The Hidden Paths to Power (20 page)

The four women were busy helping customers as they waited for word.

Doriane told them all what was happening in a private conference in back with me watching the store. I knew enough to push the right buttons on the register.

When the women came out, they each had tears.

Barbara said as we were getting ready to go home, “I wish she had felt more confident in her friendship with us. We would’ve helped her.”

Doriane responded, “I think she knew that, but shame makes people do things that just piles on the shame. Sheila also loves her husband enough, to care about his pride to some degree. He knew this was his problem but hadn’t been taking into consideration the cost to his family. He’ll have to make some lifestyle changes and maybe convince his son to go to a less expensive college. It might be hard for a little while but if he makes those changes, I think they stand a good chance of recovering.”

“Thank you, Kim. We’ll juggle our finances so we can buy her out.”

We went home and after a slow round of passion to balance us, I laid with my head pillowed on her chest and detailed everything I did with the Robert Vincent situation. I also shared what I learned about the murders in the house.

After I confessed, I said, “I’m ready to put an end to this so we can disappear. Can you think of a way, to put enough pressure on Samuel Perkins, to give up the name of the person he sent Robert Vincent to?”

“I’ll think about it. We need to deal with Ryan but more importantly, we need the story of you and him to fade into the background. I’m sifting through everything you did and the part that bugs me, though it isn’t because you made a mistake, is the risk you took to save Ernie. I understand why you did and applaud the reason because it shows, you’re thinking of future consequences. It bugs me because I’m afraid of losing you. The spirits will react before they let you expose us.”

“How will they react?”

“I don’t know. Normally, they’d leave it to us guardians to handle, but they’ve taken a special interest in you. That’s why you have the gifted wood. I can’t imagine they’d take it well, if you were the one who risked exposing us. If your timing had been any less perfect, Ernie would’ve seen. I believe the spirits might take personal exception to it.”

“That’s why, I want this to end. Unfortunately, I came into this with a public profile hanging over me. It’s only gotten worse since we’ve been hunting because of the need to keep Harold involved. If you can’t get Samuel Perkins to give you the name then maybe, he can get a message to whoever is leading them. They either give up Ryan or he’s bound to bring all the guardians down on their heads. They have to see it. They may think he’s controllable but this obsession is going to lead him to try something else, like he tried in Rocky Pines. He may try for something worse that may tip the balance too far before any response can come to repair it.”

“That may be the right tactic here, as disgusting as it is to have to make deals with dark users. We’ll have to keep investigating if they aren’t willing.”

“The next thing we should try, is finding the family of Ryan’s mother. They may have more details than they think they do or are willing to share in a taped interview.”

“You also have some traveling to do, if you’re serious about being ready to move and adopt a new name. You’d never forgive yourself, if you didn’t see your parents and grandparents at least once more.”

“If I take the time to do that then while I’m gone, will you look for Ryan’s aunt and grandparents?”

“Yes and I’ll try to find the right leverage, to make Samuel Perkins agreeable, to at least get a message to Ryan’s mentor. This needs to end as soon as possible.”

“We may have to set it up, so Ryan never gets caught by the police. We can’t afford for this to turn in a major, publicized trial. I’d have to be there to testify, therefore providing more opportunity to be on camera.”

“At the same time, we should try to provide Harold with proof, Ryan’s been dealt with. It can’t be our first priority but if he has some proof, he could ease the fears of the public and provide less need to look into it further.”

I made my plans and two days later, I traveled to Florida where the bulk of my extended family resided. This was where my parents lived before my father was transferred to the Denver field office, shortly after I was born.

I spent a relaxing ten days with my family and, though checked as frequently as I could get away with, didn’t feel one blip of dark magic near me.

The issues with Ryan picked up the day I was traveling back to Denver.

I silently cried as I was traveling, to release my emotions about having to leave my family behind.

Without saying it straight out, I told my family that, if the police couldn’t catch Ryan soon, I may have to disappear for good. I said I’d try to warn them but, if I couldn’t, they’d always be in my thoughts. It was hard but they understood.

As I was getting off the plane, I saw many people rushing to find TV’s to watch and pulling out their laptops, for some major news event that was occurring.

My brown eyes widened to their fullest when I managed to find a TV without a huge crowd around it.

The news was detailing the crash of a plane, bound from Philadelphia to Denver.

What had my eyes stuck open was, the crash had been caught on camera, and showed a freak twister appearing, just as the plane was taking off.

As I was watching, my phone rang, “Hello.”

“Deana; it’s, Harold.”

I was scared about the tone of his voice, “Please don’t tell me one of my friends was on that plane.”

“Erica took herself out of witness protection and was coming to visit you. That was the flight she was on.”

Something in me hardened because I knew where that twister came from. Fortunately for Doriane and me, the news was simply calling it a freak weather occurrence.

I replied, “If you know how to contact her parents, tell them I’m so sorry. I have to go.”

I hung up and finished my travels home.

I fell into the arms of Doriane as soon as I was in the house and cried for two hours letting it go.

After calming, I asked, “Were you able to find the leverage necessary to get Samuel Perkins to help us?”

“I didn’t need to. When he saw the crash, he was able to put the puzzle together. He knows Ryan’s about to bring the wrath of the guardians down on this area. He still wouldn’t give me a name but he’ll get the message through.”

“What about Ryan’s family?”

“I tracked down the aunt. The grandparents passed away a few years after the events at the school. The toll caused them to wither away fast. The aunt is only mildly better. She feels the same way as you do when she watches the news. Every time a body shows up that’s connected to Ryan, she gets more depressed. His cousins are seriously worried about their mom.”

“You’ve already talked with them?”

“Not yet. I got this from the person who helped me find them. I managed to talk to one of Ryan’s old neighbors. She was a friend of Ryan’s mother. They were close enough, the neighbor had become friends with Sylvia Gilpatrick’s family. Margaret Smalls has been respecting their wishes to stay out of the picture but had also been staying in contact with Paula Dennison; Sylvia’s sister. Margaret was reluctant but agreed for the sake of seeing an end to this, to help me get in touch with Paula. She’s expecting our visit anytime.”

I was in the mood for some aggressive sex that slowed to sweet, as I found my balance again. When we were done, I slept by her.

My next vision began.

Ryan must have really pissed off his mentor, for them to have this conversation away from their shielded residence.

They were standing in a park I didn’t know but the auburn-haired woman was really laying into Ryan, “…told you what would happen, if you risked bringing the guardians down on us again! This time you’ve upset the balance enough that I can’t help you anymore!”

I heard her use three words that caused Ryan to double over in pain. I wasn’t versed it the language of the dark ones then she continued, “I wash my hands of you. Because of you, I lost a semi-useful student. Robert will pay for failing me. You are no longer welcome in my circle. If you attempt to return, that little guest I left in your stomach, will make you wish you never heard of me. Samuel, who is the only one of ours anywhere close to here, will not shelter you. I wouldn’t try going to him. He’s older than I and has a few more unpleasant things he’ll try on your bones if you do. You’re on your own and the guardian helping Ms. Boller is far too strong for you. I hope she gets her money’s worth for your hide.”

“T…” Ryan felt his guts twisting again before he could say anything.

The woman bore down on him with more wrath, “We’re in an unshielded location, you idiot! Do not speak my name, unless you want me to do the guardians work for them! I want you alive, to give me and my brother, time to be as far from your incompetence as we can get. I also want you to know, I’ve broken the power in your casting room. That will prevent you from causing too much trouble before you’re caught.”

Ryan had tears of rage but knew he didn’t have the skill to challenge the woman. She walked away and Ryan attempted to follow but was on the ground again clutching his gut.

I looked on him and felt nothing. I didn’t feel any remorse for what he was enduring but felt no rage or disgust anymore either. I just wanted this thing to go away.

Ryan was no longer under the protection of his mentor. He had no mentor anymore. He had no casting room anymore so that meant the stronger spells were out of his reach, until he could build a new one. He could still kill people but without his mentor shielding him, finding a safe place to hide would be tough. His face was too well-known. He’ll have to expend a lot of energy just disguising his appearance.

I awoke and tickled Doriane awake to tell her and she responded, “This doesn’t mean, it’ll be a piece of cake finding him but, without his mentor or a casting room, the damage he can do is limited unless he decides to return to his robots.”

I wasn’t a fool and didn’t dance with joy but when we got up, I left the house with more confidence in facing Ryan.

We arrived in a neighborhood on the east side of Aurora, about a half mile from my childhood home. We arrived at the gray and white duplex owned by Paula Dennison. Ryan’s aunt lived in one side and her two daughters lived in the other.

I saw the drapes pulled aside, in the one on the right, as we got out of the car. From out of that door came a young woman who was almost the same age as me.

The brown-eyed brunette walked up to us, “My name is Betty Dennison. Ryan is my cousin. If you’re here to talk to my mom, all I ask is take it easy. We all remember Ryan as a boy, when he would visit, and none of us are taking his current actions well. He was a sweet kid but Steven Gilpatrick’s darkness infected him. When my Aunt Sylvia and Ryan would visit, Steven wouldn’t come with. As the years of their marriage progressed, we saw less and less of them.”

I said, “I hope you don’t take my presence as being in bad taste. I want to see him stopped before he commits another murder.”

“We understand and don’t hold you to blame. Ryan made his own choices, which we believe were influenced by his father. When my mom was forced to tell me, I buried myself in my room for two weeks because I couldn’t face people. I was going to Rangeview at the time too. I was a grade up from you and Ryan. I also wasn’t at the dance because I played soccer and we had a road game that day. When I got home, I was too tired to get dressed up and party.”

“We’ll try to help stop him before he adds to his crimes. I can’t guarantee Harold Cramer can bring him in unharmed.”

“We’ve been preparing to hear, he forced a shootout with police. We know he’s not going to stop unless someone stops him.”

Doriane and I went up to Paula’s door with her daughter. She let us in and introduced us to her mom.

Sitting on the couch was a brunette woman with gray sprinkling her hair, who was withering away in shame. She also had the grief for her sister piled onto it.

We made sure to be respectful and slow in our approach.

Doriane said, “Paula; I know this must be hard but we need to know, if there’s anything you would not share on camera, when you were interviewed.”

Paula’s dull eyes came straight to my face, “I’m so sorry. I could never have envisioned my nephew being capable of this. I can see why he would like you. Seeing the way you look and hearing what you’ve said on TV. You are a woman worth admiring but I wouldn’t wish this on anyone. Every name is burned into my mind. I insisted on paying for the memorial at the school myself. I want him stopped. If it can be done without harm that’s fine but mostly, I just want it to end. I want to ask him, how he could think, you’d ever find that behavior worth taking notice of.

“It had to be the influence of his parents; mostly Steven but my sister shares some too. You might find this shocking but I was the one who met Steven first. I had recently graduated from college and was sowing a few oats before taking on the responsibilities of adulthood. I was at a party and there he was. Steven was a fabulous looking man with a great smile and I was in the mood to be daring. I approached, after I had a drink in me. We talked and he swept me off my feet at first. We’d been dating for about two weeks when I started to see some of his dark nature. At first, I just thought he was having a few problems at work but he could be cruel and insulting. I broke things off with him but unfortunately by this time, I’d introduced him to Sylvia. She was a year younger and the things that turned me off, seemed to attract her.