Page 25 of The Witch & the Wolf

“Anything for me?” Arlo asked.

“No, generally, you don’t need to worry about psychic echoes and possession. You just need to worry about your own revived bodies trying to kill you.”

“That’s… reassuring,” Arlo said, though he did not look reassured. He narrowed his brilliant eyes at the teacher. “What can you do to help out?”

“I have somewhat of an affinity with curses and curse-breaking,” Z’Hana said. “If wherever we go is a little more deadly than just a room, I will protect you from it. One more thing – about Emilia Gold. It seems she went missing, as well, but her missing was considered less suspicious.”

“How so?”

“She was texting her family. They said at one point she mentioned she’d met someone and moved to Guatemala to be with them… hasn’t messaged in some time, but they seem to think she just eloped and wanted no contact.”

“Only texts? They never saw her face or heard her speak?” Arlo asked. “What about the school?”

“Yes, it’s suspicious. As for the school – Emilia had just finished her last year. So, there was no reason to be concerned when she didn’t return to the academy.”

The three of them regarded one another, and Holly knew none of them believed for a second that Emilia Gold had skipped off to Guatemala to be with some mysterious lover, given that the person she was apparently dating happened to be the dead Charles Suntooth.

His spirit… had mentioned betrayal. There were people potentially covering up something here. None of them knew if they’d find answers, but the only way to be sure was to explore the area and search for clues that no one had spotted since Suntooth disappeared down the well, assuming he had actually been in the well for fifteen years. That was another possibility to consider.

Standing by the well, Holly listened with her psychic senses, trying to get a feel for something unusual. She still sensed a psychic echo, the rushing sensation of falling, when she touched the bucket, which suggested to her that the body must have been there for some time.

“I do think he was in the well all this time. The place still has his strong psychic print. That wouldn’t happen if he were tossed in recently.”

Z’Hana noted the information. “That’s something. We have two options, no, three options, from what I can see.” She pointed to each option. “The well – we might need to determine if there is some odd space down there; the woods – we should look for something there; and the cemetery – a place where, sometimes, the more daring students go despite being told to keep out by the grave keepers.”

None of the options seemed particularly appealing to Holly or Arlo, especially the well. No one wanted to go spelunking down there.

Luckily, Z’Hana did have one more trick up her sleeve. She whispered to something in her palm, then released a shadowy distortion of the air, which slid out of vision.

The shadowy distortion returned to her hands a minute later. “No entrances,” she said. “We don’t need to go into the well; there will be no bodies in water, either.” She poked the No Drinking! sign that had been hastily placed near the well since their last visit.

“What did you do?” Holly asked.

“I made a messenger,” she said. “Usually, I use it to search for hidden curses, but it has other applications, too.”

Interesting, Holly thought.

They examined the well a little more. It was a dark, creepy place… like in Chloe’s text… and then her mother had mentioned a long, dark tunnel. Holly had the sinking feeling that the cemetery might end up being their next stop. Z’Hana placed a hand on her shoulder. “Are you sensing something from the cemetery?”

“Maybe. I mean, it’s a cemetery.”

“Fair.”

The cemetery was located next to the village church in a nearby field, spreading to the outskirts of town. When they reached it, the ground seemed to shift subtly. Grave moss grew around the stones and statues that marked the final resting places of the dead. On the one hand, Holly felt relieved that she wouldn’t have to go into some strange, enchanted woods where some weird fae creature might swap her soul with a garden gnome’s or something. On the other hand, the woods were… not here.

Already, psychic echoes whispered in the air, pressing at her from all sides. None was in focus, but this was a place of loved ones, sentimental objects and belongings, and not every spirit was calm and peaceful.

“Let me know what you sense,” Z’Hana said. “In the meanwhile, I will interview this local…” Z’Hana stalked over to what looked like one of the grave tenders, who was standing by a shed attached to the rear of the church, leaving Holly and Arlo to process everything alone.

“How are you feeling?” Arlo whispered to Holly, understanding this might be difficult.

“Uneasy,” she whispered back but tapped her wrist. “If this bracelet does what it’s supposed to do, however… I think I shall be fine.”

But Arlo wasn’t protected like she was and would be in more danger. She would much rather be spending her Sunday doing something other than investigating this. At the same time, though, it wasn’t like she got an opportunity like this every day, and it would give her an interesting story to tell.

She followed the whispers, all of them insubstantial, toward the wealthier part of the cemetery, where the large above-ground mausoleums were located. Nothing seized her interest, though, as she and Arlo stood by each one.

“This place absolutely gives me the creeps,” Arlo muttered, nudging her gently. She certainly agreed with him. They looked at each other, and he squeezed her hand. “At least you’re here.”

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