Page 131 of The Sister's Curse

I stepped out into about six inches of running water. That much was enough to knock a person off their feet if they weren’t careful, especially in the gathering darkness.

I didn’t turn on a light. I didn’t need a light to see. Gibby jogged next to me, and we entered the rain-spangled darkness of that cursed place. Or maybe it was sacred somehow, since Dana had died here. It felt like both.

Mud sucked at my shoes as we moved, and the rain rattled from the sky through the trees. I pumped my shotgun slowly in time with a thunderclap, so no one would hear. We descended into the ravine.

There were tracks in the mud ahead of me, men’s and a woman’s, it looked like—at least four different tread patterns.

I crept slowly to the bottom of the ravine, rain making my clothes leaden. A flashlight gleamed ahead of me, casting shifting silhouettes on the rocky shore beneath the Hag Stone’s profile. One man held a gun on another, while two figures were on their knees. Another was prone. I crouched behind a honeysuckle to get the lay of the land.

I squinted, trying to determine who was who. I was able to make out Nick. Blood was running down his temple, and his eye was swollen shut. He was kneeling on the ground, next to a prone female form that I assumed was Viv. She was covered in a black tarp or blanket. Maybe a black cloak.

Gibby strained forward, and I had to wind my fingers in hiscollar to keep him from racing toward his dad. My heart thundered to see Nick still alive.

Around the figures was a circle of something black washing away. Could be black salt or soil, or maybe blood. Candles in glass jars guttered around them like dim stars, some flickering out.

Lister was kneeling outside of the circle. He was wearing a black robe with a hood, his hands raised. He was looking at the gunman, at Fred Jasper.

My heart swelled to see him alive. But not like this. Jasper aimed the gun at Jeff Sumner, who was two steps ahead of him, with his hands cuffed at his belly. I suspected Jasper had used Sumner to flush Lister out.

“You can’t do this,” Sumner was saying. “You can’t.”

“Why not? You did this to Dana,” Jasper answered coolly. “You did this to Viv, too.”

“But that was—”

“Different? No, no it wasn’t.”

I straightened up and approached them with the shotgun raised. “Fred, stop.”

Jasper didn’t flinch, just kept his gun aimed at Jeff. “You can’t stop me, Koray. This needs to happen.”

“That’s not up to you or me to decide, Fred.” Rain pounded down on my scalp.

Beside me, Gibby growled. I put my leg in front of him to discourage him from lunging. I wasn’t sure who he’d go after.

“Are Nick and Viv…?”

Jasper gestured for me to come closer, through curtains of rain. I slowly got in front of Nick. Gibby stood at his side.

“Are you okay?” I hissed at Nick.

“Couple of bruised ribs, but I’m okay,” he wheezed. “I was next…”

“Can you walk?”

He climbed to his feet. His hands were bound behind his back with a zip tie. I reached into my pocket for a knife, opened it with my teeth, and cut the zip tie with my left hand. I kept the shotgun at my shoulder.

I turned to Jasper. “You don’t want to hurt him, Fred. Nick’s a doctor. He’s a good man. He saves lives. He loves dogs and planting our garden. He collects baseball caps from minor league teams and reads Roman history…” I let myself babble. It was important that Jasper see him as a person.

“And…and I love him,” I finished. “He’s the best person I’ve ever known.”

Jasper stared at me, his face unreadable.

Gibby whined. Beneath rolls of thunder, I thought I heard singing.

“He can go,” Jasper said at last.

I muttered to Nick: “Take Gibby and go to the high ground, okay?”