"I'll find her," Orion promised as he strode past us and out the door.
Abby moved to follow, but I grabbed one of her shoulders. She looked back and I nodded my head at the assortment of injured dogs around us. "You need to stay with them."
She frowned. "But-"
"Trust me. Your son can do this," I insisted.
Abby sighed, but gave me a small smile and a nod. "You're right. After all, I'm his mom."
Now I knew where Orion got his modesty.
"We'll call you when we find something," I promised her before I hurried outside.
The darkness of the early morning didn't obstruct my werewolf eyes. Orion's shadowy figure disappeared around the back of the house. I hurried after him and followed his wide trail to the rear where I found the half-man himself standing beneath the window to his old bedroom. He was transformed enough that his clothes bulged, and his elongated snout was lifted in the air.
I followed his gaze up the plastic gutter pipe that ran up the corner of the house. A few bits of broken plastic sprinkled the snowy ground and a single pair of tracks led away from the house in a southeasterly direction toward the road.
I nodded at the footprints. "What's the holdup? Shouldn't we just follow those?"
Orion furrowed his bushy brow and shook his head. "No. Those are decoy tracks."
I arched an eyebrow. "Made by who?"
"I don't know." He got on all fours and sniffed around the area. I pressed my back against the wall as he passed by me. "Those tracks were created with magic. I can smell the wisps of spell. However, another set-" He turned around and sniffed along the back of the house between the tall pile of snow from the roof and the house itself. "- leads this way across the fields to the forest."
I pulled his leather bag from my coat pocket and held it up. "I'd suggest we split up, but you're running a little low on silver. That is, unless your mom's dogs want to donate some."
"We go together, but keep up," he commanded me.
I pocketed the bag and glared at him. "What's that supposed to-" He took off down the wall of the house and raced into the snow. "Damn it. . ." I muttered as I followed him as best I could in my human form.
I wasn't going to risk getting naked in this freezing weather.
CHAPTER 18
Orion sped through the snow. My only consolation was that he left a wide swath of trail for me to follow. The stillness of the dark morning made me glance over my shoulder more than once as I stumbled through the snow after him.
"You sure she went this way?" I called to him.
"Yes."
We reached the trees where the snow was less dense. I actually saw bare ground beneath some thick-branched pine trees. Orion paused and sniffed the ground. I took the time to search with my eyes.
Something glistened beneath a rotten log. I walked over and knelt in front of the fallen wood. A crack in the bark allowed me to see into the hollow log. I reached inside and grasped something hard and slick.
"Orion!" I called out as I pulled out my hand.
He trotted over to me as I opened my fist in front of me. In my palm was Toughs' necklace. My pulse quickened. I glanced up at Orion and saw my concern reflected in his face and eyes.
"Is she-?" I couldn't force myself to say it.
He shook his head. "I don't smell anyone else's scent here. She must have left the necklace on purpose."
I stared down at the necklace and furrowed my brow. "Damn it. What the hell is going on?"
Orion put a hand on my shoulder. His voice was low and soft. "We'll ask Toughs when we find her."
I took a deep breath and nodded. "Yeah, but has your sniffer found her?"
He looked up and nodded at the forest. "Through there. It looks like she might have gone to the Amazonian camp."
I snorted and stood. "Perfect. We'll end the night by visiting with a bang, at least if Mirela has anything to do with it."
"We did help them last time," he pointed out.
I pursed my lips and glanced down at the necklace in my hand. "Yeah. I hope they return the favor to Toughs. Hey!" Orion had scooped me into his arms.
He grinned down at me. "The snow's shallow enough here that I can carry you. Otherwise, your speed will mean we get there by the spring thaw."
I stuck my tongue out at him. "I don't trust my source until I've vetted it thoroughly, and I haven't vetted my fur coat enough to trust it as a heat source."
"Then hold on," Orion commanded.
I wrapped my arms around his neck as he sped through the woods. The trees flashed by as thin shadows as the chill wind whipped at my face. I huddled in Orion's arms as he crossed tens of yards in a few seconds.
"How did she get so far ahead of us?" I asked him.
He shook his head. "I don't know. Probably the same way she was able to make those decoy tracks."
"Magic?" I guessed.
Orion nodded. "Yeah."
I frowned. "I left that book with her. You think there anything really dangerous in there?"
"Did you look through it?" he asked me. I shook my head. "Then only the Librarian, Mab and Toughs know the answer to that question."
"And those three aren't talking," I added.
"Let's hope Mirela is," Orion replied.
We flew through the wilderness and soon came to the far outreaches of the Amazonian witch tribe. Even at a couple of miles away I could smell their incense candles. Orion set me down in a small clearing and looked around.
"Why'd we stop?" I asked him.
He looked straight ahead of us and pursed his lips. "We have company."
I followed the direction of his eyes. My shoulders drooped when I beheld the familiar glisten of a pestle and mortar. A half dozen well-clothes witches stepped out of the woods. Their mortars were at the ready with herbs. They needed only to stamp the mixture with the pestles.
"What do you want, Hunter?" the lead woman questioned Orion.
"An audience with Mirela," he replied.
She sneered at him. "Why should she grant you such a privilege?"
I snorted and crossed my arms over my chest. "Just a matter of preventing war between you guys and the town. Oh, and getting your mummified mummy back, too."
The woman lowered her pestle, and her followers mimicked her. "Very well, but do not assume you may your privilege any time you wish."
I saluted her. "Gotcha. Don't stretch our luck with the favors."
We followed our 'guides' through the woods. I expected them to lead us close to the bumpy dirt road that followed near the highway, but they led us deeper into the trees to a small group of cliffs. The cliffs were pocketed with stacks of caves that acted like primitive condos. Rickety-looking ladders and stairs led to the higher apartments. Fires burned brightly behind thin plywood walls that covered the entrances to the caves and the smoke escaped from holes drilled into the cliff.
Their horses stood in a corral set against the cliffs, and their rickety wagons were parked nearby. Groups of fur-bundled woman and girls stood around open fire pits in front of the caves and cooked some terrible-smelling food in large cauldrons. At least, I think it was food.
I glanced up at the shoddy workmanship and grimaced. "This place needs a man's touch." I got more than a few glares from the locals.
Mirela occupied a penthouse on the ground floor. Our guide opened the door and gestured for us to enter. We slipped inside and found ourselves in a cave ten feet high and twenty feet wide. The cave stretched back and rounded a right corner out of sight some fifty feet from the door.
A wood stove sat in the middle of the floor. Its pipe disappeared into the ceiling. A wall of curtains blocked off a square portion of the room. I could see two silhouettes inside the cloth-walled room. One of them stood and parted the curtains. Mirela. She frowned.
"What is the meaning of this?" she questioned us.
Orion glanced around her at a familiar figure on a plain bed. Toughs. "We've been looking for that girl. She ran away from us."
Mirela stepped out and dropped the curtain behind her. "It would appear she doesn't wish to be with you any longer. Our guards found her at the edge of our territory. She pleaded with them to take her in."
I took a step toward the makeshift bedroom. "Toughs? Come on, Toughs, we gotta get home."
The silhouette slipped off the bed and parted the curtains. Toughs frowned at us. "I have no home."
Orion moved to stand by my side. "We don't know where you came from, but we're willing to give you a home until you remember."
Toughs turned her face away and shut her eyes. She wrapped her arms around herself and shuddered. "I don't want to remember. There's something dark there waiting in my memories. Something I. . .something I can't stop."
Mirela put her hands on Toughs shoulders and smiled down at the teenager. "We will be your family."
I snorted. "I really doubt you're doing this for philanthropic reasons."
"What do you intend to do to her?" Orion questioned her.
The witch leader glared at us. "This girl you call 'Toughs' holds a great magical power within her. We intend to help her harness that energy for the good of the tribe."
I held out my hand to the teenager. "Come on, Toughs. You don't want to hang around with these ladies. They don't even have indoor plumbing. Besides, you know we're not going to let anything happen to you."
Her eyes flickered to me and she shook her head. "You don't know what you're talking about. You can't stop him. Nobody can stop him."
"Stop who?" Orion spoke up.
Toughs cast her eyes to the floor and clutched her temple as she shook her head. "I don't know. I can't remember. I just know I he can't be stopped. He'll win. He always wins."
Mirela patted her shoulders. "There is no need to force yourself to remember. We will help you recall your memory bits at a time."
"Do you even know how to fix her?" I wondered.
Mirela looked up at me and frowned. "She has lost her memory. It is easy enough to repair."
I folded my arms. "Prove it."
Toughs looked up at Mirela and shook her head. "Please don't. I don't want to remember.
Mirela smiled down at her. "You will feel much better when you have recalled at least your powers. It is for the safety of those around you." Toughs pursed her lips, but nodded.
Mirela walked over to a table set against the cave wall where she sat her pestle and mortar. Dried herbs and roots lay on the tabletop and hung from the wall. She plucked the ingredients from the variety of spices and tossed them into the mortar. The witch cupped the mortar in one hand and clasped the pestle in the other, and turned to Toughs.
"This is a spell that will grant you some of your memories, but not all. We wouldn't want you to be overwhelmed by them," she explained.
Toughs swallowed. "Is it. . .is it safe?"
Orion stepped closer to Toughs. "Don't do this, Toughs. It won't work."
Mirela glared at him. "My magic is not some parlor trick at which to scoff."
He shook his head. "I'm not doubting your abilities, but the High Wizard warned us Toughs was under a reverse spell."
Mirela scoffed. "I would not trust his senility to tell me the phase of the moon, much less on matters that concern magic. Besides, I sense no spell upon her."
Orion pursed his lips. "Nonetheless, it is there, and even you know mixing magics is dangerous."
Mirela strode over to Toughs and turned to face us. "We will let the girl decide. It is her memories, after all." She smiled down at Toughs. "What path will you travel? Will you trust me, or-" she nodded at us, "-them?"
Toughs glanced from Mirela to us. She bit her lower lip.
Orion smiled at her. "No matter which way you vote, we'll trust you."
She blinked at him. "Really?"
I rolled my eyes. "That is so corny, but I suppose he's right. We'll be behind you all the way, even if you do try to lose us again."
Toughs tilted her head to one side and smiled at us. "I think I'll go with you guys. Besides, I really do like indoor plumbing, and their cooking is awful."
Mirela glared at the girl. "You mean to forsake us so easily after we assisted in hiding you?"
Toughs half-turned to the witch and glanced at the bowl. "I don't think that concoction would've helped me, or anybody else. You forgot to put the garlic root in it."
Mirela blinked and looked down at her bowl. She started back. "I . . .I did." She returned her attention to Toughs. "But how do you know the spell? It was taught to me by only one-" Mirela's eyes widened, and her mouth flopped open and shut.
Orion frowned. "Who taught you the spell?"
Mirela's hands shook so bad she fumbled with her pestle and mortar. She set them on the table and hurried over to Mirela where she embraced the young girl. Toughs stiffened and looked over Mirela's shoulder at us with a fearful look in her eye.
"Some help here," Toughs wheezed.
Mirela pulled them apart to arm's length and smiled down at Toughs. "Forgive me for my impulsive behavior, but it has been so long since we met, Mab."
CHAPTER 19
I raised my hand. "Wait, Mab? As in the Mab?"
Mirela glanced over her shoulder at us and nodded. "Yes. Mab was once my teacher, mentor, and a good friend. That is, before she forsook us for the land of men and cut all ties with me."
I arched an eyebrow. "You guys just don't do anything halfway, do you?"
Mirela ignored my question and returned her attention to Toughs. She furrowed her brow and shook her head. "Though I do not remember her looking so young, especially as it has been some twenty years since we last met."
Toughs squirmed from Mirela's grasp and stepped back. "I don't know who you think I am, but I don't know you."
Mirela's face fell and she reached out toward Toughs. "You are Mab, once-leader of the Amazonian witches and the woman who raised me to my position as leader."
Orion stepped between them and looked to Mirela. "How can you be sure this is Mab?"
Mirela frowned at him. "Only one other knew the Memory spell I sought to cast. Such a spell is too dangerous to be given freely. It can remove memories as well as return them, and a person without their memories is no one." She glanced past him at Toughs. "Why would you cast such a spell on yourself, Mab? And to forget everything that made you so unique?"
Toughs stepped back and shook her head. "I-I don't know what you're talking about. I don't remember anything about you or your spells or anything."
"But you knew the ingredient was missing," Mirela persisted. "Only Mab would have known the mistake."
I glanced at Orion. "Are we talking about the same Mab I know?"
He nodded. "I believe we are, but I had no idea she was the leader of the Amazons."
Mirela whipped her head to him and narrowed her eyes. "She was no mere leader. She gathered us together from a few squabbling bands and united us as one. Without her we might have perished."
A cry came from Toughs. She clutched her head and stumbled back. "No! I don't want to remember! Stop making me remember!"
I pushed past Mirela and Orion, and grabbed Toughs' shoulders. "Toughs! No one is asking you to remember anything!" A light burst from my pocket. Toughs and I paused in our struggle as we both looked down at the bright illumination. I pulled the necklace from my pocket and held it in my open palm between us. It glowed with a dark purple light. "What the hell?"
Toughs' eyes widened and she slapped the necklace from my hand. "Why did you bring that?"
I drew my hand back and frowned at her. "Because it's yours. You dropped it in a tree trunk."
She shook her head. "I left that behind because he'll find me with that! He'll find me and-" The light from the necklace slipped over her form and soaked into her body. Her eyes rolled back and her legs buckled.
I caught her and lowered her to the bare floor. "Toughs! Toughs, are you-what the-?" My exclamation came when her body transformed in my arms.
Toughs grew taller and her hair trailed to
her rear. Her clothes stretched to fit her new body. The soft face of youth was replaced by a twenty-something woman.
"Mab!" Mirela gasped.
"That was the Mab you knew?" Orion asked her.
She nodded. "Yes."
I lowered her to the floor and looked over my shoulder at the pair. "Could someone please make a manual for living in this town? I could really use one right now."
Orion shook his head. "No manual would explain what's going on here."
Mirela bent down and picked up the necklace. She turned the trinket over in her hands and frowned. "Now I see you speak the truth about the High Wizard. This necklace is imbued with a powerful spell."
"He told us it was a reverse spell that was slowly being released," Orion told her.
She pursed her lips and nodded. "Yes, I can see that is true. And Mab-" She glanced at the older Toughs, "-she would certainly be able to produce such a spell, but for what purpose I cannot fathom."
Orion turned to me. "You said you wanted me to give you a motive for why Mel would do all of this."
I arched an eyebrow. "I don't think now is the time to bring that-"
"It's because of Mab." He nodded at Toughs. "The first time we met him he asked about her diner. He told us he'd heard it was really good, but who told him that?"
I shrugged. "Your aunt? Or maybe Troy? That's who told me."
Orion shook his head. "Aunt Snoopy is a gossiper, but Mab doesn't make it known that her food is really good. She actually makes it taste horrible for the people she doesn't know or doesn't like, and my aunt isn't one of her favorite people."
I stood and frowned. "So what you're saying is Mab hid herself from that guy by casting a spell on herself that made her both young and forget her memories?"
He nodded. "Yeah."
I half-turned so I could look down at Toughs. "So why did she make it slowly release?"
"Mab was a brilliant strategist," Mirela spoke up. A small smile curved onto her lips as she studied Tough's strained face. "She could never be beaten at chess. Perhaps Mab wished to bide herself some time for a reason known only to herself."
I folded my arms and furrowed my brow. "So how does the ship fit into all of this?"
"Does it have to?" Orion countered.
I nodded. "Yeah. It's the first weird thing that happened. Everything else followed it. Mab's disappearance. That Mel guy's appearance. Toughs and her book." I paused and glanced around. My gaze settled on Mirela. "Where is the book, anyway?"