Summoning the Night (Arcadia Bell #2)(80)

Jupe eyed him suspiciously. “You must like them a lot.”

“Cady’s the best bartender in the city,” Bob said proudly.

“She makes good smoothies,” Jupe said matter-of-factly. “But my dad’s a better cook.”

Don’t spare my feelings, kid.

Bob leaned against the sofa while I got my jacket. “So,” he said, still attempting to woo Lon’s good grace through his son, “I heard all the schools had closed in La Sirena. What about yours?”

“Yep. Good thing, too. It was getting crazy stressful up in that place.”

“Oh?”

“The teachers turned into tyrants. I’ve got this one teacher, Ms. Forsythe, who’s really cool, but she’s super-religious, and she’s always giving me extra homework for cussing in class, because she says it’s wrong.” Jupe rolled his eyes. “But she was so stressed out the day the school closed that she said ‘I don’t give a damn’ in front of one of the parents.” Jupe gave a single, loud laugh. “I almost lost my shit. It was awesome. I wonder if she’ll have go to confession for that?”

“Jupe,” Lon warned halfheartedly.

Bob shifted. Foxglove started barking again.

“Hush, you damn mutt,” Jupe complained. “We’re in the city tonight. You can’t act like that here.”

Bob moved away from the dog as she quieted. “What did you say her name was?”

“Foxglove,” Jupe said as he forced her to sit.

“No, your teacher.”

“Oh. Ms. Forsythe. Why? You know her?”

I zipped up my jacket. My ear was ringing. I tilted my head to the side and jostled it. “Bob lives here in Morella, Jupe. He doesn’t know her.”

“Ms. Forsythe lives out here in Morella, too,” Jupe argued. “She just works in La Sirena.”

Bob had a strange look on his face. “Grace Forsythe?”

“Yeah, Gracie. That’s what the other teachers call her,” Jupe said.

“That’s weird,” Bob said to me. “When he said she was religious, I thought he meant traditionally. But”—he glanced back at Jupe and lowered his voice, speaking to me conspiratorially—“Grace Forsythe goes to that, uh, temple you were asking me about the other day.”

I stared at him in disbelief.

“She used to be a patient at my father’s clinic before he died. All the Silent Temple members went to him.”

I have the support of my church. I’m quite blessed.

“Oh . . . God,” I murmured as I blinked at Lon. “Could it be?”

“No,” Lon insisted. “I know Grace. I can read her. If she’s involved, she has no idea.”

She was being used. Merrin was the getaway driver. Ms. Forsythe was unknowingly possessed by the duke.

Thirty years ago, Bishop was the getaway driver and Merrin was possessed by the duke. Only, Merrin was willing. Merrin struck the deal with the demon, but he was too weak to host him; too human. Merrin found someone stronger. Bishop’s old house was near the school. Ms. Forsythe worked at the school. She knew all the Earthbound kids. She was a member of the Silent Temple.

She was easy prey.

“Dad, what’s going on?”

Lon grimaced. “We can’t be sure, Jupe. I know she’s innocent—”

“No—that sound. Can’t you hear it? Foxglove’s whining. Where is that coming from?”

My ringing ears.

A shadow darkened the living room window, blocking out the setting sun.

Someone was testing the wards.

The shadow shifted out of sight. The ringing continued intermittently—softer, then louder.

“Oh, hell,” I said.

“Hasn’t reached the house ward yet,” Lon said. “No blue web.”

Lon and I set that ward together, strong magick that incapacitated anyone who crossed it with the intent to do harm. When tripped, it became visible, a network of bright blue lines. However, my own personal wards didn’t do that. Most of them alerted me with instinctive warnings that popped up in my mind, but I’d put up so many over the last few months, the windows and walls were covered with invisible ink, symbols from different traditions. One of them must issue an audible warning, and now was not the time I wanted to discover this detail.

Foxglove rocketed to the side door and barked her head off. My pounding heart mirrored her warning.

“Did you lock it when Bob came?” Lon said.

“Both locks.”

Lon grabbed a 12-gauge shotgun off the dining room table.

“Is it the Snatcher?” Jupe said, then squeaked out, “Ms. Forsythe?”

“Everyone upstairs,” I shouted. “My bedroom is the safest room in the house. Go!”

Jupe scooped up Mr. Piggy. “Foxie, come!”

The dog obeyed, darting up the stairs alongside Jupe. Once we were all inside my room, Lon slammed the door shut and locked it. “Help me move this, Bob.”

Bob scrambled to Lon’s side. Then they dragged my chest of drawers across the room and wedged it against the door. Jupe and I retreated into a corner and watched the door. If the main house ward was tripped, we’d all know. That’s what I kept telling myself as Foxglove paced the room, panting, alert. The ringing in my ears stopped.