Whispers of Fate: The Mistresses of Fate, Book Two Read Online Free Page B
Author: Deirdre Dore
porch looked as friendly as ever, with daisies planted on one side and a big oak in the front yard.
“Yeah?” She looked up from her phone. “Awesome.” She leaned over her dog to give Tyler an enthusiastic hug. The dog bent his head back and tried to lick them both.
Tyler fended them both off. “All right, all right. Get outta here. Say hi to your mom and Bill.”
She laughed, a happy innocent sound, and grabbed her bag off the floorboard.
“Bye, Tyler, love you.”
She opened the door to the truck and bounded out, her ridiculous mutt following.
“Love you, too, kid,” he told the girl, who was already running toward the house.
He tapped his fingers on his steering wheel for a moment, watching until Christie made it inside.
Ever since he’d become Christie’s de facto father, he’d understood a little better what it must have been like for Tavey when Summer went missing, how horrible it must be to always wonder what had happened to her friend. That didn’t excuse the accusations she’d hurled at his uncle—the man was afraid to leave his house—but he understood now. If Christie disappeared and he suspected, even for a moment, that someone he knew was involved, he would hound that person to the ends of the earth.
3
FROM THE Fate-Journal Constitution :
THE HAVEN FAMILY—FATE’S LOCAL LEGENDS
There is a new twist in one of our town’s most compelling local legends. The Haven family, well known to Fate as a family that practices witchcraft, has lost one of their own. Their daughter, Summer Haven, eight years old and blind since birth, has disappeared in the woods surrounding the Havens’ land. She and her friend Christina Pascal, who was found in the woods on the nearby Collinses’ property, had gone exploring that afternoon. Ms. Pascal was in shock but otherwise okay. The police haven’t released any additional information, but apparently Ms. Pascal doesn’t remember what happened.
She is hardly the first girl to disappear from our town, nor is this scandal the most sensational. The Collinses are no strangers to scandal, either. The death of Charlie Collins, his wife, and their driver has remained a subject of discussion since their car slid off a bridge and into the river in 1981. Some people believe that Charlie planned the accident, that he wanted to die to escape his gambling debts—debts his grandfather refused to pay.
His body was never found.
The strangeness of this latest disappearance is only increased by the strangeness of the Haven family. Their belief in witchcraft has caused some friction over the years.
Summer’s older sister, Jane Arrowdale, and Mark Arrowdale, Jane’s husband, have requested their privacy at this time, and that any flowers or gifts be left at the mailbox at the end of their drive. It doesn’t seem strange that Jane would want to avoid town, since she’s rarely interacted with any of us, nor is it surprising, in light of his association with Robert Carlson, that Mark Arrowdale would want to avoid any more notice. He was cleared of any wrongdoing in the real estate scam that has Carlson awaiting trail and in the disappearance of his niece, but he’s a newcomer to town, only been here a year, and his hasty marriage to the reclusive Jane Arrowdale has done little to quell the gossip.
The Havens’ neighbor, Abraham Jones, was also questioned in her disappearance. He’s known to be unstable and has been calling the sheriff lately to report that there are “people” in the woods doing drugs, but the sheriff’s department hasn’t found any evidence of people in the woods.
It’s a strange case, hopefully one that will be solved quickly, with Summer found. There seems to be little hope, however. These woods—dark, deep—have haunted this town since the beginning, and of all those who’ve gone missing in its history, none have ever been found.
November 3, 1986
THE CANDLE WOULDN’T LIGHT. Circe pressed the button on the lighter again, but the
“Yeah?” She looked up from her phone. “Awesome.” She leaned over her dog to give Tyler an enthusiastic hug. The dog bent his head back and tried to lick them both.
Tyler fended them both off. “All right, all right. Get outta here. Say hi to your mom and Bill.”
She laughed, a happy innocent sound, and grabbed her bag off the floorboard.
“Bye, Tyler, love you.”
She opened the door to the truck and bounded out, her ridiculous mutt following.
“Love you, too, kid,” he told the girl, who was already running toward the house.
He tapped his fingers on his steering wheel for a moment, watching until Christie made it inside.
Ever since he’d become Christie’s de facto father, he’d understood a little better what it must have been like for Tavey when Summer went missing, how horrible it must be to always wonder what had happened to her friend. That didn’t excuse the accusations she’d hurled at his uncle—the man was afraid to leave his house—but he understood now. If Christie disappeared and he suspected, even for a moment, that someone he knew was involved, he would hound that person to the ends of the earth.
3
FROM THE Fate-Journal Constitution :
THE HAVEN FAMILY—FATE’S LOCAL LEGENDS
There is a new twist in one of our town’s most compelling local legends. The Haven family, well known to Fate as a family that practices witchcraft, has lost one of their own. Their daughter, Summer Haven, eight years old and blind since birth, has disappeared in the woods surrounding the Havens’ land. She and her friend Christina Pascal, who was found in the woods on the nearby Collinses’ property, had gone exploring that afternoon. Ms. Pascal was in shock but otherwise okay. The police haven’t released any additional information, but apparently Ms. Pascal doesn’t remember what happened.
She is hardly the first girl to disappear from our town, nor is this scandal the most sensational. The Collinses are no strangers to scandal, either. The death of Charlie Collins, his wife, and their driver has remained a subject of discussion since their car slid off a bridge and into the river in 1981. Some people believe that Charlie planned the accident, that he wanted to die to escape his gambling debts—debts his grandfather refused to pay.
His body was never found.
The strangeness of this latest disappearance is only increased by the strangeness of the Haven family. Their belief in witchcraft has caused some friction over the years.
Summer’s older sister, Jane Arrowdale, and Mark Arrowdale, Jane’s husband, have requested their privacy at this time, and that any flowers or gifts be left at the mailbox at the end of their drive. It doesn’t seem strange that Jane would want to avoid town, since she’s rarely interacted with any of us, nor is it surprising, in light of his association with Robert Carlson, that Mark Arrowdale would want to avoid any more notice. He was cleared of any wrongdoing in the real estate scam that has Carlson awaiting trail and in the disappearance of his niece, but he’s a newcomer to town, only been here a year, and his hasty marriage to the reclusive Jane Arrowdale has done little to quell the gossip.
The Havens’ neighbor, Abraham Jones, was also questioned in her disappearance. He’s known to be unstable and has been calling the sheriff lately to report that there are “people” in the woods doing drugs, but the sheriff’s department hasn’t found any evidence of people in the woods.
It’s a strange case, hopefully one that will be solved quickly, with Summer found. There seems to be little hope, however. These woods—dark, deep—have haunted this town since the beginning, and of all those who’ve gone missing in its history, none have ever been found.
November 3, 1986
THE CANDLE WOULDN’T LIGHT. Circe pressed the button on the lighter again, but the
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