Beneath An Ivy Moon (Legacy Of Magick Series, Book 4) (9 page)

“Show me what you’re doing,” I said.

Autumn spread the papers out on the desk. “Ivy, check this out,” she said, pointing at the names she had highlighted. “Notice anything familiar about the names?”

I resisted rolling my eyes. Bran had taught me the history of the earliest Witch families years ago,
and
I’d spent last night boning up on them. “Sure, I see some very familiar names: Bishop, Proctor, Jacobs...”

“What was the line Pogue told you his mother came from?” Autumn asked.

“Osborne,” came a male voice from the doorway.

I turned in my chair, and saw Nathan Pogue standing inside the door of Autumn’s office, and for once he wasn’t scowling. His eyebrows were raised and his mouth was set in a smug line. He was obviously staring down his nose— at me.

“Well, well.” I lifted an eyebrow at him. “Speak of the devil.”

Nathan stood there confident in pressed khakis and a blue button down shirt. “My mother’s line comes from the Osborne’s. They originated in Danvers— what was once known as Salem Village,” he said proudly.

“Am I supposed to applaud?” I asked him.

Nathan glared at me in reply.

Autumn took the printed pages and tucked them into a folder. She casually stuck the folder in her desk and rose to her feet. “Come in Mr. Pogue. Please shut the door,” she said politely.

I resisted the urge to laugh and gave serious consideration to diving under the desk for cover. Autumn didn’t “do” a soft and controlled tone of voice.
This was going to be good.

Nathan stood for a moment, then shifted, closing the door behind him. “I was trying to contact Bran Bishop, the eldest male of your family line. However I’ve been informed he is out of town...”

“Correct.” All business and polished in her black jacket, ruby colored top and slim dark pants, Autumn walked around her desk.

Nathan shrugged and tried a smile. “Well if that’s the case, I suppose that I’ll have to settle for speaking to you.” He held out a hand.

I hissed out a breath at the condescending attitude.

Autumn cocked her head to one side, her lips curling up slightly. She ignored the offered hand. Instead she walked right up and got into his face.

Nathan stepped back automatically and came up short against the door.

“You’re new in town,” Autumn said pleasantly. “Let me give you some advice. The Witches of William’s Ford stand together, and on equal ground. We do not defer leadership based on gender.”

Nathan stiffened. “I wasn’t trying to cause offense.”

“Yet you did so,
brilliantly
!” I pointed out.

Nathan swung his gaze to me, then back to Autumn. “I apologize.”

Autumn stepped back, easing out of his personal space. “Sit down Pogue.” She gestured to one of the chairs in front of her desk. “And state your business.”

Nathan waited until Autumn sat back behind her desk. After she sat down, he took the empty chair next to me. “I have some concerns about the incidents that have been occurring at the site.”

“Such as?” Autumn didn’t give an inch.

Nathan shot me a sideways look. “There’s a lingering energy that remains at the site. Stronger than any other dig I’ve assisted with.”

Autumn and I exchanged glances.

Nathan leaned back in his chair. “Yesterday there was a serious accident on site. One of the archeology team members broke their leg.”

“I know,” Autumn said.

Nathan crossed his arms over his chest. “I was there when the accident happened. The archeologist’s injury occurred when they were in the process of removing items for analysis from the site.”

“So did they fall or something?” I asked him. “What has you so spooked?”

“She didn’t fall, the ground caved in under her,” Nathan said.

I suddenly
knew
. “The person who was hurt, she was taking the human remains off site. Wasn’t she?”

“Yes.” Nathan seemed surprised when he met my eyes. “The ground opened up right beneath her... It was the strangest thing I’ve ever seen. And the injury... it was ugly.”

“Ugly?” I asked.

“It was a compound fracture, Ivy,” Autumn said. “Dr. Meyer told me about the accident this morning.”

I swung my gaze from my cousin to Nathan. “While they helped the injured woman... what happened to the human remains?”

“I volunteered to transport them back to the lab at the museum,” Nathan said. “They are currently being stored here.”

I shuddered. “You couldn’t pay me to go anywhere near those remains.”

“They’re only bones, Ivy,” Autumn said soothingly. “You shouldn’t—”

“There’s more.” Nathan’s voice was so serious that it made my hackles rise. “I wanted to discuss this with your brother...” Nathan seemed to catch himself. “But I will be happy to discuss this with two current members of the Bishop line.”

Autumn nodded. “Go ahead.”

“Yesterday was not the first incident at the excavation. There’s been a series of accidents at the dig,” Nathan said. “With the latest being the worst.
And
it happened when they were removing the last of the human remains from the site.” He blew out a breath. “Now, some of the people working on the excavation are getting nervous. A few students have even quit the dig.”

“Hmmm...” Autumn seemed to consider.

“Full disclosure?” I tilted my head at my cousin.

“Go ahead,” Autumn said. “Tell him.”

“There was some sort of psychic implosion when the skull was first found on campus.” I explained to Nathan about my experiences that day. When I’d first become aware of the negativity, the energetic blast I’d felt, and the photos I’d taken of the discovery.

“
You
are the photographer Dr. Meyers has been talking about?” Nathan asked with raised eyebrows.

“Yes, I am,” I said. “You seem surprised.” I managed to resist making a face at him.

“The photos? I’ve seen them. They’re very good,” Nathan said.

“Be still my heart.” I pressed a hand to my chest. “Was that a compliment?”

“Grow up,” Nathan shot back.

“Knock it off, you two,” Autumn said. “Getting back to our timeline of events...The discovery of the skull halted the construction of the museum expansion,” Autumn said. “It closed the site, while the M.E. did his analysis.”

“Right.” Nathan nodded. “Then the archeological department took over and began to excavate the area.”

I scratched my head as I thought it over. “You’ve all been working on the area for a couple of weeks now, right?”

“Yes,” Nathan said. “There’s something else. And it concerns me. Word on campus is that the site is cursed.”

“Oh, perfect,” I said, rolling my eyes.

Autumn leaned her elbows on her desk. “There are plenty of locals who know the magickal history, and current activities of the families in town,” she said. “A chain of incidents and a serious injury at the archeological site? That’s bad, and people on campus
are
starting to talk about it. People have even been whispering about it all morning here at the museum.”

Nathan nodded. “Not to mention that if enough people start to believe in a curse at the site, they could literally
think
it into being.”

“First of the Hermetic Laws:
thought creates
,” I said, thinking about the foundational principles of magick.

Nathan whipped his head around. “Did you really quote the Hermetic Principles?” His eyes were wide, and he was clearly surprised. “You?”

I sneered at his air of disbelief. “Want me to rattle off all seven of them?”

He blinked at me, and then slowly turned to my cousin. “So are we in agreement that this bears further magickal investigation?”

“Yes,” Autumn said quietly. “I’ll need to talk to the rest of the family. Maybe even call in the High Council.”

Nathan nodded. “I’ll leave you my cell number if I can be of any help. Please don’t hesitate to call me.”

I watched Nathan write his number down on a piece of paper and pass it to my cousin.
Don’t hesitate to call me?
He sounded so formal and stuffy. His vocabulary reminded me of talking to Great Aunt Faye.

Nathan stood up to leave. “Thank you for your time.” He nodded at Autumn, ignoring me completely.

I stood as well. “I’ll catch you later.” I nodded to Autumn. “I’ll walk out with you Pogue.” I made an
after you
gesture.

I followed him out in the hall, and we walked silently to the lobby of the building. “You know, you could have told me all of that last night when you dropped by the manor,” I said as he opened the outside door for me. “You didn’t have to be so dramatic.”

Nathan scoffed as I sailed past him. “
I
didn’t have to be so dramatic?” He pointed at me. “So says the girl wearing a... what is that? A
cape
or something?”

“It’s a poncho, if you must know.” I smoothed the fringe down over my hips. “You seem awfully concerned with my wardrobe... Maybe you should be majoring in fashion design Pogue, instead of archeology.”

“I’m having a hard time taking you seriously when you look like you are wearing wings.”

“It’s called a bat-wing style poncho.” I smiled at him while he continued to mutter.

Nathan rubbed at his forehead. “What do you think your cousin will do?”

“What she said: talk to Bran and maybe contact the High Council. As for me...” I trailed off and tapped my fingers together. “I think it’s time to do a little paranormal investigating. There’s a full moon tonight. That’s good energy. I wonder what I can dig up?”

Nathan had started to walk away. He stopped and spun back around. “No.” He frowned.

“Relax,” I said. “I’m not gonna gather the campus coven and whip out the Ouija Board.”

“Keep your voice down!” He swung his eyes around, worried we’d be overheard.

No one was paying attention to us, we were alone on the sidewalk. It took everything I had not to laugh. “You know, for a guy that comes from Salem Village, and who trots out his magickal lineage, I would’ve never suspected that you’d be so far in the broom closet.”

“I am
not
a closeted Witch,” he said through his teeth. “I do however prefer to be discreet with my magick and my religious beliefs while I am here working on my Masters degree.”

“Okay,” I smiled at him. “Whatever makes you more comfortable.”

Nathan opened his mouth as if to reply and instead frowned down at me. “You don’t seriously have a coven on campus?” He seemed slightly horrified at the thought.

I blinked and couldn’t resist yanking his chain. “But of course,” I lied.

Nathan closed his eyes and seemed to be searching for composure. “I knew I should have waited for your brother.” He pointed at me with a scowl. “Don’t be stupid. Do not play with things you have no hopes of understanding or controlling.”

“You’re such a snob, Pogue,” I said, lightly.

“By the old gods. I give up.” He tossed up his hands and stalked off.

I watched him walk away and reached for my cell phone. Campus coven? No. But I did have my witchy roommate. Between Cypress and me we should be able to get to the bottom of things.

I dialed Cy’s number and waited until she picked up. “Hey Cypress?” I said. “How do you feel about a witchy stake out of the campus cemetery and the new excavation site tonight?”

CHAPTER SIX

The full harvest moon rose slowly in the eastern sky. It illuminated the university grounds with an eerie golden light. After hiking around the old theater, Cypress and I walked quietly across the grass to a more secluded section of campus. We cut through the parking lot and made our way uphill to the area where the campus stopped and a nearby church yard began.

Our sneakered feet were quiet as we walked along the winding downhill drive. To our right, on a grassy knoll, were two small cemeteries. Surrounded by old, heavy iron fences, the graves lay silently, illuminated with moonlight.

I hitched my tote bag higher on my shoulder. “It was smart to agree to check out the old campus graveyard first since it’s closest to our dorm. We can make our way back over to the archeological excavation afterwards.”

Cypress nodded. “After researching Victoria Crowly and her husband Gerald all afternoon, I really wanted to visit her family plot to see if we can pick up anything. Maybe vibes, or a random EVP.”

“Too bad Holly’s not here,” I said, trying to keep the wistfulness out of my voice. “She’d be the best one to sense any emotions or old memories from the area.”

“Yeah.” Cypress linked her arm through mine. “Have you heard from her at all lately?”

“No,” I said and tried to smile despite my disappointment in my sister’s behavior.

“Let’s go do a little ghostly research, my friend,” Cypress declared rather grandly.

“Who ya gonna call?” I said.

Cypress laughed in reply. “Call the friendly neighborhood Witches.”

We approached the first plot, but stayed on the paved service road. “You know Cy, we pass by the little cemeteries all the time, but I’ve never really gave them much thought,” I said. “How many folks are buried here?”

“According to my research, there’s around twenty people between the two plots,” Cypress said, shifting her gaze up to the golden-orange moon. She stepped off the road into the thick grass and headed for the first little cemetery.

“That many?” I said, following along. The night air was becoming cool quickly, I was glad I’d worn the crocheted poncho.

“Yes,” Cypress voice became softer as we approached the small fenced in areas. “There’s even a few dogs buried here as well.”

“The dogs have tombstones?” My interest was piqued.

“Umm hmm.” Cypress pulled a small flashlight out of her jacket pocket and a dozen stacked bracelets jingled at her wrist.

The first fenced off burial ground we approached wasn’t overly large... maybe twenty five feet square, it boasted a half dozen upright old tombstones. Three or four more markers were lying even to the ground. “Hey, what do you call the ones that are almost flush to the grass?” I asked.

“Lawn markers,” Cypress answered.

“Lots of different styles of headstones...” I trailed off.