Hellhole Bay: An Urban Fantasy by Eli Constant

Author:Eli Constant [Constant, Eli]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Bone Orchard Books
Published: 2023-12-04T16:00:00+00:00

SIXTEEN

I don't know why, but as we're leaving, I happen to look down at the floor.

Specifically, near the autopsy table. The drain grate runs around it, similar to my set up at the funeral home. At the same time, I reach for the wall switch to turn off the fluorescent lights above.

But just before I flick the bright overheads off, a spark in the drain catches my eye. It's near the foot of the operation table, stuck between the lines of metal in the narrow crack. I only notice it because its presence makes the grate line thicker, not uniform like the surrounding grid lines. And the metal is shinier, not dull gray, but almost… almost platinum starshine.

Strolling over curiously, I bend down and use my fingernails to work the out of place metal from its current cage.

“Whatcha got?” Terrance had already been walking down the hall when I’d spotted the thing, but he must have double backed when he realized I wasn’t following him.

“I’m… I’m not really sure. It might be nothing, just a piece of trash or something stuck in the grate.”

It takes some effort, and I break a nail down to the quick, but I finally free the object.

A ring. A silver endless band decorated by a cross that seems simplistic at first, but closer inspection reveals the shape of a crossbow and arrow. I pinch it between two fingers and stand up to hold it closer to the lights above. There’s an inscription inside the band.

"Aut venator aut venatus," I read out the words carefully, knowing my latin pronunciation is incredibly bad.

"Do you know what it means?" Terrance is beside me, peering down at the object.

"No, but I'll find out." I get out my phone and snap a photo of the ring and inscription, then I hand it to Terrance for evidence. I try to access the internet to pop the latin phrase in for translation, but my service in the morgue is awful.

“It was really stuck in there. Unfortunately, we don’t know when it got left in the morgue or who did the leaving.” There’s something about the ring, about the latin and the symbol. In particular, the crossbow and arrow. It fucking screams hunter. “Can I see it one more time?”

Terrance places the ring back in my open palm and this time, I don’t just study it with my eyes, I reach for it with my magick. It buzzes to life happily, but the spark is quick and brief.

“Well, it’s definitely got something supernatural going on with it.”

"I'll have it analyzed," he says, as I hand it back. “Should I be worried it’ll… I don’t know, spell one of my officers into a murder spree?”

“No,” I shake my head, “it didn’t feel nefarious and the magick only flashed.”

Terrance pulls a tiny evidence bag out of his pocket. He nearly always has one squirrelled away. "I’ll let you know if I find anything out about it. And I’ll have Winston and Otter take a closer look at the locations marked on the map.

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