“Let’s do it now,” I stated. With my hand on the handle of the door, I started to sit up when I paused. The bright ray of headlights suddenly switched off as I peered through the side view mirror, watching an SUV slowly turn into the corner of the secluded neighborhood. I didn’t have to look at Trevor to know he became deadly silent. We watched the vehicle cautiously drive past Ms. Norwood’s home before turning around.
“Who is this?” Trevor muttered. He gripped the back of my headrest and looked back before watching the SUV turn and pull directly in front of the target home. His phone vibratingbroke the tense silence as he quickly darkened the screen and answered it on speaker. “Yeah?”
“Uh…who the fuck is that pulling up to the house?” Vanessa asked. “We weren’t expecting anyone to come.”
“We don’t know. We’re watching in real time,” Trevor said as he kept looking back.
“Ace says don’t get out until he can get a clear shot through the cameras,” she said. I could hear the faint noises of my daughter in the background making her usual baby noises. She was comfortable at the moment and most likely content without her parents being there. A small smile cracked just the side of my mouth before flattening out as I adjusted my frames. “He cleared this area out for y'all. Not for some other people to just pull up and ruin the whole thing,” Vanessa stated, annoyed. “Ugh…We’ve waited long enough for this.”
“Be cool,” Trevor said. “We can still get the body tonight. Just wait.”
The doors opened on the other side facing the house so we couldn’t see who it was until the trunk popped open. I saw a tall dark-skinned man reach in the back for shovels and a black trash bag, and I knew they were here for the same thing.
“They’re going after the body!” Trevor snapped. “They’re going after–––Himora?!” He hissed. “Shit. This damn woman! Himora!?”
I was already halfway out of the car when I closed it shut behind me and began to walk. My short bob lightly breezed past my ears as I adjusted my frames and walked with a determined strut towards the group. The moment I saw the woman in the driver seat glaring at me as she jerked the shift gear into park before fumbling to unclick her seat belt.
“Bellamy?!” She shouted. Adjusting my frames, I watched four men come from around the back of the SUV to stare me down. A pair of wolves, a siren, and a vampire. The one with the hunched shoulders and wide gate of his legs must be Namir. He had the build of an athlete where he pushed his body beyond limits. His brother standing closely behind him was obviously the alpha male with the suspicious yellow gaze. The familiar siren smiled as he looked me over until his eyes went past me and Bellamy Holmes. I’ve only ever heard his voice and seen blurred pictures of him. The dark red eyes menacingly staring made it obvious he was of the same family as Trevor.
“Who the fuck told y'all to come?” Trevor asked as he walked up beside me. Before anyone could answer another ray of lights flashed over their faces as we all turned to see a sleek black car slowly pull up beside us. The windows were tinted but as soon as the passenger door opened, I stepped to the side. Three young ladies stepped out, wide eyed and naive in the face as they looked around.
“Ahhh,” one of the men said with a suck of their teeth. “What the fuck?! Souxie?!”
“You think we wouldn’t come for our girl?!” One of the women shot back. “You of all people should know better, Namir.”
“Ummm hello?!” The woman in the SUV let out with a wave of her hand. “Can somebody explain what the hell is going on and why are there students from Drew Collins here?! Namir you said–––”
“Professor Jones?!” One of the girls blurted out. “Is that you?!”
“Ahh shit,” Trevor groaned. “This is just…this is just fucking great.”
“I told Quan to specifically watch them!”
“Hold up, hold up,” Trevor let out as he held his hands out. “Let me get this straight. Are we all here for the body of the dead chick? All of us are here for the dead girl in the ground, right?”
“Not me personally, no,” another voice said from behind. A man walked up with blacked out eyes as he adjusted his pants by tugging them upright. “I’m merely here as a guide of some sort. Harvey Miller. First year. Mythical student at Drew Collins. Economics.”
There was a small pause before everyone suddenly began talking over one another. It only took a moment to figure out the dynamics and put names to faces. The girls I was not familiar with, but I recognized the voices of Coach Namir, the triton, Solomon King. His face was everywhere in the Wetlands. Seth, the alpha wolf and Bellamy with his girlfriend, Professor Birdie Jones. I can only assume the deceased girl was attached to the girls who came, and she brought along the curious incubus who stood out in more ways than one.
Carefully, I weighed the many options of this night. I stood there in the center of everyone talking over each other before giving a small nod in approval. Without another word, I turned and began walking off towards the house. It was mindless chatter and bickering just to see who would dominate a pointless conversation. I hadn’t realized I was being followed until the one with the light eyes kept up with my pace.
“This was my roommate,” she said as I stepped up to the door. “We were all there the night she died. I…I planned on talking with her or at least attempting to communicate with her to see if she could help us find Maggie, our missing friend.”
I turned to look at her. Just a little taller than me with her petite frame, she managed a fake and quick before masking her emotions.
“Himora Clarke,” I said with a nod. “Head of Mortal Affairs.”
“Souxie Lafayette, second year Spiritual student. Study of history and magic around the world. Originally studied necromancy but my Aunties taught me mostly what I know today. I…” looking towards the house. “I’m not sure how to break the spell but I can at least try and talk with her.”
I looked back to see the rest slowly coming up towards the house as Trevor stepped in front of them all to stand beside me.
“We’re all here for the same thing.” I turned back to face the door. “Please act accordingly.”
“The dad said he would leave a back door unlocked for us,” Namir said. It took only a second for the door to unlock after knocking three times before being hit with the smell of burnt chocolate chip cookies. It was dark with the only light coming from the stove in the kitchen, giving off a soft warm glow. I stepped inside with Trevor coming right behind me. The energy began to shift as everyone piled into Cynthia Gloria Norwood’s home, navigating through the house in the dark. Whatever egos that were being tested outside was left at the door. This house was temporarily a dead zone after having access to the grid used by mythical government agencies from the Underground. No calls, no phones, no Wi-Fi, no cameras. It did not exist at the moment.
I slid the back door open and stepped out into the small backyard. To the untrained eye in the dark, the green lush grass looked even and healthy. Even with the back porch light coming on, there was no sign of any tampering of the grass.
“How do we know for sure she’s even buried here?” One of the girls asked.
