The Old House (Haunted Series Book 16) (17 page)

“I appreciate the thought, but, baby, wow.”

Mia turned around and brought the wings back in.  She left the tattoos to move over her back.  “Does this make me a freak in your eyes, Ted?”

“No!” he said excitedly.  “I know you’ve been brought up to think that anything outside the norm is somehow flawed, but I’ve always seen the beauty in the differences that people have.  In the beginning, it was your hair; it was a wicked white, and your eyes were such a unique color of green.  And then I got distracted by your tits, but I am a man after all.  And now, Mia, you’re fierce yet soft.  The feathers feel like… well, feathers, but not like Angelo’s feathers.  The wings are not the same either.  They are similar to Sariel’s but still different.  And you smell different, kind of breezy.”

Mia laughed.  “Breezy?”

“Sweet like the wind moving over the grain after a summer’s rain shower,” he said, remembering Kansas.

Mia touched his face and saw the fields and smiled.  “We need to go back there for a visit soon.”

“I would love that, Mia.  I do get homesick now and again.”

“You sacrificed so much to be with me.”

“I remember you being willing to leave the hollow and come live with me in Kansas.”

“Yes, but that’s different.  Wherever you go is home to me because, Ted, you are my home.”

“You mean that, don’t you?”

“Yes.”

“You’d leave Murphy?”

“Yes.”

“Do you mean that?”

“Yes.  Here put your hand here,” she instructed, guiding his hand to her temple.  “Ask me something, and I’ll lie to you.”

“My holey socks have disappeared.  Did you throw them away?”

“I mended them and put them in your drawer.”

Ted felt the grinding of her jaw.

“What happened to my socks?”

“I stuffed them in a chew toy and gave it to Maggie.”

Ted felt nothing.

“That’s amazing.  Not about my lucky socks, but how long have you known about this?”

“Ralph found it one time when I was being questioned about the Jell-O in his white buck shoes.”

Ted shook his head.  “Tell me.”

“I hated those shoes, so once when he was visiting, I filled them with lime Jell-O.”

“How old were you?”

“Eight.  He was holding my face, looking me in the eye and found me out.”

“So Ralph’s known how to tell if you were lying since you were eight?”

“Yes, that, and the slap on my butt convinced me not to lie to him again.”

“Oh wow, so the great prankster has a way of being found out.”

“Yes.  Now ask me about Murphy,” Mia insisted.

Ted lowered his hand.  “Mia, I’m not sure that’s right.  Murphy has been a part of you for so long.”

Mia grabbed his hands and held them to her face.

Ted didn’t want to, but he saw how determined Mia was.  “Mia, if I asked you to leave Murphy, would you?”

“Yes, Ted, I would.”

He was flabbergasted.  He held on.  “Do you love Stephen Murphy?”

“Yes, Ted, I do.”

“But you love me more?”

“I love you, and I would leave Stephen Murphy if you asked me to,” she answered freely.

“No, I asked you if you were in love with me, Mia.”

“Yes, Ted, I am.”

“Do you love me more than Stephen Murphy?”

Mia thought a moment and smiled.

“Yes, Ted, I do.”

“Oh my god,” he said, pulling away.

Mia watched him, confused by his reaction.  He had staggered to the kitchen counter and put a hand on it to steady himself.

“Are you going to barf?” Mia asked, wetting a towel with water.  She guided him to the couch and pushed him down.  She sat next to him and applied the cloth to his forehead.  “You’re starting to give me a complex.”

“You don’t understand,” Ted said.  “I married you knowing you loved Murphy, that I would always be second.  It was alright with me because, Mia, I wanted you so much.  I knew I could make you love me.  As time went on, and I saw how you protected him and sacrificed your life for him, I knew that I better just be glad to have what I could have of you.”

“My connection to Murph is complex, but it isn’t a romantic relationship.  I would also sacrifice my life for your great-aunt Mildred.  It’s who I am.  Sure, I care for Murph, but you’re my husband.  I wouldn’t have risked my life the other night flying to bring you home if I didn’t love you so much.  You hurt me.  Wounded me deeper than that witch tree thorn.  Roumain knew how to get to me.  He knew the single most fear I have, and he used it.  I’m afraid of losing you.”

“I’m sorry, Mia.”

“Gee, if I knew you were going to get sick by showing you
my tell
,
I would have kept it secret.”

“I guess this is why we’re here.  No Cid to overhear.  No Murphy to Whitneyize me.”

“Whitneyize?” Mia asked.

“Whit not only ripped Morris Steel into pieces, but he smashed him into bits too small to pick up.  Poor Tom had to burn the place to make sure we didn’t miss anything.  We call it Whitneyizing.”

Mia sat back amazed.  “He did have a temper, but whoa.”

“Okay, can we get back to me now?” Ted asked, turning her face to him.  “When you told me you loved me more than Murphy, it was like all the Christmases rolled into one.  It blew my mind.”

“Well, that’s better, Ted. I love you most equals vomit? Nasty equation.”

Ted laughed.  “Sorry, oh so sorry.”  Ted reached out and pulled Mia over him.  “I am honored to be loved by you and out of my mind that you love me a smidge more than the axeman.  I was so afraid of losing you that I left.  That was horrible of me.  I’m sorry.”

“I accept your apology,” Mia said, reaching for her wrist to hide the tattoo.

“Oh no you don’t.  I want you to… you know, while all that is going on?”

“Theodore Martin, you are one dirty bird.”

“Takes one to know one,” he replied.

The amount of information amassed regarding trees was startling.  It wasn’t the abundant varieties that contributed to the hundreds of volumes, it was the treatment of them.  Every time a heart was cut into one or a rope swing hung, the tree would transform from a giver of shade and oxygen to something entirely else.  It also disrupted the life of said tree.  And then along came the pagans, good and bad.  Additionally, the tree spirits were a disruptive group and had to be listed.  Orion put his head in his hands and cried.

“Be careful not a drop falls upon that book,” a voice said from above him. “It will grow a tree instantly.”

He looked up to see a ghost of a man gazing down at him from behind the most enormous glasses he had ever seen.

“I’m sorry, sir. I did not see you here earlier,” Orion said.  “I’ve been here for possibly days, and I have lost track of time.”

“Can I help you?”

Orion wasn’t sure he should be encouraging a spirit that resided in the Dark Vault, but he too could expire before he found the answer he sought.

“I have recently encountered a witch tree, and I’m seeking information about it.”

“An unfortunate name for an
animus quercus
.  In ancient times, they were used to send the soul on before the death of the terminal patient.  They are the only oak trees that have thorns.  They are…”

Orion opened up the lead box and pointed.

“You have one!” the spirit exclaimed.  “Pray, tell me about this encounter.”

The spirit listened and asked questions, one of which set Orion to ponder his course.  The ghost said, “What you really want is information about the grower of said tree, not the tree itself.”

“Why yes.”

“First of all, the tree is probably not grown by the modern day witch or wiccan.  That type of vegetation dishonors the group.  Although, since it has been named thus, we will continue.  Come, I will take you to where the information on the Cynosura nurserymen are kept.”

“Cynosura?” Orion questioned, feeling his stomach turn over.

“Yes, the Cynosura used to be group of humans, pure of heart, who pledged to point the human race to the light; in other words, Polaris.  But as their studies increased and wealth and power were amassed, they turned away from the nurturing of the downtrodden.  They turned inward and existed for the sole purpose of making sure that they and they alone achieved entry to the ancient houses in Ursa Minor.”

“The Cynosura are still active,” Orion informed the spirit.

“I find this extraordinary.  In my lifetime, I had found that evil simply doesn’t last.  Empires rise, but they also fall.  The Cynosura have been around a long time.”

“The old ones gave their daughters to the breeders of the netherworld and were compensated with long life.  A long life, yes, but tinged with evil.  The daughters never survive the births, but the Cynosura never were attached to their female offspring anyway.  It’s the sons that matter.”

“Where are they hiding?” the spirit asked.  “Immortals, even half-cast immortals, would surely be found out.”

“They reside here and there, changing locations when questions are asked.  Their male issue go to the best schools, and when they achieve positions of great importance, they give contracts and power to the other Cynosura males.”

“Orion, remember, throughout history the male has been dominant.”

“It shouldn’t be like that.  The situation of the world would have been better had both genders been in charge,” Orion argued.  “There were two genders created.  If God wanted the male to run the place alone, he would have made him asexual.”

“Why are the Cynosura dangerous?”

“They see that the earth’s resources - which they desperately need - are being overused. So they are culling the human herd by the use of social Darwinism.  They take away the benefits that allow the poor and the weak to survive.  They take away their freedom.  They are working towards bringing back feudalism.  The ones that serve them will survive, and the others will no longer be cared for.  This planet will serve the Cynosura and only the Cynosura.”

They had reached an alcove, and the spirit pointed to a large book.  “Here you will find the Cynosura nurserymen.”

“Thank you, sir, you have been most helpful.”

“May I inconvenience you and ask you another question?”

“I’ll do my best to answer it.”

“What happens if the Cynosura become too strong?”

“War.  The guardians of the human race will declare war on them and the demon race who support them.  The Cynosura must be destroyed.”

“Well, I wish you luck.”

“Thank you.  I am hoping to find a way to stop them before this happens.  Because if war is declared, the sky will burn with death.  This too will not help the human species to survive.”

Orion sat down and opened the book and consulted the section devoted to
animus quercus
.

~

Angelo was not in good humor.  Father Paolo Santos looked at his friend.  His heart ached for the birdman, but his mind had accepted the situation that had brought Angelo into such a black mood.  Mia had chosen her teacher, and it wasn’t Angelo.

“All that I have done for her, the times I have saved her life, protected her friends, put up with her dalliance with the farmer…  All for naught.”

“Conceivably, you have taught, Mia.”

Angelo looked over at the priest with interest.  “Go on.”

“You have shown her, through your actions, that she has to think of herself and hers first.”

“That is not fair.”

“Angelo, we have been friends for a long time.  Together we have faced evil and have won and have lost.  The losses may have scarred you, but you will recover.  When you lose a game as a child, you strive to learn the rules and win the next one.  We learn so much from our failures.  I don’t see Mia’s aligning herself with Sariel as a negative.”

“I’m surprised.  He’s an archangel whose name has been banned by your church.”

“We don’t always get it right, my friend,” Paolo acknowledged and explained, “Sariel has worked without recognition in the defense of the human race since he was formed.  Although, he himself would admit that he lacks the understanding of the beings he has been entrusted to watch over.  This is where Mia comes along.  He needs to see them through her eyes.”

“Not in her bed?”

“Angelo Michaels, shame on you!” Paolo scolded.  “Your human side has made you focus on things that are better not spoken of.”

“She’s a quarter birdman, Paolo.  Her grandfather is our scribe Orion.”

“Ah, this is why you yearn for her.  But she is married.  Twice married.”

“Twice?” Angelo questioned.

“One a civil ceremony and another under the stars while the Council of Women looked on.  She… well, it’s better for you to see it.  Here, take my hand.”

Angelo stood beside Paolo in the darkness.  He felt the Council beside him and above him circled an angel.

Mia took off her necklace and slid off the ring.  She held it tightly as she got on her knees.   She looked up at Ted.  “Theodore Martin, would you take me as your wife, to have and to hold regardless of feathers, bitchy days, and interference from all of our friends and enemies?”

“Yes, Mia.”

She stood up and took Ted’s hand, turning it over first, and traced the lifeline of his hand, promising, “I, Mia Cooper Martin, promise my love, my soul and my body, as long as we both shall live –and if you play your cards right - into eternity.”  She slid the ring back on his finger.

Angelo dropped Paolo’s hand.

“Roumain couldn’t tear them apart.  What makes you so sure you can?”

“He isn’t worthy of her.  He is weak.”

“He is smart,” Paolo insisted.  “The Council feels that he may just be the deciding factor in tipping the scales our way.”

“The scientist who’s really a magician but does not know it,” Angelo mused.

“So cheer up, Angelo.  Mia is in the best hands possible, and she has moved emotionally away from Stephen which pleases me very much.”

“I think that is all smoke and mirrors, my friend, smoke and mirrors.”

~

Mia rose out of the claw foot tub.  The hot water eased her muscles.  She had enjoyed her afternoon with her husband, who was presently roaming around the inside of the cottage with a silly smile on his face.  Mia dressed in comfortable clothes.  Gone was the need to be prepared to fly.  She was on vacation with her family.  The world would have to fend for itself as far as she was concerned.

Brian had been fed, and Mia was pondering Cid’s instructions on reheating the gumbo he put together for them when she heard a light tap on the screen door.

“Come in, it’s open,” Ted called out as he wrangled Brian into a clean onesie.

Sam White walked into the cottage and nodded his head towards Mia.  “I’m Edie’s husband Sam.  She sent me to acquaint you with the fishing boat.”

“Hello, Sam, I’m Mia.  Ted’s in with Brian.  Can I offer you a beverage?”

“A beer would be nice.  It was a hot day out there on the roof.”

Mia offered Sam a glass.  “No sense in dirtying a glass,” he said, accepting the opened bottle.

“Did you finish the repair?”

“All except the steeple.  I’m going to see if we can get one of those bucket jobs the electric company uses.  Otherwise, it’s a hell of a climb.”

Mia nodded.

Ted came out of the small bedroom with Brian.  He extended his hand to Sam.

“You’re a tall feller.  I’m sure that doorway’s just aching to give you a bump or two.”

“So far, I’ve managed to avoid it,” Ted said proudly.

“Would you like a beer?” Mia asked, taking Brian from Ted.

“No, I think I better have my wits about me,” he said, winking at Mia.

Sam led the way down to the water’s edge where an aluminum boat was flipped over.  He righted it with Ted’s help.  “Mary’s got a small trolling motor in the boathouse, but I find, on this lake, the oars are just fine.”  He unlocked the boathouse and handed Ted a set of keys.  “Make sure you lock it at night.  The summer is full of visitors, and some may not have the best of intentions if they find it unlocked when you’re not around.”

Ted nodded.  He ducked down, and inside, he found a treasure trove of odds and ends.

“Mary’s got a lot of junk in here,” Sam grumbled.

“One man’s junk is another’s treasure,” Ted said, picking up an old electric generator.

“Wow,” Mia said from the doorway.  “It’s just chock full of stuff, isn’t it?  Sam, your wife called.  She wanted me to remind you that your daughter will be calling in fifteen minutes.”

“Thanks,” he said.  “Okay, here’s the trolling engine, here are the life vests, and lordy-loo, I see a baby’s vest still in the box.  You see, Mary and Edie go to all the jumble sales.” He handed the life vest to Ted.  “Always wear one.  It don’t matter if you look like a geek or not.  If you get knocked on the head, you will appreciate the second chance the vest will give you.”

“Yes, sir.”

Mia left the two to finish the tour.  She walked to the edge of the dock and sat down with Brian on her lap.  Mia dangled her feet in the water.  It was warm, which wasn’t unusual since it was late summer.  Smaller spring-filled lakes tended to be warmer than Lake Michigan.

“Look, Brian, there’s a mommy duck and her babies.  They are almost her size right now.  Birds grow up fast.”

Brian babbled and laughed.  Mia enjoyed his delight with every new thing he saw.  He cooed and burbled.  His eyes danced with joy.  Rarely was he in a bad mood.  Sure a wet diaper could send anyone to tears, but aside from creature comforts, the boy was very good natured.

“I wonder, if I was more like you, maybe my mother would have loved me,” she pondered.

“Ooh ooh,” Brian said, pointing.

Mia looked and saw a lone Native American paddling a canoe through the water.  The late afternoon sun shimmered along the disturbed water.  “He’s moving water, Brian.  He’s an active haunt.  I wonder if he can see us.”

“Who can see you?” Ted asked, approaching them.

“There’s a Native American paddling a canoe fifty feet off shore.  Can you see the water displacement?” Mia asked.

“Yes.  If you hadn’t told me, I would have assumed that a large fish was moving just under the surface,” Ted admitted.

The canoeist passed by them without a second glance.

“I think he is focused on something we can’t see,” Mia said.  She looked at Ted and felt something. “What’s wrong?”

“Sam told me of the family’s situation.  It’s sad, Mia.  I don’t want to talk about it right now.  Let’s enjoy Brian and talk later.”

She smiled and swiped her foot across the water to splash Ted.

“Oh, you’re going to get it.”

“I have Brian,” Mia said, holding Brian close. Brian was giggling.