The Wolf's Daughter (The Tala Chronicles 1) (5 page)

The phone
stopped ringing when she reached the threshold of her mother’s room. She walked
in anyway and sat on the bed, hands folded, waiting to see what would develop.
The phone rang, again jangling her nerves.

“H-hello.”

“Tala, is dinner
on for tonight?”

His voice made
all her excuses, fears, and hesitations melt away. “Yes, I’d like that.”

“Great! I’ll
pick you up at seven. Is Dante’s okay?”

“My favorite
restaurant.”

“See you then.”

Still feeling light-headed,
Tala hung up. What was it about him that made her feel that way? Debbie had sensed
it right away. She must have known something she hadn’t revealed.  

The doorbell
rang, and Tala opened the door. An elderly man with a slight stoop and a
battered red leather suitcase waited on the porch. He wore a turquoise beaded
necklace with a large fang in the front.

The swarthy skin
on his face creased into a smile. “Ma’am.” He nodded. “I’m the locksmith, Edgar
Owl.”

“Pleased to meet
you, Edgar. I’m Tala. Come in.”

He had a long
gray braid down his back. The fragrance of cedar and sage wafted around him.

“My, my. I haven’t
been in this house in years.” He scanned the hallway. “It’s exactly the same as
I remember it.”

“You’re right. I
thought the same thing.”

“As long as you’re
changing the locks, you may as well get ones that are a lot more secure than
this.” He touched the front door lock. “Such an out-of-the way place. You never
know who might be lurking around for mischief in the graveyard.”

Tala nodded. “Please
use the strongest ones you have.”

“Funny,” Edgar
said, “but after all these years, I still get a good feeling about helping
people be safer. I guess it all started when I was in the Korean War. I was a
tracker and used skills I had learned as a youth, skills most Native Americans
learned when I was growing up.”

“Well, I
certainly appreciate your help.” Tala’s shoulders relaxed and her breathing
calmed. She almost told him about the person who had let himself into the
house. But her normal reticence returned, and she said nothing more, except to
ask if he had a flashlight and if she could borrow it to look for something in
the basement.

“Sure.” He
fished around in the suitcase, and handed her a heavy black flashlight.

“Okay, I’ll get
started and then be out of your way in no time.” Edgar crouched on the floor
and opened his case.

***

After Edgar
left, Tala called Debbie.

“Tala, how nice
to hear from you. What’s going on?”

First, Tala told
her about the man who had surprised her. And that she’d searched the basement
and didn’t find him.

“That must be Willis
Sharp. He’s an antique dealer of sorts. Not such a good reputation, either.
What are you going to do?”

“I’m waiting for
him to make the first move. He said his lawyer would be in touch with me. I can’t
believe my mother would sell everything in the house to him, but then again,
yes, I can.”

“Your mother was
a strange bird, Tala. I’ve lived next door for five years, but she never said a
word to me, even though I’d wave every time I saw her.”

“Debbie, I can’t
help but think you know more about my situation with Matt than you’re letting
on.”

“Just that the
book also stated the strain operates in a way similar to how pheromones work.”

Tala shook her
head. Regardless of everything that had gone on with Matt and her mother, she
just didn’t want to believe it. “It’s hard to accept.”

“I understand.
Give it a while.”

“Thanks, Debbie.
I’d better go. I have to get ready for my dinner out with Matt.”

“I can’t believe
that wasn’t the first thing you told me. I want to know all about it tomorrow.”

“Okay, I’ll fill
you in on the adventure.”

As Tala hung up
the phone, she looked down at her heavy boot. Could it have possibly gotten
bigger? And wasn’t it attractive? Well, at least she didn’t have to use the
crutches anymore. She took the chair elevator upstairs and scrutinized her
clothes. Tala decided on a long black dress to hide the boot.

Sprawled out on
the bed, her black fur gleaming, Maeve stretched, her long claws catching on
the white chenille bedspread.

Tala held the
dress up in front of her. “What do you think? Maeve. Is this okay?”

Maeve just
licked her paw and closed her eyes again.

“Well, it’ll
have to do.”

***

When Matt opened
Dante’s heavy carved oak door for Tala, an explosion of conversation and
dinnerware clatter greeted them. They snagged the last table for two. The heavy,
pleasing aroma of garlic and oregano swirled around the room.

Matt slid his
hand across the red damask tablecloth and covered hers. “I’m so happy to be
with you again.”

“I’m happy to
see you again, too, Matt.” His hand, so strong and warm. But she looked away.

Creases appeared
in his forehead. “What’s the matter?”

“I-I don’t want
to ruin tonight.” She eased her hand away. “It’s just that seeing you again... I’m
so confused about what went on—not just about us, but also with my parents.”

“It must have
been awful for you, Tala.” He shook his head. To find your father like that. I
still don’t understand how your mother was acquitted.”

A deafening
crash of shattering glass rang out over the din of the restaurant. Several
waiters rushed to clean up the pile of broken wine glasses.

She squirmed in the
black leather seat. “I don’t think I’m ready to talk about that now.”

“You’re right.”
He smiled with his lips and his eyes. “Let’s enjoy this evening. Tell me about
your painting. Have you kept up with it? I was so proud of you when you won
first place in the high school contest.”

Tala smiled at
the memory. “Yes, painting usually relaxes me.” She swallowed hard. “But I’ve
noticed my style has gotten darker.”

“Have you sold a
lot of paintings?”

She nodded. “But
what I’d really like to do is move to a tropical island, maybe somewhere in the
Caribbean, and sell my artwork to tourists.”

“Sounds great to
me.” He flashed his winning grin. “And they need detectives everywhere.” He put
his elbow on the table and held his chin.

Tala pursed her
lips. “Let’s not go too fast, Matt.”

“Okay, you’re
right, as usual.”

The waiter
arrived with a flourish of red menus with gilt writing and gold tassels. And no
prices. “Welcome to Dante’s. I’m Vinnie. Do you need a minute to look at the
menu?”

He had the dark
good looks that spelled trouble in several categories, the type of male her friends
always got into trouble with. And then looked to her for sympathy.

“I know I want
the eggplant Parmesan. What about you, Tala?”

“I’d love some
lasagna.”

The waiter put
his head to one side. “You look familiar to me. Did you used to babysit for us,
the Millers?”

Tala laughed. “Oh
my gosh. That seems so long ago. You kids were awful. The job didn’t last very
long.”

Vinnie nodded. “Yeah,
we always tortured you.” He gave her a sheepish look. “Sorry about that.” Then
he grinned. “And we haven’t changed much, either,” he said as he walked away.

When her meal
arrived, Tala ate with gusto. “This melted mozzarella cheese is so thick and
delicious. I can’t believe how hungry I am, but I just remembered I didn’t eat
lunch.”

“I’m glad you’re
enjoying the meal.” Matt smiled, but then his face contorted. “Oh no.”

Ice water ran in
her veins, and Tala put down her fork. “What?” she asked, afraid of the answer.

“It’s happening.
Your eyes…” He got up and ran out of the restaurant.

Tala called
after him, “Matt, what’s wrong?”

She couldn’t believe
it. As afraid as she was for Matt, she was more afraid that if she followed
him, she’d just make everything worse.

Tala took out
her cell phone and punched in the numbers.

Vanessa answered
and Tala said, “Are you in the mood for Italian food?”

“What!” Vanessa
said after Tala had told her what happened. “I’ll be right over.”

They had a quiet
meal together. Tala just picked on the lasagna she’d started out enjoying so
much. Finally, she put her elbows on the table and held her head in her hands.
The heck with etiquette.

Vanessa broke
the silence. “Now what? Tala. Why don’t you stay at my place tonight?”

“Maeve would
never forgive me.”

“She can stay,
too.”

“Okay, maybe it’s
a good idea.” Tala didn’t relish being alone that night, regardless of her
strong new locks.

***

“That was fun,
Vanessa. Sort of like our old sleepovers. With all those snacks I made up for
the dinner I didn’t finish.”

Vanessa nodded. “I
loved looking at the yearbook together.”

When the car
turned the corner of Blackthorn Road, Debbie’s house, surrounded by police tape,
came into view. Officers milled around.

“Oh no. What
could have happened? And there’s Matt. Thank God, he seems all right. Keep
driving, though.” Tala wrung her hands. She called Debbie, but got the
voicemail recording. “I hope she’s all right. How can we find out what
happened?” She held Maeve close to her. “The way Matt was acting last night…I’m
so worried he may have—”

“Don’t jump to
conclusions.” Vanessa stared hard at her. “Hmm, I’ll call my hairdresser friend.
That’s a good start. Better still, let’s just go to her shop.”

They pulled up
outside of Lucy’s Leopard Hair Salon and went inside. Red walls, black chairs,
and leopard-print carpet. No one in sight.

“Lucy,” Vanessa
called out.

“I’m in the
back. I’ll be right out.”

Lucy, wearing a
purple shift, her hair in pink spikes, came running up to the front. “You’re not
going to believe what happened. Debbie Austen was killed last night.”

Tala put her
hand to her mouth to stifle the scream rising deep within her.

“I can’t believe
it,” Vanessa said.

“And from what I
understand, it was messy business.” Lucy lit a cigarette and inhaled deeply.

“Do they know
who did it?”

“From what my
sources tell me, not a clue.”

“Why would
anyone want to kill Debbie? She seemed so harmless. How did it happen?”

“Evidently, she’d
been walking her dog, a little dust ball. He…or she, I guess…got him, too. A
knife was involved, but bite marks covered her body.”

Light-headed, Tala
sat on one of the black-and-white checkered Formica chairs. “I can’t believe
this. It’s like a bad dream.”

“There hasn’t
been anything this spectacular since—” Lucy glanced at Tala. “I’m sorry.”

Tala shook her
head. “No, it’s-it’s okay. I’m sure it’s true.”

“My first
appointment will be here any minute. Gotta straighten things out.” She turned
around and headed toward the back.

“Thanks for the
info,” Vanessa called after her.

Lucy gave her a
wave without turning around.

“What now?”
Vanessa sat down in the chair next to Tala’s.

She shrugged. “I
have to go back to the house. Maybe I should just let Willis Sharp take
everything, but I want to go through the things first.”

“Are you sure
that’s a good idea?” Vanessa frowned, her eyes full of worry.

“That’s seems
funny coming from you. Weren’t you the one who had to convince me to come back
here?”

“Yes, but that
was before there was a corpse next door in the equation.”

“I have to go
through the rest of the things in the attic. I’m sure they have answers for me.”

“Well, I may not
like the idea.” She shrugged. “But you’re a big girl now.”

They got back in
the Mercedes. Maeve complained with raucous yowling.

“Vanessa, what
Lucy said is true. And the last time there was a murder, I was in town then,
too. Doesn’t it sound suspicious?”

“Fortunately,
you have an airtight alibi.”

“I didn’t even
think they’d accuse me, but you’re right.” She pressed her lips together. “I
have to figure out what I’m going to do about Matt.”

“What
you’re
going to do? Seems like the ball’s in his court, doesn’t it? After all, he’s
the one who ran out without an explanation.”

***

“Ms. Martin?”

“Yes.” Tala’s stomach
tightened. The phone had rung as she’d walked into the house. Vanessa had continued
on to show real estate.

“I’m Attorney Morris,
and my client Willis Sharp tells me your mother and he had made some
arrangements about the contents of the house. He’d like to come over tomorrow
and move everything out. Would that be convenient for you?” he asked in a cold
and professional voice.

“No, it wouldn’t
be convenient.” She rubbed the gouges on the top of the mahogany table the
phone sat on.

He sighed. “When
would it be convenient?” the lawyer asked with carefully measured words.

“Why are you
assuming it would ever be convenient?” Tala fisted her hand. “I haven’t even
found my mother’s copy of the receipt. I’m not even sure there was ever any
arrangement.”

“I want you to
know he is willing to take court action against you. I would suggest you
cooperate.”

“I don’t want to
discuss this now!” Tala slammed the receiver down. She immediately regretted
it, feeling childish. But she didn’t have the money for a lawyer, and this was
just another problem she’d have to deal with.

Tala peeked out
the dining room window. The police tape still surrounded Debbie’s house. Only
one police car. She had the crazy urge to run over to the house and see if Matt
were in there, but she talked herself out of it.

The attic
beckoned to her again, and she answered its call. Tala went back to the smelly box
of mildewed folders she’d been searching through. She found more clippings
depicting mutilated bodies. Questions still loomed.