Page 98 of Woods of the Raven

“Looks like a hashtag or a tic-tac-toe sign,” Lorne said.

“That’s what an octothorpe is,” Taylor told him with a bit of attitude.

“Remember when you didn’t know what that was?” I reminded her, my tone sharp. She could get snippy with me, but not Lorne.

“Yes,” she said quickly, glancing at him. “Sorry.”

“No, it’s fine,” he assured her, taking hold of my hand and giving it a squeeze. “But I see what you mean about the lines, they look off, like they’re not quite touching.”

“Exactly,” she agreed, then turned back to me. “And this sign here was supposed to represent a door or a cell—which you know because you’re the one who taught me all the Viking runes. I mean, the interpretations are ancient, so we could be reading way more into this than there really is. Plus, ley lines aren’t exactly something we can say are scientifically absolute.”

“True,” I agreed, though I knew better. The reason the ley lines on Corvus were never mapped was because it was earth magic at work. My ancestors had forged protective symbols deep in the ground, and if there was a map, anyone would surely see the Seal of Solomon clear as day. Our lines were not there to lead off our property like others. There were no fairy paths to follow, instead warding for once the rift appeared, as it was of vital importance to protect our world from whatever tried to come through.

Looking at the symbol Taylor pointed out, I was reminded of my dream that morning. The planks, the bridge, all of it. Perhaps my entire dream sequence had nothing to do with Corvus but instead another rift.

I had no doubt that the place where Rulaine and everything else had come through was on that farm. There was probably a small tear there the cultists had tried to make bigger at one time, hence the killing of the blacksmith and heaven knew how many others.

“You’ve been a huge help, Taylor. We really appreciate your time.”

“What are you looking for?” she asked me, glanced at Lorne, then returned her attention to me. “Do you think the girl who was killed has something to do with the Phoenix Farm and what went on there? Do we have a new doomsday cult on our hands?”

“No,” I said honestly. The events were connected, but not how she thought. Rulaine, whom we couldn’t tell her about, was the common denominator. She had done something, long ago, at the farm, and was the one who also, just recently, killed Megan Gallagher. She had committed the crimes for very different reasons, but her agenda had not changed. She needed to get her master from wherever he was to Osprey. That was her endgame.

“There’s no new cult here in Osprey,” Lorne assured her. “The girl’s death was an isolated incident.”

She nodded and then took hold of my hand. “I would love to come to your house at some point and go through your family’s journals.”

She was just like Dominic. “Of course.”

Taylor said, “Corvus is absent from all the maps of Osprey. Do you know why that is?”

“No,” I lied. “How funny.”

“I mean to say, of course it’s marked, but only as farmland. And the designation to the west, especially, shows so strangely. As though your property extends to the ocean shoreline. But that’s not possible, is it?”

“You’re asking how it can be a public beach when it belongs to my family?”

“Yes, that’s exactly what I’m asking.”

“I don’t know,” I said, though I did. “But that’s certainly strange.”

She nodded. “There’s also an odd notation from one of the first town clerks in Osprey that shows the edge of Corvus to the north as being marked off by someone named Morgan.”

“And?”

“No one with the surname Morgan has ever lived in Osprey.”

“Maybe it’s a first name?”

“Some random person by the name of Morgan marked off your land? This is what you’re saying to me?”

“What else could it be?” I shrugged. “But I agree, it seems weird.”

Her eyes narrowed as she regarded me. “I can see records of when each parcel of property came into a family, when the first deed was recorded. All of them are accessible except the one for Corvus.”

“Yes, but you know Corvus was here before the town.”

“I do know that, but the question is, how and when was Corvus deeded to your family? There’s no record before Bryan Corey in 1691, way before Osprey was even Osprey and before New York was even a state.”