Page 29 of Calling Quarters

We almost looked nothing alike, but I knew what Hazel meant almost immediately. She held the same wanderlust gaze that I'd noticed in my own reflection since arriving here. A hope that hadn't been stomped out yet, though I was right on the edge of losing it. Seeing her with the same expression seemed to breathe life back into that part of me, encouraging me to keep going.

“She loved that sweater. She made it herself in our high school sewing class. I designed a whole line of them after she passed to honor her. It's still my best-selling product.” Hazel's watery eyes rolled to the ceiling. “That's what I get for teasing her about it every day.”

She moved onto the next few photos of them doing random things together, like lying on the beach that I assumed was on Remy's property, and standing in front of a Tudor-style home in formal dresses. My father stood beside her in that one, his arm draped protectively around her shoulders. They looked at each other with goofy, lopsided grins while Hazel glared at her date on the other side. The guy in the photo looked familiar, though I couldn't figure out why until Hazel's finger tapped on his suited chest.

“Ugh, your dad's best friend, Kyle. They tried every trick to force us together, but we hated each other. He always held a torch for Asher, anyway. To this day, I can't stand him. He's the town's sheriff, though he had no business going into the police academy after all the stuff they pulled as kids.” Her voice dropped and the smile fell from her lips. “After your dad left, I guess he was just lost. Trying to right a wrong that wasn't his to right.”

I had no idea what that meant, but I sensed I wouldn't get an answer from her. Instead of prying, I gave her a private moment to collect herself while I stared down at the picture again. That was the officer from the day I first got to town. His shiny black hair had been cropped and his chest and shoulders filled out, but there was no denying it was him. In all the time I've spent in town, I'd yet to see him again. I wondered why that was.

“We were sorry to hear about him and Asher. Such a shame that both were gone too soon.” She shifted in her chair just slightly, enough to glance around her back, as if she were checking to see if anyone was listening.

The only other people in the shop were the workers behind the counter and each of them was leaning on the counters, staring into their phones. “I’m surprised Asher didn’t return sooner after Mason’s accident. She was always such a firecracker. We were sure she’d be coming into town with guns blazing to avenge his and Bonnie’s deaths. They were thick as thieves. I guess I didn’t consider that she was a new parent in a way.”

And there it was: the suspicious look on her face and matching shifty behavior of every single person who mentioned my family’s deaths. It was the exact reason I’d come to Beacon Grove in the first place. This town held secrets about my family that none of its inhabitants wanted to spill. They may have been infected with distrust toward one another, but their jaws remained fused shut when it came to talking about their business with an outsider.

Unfortunately for me, I was still considered to be on the outside despite the deep ties that rooted me here.

Hazel’s face told me more than her mouth ever would. In those few sentences, she confirmed that my parents’ deaths were somehow tied to the people of this town. That my father’s “accident” wasn’t much of an accident at all. And that Aunt Asher would go to great lengths to ensure his and my mother’s passings weren’t in vain. She was just held back from her plans by me, and by the time I was old enough to be on my own, they came for her, too.

“I’m sure it’s a hard subject for you to talk about,” Hazel awkwardly went on when I didn’t have much to say aside from a stiff nod.

She leaned back into her chair and waved away the emotions that were taking over her face again. “Anyway, I hope that I was able to provide you with some comfort. I miss your mom every day, but it’s nice to have a piece of her back in Beacon Grove.”

“It has. Thank you for bringing these.” I motioned to the pictures still sprawled out on the table between us.

The rest of our meal went on without incident. I found her to be an extremely easy person to get along with and our conversation flowed once we got past the topic of my family. She reminded me so much of Blaire with her odd views on things and uncaring attitude toward the people around her. When it was time to leave so she could reopen her shop, I wasn't ready to say goodbye and she made me promise we'd meet again soon. Not soon after the bell above the door rang with her departure, Julia and her friends surrounded my table.

After days of refusing to offer comment, Mayor Douglas has officially confirmed that the town has no plans to continue with this year’s Mabon festival.

"I'm confident that Beacon Grove can recover from the damage we've sustained from this horrific event and come out the other end even stronger," Douglas states at the most recent impromptu meeting.

Business owners are still reeling from their loss of income and wondering what the city plans to do in order to help them recoup their losses.

"I don't see how they can make this decision without consulting with the townspeople first. Now, we're left floundering and figuring how to make ends meet," Lisa Golden, owner of the Watchtower Tavern comments after the mayor's official statement.

Many are still wondering what happened at the Mabon kick-off and why the Quarters were unable to protect the town from this horrific attack.

When asked about how the Quarter families are handling this colossal disappointment, Rowan Wildes insisted, "You can be rest assured that we're handling this issue internally and working day in and day out to ensure our sons are well-equipped with the necessary tools to avoid this from happening in the future."

Wildes went on to add that while they sort the matter out amongst themselves, he and the other three elder Quarters have stepped in and taken over the Quarter tasks until further notice.

Chapter 17

Remy

The woods behind the Easton property were the safest place for us to talk without interruption. Enzo made us wait until he could draw up a soundproofing spell. It finally lifted with some help from us to ensure no one overheard in the case that we were followed. He should have been able to handle the magic himself, especially being in his own element, but all he could manage were a few wisps of wind that stirred up the fallen leaves surrounding us and then died away.

It was proof that we were weakening by the second while our fathers capitalized off us. None of us shamed him when he admitted how difficult it was for him and with the protection spell in place, we released our grim thoughts.

“We’re fucked,” Rhyse began, taking a seat on a fallen log. His large body made the rotted wood creak and crack a little.

“We don’t know that,” Lux soothed. “Something is definitely syphoning our magic from us, though.” He stood with his arms crossed against his chest. His usually bright cerulean eyes drooped with fatigue.

All of us looked like worn-down and tired versions of ourselves, aging beyond our years when we should have been enjoying what our fathers promised would be the prime of our lives.

“I’m not doing any more of these training sessions with my dad,” Enzo started, his feet pacing the forest floor. Leaves and sticks crunched beneath his shoes, practically turning to dust against them. “They’re obviously gunning to take their roles back. It has to be them syphoning.”

“We don’t know that. Rayner has been picking up momentum with the Movement. People are pissed about Mabon. It could have been them practicing with dark magic that night to weaken us. Our fathers are just opportunists," Lux reasoned.

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