Autumn Calling (19 page)

“I suppose we could do that, but where could
we possibly go where there would be no one to overhear or see
us.”

“I know of a place. It’s in the woods off a
fire road the rangers use. I’ll send you a map and a text with
instruction on how to get there.”

“Okay, and when do you want to meet up?”

“Let’s say, before sunrise tomorrow? Say,
4:45 a.m.”

“Ugh…I’m not a morning person,” Summer
admitted.

Autumn laughed. “Me neither. I’ll bring
coffee.”

“Better be a lot of coffee,” Summer
said.

“It’s a deal.”

“Okay…see you then.”

“Thanks, Summer.”

“No problem.”

* * *

True to her word, around noonish, Autumn
sent a map and directions to what looked like an abandoned cabin in
the woods, maybe an old ranger shack. She’d definitely have to use
the flying tricycle again to get to this place, since her bike
didn’t have mountain bike tires.
It doesn’t look too far at
least as the crow flies
—then she shuddered at the pun.
Stupid birds
, she thought.

The talk all around the office that day was
Tori’s grand opening. It was going to take an incredible amount of
will power to stop Summer from attending to keep up appearances
with the Macabres that there was no relationship anymore between
the to friends. People in the office whispered around her trying
not to involve Summer in the conversation, since they all knew they
had a falling out. It was horrible keeping up the facade. The only
saving grace was that Tori, herself, knew it was a farce and that
in itself had taken a load of stress off Summer. Just being able to
talk to Dr. Stuart, Aunt Myrtle, and the others about Tori, made a
huge difference, but it didn’t make it any easier in public.

Dr. Stuart had noted how the office chatter
had been wearing on her and when the office closed he asked her to
stay for a bit after hours. He told the rest of the employees that
he and she had some new surgical techniques to discuss with some
new fangled sutures that had just been introduced. That way he
didn’t have to take her to Pizza Pit where everyone would assume
there was an ‘issue’ or a ‘reprimand.’

What he suggested to her that night was an
incredible covert idea even to a seasoned spy might envy.

“So I bought these little spy cams,” Dr.
Stuart said revealing a generic white cardboard box from his desk
drawer. He pulled out what looked to be a polka dotted silk tie
from the little box.

“Looks like a tie,” Summer argued.

“It is, but inside it is a little camera.
And this is the remote to control it,” he said pulling out a fob
that looked like it might be for a car door alarm and lock. Summer
inspected the tie. She couldn’t see any camera what so ever.

“Where’s the wires?”

“It’s wireless, neat, huh?” then he pressed
a button on the fob and Summer’s face appeared on the computer
screen next to her.

“That is cool…and a little creepy too.”

“Isn’t it?”

“But I don’t get it, what’s this for?”

“The opening of Tori’s store. I know you
can’t be there so I’m going to record it and you can sit here and
watch it while it’s going on.”

“Real-time?”

“Yes. I bought the upgrade package,” Dr.
Stuart said with a proud smile.

“This is so awesome. I can’t believe you did
this for me. Thank you.”

“No problem, you know what a gadget geek I
am anyway. This gave me an excuse to play with a new toy AND help
you too.”

Summer jumped up and hugged the doctor.

Though she couldn’t interact with her best
friend on such a big day, she could watch as an observer and see
all that would happen. All the employees were going so there was no
chance of them knowing that she was secretly at the office watching
everything. Maybe she’d even bring soda and popcorn—
like movie
night in the graveyard last summer
, Summer remembered.

* * *

After work, Summer met up with Hunter to
discuss the little insight Morti had given to
Project Egg
as
Summer now called it.

“Sorry, Morti wasn’t exactly helpful,”
Hunter said.

“To his credit, he did give us information,
we just don’t know how accurate it is anymore, but then that was a
given when we knew he hadn’t been in the house in a long time. It’s
just that every conversation with him is so…”

“Difficult?”

“Yes. Exactly, and stressful as well as
exhausting.”

“He does have a way about him, doesn’t
he?”

“You could put it that way,” Summer smiled
covering her anxiety with a little humor.

Hunter nodded smiling as he examined the
blueprints.

“I was looking at these yesterday,” Summer
said. “I noticed there are strange markings here, she pointed to
the outer wall by the chimney near the corner room they were all
focused on, “and here.” She flipped to the next page which showed
the first floor layout.

“It doesn’t appear to be a window, or a door
according to all the other symbols used.”

“You’re right. I’m not sure what they are?
Of course with all this new fangled technology being wired into our
homes and lives, it could be anything.”

“True, but wiring wouldn’t be that big.”

“Good point. Maybe a wall safe.”

She nodded, “Yes. That’s would make sense. I
was hoping to find a legend somewhere, but maybe they didn’t give
me all the pages. I mean, I wasn’t specific about what I wanted. At
the time, I just wanted a layout of rooms, but this. This is
something. If it is a safe, it would be a pretty good assumption
the egg would be inside, don’t you think.”

“Possibly, though that makes me very
sad.”

“Sad? Why? We may have found what we’re
looking for.”

“You’re right of course, and that is good
news, however, there’s a little dragon inside and its being hidden
away inside a dark, cold steel box.”

“I didn’t think of it from that
perspective,” Summer admitted. How very sensitive and charming of
Hunter to be so concerned about the feelings of the baby. “Guess
I’ve been so caught up in finding Project Egg that I forgot it is
not just an egg but a living being.”

“It’s easy to forget, when we’re all so busy
trying to solve our own problems, but sometimes it is advantageous
to step back and look at the big picture for a moment.”

“Absolutely. That’s a great way of thinking
about this whole situation.”

“Do you mind if I keep the blueprints? At
least for a little while, I’d like to study them a little closer,”
Hunter asked.

“Sure. Just let me take a picture of the
symbols I found.”

“Okay, but why?”

“Same reason. Hopefully I can find someone
who can tell me if that symbol is used as a wall safe or something
else. I can also go to city hall again and see if maybe I didn’t
get all the pages. Maybe the legend is on some missing page.”

“Great idea.”

Summer pulled out her phone and took a
couple snap shots of the symbol and the title block for reference
for city hall.

“How hard do you think it will be to get
inside undetected?”

“Damn near impossible,” Hunter said.

“Hmmm, well at least it’s not
impossible.”

“If nothing else, Summer, at least you have
a positive attitude,” Hunter commented rubbing her shoulder in
appreciation.

“Let me know if you come up with
anything?”

“You do the same,” Hunter answered.

“Definitely.”

The alarm clock buzzed annoyingly at 4:05
a.m. Sully groaned his disapproval and rolled over on the bed with
his head on the pillow. “Some friend you are,” she said to him
pulling back the covers and sitting up. After a moment she shuffled
to the bathroom still half asleep. Flipping the light switch on she
squinted at its blinding brightness. She looked at herself in the
mirror smoothed out a crazed cowlick that made her hair stand up
taller on one side than the other—one of the many noted complaints
she had about herself.

After pressing on it several times in order
to tame it, she realized it was futile to continue. She splashed
water on her face and brushed and pulled back her hair into a long
wavy ponytail attached with an elastic band. She inspected the rest
of her face as she brushed her teeth noting a white head on her
nose that simply had to go.

When she was done in the bathroom she
returned to the darkness of the bedroom and the snoring dog that
now lay diagonally on the bed taking up the warmth where she had
recently been. She shook her head at the mammoth hellhound and
pulled on a pair of jeans and a wool sweater. Slippered feet padded
to the kitchen to start a pot of coffee and have a bagel before
leaving only to find Daniel there standing in the kitchen leaning
against the sink.

“Good morning, beautiful.”

Her hand went straight to the zit she’d just
popped on her nose. “This early in the morning, No. Beauty takes a
little work.”

“Not for you,” he said slipping his hands
around her hips then up her back and ending in a hug.

He was warm and strong and all she wanted to
do was melt into him and fall back into a pleasant slumber, but she
had made a promise and pulled herself away from him.

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” he asked
as he watched her prepare the coffee pot to start its dribble of
hot water onto the aromatic grounds of coffee.

“No, but she seemed….troubled, or saddened.
I’m not sure which. I guess if I knew her better, I’d know.”

“That’s my point. You don’t know her very
well, this could be a trap,” Daniel warned.

“Is it?” she turned to him. He gave her a
look she was learning meant ‘please don’t ask.’ “Right. My hope is
that showing her good faith, will, in turn, be paid back one
day.”

“And?” he pushed.

“And, I want so badly to believe I can trust
my own sister. Maybe she’s feeling that too and this is how we are
to accomplish that.”

“You are a dear heart, Summer.”

“Not sure about that,” she said blowing into
her coffee cup and taking a sip.

“Would you like me to accompany you?”

“Are you kidding? I’d love that, BUT, that
would probably defeat the purpose.”

His eyebrow raised in agreement.

“Are you nervous?”

“Oh, yeah,” she said covering her mouth
after taking a bite of bagel.

“You’ll be fine,” Daniel said encouraging
her.

“You’ll be there if something goes
awry?”

“I’m always with you. You need only say my
name to see me.”

“That is a great comfort,” she said checking
the time. “I better go or I’ll be late.”

“Be safe, Summer.”

“I’ll do my very best,” she said as he
pulled her in close for a lingering toe curling kiss. With a smile
on her lips, she grabbed her phone and the cloaking stone from the
glass jar in the cupboard.

He stood watching her from the doorway of
the cottage as she made her way to the barn and the tricycle
within. She turned and waved over her shoulder to him.

* * *

Sailing through the icy air, the wind cut at
her face like glass shards. Summer practically fell off the seat of
the flying tricycle when she thought she heard the caw of a crow,
but nothing came of it and she wondered if it was her mean-spirited
mind playing tricks on her. She checked her GPS several times
before floating down into the woods towards a small cabin well
hidden by shrubs and trees. She pushed the trike the last fifty
feet or so since the tires could barely handle the deep litterfall
and duff.

A single light shone from the tiny window,
letting Summer know she was in the right place. She deposited the
cloaking stone into a pouch she hung from the handle bars making
the bike invisible. She went to the door of the cabin and knocked
lightly.

Summer heard a metal latch disengage and the
door squeaked open revealing the dark haired woman she had shared
her time in the cave with.

“Summer?”

“Yes.”

“Come in.”

“Thanks,” Summer said entering the small
abode and rubbing her hands together for a little friction
warmth.

“Did you have any problem finding the
place?” Autumn asked.

“Not at all. Your directions were perfect
though I still used a GPS.”

“Good,” Autumn said pacing and rubbing her
hands together.

“Are you okay?” Summer asked sitting down on
an ancient looking couch.

“Yes. No. Not really.”

Summer patted the seat next to her inviting
her to sit. “What’s this all about? What can I possibly do to
help?” she engaged the nervous looking Autumn.

“I should have written down some of the
questions I have, because now I’m blank.”

“Autumn…take a deep breath. Sit down. Tell
me how is Vixen doing.”

“Vixen? Oh so much better. I can’t ever
repay you for all you’ve done for that crazy girl. I swear she’s
going to waste her nine lives before she reaches three.”

Summer smiled. It had worked. Dr. Stuart had
always told Summer that when you’re around someone who is very
nervous or anxious, bring up a subject near and dear to their heart
to break the ice or just to set them at ease. Autumn looked much
better after talking about Vixen.

“Uh ha, I see what you did there. Very
clever.”

Summer raised and eyebrow at smiled a
little.

“Thanks, Summer. Like I said on the phone, I
just feel like I don’t know who to trust anymore.”

“I feel the same,” Summer admitted.

“This whole ‘kill all the Midnights’ seems
so archaic. Why must I be the combatant for something I’m not sure
I even understand.”

“Exactly. What is it between these two
families that have made them so bent on killing one another. I get
that there have been devastation on both sides brought on by the
other, but violence doesn’t solve the problem; it just brings on
more violence.”