Chapter 5: Protection Details

David's walk through of the Ranch Hand Kitchen confirmed that some power, tainted by the Nightmare, had been at work during their meal. Unfortunately, he couldn't localize the smell to a particular chair or even side of the table. So, they knew that one of the five Wizards was the gray dove. They still didn't know which one.

Sean decided that David Stalker should be present for all future meetings with Wizards. He felt that it was crucial to the safety of his family.

The Wizards and Sorceress from the world Councils were staying at the Arizona Biltmore in north east Phoenix. That was a good thing for two reasons. The Biltmore's expansive grounds and landscaping provided many ways to stay close to the Wizards without being detected. The Biltmore had multiple flower gardens that were famous throughout the world which ensured there were often visitors to the property that were not guests. And, it wasn't too far from Casa Cavalla either. Those were the only two things good about the groups little sojourn.

Pappy volunteered to cook while Seth, Sean and David drove over to the hotel on Monday evening. David could smell the same foul odor he had smelled at the ranch, but couldn't determine if the Wizard generating the smell was still present.

The trio returned to the house several hours later for dinner. The steak and beans that Pappy prepared was good but not quite up to par with what they were used to eating. They knew they had a problem when Pappy served cut up, left over steak and beans for breakfast. Pappy explained the biscuits on the side made it breakfast.

Seth thought about Martha's cooking as he regretfully looked at what Pappy had put on his plate. Pappy's 'biscuits' bore more resemblance to hockey pucks than biscuits and were probably more durable.

"Maybe we could, um, see if Martha wants to come down," Seth suggested hopefully.

"It would be nice but, she has her own job to do," Sean said regretfully.

Martha was scheduled to restart her volunteer teaching at the little Crown King Elementary district. The plan had been for Sean and Megan to spend half days with her at the little district so they could be exposed to 'normal' kids.

David was invited to try his hand at cooking, but he laughed when he declined.

"There's a good reason why I eat out a lot," David explained sheepishly.

Seth kept Pappy busy watching the hotel on Tuesday. It was their first full day of trying to detect an attack on the Delegates. Since Pappy didn't have time to cook, they had a Shakey's Pizza for dinner. Even Pappy seemed to be grateful for the change.

David did volunteer to provide breakfast for Wednesday morning. Neither Seth or Pappy were happy or impressed with the Raisin Bran and Cheerios.

"Hey," David said in protest at their complaints. "That's what I eat when I get to eat at home for breakfast. What's wrong with it?"

"I like it," Sean said enthusiastically. His memories of chewing Pappy's left over steak what felt like most of the previous day seemed to enhance the flavor of his Raisin Bran.

Martha was scheduled for a volunteer teaching position on the second day of the guy's self imposed protection job. She had originally planned it to give Sean and Megan a chance to see 'normal' kids in action. Martha asked Liz about taking Megan on the outing, even though Sean wasn't available.

"I've turned in my resignation at the hospital," Liz said thoughtfully. "Why don't I volunteer as a school nurse on the same days you do your volunteer classes? Megan can come along and when Sean gets back we can include him too."

"That works for me," Martha said with a smile. She liked spending time with Liz and didn't look forward to the long drive to the Crown King Elementary school alone.

Udit wasn't about to allow the two women and Megan to travel alone on the mountain roads. And of course, Lightning had to go along. He hadn't let Megan out of his sight since Sean left.

There was a problem when they got to the school district. Dogs weren't allowed in the school and the school officials were hesitant about allowing a six month old child to sit in the class room while the class was being taught.

The resolution was to allow Udit to stay with Megan and Lightning outside the school but on school grounds. Udit found a shady spot under a tree where he settled down to wait with the little girl and dog. It was the perfect spot to allow Megan to observe the kids when they were allowed outside for recess. It was educational and troubling for the little girl.

"Udit, why are the boys mean to the girls?" Megan asked.

Udit chuckled and said, "Most of the time, they aren't being mean, Megan. Boys and girls are different. The boys usually like the girls but don't know how to tell them. So, they pick on them and try to get the girls attention that way."

"I don't think that boy is trying to tell that girl that he likes her," Megan said. She pointed at one of the bigger boys on the playground. He pushed one of the girls, causing her to fall. She got up and ran. The boy was right behind her reaching for her hair.

"I think you're right, Megan," Udit said angrily. "I think he's just a bully."

Megan frowned. A rock in his path suddenly flowed as it changed shape and shifted its position to catch the boy's foot. The boy yelled in pain and fell. He got up crying and walking back to the school with skinned hands and knees. The little girl had stopped and watched him walk away with wide eyes.

Udit looked around furtively to see if anyone had noticed the rock move on its own. Apparently, no one had.

"I know you did that for a good reason, Megan," Udit said quietly. "But, you really need to be more careful. We've explained why no one can know what you and Sean can do. What would have happened if someone noticed that rock move by itself?"

Megan was silent for a moment as she thought about Udit's words. Finally she asked, "What else could I have done, Udit?"

Udit sighed before saying, "Sometime, you just need to allow bad things to happen. The secret of you and Sean is more important than, well, than protecting that little girl from that boy."

Megan's forehead wrinkled in thought for a long moment before she shook her head. "I need to respond if I see something wrong. I don't think I have a choice in that. I think that's one of the problems with those Wizards from the Delegation. They've spent so much time ignoring what's wrong to protect themselves that they forgot about what they were born for. What I need to do is be sneakier when I respond if I'm going to use power."

"You need to be sneakier, huh?" Udit asked with a smile. He was surprised that the little girls reasoning so closely followed his own.

"Sure," Megan said with all the confidence and loftily demeanor that only a little girl can portray. "It shouldn't be a problem. Mom says girls are a lot better at being sneaky than guys are. Dad agrees with her."

Udit could only chuckle and shake his head at her response. He loved Sean dearly but what he felt for this little girl made his heart feel like it wanted to explode with love.

Martha offered to treat Udit and Liz to a cup of coffee after she finished at the school. Megan got a little dish of ice cream. Crown King had a small combination restaurant/bar/dry goods store that served pretty good coffee and pie. Lightning wasn't allowed inside so they had to sit so the dog could see them. Martha's timing to visit the store couldn't have been worse.

Three hunters entered a little while after the Flynn clan and ordered beer. It was obviously not their first drink of the day. One of the hunters put some quarters in the jukebox and that was when the trouble started.

"You ladies look like you need a dance," another hunter said boisterously. He grabbed Liz by the forearm and pulled her to her feet.

Megan frowned and said, "Udit, I don't think he's just trying to tell my Mom that he likes her."

"Unfortunately, I think he is, but it's inappropriate," Udit replied dryly. He shifted in his seat as he prepared rise and assist Liz.

Liz jerked her hand away and said, "I do not want to dance. Do not touch me again," she spat angrily.

The drunk stumbled back when she jerked her hand away and caught himself on his table. He watched her back angrily as she sat back down at her own table. He frowned and reached for his glass of beer.

"Sneaky, huh," Megan muttered loud enough for Udit to hear.

Udit's eyes widened and looked around the room. Two other tables had patrons but they either hadn't noticed the altercation or didn't want to be involved. He wondered what Megan was going to do.

The drunk lifted his glass to his lips with his eyes still on Liz. No beer came out. It was obvious the glass was over half full, but no beer came out. The drunk frowned and lowered the glass slightly and frowned as he looked at the beer that refused to flow into his mouth. His eyes widened as he gasped, and threw his glass.

"What the hell are you doing, Marvin?" one of the other hunters demanded.

"It winked at me," the drunk mumbled sounding a little hysterical.

"It what?" the other drunk asked.

"My beer wouldn't come out when I tried to drink it. I looked at it to see what was wrong, it looked like a big eyeball and it winked at me," the first drunk said.

"What the hell's going on out here?" the manager asked. The manager stood about four inches taller than the tallest hunter and his shoulders were half again as wide. He wasn't fat but he was angry.

"My beer winked at me," the first hunter stated again. His eyes were still wide and he was still staring at the wall and his shattered glass of beer.

The manager looked at the man then looked at where the glass had shattered against the wall. Beer had spattered on curtains and pictures. Glass was scattered along the wall.

"That glass is five dollars," the manager snapped. He extracted five dollars from the pile of bills on the table. "Now, all three of you leave and find some beer someplace else to flirt with."

"I wasn't flirting with my beer," the first hunter, Marvin said indignantly. There was titters from one of the occupied tables and outright laughter from the other table.

"Whatever," the manager growled. "Drink up and get out." His patience was obviously at an end.

"But, I didn't get to drink my beer," the hunter complained. "It winked at me."

The managers patience snapped. "Okay, out now," he said. He grabbed two of the hunters by their collars and stood them up so they were on their tiptoes. He glared at the third and said, "Go."

The free hunter scurried out the door. The other two were escorted to the door, on their tip toes, and led out onto the porch."

"I don't want to see you in here again," the manager growled before shoving them down the steps. He turned and reentering his establishment.

He was greeted with applause when he returned. At first he looked startled, at the response. Then he grinned and waved his hand. He was muttering about beer winking at drunks while he was cleaning up the mess.

"Okay," Udit said nodding with a smile. "Girls are sneakier."

The Delegation had problems of their own. The first issue was they couldn't get Karl Whitcomb out of town on Monday as planned. The earliest available flight for Karl and Mr. Krause was the red eye flight on Tuesday night.

Whitcomb and Krause's bags were packed by early Tuesday evening.

"We're getting ready to leave now," Krause growled. "I want my weapons back."

Dabir looked at Brett and the American nodded.

"Very well," Dabir said. "I'll be right back."

Dabir returned ten minutes later and wordlessly handed the sheathed knife and holstered pistol to Krause.

"Where's the belts?" Krause demanded as he checked his pistol to ensure it was loaded. "I can't wear them without the belts."

"They were cut," Brett protested.

"I can repair them and they're mine," Krause spat. "I want them."

"Fine," Brett growled. "I'll get them."

He left the room and Krause turned to his Wizard. "You know what will happen when we return?"

Karl nodded.

Krause nodded back, pulled the little two shot derringer from its pistol, and shot the Wizard between the eyes. He turned and aimed the pistol at Lian. His arm was knocked upward by a club of air and Krause's last round went into the ceiling. He threw the pistol at Lian and it stopped in midair. In the same motion, Krause pulled the knife and swept it towards Dabir.

The knife sliced through Dabir's coat and a quarter inch of his chest as Dabir stumbled back in panic. Dabir's primary power was air and the African flailed with spears of air as he fell.

A heavy pin thudded into Krause's shoulder and another into his arm as the big man attempted to swing at Dabir again. The force of the heavy pins knocked him back a step. His eyes widened with the realization that he was failing at his last task. A fraction of a heartbeat later a spear of air from Dabir went through his chest and he died.

Brett hurried back into the room while Krause's body was still falling. He stopped and looked at the two dead men with wide eyes before softly saying, "Oh, shit."

"Now what?" Ethan asked equally shocked.

Pappy was spotted on Wednesday.

The men had worked out, what they thought, was a pretty good watch schedule. David would meander around the Biltmore grounds and through the hotel lobby. His primary purpose was to identify any strange smells that would indicate a Brujo or a being related to them was lurking in the vicinity. Every fifteen or twenty minutes he would go to where his partner was sitting, which was always close to a pay phone. There were several pay phones on the hotel property so they didn't need to use the same one all the time.

Pappy was sitting on a bench close to one of the garden entrances in the late morning of the third day. Pappy was hidden from the street in a little alcove created by the fanciful hedge designs around the garden. David had just stopped and reported that he could only smell the remnants of the foul odor that he had smelled at the ranch. No fresh evidence of the foul odors made David believe the culprit was gone. The other Wizards were obviously sticking close to the Biltmore. Their smells never left the grounds.

Pappy had called the house to report the missing Wizard.

"Karl was probably sent back," Sean surmised from the news.

Seth relayed the news to Pappy and said, "Thanks Pappy. Do you want me and Sean to relieve you?"

"Nah, I'm fine," Pappy said. "It's nice out here."

"Okay, well, call if you need anything," Seth said.

"Will do," Pappy answered.

He hung up the phone and settled back on the bench. He did enjoy sitting beside the garden like this. He was warmed by the winter sun and the temperatures were in their low 70s.

Pappy flinched when he felt someone else sit on the bench beside him. He hadn't noticed anyone walking towards him. He looked to the side and froze.

"Good morning, Pappy-san," Laoshin said brightly. "Are you here to start our exchange."

"Um," Pappy said intelligently. He winced internally as he considered for a moment what to say. He didn't want to lie to this woman. Finally he said, "Not exactly."

"Oh," Laoshin said and her smile dimmed slightly. Pappy thought the sun must have gone behind a cloud. She sighed and said, "I guess that means you're spying on us." Laoshin hesitated and said, "Mr. Whitcomb is no longer with us. You and your family have nothing to fear from the rest of us."

"Well, we're not exactly spying on you either," Pappy said cautiously.

"Oh, really?" Laoshin asked curiously. "So, you were here simply hoping to see me? That's sweet."

"Um, ah, hold that thought," Pappy said urgently. "I need to make a quick call. Would that be okay?"

"Of course," she replied but her curious look seemed to have changed to a guarded look.

"Honest, Miss Laoshin," Pappy said even more urgently, almost pleadingly. "It's nothing bad."

Her face softened, slightly, and she nodded her acceptance.

Pappy hurried to the phone and called the house.

Seth answered the phone and Pappy explained about how Laoshin just appeared out of nowhere and sat beside him.

"Could I talk to him," Sean asked.

Seth handed the phone to Sean and Sean asked, "Pappy, could I talk to Laoshin for a moment?"

"Sure, and thanks Sean," Pappy said. He was happy to not have to explain his actions to Laoshin.