Lying Bloodlines

Chapter Three

As I walk home I notice the car is back but I ignore it deep in thought. Why is everything so secretive. I never really cared, but what’s the big deal with the gene? Why are people hunting Shai and Alina like they’re some kind of criminals?

“Hello, Annalynn. Ms. Tucker told me you went by the library on the way back.” Her expression is guarded but her eyes give her away. She wants to know how much I know.

“Yeah, I went to check out a book, it wasn’t in.” She nods slowly as I walk past her into my room. If they won’t tell me anything, I’ll find out for myself.

By the time I go get Mandy I have found squat. There’s nothing about this gene, of course I don’t know what the gene is. A major setback.

“Did you give the note to Ms. Tucker?” I nod smiling at Mandy as she skips over to me.

“Yes, I did. Now let’s go to the park, shall we?” She giggles looping her arm through my outstretched one. As we skip down to the park, I look around for the car. Unsurprisingly it’s behind us, following. I slow us down to a walk.

“What did you do today, Aj?” I swing our entwined hands.

“Oh you know, sit around moping. Waiting for you to get out of school as always.” She giggles shaking her head.

“Don’t be silly, you went to see Ms. Tucker, right? Didn’t you get a book?” I flinch slightly.

“No, the book wasn’t in. I’ll pick it up later.” I sigh as Mandy moves onto a new topic about her classmates. As much as I hate being lied to I’m doing the same thing to Mandy, and I’m not proud. But it’s necessary for now, I’ll tell her everything when I know everything myself.

We stay at the park until 4:30.

“Come on, Mandy. Time to start heading home.” She runs to grab her bags before coming back.

“Do you think Nonna will let us come back tomorrow?” I shrug as I think about how much Nonna has been watching me since this morning. Everywhere I walk in the house she’s watching me.  

“Maybe, why don’t you ask her at dinner, huh?” Mandy nods jumping over a crack.

At the table we’re all quiet for a while, eating our food. Tonight is spaghetti, Mandy’s favorite. She munches away quietly, while Nonna picks at her food as she stares at me. I don’t look at her.

“Hey, Nonna? Mandy wanted to know if we could go to the park again tomorrow.” I look up when she doesn’t respond.

“Uh, could you two come home right after school? Sorry dear.” Mandy pouts for a while, but continues eating. I watch Nonna as she fidgets with the table cloth. She’s making us come home because what happened at the library. She really doesn’t want me to know about Shai and Alina.

After dropping Mandy off at school I walk straight home and turn my computer on. Last night I listened in on a call Nonna had with Margaret. They said something that sounded like churro but without the ‘h’. Curro, what the hell is a Curro?

I look at several links but all of them are talking about some business. Not what I’m looking for I think. I’m about to shut the monitor off when something catches my eye. Cuyrro. What is that?

Cuyrro, a mythical creature thought to be extinct for the last three thousand years. Cause of extinction: hunters. Hunter, there’s hunters after Shai and Alina. I search Cuyrro, several links come up but only one seems relatively legit. And it’s run by Jane Tucker, Ms. Tucker.

I shake my head chuckling, of course. The website is for Curryo mythology, the creatures themselves, hunters, and watchers. I frown, watchers. I click the link under the word.

Watchers: A group of guardians, some may call angels. Watch over and protect the Curryo. Some are know to see the Curryo through others and talk to them. Talk to them, Margaret was calling me Alina and saying to run, was she actually talking to Alina? I scroll down some.

In order to connect with the Curryo, Watchers must be in a sacred place, an altar. Altars can be anywhere, though they are usually in old towns, old buildings. They need to have one thing that was present when it was first made for the magic to remain. Magic, somewhere old. The shed.

I walk out into the backyard when Nonna goes in the shower. The shed is as dusty as ever, and old. Very old, but not old enough to be over three thousand years old. The wood would be decayed to dust long ago. Wait, wood. I scan the shed quickly, everything is wood and cardboard, there has to be something clay or glass or something. Something that can last thousands of years. In the back left corner where Margaret came from the other night, there’s an old pot. It’s tiny, fits in my palm, but it’s old. It has scratch marks all around it. I sniff it, it smells like blood, a few days old maybe.

I put it down gently, this shed must be an altar, and if it’s an altar that must mean Margaret is a watcher. What does that make Nonna and Ms. Tucker? Margaret’s helpers?