📎A/N. Hello my lovelies! It looks like the Wattpad glitch that stopped us from posting is fixed!

We now return to our regular programmed schedule ;-)

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It took a full minute for Keira to compose herself. Still holding on to the slimmest of hopes she stared at the closed folder and asked, "Were the bodies found at Mystery Hill?"

"How did you know?" Ryker then turned to Deacon. "I thought you weren't going to brief the Doc on the case until I got here."

"I didn't."

Ryker let out a small growl. "Does someone want to tell me what I'm missing?"

Ignoring the Essex County Sheriff, she pushed the folder back towards him. "I'm going to need something that each victim had on them when they died. Clothing, jewellery, wallet; anything as long as it was in contact with them."

Ryker's brow furrowed as his mouth turned grim. She had the sudden urge to flinch. His unrelenting stare made her feel uneasy. It was clear he was not thrilled at being left in the dark. With determination, Keira met his gaze but faltered under his piercing scowl, she felt he was staring right through her soul as if this would determine his next move. She wondered how the criminals he dealt with every day coped with this level of scrutiny.

"It's an hour's drive to get to the site and it'll almost be dark when we get there. Are you sure you don't want to go in the morning," he eventually said.

She crossed her arms over her chest and mimicked his posture. "Positive. If we delay any further, I won't be able to get any answers."

Ryker's gaze continued to bore through her. Unused to this level of examination she felt herself wilting. After what seemed an eternity, his eyes flickered to Deacon. She breathed a sigh of relief when he pushed his chair back and stood. "All their personal effects are in evidence. We can collect them on the way," Ryker paused and raised an eyebrow as he raked his eyes up and down her body with a predatory look. "However, I suggest that we swing by your hotel first. While I am partial to heels and a nice set of legs, I don't think your suit would fare well where we are going."

Keira felt her cheeks grow warm at his inspection, quickly uncrossed her legs and shot up from the table. "I'm not completely devoid of a brain. I didn't suggest I'd go dressed like this," she said stiffly as she struggled to hold back her temper which had risen to boiling point in a heartbeat.

Ryker winked and grinned. Somehow he knew exactly which buttons to push. "Whatever you say Doc." He indicated towards the door, "After you."

She could feel his eyes on her as she shook hands with Deacon and took her leave. "Ryker will take you back to your hotel to save time," he said, "Keep me in the loop. You have my number."

Once they had driven back to the hotel, it took Keira less time than expected to race up to her room, change and then head back out again. As she exited the lobby onto the street, she couldn't help but notice Ryker leaning against his car, chatting away to a small group of women. From the way in which the one closest to him would reach out and brush her hand against his arm as she laughed at something he said, it was clear that they knew each other.

Keira rolled her eyes as a cynical smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. Figures he would look right at home surrounded by groupies.

Not that she could blame them. Even with her skeptical nature, she had to admit he filled out his uniform perfectly. The problem was; he knew it.

As she approached the small group, Ryker pulled away and smiled apologetically. "Sorry ladies, duty calls."

Keira had to hold back a smirk as Miss Touchy Feely pouted and battered her eyelashes at him. "Will we see you around later Sheriff?" she asked.

His face was non-committal as he replied in a voice low enough she couldn't hear his reply. With the dark sunglasses that covered his sensitive eyes in the daylight, Keira couldn't even hazard a guess at his response. However, the moment the woman's lower lip drooped impossibly lower she had her answer.

"Ready Doc?" he said, once the group had wandered off.

"Sorry to pull you away from your fans."

Ryker glanced over his shoulder at the women who were now making their way down the street and shrugged. "It's all part of the job. We need to keep the peace between the communities and make sure the communication channels remain open."

"I just bet you do," Keira muttered under her breath as she got into the car.

Ryker opened the driver's door and bent his head down to look at her. "You know I heard that."

"Heard what?" she asked with feigned innocence.

He chuckled. "And here's me thinking you had no sense of humour along with that stern school ma'am exterior and that rod stuck up your—"

She was saved from hearing anything further as the tooting of a passing truck drowned out the remainder of his sentence.

It didn't take long for them to reach the Essex Sheriff's office. Once Ryker had retrieved the evidence box filled with personal effect, they were on their way again.

With each mile closer to Mystery Hill, Keira became tenser. She was sure her nails were about to draw blood from her palm as she squeezed her hands into fists to keep from fleeing a moving vehicle.

"So are you going to tell me what has you so rattled?" Ryker asked, breaking the silence.

"I'm fine."

"That's not what your jaw is telling me. In fact, if you grind your teeth much more, I'm sure you won't have any left."

Keira stiffened. "I'm doing no such thing."

"You seem to forget; my hearing is a little more developed than yours," he said as he tapped his ear.

Instead of replying she turned her head and stared out the window.

This time, Ryker only remained silent for less than five minutes. "So you are you going to read me into whatever you and Deacon suspect is going on?"

She considered the question. It wasn't unreasonable considering the circumstance. However, it would mean opening up old wounds that she didn't think she was ready for just yet. "That will depend on what we discover out there."

"And what are you expecting to find?"

"Answers."

"Aren't you the font of information Doc; and I was told all you University Professors knew how to do was talk all day." He sighed as he adjusted his hands on the steering wheel. "Suit yourself, but you are going to have to tell me sooner or later."

The forty mile drive was over before she knew it. Why she was surprised was beyond her. While the road travelled was new, it was far quicker than the walk or horse-drawn carts that she associated with getting to the site.

Ryker was halfway through the main gates when he realised she wasn't following. "You alright Doc?" he called out.

Keira nodded curtly and shook herself out of her dark thoughts. She had a job to do, no matter how distasteful or how much she didn't want to be here, she had no choice.

If I did, I wouldn't be standing here following a vampire into secluded woods towards something far more dangerous.

She quickly caught up to Ryker and she kept in step as they travelled down a familiar path that would lead them to their destination. With each step closer her heart beat heavier in her chest.

"You've been here before," said Ryker. It was a statement, not a question.

Her step faltered and she sighed. "Yes. A long time ago."

"Did your parents bring you as a child?"

Keira shook her head. Visions of her mother's smiling face as they wandered these woods swam to the forefront. "We lived nearby. I was an adult when I left."

"I don't think so. I've been here for the past thirty years. Believe me, I'd remember you."

Not able to help herself, she burst out laughing. Whether it was due to the overriding urge to flee or just how wrong his assumptions were, she wasn't sure; but a dam had burst and she was unable to control herself.

Without meaning to, she said, "I left Salem long before you were born." The moment the words were out of her mouth she grimaced. Nuts!

He was in front of her cutting off her path in an instant. His preternatural speed disturbed the dirt, and a cool breeze accompanied the small dust cloud that followed in his wake.

"That's impossible."

He was standing a little too close as he scrutinised her; even with the evidence box between them, it was a little too close for comfort. She crossed her arms over her chest to give her a small sense of putting space between them. "Why?"

"Well for starters... look at you. You can't be any more than, what? Late twenties? Witches age the same way as naturals."

"If you say so." Not wishing to be under more interrogation than she already was, Keira navigated her way around him and continued up the well-worn path.

For the rest of the short journey, Ryker kept pace with her, not once speaking. However, she knew that it wouldn't last. She could literally hear the cogs in his mind working overtime as he cast curious glances at her.

As the clearing came into view, Keira felt the weight of ghosts, long since gone, press heavily on her.

"Are you okay?" Ryker asked. "You've gone pale."

Keira visibly gulped and nodded her head. "I'll be fine." Her voice implied the opposite.

She was far from fine when the stepped into the clearing. Very little had changed over the years. The stones were still as they were when she last saw them. The chain linked fencing that surrounded the area, and a small wooden viewing structure, the only indication that the modern age had turned this from an ancient sacred site to a tourist attraction.

Taking deep breaths to centre herself, Keira scanned the stone formations. One of the smaller chambers had collapsed at some point, and boulders, unable to hold the weight of others, had finally given way. Over a hundred tonnes of stone now lay in a heap, filling the small cavity.

She was thankful the Keepers Chamber was still in perfect order. Keira closed her eyes and recalled every inch of the six-foot-high and fourteen-foot-long tunnel, which lead into the side of the hill. She could still remember the feel of the cold quarried stone that made up the inner chamber. Even all these decades and centuries later, she still marvelled at how its construction was possible. Like its sister in England, it defied all preconceived notions about early man's engineering capabilities. It was apt the one in the new world was named after the other doorway. For both Stonehenge in Amesbury, England and the American Stonehenge in Mystery Hill, served the same purpose – to keep the door between the worlds closed. There were others across the globe; Yonaguni, Japan; stone circles at Göbekli Tepe;Easter Island; Ayres Rock and Machu Picchu. With each one, a Crossroads Coven stood vigil, reinforcing the cracks that were forever appearing.

"So where did you want this?" Ryker asked, raising up the box he was holding.

Keira indicated towards a large stone tablet that was balanced by three columns of small stones stacked on top of each other. "There should be fine."

She slipped her large tote from her shoulder. "I'll need some wood to start a small fire," she said as she fished through her bag and began to pull various items she'd need to get the job done.

"10-4," Ryker said before he disappeared into the woods in a flash.

Keira had only just managed to pull the final item she required when he returned, laden with enough kindling and stout branches to start a small bonfire.

"So what other cool tricks do you do?" Keira asked after she had shown him where she needed the pile to be set up.

He wiped his hands and surveyed his handiwork. "Wouldn't you like to know," he said waggling both eyebrows at her. They danced over the rims of his shades, almost giving him a comical look.

The banter was oddly comforting. It gave her a sense of normality in a place that only held painful memories.

By the time she had prepared everything, the last of the sun was low on the horizon and the forest had turned to grey, an indication that night was not far away. Keira arranged the firewood and picked up a small leather drawstring pouch she had set aside. She closed her eyes and silently mouthed an incantation. Without opening her lids, she tossed a few pinches of red powder onto the small stack of dried branches. When she opened her eyes again, a fire was burning brightly.

"Doc's got skills," murmured Ryker from the position he had taken up as his observation point.

Keira pulled the evidence box closer to the fire and opened the lid. Inside were plastic evidence bags. Each one had a name clearly printed, a signature and date.

Careful to unseal the first bag without ripping it, she pulled out a man's bloody t-shirt.

Holding it to her, she again closed her eyes and said, "Domine deduc me in sepulchrum tuum in locum."

She felt a tug and moved with it. Her eyes remained closed the entire time. When she had reached her destination, Keira eyes fluttered open and she positioned the stained shirt on the smooth rock in which she found herself standing in front of. "Partis fabulam ut videam."

Keira returned to the fire and placed another chunk of wood on top of the flames. The process was then repeated for each bag she opened.

"You know I could have saved you the effort," Ryker remarked once the last victim's possession had been laid at the location in which they died.

As expected, the coven had been placed in a rough circle around the altar stone.

Keira placed another stick on the fire and turned to him. "But then I wouldn't have been able to see."

Ryker frowned and glanced around the area, "See what?"

"Whatever happens," she said pointing around the area. "Do not cross the lines that join the bodies to each other."

With that Keira opened her arms, palms upwards and began to chant. "Veneficas terrae; partis fabulam ut videam."

She repeated it a half dozen time before she could feel the air move around her as the magic began to ebb and swell. Keira breathed out slowly. While the cracks hadn't widened, there had been a distinct drain on the power she was used to tapping into.

At first, there were only flashes of images. Each one grainy and out of focus. As they came into view, they just as quickly jolted, as if tugged from one direction to another. Images formed and then disappeared only to be replaced by others.

She frowned. It's not enough. I need more energy.

Keira sunk to her knees and placed her hands, palms down on the ground. She again repeated the same incantation. A light sheen of perspiration broke out over her body with the effort to took to complete the spell. Ryker's sudden sharp intake of breath told her it had finally worked and she raised her head and looked around.

Five bodies lay broken. Gone was their possession that lay as a talisman to draw them to return to their final resting place.

"Why are they transparent?" Ryker asked with awe as he approached the three-dimensional body closest to him and waived his arm through the apparition.

"Because it's only an echo of what has passed. It's like a faded memory if you will."

Keira rose from the ground and came to stand by the owner of the bloodied Def Leopard t-shirt. His throat had been slit. They watched in silence as blood dripped down onto the stone and pooled towards a small channel carved in the rock before making its way down the side. "His blood was collected," she said sombrely.

"Well that explains the first mystery," Ryker said, all previous joviality now gone. In its place was the intense Sheriff that she had glimpsed in Deacon's office. "Because of the lack of blood, we thought they had been killed elsewhere and then dumped here."

Keira bent down and took a closer look at the markings that had been carved into the warlock's forehead.

"Why a circle?" Ryker asked, seeing what had caught her attention. "They all have that same thing imprinted on them."

"It's not a circle, it's a snake." She pointed to the wider chunk of skin missing at the top of the loop. "That's the head eating its tail."

"And that's significant?"

She nodded.

They then moved to the next body, careful not to cross the invisible line that closed the circle and allowed the link to remain open. As with the first figure, the body had been drained of blood. Keira could make out a series of tattoos up the woman's arm.

"Whoever did this knew what they were doing," Keira said pointing at the inked skin. "To be able to get by those runes took skill. It takes many years to put a protection spell into runes that won't turn on us. When completed, it's almost impossible to breach a witches defences that can be called at will."

"Does that mean you have a set like those," Ryker asked, inspecting the intricate markings.

"Of course."

Ryker's eyes darted up and down the exposed skin on her arms. "Where are yours?"

"Away from prying eyes."

He grinned, "I'll just have to use my imagination then."

Keira rolled her eyes and focused back onto the body. As with the warlock, the witch had a snake carved into her forehead. However, there was also a jagged cut on her cheek. The closer she looked, the more convinced she was that there was a slight impression on her face around the damaged area. "What do you think that is?" she asked Ryker, knowing his vision was far superior to hers, especially now the sun had set.

"You can't see it, but the initial bruise that happens when the capillaries burst is in the shape of a question mark." He whistled. "There was no way to see that when the bodies were found. By then it was just a large discoloration on her face."

Keira bent down and drew an upside down question mark with a horizontal line at the top in the dirt. "Does it look like this?" she asked.

He glanced back at the cut and then nodded. "That's it. What is it?"

"Bad news," was all she replied as she headed the short distance to the next body.

When she stood over the small figure, Keira's heart nearly broke. Unlike the first two coven members who looked to be middle aged, this was a young girl still in her teens. From the bruises and cuts over her body, she had put up a brave fight.

He reached out towards the apparition as if to try and smooth her matted hair. "Annie was the sweetest girl. She didn't deserve this." Ryker's voice caught as he spoke. "Her parents were one of the first to accept us for who we were, not the almost dead creatures that had been hated and hunted for millennia." He sucked in a tortured breath. "I've lived a long time, but breaking the news to them was the hardest thing I have ever had to do."

"Annie was just like her folks; she only ever saw the best in people." Ryker let out a self-deprecating laugh. "She even thought I was redeemable."

Keira placed her hand on his arm. "We'll find who did this."

The teasing and jovial person she had been bantering with was gone; replaced by something more sinister, something more primal. His eyes were hard, steel blue and his expression took on a look that frightened her. In the blink of an eye he was the thing of legends; a moment later, his walls had shut out his inner thoughts and the human version of the vampire returned.

Without speaking, he moved to the next body.

By the time she had made her way through all five bodies and had inspected them twice over, her worst fears were realised. After ending the echo spell, Keira slumped against one of the standing stones and placed her face in her hands as she focused on her breathing.

"I'm guessing you found more than you expected," Ryker said quietly.

Keira straightened and nodded. The moon had risen and the dancing shadows from the dying flames bathed the area with an eerie glow. She felt for her amulet and played with its smooth surface as she struggled to find the words.

"When a Crossroads Witch or Warlock dies, their essence is absorbed back into the earth. It allows us to retain a balance in our strength and power in which we can draw from. The more powerful the witch, the more power we can draw. However, when they pass, that power must return to the earth. If it doesn't there is less power to draw from."

"I'm with you so far," Ryker said crossing his arms over his chest.

"Each one of the Crossroads Coven members killed was sacrificed in such a way as to ensure the power didn't return to the earth."

Her voice died on the breeze as the implication hung in the air, the only sound was the crackling of the embers as the burning wood popped under the pressure of the heat.

"And that's bad because?" prompted Ryker.

Keira wanted to deny it. Surely there had to be another reason. Her mind screamed out at her till her head ached from the sound. This wasn't supposed to be happening; her mother died to ensure it couldn't. Yet, somehow, it was happening all over again.

Tears pricked at her eyes and the world became unfocused. Keira turned to face him, unable to find the words at first. You have to tell him. You need to share the knowledge with someone.

She hauled in a breath and let it out slowly. Squaring her shoulders, she met his intense gaze. "The less power keeping the doorway closed, the more chance of your maker returning."

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📎A/N. The plot thickens... So just how old is Keira? And just who is this 'maker' she is referring to?

... and what do you think of Ryker?  

Also, it might interest you to know that Mystery Hill is very real and is also known as 'America's Stonehenge'. As with the other structures of its kind around the globe, it is thought to be thousands of years old and how it was built is still a mystery.

Don't forget to vote if you enjoyed the chapter.

Till then, take care

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