The Raven Mocker Read Online Free PDF Page A

confronted his ancestors’ role in the crime committed against her in the ravine, John hoped to provide lasting peace for her spirit by locating her remains and arranging a proper burial elsewhere. That part of the plan went well enough, with Evelyn invoking a Cherokee blessing when the bones were reburied in the McCormick section of the old Methodist Church’s cemetery in Cades Cove.
    But other events, all ominous, had already begun once her bones were unearthed from beneath a heavy stone slab that rested on top of them for more than ninety years. The slab turned out to be part of an ancient temple—part of the structure’s ceiling, according to Dr. Walter Pollack from the University of Tennessee’s archaeology department. But there was more. Other bones lay buried underneath Allie’s crushed skeleton, though these remains hadn’t seen the light of day in more than a thousand years. Discovered alongside this much older skeleton was a jeweled scepter made of solid gold with an ornate handle and ivory blade.
    Other skeletons, most showing signs of being beheaded, along with Anglo-American armor and jewelry from the early 1600s were also found. Not long after, when all of the skeletons and the splendid scepter had been removed from the ravine and brought to the Frank H, Mcclung Museum for further examination, the hostile visitations to the cabin ensued.
    John and Evelyn sought legal injunctions to stop the excavation, and restore the older skeletons and other artifacts back to the original gravesite in the ravine. Meanwhile, the swarming menace grew stronger by the week; leaving Evelyn fully convinced that the entity behind the current mischief was in fact the very same one that fueled Allie Mae’s thirst for vengeance and exaggerated strength in October.
    John intended to take up the legal battle again in January. Confident the NCAI would be successful in getting the remains returned to the ravine, since some of the skeletons had already been confirmed as Native American, getting the scepter returned remained the bigger worry. Inconclusive which ancient race of people it belonged to, the University had already dug their heels in for a potential protracted court war for its ownership. Using the unusual appearance of the largest skeleton to support their stance, the archaeology department had recently issued a statement claiming the scepter and skeleton belonged to an undetermined ‘non-Indian race’.
    John lingered over the Hobbs’ portrait for another moment, listening to the low gusts of wind outside and pops from the hickory logs burning in the fireplace. He hoped the holidays would be a blessed time for David and his family. He started to smile, but stopped.
    I’ve got to warn everyone…right now!
    In haste, he stood up and moved into the kitchen area and over to the small cove where his phone sat, next to the refrigerator. He pulled out a number from his wallet and dialed it. After five rings the call went to voicemail, and John let out a low hiss of frustration.
    “ Peter, this is John Running Deer again,” he said, his tone worried. “I really need for you to call me back once you get this, and you have my number at the cabin. It doesn’t matter what time—just call me. Thanks.”
    Dr. Peter Kirkland, a prominent member of the University of Tennessee’s forensic staff in Knoxville, had known John for almost twenty years. Their recent disagreement over who held the true rights to the ravine’s remains and artifacts threatened to end their longtime friendship.
    After he hung up the phone, John remained in the kitchen. The powerful premonition from a moment ago grew stronger…. Something very bad will happen soon!
    Peter’s role in this left him in terrible danger, though the professor, a pragmatist to a fault, would never believe in an ancient entity or curse unless either one bit him on the ass. As for David Hobbs…John prayed the other half of his premonition wasn’t true.
    5:35 p.m. Two hours