Mercy's Magic (7 page)

Terra’s body tensed. “You’re not going to
argue
, are you?”

Grant laughed. “Of course not. And I won’t leave before saying good-bye. High five?”

Terra gave her daddy a high-five and tore through the apartment for the bathroom.

Mercy folded her arms. “You want to talk with me?”

Grant pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket, unfolded it and handed it to Mercy. It was clearly one of Terra’s drawings. She took a glance at it, then put her hand over her mouth, clearly astonished.

Terra had drawn a picture of a train. There were a few people around it, one resembling Javier and his unmistakable head of thick curly hair with the stained, V-neck t-shirt he always wore. She drew him with big, blue tears running down his cheeks.

“Oh!” Mercy was shocked.

And now it was Grant’s turn to fold his arms as he leaned on her couch. “Mercy, I asked a favor of you. More than that, I’m paying you to find Javier. I haven’t heard a word from you, but I trust, I know, if anyone can find him, you can. But do you have to talk to our daughter about your cases? I mean really, she looked upset as she drew this picture.”

Mercy pulled her gaze away from the drawing to her ex-husband. “I didn’t tell her, Grant. Believe me, I didn’t.”

“Then why would she draw a picture of him? In tears?”

“I...I don’t know. You know she’s like...she picks up on things without me even knowing. Maybe she had...”

“Had what?” Grant demanded. “A vision, like the visions you have? What the hell is going on?”

“Grant…”

“Don’t ‘Grant’ me, Mercy. I’ve always known you were different somehow. I tried to accept it. And in a way I can, now. But let me make myself clear. I don’t want you teaching my daughter—because she is my daughter as much as yours—your silly ways of thinking. I won’t have it. Do you understand me?”

Mercy flushed with anger. “I did
not
say anything to
our
daughter about this case, Grant. And I am
not
encouraging her with her gifts. If anything, I’m up to here trying to get her to...to get a handle, for God’s sake. She’s only five years old. I’m doing the best I can.”

The two locked eyes, both equally irritated.

Then Terra’s small voice came from the other end of the room. “I thought you said you weren’t going to argue.”

Mercy and Grant turned to their daughter. Terra’s demeanor had changed, she’d lost the enthusiasm and energy that had been bursting from her just moments before.

“I’m sorry, Terra,” Mercy said gently. “Daddy and I both love you. We were talking, and yes, it was turning into an argument. But we didn’t mean to.”

Terra looked to her father. “She’s telling the truth, honey,” he chimed in. “I’m sorry too. I made a mistake.”

Terra came forward and forced a group hug, to Mercy’s and Grant’s amusement. “I’ve made mistakes,” the girl said. “Mommy says everyone does. I love you both, too.”

Chapter Eighteen

Mercy reached for her ringing cell phone, forcing herself awake in the darkness of night. She cleared her throat and answered, “Cruz.”

“Sorry to wake you,” the male voice said.

“Joe?”

“Yeah. Sorry to bother you so late.”

“What time is it?”

Patterson ignored the question. “I thought you’d want to know this. The plant is empty.”

Mercy sat up. “The printing place? But I thought you guys had posts. What happened?”

“Apparently they fell asleep. Remember we only have a few at the moment.”

“What?? How many units did you have?” Mercy already knew what she had to do. She fumbled for her clothes and began changing, shoulder raised to keep the phone to her ear.

“Four.”

“And they
all
fell asleep?”

“Apparently so. Believe me, they’re getting hell for it right now. But it’s strange, don’t you think? Maybe they were, gassed or something? Considering what we faced yesterday, I wouldn’t be surprised.”

“Yeah. Strange, indeed.” Mercy sat up in her bed, staring into darkness and confused as ever; radiation that turned out to be anything but, now sleeping gas that could be dispersed outdoors without losing its effect? Mercy remembered her A.P. Chemistry class. Something else more than the periodic table of elements was at work at the printing press. It had to be whoever kept whispering at her. She glanced down at the King Solomon Oil. Mercy set aside pride and considering she had nothing to lose by that point, she dabbed some on her temples, her heart and wrists.

“I think it’s going to take more than this, though,” she mumbled.

“What? I didn’t catch that.”

“Nothing. Listen, Joe, I have to go.”

“Wait,” Joe pleaded. “Mercy, I don’t want you to do something crazy. This is big.”

“Yes, and you guys don’t seem to be able to do anything about it. I’m the one that tipped you, remember.”

“Right, but...”

“Gotta go. I’ll call you later.”

Mercy hung up and grabbed her purse.

Chapter Nineteen

Early morning, after the wakeup call from Joe, Mercedes Cruz pulled into an empty lot belonging to a dentistry two blocks away from the print shop. She quietly got out of her car and snuck through the newly established, and much larger perimeter, like a skilled cat burglar. She’d taken Terra over to Lily’s. Lily wanted to accompany her friend, but someone had to watch Terra at the last minute, and they certainly couldn’t wake up a five year old in the early morning and drag her out to a cordoned off, federally established crime scene.

The police were too busy directing traffic away from the perimeter, which Mercy took advantage of as she made her way to the printing press using the darkened and shadowed walls of the surrounding buildings that faced away from the moonlight.

Mercy approached the building’s back garage lift and was surprised to find it opened as well as finding the immediate area behind the printing press completely deserted. She grabbed her flashlight and took two steps into the dark interior of the building but ceased her next step. She needed more protection. Mercy thought of her Aunt Itzy and closed her eyes.

First, she placed her legs together and planted her feet firmly on the cement ground. She let go of all tension, let the energy she’d learned to use long ago, as a child, flow down, out of her hands and feet. She took a few cleansing breaths, slowing her heart rate down.

Next, Mercy summoned strength from the earth below the concrete, allowing it to rejuvenate her senses. She drew an imaginary circle around her, and inhaled deeply. Mercy carried a pouch with her this time, with contents from Lilly’s shop, and drew from it, placing some of her favorite scents into the circle; orange peels, eucalyptus leaves. At the last moment she tried something new. In her mind she’d imagined a spherical shape, rather than a plain two dimensional circle—a large ethereal bubble—and commanded it to move with her every step. “And so it is,” she said. Then Mercy crossed into the echoing factory floor, flashlight in hand.

It was indeed completely empty of all machinery. The dirty floors were completely bare.
They probably left the door open to get rid of the smell,
Mercy surmised. She looked to the stairway up to the second floor and froze. The place was empty of material things, but Mercy’s spine tingled, she wasn’t alone.

“Who are you?” Mercy’s voice was strong, confident. “Show yourself. I’m not afraid of you!”

A light chuckle rang out from the darkness above. “You’re not afraid?” The man’s voice was dark and rich and had a slight accent Mercy couldn’t place. “After all you’ve seen and felt?”

“No. All I wanted to do was find someone and get him home, safe. I haven’t done anything wrong. And I’m not afraid of you.” But she did take a couple of steps back toward the wall not far from the opening to the train tracks outside.

“Then you’re a fool, Mercedes Cruz. You’re a fool to think you will ever find your friend. They are all dead. And you’re an even greater fool to not be frightened.”

Mercy drew in a sharp breath upon hearing his words. But that’s exactly what he wanted. Suddenly an arrow of red flame hurling towards her from above. Without so much as a split second to think, Mercy, utilizing just pure old fashioned adrenaline, dove aside just in time.

Mercy thankfully remembered her sphere and continued focusing on its presence, keeping it from bursting. Controlled laughter continued from above. “Well done, Miss Cruz. But surely you know you’re out of your league here.”

“Maybe I am,” she answered, now shaking. “But I don’t believe he’s dead.”

The building shook and trembled. Mercy was being overcome with fright now, and realized it might have indeed been a mistake to come here alone. She scrambled to her feet, angry with herself that she couldn’t match this man’s powers. She sensed that for him, this was just another one of his one-sided battles...where he’d come out on top. His black magic was much too powerful. And she was smart enough to know when to retreat.

“I’ll never stop looking,” she shouted up into the darkness. She could now make out his shadow. “I don’t know who you are, but I’ll back…for Javier and everyone else.” His laughter was starting to irritate her. “And you won’t be laughing then.”

She watched the shadow’s fingertips ignite, and from the darkness, a ball of fire plummeted rapidly toward her. Mercy dashed and dove again, this time for the lot outside. She barely made it before the door came crashing down.

Mercy sprinted away from the building and toward an alley across the train tracks. Tears of anger slid down her cheeks as she fled from the empty warehouse. She was still shaking and she didn’t slow down until she made it to her car.

She jumped in, fired the ignition and pulled out into the boulevard, tires screeching. Mercy turned onto a side street and forced her breathing to slow and her tears to stop. But she let the anger come. She let it saturate her; fill her with the strength she craved. She let out a deep howl, almost breaking the windows inside her car.

It was only after she calmed herself down that she realized she hadn’t removed the circle around her. She carefully removed it in her mind and headed back to Lily’s house.

Chapter Twenty

“Just calm down,” Lily said.

“I am,” mercy replied, although her hand still shook as she raised the glass of wine to her lips.

Lily looked into Mercy’s eyes, worried. She’d never seen her friend so upset before. Mercy was always confident, cool as a cucumber. Whoever this man was, he was powerful, more than either of them had imagined, and he had Mercy frightened and humiliated. Mercy’s embarrassment came from not heeding Aunt Itzy’s advice. She could hear the scolding already.

In an effort to ease the tension, Lily turned on the stereo, softly, so as not to wake little Terra. They listened to a steady stream of oldies.

Mercy looked at her daughter sleeping on the love seat. “How was she?”

“Fine,” Lily said. “She just went right to sleep.”

“Good. That’s good.”

“So, what are you going to do?” Lily asked quietly.

“Well, I’m not going to give up on Javier, if that’s what you mean.”

“But how? You’re no match for this guy, Mercy.”

“I know,” she said, with frustration. “Not yet, anyway.”

“I think you should go to your aunt for help.”

Mercy shook her head. Pride furrowed her brow. “Aunt Itzel told me I have to take my own powers back. She wouldn’t have said that if she didn’t think I could.”

It was now three in the morning, but neither woman was tired. Mercy was still wired from the ordeal, and Lily, selfless as a being could be, absorbed and matched her friend’s energy.

“Even if you find him, he won’t let you have Javier, and obviously, if you were to call the police, you’d be putting
them
in danger.”

“Stop thinking that way. I need a solution here.”

Lily nodded, refilled her wine and offered more to Mercy, who shook her head.
Love Potion Number Nine
was playing on the radio. The two sat together, comfortable with each other’s friendship and their ability to work together in times of need. Mercy knew she could trust Lily with anything, and this trust went both ways.

Lily automatically started singing to the song
.
“Potion...
love,
hmmm...”

Mercy snapped her eyes toward Lily. “That’s it! You’re a genius, Lily!”

“What?” Lily’s eyes turned from confusion to shock as she realized what Mercy had meant. “No way. You’re crazy.”

“Yes, I know, crazy. But it’s so ridiculously crazy it might work!”

“You’re telling me you want me to make a potion that will make him, that man, fall in love with you?”

“If you do, I would have power over
him
. He’d do anything I want.”

“Mercy, listen carefully. We’ve talked about this type of potion before. You know the risks. Above all, be careful what you wish for.”

“So I’ll be very specific in what I want. I know that. I want it to last only an hour or two. Just long enough to get him under my control.”

“But then what?”

“By then I’ll be long gone, with Javier, and whoever else wants to leave. I’ll order him to let Javier go. If he wants a kiss he can have one, just one, that’s all. Nothing more. I can even make it so he doesn’t remember.”

“You mean
I’ll
make it.”

“Well, yeah.” Mercy laughed as Lily’s jaw dropped.

“You’re crazy.”

Mercy now poured herself a half-glass of wine, got up and started pacing. Lily followed her friend back and forth, tempted in ringing her friend’s neck so she could come back to her senses.

“Lily, this could work. I mean, what other way is there? I can’t fight him. Not right now. And I’ll have to take Terra to stay with Grant...unless you can watch her? I don’t want her anywhere near me...”