Crimson Falls (The Depravity Chronicles) (13 page)

“I didn’t know that,”
she lied. He had told her that the previous week when he had finished reading
the very book he now held in his hands. “We could use another president like
him.”

“Amen to that,” Tommy
said. “I know I told you to vote for Obama, but he is really letting us down. I
thought he would fight for us.” Anna had to laugh at his serious demeanor and
sincere dedication to politics.

“Maybe you will
be that president,” she said, honestly believing he had the capacity to do it.

“Why couldn’t I
be president?” Trish said as she stopped writing in her journal to join the
conversation.

“You
could
be president!” Anna said with delight.

“I told you to
vote for Hillary,” Trish said indignantly to Tommy. “If we had elected her, we
wouldn’t be in this mess.”

“And what do you
know of this mess?” Tommy asked, frustrated with his little sister.

“Okay, guys,”
Anna said as she held her hands in the air.

“You guys are
freaking lame,” Trevor said without looking up from his Stephen King novel.
“You’d be better off spending your time and money on a flight to Canada. This
country is screwed.”

“Ever the
optimist,” Anna laughed.

“Mom,
seriously,” Tommy said. “What’s going on? Who was that in the woods? And what
happened to Uncle Ron?” Anna remembered all the times Ron had visited, especially
after her husband had left.

“I can’t believe
you guys watched that,” she said, frustrated. “I wish I had known you were in
the room when that was going on.” She looked at Trisha, who shrugged her
shoulders.

“She wasn’t
there,” Tommy said, recognizing the concern in Anna’s eyes. “And how could we
not? It was so crazy. Like a movie or something.”

“I wish it were
as simple as that,” Anna confided. “It would be nice to have a script so I know
what happens next. But unfortunately they weren’t actors on those screens and
there won’t be some sappy Hollywood ending.”

“Well Tarantino’s
films usually don’t have happy endings,” Trevor added.

“That’s
helpful,” Tommy said as he punched his twin. Trevor pushed his chair back, but
Anna slammed her hand down on her desk.

“Really, boys!
Now’s not the best time to irritate your mother,” Anna moaned.

“Are we going to
have to sit here for the rest of the night?” Trisha asked. “Because I’m getting
seriously bored.”

“Are you
hungry?” Anna asked.

“Starving,” all
three of her children said in unison.

“There’s pizza
and soda out there. Go and gorge yourselves.”

“Are you hungry,
Mom?” Tommy asked.

“Always taking
care of Mamma,” Trevor sniped. “Mom, I will bring you some pizza.”

“Thanks, but I’m
not hungry at the moment, boys,” Anna promised. “Now go and get yourselves
something to eat. And make sure Janet isn’t sleeping on the job,” she joked.
She watched as they filed out of her office. She noticed how Trisha walked like
her. Her long black hair reminded her of when her hair used to be all black.
Now there were streaks of grey, and her hair was only shoulder length. Trevor
and Tommy both walked like their father, and they looked like him, too. Dark,
spiked hair and brooding eyes. Every time she looked at her sons’ eyes she saw her
husband. It was like getting punched in the gut several times a day.

She remembered
back to the previous year when she thought her family was happy and whole. The
day he left began like any other day. Thomas had left for work at the high
school where he taught American History and Government, taking the twins with
him. Trisha was sick, so she had stayed home from school. Anna decided to work
from home that day, catching up on paperwork. The sound of the phone ringing
still haunted her mind’s ears. It was 11:23am.

“Hello?” Anna
said.

“Anna? Hi, it’s
Mildred.” Mildred Snyder was the principal of the high school, and Thomas’
boss. She had been over for dinner the previous night.

“Hi, Mildred. Is
everything okay?”

“I wanted to
talk with Thomas, make sure he’s okay.”

“What do you
mean? He’s not at work?”

“No, Anna. He
dropped off the twins and then said he was going home to spend the day with
Trisha because she was sick.”

Anna hadn’t been
able to find the words to answer Mildred. Why would Thomas have lied to his
boss? More importantly, why hadn’t he come home?

“Anna, are you
still there?”

“Yes, Mildred.
I’m sorry. I will track him down and have him call you.”

“Okay,” Mildred
answered nervously. “Let me know if you need anything.”

Anna hung up the
phone and immediately called Janet. “Have there been any accidents?”

“Sheriff
Blackwood?” Janet asked.

“Yes, Janet,
it’s the sheriff. Have there been any accidents?”

“No, ma’am.
Nothing at all. Is everything okay?”

“You’re sure
there haven’t been any reports?”

“No, Sheriff. Is
everything okay?”

Anna hung up the
phone and called her neighbor to come watch Trisha. She scoured the streets
until school let out, then picked up the twins.

“Have you talked
to your father?” she asked them.

“Isn’t he home?”
Tommy asked. “He said he was going home to make sure Trisha was okay.” She
could see the panic on both her sons’ faces.

“I’m going to
drop you off at home. Mrs. McKenzie is there. She’ll make dinner for you. I
told her to make sure you guys do your homework.”

“Mom, what the
hell?” Trevor asked, confused and worried.

“Language.”

They rode home
in silence. She dropped them off and quickly pulled out of the driveway and
began retracing the steps her husband would have taken. She called Sam and
asked him to help her find her husband and they searched late into the night.
There was no sign of Thomas, his Range Rover, nothing.

“I can make a
few calls to some friends. Trace his cell, any credit cards he may have used,”
Sam offered. Anna reluctantly accepted.

Before she knew
it, two weeks had passed and there was still no trace of Thomas. It was like he
fell off the grid. The kids were not dealing well with their father’s
disappearance, and she tried with limited success to help them through it.
Father Matthew was a good friend throughout the ordeal. Soon she began
attending mass again with her children, finding comfort in both Matthew and the
rituals of Catholicism.

Now, a year
later, very little had changed. Thomas simply disappeared. Missing Persons, the
FBI, you name it, all failed to find him. Anna finally came to the conclusion
that he didn’t want to be found. He simply up and left the life they had made
together. Although it still made no sense to her, she had resigned herself to
the belief that he was gone forever.

“Sheriff?” Janet
asked, startling Anna from her memories.

“You might
consider knocking, Janet,” Anna said sharply. Janet looked to the floor. “I’m
sorry, Janet. I didn’t mean to snap.”

“It’s tense
around here,” Janet said softly. “I understand.”

“What do you
need?” Anna asked with as little frustration as possible.

“There is a
Professor Bearson here to see you,” she reported.

Anna glanced at
her watch. “That was fast. Great. Send him in, Janet. Thanks.”

“Right away.”

Anna stood from
her chair and watched as a tall, wide, older Native American walked toward her
office. Although he was smiling, she could tell he had a no nonsense, stern
demeanor. She liked him already.

“Professor
Bearson,” she said as she walked from behind her desk with her hand
outstretched. He shook it firmly. She noticed in his other hand he held the
murder weapon.

“Sheriff
Blackwood,” he replied. “It is an honor to meet your acquaintance.”

“An honor?” Anna
laughed. “I don’t know what I’ve done to deserve that.”

He smiled
broadly. “Your reputation precedes you, ma’am.”

“Please, call me
Anna.”

“And please,
call me Anish.”

“I am so
grateful, Anish, that you came so quickly. I had hoped Dr. Styles would be here
to greet you as well. I will call and let him know you have arrived safely.”

“I have called
him, Ms. Blackwood. He is on his way and should be here at any moment.”
Literally, at that moment, David Styles walked through the door.

“Anish!” David
cried with delight.

“David!” Anish
reciprocated. “So wonderful to see you again!” The two men embraced for a brief
moment, then held each other’s shoulders as they looked at one another.

“You look old,”
David said with a grin.

“And you’re an
ass,” Anish returned. Anna thought that although they were joking, there was
actually truth to what they had said.

“Enough small
talk,” David declared. “What can you tell us about the weapon?” he asked as he
pointed to the bag. Anna looked at Anish, hoping to finally have a little
clarity.

“It is difficult
to say,” Anish said simply.

“Difficult to
say?” David repeated. “Does that mean you have no idea, or that it isn’t as
simple as something being made out of an animal?”

Anish chuckled.
“It simply means it is difficult to say. I do not speak in riddles like the
White man,” he joked. His laugh bellowed through the station. Even Damien and
Sam looked at him.

Anna noticed how
Anish’s sound and presence filled the room. It was both soothing and a little
disconcerting. She was glad he was on their side, and even felt a little safer
with him around.

“What additional
information do you need?” David asked.

“I would like to
see the body,” he said in a monotone voice. They both looked at Anna.

“I think that
can be arranged,” she said. “Why don’t we go now. We can take my car.”

“Excellent,”
Anish said. He shook the bag in front of him and a look of gravity appeared on
his brow. “It is most important that we do not waste time.”

“What do you
mean, Professor?” Anna asked, then corrected herself when he frowned. “I’m
sorry. What do you mean, Anish?”

“Although I am
not quite certain as to the origin of this weapon, I know it is a tooth. I also
know that we are dealing with something beyond what Crimson Falls has seen in
quite some time.”

“That’s what I
thought,” David said, looking at Anna.

Anna said
nothing. She nodded and grabbed her keys from her desk. As they walked toward
the doors, she stopped by the break room and gave her children orders.

“I need to do a
few things,” she said. “Stay here, do your homework, and don’t give Janet a
hard time. You can watch television in my office.”

“Mom, please
don’t leave,” Tommy begged.

“I promise that
your mother is in good hands,” Anish said as he stood beside Anna.

“Dude, you’re
huge!” Trevor cried, astonished.

“Trevor!” Anna
corrected, but Anish waved off her concern with a hand and a laugh.

“Indeed, Trevor.
Therefore you have nothing to worry about. We will be just fine.”

Somehow he
managed to make her children feel better. Anna was both impressed and a little
irritated. If only she could wield that kind of power over her children.

“I’ll be right
back,” she promised.                                  

Anna, David, and
Anish walked without talking. Once in the cruiser, Anish was the first to break
the silence.

“There is
something on your mind, Anna. What is it you need to ask?” Anish asked without
looking at her.

“It’s not so
much a question, I suppose,” she began. “It’s more of a statement.”

“Then state it,”
Anish said calmly.

“Something you
said earlier is bothering me.”

“And what is
that?” Anish asked innocently. He kept his gaze straight ahead through the
windshield.

“You said that
we’re dealing with some
thing
we haven’t dealt with in a long time,” Anna
said. She looked in the rearview mirror at David, who shrugged.

“I did indeed,”
Anish agreed.

“So you meant to
say some
thing
?” she repeated.

“As opposed to
what, Anna?” Anish asked.

“Well, as
opposed to some
one
.”

“Yes, that is
true.”

“So you don’t
think a person did this? You think it was an animal?”

“I didn’t say
that, Anna,” Anish said. She was becoming a bit frustrated with his cryptic
responses.

“So if it’s not
a person, and it’s not an animal, then what could it be?” David asked when it
became apparent that Anna wasn’t going to ask the question.