Chapter 60: Council of War
In which the net tightens, and Grandma Simms makes some plans.
Grandma Simms wrinkled her brow at the guests in the sitting room. “This ain't exactly the time for a tea party,” she said. She had traded her Friendlee-Mart uniform and apron for a red quadrille dress and had added a couple of extra beaded necklaces and brought a heavy, mahogany staff with a carved skull at the end for the occasion. She raised the staff into a defensive position and flexed her many-ringed finger with a snarl.
Cassandra scrambled to interpose herself between the stern Jamaican and the others. “It's okay, she said. “These are friends of Strephon’s.”
Mrs. Simms lowered her staff only slightly. “Miss Cooper I've met,” she said. “It looks like you found your lost friend. Congratulations. Mrs. Palmer I know. Good evening, Lydia.”
Mrs. Palmer nodded in acknowledgement.
“And I know Reverend Shepherd by reputation. That is who you are, am I correct?”
“You are”, Shepherd nodded.
Mrs. Simms's granddaughter, Theodora came in the door carrying a large, wireless speaker and a long, flat bundle, about the length of her forearm, wrapped in cloth. She also had changed out of her Friendlee-Mart work uniform, and was dressed in a rainbow-colored tunic and wore beads in her braided hair, tied back in a turban like her grandmother's. It occurred to Cassandra that, despite its holiday gaiety, the clothing both Simms women wore were no less professional than their convenience store aprons. They were work clothes for their other profession.
“The wolves are coming closer, Gran,” Theodora said. “Oop! I see some here already!”
“Never mind that,” Mrs. Simms said. “Close the door behind you, quick.”
“Why, Theodora,” Mrs. Palmer said. “My, how you've grown! I see your grandmother is training you in the Craft. How splendid!”
“She has some talent,” Mrs. Simms admitted, “when she applies herself.”
Trapped in the socially difficult position of having to respond to a compliment from a stranger while trying to gracefully close a door with her butt while her her hands were full, all under the critical eye of her grandmother, Theodora uttered a shy “Thank you.” Then she noticed Cecily. “Hey, Cecily! Gran tol' me you'd gone off to Fairy-Land!”
“I'm back,” Cecily said. “And boy have I got stories to tell you!”
“It can wait,” Mrs. Simms grumped. “I want the two of you to go around the house to make sure every window and door is locked.”
“Yes, Gran. Where should I put this?” Theodora indicated the speaker.
“On the floor for now. It can wait. Securing the house comes first.”
“I don't understand why the werewolves are targeting this house,” Cassandra said as Cecily and Theodora dashed off to follow Grandma Simms's instructions. “Is it revenge on Strephon and myself for that attack at the restaurant? But that was weeks ago!”
“From what I've heard, Blanka was mad at those wolves for invading Mrs. Simms's territory without his permission,” Miss Cooper said, “and he gave the Reavers orders to leave Bellman alone.”
Mrs. Palmer pursed her lips. “Then either Bianka changed his mind, or... someone else is giving the orders.”
“They're after me,” Luna said. She put her arms together as if struck by a sudden chill. Perhaps she could sense the presence of the wolves outside. Yes, she probably could.
Reverend Shepherd put his hand on Luna's shoulders. “I should never have made you come here. I'm sorry.”
Luna shrugged. “Maybe it's destiny. They would have caught up with me eventually.”
Cassandra drew back the curtains of the front window a bit to peek outside. A thin fog was visible on the streets and the streetlamps were englobed in halos where their light reflected off the mist in the air. “I don't see anyone,” she said.
“They're there, all right,” Mrs. Simms said. “They'll be lurking out of sight for now.”
“Strephon told me that you had magic barriers or something to keep the werewolves out of this neighborhood.”
“They can enter, but the spell makes it uncomfortable for them.”
“Tell me about it,” said Luna.
“And they can't change. But the Reavers have those enchanted collars that let them slip past my wards. I haven't figured out how to counter that.”
“Either way it looks like we're trapped.”
Ferner Cooper put her arm around Luna. “This time you aren't alone.”
Mrs. Palmer pinched her face as if regarding a missed stitch in her knitting. “I can't help but think there is more to this than just the werewolves. There's deeper magic behind it.”
“You’re probably right,” Mrs. Simms said. “The trouble Mr. Strephon's been looking into has started looking for him.”
A silence settled on the room. Cassandra glanced at the others, hoping someone would have some words of encouragement. Even the chatty vicar's wife seemed immersed in her own broodings.
Then the lilting ringtone of Cassandra's phone broke the gloom. Her first thought was, Maybe it's Strephon. Her next was, What if it isn't? Everybody in the room looked at her expectantly. She took the phone out of her purse and answered.
“Strephon?”
A cool, velvety voice, like the very fog insinuating its way outside the window, answered. “I am here for you, my own; my beloved.”
It was not Strephon.
“Philippe? How the hell did you get my number?”
“Our destinies are intertwined. No gulf of time or space can separate us!”
Cassandra was pissed now. “I'm blocking you!”
“I am closer than you think. Look out the window.”
She approached the front window and gingerly pulled back the curtain again. The faint wisps of mist she had seen before had thickened into a dense blanket enshrouding the streets. The streetlamps seemed to do nothing to pierce the fog and the tops of the cars parked along the street emerged from the miasma like islands. Philippe stood on one of them. He had traded the hoodie of their previous encounter for a long coat which swirled dramatically around him, despite the apparent lack of breeze anywhere else on the street. Cassandra felt a chill grip her. Mrs. Simms pulled her back from the window and closed the curtain.
“Come to me, my love, my eternal desire...”
For a moment, Cassandra had the feeling that he was standing right next to her, whispering in her ear. Then she remembered she still had the phone in her hand. She jabbed her finger at the screen of her phone, ending the call. She was back in Strephon's house, surrounded by friends, or at least vague acquaintances of a friendly nature. But for a moment, it had seemed like she was someplace else, like she had been suspended in the air then came crashing down.
“Are you all right?” Mrs. Palmer asked, her face full of concern.
Cassandra nodded, but the words wouldn't come out.
Grandma Simms frowned. “It's that blood-sucker, Philippe, isn't it. Damnation!”
“Who is Philippe?” Mrs. Palmer asked.
“He's a vampire who was going around with Miss Cecily for a while. Except it seems he's interested in Miss Cassandra now.”
“Philippe?” Now Cecily was returning to the parlor. “That was Philippe on the phone? You should have given it to me. I have a few words to say to that creep.”
“No,” Mrs. Simms said. “Philippe doesn't know you're here, Miss Cecily, and I think it's better that way. Remember, you used to be under his control. Are you sure you're free of it? And if he were to ask you to let him into this house, would you have the strength to deny him?
Cecily hesitated, made a face, and said, “I guess we'll find out.”
“Vampires can't enter someone's house unless they're invited, can they?” Now Theodora was entering the conversation.
“I think this Philippe intends to entice Cassandra into doing just that,” Mrs. Palmer said.
“Like hell I will,” Cassandra said.
“What about the wolves?' Cecily asked. “Can they get in here? I mean, they can't open doors or anything. They don't have thumbs. So all we have to do is sit tight and wait 'till morning.”
“A wolf's weapons are not limited solely to claw and fang,” Shepherd said. “They create fear. They will build on that fear and keep us pinned down until they can find a way to force themselves in. That is probably their plan. Or they can try to spook us into running, at which point it will be easy for them to chase after us and run us down.”
“Then what can we do?”
“We can call the police,” Cassandra still had her phone in hand and she called up her contacts list.
The others looked at each other. It was Mrs. Palmer who broke the silence. “Cassandra, dear,” she said kindly, “the police don't believe in vampires. Not officially, anyway.”
“Maybe not, but if they get a complaint about wild dogs being a nuisance, they'll send a patrol car to investigate. At very least the wolves will lie low until the cops leave the neighborhood. Besides, it helps to know a cop who is a werewolf. Hello? Detective Masey?” She was glad she saved the detective's phone number.
But Detective Masey wasn't answering his phone. Cassandra cursed, left a brief message on his voice mail, then looked up the number for the local police precinct and entered it. She waited as it rang twice, then three times – dammit! What were her taxes paying for anyway? – before someone on the other end finally picked up.
“Cassandra, darling, we are destined...”
It wasn’t a policeman.
“Philippe? How did – Never mind. Go to hell!” She closed the connection and tried again.
“You cannot escape my love...”
She hurled the phone to the floor. It took her a moment or two to regain her composure. “All right. The police are out. What now?”
“We can fight.” Luna hadn't spoken in a while and the others turned to her in surprise.
“Are you sure about this?” Shepherd said. “You said you didn't want to confront the Reavers.”
“Well, it looks like it's going to happen anyway, innit? I'm tired of running and hiding, Abel. It's time I faced them head on. Only... I can't shift. Not with Mrs. Simms's wards in place. Unless...” she gave Mrs. Simms a hopeful look.
Mrs. Simms shook her head. “My protections aren't a light switch you can just turn on and off. I can't undo part of the wards without unraveling the whole skein.”
“Well, I'm not affected by your spell,” Miss Cooper said. “I'm not a 'real wolf', remember? I’m a 'Tinkerbell.' I can transform myself without using wolf magic, and I don't think Mrs. Simms's spells hinder faerie enchantments. Must be a courtesy to her friend, Bellman. I can transform you too, Luna, into anything you like.”
Luna took her hand and smiled. “Together, Ferner?”
“Always. And what about you, Padre?” Miss Cooper turned her attention to Shepherd. “I can change you into your wolf-form too. Or are you preachers allowed to kick arse?”
“I think it permissible to use what gifts the Lord has given me in defense of others,” Shepherd said.
“Huh. The Fae have nothing on the Clergy when it comes to finding loopholes.”
“I may take you up on it, but first I must crave your pardon.” He fished in his pocket and withdrew a gold cross on a chain.
Cooper made a face like he had just emitted a particularly pestilential fart. “Is that thing really necessary?”
“I do not wish to give offense, and I know your folk have an aversion to holy symbols, but we are going out this night to do battle with Powers and Principalities. Since that is the case, I would prepare to go into battle under the banner of my faith.”
“Whatever. I'll take back my offer then. I don't think my transformations will work on you when you're wearing that... thing.”
“I feared that might be the case,” Shepherd said, slipping the crucifix over his head. “I will find my own way. Nevertheless, your offer was a generous one, and I do appreciate it.”
Grandma Simms set a plastic “Friendlee-Mart” shopping bag she had brought with her down on the parlor coffee table and pulled out several of her hand-made charms. “Wolf charms,” she explained. “I wasn't sure how many I'd need, but these should be enough.” She gave one to Cassandra, one to Cecily and one to Mrs. Palmer. “They'll ward off the Taint if you get bitten. But they won't guard against tooth or claw, . A bite's still going to bleed. I wish I'd brought some charms against the undead, but foresight can't cover everything.”
“I have the vampire charm Sandy gave me,” Cecily drew the talisman from her pocket and placed it in Cassandra's hands.
“Are you sure about this?”
“You'll need it more than me, Sandy.”
“All right, now listen up,” Mrs. Simms commanded. “The vampire and his furry friends are going to try to wait us out, so we have a little bit of time. But we gon’ want to plan out our defenses. Ladies, you ready?”
NEXT: The Siege of Bellman House
