Free Unholy Rites by Kay Stewart, Chris Bullock Page A

cutlery, and condiments.
    â€œWhat we need is a calendar,” Kevin said. “Would you have one we could borrow for a few minutes?” The barman retreated to hunt. Kevin pushed his chair back. “I’ll fetch a map from the car.”
    While she waited, Danutia dug into her huge baked potato, the size of a six-inch sub and filled with curried chicken salad. Her Canadian dollars didn’t go far here. Luckily jacket potatoes were cheap, substantial, and came in many varieties.
    When both map and calendar had arrived, Danutia pushed aside her plate and wrote while Kevin recalled the details.
    SHEEP MUTILATIONS
    Incident #1
    Date: found by farmer c. mid-Jan. (check incident report for date); dead 3–4 days
    Location: Top End Farm, near 248 between Tideswell and Hargatewall
    Incident #2
    Date: found by Derbyshire Wildlife Trust Feb. 10; dead 2–3 days; killed c . Feb. 7–8
    Location: c . half-mile west of Mill-on-Wye along south riverbank
    Incident #3
    Date: found morning Mar. 10; dead 12–24 hrs.; likely killed during the night
    Location: Rock Cliff Farm, near Priestcliffe
    â€œIt’s clear the mutilations happened around the same time of the month,” Danutia said. “Let’s start with the one we know most about. That happened on a Sunday. What about the others?”
    â€œNot the second one,” Kevin said around a mouthful of shepherd’s pie. “February 7 and 8 are a Friday and Saturday. It could still mean all the incidents fall on the weekend. That would make sense.”
    Danutia drew a series of question marks beside Incident #1. “That still leaves a broad timeframe. Ideally, we want to be able to predict when the next mutilation will occur. A more exact date for the first incident might help. Can you call in?”
    While Kevin went to radio Buxton Constabulary, Danutia studied the calendar, hunting for possible patterns. By the time he returned, she was pretty sure she’d found the answer. “Let me guess. The mutilation occurred on January 9, a Thursday.”
    â€œRound about then, anyway,” Kevin admitted. “I could have saved meself the trouble. Now me pie’s cold. How did you work it out?”
    Danutia pointed to March 9 on the calendar. “See that symbol? Last night was the dark of the moon. So was February 7. So was January 9.” She flipped to the next page. “If I’m right, we can expect another sheep mutilation on April 7.”
    â€œBut where? The incidents are widely scattered.”
    â€œLet’s plot the locations on the map and see if that tells us anything,” Danutia suggested. It took only a few minutes for a pattern to become clear. The three sites formed a semicircle around Mill-on-Wye, in the order north, west, south.
    â€œWiddershins!” exclaimed Kevin. “Counterclockwise, that’s the devil’s direction.”
    â€œMaybe we are dealing with Satanists.” Danutia plotted where the fourth point would fall. “East of Mill-on-Wye, near Monsal Mill. That’s where the sheep killer should strike next. How would he get to these places without being seen?”
    â€œNo problem there,” Kevin said, running a thick finger between the January site and Mill-on-Wye alongside a map symbol Danutia didn’t recognize. “This line marks the Pennine Bridleway. It’s a broad trail, heavily used by walkers as well as riders. The trails to the Priestcliffe Ditch area are a little less direct, but they’re there. Going east–west, there are paths on both sides of the Wye from Buxton to Cressbrook and on to Bakewell.”
    Danutia, a keen hiker, noted the trails for future reference and began refolding the map. “That suggests the culprit is a local.”
    â€œMost likely, though as you see that could cover a fairly large area.” Kevin swallowed the last of his ale. As he set down the glass, he said, “We’re forgetting one