Part 39 (2/2)
Owen shrugged. He didn't care who knew it. Not any more.
”That's cra-” Becca snapped her mouth shut. ”Sorry.”
If Owen took offense every time someone used the word crazy he'd spend most of his life p.i.s.sed off.
”Where would your mom hide?” Franklin asked. ”A place where they both could.”
”Both?” Owen repeated.
”Her and Mistress June.”
Owen shook his head. ”I don't think so.”
”Mistress June killed your mother's keeper, and now they're both gone.”
”Mistress June killed Peggy because she thought she was a witch, not to...” He made quotation marks in the air with his fingers. ”Free Mary.”
”She thought she was a witch?” Franklin repeated. ”You know there are witches, right?”
”Are we talking broomsticks and warts witches? Or Wicca-practicing women?”
”And men.” Bobby shrugged. ”Reitman.”
Owen bit back his opinion of Reitman and his witchery or lack of it. Now wasn't the time. ”I don't know where my mom would hide, but I do know that she wouldn't take Mistress June with her.”
”Because?”
”She called the woman 'b.i.t.c.h-wh.o.r.e' at first sight.”
Ca.s.sandra's cough sounded like a laugh. ”Sounds like they've met before.”
”Doesn't it?” Franklin asked.
”Problem is, my mom also thinks she's a witch.” Owen lifted his hands, lowered them. ”Sometimes. Wouldn't Mistress June kill her too if she got the chance?”
”Probably.”
”Therefore, I doubt they're hiding together.” And if they had been, he was a lot more worried about his mom today than he'd been yesterday.
”I'd still feel better if we found either one of them,” Franklin said.
”So would I.”
”Does your mother have any friends she might go to?”
”She doesn't have any-” He paused. ”Peggy said she made a friend in the facility recently who was as interested in witches as she was. Though I doubt my mother would run back to a place she just ran away from.”
”Maybe she told this friend something that could help us.” Franklin drew out his cell phone. ”Who is she?”
”Peggy never gave me the woman's name.”
And now Peggy was dead.
”I'll see what I can find out,” Franklin said.
”Good luck with that,” Owen murmured. Not only were there privacy issues he didn't think even the FBI could get around, but if this woman were in the same facility as his mom, he doubted she'd be coherent for questioning any more than his mom had ever been.
”So...” Owen rubbed his hands together. ”You wanna go check on the wolf in your clinic?”
What he really wanted was to get Becca out of here. He was pretty sure he could find out more from her than from anyone in the room.
”Pru's gone.”
”Gone how?” As she'd seemed well enough the night before, Owen didn't think ”dead and gone.”
”Ran off,” Becca said.
He also hadn't thought she'd been well enough to be ”long gone.” Then again, what did he know?
”How much have you told him?” Franklin asked.
”Enough.”
”Define enough,” Owen said. ”I know that Raye thinks they're sisters.”
”Thinks?” Bobby asked. ”Have you looked at them?”
”Fine,” Owen admitted. ”They're sisters. But what that has to do with the Venatores Mali, witches, and wolves is a mystery.”
The room went silent.
”Maybe you two should go somewhere and talk,” Bobby said.
Owen's gaze met Becca's, and he opened the door. ”You read my mind.”
As I started for the door, Raye caught my arm and whispered, ”You need to tell him everything.”
I did need to. I just didn't want to.
Owen, Reggie, and I climbed into the pickup. ”Where to?” he asked.
”The clinic.” Not only did I have work to do, but if this went badly-and how could it not?-I'd rather be in my own place, instead of having to walk back to it from the cottages. Have people pa.s.s me on the road, stop, and ask what the h.e.l.l? That was just embarra.s.sing.
Owen drove the short distance, waving at those who waved at us-quite a few. Townsfolk seemed genuinely happy to see him. I could tell it mystified him still.
The sight of the empty dog bed in the corner made my eyes burn and my throat thicken. Pru was fine. She was healed. But bizarre as it was to admit, she was my mother, and I wanted more time with her. Maybe once this was over, I'd get it.
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