Once I parked my car at the edge of the woods, I turned to Mel. "Stay here, Mel," I ordered as I opened the glove box and pulled out the flashlight I had in there.Mel turned her head to me. "No way. I'm here to not only protect you but make sure you also don't get into trouble.""I know, but I don't want you hurt. Besides, you can keep an eye out. If anything happens, you can go get help."Mel sighed. "Fine, but you better be safe and you owe me some food."I laughed and petted her gently. "Duly noted," I said before I got out of my Jeep. When I pushed the button on my flashlight, it didn't turn on. Stupid thing. I hit it a couple of times with my palm before it came on. Using the light, I cautiously made my way to the only place that I could think Hayden was. The meadow. As soon as I crawled through the small space, I was shocked. The once beautifully luscious meadow that was circled with a wide variety of flowers was now nothing more than just dirt and sticks.Through, Hayden was h
The second I got home and stepped through the door, my grandmother pulled me into a quick hug which startled me."Uh, grandma, is everything okay?"My grandmother pulled away and cupped my face as she looked at me with narrowed eyes. Her emotions were a mystery to me, but I could feel some pain from her. Her eyes softened and she ran a hand through my dark hair that I was sure was sticking up and even greasy."I am fine, sweetheart. I was just worried about you. We haven't exactly talked much since what happened. I know you still have tons of questions about things. And I am willing to tell you. No more secrets."I nodded. As I went to take a step, a wave of dizziness hit me so suddenly that I gasped abd placed my hand on the door to keep myself steady as I blinked rapidly, hoping it would disperse the feeling away."Weston?"Swallowing, I looked at my grandmother. "Sorry. I just feel woozy."My grandmother's eyes narrowed. "When was the last time you are?""Uh, this morning. I skippe
As soon as I left my cousin's house, I drove to work. Of course, as soon as I walked inside the magic shop, Norman and even Maxwell were standing in front of the counter. Norman had his arms crossed while Maxwell was standing there like a statue."I thought I'd find you here," said Norman.I couldn't help but notice that Melinda was glaring at Maxwell but did not comment as to why. Most of the time, I couldn't detect her emotions. Norman was calm, but Maxwell, while not expressing it, had an air of anxiety swirling around him.I rubbed the back of my neck. "What did you need? Did something happen?"Norman shook his head. "Not much. I did find out that Maxwell's power of divination only works with the person in front of him. He can't see the future. Only read it in tea cups or tarot cards." He sighed as a wave of disappointment hit me. "I was hoping for more."Maxwell glared at him. "Sorry for the disappointment. It's not like I can do much about it. Why did you bring me here, to begin
The next morning, Norman and I sat at the kitchen table. He had stayed the night considering the rain was pouring last night."I can't believe I was off with the names. I was almost positive there was something there. But your hunch was spot on," Norman said as he ate a spoonful of cereal.I looked at him as I sipped on some tea. After last night, I felt better, but still a little jittery. "Sometimes coincidences happen.""I know that, Wes. I was just hoping for once I was right.""Well, in a way you were. The names were important just not what we thought. We both assumed the killer was going after a person with the same first and last initials, but it wasn't like what we assumed. It was deeper.""You got a point. I just hope we can figure out why and how to stop all this. Maybe it will bring justice to those we lost and help them find peace. Do you think Maxwell will help?""Maybe he could provide us with a clue," I said. "We need something to help us figure this out."After breakfas
Norman and I both looked over at my grandmother. While her emotions were closed off to me, I could see the pain crinkling around the edges of her eyes and also the sadness shining. "Dear heavens," she whispered.I was out of my chair in a blink of an eye and strolled over to her side being mindful of the broken pieces of porcelain all over the floor. "Grandma." Without hesitation, I placed my hand on her shoulder gently to comfort her.The second my hand landed on her shoulder, I became overwhelmed with intense emotions ranging first from excited and anxious to scared and terror. From within the whiteness, I could hear distant voices but they were too muffled to make sense of.Before it could go any further, something or someone shoved back. Instinct took over and I went to catch myself only I was so dizzy that my vision blurred and I slipped or tripped and landed heavily on the floor. I vaguely registered pain radiating from my hand, but I was too focused on getting my breathing und
As soon as my eyelids fluttered open briefly, a blurry humanoid person was looming over me with their nimble fingers cascading through my black locks. I didn't need perfect vision to know exactly who this was. The glob of orange and the scent of salt water was pretty much a giveaway not to mention the peaceful emotions."Hayden?" I asked, but my voice came out a bit hoarse and dry."Sh. Don't talk. Just rest," he said. "Save your strength."With a groan, I turned over. My cheek bumped against something broad. The fabric felt like a pair of jeans. Before I could say anything, my eyes started sliding shut on their own accord and I instantly fell back into darkness.The second time I woke, after finding my glasses on top of my head and putting them on, I was surprised to discover that I was in my bedroom.At first, I was confused. I mean, how did I get here? The last thing I remembered was being with Mel outside of the museum and touching the gooey substance that came out of the muffin.
As soon as I got outside, I called Norman on my phone. Unfortunately, it went to voicemail. As soon as the beep happened, I said, "Norman, listen, I don't know if you heard anything, but Jessica is dead. Listen, though, I need you to find anything you can about her as well as any research on a photo I'm going to send to you. I'm heading to see Mr. Newman to see if I can get some answers. Please call me back when you know something." As soon as I ended the call, I sent him the picture in a text message and then got inside my Jeep.As soon I was behind the wheel, the passenger door opened, and in came Angela, who seemed different. She was in a short black dress and black heels and her eyes were an unusual bright green. Her emotions seemed off like there was darkness oozing out of her."Uh, Angela, what are you doing in my vehicle?"Angela looked at me with such wide eyes I could have sworn they would pop out of her head. "Oh. Well, I'm hiding.""Hiding from who? My cousin?""Yes!""Why a
After spending time with Norman, I headed to work. As usual, Melinda wasn't pleased by my lateness. However, like always, she joked about docking my pay. Ray, who was still new, kept going out on errands for Melinda which surprised me.While I was on my break, I pulled the file that Norman loaned me out of my messenger bag and placed it on the counter, and leaned over. Studying it didn't help anything. The men were all different. Their ages were different, too. Their race was also different. It didn't matter. Aside from them having the pattern of initials, nothing else stood out. So, then, what was this woman doing with these men?"What are you looking at so intently?" asked Melinda."Just some research.""Does it have to do with the mysterious deaths?"I nodded. "I shouldn't be involved in this, but there is something off about this whole mess. I know I am missing something. My gut tells me that. And whoever the woman is behind all of this seems to be going after men only."Melinda ju