Chapter 20: Dad's Attitude

"Please tell us," Dad's deep voice held no hint of warmth or fatherly concern as he stood over the chair where I sat, his official role as Nanna's assistant seeming to put a wall between us higher and thicker than ever, "what you recall of the events of the last two evenings."

I wanted to kick him I was so angry with his attitude. But we were far from alone, Nanna sitting across from me, beside Karyn Barrett at her big, wooden desk, Harvard Yard in the window behind them, beckoning me to escape this ridiculous third round of questioning in under twelve hours.

That's right, third. The Enforcers who came to my kitchen in Wilding Springs asked a bunch that Mom and GreatGram interjected their own opinions and short responses into, leading the three officials to take me here to Massachusetts Hall and Karyn's office to be questioned again,

with only GreatGram at my side while Mom paced the dark and oppressive outer room, asked kindly to wait by the NA Council leader.

"Please, Syd," I'd heard Karyn say, her power trembling slightly at the fury in Mom. "Let us ask what we need to ask so we can find who really killed that boy."

Mom relented, but I still felt her presence pressing against the North American Council power while the Enforcers stood silent vigil and the always sweet leader asked me more probing questions, silencing GreatGram from responding for me with the occasional stare of utter quiet.

She was a good leader, I knew that already. I liked Karyn. But it still felt like she didn't believe me by the time she summoned Nanna and Dad and the World Paranormal Council Enforcers.

"I want to make sure my ass is covered," I heard her whisper to my grandmother. "I know this is North American business, but she's your family and a Hayle. And we all owe Syd so much."

"I'm happy to observe," Nanna said, though with a hint of annoyance and a ping of crisp disapproval that made Karyn pale.

This was ridiculous and we all knew it. Well, all but the Santos family, their leader Paula and Jagger's mother and father who insisted on joining us. And my own dad, it appeared, who prodded me to answer his question, one I'd already answered twice today.

Fine. "I was part of an illegal fighting group at the old coven site," I said, with the kind of cold detachment I knew would bring me more trouble than I wanted, but I just couldn't muster humble pie at the moment. "Jagger Santos challenged me through Coradine Flynn." Let his parents chew on that fact. Their faces tightened, denials written all over them, though their coven leader didn't even twitch. Paula Santos's olive skin tightened around her eyes, black hair about as straight and unforgiving in style as her entire expression. I just hoped she wouldn't be a problem.

How could she? I didn't kill anyone.

"And the result of that fight?" Dad paced before me, dark eyes hooded and wide mouth in a tight line. He'd clearly been watching too much court TV for his own good. And mine.

I sighed, shifting in my seat, knowing it made me look young and impulsive, unable to hold myself still. My butt hurt, though, from the hard wood of the stupid antique chair they'd given me-at least they didn't make me stand the whole time, though it would have been preferable to

the numbness spreading from my tailbone and into my posterior cheeks-and I was tired of this stupidity. One poke from GreatGram straightened my spine and I answered.

"I warned him off, told him he could walk away," I said. "He instead attacked me from behind."

This time the Santos's both spoke out in muttered anger. Of course their precious child would never. Yeah, tell that to someone who didn't live it.

"Go on," Dad said after glaring at them long enough they fell into grim, sullen stillness.

Jagger's mother stared at me like she could murder me with her brown gaze. Let her try. I was a Hayle witch and she was nothing.

Ah, arrogance. I'll see you puffed up self-importance and raise you disdain for the dead. I really needed to sort out how I was supposed to feel about things before I fell flat on my face. "I admit I lost my temper when he cheated." I shrugged, not sure if I even cared enough to

soften the blow. "I took him out and he collapsed." My hand rose and gestured to GreatGram. It was suddenly hard to muster any kind of emotion, chill wiping out my need to defend myself.

Why should I? Seriously, these people needed to get their priorities straight. One loser witch boy's life was not worth a Hayle. Not by a long shot.

The locket around my neck felt suddenly so heavy I winced but went on.

"My coven leader and mother both appeared, and they summoned the Kennecott twins who assessed Jagger and assured us he was going to be fine. When I left him that night, he was conscious and recovering."

"And yesterday?" Dad prodded me with power and his own doubt. The fool. He was supposed to be on my side, not theirs. He'd pay for his lack of loyalty.

I jerked out of that train of thought, blood running cold. What the hell was wrong with me?

Dad was just doing his job. And I had nothing to hide.

"I saw him again last night," I said. "He challenged me to a rematch."

Again a quiver of protest from the Santos family. And again Dad silenced them before nodding to me to go on.

"I refused to fight him." I curled my hands into fists in my lap, wishing I could just smack sense into each and every one of them. How could Nanna sit and endure this? Why didn't Mom just break down the door and sweep all opposition out of our way? If I had her power, I would have. Nothing would stop me.

Cold sweat beaded my upper lip and I wiped at it, nausea flooding my mouth with saliva. "Are you all right?" That was from Karyn, her concern clear in her voice.

"Looks like guilt to me." Paula's mutter wasn't helping.

"Sorry," I said. "Just not feeling well." The locket's chain seemed to dig into my neck but I tried to ignore it and hold still, answer so I could just get out of there already. I squared my shoulders and swallowed, forcing my voice into strength. "Might be all the stress of answering the same questions three million times." And gulp. I hurried on, attitude back to as controlled as I could get it while Karyn finally frowned in her own frustration. Way to push an ally off the edge of my side. "I shut down the fighting group permanently," I said. There, that was better. "And sent everyone home. The last time I saw Jagger, he was perfectly fine."

I flinched as I felt Mom's power twitch in anger, the touch of Poppa's power reaching me because of our shared demon blood despite Karyn's attempt to seal us off from each other.

Didn't she know she didn't stand a chance against us?

Okay, this was getting to be too much. Something was totally off with me and I had no idea what.

"And that's all you know." Dad waited for me to nod.

"That's it," I said, clear and concise. Finally, just let me go already. The Santos leader stirred, uncoiling herself as she turned to Karyn.

"It's apparent the girl is lying," Paula said in a smooth and calm tone. "I demand she be extradited to my territory for thorough interrogation."

I snorted in utter amused shock even as the door to the office banged open and Mom stormed in. Even I knew she'd breached giant protocol, Karyn rising from her seat while my mother snarled.

"Over my dead body," she said. "And all of yours."

This was going to go South fast if someone didn't intervene. Thankfully, Nanna knew just what to do.

"Without proof," she said, just as mild as Paula only about a hundred times better in my opinion, "and the vague connection made here in this interrogation, there is nothing I can see that warrants such an extradition. If anything, the lack of search for further suspects is, if you'll pardon the term, suspect." She shrugged her elegant shoulders and looked away.

"I'd expect as much from the grandmother of the accused," Paula said.

"How dare you call into question the integrity of the World Paranormal Council's leader?" Dad's tone had that perfect mix of outrage and threat that seemed to silence her way better than Nanna's protest.

"And her father," she muttered. "How the cards are stacked against the Santos family." She turned to glare at Karyn. "As they have been since Miriam Hayle was North American leader."

So this was all political, was it? I only then realized just how plastic Jagger's parents seemed.

How lacking in care their son was dead outside their outrage. If I'd died, or Gabriel-please elements, that wasn't a suggestion or anything-I'm pretty sure my mother would be a sobbing mess forever. Even Dad would be a wreck. So where were their tears for their dearly departed son?

"No other suspects are necessary," Paula said. "Bring in the witnesses."

The what? I couldn't help scowling as the door at the far end of the room opened and two Enforcers entered, three girls between them. Why wasn't I surprised to see Coradine, Rennie and Johanna all staring their hate at me?

"You're going to believe three girls who have made it their life's purpose to make mine miserable since I was little?" I couldn't help the sarcasm in my voice. "Who I threatened to turn in for starting the fighting group in the first place, who recruited your son," I jabbed a finger at Coradine, "to challenge me? Really?" I crossed my arms over my chest, feeling even Karyn's hesitation. "This should be good."

"I know what I saw," Coradine snapped at me, fake tears in her eyes, tossing her head in that way she did to get attention while Rennie and Johanna seemed to shrink back as if second thinking this stupid plan. Maybe one of them would flip on her.

"Do tell," I said.

"You in the park beside your house," she snapped before turning to Karyn and finishing, "fighting Jagger and killing him."

"You witnessed his death?" Karyn sounded like she was going to throw up.

Coradine hesitated. Just enough I tsked in the silence before she tossed her curls again. "I saw enough," she said.

"Liar." I met Karyn's eyes. "Are we done yet?"

"I'm sorry, Ethie." I didn't expect Rennie to speak up, nor for her to feel so regretful instead of angry or hateful. Instead, she hesitated before blurting, "I saw you, too. Fighting Jagger. We ran before it was over, but it was you. I'm sure of it."

Johanna nodded beside her, misery on her face. And Coradine beamed as they supported her story.

The locket quivered against my bare skin, tucked between the fabric of my t-shirt and my flesh, and for an instant I felt the cold darkness of my dream, the claustrophobia, the tightness of the space and heard the voice asking me who I was.

Gone again in an eye blink. But long enough, it seemed, when I snapped out of my daze the room had erupted into shouting around me.

"Enough!" Mom's power snapped through the air, silencing everyone while I sat, shaken and suddenly afraid. Did I fight him? And forgot about it somehow? What really happened?

"You have no authority here," Paula began but Karyn cut her off.

"She has the most authority of anyone on our plane," Karyn said, voice shaking with passion. "And I challenge you to argue that fact."

Paula fell silent, dark eyes narrowing.

"Might I suggest," GreatGram said, voice drawing out the words, "we do the most logical thing in this situation? Rather than running on hearsay and accusations?"

Karyn nodded. "I was thinking the same thing," she said as she turned to the Santos family and their leader. "I'm not asking permission," she said, authority ringing in her voice. "We're going to raise Jagger's echo and put truth to this once and for all."

I wanted a chance to try it didn't I? Just not this way. Necromancy. Awesome.

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