Slip Song (Devany Miller Series) (2 page)

That’s when my brain caught up with what my eyes were seeing. A lurid red staining the snow around his head like a bloody halo. I shut my eyes. As in near-death experiences, our lives together flashed before me. First date, first sex, wedding, birth. Each moment served to drive the splinters of a shattered marriage deeper into my guts. We could have made it work. I should have forgiven him.

Why had I shut him out?

What the hell did principles matter when life was so goddamned short? Jesus. The last thing I’d said to him was, “Grow up, Tom.”

“I’m so sorry.” I looked away from him, angry at myself for even daring to cry. I didn’t deserve to sorrow, did I? When it was my fault he was dead?

I stayed there in the snow, close to him but not touching, staring over at my kids who had, miracles of miracles, not come any closer. Maybe they knew they wouldn’t ever forget the look of their father lying dead in the snow. Even when I was with them they weren’t safe. I brought danger to me like sharks to blood.

But even for their own good I couldn’t leave them. Selfish or not, I had to figure out how to use the power inside me so I could keep them close and keep them safe.

A noise caught my attention. I turned to see a sparkling, golden light ascend from Tom’s body. Awed, I watched as it coalesced into the vague shape of the man I once loved. An expression of happiness suffused the shape of his face then joy turned to confusion. His upward movement halted, then he began drifting toward me, the golden light sweeping into me as if blown by a stark wind. I gasped as he touched me, filled me, and the Heart inside me sang with power as I gobbled up the shining remainder of what was once my husband.

I wrapped my arms around my belly, trying to deny the surge of energy that thrummed within. What had I done? Oh god, what had I done?

Hours, days, eons later, the first sirens sounded in the distance, muffled by the blanketing, alien snow.

-TWO-

We were sitting in the warmth of a patrol car, our arms wrapped around each other as the police did their thing outside. Someone had covered Tom, though I still couldn’t help but worry he was too cold out there in the snow.

I kept forgetting he was dead.

“
Why did they do it?”

I smoothed my hand over Bethy’s hair, wild and crackling from taking off her stocking hat. “I don’t know.” I’d been saying the same to the police and I tried to make myself believe it too. I wasn’t at fault for their actions. Isn’t that what I told the victims who I worked with at the Caring Shelter? No matter what you said, no matter what you did, you didn’t deserve to be hit, or kicked, or pinched, or slapped or any of the other ways abusers liked to control their victim. Still, it felt like a lie when I said it and Officer Perrit’s ivy-green eyes slid over to her partner as if to say, ‘See? Right there. She’s lying. I just don’t know why.’

“I’m going to find them and kill them all,” Liam said in a choked voice.

“
No baby. Please don’t think that way. It’ll just eat you up inside.” That also felt like a lie. Because I wanted to do the same. Find them. Kill them. Or perhaps not kill them, but drop them somewhere to let nature take care of them. The North Pole. Deep ocean.

But first I’d have to learn how to use the Heart without Arsinua inside me.

They loaded Tom into the ambulance. It drove past us with a finality worse than the sight of him lying in his own blood. I buried my head in Bethy’s hair.

Eventually the door opened and Officer Perrit stuck her head inside the car. “Mrs. Miller? I think you can get your kids home. I’ll get in touch with you later today to talk more about what happened.”

I nodded. Eased the kids out of the back. We trudged to the car, the snow no longer a pure, undiluted white after all the vehicles in and out of the lot. After I got the kids in to the car, I shut the door and turned. “Where did they go? The ones who killed Tom? Did they leave tracks?”

Officer Perrit, halfway back to her car, turned. “When you said they disappeared from sight, you weren’t far wrong. We followed the group’s tracks about fifty feet over that rise and then they just disappear.”

My heart stuttered in my chest.

“
It’s like they vanished into thin air. Which, of course, is impossible.” She shifted, her hand resting on the overloaded utility belt around her waist. “You wouldn’t happen to have any insight about how they made it look like they disappeared?”

I shook my head. I had every idea. I just couldn’t tell her.

She knew. Her lips thinned.

I slid into my car before she could say anything else or ask more questions I couldn’t answer.

“Mom? Are they going to catch them?”

I glanced in the rear view at Bethy, her cheeks bright red from cold and her eyes from crying. “They are going to try really hard.”

“But you don’t think they’ll catch them, do you?”

I must have looked startled. Bethy leaned in, hooking her arm on the front of Liam’s seat. I knew he was upset; he didn’t even yell at her like he normally would, just sat staring stony-eyed out the window. “I hope they do.”

“There’s something you aren’t telling us. A big thing. Cuz you’re different and it’s not just Daddy moving out.” Her voice gave a watery hitch. “He can’t be dead.”

I held her as best I could, awkward though it was. Liam sagged into us too. In my head the image of Tom lying in the snow with his halo of red came back to me. An icy anger gripped me. I murmured comforting words, trying to get thoughts of revenge out of my head.

When Bethy shivered, I leaned away. “Let’s go home and get warm.”

Liam turned back to the window. Bethy did the same. I fastened my belt and started the car, looking up to see Officer Perrit still hadn’t left. Making sure we got home safe, I supposed. Or the bad guys wouldn’t come back. I didn’t think they would. Not to bother me.

But they would come back to take more humans, of that I was certain. They wanted power and using humans to fuel their magic gave them what they wanted. I didn’t quite understand all the politics of Midia but knew a couple of people who did. Of course, the last time I was talked into helping out, those people ended up hurt. They might not even want to talk to me.

I waved at the cop as I drove by, my tires slipping on the packed snow turned ice. The drive home didn’t take long and when we pulled into the driveway, I saw my cousin Ann’s car sitting at the curb.

How had she known?

“
Don’t be stupid, Dev,” I muttered.

“
What?”

“
Is that Ann’s car?” Liam sat up, slipping his seat belt off. “Why’s she here?”

“
She said a couple weeks ago she was going to drop by for a visit. I guess today’s the day.” I pulled the car into the garage and we piled out as the door rumbled down. When I got to the front door, she was on the stoop, her red, orange, and blue bags gathered around her like brightly colored birds.

Her smile faded when she saw me. “What happened?”

I started to tell her then clutched my hand over my mouth. She didn’t ask anything else, just enveloped me in a hug that smelled like patchouli and sage. I heard a door slam behind me so I pulled away and grabbed one of her bags. “Come on, I’ll tell you in the kitchen.”

We left her bags in the hall and I put on some water for tea. I still had mint and green from the last time she visited, so I got the bags out and put two in each cup. As we waited for the water to boil, I told her about Tom, stopping whenever tears threatened to choke me, and to pour the steaming water into our cups.

Two mugs full later, we sat in silence, watching the snow fall outside. Two yards to the left sat Tom’s mower. He’d moved into an apartment after I’d caught him cheating so he didn’t have a use for it. It had been the object of one of our many arguments. He thought I should have to buy it from him if I wanted to keep it. I told him to drive it up his ass.

My sore eyes managed to produce more tears. Ann’s hand slipped over mine, cupped around my mug. “I’m so sorry. Please don’t beat yourself up over his death. I truly believe he is beyond pain, beyond recrimination and whatever it was you two fought about he’s forgiven.”

I shook my head. There wasn’t anyway he could ever forgive me for eating his soul―or whatever it was I had done to him. Had I stopped him from moving on to a better place? Is that what Ravana did with the souls she’d forced me to give her?

“
Devany?”

“
Just wait.” Damned if I wasn’t going to have to go to the Slip after all, though I’d been avoiding even thinking about the place. If not the Slip, then I would need to talk to Tytan, something, or rather someone, else I’d been avoiding, though for many other reasons than fear. “I’m glad you’re here. Will you be able to watch the kids for me? Later, I mean?”

Ann nodded, her eyes wide.

“What?”

“
Your aura is ablaze.”

I looked down at my shirt as if I would see myself shining. Nothing. A year ago I would have teased her or scoffed. Now, damn it, I knew there were things beyond belief: magic, demons, oogy monsters living in the swamp of another world. Still, I couldn’t draw anymore people into the danger-zone surrounding me.

There wasn’t a damn thing I could think of to say, so I shrugged.

“
I don’t know what’s going on, but I’m here for you and for the kids.” She was fingering the crystal around her neck, something she’d worn since I could remember, given to her by a medicine man in Arizona when she was a toddler.

“
Thank you. That means a lot to me.” There would be a lot to do. I had no idea when the police would release Tom’s body but I would have to plan the funeral. He did have a will, thank heavens, and unless he’d moved it, it was still in the safe deposit box at the bank with mine and our life insurance policies.

I dropped my head into my hands. I’d have to call his parents. Hell, I’d need to call my dad, though how I’d get a hold of him up in the mountains I didn’t know. He’d lived out in a cabin tucked away in the Rockies since Mom died. My brother and I were used to his hermit-like ways and neither of us were surprised when he packed up and moved after I’d gotten married and Travis graduated from high school.

Kind of sucked now. It would be nice to have him wrap his arms around me and tell me everything was going to be all right in that rumbling voice of his like he had after Mom’s stroke. “Would you go check on the kids? I need to make some calls.”

After she left the room, I pulled my cell phone out of my pocket and stared at the contact list. So many people needed to know about Tom but I wasn’t sure how I would be able to relay the information over and over. I considered asking Ann to do it but dismissed the idea. How would I like it if some stranger told me my son was dead?

My head swam for a minute at that really bad choice of words and I had to hang onto the counter until the dizziness passed. With fumbling fingers, I dialed, a knot of acid burning in my stomach as I waited through the rings.

Telling his parents was hard. Thankfully, they said they would let his brothers and sister know. The next call I made was to Danni. I knew she wouldn’t ask a lot of questions, nor would she expect details. Her small voice made my hunched shoulders ease. “I’m sorry, Devany. I’ll let everyone at work know.”

“Thanks.” I snuffled, ripping off a paper towel because it was handy. After I blew my nose, I grasped for another subject. “How are you doing?”

Her soft sigh made me smile. “Good. Zech and I have talked about moving in together.”

“Wow, Danni. That’s exciting.” I wondered where Arsinua was and how she was dealing with the loss of Zech’s heart to a human woman. She’d gone to care for him when he’d been so badly burnt. I didn’t know where she was now, only that Zech had found his way back to Danni. He wouldn’t talk to me. He was still angry.

I didn’t blame him. There was a lot to be angry with me about.

“Take care, Devany. If you need me.” She didn’t have to finish the words. I knew and felt the same way.

“
Thank you.”

“
Devany?”

I dropped the soggy paper towel in the trash can and went to the sink. “Yeah?”

“Does Tom’s death have anything to do with … all that other stuff?”

I gripped the phone, my other hand halfway to the faucet. I dropped it to the aluminum basin with a thud. “Yes.” I heard her whispering, to Zech, probably.

“What can we do to help?”

“
Nothing.” Her hurt silence made me soften my voice. “I don’t want to give them an excuse to come after you too. If there’s anything you can do, I’ll tell you. I promise. But I’m keeping you out of it unless I’m desperate.”

“
I’m not a fragile flower, though some people think so. I earned my scars and I am tougher than you think I am.”

Outside, fat flakes of snow continued to pile up. I leaned over the sink and looked. Tom’s mower had a thick dusting of white over it. I needed to move it into the shed before the snow ruined it. Maybe put the blade on to do the snow so Liam and Bethy wouldn’t have to shovel on Monday to get to the bus stop.