Of course, Sarah was of the Southern Baptist persuasion, which meant that she and her fellow brothers and sisters didn’t recognize one another when they crossed paths in the liquor store. Seriously, either live by your principles or admit they’re wrong and move on. Why be coy? She sighed. Coy just seems to go with the Bible Belt like white on rice.
After the last of the gifts, they still hadn’t managed to wind the conversation down and make a graceful exit. Vivian was getting antsy, not to mention irascible and bored, so she excused herself and snuck back into the kitchen for consolation in the form of leftovers. The clicking of high heels, two sets, entering the kitchen interrupted her mid-bite. Sarah walked in with a short and friendly-looking brunette woman. When she caught sight of Vivian, Sarah grinned a feline smile, predatory and greedy.
More than that, it was full of flagrant and smug satisfaction.
“Well, Sheila, don’t I feel awkward now,” Sarah said, demurring. “But I suppose you two were bound to meet sooner or later. Sheila Mayweather, meet Vivian Bedford. Vivian, meet Sheila Mayweather. She’s with Mr. Jace.”
Sheila looked frightened. She also looked mortified and angry. Under different circumstances, Vivian might have felt sorry for the woman. She was plenty angry, but she didn’t have any cause to be mortified, aside from the fact that her mouth was full and her hands were greasy. She took her time chewing as she stared a hole through both women. The silence was deafening.
Sheila spoke first. “Hello, Vivian. I’ve wanted to meet you.”
“Have you?” Vivian said. “You know about me. That’s odd, since I hadn’t heard a thing about you until very recently.”
Red crept up Sheila’s cheeks, but to her credit, she pressed on. “Look, I didn’t know that Jace was serious with you, or with anyone else, when we met. We just sort of hit it off and—”
“Let me save you some trouble, okay? I don’t really want to know the details of how you and Jace met. I don’t want to know what you two do, how or where you do it, and I don’t really want to know you. I’m not going to cause any trouble for you so long as you don’t cross me and don’t cross my path too often. Understand?”
“Fine by me,” Sheila replied. Sarah seemed satisfied, and turned to leave with Sheila. Vivian wasn’t going to let her off the hook so easily.
“Not so fast, Sarah. I’m not finished with you yet,” Vivian said, anger welling from deep within.
Sarah turned on her heel and glared at Vivian. After Sheila was out of the room, Sarah said, “Excuse me? You come into my home, you behave rudely to one of the guests at my sister’s bridal shower, and then you have the audacity to order me around in my own kitchen?”
“Cut the shit, Sarah. You’ve been planning this little stunt since I walked in, so don’t get all high and mighty on me.”
“High and mighty? I’m right with my family, I’m right with my community, and I’m right with the Lord, which is more than I can say for you. Honestly, Sue used to be a good girl until she started running around with you. Now look at her—pregnant out of wedlock. At least she’s getting married, though. She’s doing the right thing. You on the other hand, whoring around and taking my sister with you—”
The damn broke and Vivian let loose, barely leashing the spirit light that coursed through her veins, swirling and ready to break free.
“Whoring around? Look who’s talking,” Vivian said, low and with false calm. “You forget, I’ve been running around with your sister long enough to know a little bit about you. Those late nights sneaking out in high school, even after you met Mr. Harrow,” Vivian said, abandoning all pretense of civility.
What Sarah didn’t know was that Vivian had poked around in her black heart throughout the tirade she’d endured, and she had more ammunition for her effort. She’d use it, going in for the proverbial kill.
“Sue likes to tell tales,” Sarah replied tartly. “I’ve always been a lady.”
“The kind of lady who leaves her children with a nanny while she’s out meeting a certain married gentleman from the First Self-Righteous Church of Middle Tennessee?” Vivian asked. She watched as Sarah’s eyes went wide and the triumph disappeared from her expression. A surge of power rushed through Vivian, as did a hunger to inflict suffering upon her opponent and taste the wretched woman’s misery.
She moved dangerously close, letting her words slice daggers into the psyche of her opponent. “Daddy goes away a lot, doesn’t he? And you can only drown your loneliness in the sea of Jack Daniels for so long. You’d leave him, but you’re afraid. Not afraid of what the Almighty might think, but afraid of what the congregation would say, what the neighbors might whisper, what damage your reputation would suffer.”
“Th-that’s not true,” Sarah said, gooseflesh erupting over her arms. “Please, stop.”
Vivian grabbed her arm to keep her from bolting and leaned even closer to whisper the awful truth in her ear. “The children don’t concern you, but the money does, doesn’t it? So you found someone who’s safe. He’ll fuck you nicely on the side but won’t risk his own finances by ruining his marriage, so he keeps quiet. He wouldn’t even talk if he suspected what you do, would he?”
Vivian leaned back to examine her handiwork. A voice in the back of her mind warned her. Her conscience, perhaps? Her better nature? The new hunger that gripped her urged her to continue her assault on the horrid soul in front of her, so ripe for the harvest.
“Stop,” Sarah pleaded again. Her skin was pale, her breathing shallow, and she would have fallen over had she not backed herself against the kitchen door.
“Have you submitted his hair samples yet, or are you afraid to find out for sure if he’s been your baby daddy twice over? Think of the scandal, the shame. Oh, I see that you do think of it, but the things he does to you,” Vivian continued, reveling in Sarah’s shock as unbidden memories of the passion and frenzy of acts never performed in her husband’s bed filled her heart and mind.
She looked at Vivian, and knew that Vivian knew.
“Stop!” Sarah screamed. “I knew you weren’t right with the Lord, but I didn’t know you were a witch. I rebuke thee in the name of Jesus, I—”
Vivian shot a blast of red light at Sarah’s mouth, silencing her mid-scream and causing her to collapse onto the tiled kitchen floor. She stooped down next to the woman and grabbed her shoulders so she couldn’t scramble away.
“Now then,” she said, “I’m going to talk and you’re going to listen. If you’re a good girl, I might let you have your voice back. Nod if you’re picking up what I’m throwing down.”
Sarah nodded, or perhaps she was just shaking all over. It didn’t matter. Vivian knew that she had her attention.
“Now then, I’m fixing to leave your little soirée, and I’m taking Kay and your sister with me. I’ll walk out and prepare to thank you for your gracious hospitality while you stay here and pull yourself together. I expect you can do that, right?”
Sarah nodded again. Vivian could see the sweat on her brow and the tears in her eyes. She’d wet herself out of fear. Vivian thought back to the time when she’d first encountered the dark realm of the spirit world. She’d confronted her own darkness there. This time was different. This time she was not afraid.
That fact should have disturbed her more than it did.
“I don’t expect you’ll feel like telling tales about me or messing with me in general after this. Beside, who would believe you? I do expect that you’ll behave a little bit better from now on, and not just when I’m around.”
Sarah nodded vigorously and Vivian flashed her a wide smile. “I have some interesting friends with eyes and ears just about anywhere you’d care to go, and some places you wouldn’t. I think you’ve figured out by now that you don’t want to be on my bad side.”
Vivian rose and scowled at the pitiful sight before her. Sarah scooted out of the way and Vivian stepped over the mess on the floor and cracked open the kitchen door to look out at the crowd of ladies in the dinin
g room. They were all occupied, so Vivian turned and told Sarah she had five minutes to clean up the kitchen and herself. Inhaling deeply, she absorbed the red light of wickedness that floated from Sarah Harrow.
It wasn’t a burden willingly given, nor taken in secret. She’d ripped this darkness directly from a human spirit and it felt and tasted entirely different from anything Vivian had yet experienced. After she recovered, Vivian shot a jolt of red light at Sarah’s mouth to release her voice before walking away without a second glance.
***
Holland House Bar and Refuge was busy, but not overly crowded. After the bridal shower from hell, that wasn’t a bad thing. Kay was delighted to be someplace where munchkins weren’t allowed. This hip East Nashville bar with meal service was strictly twenty-one and over. Vivian was just happy to have made it out without her nerves fraying and to have her mind on something else. She’d had some time to think about what she’d done to Sarah, and decided that she was better off not thinking about it for a while. Alcohol would help, and she was grateful that Kay was driving tonight.
But sooner or later, she’d have to face this shocking, new dark side she’d unleashed.
It was warm enough at the end of April to sit at a table out front underneath the pergola. Since the guys who’d robbed the bar a few months back got caught in another holdup, folks could breathe a bit easier. According to the proprietor, business had boomed right after. East Nashville didn’t have the best reputation, in spite of the new hip watering holes and modern condos. Still, the element of danger had its appeal and many of the city’s locals and transplants enjoyed a little walk on the wild side along with their fancy cocktails.
Vivian didn’t have to worry, of course. Seemed she might be one of those elements of danger, come to think of it.
“So, Kay,” Sue said during a gap in the conversation. “Now that we’re away from polite society, I’ve got a question for you.”
“Here we go,” Kay replied with a roll of her eyes. “You’ve got that naughty look in your eyes.”
Vivian chimed in, “No, Kay, she’s the woman of the hour. Let her have the floor. Besides, I’d like to see where she takes this little brain cell misfire.”
“Okay, here goes. Did the sex get better when you were pregnant? I mean, like, a lot better?”
Vivian, already half drunk, almost fell out of her chair laughing. Sue looked a little embarrassed, but not much. The old Sue emerged from behind the façade she’d kept up while at her sister’s place. Kay, bless her, kept a straight face and appeared to give the question some serious consideration.
“I can’t say it was great with my two girls,” Kay mused. “In fact, I just couldn’t get there, so to speak, to save my life, and not for lack of trying. I mean, Boyd was a trouper and we even bought—”
“Oh, Jesus, no more,” Vivian cried. “I really don’t need to know that much about your sex life, or I’ll never be able to look at Boyd again.”
“Grow up, Vivian. I’m serious. Besides, you’re the one who said I could have the floor. I just can’t get enough of Jack. It’s like I’m on girl Viagra and steroids,” Sue said, whispering the last part.
“Then I think you’re having a boy,” Kay said. “When I had Scooter on board, I was woman, and boy oh boy could the neighbors ever hear me roar! Maybe it’s the male influence. Who knows? I say just be happy and go with it while it lasts.”
“How long will that be?” Sue asked.
“Until your back aches, your feet swell, and the hemorrhoids hit. By the way, the hemorrhoids also interfere with the only comfy position after around month eight and—”
“No more, no more,” Vivian roared between giggles. “Or I swear to God I’m getting an elective hysterectomy tomorrow!”
“No, Vivian, you can’t! This is a rite of passage, you know,” Sue snorted.
“Besides, Annabelle, Kaitlyn, and Connor are going to need someone new to corrupt after they’re done with Jack Jr.,” Kay added.
“I’d love to help y’all out,” Vivian said, still stifling laughter and slurring her words a bit. “But unless I rob a sperm bank and grab a turkey baster, my prospects aren’t so hot right now.”
“Oh, no,” Sue said before clapping her hands over her mouth. She looked from Vivian to Kay and back again, trembling as tears started to fall. “Vivian, I didn’t mean…I shouldn’t have said…oh, Jesus I’m such an insensitive bitch!”
“No, honey, that’s your sister,” Vivian said, laughing. She turned to Kay, pointed at Sue, and whispered, “What’s going on with her?”
“Don’t worry. It’s the hormones. They get worse as things move along.” Kay signaled to their server and pulled her wallet out of her bag. “On that note, I think we’d better call it a night. When one gal pal is bawling and the other can barely stand,” she said as she patted Vivian on the back, “the party is definitely over.”
“Oh, by the way,” Sue said between sniffles. “I hope y’all don’t get sick.”
Vivian snorted. “Don’t worry, I can hold my liquor with the best of ’em.”
“No, I’m serious,” Sue said. “I just got a text from my sister. She’s at the hospital with horrible stomach pains. They’re going to admit her.”
Vivian froze. Clearing her throat, she said, “Is she going to be okay?”
Sue waved a hand. “It’s probably something she ate. I told her to take it easy on the pasta salads. Mayo goes bad fast. Anyway, I just hope it isn’t some stomach bug. It—”
She missed the last part during her dash around the corner to vomit up the contents of her stomach. Karma was apparently an eye-for-an-eye kind of bitch.
CHAPTER 12
Kay was kind enough to help Vivian into her house without breaking anything, herself included, but Vivian drew the line at Kay’s offer to help her into her jammies. She remained shaken, but not helpless. All she really wanted was to dive straight into bed, clothes and all, and just let the alcohol remaining in her system take its sedative effect. There were way too many things she just did not want to think about.
And damn it all to hell, she still had to find a date for Sue’s wedding rather than face the humiliation of going stag in front of Jace and Sheila, not to mention Sarah. It was too bad that Jeanne had other plans. She materialized as soon as Kay left and brought more karmic retribution with her.
“What in the name of all that is good and righteous were you thinking?” Jeanne’s voice screeched from the hall. At least she was nice enough not to barge in the bathroom.
“What?” Vivian called back, not exactly feigning ignorance, but not exactly admitting guilt either.
“That little stunt you pulled on a mortal in broad daylight? Where you could have been seen? Our powers are only used for good—”
“Oh, get off your high horse, Jeanne. I wouldn’t even be able to pull stunts like I did if that were true, and you know it. Ezra broke more than a few rules with me, so lay off. She was asking for it.”
It didn’t excuse Vivian’s actions or misuse of power, but she wasn’t about to concede the point to Jeanne.
“You can’t just go around and use your gifts for personal vengeance. There are some serious consequences,” Jeanne said.
Vivian came out of the bathroom clad in her jammies and tried to look contrite, even if she didn’t exactly feel it. She looked at Jeanne and asked, “So, are you going to rat me out?”
Jeanne gave her a hard look but didn’t speak. Vivian’s buzz was intact, but her happy drunk state faded fast thanks to the guardian realm’s number one party pooper. She remembered Uriel’s warning, not to mention the fact that her actions had landed Sarah in the hospital, and decided it was time to break out the big guns.
“Jeanne, I’m sorry, okay? I was mad and I let Sarah get to me,” she pleaded. “Seriously, that was pretty low, parading Jace’s new piece in front of me for spite. You have to grant me that.”
“It was mean, yes,” Jeanne said, trying not to soften. “But still, you can’t do
things like that.”
“I know, I know, and I promise I’ll work on that. So pretty please with a cherry on top, don’t tell, okay?” Vivian paused, then added, “I’ll make those brownies you love…”
“With the melted Ghirardelli chocolate squares instead of coco powder?” Jeanne asked.
Gotcha. “Of course. I know how much you love the real thing.”
She was champing at the bit, and Vivian could tell, but she didn’t want to let Vivian off that easy. “Fine. I’ll only tell Ezra.”
“What if he decides to tell the Grand High Inquisitor of the Guardian Realm, or whoever’s in charge of your little outfit?” Vivian protested.
“He won’t,” Wallace said.
Vivian almost jumped clean out of her skin when the old guardian appeared. Jeanne’s eyes widened, which made Vivian think she wasn’t expecting him. Great.
Just as Vivian braced herself for a fight, Wallace gave her a soft smile and said, “Ezra will protect you from any guardian who means you harm. Now we just have to figure out how to protect you from yourself.”
What the hell? Wallace didn’t like her. He’d made that perfectly clear. So what was with the one-eighty?
“Of course, he’ll probably think of some penance for you. If I were you, I’d butter him up with some more home cooking and a few more of those western flicks he likes,” Wallace said, smiling. She hadn’t even known the guy had teeth.
“Um, okay. I guess I can do that,” Vivian said with a hint of caution. Perhaps Wallace sensed her hesitance, since he walked toward her slowly and placed a hand on her shoulder. She felt a quick surge of warmth and comfort. He then released her, nodded, and disappeared.
Raising the Dead Page 12
