“Ah.” Lady nodded. “Right. Well, I just moved here. I’m not quite used to the local wildlife yet.”

  “Where did you live before?” Ben asked before taking another drag.

  “All over. Mostly big cities. Hence the raccoons, I guess.”

  “Right.” He pulled a box of cigarettes from his back pocket and held it out in her direction. “Want one?”

  Lady hesitated. She didn’t smoke. She had smoked when she was younger. She had tried to pick up the habit in high school to fit in with the cool kids. She had absolutely hated it, but right now she wanted to fit in with Ben. It was an opportunity she had been led into. It felt wrong to pass it up. “Sure.” She accepted the cigarette he offered her and leaned in while he lit it. She breathed in the smoke, barely inhaling lest she choke on it. “Thanks.”

  “No problem.” Ben replaced both the lighter and cigarettes in his back pocket. “So, you work at the library, huh?”

  “Kind of.” Lady saw the raised eyebrow. “I’m friends with the guy who runs the place. I help out sometimes. I’m not, like, officially on the payroll.”

  Ben nodded. “He a good guy?” he asked. “The guy who runs the place, I mean.”

  “Crispin?” Lady nodded. “I mean, like I said, we’re friends. I wouldn’t be friends with him if he wasn’t.”

  “Right. How about as a boss, though? He good at his job?”

  “I think so. I think Agnes is going to do fine there, if that’s what you’re getting at.”

  “She has problems asserting herself. I don’t want anyone taking advantage of her.”

  “I don’t think you have to worry about that with Crispin. He has the same problem, if you ask me. She’ll do fine.”

  “That’s good.”

  “You knew the guy who had her job before, right?” asked Lady, watching as Ben took another drag on his cigarette. Her own dangled between her fingertips. “Chad?”

  “Hmm?” Ben frowned in her direction. “Oh, right… Yeah, I knew him. Why?”

  Lady shrugged. “I don’t know. Your dad mentioned that the two of you used to be friends. I figured I’d ask. It’s crazy what happened to him. I’m sorry.”

  “You don’t have to be. We weren’t close.”

  “Even so. I know I’d have mixed feelings if a friend from high school died.”

  “We weren’t all that tight in high school,” Ben insisted. “We just crossed paths sometimes, hung out with some of the same people.”

  “Any idea what happened to him?” Lady did her best to make the questions sound innocent, like she wasn’t prying because she thought he knew more than he was letting on.

  “Heat exhaustion, right?” Ben shrugged. “That kind of thing happens, doesn’t it?”

  “Not really. Not often anyway. Makes me wonder if there wasn’t more to it, personally.”

  Ben gave another shrug. He didn’t even bother looking at Lady. “I’m not too worried about it. It’s the police’s job to figure stuff like this out.”

  “Hey.” Otsuya’s voice came from the side of the house. “Are we leaving or what? Where did you go?” She came around the corner. “There you are. What—” She stopped a few feet away, hands on her hips. “I didn’t know you smoked.”

  Lady remembered the cigarette she was meant to be smoking. She tapped the ash from the end. “I don’t do it often. Trying to cut back, you know?” She forced a smile in Ben’s direction. “Well, we should probably be going.”

  “Whatever.”

  “It was good to meet you.”

  “Sure.”

  Lady gave him a wave as she hurried in Otsuya’s direction and back around the house. She heard Otsuya follow. “I don’t think Crispin would want you smoking in his car.”

  Once they were back in the driveway, Lady dropped the cigarette and ground it out beneath the toe of her sneaker. “I don’t smoke,” she said when she was in the driver’s seat and the doors were closed.

  “Why were you then?”

  “I was trying to warm up to Ben, see if he knew something about what happened.”

  “And does he?” Otsuya asked as she fastened her seatbelt.

  That was the question, wasn’t it? “I don’t know,” Lady admitted. “But I think he might.”

  Chapter Ten

  Lady swung by the library to pick up Crispin and Dom. Or to give Crispin his car back, rather. She nearly forgot to vacate the driver’s seat when he came out awkwardly carrying Lion in front of himself like he was a cartoon bomb with a shortening fuse.

  Lady intercepted her cat as she got out of the car. “He doesn’t bite, you know.”

  “I know,” said Crispin, but it certainly didn’t sound like he did. He gave Lion a doubtful look before getting into his car.

  Otsuya remained on the passenger side, meaning Dom and Lady had to get into the back together. “Took you long enough,” Dom grumbled, glancing over at her in the dark interior of the back seat.

  “We were getting valuable information,” she said in her own defense. It was more or less a lie. They hadn’t gotten that much information. They were late mostly because they had lost track of time and forgotten they were even meeting back up to head to the marina.

  “Why does…” Crispin trailed off as he started to pull out. “Was someone smoking in here?”

  “No,” said Lady. Dom leaned over and inhaled sharply before Lady could jerk away from him. “Hey!” She didn’t much like being sniffed.

  “You smell like cigarette smoke,” Dom pointed out.

  Otsuya didn’t even hesitate. “That’s because she was smoking.”

  Crispin threw a look over his shoulder. “I didn’t know you smoked.”

  “I don’t,” Lady said quickly. “I just… I was getting information, like I said.”

  “And getting information involved smoking?” Dom asked doubtfully.

  “It did, actually.”

  “Yeah? What?” Dom pressed without missing a beat.

  Lady relayed what she had learned which, admittedly, wasn’t a ton. “It’s all very suspicious,” she concluded.

  “Is it?” asked Dom, sounding markedly unimpressed.

  “I’m not sure how I feel about all of this,” said Crispin.

  “All of what?” Lady frowned at the back of his headrest.

  “I just hired Agnes on. I’m not sure how I feel about you guys investigating her. It doesn’t seem… right.”

  “Dom is the one who suggested I befriend her.” Lady threw Dom under the proverbial bus without hesitation.

  “And she’s really nice,” Otsuya added. “I’d like to stay friends with her… If she’s not a murderer, I mean.”

  “Not that we think she’s a murderer,” Lady clarified.

  “I’m still not sure how I feel about it.” Crispin sighed. “I definitely don’t like that you sabotaged her car.”

  “That was all Otsuya.” Lady didn’t want to throw Otsuya under the same bus, but she wasn’t taking the blame for that one.

  Otsuya didn’t have any hesitation in owning up to what she had done. “And it was a good idea. I’d do it again. It worked, didn’t it?”

  “There were probably easier ways to become her friend,” Crispin muttered.

  “There were definitely less expensive ways,” added Dom. “I don’t want to talk about the estimate a mechanic gave me, but I hope one of you has a few hundred dollars lying around. I’m not paying for this.”

  “I don’t think Agnes is guilty of anything,” Otsuya continued, talking as if Dom hadn’t said a word. “I’m not so sure about the rest of her family. They seem a little sketchy if you ask me.”

  Lady nodded in agreement. “One of them was definitely involved in what happened.”

  “Do you have any proof?” asked Dom.

  “No, but I wouldn’t have been led there for no reason, right?” Lady wasn’t sure that was true, but she certainly felt like it should be.

  There was no easy way to get to Destiny’s house. There was no road directly there. They had to park at the marina and walk through the woods. It was a perilous trip to take at night. Fortunately, Dom had clearly spent a lot of time going to and from her place. He led the way with confidence. All Lady had to do was match his pace and hope that she didn’t break an ankle in the process—something that was easier said than done.

  “Careful,” Crispin cautioned, catching her by the arm when she tripped. He wasn’t much help, tripping himself before he’d even finished speaking. He nearly dragged them both down in the process.

  “Both of you need to watch where you’re going,” said Dom as Lady planted a hand on his back to catch herself.

  “It’s too dark for that,” Lady grumbled. “I need a flashlight.”

  “Then use your phone,” said Dom without sympathy.

  “I can’t… It’ll run down the battery.”

  “You can use mine,” said Crispin. “Oh,” he said quietly a moment later. “I think… I think I left mine in the car.”

  Lady held out her hand to Dom palm up. “Let me see yours.”

  Dom snorted. “Not a chance.” He put himself between the two of them. “Here. Just watch your footing.” He planted a hand on both of their shoulders and pressed on.

  ***

  Lady didn’t feel particularly comfortable during the journey, but they still made it. It was a good thing Otsuya had been carrying Lion. She hadn’t had a bit of trouble following Dom. Lady wondered if ghosts could see in the dark or if she could pick and choose when she hovered. Probably not the latter. Lady couldn’t imagine having the ability to pick and choose when you hovered and choosing to not use it all the time.

  Destiny opened the door a moment before they reached it. She was wearing a pair of cloth shorts and an over-sized t-shirt like she had been getting ready for bed. “It’s about time. I was ready to call and just tell you not to bother coming over. I have work tomorrow, you guys. I need my beauty rest.”

  “Sorry,” Dom said without sounding particularly sincere. “Don’t blame me. It was Lady and Otsuya. They stole the car and wouldn’t bring it back.”

  “We were on an information gathering mission,” Lady said quickly in her defense.

  Dom wasn’t swayed. “They had pizza.”

  Destiny rolled her eyes and stepped to one side, ushering them in. “Let’s just get this over with.”

  Everyone filed inside. The house was much as Lady remembered it save for the coffee table in the living room. It had been pulled into the center and was now ringed by beanbag chairs. There were candles set up on it, as well as a blank sheet of paper and some fat permanent markers. No doubt that was for Dom to draw his sigil.

  Otsuya dropped Lion onto the floor. “Can I get a drink?” she asked already moving toward the kitchen.

  Destiny sighed. “Yeah, sure. Make yourself at home.” It sounded like they were already reaching the limits of her hospitality.

  If Otsuya recognized anything about her tone she ignored it. She proceeded to the kitchen and Lady heard the fridge open. “You guys want anything?” she asked, like it was her place to offer that sort of thing.

  “No,” Lady and Crispin said in unison.

  “Get me a wine cooler,” Dom said simultaneously.

  “A wine cooler?” Lady asked, looking over at big, burly Dom and raising an eyebrow.

  Dom shrugged, unconcerned. “They taste good.”

  Otsuya returned with two red wine coolers. She handed over the unopened one. “If you two are done helping yourself to the contents of my fridge, can we get started?” Destiny motioned everyone over to the beanbag chairs. She went ahead and flopped down in the largest one.

  Everyone took their places on the floor. Lady sat between Crispin and Otsuya and across from Dom. Destiny was lighting the votive candles with a red, plastic lighter. She nodded to Dom. “Reach over and hit the lights, will you?”

  Dom didn’t have to get up. He leaned back toward the wall and flipped the switch. The overhead lights went off but the candles were bright enough to see by.

  Lady looked around the table. “So, how are we going to do this?” No one else was asking the question. Lady had seen the sigil used in several different ways. The last time they had used it for something like this, it had called the murderer forward. Of course, that had been when they had an idea of who the murderer was. Lady wasn’t clear on how this was supposed to work.

  “You seem to think it has something to do with Agnes’ family.” Dom reached beneath the table and picked up something long and dark. It took Lady a few seconds to recognize it for what it was. A dagger.

  Lady cringed. “You’re not going to use someone’s blood, are you?”

  “I am,” said Dom without hesitation. “I’m going to use your blood.”

  “What?” No one had told Lady that going in. “Why?”

  “You’re Agnes’ friend, aren’t you?” It was a rhetorical question. It was obvious from the indifference in his voice that he wasn’t going to change his mind.

  “I know Agnes,” Crispin said. “I’m her boss. You can use my blood.”

  “Well, hold on now.” Lady wasn’t sure how she felt about Crispin taking her place. It felt pretty cowardly on her part to let him take her place.

  “You haven’t met the rest of her family,” Dom said evenly. “We’re going to use the family name. It’s Emmerich, right?”

  Crispin nodded slowly. He looked at Lady, a frown on his face. He could see that she was uncomfortable with this.

  “Otsuya met them too,” Lady pointed out.

  “Hey!” Otsuya glared at Lady—which was fair. She had been pretty quick to offer up her blood when she had had mixed feelings about letting Crispin offer his own.

  “I’m not sure how well Otsuya’s blood would work here. It’s a life-force thing and, well, she’s dead. No offense, Otsuya.”

  “None taken,” Otsuya said, still glaring at Lady. “I didn’t want to let you use my blood anyway.”

  Lady huffed. She didn’t like any of this, but making a fuss was just making her look bad. Refusing to do the ritual entirely would make her look even worse.

  “Come on,” Destiny grabbed the dagger and unsheathed it. “It’s just a little blood.” She wagged the blade at her. “I keep it sharp. You won’t even feel it.”

  Hearing that the blade was especially sharp didn’t exactly ease Lady’s mind. “Fine,” she said anyway. “I’ll do it. Whatever.”

  “You don’t have to,” said Crispin.

  “Yeah she does,” Dom shot back. “She’s decided she’s going to play detective. If she wants to figure things out, this is the easiest way.”

  “Unless we’re wrong about the Emmerich family and nothing happens,” muttered Otsuya.

  Lady remembered the salamander. She remembered where it had led her. “I’ll do it,” she said more resolutely.

  “All right then.” Destiny nodded to Dom. “Get it rolling.”

  Dom uncapped the marker and drew the stylized eye on the paper before him. The ink was a pale silver. In the dim light Lady could barely even see the lines. That didn’t slow Dom down any. Muscle memory took his hand through the motions quickly. He capped the pen and replaced it on the table. “All right,” he said. “Everyone close your eyes and visualize Chad.”

  “I’m not sure I ever met him,” said Destiny, but she closed her eyes anyway.

  Lady did as she was told. She pictured him in the library, standing at the front desk in one of his polo shirts. She saw him smiling mirthlessly at her, a condescending look in his eyes.

  “Picture him on the boat,” Dom continued. “Think of the heat. Feel the sweat on your skin.”

  It was an unpleasant thing to visualize, but Lady did her best. She pictured herself on the boat she had seen at the marina. She felt the deck beneath her feet despite never having stood on it. The image became more vivid the longer she stood there. She turned her head toward the dock just in time to see a flash of red scurrying toward land. She took a step toward it, meaning to follow it, but Destiny’s voice drew her concentration.

  “Give me your hand, Lady,” she said, softly.

  Lady opened her hand and reached across the table. She bit her bottom lip as Destiny took her by the wrist and pulled her arm over the sigil Dom had drawn. She raised the knife toward her forearm.

  “Wait,” Lady said quickly as the edge of the knife came down toward her skin.

  “What?” sighed Destiny.

  “Don’t do my arm… do… do, like, my hand or something.” That was where they always cut themselves for magical rituals in movies, right? The finger or the palm? “Do my finger.”

  Destiny raised an eyebrow. “Wouldn’t be my first choice, but if that’s what you want…” She angled Lady’s pointer finger over the paper instead.

  Lady bit down on her lip again and looked away. She felt a touch and then pressure. She looked over to find Destiny squeezing her finger. She was right, it hadn’t hurt. She watched as droplets of blood splashed onto the paper. Destiny released her finger and Lady brought it quickly back to her chest.

  It happened slowly. The blood soaked into the page in a widening blotch of red. It began to expand. The red traveled along the lines of the sigil, making it darker and easier to see.

  Destiny nodded to Lady. “Say the name,” she prompted softly.

  “Oh, um…” Lady’s mind scrambled for the right name. “Emmerich,” she remembered.

  Destiny nodded in approval, and across from her, Dom closed his eyes. The shadows played across his forehead. Lady thought she saw the symbol of an eye form there for a moment, but she couldn’t be sure. His mouth moved around some words, though she couldn’t hear any of it. Finally, he opened his eyes.

  “Is that it?” asked Lady.

  Dom shushed her, cowing Lady. She sat in silence for what couldn’t have been more than a minute. “Okay, that’s it,” Dom said plainly. He leaned back and reached for the light switch, bringing the lights on again.

  Lady blinked rapidly as her eyes adjusted. “Well, that was anticlimactic.”

  “It’s not the climax yet.” Dom glanced back to the window. “We need to head back to the pier, see if anything happens.”

 

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