doesn’t offend your sense of morality, I would
greatly appreciate it. I’m not sure she is quite ready to hear that.”

Father O’Brennen protests, “She does have a right to know
that you were the one who brought her to me. Nor am I sure I understand why she
would not want to hear that it was you. The best I can do is promise not to
broach the subject myself unless I see some great need.”

“Thank you, Father. I appreciate that. I just need a little
more time.”

“Jack,” he says kindly, “I think you should come down to the
church sometime. I’d really love to catch up with you, and it sounds to me like
you may need a little grounding.”

I laugh softly. “Father O’Brennen, I need a lot of
grounding. I may take you up on that offer soon. Thanks so much.”

“You are welcome, Jack. I look forward to seeing you soon.”

I hear the soft click of the phone and hang up my end. I
press my forehead into my hands. Thank the Light she doesn’t know yet. How am I
going to explain this mess to her?

Bluebell Kildare: May 27, 2022, Red Ages

I park my car about two stores down from Herbal Enchantments.
As I walk toward the entrance, the hairs on the back of my neck prickle. I
pivot and look behind me. Nothing seems out of place, and I don’t feel any
strong emotions, but the prickle is soon followed by a shiver down my spine. A
man and a woman sit at an outside café a few buildings down enjoying their meals.
An older woman sweeps her stoop on the opposite side of the road. The street
looks quiet otherwise.

I see the air shimmering by the curb where I parked my car.
Could the sun still be evaporating the rain from the street? My uneasiness
increases, and goosebumps pop up on my arms. I keep my senses open and quickly
close the distance to my destination.

The cheerful noise of the door chimes wipes away the last
vestiges of fear. I notice that Penelope’s blond curls are further rebelling
from her bun. She says brightly, “She’s in back with the beast!”

I chuckle and let myself in the kitchen. Alexis is wearing a
white apron and ladling some minty-smelling potion into a large, green glass
bottle while watching the news on a small under-counter TV. Varg runs up to me
and places his forepaws down and his rump in the air. I bow to him in return.
“Hello, Varg.”

Alexis turns and smiles at me with her generous lips.

I smile back and ask, “How was he?”

Alexis dips down into a partial squat to watch the potion
line as it rises in her bottle. “He was perfect, but the customers were a bit
frightened so I had to keep him back here. We just got back from a walk a few
minutes ago.”

“Well, he looks beautiful.”

Alexis nods as she continues to ladle the potion into the bottle.
“I gave him a bath as best I could with the hose in the alley. He is way too
big for the sink here, so I sprayed him down and used my soap to scrub his
fur.”

Alexis pulls the ladle out of the glass jar, apparently
satisfied that it’s properly filled. “I also brushed him as gently as I could, avoiding
his cut, of course. He was getting matted.”

I get down on my knees and give Varg a face rub. He sniffs
at my face and in turn, I sniff the air around him. “He smells wonderful!”

Alexis puts the ladle in the sink and pops a cork in the
bottle. She gestures to the bottle she just filled. “This is the soap I used.
It has tea tree oil and mint in it. It’s charmed too, of course, but both of
those repel pests naturally. I also gave him several potions to internally
fight fleas and disease. He may be tired tonight as his body gets rid of the
toxins.”

Alexis pops a label on the bottle that reads “dog shampoo.”

“He ate three full bowls of food throughout the day. I shaved
around his wound and put a salve on it. It isn’t too deep and should heal in no
time. I think it is best to let it air dry.”

I take a look at the underside of Varg’s flank and see a
shaved strip of about four inches, but there is no cut to be seen. “Um, Alexis.
Where is the cut?”

Alexis looks over at me, frowning. “Right in the middle of
the shaved area.”

I shake my head. “No it’s not.”

Alexis squats down by Varg. She looks up at me with wide
eyes. “The salve was charmed, but I would have expected it to take a few days
to heal, at least. Maybe it works better on wolves than on dogs.”

I’m dubious, but I let it go.

Alexis shrugs, then stands to grab a bag from a hook on the
wall. She starts filling it with things and explaining their purposes. “This is
the shampoo you should use to bathe him. It’s gentle on the skin. Once a month
should be sufficient. Any more than that will dry him out. This bottle is for
getting rid of fleas. Give him two tablespoons a month. Pour it on his food,
and it will taste like gravy to him. This is the salve for his cut. Obviously
you don’t need it for that cut anymore, but keep it in case he gets injured
again. You should swab it on twice a day until the wound heals. He’ll lick at
it, which is normal. If the wound is any more than a quarter inch deep or wide,
he needs stitches. This is only for minor wounds. I’ll drop the de-worming
medicine off in a few days. I was out of a few ingredients.”

“Do you really think he has worms?”

Alexis raises her eyebrows. “Does a tree have ants?”

“I’ll take that as a yes. Thank you so much, Alexis.” She is
such a good friend.

“My pleasure,” she replies. “Have you eaten? I have some
leftover Chinese.”

“Well, now that you mention it…”

Alexis laughs. She pulls the food out of a hot box. A hot box
is a wooden box similar to an old time breadbox but charmed to keep food warm
without spoiling it. It sort of keeps it in stasis. I select the remainder of
the General Tso’s chicken and hop up on the island counter to eat it with
gusto. Varg lounges at my feet with a hopeful look on his face.

“So,” I say, between bites, “did you know that in the
beginning times after Vampires were just born and there weren’t that many,
people went hundreds and hundreds of years not believing in them?”

Alexis says, “Yeah, we talked about that in my magical history
course in school.”

I sigh jealously. “You were so lucky to go to magic school.
Do you ever wonder if any of the other myths have a basis in truth? Like
fairies or trolls?”

Alexis thinks about it and says, “Actually, I’ve never
thought about it as an adult. Of course as a kid I always wanted the fairy
tales to be true. Just think about how for thousands of years we Gifted had to
hide our identities. It is possible that there are other beings that are also
in hiding.”

“So do you think there might be wolves with special powers?”

Alexis looks at me, raising her eyebrows again, then looks
down at Varg. She puts her hands on her hips and returns her gaze to me. “What
did he do? Besides healing quickly, that is.”

I study my box of chicken very closely, poking at the pieces
that are stuck to the side. “Well, I can’t be exactly sure, but he might have
grown a tidbit and then shrunk again. It could have been my imagination.” I
look up at her. “It was a really stressful situation. But I swear his withers
came to the height of my waist before, and now he looks like a large dog.”

Alexis smiles broadly. “Very interesting! So is there
anything else interesting I should know about?”

“There might be.”

Alexis puts her hands on her hips and demands, “Out with
it!”

“Okay, Jack asked me to go to the Glenwood Charity Gala with
him tomorrow night.”

Alexis turns her full attention to me now. “Jack? Your
boss?”

“Yep,” I say casually to tease her.

Alexis crosses her arms under her chest and commands, “Well,
spill!”

I smile because I love to get her worked up. “Actually, it’s
for work. I need to get some more information on that magical artifact I’m
researching, and he thinks there will be some knowledgeable people at the
Gala.”

“He’s right, but still,” Alexis says brightly, “he did
invite you. He could have gotten a name himself and given it to you afterwards.
This means that he doesn’t already have a date, and he wants you with him. What
are you going to wear?”

I give her my biggest blue-eyed look while clasping my hands
together to beg her. “Do you have something I can borrow? I don’t have time to
go shopping, and you know I don’t have anything because I never go anywhere.”

Alexis cocks her head and thinks. “Actually, I do. I have
the perfect dress. I’m a little bigger upstairs, but this dress is a halter so
it won’t matter.” She looks at me closely. “I think our waists are about the
same. It’s a light blue dress with black piping. It will be stunning on you.”

“Thank you, thank you, thank you!” I give her a warm
embrace.

Alexis hugs me back. “You have to tell me all about it,
though. That is the price I charge.”

“I promise.” Then I ask, “Alexis, if you had a totally hot
boss who was very protective of you and generally a great guy, would you
consider, you know, being with him?”

Alexis’ eyebrows draw in as she ponders this seriously. “I
don’t know. Having a fling with a boss is a big no-no professionally. So if it
were me I would take it really slow to see if there are real feelings on both
sides first before I go and screw up my career.” Then she adds with a sly wink,
“But then again, that all depends on how hot he is!”

I laugh at that. He is pretty darn hot.

I gather my things to leave, and Alexis turns back to the
news. She holds up her hand to halt me. “Hey, you better look at this.”

She turns up the volume on the TV to the sound of the
newscaster speaking. “The three bodies were found on the Upper North Side in
the quiet neighborhood of Rowan Park.”

A grisly scene flashes on the screen of a woman and two
children, ripped to shreds and lying in a massive pool of blood. Their bodies
are next to a building, and blood is splattered up the wall over twice the
height of the news reporter on the scene. Some cardboard boxes next to the
bodies are completely soaked in blood and are strewn with what appears to be
gory chunks of pulpy flesh. Large hunks of flesh are missing out of the bodies.
The smallest body is almost unrecognizable as human. I can’t believe they are
showing this on the news.

“Residents in the neighborhood are staying inside after dark
as this is the third night in a row bodies have been found. There seems to be
significant Dark Vampire activity in this area. The police say they are working
closely with the Supernatural Homicide Investigation Unit and are doing
everything they can to bring the perpetrators to sunlight.”

“Cripes!” I say. “Jack didn’t tell me we had a problem in
this area. No wonder he was upset today.”

I turn to Alexis. “Why don’t you let me follow you home?”

Alexis’ eyes are wide and fear drips off her. She nods. “Sure.
I was just about to close up shop anyway.”