“Okay, I thought I was imaging things. Is she trying to set us up?”
“I think so. First it was that odd dinner before I left for Pennsylvania the first time. Then it was her agency’s Winter Solstice party that she invited us all to. I know Gray turned it into a larger event than originally planned because of her siblings joining her for the holiday in ABQ. That’s fine.”
“Not so fine was her trying to maneuver us into solo conversation with each other, right?”
“Yes, exactly. It’s weird. She knows that you and I’ve been friends for years, right? I mean, you were the first person she introduced Sully to when we arrived in PsyTown, he’s your sports buddy.”
“Okay, good. I didn’t want to say anything before now in case you asked her to try to set us up.”
“Boy, please. If I wanted to date you, I’d ask you out. We’re good to stay friends. Want me to talk to Gray?”
Wendy doesn’t bring up her inkling that Tiko had a crush on Gray years ago, though perhaps it’s faded. Gray was clueless, and Wendy doesn’t think Gray’s ever registered a person being attracted to her or even considered herself a viable romantic candidate. She perceives her abilities as a deterrent to relationships. Wendy tried to talk to her a few times about dating in general, wanting to work up to Tiko being a possibility for Gray, but Gray shut that down quick. Wendy took the hint and hasn’t brought the subject up in years. She just added it to the Forbidden Things list she has for Gray. No hugs or casual touching, no handling her things, and no discussing Gray’s love life or lack thereof.
“That’d be great, thanks Wendy. I feel an awkward conversation in your future. I’ll just pretend to be oblivious, if you don’t mind.”
“That’s fine. If Gray knew, she’d appreciate you pretending, too.” Their exchange ends at the perfect time as Vito turns into a parking lot, following the sheriff to a spot next to a DCNR Park Ranger vehicle. Everyone exits their vehicles and grabs any equipment they may need. Vito carries the camera and tripod while Sully grabs his guns. Tewow’s offer to assist Vito is declined, so he has only his medicine belt with various small pouches worn around his waist. Tiko brings his canvas backpack, presumably filled with his Bone Sage paraphernalia, whatever that may entail.
Wendy wears her mischief bag diagonally across her torso. It’s filled with various herbs, charms, and protection spells. She even has a few general cursebags to use against something they might encounter. PsyWitches tend to naturally be more defensive than offensive and Wendy is no exception, so it does well to be prepared with a few cursebags to lob at an oncoming threat. The cursebags may buy her enough time to come up with a more detailed offensive spell. Wendy’s seen other witches have one immobilizing curse they can do quickly and well, like making feet or whatever body parts stick to the floor. When people struggle against this forced immobility, they can strain both ankles, even break their bones trying to move after they’ve been cursed. The curses have the same purpose as Wendy’s cursebags, buy time.
Generic curses and charms can work temporarily, but to be effective, any heavy-duty spell needs to be tailored, a name can do in a pinch. This principle is the basis of Wendy’s separation of the general good health charms she sells in her online business and the custom healing charms she makes for petitioners. Send in clippings of hair and nails plus a mouth swab, a current picture, and a full name along with names of their close relations or antecedents, and Wendy can work wonders.
Actual direct healing is very rare, it takes a lot out of Wendy and she doesn’t use it against chronic disease or health conditions. Death is as natural as birth and who is she to directly interfere with either. Unnatural causes, like poison, infection, or curses, though, are fair game.
They follow Ranger Brunner down a winding trail and within ten minutes the trail veers to the right and at the curve, they meet a stream of mostly ice that gives way to a shallow pool of water in the middle. The ice is fully solid surrounding the water, forming a bowl. As Deputy Peterson speculated, the ice and water were sculpted to display the body for humans to find, indeed.
“Sheriff, I don’t know if this is in the report, but how was the body discovered? Not the position or condition, but who walked out here and saw the body in the stream of ice? What prompted them to come here to the Tindeehanna?”
“I can answer that, Ms. Randolph, I’m the one that discovered the body. With the unusual incidents in and around here in the past few years, the DCNR’s increased their patrols of the forest. Sunday, I was driving out here like regular and saw a few birds circling. I investigated and found the body in the partially unfrozen stream, called the sheriff and the rest you know.”
“Thank you, Ranger. Do you know how long the stream’s been frozen?”
“Sorry, I’m not sure. Once the body was discovered, we followed downstream to where this stream joins another two streams and forms the Quesahanough Run, that’s frozen solid too. Farther upstream, the Tindeehanna has a frozen surface, but is still liquid underneath, don’t know how long. This may be why there isn’t as much wildlife here, the water source is frozen over.
“We’re solo patrol, and frankly, this forest gives us the willies. We drive out here to the two parking areas and the closed camping grounds and look around. We may do a quick listen and sweep of the grass and trees right next the public areas, but then we head out. We avoid going into the deeper forest unless necessary.”
“While the DCNR rangers have increased patrols due to increased incidents with wildlife
