Accession of the Stone Born: The Vigiles Urbani Chronicles (28 page)

Her face soured. “Walter Bradley Matherne.”

The name hit me hard in the gut and I froze. “Seriously? When’s his birthday?”

She shot me an odd look. “Why? Planning on getting him something?”

Shooting her a dirty look, I shook my head. “Doubtful.”

She let out a long breath. “July 31.”

This wasn’t possible. Seriously? One thing sure, but there were just too many coincidences for it not to be true. “I’ve got to go.”

I got to my feet to leave when Heather waved a hand and the door swung closed. “Wait a second. You start asking questions about Brad and you’ve suddenly got to go? What’s going on?”

I’m a terrible liar but I did my best to feign ignorance. “Nothing….” That’s when it dawned on me what had just happened. Eyeing her, I didn’t find the ring she normally wore, or any ring, necklace, or anything that could be used as a focusing item. “Where’s your ring?”

She turned a sickly shade of alabaster, panic set in, and she moved her hand under the blankets. “I don’t see what that has to do with my question.”

Sitting on the edge of the bed, I stared at her curiously. “Let’s start with the ring and then we can revisit your question.”

She scowled, reluctantly pulling her hands out. “If I had to guess it’s with my phone.”

It took a second but then I understood. She believed her father had it along with all her other personal effects from that night. I didn’t have a clue what use Robert would have with any of it, but that wasn’t my concern at the moment. “If he has it then how are you able to use your abilities? I was under the impression you needed to be in possession of such items for them to work.”

Her unease continued to grow, and she had the distinct look of a kid who’d been caught with her hand in the cookie jar. “Maybe because I don’t need one.”

From everything I’d read all witches needed a focusing object. Leaning back, I folded my arms and waited. “Go on.”

Heather’s form deflated and she closed her eyes in defeat. “Damn it!” She glared at the pill bottles on the nightstand for their betrayal. “I can’t believe I slipped up so badly.” With a heavy breath her eyes pleaded with me. “No chance you’d be willing to forget about it?”

Okay, now I felt like an asshole, but I needed to know what was going on. “I’d like to, but all things considered, I can’t.”

Reluctantly she nodded. “You’re not the only one with secrets.” Her weariness was apparent. “This can’t leave this room. Swear to me.”

I shook my head. “Let’s hear it first. I’m not willing to put myself or my uncle at risk over a promise I may not be able to keep.”

Heather sagged but understood. “My mother's father was a sorcerer.” It was easy to see how nervous she was. “With my mom and dad both being witches, the odds were I’d be a witch as well.”

Then it dawned on me. “You inherited your grandfather’s gift of sorcery.”

Relief and sorrow shone in her face. “Yeah.”

Wow, okay; good for her. “Why lie about it?”

Her eyes bulged and the panic returned. “Well for starters, witches hate sorcerers.” Seeing that I was slow on the uptake, she continued. “You’ve met my father; that man is a racist through and through. If he ever discovered I was a sorcerer, he’d kill me. I’m not talking about the yelling and screaming thing…I mean he’d literally kill me.”

Now that’s father of the year award material right there. “I’m sorry.”

Her shoulders slumped forward and she did her best to become as small as possible. “It’s become second nature to hide my talents.” Her eyes pleaded with me again. “Promise you won’t tell anyone.”

She had nothing to worry about from me. I’d always felt bad about my situation growing up, but I’d never hid who I was. This was so much worse. The strain it must’ve put her under all these years. “You have my word.”

Relief swept over her. “Thank you.” She gave me a sheepish look and asked, “Think you can trust me with your secret now? What has you so hot and bothered about Brad?”

That was a cheap shot and one I probably deserved. “Sure.” Glancing back at the door to make sure we were still alone, I sat up straight. “Martha had a file on Walter Percy in her office.”

Her face scrunched itself up at the mention of his name. “What’s that bastard got to do with it?”

It was good to see the man had fans. “I’m not sure that he does, but in the file was a marriage certificate and a couple of birth records…one of which was named Walter B. Percy, born on July 31, 1974.”

She sniggered. “That’s what has you all worked up? That’s a huge jump.”

The theory already had more holes than swiss cheese, and here she was poking a few more. Trying to sound more confident than I felt, I mounted a defense. “You have to admit that it’s suspicious that Brad’s name matches so closely. What are the odds of two boys being born in such a small town with the same first and middle names on the same day?”

That put her on the ropes but certainly not out. “I’ll give you that…it’s unlikely, but it’s not out of the question.”

I might as well stamp my feet and hold my breath at this point because she was right. It wasn’t impossible. “But what if I’m right? I know it sounds desperate, but it’s all I got.”

There was pity in her eyes when she spoke. “You find more and I’ll believe it; but if that’s all you got, you’re pretty screwed.”

At least she wasn’t sugarcoating it. “You’re right, I’m screwed, but let’s see where this goes before we totally discount the idea.”

She pursed her lips and snarked, “You know that’s not really a lead, it’s more of a hunch. One that I’m guessing is wrong.”

Chuckling, I nodded. “Could be, but I’m still going to check it out.”

She threw up her hands in defeat. “I suppose it couldn’t hurt.”

Getting to my feet, I looked at the door and then her. “I should get going.”

Her easy smile was back. “Good luck.” With a flick of her wrist the door opened. “Stop by later if you want.”

Seeing her happy again did quite a lot to improve my mood. “I’ll see what I can do.”

I was out of her room and into my own a few seconds later. Grabbing my computer, I started typing. If Brad Matherne and Walter B. Percy were two different people, it should be easy enough to figure out.

Chapter 21

Saturday June 6th

By the time the sun peeked over the horizon it was obvious that I’d overestimated my ability as a digital sleuth. All my attempts at tracking down Brad’s past or even his present were proving to be fruitless. From what I could tell he didn’t have a use for the Internet, meaning no social media, no credit cards, bank accounts, or even the slightest hint of a digital footprint. Of course, I could be looking in all the wrong places.

Truth of the matter was I didn’t have the same credentials I’d possessed a month ago. A mere thirty days ago I could’ve made a call and had his entire life story by the end of business. Now I was relegated to doing Internet searches and paying for third party services to get the slightest bit of information, of which there was none. This was certainly not my finest moment, to be sure.

My phone rang just after 9:00 a.m., and to my great surprise it was someone who may be able to help…Lieutenant Baptist.

Sitting up straighter at my desk, I answered, “Good morning,” trying to keep the exasperation out of my voice.

Baptist’s thick accent carried over to his rich laugh. “You sound terrible. Long night?”

Deception wasn’t ever one of the strongest abilities in my arsenal. Probably why I’d never moved out of my position in twenty-eight years. “You could say that.” I paused. “To what do I owe the pleasure of your call?”

There was a sharp intake of breath and the rustle of papers in the background. “I tracked those numbers you gave me.”

Some detective I was turning out to be; I’d totally forgotten about them. The value of Martha’s meticulous note taking habits was becoming painfully apparent. “Let me guess…nothing?”

“Da,” he said in a bored tone. “They appear to be burners purchased out of state.” He paused and I heard more papers being moved. “You have one of them…correct?”

With a flick of a finger I knocked the burner into a nearby pile of books. It turned out to be another dead end. I could use it for a paperweight for all the good it was doing me. “Yeah.”

He grunted his satisfaction. “Good. One of the techs gave me Andrew’s address for the first number.”

“And the other?” I asked, already guessing the answer.

He gave a contemptuous grumble. “Nothing. Dead as a doornail.”

Snatching the phone off the table, I tossed it in the garbage. “Great!” Where I failed, perhaps the UCD would succeed. “I need you to look into a couple of names for me as soon as possible.”

Baptist sniggered. “You’re not wasting anytime in tapping the UCD’s resources before officially taking the job.”

He was right, but at the moment I didn’t have a lot of options. “Yeah, sorry about that.”

He calmed himself and I heard the sharp click of a pen being readied. “No worries. Who are you looking for today?”

Picking up Walter’s file, I flipped through the notebook, stopping at the marriage certificate. “The first name on the list is Mary Percy, former resident of Destrehan. Not sure where she is now…perhaps a retirement home, but I can’t be sure. I don’t have a birthday, but I’ve got an old address.”

There was a flurry of scratches before he spoke again. “Address?”

It took another ten minutes to go through what I needed on Mary, Brad, and Brody Percy. I knew it sounded crazy, but if I could connect any of the Matherne’s to the Percy’s I might have a chance. Of course Baptist wasn’t happy, and he filled me in on Walter’s vast political connections. While the UCD wasn’t a fan, that didn’t mean that the mayor’s office agreed, and due to his involvement, it would slow the process down.

Ending the call, I stood, stretched, and headed for the door. I couldn’t stop fidgeting; the frustration of not knowing what to do next wore on my nerves. I’d spent the last three decades being the solution to the problem, not ferreting it out. My handlers had done almost all the legwork prior to my involvement. Sure there were times I had to change things on the fly, but I always had a solid target and the resources of an entire government at my disposal.

I found Heather, Andrew, and Kimberly sitting around the table in the living room. I wasn’t really in the mood to socialize, but they’d already seen me. Fuck! The last thing I wanted to do was get stuck in a conversation with anyone, even them. Too late now. Fighting off the wave of antisocial behavior, I waved and faked the semblance of a pleasant mood.

Pushing the thoughts of Brad, Walter, and the others to one side, I lumbered towards the table, trying to sound casual. “Good morning, folks.”

Andrew seemed surprised at my presence. “When I didn’t see you at breakfast I thought you’d already left for the day.”

The mention of food made my stomach growl. “Sorry about that, I must’ve lost track of the time.”

Heather’s gaze locked onto me. “How’s the hunt?”

She was obviously more than a little curious about Brad and so was I, but for very different reasons. I couldn’t hide my frustration. “Terrible.” Turning to Andrew, I shrugged. “The lack of any official resources is drastically hindering my progress.”

Understanding flooded Andrew’s face. “I’m sorry about that, but there isn’t a lot I can do till Friday rolls around. If we did anything now it would only alert the others about your post.”

Kimberly’s displeasure was clear when she turned to Andrew. “That’s true, but keeping it a secret until then is going to go over like a lead balloon.” Her eyes were full of pity when they turned to me. “Nothing against you, but….”

I gave her an indifferent roll of my shoulders. “Don’t worry about it. What’s done is done, and remember, we have a tactical advantage at the moment. We can worry about the political fallout later.”

Kimberly didn’t appear convinced and turned back to Andrew. “The fact he’s your nephew will only make things worse.” She stopped, delight creeping onto her lips when she turned to me. “Is it true that Ms. Dodd refused to register you?”

The way she asked the question made me uneasy. Shuffling to the side, I felt my chest tighten. “She may have asked me to leave her office a bit hastily.”

Andrew didn’t appear bothered. “Ms. Dodd will be fine. Nothing to worry with.”

Kimberly’s eyes widened in disbelief. “Of course, because Elizabeth is known for her humility and taking responsibility for any shortcomings.” Her disappointment mounted. “Andrew, you know she’s going to take every opportunity to make him pay for her oversight.”

That unsettled him and he considered her words. “Perhaps, but it can’t be undone now.” His face hardened and his voice turned to ice. “We couldn’t allow Robert’s candidates to take over as
vigiles
.” He’d said Robert’s name like he’d just tasted shit. “It would be a huge setback for everyone.”

Kimberly fell back, acquiescing the point. “That’s also true.” Her weary gaze shifted to me. “But he’s the one that has to live with the consequences.”

Andrew couldn’t argue the point. “I suppose it’s a good thing Elizabeth has plenty of time to get past it.”

Nodding at my uncle, I stepped closer. “Andrew’s right, she’ll just have to get over it. It’s not like I can quit.” I felt my resolve harden. “Considering she isn’t my boss, interference in my affairs could be considered a crime.” Seeing I had their attention, I continued. “Simply put, if she gets too far out of hand, I’ll break it for her.”

Kimberly teetered between astonishment and hilarity. She adopted a patronizing tone. “Perhaps you don’t understand your position.”

Before she took the conversation too far down that road, I cut in. “Perhaps it’s you who doesn’t understand the role of the
vigiles
.” With the aid of the denarius, I set to work correcting her misunderstanding. “Prefects rule the triumvirate and the day to day actions of their territories, but their authority isn’t greater than that of the local
vigiles
. It can’t be…otherwise I’d be nothing more than a hired thug to be used at the prefect’s whim.”

The three of them looked at me in shock. The denarius was incensed by the outright lack of respect afforded my position, and we both swore to rectify it in the coming months. What I’d left unsaid would’ve caused chaos, but if Ms. Dodd didn’t come to terms with the situation quickly, I’d be forced to strip her of the ability to interfere.

Kimberly found her voice, shaky as it might be. “You’d be the first
vigiles
that I’ve ever heard of to exercise those rights.”

That revelation sent the denarius over the edge. It was fuming that the position had been allowed to fall into such a pathetic state. I didn’t know why, but my anger flowed right alongside the coin’s. “I haven’t the faintest idea how things got this bad, but I can assure you that it’ll change.”

The embarrassment on Andrew’s face was evident. “Perhaps we’ve all fallen into a convenient status quo….” He trailed off, ashamed. “If this is how you want to proceed, you’ll have my support.”

The denarius, satisfied with Andrew’s answer, checked his name off a list of potential obstacles. Not that I had any idea of what I’d do about it even if he was opposed to the idea.

Heather didn’t look well when she got my attention. “I could use a little help getting back to my room.”

The political debate over, I gave her a smile. “Of course.”

In one fluid motion I leaned over and scooped her up. Heather cocked an eyebrow at her mother. “What?”

Kimberly fought back a grin. “Oh, nothing dear. You just look so sweet in his arms.”

Heather’s face turned beat red, and tucking her head into my shoulder she mumbled, “Mother!”

Kimberly made a show of eyeing me up and down. “Careful with my little girl.”

Blushing, I stepped around the table and padded off to Heather’s room. “Yes ma’am.”

Kimberly chuckled. “No need to be shy. It’s not every day I let a strong handsome man carry my daughter off to bed.”

Heather’s nails dug into my back and she pulled her head out of my chest. “For God’s sake, please shut up.”

Trying to make our exit an expedient one, I picked up the pace.

Kimberly’s voice carried after us, full of mirth. “What? If you’re not interested, just remember I’ll be single soon.”

That put a hiccup in my step but I pressed on, keeping my eyes focused on the wall in front of me.

Heather’s head collapsed into my chest again. Her voice full of horror, she said. “Oh God, kill me now.”

Andrew and Kimberly’s laughter followed us down the hall. Once we were safely in her room I nudged the door shut with a foot. Placing her gently on the bed, I pulled the blankets over her legs.

Heather was still crimson and terror filled her eyes. “I’m so sorry about my mother. She’s…she’s all sorts of embarrassing. Please don’t judge me by her actions.”

My cheeks still felt hot and the tightness in my throat wouldn’t go away. “I wouldn’t worry yourself about it. Other than the horrible embarrassment at my expense, it was kind of cute.”

Heather averted her eyes, suddenly finding the spot on the floor next to my feet very interesting. “She may have gotten the idea that I thought you were attractive.”

The tightness cut off my ability to take a breath for a split second. “You think so?”

She chewed her bottom lip, keeping her eyes on the floorboards. “Yeah; you’re kinda cute in that weird, tall-dark-and-handsome way.”

Sweat beaded on my forehead and I suddenly felt like a teenager. “Thank you, and if it makes you feel any better, I think you’re gorgeous in that way-out-of-my-league kind of way.”

Tearing her eyes off the floor, she tossed a pillow at me, turning so red I thought she might pass out. “You should probably go work, and we’ll sort this out-of-your-league thing out later.”

Thankful for the excuse, I gave her the thumbs up.

That’s right, I’m super smooth. What the fuck kind of move was that
?
God, I’m such a dork.

“Absolutely…I mean, yes, I’ve got work.” Stumbling backwards towards the door, I stammered. “See you later.”

She didn’t make the situation any less awkward when she returned my thumbs up with her own. “Bye,” she said playfully.

To make things that much worse, I actually backed into the door and fumbled with the knob a few times before finally getting it open. Yep, smooth! Thankfully, in the safety of my own room I closed the door and leaned against it in desperation. That could’ve gone way better.

There was a chime and I opened my eyes to see the Surface Pro light up and the mail icon hovering on the screensaver. Grateful for the distraction, I snatched it up and saw the email was from Lieutenant Baptist. Damn, that was fast.

Gavin,

              I made a cursory check on the four names you gave me, and three out of the four are a bit strange. The fourth one for James Matherne, who doesn’t appear to have a middle name at all, checks out. He was adopted at age ten by the Matherne family living in Destrehan. He went through school without issue and joined the St. Charles Sheriff’s Office right after high school. From what I’ve been told he’s on vacation somewhere in Ireland for the next few weeks. I’ll make a courtesy call when he returns.