Midnight Moon (The Unbidden Magic Series) Page 5

  Faye and Andy married? I was way beyond shocked. I’d always figured Faye would get bored with Mr. Nice Guy Andy and move on to another loser. Could it be my father was not only acting like a father but my mother was growing up as well?

  “Well?” she said. “What do you think?”

  “Surprised would be a good word. I didn’t realize you guys were that serious and . . .” my voice trailed off. In the stony silence that followed, I realized I’d rained all over Faye’s parade. I quickly added, “Hey, you know what? If you’re happy, I’m happy. Tell Andy congratulations.”

  More smooching sounds. Ick. Finally Faye said, “I’ll be home soon. See ya.”

  I opened my mouth to tell her about Chris Revelle and then changed my mind. I knew Andy would keep her safe. It’s true, he was a chicken farmer, but the gun rack in his pick-up held a loaded 12-gauge shotgun. For “varmints,” he’d told me. Chris Revelle definitely qualified as a two-legged varmint.

  “Hold on, Allie,” Faye said. “Almost forgot. Call your sister. I left the number by the phone.”

  Shock jolted me wide-awake. “Anne Marie called here? Why?”

  “She wouldn’t tell me. Just said it was important. So, call her, okay?”

  “No way!” I said.”Her mother’s a Trimark. She probably made Anne Marie call me. She’s fishing for information”

  Faye said, “She sounded different, Allie. I think you should call her.”

  I didn’t agree, but instead of causing a big scene, I told Faye we should talk about it in the morning and disconnected.

  Before I had time to decide how I felt about Faye’s newsflash and my sister’s phone call, I heard the crunch of tires on the gravel driveway. I pulled the blinds to one side and watched a low, sleek car make a left turn at the end of the drive, the headlights sweeping across the front of the trailer.

  Junior.

  Chapter Seven

  OVERCOME BY A SWIRL of conflicting emotions, I watched through the window as Junior stepped out of his car and walked to the trailer.

  “You bad. Junior sad. I mad,” scrolled across my mind, blinking and sputtering like a faulty neon sign. I whacked my palm against my forehead to delete the image of an angry Maria Martinez and dubbed in Faye’s voice instead. “This isn’t about you, Allie. It’s about Junior and don’t you forget it.”

  I hung onto that thought when I opened the door.

  Junior stood on the top step, one hand braced against the doorframe, the other scrubbing the dark stubble on his chin. “Can I come in?”

  I didn’t answer but stepped back so he could enter. As he brushed by, he paused and lightly stroked my cheek. I stiffened even though every part of me wanted to lean into his touch, slip my arms around his neck and pull his body close to mine. Are you crazy? Faye’s voice. I clenched my fists and willed myself not to react.

  Junior shook his head sadly, stepped to the couch and collapsed. I sat in the chair opposite him, taking care not to let my feet touch his.

  He yawned, stretched and slumped forward, his elbows resting on his knees. “Man, I’m wiped out. Drove straight through from L.A. Haven’t been home yet.”

  I found my voice. “Is your mother expecting you?”

  Junior shook his head. “Nah, I just got in the car and drove north.”

  “I saw her at graduation tonight. She had a very special message for me.”

  Junior groaned, looking at me through red-rimmed eyes. “I’ll bet she did.”

  Don’t feel sorry for him, Allie. That’s what he wants. I cleared my throat and chose my words carefully. “She seems to think it’s my fault you and Selena are together. That I wasn’t providing you with, um, enough affection.”

  With a heavy sigh, he leaned back against the couch, crossed his arms and studied my face. “That’s bullshit, Allie. She doesn’t speak for me.”

  Okay, that part was true. Junior and his overly adoring mother often butted heads. Quite often, it was because of me. Maybe it was time for me to step out of the picture.

  I swallowed the lump in my throat and blinked hard to hold back the tears stinging my eyes. “Why are you here, Junior? You could have called and saved yourself a trip.”

  Something sparked in Junior’s eyes. Anger? Regret?

  “I came because I needed to see you. To explain,” he said.

  “Not necessary.” I stood and stared down at him like Mr. Hostetler does when he wants you to leave his office. “Well, thanks for dropping by. Guess I’ll see you around.”

  Junior shot off the couch and placed his hands on my shoulders. “Damn it, Emerson! We’re not done here. Let me say what I came to say.”

  We locked gazes, neither one of us willing to blink. I considered pulling away but decided it would be a sign of weakness. Instead, I held my ground and gritted my teeth to resist the groundswell of emotions threatening to overtake me.

  Junior gave in first. His hands slid off my shoulders, and he pointed to the dinette. “Neutral ground?”

  “Yeah, okay,” I muttered and slid into the far side of the dinette.

  He settled in across from me, cleared his throat and began. “I fired my manager yesterday. Paul was the one setting up all those lame publicity stunts. Also, I found out he was stealing from me.”

  Caught by surprise, I tried to make sense of his words. I’d halfway expected him to come up with the publicity angle. But, firing Paul Estevez? They’d been together since the beginning of his career. Part of me wanted to believe him. The other part was still deeply suspicious.

  I leaned forward and jabbed a finger at his chest. “So when Paul said jump, you said how high?” My voice was embarrassingly screechy. I took a deep breath and tried to dial it down a notch. “The Junior I knew didn’t let people push him around and force him to do stuff he didn’t want to do. I guess that Junior doesn’t exist anymore.”

  Before I could take evasive action, Junior snatched my hand out of the air and clasped it with both of his. “I made a mistake. Hell, I made a lot of mistakes. I got swept up in the whole fame thing and lost my way. Selena doesn’t mean crap to me, Allie. She’s a typical Hollywood ‘It’s-all-about-me’ diva. During that so-called photo shoot, she kept saying, ‘Move over. You’re blocking the camera.’ I’m not kidding. If I never see her again, it’ll be too soon.”

  I felt myself weakening. Junior at his best could convince a suicide bomber to strip down to his tightie whities and parade down Main Street waving an American flag.

  With this in mind, I said, “So, what’s your plan?”

  “I’m looking into a new management team based in Seattle, so I’ll be hanging around Peacock Flats for a while.”

  “Don’t you have movies to make?”

  “I’ve got some stuff in the pipeline, but it can wait.” His hands tightened around mine. “I had to get away, Allie. Hollywood sucks the juice outta you. Ya know?”

  I didn’t know, but I nodded anyway.

  “That’s not the main reason I came back though,” he said.

  I tugged my hands free. “What do you mean?”

  “The summer solstice. Nineteen times nineteen. You’re not doing this without me.”

  My mouth dropped open. Shocked, all I could do was stare at him. Just when I thought I had Junior on the ropes, he’d bounced back and hit me with a sneak attack.

  “N-not necessary,” I stammered. “Sammie and I got it covered.”

  He flashed a smile. “Sure you do. Apparently you know exactly where to go and what you’re supposed to do when you get there?”

  My face grew hot, and I huffed, “Well, not exactly, but we’ll figure it out.”

  He leaned across the table until his nose was a few inches from mine. “I’m going with you, and that’s that.”

  Arguing would be pointless. Once Junior took a stand, he’d rather die than give in. I said, “Okay, thanks, I guess.”

  He cupped my face in his hands. The warmth of his touch stole the breath from my body. Careful, Allie. He grinned like he
could read my mind. “Whaddaya mean, I guess? Just say, ‘Thanks, Junior.’”

  I took hold of his hands and set them on the table between us. “Don’t push your luck.”

  He leaned back and rubbed his chin. “Tell me again about this nineteen times nineteen thing.”

  “It’s complicated,” I said, sliding out of the dinette. “Let’s go outside.”

  Wearing a puzzled frown, Junior followed me out of the trailer.

  He stood behind me as I pointed at the night sky and the half-moon peeking over the apple trees. “Check out the position of the moon. See if you can find the Big Dipper and Orion. Venus. Mars. All the major planets.”

  I waited a beat while Junior studied the sky. “Nineteen years will go by before the moon and stars are in this exact same position over this exact same spot.”

  Junior said, “And this is significant to the Trimarks?”

  “The number nineteen is magical to Trimarks. I told you they’re mutated dark fae . . . right?”

  Junior nodded.

  “The Trimarks started coming through a portal 361 years ago, a few at a time. Nineteen times nineteen equals 361. Their oral history says when the nineteenth cycle of nineteen years occurs, the portal will open wide and an unlimited number of Trimarks will pour through and flood the world with so much evil, the good guys won’t have a prayer.”

  I paused and gulped, overwhelmed by the truth of my words. Most of the time, I tried not to think about it. Yep, denial is my friend.

  Junior said, “And the only thing that can stop this is . . .”

  “The moonstone,” I said. “Sammie and I have to find the portal and, together, use the moonstone to stop it from happening.”

  Junior’s lips quirked in a smile. “Piece a cake.”

  “Yeah,” I said, turning my head to grin back at him. “No problem at all, especially since we’re not sure where the portal’s located.”

  He wrapped his arms around my shoulders and pulled me back against his body. This time, I let my body relax against his. Didn’t mean a dang thing. Just two friends re-connecting. Allie, you’re such a liar!

  “What about your FBI buddy? Can’t he help?”

  “Think about it, Junior,” I said. “Dennis is an FBI agent, but he’s also a Star Seeker. The FBI knows nothing about the Star Seeker part of his life. It would be a huge risk for him to say, ‘Hey, guess what? On the summer solstice, a bunch of bad faeries are going to pour into our world and create a nightmare too horrible to imagine.’ How long do you think his career would last?”

  Junior nodded, the top of his chin bumping against my head. “Yeah, I can see where that would be a problem.”

  “He’s pretty sure it’s somewhere here in the West, but so far, he doesn’t have an exact location.”

  “Not good,” Junior said, his arms tightening around me. “Lots of wide open space out here. Could be anywhere.”

  “Don’t I know it.”

  He turned me around to face him. “What about your mom? She gonna freak out? About me going with you, I mean? She doesn’t exactly trust me.”

  I shrugged. “Who knows? Maybe she’ll be too busy planning her wedding to freak out.”

  “Wedding? No way! Chicken guy?”

  I nodded.

  “So, I guess you’ll be moving.”

  “Moving?”

  Junior laughed. “Yeah, moving. I don’t think chicken guy will fit in your trailer.”

  Geez, talk about clueless. Of course we’d be moving. I gulped, puzzled by the crazy mix of emotions pouring through my body. Emotions caused by the word moving. I walked to the cement block steps and sat.

  Junior sat next to me. “What’s going on, Allie?”

  Puzzled, I shook my head. “I thought I hated living here. No bedroom. No closet. Itty bitty bathroom. So why do I feel sad about leaving a stupid trailer?”

  “Probably cuz you’ve lived here since you were a little kid.”

  With a hitch in my breath, I said, “It feels like the end of something important, like maybe I have to grow up now. You know, think about grown-up stuff.”

  “So what’s new? You’ve been doing grown-up stuff ever since you got the moonstone.”

  I didn’t answer. Junior held my hand and we watched the moon rise over the orchard, accompanied by a symphony of night music. Cricket song. Blaster grazing in his pasture. Cars whizzing by on Peacock Flats Road. The occasional hoot of an owl.

  Sounds of my childhood that would soon be changed forever.

  Chapter Eight

  THE NEXT DAY—Saturday—Mercedes and I spent the day at Uncle Sid’s fruit stand, sorting fresh asparagus, tying it into bundles and doling it out to busloads of Seattle people who descend on our valley for fresh produce, but wouldn’t dream of living here. We closed up at dusk. Mercedes had a hot date with Gilbert, so I counted the money and knocked at Uncle Sid’s back door to drop it off. I knew better than to use the front door. Aunt Sandra said it was reserved for her church ladies, not the hired help.

  Money delivered, I trudged to the trailer, looking forward to a quick bite and crash time. Faye was working a catered party, claiming she needed money for the wedding. She said I was to be her maid of honor, which made my blood run cold. Faye had a thing for ruffles and bows, so I anticipated a truly hideous dress.

  Junior was in Seattle, meeting with his new agent, and had promised to call me later. The whole Junior thing was seriously messing with my mind. Sure, I wanted to believe him, but the little voice in my head—it sounded a lot like Faye—kept reminding me, Junior makes his living pretending to be something he’s not.

  I cooked my Cup O’ Noodles and thought about my other problem, which, in the grand scheme of things, was way more important than my relationship with Junior. I’d been distracted all day long. My father’s words, where the earth meets the sky scrolled relentlessly through my brain. Along with somewhere in Montana or Wyoming. I could barely think of anything else. Mike said they hadn’t heard from the Star Seeker undercover guy for a while. Was he even alive? I had to do something productive. Anything was better than nothing.

  I grabbed paper and pencil, went to the phone and dialed a familiar number. After five rings, a sleep-roughened voice said, “’lo. This better be good.”

  “Nicole? It’s Allie. Is Beck around? I want him to look up something for me.”

  I cringed as the phone clattered onto something hard. I heard Nicole yell, “Beck! It’s Allie. Pick up the phone.”

  Dead silence, then the sound of an irritated sigh and retreating footsteps. “Beck! Dammit, where are you?”

  A minute later, she picked up the extension. “He’s not here. Whaddaya want? Make it fast. I was up all night at the graduation party, and you woke me up.”

  “Sorry,” I said, even though I wasn’t. “Here’s the deal. Do you still do that astral travel thing when you’re bored?”

  “Actually, I’m bored right now, but, yeah, I can still do it. Why?”

  “Could you please, pretty please, get on the computer and Google something for me?”

  “I guess,” she muttered. “But you’ll owe me.”

  “Fine, I’ll owe you,” I said, rolling my eyes. “Here’s what I want you to look up. Do you have a pencil?”

  “I’m not stupid, Allie. Just tell me.”

  “Okay, Google landmarks in Montana and Wyoming. Make a list.”

  She sighed again. “Stay on the phone. I’ll read them off and you can make a list.”

  “Whatever.”

  Even on a good day, Nicole could be a total bitch. Add a variable like no sleep, and she was about as likable as Blaster the bull.

  She fired up the computer and after a couple of keystrokes, I heard her groan. “Are you kidding me?”

  She picked up the phone and screeched, “There’s only about a bajillion of them. You want them all?”

  “Okay, okay, calm down. Let me think.”

  This was way more complicated than I’d expected. I tried to sort i
t out in my mind. Mike had said it was somewhere remote. That would probably rule out major cities. Where the earth meets the sky could be interpreted a number of ways. Mountains? Wide open spaces?

  “Okay, start with Montana,” I said.

  Nicole griped a little but did as I asked. “Okay, here you go. Little Bighorn Battlefield, Virginia City, Sleeping Buffalo Rock, Fort Peck . . .”

  I wrote furiously. When she stopped talking, I circled what I believed to be the most likely spots.

  “Now Wyoming,” she said. “Yellowstone Park, Fort Bridger, Independence Rock, Cody, Devils Tower . . .”

  When she finished, she said, “Why do you need to know this stuff?”

  “Long story. How do you feel about visiting some of these places? Not in the flesh, of course.”

  She breathed into the phone while she thought it over. “Is it important?”

  “Extremely.”

  “Narrow it down to six possibilities and I’ll do it tomorrow. After I have a good night’s sleep.”

  Better than nothing. Better than sitting around waiting for a call that might never come. I studied the list, circled my top six and read it to her.

  She copied the names down. “Tell me what I’m looking for.”

  “Look for a place that might be considered a portal to another dimension.”

  Nicole laughed. “Oh sure, I’ll do that. Anything else?”

  “It has to be someplace where a bunch of people could gather without attracting a lot of attention.”

  Nicole muttered something under her breath. “Is that it?”

  “For now. I’ll call you tomorrow. Thanks, Nicole.” I slammed the phone down before she could hit me with another zinger.

  By the time I finished my noodles, all traces of the setting sun had disappeared. Darkness pressed against the windows, reminding me that, in our brightly lit trailer, I was a moving target. I moved from window to window, lowering the blinds against the silent, oppressive darkness. Clouds covered the moon and stars. No crickets chirping. Even the sound of traffic on Peacock Flats Road seemed muffled and far away. After my dad’s visit, I saw Chris Revelle lurking in every shadow. I double-checked the lock on the door, listening for the shuffling sound of footsteps.