Sapphire Nights (Crystal Magic Book 1)(33)

All the women had dressed for hiking, but some were elderly and frail. Some of the more portly members were already seeking places to sit. The trail required athleticism, and the Lucys didn’t qualify. Sam got that part. “Unpolluted?” she asked. “How do we determine what’s polluted?”

“If you can’t tell, you can’t help,” Mariah said with a sigh. “I’d hoped Cass had sent you for a reason.”

For all Sam knew, she’d killed Cass and stolen her cat.

“I’ve only just arrived,” Sam said, trying to sound reasonable. She wanted these people to be her friends. She desperately needed their support. “I’ve not had enough time to explore.”

“She’s right, Mariah,” Tullah said. Even in boots and khaki, she managed to look like an African queen. “It takes time to learn the energy of a new place. What about trying her with one of Harvey’s sticks?”

“I have one with me,” Amber called, getting up from the rock where she’d perched. She carried a polished redwood branch. A carved seahorse head with a crystalline eye formed the handle.

“Good thought.” Mariah brightened and tested the stick by circling it in the air, perpendicular to her body. “We should ask him to make one for Sam.”

“I can’t pay him,” Sam protested, taking the lovely walking staff when Mariah handed it to her.

The sea horse perfectly fit her hand, and the energy flowing through the wood felt happy and positive. She coveted this stick. Which was crazy, right?

“He negotiates.” Mariel waved away the protest. “How does that feel? Lift it toward me, see what happens.”

Sam pointed the stout flat tip in Mariah’s direction. The stick seemed to quiver on its own, then circle and nod. It felt happy in her hand. “Positive?” she answered tentatively. Did sticks normally feel like anything? Like cream in her coffee, she couldn’t remember.

“Good. Let’s give this a try. We know the lines are polluted uphill and south toward the vortex. Let’s spread out and try going downhill away from the resort. Don’t take any dangerous routes that we can’t all follow. Ideally, we’ll find ground flat enough to gather. Ready?”

With the tactical skill of a general, Mariah divided up her army and sent them out to search for safe ground.

“I’ll take the most polluted section,” she told Sam as the others traipsed off. “Stay to my left, just far enough that we can see and hear each other. I’m sorry I expected you to jump into this with both feet. We’re kind of desperate and had hopes Cass had found someone skilled.”

“That wouldn’t be me. I don’t even know what skills you expect.”

“Listening is a good one,” Mariah admitted while her gaze tracked the path of her army marching downhill. “Did Walker tell you anything we should know?”

“Only that the victim is local. He says you’ll know soon enough.” Sam had a horrible thought. “He would have said something if it were Cass, wouldn’t he? Is anyone else missing?”

Mariah looked troubled. “If it happened last night, I think one of us would have known that Cass was back. And it’s too soon for anyone to report a missing person. Whoever it was created enough disturbance that he was found before he was declared lost.”

Sam nodded. “OK, lead on. Let’s see what I can do.”

Even though she was doing as Walker had directed—keeping the Lucys occupied, she felt like an idiot. She was a scientist. Walking through the woods, holding a walking stick in front of her, waiting for it to take a nose dive like a divining rod was just too ridiculous. At least she knew what a divining rod was, even if she’d always believed they found water, not safe ground. Although maybe if there was water below, it carried off evil pollution? Alice, meet Wonderland.

As they searched, Mariah carried on a running dialogue about the old mill that had once occupied the area, the sisters who had lived in the cabin marked by fallen logs, and the village well that had once been up here and lost in an earthquake.

Sam tried to take in the concept of all these people living here over the centuries—while she held onto a staff with a mind of its own. It dipped and jiggled and shook back and forth like an old man saying no, no, no as they slowly proceeded downhill. The blasted thing practically talked.

She was trying to find the peace she’d found on the other side of the valley, but mostly, she felt edgy and scared. Did a killer live on this mountain? Could he be watching them now? She’d be a lot happier if Walker told her someone had died in a bear fight.

The staff dipped so forcefully, she almost fell. At the same time, she felt her fears lifting. Positive energy soaked through her shoes, and all the muscles she hadn’t known were tense, relaxed. She took a deep breath. Even the air smelled cleaner.

With no memory, she had no preconceived notions to fall back on, so the sensation didn’t strike her as weird or out of the ordinary. Maybe everyone felt safe on some ground more than others. Would that be in her textbooks?

“Mariah,” she called, afraid to sound too certain. “Is this what you’re looking for?”

“Did you find it?” Amber called from the left. A crashing of underbrush and old leaves followed.

Mariah arrived on silent feet just as Amber stumbled over a log and caught herself on a tree trunk. Both women looked around expectantly at the tall grass and saplings.