Ch. 22

"So, our man has fled the country?"

"It looks that way. But I think it's more likely he's trying to throw you off the trail, Chief."

"What makes you say that?"

"Simple, really. I didn't pick up his scent in any of the docks or airports and his car is being stored in a nearby garage."

"But his house is empty."

"So it is. And yet, his neighbor saw no moving truck, but did remember seeing Mr. and Mrs. Kersh loading furniture in their own car, driving off, and coming back without it."

"Is that right?" The chief frowned as he digested this information. "Tomoko, you didn't happen to check when the car was stored, did you?"

"Two days ago, the same day the Kershes vanished. And what's more, the attendant saw them walking away with several bags. They mentioned the airport, but no one matching their descriptions or the descriptions of their luggage came anywhere close to the nearest airport."

"Ergo, their hideout is in waking distance."

"Or at least near enough that a taxi will pick them up." Tomoko walked over to the map of England's roads and pointed at a specific location. "Somewhere around here. I did a fly-over and spotted a good many backroads, some of which where lined with decent-sized houses."

"Very clever. Right, I'll let their local police know." The chief snorted back a laugh. "All this to get out of paying back a loan to his brother? Joe Kersh must be out of his mind! Ah, well, thank you again for your help, Tomoko."

"My pleasure, Chief. And yes, Takashi has read the embassy's proposal. He sees no harm in yokai being offered positions as guards so long as they aren't faulted for doing their jobs."

"Personally, I think the embassy could use a few of your kind keeping that place in order. Well, this'll be the first step. I for one would welcome a few more demons helpin' us out here. Especially more of your family, Tomoko."

"I'll let Takashi know. Having more yokai aid in righting any wrongs would go a long way toward changing people's minds about us."

"No doubt. Good day, Tomoko."

"Syonara, Keibu-san desu."

Well, that was over and done with. Exiting the building, Tomoko spread his wings and took to the air, closing his eyes to feel the morning sun on his face. Ah, what a beautiful day; fitting for the summer solstice. And he had plenty of time before he and Miranda were to head to Stonehenge, as per Ladahlord's suggestion. Considering they wanted to be there for sunset, plenty of time was putting it mildly.

"We should pack a picnic dinner instead of a picnic lunch," Miranda had suggested when Tomoko first brought up the subject. "That way, we can take our time watching the sunset. Oh, and I'll bet we could watch the stars appear as well. That'll be lovely."

"Lovely indeed. Pack whatever you think is necessary, Miranda. I defer to you expert judgment."

And expert judgment it was. Last night, Miranda had roasted a haunch of beef with onions so that it would be ready for the next day. The savory scent of the beef had permeated the whole house, broken only by the sweet heavy smells of fresh blackberry jam and chocolate chip cookies. Miranda had gone out early that morning to the shops for a few extra ingredients and she had clearly just returned when Tomoko got home, as he heard the rustling of shopping bags from the kitchen.

"I'm home, Miranda."

"Oh, Tomoko! You're back earlier than I thought. Did everything go alright?"

Tomoko's ears twitched at the sound of Miranda's voice; despite her usual light tone, there was an obvious strain to her words as though she were trying to keep calm. The bat demon walked into the kitchen where Miranda was sorting through her most recent purchases.

"Hai, it did. As a matter of fact, the case will likely be closed today."

"Good. That's wonderful."

"Miranda-daarin, what is it?" Tomoko laid a hand on Miranda's shoulder. "Please tell me, whatever it is."

Miranda sighed, leaning against Tomoko's shoulder. "Have you... have you seen Kathy lately?"

"Kathy-san? No, not since Evelyn-san's funeral. Thankfully, she said little to me that day. Why?"

"Well, when I saw her and the others for my birthday, I told them you and I were thinking about having children. The other girls were a bit surprised, but Kathy looked... angry."

"Did she say anything to you?"

"No, but apparently she told Helen that she wasn't surprised I was trying to 'tie you down' with children."

"Tie me down? Kathy-san is aware that you and I are married, isn't she?"

"That's what Helen told her. Anyway, Kathy more or less stopped speaking to me after that. But today, I just found out that she's run off."

"Run off? You mean, she left her husband behind?"

"Apparently," Miranda sighed. "Tom called Helen last night and said he found Kathy's closet empty and her wedding ring on top of the rubbish bin."

"What?"

"I know. I saw Helen in the shops and she let me know. I just can't wrap my mind around this. I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised, but still!"

"I know how you feel." Tomoko wrapped his wing around Miranda. "I can't say I'm too surprised either, considering how Kathy clearly had her eye on me. But now that she's actually gone and abandoned her husband, it puts her behavior in a new light, doesn't it?"

"I'll say." Miranda let a bitter laugh escape her. "Remember how I said the teachers used to watch me like a hawk in school?"

"Hai, I remember."

"They used to think Kathy wouldn't dream of sneaking out to meet a boy, much less run off with one!"

"Your past teachers were horrible judges of character, daarin."

"They were, weren't they?" Suddenly, Miranda was laughing, but tears slipped down her cheeks all the same. Tomoko hugged her as she buried her face against him.

"I don't know why I'm crying. I don't even know why I feel sad!"

"Maybe because a friendship you once cherished has been broken for good."

Miranda sniffed, looking up at Tomoko as she grabbed a kitchen towel to stem her tears. "Oh, that friendship was broken for good a long time ago." Miranda shuddered, then smiled again. "I should have stopped calling Kathy a friend the minute she started making advances on you."

"They were more suggestions than advances, Miranda. If she had thrown herself at me, I've no doubt I would have had to restrain you from causing Kathy harm."

"Probably." Miranda wiped her face one last time and then gestured to the items on the kitchen table. "I should get back to packing. Feel free to relax out in the sun for a bit, Tomoko."

"I may at that, but I think you should have a lie-down as well."

"I... alright. Everything that needs to be chilled is in the fridge and the rest of it just needs to be wrapped up. That won't take me two minutes, so I might as well take a brief rest. But first, I'll call Tom. He must be taking this so hard."

"Give him my best and let him know Scotland Yard can try and track Kathy down if he's so inclined. If only to hear what she has to say for herself."

"I will," Miranda said as she headed for the living room. "But I don't think anyone's going to want to hear what Kathy has to say. Her own mother loves Tom like a son; this will devastate her."

"Actually, Miranda's right. Kathy's mother is going to side with her son-in-law on this one." Ladahlord was leaning against the front of the cottage when Tomoko stepped out onto the sand. The sorcerer's hat was tipped low over his head, shielding his eyes, and he was chewing on a small piece of straw.

"Where did she run off to? And, more importantly, with whom?"

Ladahlord smiled around the stalk of straw clenched between his teeth. "Kathy Connors, nee Summers, has run off with an aspiring actor by the name of Tony Lassiter. And by aspiring, I mean he's made his way across all the small stages in England and now is trying his luck in France."

"So, she's run off to France. I can understand the location, but not the partner."

"Of course, when I say 'aspiring artist', I mean youngest son from an old-money family who can afford all the finer things in life without having to worry about the well running dry, so to speak."

"...I stand corrected. Kathy would never be satisfied running about without being pampered."

"She would not. And pampered is the right word for it. Tony is, at this moment, covering her in enough furs, jewels, and perfume to sink a ship. For him, it's nothing. But for Kathy, the cost will be heavy."

"Considering she's just lost the respect of her family and friends, I don't doubt it."

"True. But it'll go deeper than that, Tomoko." Ladahlord sighed and took the straw out of his mouth. "Kathy will spend the rest of her life with every material good she could ever desire. She'll have a child or two with Tony at some point, but they'll be raised by nannies and governesses while their parents fritter their lives away. But eventually, she'll get bored. No matter what she buys or where she travels, nothing will ever fulfill her. She's so used to chasing what she wants, she has no idea of how to enjoy anything. And then, she'll wither away in luxury and neither her children nor her grandchildren will spare her a thought."

"Is that for certain?"

"Unless she somehow manages to realize the enormous mistake she's made and work to try and fix it, I'm afraid so. Oh, she won't ever get her old life back, but right now, there is still hope. It's faint, but it's there."

"And her husband?"

"Tom Connors is meant for better things, Tomoko. I promise that."

"Well, that's something." Tomoko sighed. "I do wish I could inform the teachers at Miranda's old school about this though. If only to let them know they passed judgment a little too quickly."

"Oh, I'm sure they'll find out." The grin on Ladahlord's face left little doubt as to just who would be informing the school of current events.

Tomoko chuckled. "Ah, well, let's hope for a better future. Will we see you at Stonehenge tonight?"

"You probably won't see me, but I'll be near. Besides, you and Miranda may well need privacy."

"Ladahlord!"

"What? I'd never intrude on a delightful dinner lovingly packed by your wife. Only an ill-mannered lout disturbs a friend during his evening meal! Goodness, what did you think I was referring to?"

"Very funny, my friend!"
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As the saying goes, timing is everything. As such, Tomoko made sure he and Miranda had plenty of time not just to fly to Stonehenge, but to be able to unpack their picnic setup in order to enjoy the sunset. Landing on the soft grass beside the ancient structure, Tomoko spread out the blanket as Miranda laid out their food.

"Cold roast beef and onions, fresh salad, nice crusty bread, blackberry jam, cookies, and sparkling lemonade."

"A solstice feast like no other." Tomoko settled next to Miranda as they began sharing the spread. Above them, the sky was ablaze in a collage of pink and orange while the sun was a brilliant ball of molten gold firmly settled on the western horizon. The heat of the day lingered, the air heavy and still. Miranda was wearing her lightest dress, a mere wisp of lavender cotton, and her feet were bare. Tomoko, meanwhile, was garbed only in his black hakama and his wings extended fully from his muscular back, making the hot air seem to shiver around the couple as they ate.

"I think you were right to make blackberry jam first, Miranda-daarin. It's absolutely delicious."

"Well, I wouldn't have been able to without those jars you gave me. I'm just glad I can share the literal fruits of my labors with you, my dearest."

Miranda sighed, leaning against her husband's bare chest as she sipped a glass of bubbly lemonade. "Thank you for taking me here, Tomoko. It's so beautiful and I... I can feel something amazing about this place."

"As can I." Tomoko wrapped an arm around Miranda, pulling her even closer. "I'm surprised we're the only ones here tonight. I would have thought that the solstice would bring more tourists out to view the sunset."

"I think most of them came to see the sunrise," Miranda replied, gazing up at the massive stones towering above her and Tomoko. "But I'm glad we're seeing the sunset instead. It feels more magical."

"It does, doesn't it?" Tomoko entwined his clawed hand with Miranda's slender fingers. "And I couldn't be happier being here with you, Miranda."

Together, the two sat and watched as the sun sank lower in the sky. The rays beamed through the spaces of stones and across the moors, like the spotlights on a stage. Tomoko raised his head a bit, his golden eyes scanning the vast expanse of grassland.

"I hear hoofbeats."

"Like horses?"

"No. These are too light to be horses. And the gait is all wrong. The sound is that of a two-legged creature."

"Two legs with hooves?"

"That's what it sounds like. But-" Tomoko's sharp ears caught the pounding of drums and the unmistakable trill of a wooden flute. "Do you hear that?"

"Yes." Miranda shielded her eyes and peered out over the grassland. "I think... I think I can see people moving toward us."

Indeed, the trampling of grass under hooves was far clearer now, as was the jaunty music. Soon, happy voices and laughter were echoing over the field and in the slowly fading sunset, Miranda and Tomoko felt their eyes grow wide as the figures halted several feet away.

"Why, they're..." Miranda gasped, hardly able to believe her eyes. "They're fauns!"

Indeed, the gathering crowd consisted of men, women, and children, all of whom possessed the lower legs and hooves of goats. The males also had long curved horns sprouting from their heads while the females had tiny short horns that had been filed to sharp points. Their tufted tails flicked as they pranced about the meadow; several of their company beat away at deerskin drums or piped along on handcrafted flutes. Having reached the field just below Stonehenge, the musicians stood in a group while the rest of the fauns gathered around them in a circle and began to dance.

Around and around they went, none of them missing a beat as they skipped, pranced, and jumped in time to the music. Many of them began to sing in a language neither Tomoko nor Miranda could understand, but judging by the tone and the laughter infused into the words, the song was indeed a joyous one. If the fauns knew they were being watched by a bat demon and his human wife, they gave no sign.

"So, this is what Ladahlord meant when he said this place was magical." Tomoko chuckled as he watched the strange creatures continue their celebration of the summer solstice. "And I've no doubt he's somewhere nearby as well."

"Oh, aren't they magnificent?" Miranda's eyes were shining. "I've read stories about fauns ever since I was a little girl. No one believed they were real but..."

"But you always believed they were somehow?" Tomoko asked, smiling at his wife.

"I did. I never stopped believing in magic."

"Which makes you far wiser than any of your peers, Miranda-daarin."

Miranda turned her eyes away from the fauns to smile at Tomoko, the sun's rays catching the shine in her eyes and the glow in her face in the most exquisite manner. Tomoko felt a stirring in his blood as he beheld her; standing up, the yokai held out a hand to his wife.

"Shall we dance?"

"Oh yes." Miranda took her husband's hand, reaching out to wrap her warms round Tomoko's neck as the bat demon spread his wings. "And shall we do so in midair?"

"But of course, my Lady. As long as you wish."

With a sweep of his wings, Tomoko sent both himself and Miranda soaring into the warm summer sky, which was still decorated in the colors of sunset. The music seemed to follow them as they dallied among the clouds and spun through the sun's rays. Tomoko and Miranda stayed in the sky long after the sun had at last faded and the fauns had long since departed the night-draped meadow when the bat demon and his wife finally returned to Earth.

Unbeknownst to them, they did not return alone.