Cursed Romance

by Raven Snow

  Eric had only sighed. He followed her to the room she had last sat in with Rose. The receptionist was behind her desk, head down as she typed away on her computer. She glanced up when Rowen and Eric entered. She began to look at a day planner to her right, maybe a list of appointments. It took a moment to hit her. She looked back at Rowen, doing something of a double take between her planner and the people who stood before her. “Didn’t you just call me?”

  “That was me,” Rowen confirmed, going to sit at one of the uncomfortable chairs lining the waiting room.

  “I told you he wasn’t free.”

  “I remember. I decided to come anyway, just in case he found some free time between meetings. It won’t take long. Besides, I don’t exactly have anything better to do right now.”

  “But—” the receptionist began. She watched Rowen sit then watched Eric take a seat beside her. She looked like she wanted to say something to the both of them but wasn’t sure what. Finally, she picked up the phone on her desk and pressed a few buttons. With one final glance in Rowen and Eric’s direction, she began to speak quietly into the receiver. She hung up. “He doesn’t know how long he’ll be or if he can even get his wife here for the rest of the interview.”

  “That’s fine,” said Rowen, pulling at her phone as if getting ready to entertain herself with it. “We knew the risks when we came. I figure we might as well try. There are only so many days before Valentine’s, you know?”

  The receptionist didn’t reply to that, though she did stand suddenly. She snatched up a couple of folders from her desk. “I have to go make copies,” she announced, like they needed to be kept abreast of the situation. She walked quickly, snagging a kitten heel on the carpet and tripping once. She recovered. Rowen saw her skin color a little red as she continued on to another room.

  “Did she act like this the last time you were here?” asked Eric, a somewhat bemused smile on his face as he looked at the door the woman had gone through.

  Rowen shook her head. “No, not really.” There was something strange going on. Her mind hadn’t quite connected the dots yet.

  “She doesn’t seem to like you.”

  “I think that’s just her personality. She seemed pretty indifferent the last time I was here, like she just wanted to do her job and be left alone.” Rowen watched the door as well. “It was different this time. It was sort of like she was scared.” That had to mean something, didn’t it? The receptionist didn’t strike Rowen as someone who typically got scared.

  “What reason does she have to be afraid of us?”

  “I’m not sure. I mean, unless-” It had hit Rowen all at once. “I have to go outside,” she announced suddenly.

  “What?”

  “I have to go outside.” Rowen stood.

  Eric began to rise as well. “Do you want me to come with you?”

  “No, you stay here in case the mayor decides that he has a minute or two to spare for us. I’ll be right back.” Rowen hurried out the door and to the elevator. She pressed the down button like a mad woman. She needed to get back out to the parking lot as quickly as possible. The doors finally opened, and she forced her way in sideways between a couple of glaring old men in suits. She started jabbing the ground floor button next, purposely ignoring the looks they were shooting her.

  The doors opened and Rowen was the first one out. She ran toward the doors they had come in through, hoping she didn’t get any negative attention from security. She still needed to come back in and head back upstairs. She didn’t want to be barred from this place before that.

  Out in front of the building, Rowen hesitated. She stood on the curb, surveying the parking lot. She squinted against the sunlight, hoping to spot what she was looking for without walking down each lane of cars. It hadn’t jumped out at her immediately like she had hoped it might.

  Movement at the corner of Rowen’s vision caught her attention. She turned her head in time to see the receptionist from upstairs rounding the corner. The woman stopped when she saw Rowen. “What are you doing here?”

  “I need a cigarette,” Rowen lied. It was the first thing that sprang to mind. She didn’t even smoke. She hoped that wasn’t obvious, that the receptionist wouldn’t know she was lying when the smell wouldn’t be on her later. “I thought you were making copies,” she challenged, trying to hurry the receptionist along before she could realize she didn’t even have any cigarettes on her.

  “I am,” the receptionist said, curt. She walked past Rowen then and back into the building. Rowen turned and saw her through the glass front door. She was walking back to the elevators. Rowen waited until the elevator doors closed behind her before she set off in the direction the receptionist had come from.

  Rowen rounded the building. There was another parking lot around back, it seemed. It was a lot smaller. There were dumpsters and a battered fence separating it from thick foliage on the neighboring lot. There weren’t a lot of cars here, and it was plain to see why. Rowen knew that she wouldn’t want to have to walk back here after dark. It wasn’t like this was a bad part of town or anything, but still.

  Someone had parked here though. Well, more precisely, several cars had parked back here. Rowen was only interested in one, though. It was a familiar white four door. Rowen walked over to the car and crouched behind it. She removed the pad of paper from her purse and compared what she had jotted down to the license plate before her.

  It was a match. Rowen bit her bottom lip, her heart suddenly pounding a little faster in her chest. This meant something… but what? She hadn’t the faintest. The receptionist must have been at Jeff’s the last time they had been there. But why? She clearly hadn’t wanted to be seen. Was it because she was embarrassed or was there something more to it? Rowen couldn’t say for sure.

  Rowen straightened and circled the car. She did so slowly, peeking in through the windows. There wasn’t a whole lot inside. Some discarded receipts, empty bottles of water, old coffee cups. Aside from a thin layer of garbage, there really wasn’t anything of interest to see. Still, Rowen snapped a couple of pictures of the car before heading back inside.

  The receptionist was back behind her desk when Rowen returned. She looked up from her computer, furtively glancing at Rowen before looking back down. Eric looked up as well, raising his eyebrows as if to question why she had hurried out of the room so fast.

  Rowen shook her head, indicating that now wasn’t the time to talk about it. Eric caught on. He looked back at whatever he was doing on his phone. They would talk about it later.

  ***

  It was, maybe, thirty minutes later when the door to the mayor’s office opened. Vernon Roth was walking toward the receptionist’s desk but froze when he noticed Rowen and Eric looking up at him. His eyes narrowed and his gaze became somewhat distant, like he was trying to place who it was he was looking at. “Rose, right? From the Lainswich Inquirer.”

  “Rowen, but close enough.”

  “What are you doing here?” Vernon looked to his receptionist somewhat accusingly.

  “I told you they were out here waiting,” said the receptionist, her mouth a line, not looking guilty in the least.

  Vernon looked back toward his visitors. “Is there something I can help you with?”

  “We were hoping to finish up the interview,” said Rowen, rising. Sitting down while she talked to the mayor didn’t feel quite right. Eric did the same. “Valentine’s Day is creeping up. We know you’re all booked up and have a very busy schedule, but we were hoping to catch you at a free moment.” Rowen noted that no one had come out of his office before him. That seemed to suggest the receptionist had been lying about him having an appointment. She wondered if Vernon had instructed the receptionist to lie or if she had done it on her own. There was something going on here, but Rowen couldn’t quite put her finger on what.

  “That’s right.” Vernon nodded like he was only now placing precisely who Rowen was. “You were here with that woman who’s married to the Chief of Police. Th
at’s a shame about what happened.” He gave a tsk and shook his head sadly. “I hope he’s doing better.”

  “He is,” Rowen assured him. “Rose is his wife. She’s with him right now, which is why she couldn’t come with me for this.” She motioned to Eric. “This is my husband.”

  “Eric.” He held out his hand, introducing himself to the mayor.

  “Vernon Roth.” The mayor reached out and gave Eric’s hand a solid pump. “Well… I was going to lunch now, so…” His expression brightened suddenly. “Ah, I know. Why don’t you two accompany me on my lunch hour? You can conduct the rest of your interview then. Is that agreeable?”

  “That would be great,” said Rowen. “Do you think your wife can come along as well? We still need to snap some pictures.”

  Vernon fell silent. A dark look passed over his face, though Rowen couldn’t be sure why. If she had to guess, she would say that Vernon and Emily Roth were married because it suited their goals. A lot of these political marriages really looked more like business partnerships than anything else.

  “I can give her a call and see if she’s available. I can’t promise anything, though.” Vernon put on a smile again. He took his phone from the pocket of his dress pants and stepped away.

  Rowen brought her own phone up to look at. She pretended to be absorbed in it, though she was directing her attention directly toward Vernon instead. He had lowered his voice. It was too difficult to really make out what he was saying, but Rowen thought the tone was less than friendly. It certainly wasn’t the sort of tone she would use to speak with her own significant other.

  Vernon finally pocketed his phone again. When he turned back to Rowen and Eric, he was all smiles. “Looks like she’ll be able to join us.”

  “Great!” said Rowen, putting on a false smile of her own.

  “You two can follow me in your car, if you like.” Vernon headed for the elevator. “I hope you like Mediterranean food.”

  ***

  Rowen had only been to the Lainswich country club a couple of times total. They didn’t much like her there. It wasn’t just that she didn’t really look the part. The first time she had come in, they had immediately tried to kick her right back out. But no, that wasn’t the only reason she felt unwelcome in a place like this. The last time she had been there had been to expose a cult of sorts.

  Well, more private club than cult. It had once been more of a cult, with its members from prominent witching households. They had magically lured ne’er-do-wells in to keep them from the neighboring city of Tarricville. Who knew how many killers and other sorts of criminals lived in this town because of them? Andrea and Rory’s deaths were more than likely on their hands.

  Rowen felt a little tense as she exited her car and headed into the country club. She wasn’t really dressed for this place. People kept glancing her way, like they were sizing her up, taking in her flower-print blouse and blue jeans she had gotten from a local thrift store. Everyone else was dressed in clothes that looked designer, like they had been specifically tailored for their bodies. A lot of folks there looked a lot like Vernon. This was probably a popular spot for the lunch breaks of wealthy elite.

  Vernon couldn’t have missed the looks they were getting, but he pretended not to notice. Emily was already waiting for them at a table near a large glass window. She was dressed in a tan pantsuit and stood when she saw them, waving them over with a smile.

  “Hi, Honey.” She received her husband with a hug and a peck on the cheek that felt mostly for show. She turned her smile to Rowen next.

  “Rowen, right? It’s nice to see you again.”

  “Likewise.” Rowen motioned to Eric before Emily could ask. “This is my husband, Eric.”

  Emily held out her hand out toward him. “A pleasure.”

  “The pleasure is all mine,” Eric said, shaking her hand while wearing that charming, easy smile of his. Rowen envied him for it. He seemed so at ease with all of this. He was no stranger to country clubs, of course. He’d been raised by a family with more money than they knew what to do with. No doubt they had been to more than a few country clubs in their day.

  Everyone settled down at the table. A waiter came and gave them all menus. He asked for their drink orders. “Tap water,” Rowen said, reflexively. She had eaten here before. She knew how expensive everything was.

  Vernon ordered a bottle of champagne off a list. No doubt he intended to share with the rest of the table. “This meeting is about Valentine’s Day, and we seem to be on a double date of sorts,” he said once the waiter had left. “Why not celebrate with some champagne.”

  “Order whatever you want,” said Emily, smiling across the table at Eric and Rowen. “It’s on the house.”

  “Oh, we couldn’t,” Rowen said quickly.

  “I’m sure we can find something—” began Eric.

  Emily shook her head. “Don’t worry about it. Really. We have an all-inclusive, longstanding membership here. Our meals here are free, and so are those of our guests.”

  Rowen wasn’t sure if that was true or if Emily had just set something up with the staff beforehand so no one would be embarrassed. Either way, she couldn’t exactly call Emily a liar. “Well, we appreciate it,” she said, picking up the menu.

  After ordering, Rowen pulled her phone from her purse. “Sorry,” she said. “Rose sent me a list of questions she wants answers to. I don’t mean to be rude. I just don’t want to waste your time.”

  “Of course,” said Emily.

  “Do you mind if I record this?”

  “Of course not,” said Vernon.

  Rowen set everything up. “What was your wedding like?” she asked, paraphrasing an overly complicated, multi-part question from Rose.

  Vernon and Emily both looked at each other. Emily smirked. Vernon chuckled. “Oh, it was about as chaotic as any wedding, I suppose,” said Emily.

  Vernon nodded. “It was supposed to be outdoors, but it rained all day. Her parents had spent so much time and effort setting everything up only for some freak rainstorm to ruin it all.”

  Emily nodded. “Not to mention the rings got lost in all the commotion,” she added. “My little nephew was the ring bearer. He was about four at the time, definitely not old enough to be left in charge of rings unattended.”

  “They never did find them. Though, it wasn’t a total loss. Her folks loaned us theirs for the vows. We got new rings afterward.” Vernon turned his hand so that his gold wedding band caught the light.

  “I hope the honeymoon went more smoothly,” said Rowen.

  “Oh, it was wonderful.” Emily took a sip of champagne before continuing. “We went to Hawaii. Cliché, I know, but it was lovely. My only regret is that we couldn’t stay more than a few days.”

  Vernon looked to his wife. He reached over and gave her hand a squeeze. “We’re both so busy. We just couldn’t afford to take more time off than that.”

  “That’s a shame,” said Rowen “I hope you get more time off than that now. How do you two relax?”

  “The same way normal couples do, I imagine,” said Emily.

  “Though, we probably have a little less free time than most couples,” Vernon added.

  “Not that we mind.”

  “No, not that we mind. We both do very important work. I wouldn’t wish for any other life, truly.”

  “We watch movies or television,” said Emily, going back to the initial question. “Sometimes, we might see a play or go to some function we’re invited to.”

  “Not that these social functions are meant for relaxation. Usually, they’re part of the job. Openings, fund raisers, and the like. We do enjoy those. We work well as a team, I think. We’re lucky to enjoy our work as much as we do.”

  “That we are,” agreed Emily.

  “Do you ever manage to get out without being recognized?” asked Rowen. This question wasn’t on her list, but she wanted to ask it anyway. “It must be stressful for all eyes to be on you every time you leave the house.”
<
br />   “Well, not everyone in Lainswich really follows town politics. We get around with more ease than you would think. Honestly, it’s only really the elderly who care enough to recognize us. Middle aged folks seldom come up to us, and I don’t think we’ve ever been recognized by anyone under the age of thirty.” Vernon chuckled at that.

  “We want everyone to be interested in politics, of course.” Emily threw her husband a brief look, like she thought the levity in his tone might reflect poorly on the both of them if she didn’t clear things up. “Though, I must say it is nice to be out in the world and not get recognized.”

  “Do either of you have hobbies outside of work?” continued Rowen.

  Emily raised her eyebrows. “I’m not sure how we would have the time.” She seemed to rethink that after a moment. “Well, I suppose I am partial to reading. I do enjoy that. I’m a bit of a homebody, if I’m being honest. When I’m not working, home is generally where you can find me. My husband is the one with all the hobbies.”

  Rowen turned her gaze to Vernon. His smile wavered for a moment, like he was annoyed that his wife had tossed him right back under the spotlight. “I suppose I do,” he said. “I guess you could call me a jack of all trades but a master of none. I like to dabble in a little bit of everything.”

  “Such as?” Rowen prompted.

  Vernon laughed. It was an awkward laugh, like an answer hadn’t immediately come to mind and he was stalling. He took a look around himself. “Golf,” he said, finally. “I do enjoy a game of golf every once in a while.”

  “Is that so?” Eric spoke up. “I miss playing golf, myself. I don’t know anyone who plays around here. Maybe I could pick up a game with you sometime.” Rowen wasn’t sure if he actually meant that or not. She had never heard him talk about golf. It wasn’t like him to feel comfortable asking the mayor, of all people, if they would like to hang out. It just made Rowen wonder if he was picking up on the somewhat awkward nature of the conversation.

  “I wouldn’t be much competition, I’m afraid.”