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“Nothing. She’ll never do anything again. January, Daya was murdered during the night.”
CHAPTERTWELVE
“Murdered? You’ve got to be kidding me.” I started to pace, my nerves on edge. “You think Mills did it?”
“Who else? He must have gotten what he wanted out of her and decided she was disposable,” Rowan said. “I had my issues with her, but I certainly never wished this on her.”
A thought struck me. “Do you think Mills saw me taking a picture and thought she ratted him out? Was I responsible for her death?”
Rowan hesitated, then said, “I can’t be certain, but honestly? I doubt it. Don’t blame yourself. Mills has his own agenda, and that agenda is written by the Covenant of Chaos. Here’s the thing. Millie said that Daya was in a part of the Mystic Wood where the Covenant of Chaos practiced rituals to bring the old gods of chaos back to this realm. Millie thinks Daya was killed as part of a sacrifice. I’m heading out there. Do you feel up to meeting me there? The cops are there, obviously. But since you can speak to the dead…”
“I might be able to speak to Daya if her spirit’s around. I’ll come. Hank can drive. And he’s good out on the astral so he can protect me if need be.” The last thing I wanted to do was head out to the Mystic Wood, but this was serious. I was on the hit list, and no doubt so was Rowan. If Mills had killed Daya, he wouldn’t hesitate to kill us.
“I’ll text you the coordinates. See you in a bit.”
I hung up and turned back to Hank and Killian. “Hank, we need to head out. Daya Crombie was murdered in the Mystic Wood, and Rowan believes it was Mills McFarland from the Covenant of Chaos who did it. Can you come with me?”
Killian cleared his throat. “You’re not going anywhere without me.”
Worried, I frowned. “I hate to leave the house alone. What if he decides to target it?” I glanced over at Xi and Klaus. “Let me call Ari and ask her to keep an eye on it while she’s next door.” I called Ari and explained what was going on. She promised to check on Killian’s house from time to time while she was looking at the damage at my house. Satisfied, I grabbed my coat and jammed my feet into a pair of snow boots that would navigate the woodland easily enough.
“Hank, can you drive?” I asked. “My head’s still hurting.”
“And I was instructed not to drive at all until the doctor clears me tomorrow,” Killian said.
“I’ll drive, but I don’t think we can all fit comfortably in the front of my truck,” Hank said, holding up his keys. “I mean, we probablycanfit but…”
“We’ll take my SUV. Here.” Killian tossed him the keys and Hank caught them midair. Once we were in the driveway, I stopped to get my portable magic kit from my car and tucked it in the back of Killian’s SUV. I rode shotgun and Killian rode in the back.
Hank eased out of the driveway and we were off. I input the directions Rowan had texted me into Jerica and we were off.
* * *
The stripof woods where we had encountered Mothman was as creepy as ever. The gloom of the day clouded over even more as we approached the ancient trees. The Mystic Wood had been alive when the Native peoples first entered the area. While the forest wasn’t quite as old as the old growth over on the peninsula, it was close to it.
The trees closed in like a shroud. Even during the day, the melancholy mood of the area surrounded us, bringing an unnatural quiet to the forest. Everything darkened, and even the shadows seemed deeper. I shivered, vaguely remembering my encounter with Mothman. So much of it was still a blur, and the feelings surrounding that blur weren’t comfortable. It was like trying to remember some odd medical procedure during which I’d been unconscious, and not being able to make anything out except that I’d undergone some procedure against my will. I seldom talked about that time—neither did Ari. She’d had the same thing happen to her, or at least we assumed the same thing, and she had the same short-term memory loss I’d experienced.
Ahead, in a turnout on the side of the road, we saw Millie’s car, the medical examiner’s car, and a couple other patrol cars. Hank turned in, and we bounced and skidded over the compacted snow and ice. As we parked, the snow started to fall again, silently floating in lazy flakes out of the sky. I stared at the forest for a moment before getting out of the car. It was beautiful beneath the snow, magical, and the silver light of the sky reflected off the blanket of compacted flakes, making it twinkle like thousands of crystals. It was pure and untouched, and made me think of the story of the Snow Queen, my favorite fairytale. Worlds of ice and snow were always magical to me, clear blankets that cushioned sound and muffled the raw nerves from the heat of summer.
Millie glanced over as we pulled in, then headed our way. As I stepped out of the car, I could see something beyond her. There, stretched out on a snow-covered slab in the middle of the clearing, was Daya. My heart sank as the scene came into focus.
“Oh no,” I whispered.
Daya was there, wearing only a sheer white gown that hid nothing, her arms tied over her head to the top of the stone slab, and her feet tied together to a metal ring at the bottom. She had been stabbed—that much was apparent—and whatever weapon her murderer had used was capable of gutting her from the point between her breasts to the bottom of her abdomen, right above her groin. Blood roses spread over her gown, congealed against the innocence of her gown.
I grimaced as I realized something was missing. Her insides. The cut had opened her up, but though I could see her spine and the bloody muscle inside, everything else that should have been there—wasn’t. Her ribs had been broken and her heart and lungs were missing, as were her intestines and stomach and whatever else had been there. I gasped, turning away to hide my face against Killian’s shoulder. He wrapped his arm around me, frozen into place.
On my other side, Hank growled. “Those motherfucking cocksuckers—” he muttered.
“I’m sorry,” Millie said. “I should have warned you. I’ve seen a lot of things in my career, but this has to be one of the worst. This has to have been a ritualistic killing…either that or someone was getting ready to cut her up for the freezer.”
“Oh gods!” My stomach churning, I let Killian wrap his good arm around me and stayed with my face planted directly against his shoulder.
“I’m sorry,” Millie said, softening her voice. “I’m so used to dealing with crap in this job that sometimes I forget to check myself before I speak. I know she was your friend.”
“No,” I said, my voice muffled by Killian’s coat. “We worked together in the coven, but I don’t think I ever counted her as a friend. But Daya didn’t deserve this. Nobody deserves to be cut open like a cow in a butcher’s shop.”
At that moment, another car appeared. It was Rowan. She jumped out and came tromping through the snow, over to where we were standing. As she caught sight of Daya, she pressed her lips together and hung her head.
