Familiar!

"Mama!" The girl I'd rescued resumed her running. Tripping over the unexpected grassy surface, she fell to her knees in Mr. Espinoza's yard. "Please, come back! I'll be good. Please!"

I gave Kathleen a squeeze.

"I need to take care of something." I looked down at her. "Will you let me go?"

She shook her head no and buried her face deeper into my shirt. I caught Katrina's eye and flicked my chin toward the girl who was crying. She looked at me for a second before heading that direction. Katrina was older than the newcomer, but not by much. She should be able to calm her down and hopefully get some information. Or, at least I hoped so anyway.

I squeezed Kathleen again. "Hey. Look at me."

She looked up, her eyes now dark and quiet with only a hint of gold in their depths.

"I'm fine. But there's a little girl over there who needs help." I pointed with my chin toward where Katrina was sitting cross-legged on the grass in front of the girl. As I watched the girl wiped her eyes and said something. Katrina looked in my direction, the little girl following her gaze. As her eyes caught mine, she scrambled to her feet and readied herself to run.

Before she could move, Mrs. Black touched her on the shoulder with a restraining hand.

"He will not harm you. I will not let him."

"He's a bad Mage." The girl stepped backward, trying to hide behind my neighbor's profile.

"He's an idiot." Katrina got up from the grass, swiping at her pants to wipe off any clinging grass and leaves. "That's what my sister says."

"Hey!"

Kathleen snickered as she dropped her arms, threading her fingers through mine and holding on.

"Okay, so I'm an idiot. So what?" I threw up my free hand as Mr. Espinoza came out of his house in response to all the noise.

"Told you." Katrina muttered to the new girl.

"Brat." I pointed my finger at Katrina. She stuck her tongue out at me and turned her back to prove she wasn't afraid of me.

"Daniel?" Mr. Espinoza called to me. "What's going on?"

I indicated the girl who moved further behind Kathleen's mother in an attempt to hide.

"I think her mom abandoned her. Last thing I saw was her mom driving away and her running after the car. I don't know why it happened. I don't know who she is or anything."

Mr. Espinoza looked at the little girl for a moment then squatted down to her level.

"Hi. I'm Mr. Espinoza. This is my front yard and I live here. What's your name?"

In response, the girl hid her face in Mrs. Black's waist and mumbled.

"Esmie? Is that what you said?"

A tiny, almost infinitesimal, nod yes.

"Where's your mom, Esmie? Where do you live?"

The girl shook her head and didn't answer. I looked at her as Mr. Espinoza tried to get more information. She was maybe eight or nine years old with straight raven-black hair, like Kathleen and her sisters, and wearing a school uniform with white knee socks and black shoes. It was summer vacation, why was she wearing a school uniform? She shouldn't be, unless she was in a year-around school.

"You know, your teacher is going to be worried about you if you don't show up for class today. You want us to call her and let her know you won't be there?" I asked carefully hoping I'd get an answer.

Mr. Espinoza looked thoughtful for a moment then built on the hint I'd given him, asking the girl who her teacher was and what school she went to. Quiet answers to his questions had him nodding and asking more questions. In response to one question the girl pulled a folded piece of paper out of her pocket and gave it to him. Eventually he stood up and walked over to where Kathleen and I were.

"She goes to Carson Street Elementary. That ought to be enough for the police to find out where she lives. They can take her home." He handed me the paper. "She says her mother told her to give this to you."

I unfolded the note. It was short and simple.

He will come to take us soon. I have no hope of stopping him. I give her to you and pray you are strong enough to keep him away from her.

I read the note and handed it to Kathleen. She scanned it and looked at me then the girl.

"No police," I told Mr. Espinoza. "We'll take care of this."

He looked surprised.

"Daniel, this is a crime."

"It is. But not the one you're thinking of." I nodded in agreement before turning to Kathleen. "Kiss me. Please."

Kathleen studied my face for a few moments then tipped her lips toward mine, slipping her hand behind me to cup my head gently as she closed her eyes.

I was expecting it but the shock was still tremendous. GOLD! filled me up and expanded my awareness. Mentally shooting across the city, I arrowed toward the school the girl said was hers. I skimmed the minds of those I found there, riffling through their memories seeking answers to questions not asked out loud. Esmie; who is Esmie?

Esmikat Saleen. The answer returned. More answers to other questions were given until I was satisfied I knew all they could tell me. I looked down to Kathleen again and tipped her face upward with a finger. She pulled me down once more.

<NAZAAKAT EBONA SALEEN.> The name rolled through my mind and expanded outward. <COME TO ME.>

Putting more power behind the command I waited until I felt her turn the Toyota around.

<Hi.> I looked down at Kathleen once I was sure Esmie's mother was on her way and wouldn't try to escape again.

<Did you call me Kitty?> Her eyes squinted.

<Sorry. It was an emergency and I forgot. Where were you?>

Kathleen turned her head to look over her shoulder. "I was trying to tell the racoon to get out of my territory. He's bigger than I am and doesn't care what I want."

"Wait, you tried to beat up a racoon? Why?"

Mr. Espinoza cleared his throat before Kathleen could answer. I looked over her head at him.

"Esmie's mom is coming to get her." I looked inward for a moment. "She'll be here in a couple of minutes."

He looked at me and opened his mouth. I knew what he was going to say; Esmie's mom would just take her somewhere else and abandon her again. But, she wouldn't. I would make sure of it.

"Don't worry. I'll take care of everything."

Before he could ask what I meant, the blue Toyota turned into the cul-de-sac. I watched as the black-haired woman driving it parked haphazardly at the curb and tumbled out of the car. Esmie slammed into her, crying once again as she wrapped little arms and legs around her mom.

Carrying the girl, the woman stumbled toward me, going to her knees on the sidewalk after putting her daughter down. She clasped her hands, holding them out to me in supplication.

"I surrender. Take me." Her words were filled with defeat.

"Get up." I motioned for her to get to her feet. Kathleen tried to pull away but I put my arms around her once more to hold her in place. "Never kneel to me again."

"Yes, Master." Slowly she rose and bowed her head.

"Do not call me that. I reject you. I reject your daughter. Do you understand?"

"Master, if you don't bind us, He will." Her head snapped up, her face white with terror.

"No. Whoever He is, he won't." I looked down at Kathleen. "One more kiss. Please?"

Kathleen studied my face, switching her gaze from one of my eyes to the other as she wondered what I was doing.

"Please?" I asked again.

Closing her eyes, she allowed it. Again, the magic filled me. I concentrated and shaped exactly what I wanted, ensuring even the smallest detail wasn't forgotten or overlooked. Once I was sure I had everything the way I wanted it, making sure the binding link from Nazaa and Esmie was ready, I released the gold power with a whisper.

"Change."

The abandoned house on the corner shimmered as if hidden by desert haze. The dirt yard filled with green freshly-mown grass. Well-trimmed hedges and pretty flowers appeared as the plywood over the windows disappeared and glass filled the empty panes. Walls and trim were repainted, completely covering the gang signs and graffiti marking every surface. I felt the binding link settle into place, grounding both Nazaa and Esmie to the neighborhood that was mine. They weren't bound to me, but they weren't going to be anyone's slaves either.

The blue Toyota vanished from where it was parked at the curb to reform in the driveway of the house on the corner as the garage door opened to display the freshly redone interior. I held out the house keys which appeared in my palm.

"You are free. I promise."

She looked at the keys then to Kathleen, hope in her eyes. Kathleen looked up at me and back to our new neighbor and nodded once, sharply.

"I've never seen anyone do what he can." She squeezed me and let me go. "He's also an idiot but you can't have everything."

"Hey! At least I'm smart enough to not pick on racoons twice my size."

Kathleen just narrowed her eyes at me again.

"Daniel?" Mr. Espinoza cleared his throat, interrupting us as he glanced between me and the restored house on the corner. "What's going on?"

I ignored the question and handed Esmie's mom the keys. "It's safe. But, don't go back to your old place. Ever. For any reason. You both have to disappear. Understand?"

"Yes Mast . . ."

I held up a finger to stop her. "You don't have a Master. Neither does Esmie. My name is Daniel. Okay?"

She looked between me and Kathleen and bowed her head. "Daniel."

"That's a good Kitty."

Nazaa beamed at me for the praise. Kathleen pinched me. Hard!

"What was that for?" I rubbed my ribs. I hadn't done anything. Nazaa was a Kitty, just like Katya. All I'd done was call her by what she really was.

A low growl was all I got for a reply. Mr. Espinoza cleared his throat again.

"Come on. I'll make some coffee and explain." I headed for my house, grumbling to myself over the pinch she'd given me. It hurt and was probably going to leave a bruise. I was pretty sure about that.

Chapter 16

Two cups of coffee and a glass of milk later we sat at the table, Mr. Espinoza with a look of confusion on his face. I slowly stirred sugar into my coffee while Kathleen put on a milk mustache.

"What's going on Daniel? What's gotten into you lately? You're acting differently." Mr. Espinoza fiddled with his coffee cup. "People we don't know are driving up and down the street to stop and stare at your house. Other people break in to beat you up in the middle of the night. And now strange women are trying to give their kids to you. What are you doing? Did you join a gang?"

"I'm not in a gang. I told you, I don't know her. Kathleen, tell him."

Kathleen nodded. "She wasn't trying to give Esmie to Daniel. Nazaa's a friend of my mom's. We haven't seen her in years and I barely remember her. She stopped visiting us a long time ago, probably before Esmie was born. That's why I didn't recognize her either."

He wasn't buying it. It was obvious he knew something weird was going on. He knew as well as I did the house on the corner hadn't been habitable before just a few moments ago. He also knew no one lived there either.

"Apparently Esmie's mom has some kind of stalker or crazy ex. Nazaa's obviously afraid of him, whoever he is, and doesn't want him to get his hands on her daughter. I'm sure you saw how afraid she was."

I expanded on my previous statements as I looked out the window toward the house on the corner. The Toyota was now inside the garage with the big door closed to conceal it from easy view. Kathleen's mom had gone inside with them, presumably to help them settle into their new home, while mumbling to herself about boundaries. There hadn't been any screaming or yelling so I hoped they were getting along okay. Cats didn't always accept other cats into their territory without fighting over it.

While I looked at Nazaa's house, a pair of black cats sauntered, tails high, along the top of the fence surrounding the backyard of the corner house. They felt like Katrina and Katya to me after I sent a quick questing thought their way. A third black cat, hooking claws into the fence boards, climbed to the top to join them. This one was much smaller than the other two, looking barely old enough to be out on her own. They all cautiously touched noses with each other.

Greetings and introductions done, they sat on the top of the fence and stared down into the backyard while their tails slowly waved back and forth. More questing on my part told me both Nazaakat and Kathleen's mothers were on the back patio talking. Which was a lot better than fighting.

"The note was for my mom, not Daniel. She wanted us to take care of Esmie in case anything happened to Nazaa." Kathleen continued to offer what sounded like a reasonable explanation under the circumstances.

When she finished, we sat there and didn't say anything else. The fewer things we said, the less information he had to contradict what we were telling him. Without information he couldn't find the holes in our lies. There were a lot of holes and lies in there too, not to mention all the other things we'd avoided bringing up. Such as why Nazaa had prostrated herself on the sidewalk to me if she was Mrs. Black's friend and I didn't know her. And so on.

I was hoping if we didn't point those things out, they'd fade into the background. Otherwise, I'd have to come up with lies for them too. Despite what Kathleen and her mother continually told me about all Mages being liars, I'd never been very good at it. Nor did I like to lie.

Mr. Espinoza just looked at us for a moment. As I watched his expression changed and I knew he wasn't going to let it go.

"What about the house on the corner? And the fire? And who beat you up? I would like

some answers Daniel. I think you owe me an explanation after all these years."

"There are no answers. Some things have happened which I can't explain. All I can tell you is that I'm still the same person I've always been. There isn't any gang and no one is going to come bother us about Nazaa and Esmie living in the house on the corner."

He looked at me for a second. I spoke before he could ask more questions.

"Look. We've told you what happened. Yes, a lot of weird things have been going on over the last couple of weeks. So what? None of it matters. None of it changes the fact that you are still my neighbor. Or that Nazaa and Esmie are our neighbors now too."

I waved out the window.

"What we've told you is all we can say about what's going on. The only other explanation isn't reasonable but here it is: I can do magic. I didn't know I was a Mage until recently, but I can perform magic now. Real magic, not sleight of hand. You can believe that, or you can believe what we already told you. Take your pick."

Mr. Espinoza looked at me for a second before his face closed down.

"See, there it is." I gestured at his expression. "You don't want to believe what we've told you. Instead you want to believe something that you're making up yourself. You want to believe I'm in a gang now even though I'm not. I don't have gang tattoos or anything but that's what you want to believe. You know I'm not that kind of person but that's what you think of me."

He looked startled as I explained. I hadn't ever acted like this to him before and it was a complete about-face in our relationship with each other.

"I can't stop you. All I can say is that the more you think about it, the more confused and upset you'll be. I don't want that, but I can't stop you from believing what you know isn't true. All I can tell you is that you know me and you know I wouldn't join a gang. Please just accept that and put everything else behind us. We're neighbors. Good neighbors. And this neighborhood sticks together, no matter what. You taught me that."

I looked out the window for a second before turning back to him as inspiration hit me.

"No one is saying you can't be friends with Nazaa and Esmie. Nazaa could probably use a neighbor she doesn't have to be afraid of. Someone who could, maybe, keep Esmie out of trouble by buying her a pretzel or Dodger Dog at the game once in awhile. Otherwise, she's probably going to start wearing frilly pink dresses, talking to imaginary friends, and playing with dolls. With that kind of childhood she might even wind up being an Angel's fan."

That did it, nothing was so horrible as that possible outcome. Even the unease he had over my explanation and the house on the corner paled into insignificance compared to someone in the neighborhood being an Angels fan. It only took a few more minutes before Mr. Espinoza excused himself to go home. Strange happenings or not, no one in his neighborhood was going to be an Angel's fan! Not if he had anything to say about it. We could see him rummage around in his garage for a bit before coming back out and head for the house on the corner. Shortly afterward a plastic sign with flags on the corners appeared in the middle of the lawn; Go Dodgers!

I had a feeling a baseball glove and a lot of car washes were in Esmie's future. The whole idea made me smile.

"Now, about this racoon . . ." I started to ask Kathleen what the deal was and why she was so preoccupied over it.

Her expression changed and she immediately vanished out the back door. With a running leap she made it to the top of the wooden fence where she paused to look back at me, whiskers twitching as she chattered at me.

"What?" I raised my hands from where I stood in the doorway watching her.

Her tail lashed twice and she was gone.

"You know what? Just once I'd like to have a conversation where you don't run away at the beginning."

The three cats who suddenly appeared on my fence blinked their yellow eyes at me as I yelled down the alley. I pointed a finger at them.

"And you three, stay off the roof or I'll tell your moms. You don't belong up there."

I concentrated and a trio of striped toy mice appeared on my open palm; one pink, one purple, and one blue. I held them up for the cats to see. Immediately the two larger of the three crouched, razor-sharp gazes fastening onto the toys in my hand while the tiniest one looked at both of them in surprise.

"Esmie gets the blue one. And one of you needs to explain the rules to her." I waited a beat then made the toys vanish. "They're here in the yard somewhere."

I watched for a short while as they snuck through the bushes and peered carefully around flower pots and yard decorations. They'd find the toys eventually, Katrina and Katya were good hunters, though the spiders and occasional lizard they surprised probably didn't appreciate their diligence in checking every possible hiding spot. Keeping a watchful eye on the three to be sure they didn't get hurt accidentally by some of the junk stacked in the corners, I sat down at the table again to finish my coffee hoping Kathleen would come back and talk to me.

Two cups of coffee later the three Kits were beating up their toys in the center of my yard. Grappling and raking the striped mice with their back feet, they chewed on noses and tails, bounding and pouncing when the toys got away from them every once in awhile. Esmie was especially cute. Paws spread wide, every hair standing on end, she arched her back and attacked; growling and rolling in the grass as she subdued her stuffed rodent victim. There was still no sign of Kathleen.

I sighed and clicked the binary switch for the magic orb. The glowing ball appeared in mid-air over the table. Studying it, I concentrated on what I wanted. Once again, black sand rained from the orb. Why couldn't I do this? What was I missing? Frustrated, I cancelled the orb and turned on the TV.

Two episodes into a zombie marathon and half a million commercials later, still no Kathleen. The three Kits had tired of the toys, leaving them in the middle of the grass in the backyard. Katrina and Katya disappeared to wherever cats went when they weren't around, leaving Esmie zonked out on the patio doormat. I erased the tattered and soggy mice and picked her up without her waking.