full of people. There was an older man in a navy cardigan standing with his arm around a
I walked all the way down the hall, stopped by the drinking fountain. It felt like the
the button again, splashed my face. My hand was shaking.
Classmates described him as quiet and a bit of a loner who worked hard and took his studies
gets himself carved into pieces during occult rituals.
called Blade Sable.
past century. At the top of my TBR list was Anton LaVey’s The Satanic Bible. LaVey was the
religion of Satanism. A guy named Peter H. Gilmore had been appointed High Priest
the field seemed to be an Oliver Garibaldi.
his sixties, given the copyright info on his bibliography
studied a moody and dramatic photo of him and then read the bio. He had been born in
several years in Great Britain.
Politics of Twentieth-century Witchcraft,” and “Witch Hunt: An American Tradition.” And
“Devil-Dog” had been taking him every semester apparently since time began and could be
All very readable, if not germane. I finally powered down the computer, went through
Upstairs, I caught the last minutes of Pirates of the Caribbean on TV, which cheered
antidote to whatever ails ye. In my expert opinion – a fortune in video rentals should carry
disk. I wondered again about his relationship with Bob Friedlander. There was something
I’ve had gay friends who felt I acted too straight, and straight friends who’ve told me they
He’d replied, “You’re…too graceful.”
“All of the above,” he’d said wryly.
Jake had never recovered from learning that Lisa enrolled me in ballet from age seven
I usually didn’t bother debating him, because I knew he was smart enough to realize
* * * * *
fumbled it off the hook.
It sounded like a TV was playing in the background, then Jake’s voice was in my ear,
Into my silence, he said awkwardly, “I hope Chan didn’t – I told him to try not to scare
He didn’t answer for a moment. I heard the TV blasting away in the background.
thumbs-up.
Why had I been so hasty in sending Angus away?
as much as the help.
Savage. I glanced through a dog-eared copy of So Lovely, So Dead. Pretty much what you
nowhere while he was writing deathless prose for the entertainment and edification of
interview with a prominent psychiatrist who explained why the young are often attracted to
“These organizations make a point of accepting behavior considered sinful in the
I wondered what the other examples were. It seemed likely to me that the people who
was upset with Angus for practicing the Black Arts, then why had they turned around and
What kind of a warning was that?
spiritual plane.
funny feeling you get when you’re being watched. No one seemed to be paying us any
myself from saying what was on my mind, I stared down from the brick rooftop balcony.
Uh-oh, I thought, watching her. What now?
I gulped the lump of pita and chicken. “Okay.”