“Virgin sacrifices?” Jean asked.
“Something like that. Soul of the child of the blossom of the vine of the root of the land, etc., etc. Which, yes, would mean killing someone and using their life and blood to lock the town down. There would need to be a focus, something rare and solid, like a gem or stone, and it takes some searching to find something that won’t break beneath the pressure of the task. Although…” He turned a little, his face shifting to the north, as if he had just noticed something. “Huh. Never mind.”
“Nope. Back up and explain,” Myra said.
Brown finished with the tool box and stood with it in his hand. “Naw. Let’s not.” He dazzled the shiners, but Myra didn’t back down.
“You were talking about blood sacrifice and locking down Ordinary. I’d like to know what caught your attention in the middle of all that.”
He inhaled, held it for a second, then, very carefully not looking at me, but holding Myra’s gaze, answered. “I had the weirdest feeling that Chief Reed was here.”
The chill that swept over my damp skin wasn’t pleasant. “Dad?”
Brown still didn’t look my way.
“Where?” Myra’s question was far more useful than mine.
“In town. But it was a fleeting thing. Not…real. I know he’s gone.”
Dead. What he meant to say was that our dad was dead.
“Gabriel?” Myra asked.
“It was just a feeling. Nothing solid. I was thinking about the things that had protected this place, the people who had looked after it. Children of the blossom of the vine of the town–elf talk. You Reeds all fall under that title, chosen by gods to protect this place.
“He was a good man. I expected him to be around for many more years. Not that I think you all can’t take over in his place, but he was good. Of the light.”
“Yes he was,” Myra said.
I couldn’t blame Brown for thinking about Dad. He had left a big impression on this town, and I didn’t think anyone who knew him was still comfortable with his absence.
Just a few months ago I’d thought I’d heard him haunting me. I hadn’t felt him since then, but in that early morning after a restless night of sleep, it had felt real. He had felt real.
Then Dan Perkin had gone and blown up his rhubarb patch, a dead god had washed ashore, my childhood crush had dumped me, and I’d pretty much put that experience out of my mind.
“You sure you don’t want me to go through the lock system again?”
“Walk to door, door unlocks. Walk away, door locks. Push button to override. I think I can handle that.”
“Good! We like to supply simple solutions whenever we can.”
“Thanks for doing this on short notice,” I said.“Even though I still don’t like it, I’m sure you pushed other business aside for me. I appreciate that.”
“No problem, baby blossom.”
“Excuse me?”
“Elf talk,” he said with a serious nod. “Because I know you wouldn’t want to deny my elf traditions. It is also a part of my elf traditions to charge you double for rush jobs, baby blossom.”
“Convenient,” I drawled.
“Capitalism.” He grinned.
“Con artist.”
“Keep complimenting a man like that and I’ll never want to leave.”
“Want me to come up with some traditional names of my own I can call you?”
