The Children and the Blood (34 page)

The tarp closed back over them and Travis hooked it down before returning to the driver’s side. The truck rocked as the door slammed.

“Back again, eh?” Cole said to Lily.

Rolling over slightly, she gave him a flat look. “You sure this is going to work?”

“I hope so.”

The engine came to life, and then the truck bumped out of the construction site and back onto the road. Plastic crunched briefly as the cell phone shattered beneath the tires.

Minutes passed in silence. Beneath the tarp, the warm spring air slowly became stifling.

And then they stopped. The keypad beeped as Travis typed in the number.

“Hello?”

Instinctively, Cole tensed at Melissa’s voice. The slightly peevish sound was like fingernails on the chalkboard of his spine.

“I have a delivery for Robert Smith,” Travis said, his tone radiating official business.

The phone clicked as she hung up.

Travis paused. Cole could almost feel the confusion radiating from the boy. Barely breathing, he waited.

Beeping noises came as Travis dialed again.

“Yes?”

“I have a delivery.”

“Robert Smith doesn’t live here anymore.”

“Ma’am, Mr. Smith ordered this vintage World War memorabilia nearly a month ago, cash on delivery. Now I’ve been patient in trying to get this to him, but if I don’t get paid for this stuff, I’m going to drag somebody into collections, do you get me? I have three lawyers on retainer for this kind of thing, and unless you want me calling them right now, I’d suggest you–”

A beep sounded and then the box clicked off again.

Travis swore in irritation. “She do this a lot?” he asked the guard.

“I think I’m going to need to see some ID,” the rent-a-cop replied coldly.

The gate creaked as it swung open and Travis chuckled. “After I get back, eh, buddy?”

He raced the truck past the gates and into the neighborhood.

“Damn, that was awesome!” Travis cried through the open rear window.

Cole winced, hoping no one else heard.

A few moments later, the truck came to a stop and then backed up, jostling them as it crossed onto the driveway.

Travis opened his door and slid out. “You’re next to the garage,” he hissed as he drew out the box of memorabilia. “Neighbor’s by the rosebushes in her backyard.”

He slammed the door and headed for the front of the house, whistling obnoxiously.

Cautiously, Cole unhooked the tarp and sat up. Surrounded on three sides by the house and garage, only the edge of the neighbor’s yard was visible. But he knew her rosebushes weren’t far.

Travis knocked loudly on the front door, and a moment later, Melissa answered.

Hurriedly, Cole hoisted Lily over the tailgate and then followed her to the ground. Ducking below the truck, he rushed toward the back door.

They hadn’t changed the locks, though he couldn’t think why he’d worried they would. Shutting the door carefully, he motioned Lily to stay out of sight and then headed for the living room entryway. In the foyer, he could hear Melissa arguing with Travis, trying her usual method of controlling the situation by biting the head off of whatever threatened her perfect world.

“I will personally see you in court if you continue this nonsense,” she spat. “I won’t tell you again–”

“And I’m telling
you
, I got three lawyers on retainer, lady. You think it’s going to take much for me to get them here?”

“You–”

She cut off as she saw Travis’ gaze go past her. Swiftly, she tossed a glance to the kitchen and then froze, the anger on her face melting to shock. “Cole?” Her gaze darted between him and Travis. “How…”

Cole didn’t take his eyes off her. “Wait for us around the corner past the gate,” he told Travis.

Looking undecided, the boy hesitated and then did as instructed. He shut the door behind him, but neither Melissa or Cole broke eye contact at the sound.

“It’s so nice to see you home again,” she said saccharinely.

She lunged for the phone.

The gun appeared in his hand as if by reflex and, fingertips on the receiver, the woman froze.

“Don’t,” he ordered.

Melissa eased away from the phone, flickers of a pleasant expression still struggling to materialize. “What’s going on, honey?”

“How long do we have till the spy next door stops by?”

Shock flashed through her eyes, buried swiftly. “Spy?” she asked, feigning incredulity.

He cocked the gun.

“A few seconds,” she answered.

“Tell her everything is fine. And that you need to go to the grocery store in a bit, to replace the food gone bad.”

A sneer tugged at her lips.

He held out a hand to Lily. The girl took it, and he pulled her from behind the kitchen wall.

Blood drained from Melissa’s face and he could tell she wasn’t breathing. But alarm only partly filled her expression. The remainder was reserved for a wary sort of fear.

“She feels like you,” Lily said quietly.

Melissa swallowed. Cole didn’t take his eyes from the woman.

“You know what glowing people can do?” he asked.

She didn’t look away from the little girl, and he could read the answer on her face.

“Tell the spy everything is fine.”

A knock sounded on the door. Carefully, he backed behind the kitchen wall. Keeping one eye to the living room entryway, he retreated with Lily into the shadows of the pantry.

The front door opened.

“Ethel,” Melissa said, and the discomfort in her voice made Cole tense.

“What’s going on?” the old woman snapped as the door shut behind her.

“I’m sorry?”

“Who was that?”

“Oh, just a delivery boy,” Melissa said, chuckling gaily. “Robert ordered something a month back and–”

“What did he want?”

“Just money,” Melissa answered, the happy note falling away. “It’s fine, Ethel. Really.”

A whimper suddenly escaped her, and for a moment, breathless silence filled the house.

“If you’re lying to me…” the old woman growled, her voice barely audible.

“I wouldn’t… you know I wouldn’t… please…”

Melissa gasped as the old woman stopped whatever she’d been doing.

“You’re not answering that door again, understand? Not unless it’s him.”

Footsteps clicked on the foyer’s tile floor.

“I–” Melissa began nervously. The footsteps stopped. “I need to go to the grocery store.”

“What?”

“The food’s all rotten,” she continued, pleading. “I… I don’t have anything to eat.”

An exasperated noise escaped the old woman. “Order a pizza.”

“But you said–”

Melissa cut off with a squeak as the neighbor stalked back toward her.

“Fine,” the old woman sneered. “And I’ll follow. You’re not getting away like the other one.”

“N-no,” Melissa agreed. “Thank you. Thank you, Ethel.”

The door slammed.

Warily, Cole eased out of the pantry and crossed to the living room doorway. In the foyer, Melissa was leaning on the wall, head bowed and cradling one arm. At the sound of his steps, she flinched, as though she’d forgotten he was there. Red-eyed, she stared up at him.

“You ruined
everything
,” she said.

“I’ve heard.” He jerked his chin toward the neighbor’s house. “She a wizard?”

Melissa nodded. Taking a breath, she seemed to forcibly push her fear and pain behind the mask of propriety she’d worn ever since he met her. With rigid self-control, she walked to the couch and lowered herself down.

But she wouldn’t look at him.

“Who are they?” he asked.

She didn’t answer.

Pulling Lily with him, he strode to the opposite couch and sat down across from Melissa, keeping the gun in plain view. His gaze twitched to the front bay window, but only a thin strip of the yard was visible between the closed curtain panels.

“Melissa, answer me.”

Her gaze flicked from the ground, to him, to Lily in the space of a heartbeat. Her nose wrinkled slightly as though irritated. “They’re wizards who work for the Taliesin council.”

“What do they want?”

She went back to studying the carpet, looking like nothing more than a recalcitrant child.

“Melissa!” he snapped. He drew a breath, reining in his temper. “They set this up. They enlisted you and Robert. They did all this… why? What’s the point?”

His hand wrapped around the gun at her silence, and annoyance twisted her expression.

“To keep you happy and oblivious, so they’d always look like the good guys,” Melissa said, spite dripping from her words. “So when they finally told you about the war and their world, they’d come off as the great saviors who’d given you such a peaceful life. And you’d love them for it. Be so thankful. Then whatever they wanted, you’d do without question.”

Her eyes rose to meet his, and for the first time, he could see the real hatred behind the pettiness and cowardice she held inside.

“Because you’d never know that in reality, they’d been the ones who’d killed your mommy and daddy all along.”

From the edge of the Pendleton’s parking lot, Harris watched the cops milling around. Police cars lined the fire lane of the grocery store, but for the past twenty minutes, nothing appeared to have changed.

The little girl was gone. If she’d ever been here in the first place.

He could hear the dispatcher and the officers talking on the scanner, but their conversations hadn’t amounted to anything. The clerks had been questioned to no avail, and he was fairly certain the security videos wouldn’t show anything. Even if the girl had been here, her sister’s kind were too good at hiding to let something like a security camera give them away.

As he knew only too well.

He ran a hand over his hair, trying not to surrender to the desire to punch the steering wheel. From the moment the call came in, his gut had said something wasn’t right, but he’d been too frustrated with a month of finding nothing to listen.

It was strange, though, how the alert appeared just after the bizarre behavior by his would-be spy.

Brow furrowing, he picked up the cell and thumbed through the recent calls till he reached the security booth’s number.

“Louis?” he said when the guard picked up. “Are you
sure
nothing’s changed in the last hour?”

The guard scoffed. “There was an asshole delivery boy came through here not ten minutes ago, but other than that...”

“Delivery for who?”

“Mr. Smith. Thought they weren’t home, but I guess they got back before my shift. Haven’t seen the kid though.”

Harris’ hand tightened on the phone. “Brown-haired white kid driving a blue truck?”

“Uh, yeah. Why?”

He dropped the phone and yanked the car into gear. “That little…”

As he drove up to the walled neighborhood, Louis hit the button to open the gate immediately. “Detective?” he called from the booth. “Should I dial 9-1-1? Is he here?”

Cursing internally and willing the gate to open faster, Harris ignored him.

The man blanched. “Uh, what does this mean about my recommendation?”

Harris smashed down the pedal and darted through a gap barely wider than the car.

At the end of the Smith’s block, he pulled to a stop and climbed out. A few houses down, he could see the closed curtains of their home. Their car wasn’t in the drive, but with a garage that size, it might never be.

Hating the ambiguity, he darted across the neighbors’ yards, heading for the Smiths. He looked like a criminal, but there was nothing to be done. With the damage Ashley’s kind could do, stealth was the only defense he had. One hand hovering near his weapon, he paused against the gray siding, listening for shouts or cries.

Nothing.

He crouched, inching around the front and then peering cautiously through the gap between the curtains on the bay window.

His heart hit his throat.

Cole was in there. With the kid. And a gun.

Heart pounding, he eased away from the window and then retreated around the corner of the house. If Cole was like Ashley, Harris didn’t stand a chance. Neither did any officers he’d call. And he couldn’t just burst in there. He and the kid would probably get killed.

With hands shaking much more than he would have liked, he fumbled out his cell and dialed Brogan’s men.

*****

“What?” Cole said.

Melissa sneered. “What’s the old poet say? ‘Shot him down like a dog on the highway’?” Her mocking expression grew. “Or hallway, or whatever.”

He nearly lunged across the coffee table at her.

“Don’t,” Lily said, and Cole couldn’t tell if she was talking to him or Melissa. But the woman’s mocking expression faded all the same. “What do you mean?” the girl continued.

“They arranged it,” Melissa said, still striving to appear in control despite her obvious discomfort with the little girl. “The kidnapping, all of it.”

“Why?”

His voice sounded rough to his own ears. Alien.

“They want you for something,” she said, shrugging. “I don’t know what.”

At his expression, she looked defensive. “I don’t! The council killed your parents and kept you alive. That’s all I know.”

He could feel his heart pounding. “The Taliesin council?”

She scoffed, reading his tone. “What? You think you’re going to do something about it? Maybe get a little familial revenge?”

His gaze flicked to hers. Beneath the derision and the makeup, he could see her pale.

“They won’t let you,” she assured him. “They want you for something, but they’re not going to put up with you trying to hurt them. They’ll make you wish you’d never crossed them. Trust me.”

“Does Ethel know where they are?”

She stared at him. “Does it
matter
? What’re you going to do? Go over and beat it out of her? She’s a
wizard
! It doesn’t matter what they did. It doesn’t matter what they do now. You can’t fight them.”

When his expression didn’t change, she looked around incredulously, and her eyes came to rest on Lily. “And what about the kid, huh? Your little glowworm there?”

“She can hide.”

Melissa gave a gasp of laughter. “She can die is what she can do!”