Induction, T.K. Eldridge [read aloud books txt] 📗
- Author: T.K. Eldridge
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I pulled in and turned the car around so we could unload more easily. Knowing who was on guard duty meant we could use magic without worrying who saw us, so I just opened the trunk and grabbed a bag, then opened the back door. The rest of the groceries followed me up the steps, across the porch, and into the kitchen, floating about a foot above the ground. I had everything line up against the wall before I started putting stuff away.
“Sid, I’m back,” I yelled, hearing her walking around upstairs. I heard her race down the stairs and skid down the hall.
“Please tell me you got stuff we can eat tonight?” Sid said as she stopped in the doorway.
“Go light the grill and I’ll do these steaks. Oven fries to go with them sound good?”
“Oh gods, yes. I’ll help put stuff away once the grill is heated up,” Sid said as she headed out onto the porch. A nice gas grill sat under a cover and it wouldn’t take her long to get things going. I opened cabinets and the fridge and got stuff put away while the oven heated. My sis had done a great job of cleaning the place. Every surface gleamed and the faint hint of lemon barely tickled my nose. Yeah, we had to be careful what stuff we used. Shifter noses burned with some of the mundane favorite cleaning supplies.
About an hour later we had plates of food and a beer each at the table on the porch. It was a little chilly, but the cleaning smell still needed more airing out. “Candace and Stefano are walking the perimeter tonight. Benny sent them. He heard about Mom and Dad and was worried for us.”
“That’s sweet of him,” Sid said, half her steak already gone before she slowed down eating. “Thanks for doing the shopping.”
“Thanks for doing the cleaning,” I told her. “So, tonight we eat, drink and sleep. Tomorrow morning, we plan our next steps and see what we can learn?”
“Sounds good to me. My brain is numb, and I really needed food. I should know better than to burn up magic without enough fuel in me, but I did. Now I’m feeling it.”
We had both learned early that using magic was no different than using muscle. It burned calories and needed fuel as well as focus.
“Then eat up. I bought chocolate almond ice cream for dessert.”
Sid leaned over and kissed my cheek. “Best brother ever.”
The next morning, I made a scramble of leftover fries, eggs, bacon, and cheese. We sat at the table in the kitchen and inhaled coffee until our brains were sufficiently lubricated. I refilled our mugs and leaned back. “Okay, so we’ve got until tomorrow at sunset. I’m sure it’s a trap, so we’ll need to figure out how we’re going to play it.”
“We need to make sure Stumpy doesn’t show up. Maybe we can get a few of Benny’s people to be around? They wouldn’t stand out. Not like cops would, anyway,” Sid said.
“What if it was shifters that took them?”
“And what if it were witches? I’ve been thinking about this and the one piece that makes absolutely no sense is the absence of the SPD. What if it were someone in the SPD that took them and is trying to start a war?”
“It wouldn’t be the first time they tried this if you believe Grandpa Boudreau’s stories.”
“Or what Grandma Fortin said about the witches, either.”
“So, what are we? The cause or the curse?” I asked.
“The cause of the curse, maybe?” Sid said.
“Ha ha, not funny. But I think you might be right with that. I think we should call Grandpa B. See what intel he might have.”
“You think he’d tell us anything he knows? You know how pissed he is that we went to a mundane college instead of the paranormal academy.”
“Yeah, I know he was pissed, but he was pretty generous at Christmas. He told us to look him up after finals to talk about what we wanted to do after graduation. I think he was hoping we’d go to PPA after college.” I told her.
“I’ll be honest, Sin. I thought about it. Even if I don’t ever serve in the SPD, I will at least understand what people are talking about at family gatherings, right?”
I laughed a bit. “Sometimes it’s a challenge to translate what they’re talking about. Let’s see what Grandpa says and what happens tomorrow.”
“Sure. You call him. He likes you better. You don’t have boobs,” Sid said and got to her feet, collecting our plates. “More coffee?”
I snorted into my coffee, choking a bit at Sid’s comment. “I know, he has some misogynistic tendencies. Just take a deep breath and smile pretty?” I knew I deserved the swat with the dishtowel she gave me, but it was so worth it. “More coffee, please,” I asked, nicely, as I pulled my cell out of my pocket. “Want me to call him on speaker?”
“Sure, don’t tell him I’m listening, though. I’ll just be quiet.”
The phone rang three times and James Sinclair Boudreau, also known as Grandpa B, answered with a “Sin, mah boy, where the hell are ya? You and your sister somewhere safe?”
“Yes, Grandpa, we’re safe. Up at your cabin, actually.”
“Good. Benny called and told me you’d been by. I wasn’t sure if you were still there.”
“Yeah, we’re both here. Our house is a crime scene,” I told him.
He hesitated before a heavy sigh filled the space. “I heard about that, son. I’ve been doing some checking. Got a couple of my men going over the place and seeing what information they can get from BPD. Unofficially, of course, but I’m not going to let my son and daughter-in-law’s disappearance go unsolved.”
“Did you hear about the note on the door?” I asked.
Sid fidgeted, then left the room to get more coffee.
“I heard. You’re not thinking of going, are you?”
“Of course, Grandpa. But not alone. Could we get some of your friends to be in the park and not look like they were on a stakeout or something? I’m also going to ask Benny to send a couple of shifters to back us up.”
“Make sure he sends the smart ones. Not that idiot, Joey.”
Sid snorted laughter from the kitchen, then turned on the water to muffle the noise.
“What was that noise, Sin?” Grandpa asked.
“Just Sid in the kitchen. She’s washing up after breakfast,” I told him.
“I’ll be there tomorrow,” Grandpa said.
“Uh.no Gramps. That’s not a good idea. We have a theory…” I started.
“You have a theory. You and that sister of yours?”
“Hey, you don’t have to say it like that.” Sid yelled as she came into the dining room.
“I knew she was listening,” Gramps said, chuckling.
“Quit acting like we’re idiot toddlers, Grandpa B. You do realize we are both about to graduate summa cum laude, right?” Sid said.
“Okay, okay, both of you, relax. We’re wondering if a shifter or a witch is behind this, trying to create another war. That’s why we’re asking you and we’re going to ask Grandma Fortin to send a few of her best so we’ve covered both angles,” I said.
There was silence for a few moments, then Grandpa spoke. “That’s smart. Well, I’ll send mine and you get Alicia to send hers and hopefully, we’ll get your parents back safely tomorrow.”
“Thanks, Grandpa,” we both said, almost in unison.
“I love you two. We’ll talk after this is all settled tomorrow, got me?”
“Got it, Grandpa,” I said and disconnected the call.
“Gods, he is such a prick, but I love him anyway,” Sid said as she got the pot of coffee and refilled our mugs.
I drank some coffee while Sid cut up some fruit and set it on a plate for us.
“Want me to talk to Benny?” Sid asked around a mouthful of grapes.
“No, I’ll take Benny. You take Grandma Fortin.”
“Ugh, thanks so much for that.”
“Hey, I take the ones that like me, and you get the one that loves you best.”
Sid lifted her mug and toasted me. “Plans are made. We’ll get Mom and Dad back. We’ll get our lives back. We’ll get to go home, and I’ll go to law school and you’ll go to med school and it’ll all be good.”
Yeah, something had me thinking that a whole lot of that statement was wishful thinking.
Sid
We cleaned up the cabin, not even sure if we were going to be staying here tonight or just coming back to pack up the perishables and head home. I made sure all my clothes were back in the bag and checked that the gear we’d pulled out of the house was stored in the safe. Yes, this cabin had a safe. Grandpa had built a ten by ten foot trap door cellar room that was accessed through the floor in the linen closet. I wanted my silver dagger and it was in the bag of stuff I’d put down in the safe. I climbed down the ladder, headed over to the row of bags, and started digging through to find where I’d stuffed it in the rush to get out of the house. It was stuck inside one of my sneakers, so I pulled it out, then tucked it in the back of my jeans. As I zipped the bag shut, I saw the bag that Sin had pulled out of Dad’s car. I went to pull it closer and failed, so I just pulled it open and almost fell over.
“Sinclair Boudreau, get your ass down here,” I yelled as I stared at a bag full of weapons. Guns, swords, daggers, and what looked like a taser or two.
Sin slid down the ladder and grinned. “I see you found our backup backup.”
“What the everlovin’ fuck? Dad had these in his car?”
“Yeah, we used some of them out at the range last weekend. Didn’t think the cops needed to find them and I knew where Dad had stashed them in a hidden compartment under the back seat.”
“But the cops searched Mom and Dad’s cars.”
“The BPD searched. They did a quick look through and moved on. It was pretty clear our parents were the victims and the cars hadn’t been used in the commission of the crime. No need for a deep dive.”
“Oh, right. The BPD searched. I forgot.” Sarcasm dripped from my words. “Anyway, why the armory? I thought the folks considered weapons the last gasp after everything else was tried?”
“We don’t know what we’re dealing with. If it’s witches, shifters, both, neither…who can tell?”
“So, a gun and a blade just in case?” I clarified.
“Yeah, silver blade, silver bullets. They’ll work against both. Shifters with silver, of course, and blades and bullets hurt witches whether silver or steel.”
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