SHATTERED: SECRET SOCIETY OF SOULS, BOOK 1

by K. C. RILEY

  Meghan lifted her head from the menu. “Lily, I didn’t know you worked here?”

  “Uh, I do now. And it’s Lizzy.”

  “Right.” Meghan placed her menu down and smiled like the gator she was. “I think we got off to the wrong foot.”

  Camilla batted her long fake eyelashes. “Yeah, totally.”

  “Mmhmm,” Abby added.

  “So, how are you adjusting to All Saints?” Meghan asked still smiling.

  “It’s not bad,” I lied.

  “Well, if we can help with anything, let us know.”

  The twitching that was happening in my left eye was insane. “Thanks, I will. So, what can I get you all?”

  I took their orders as quickly as possible while my eye continued to jerk. Sure they were acting nice, but the syrup they were pouring on was a bit thick. Then again, maybe I was overreacting, reading into things that weren’t there. What if they were trying to be genuinely nice? It wasn’t like they had actually done anything to me. Perhaps a fresh start was in order. After all, I was the one that messed up Meghan’s shirt at the party, not to mention I did try to kiss her ex-boyfriend. “Got it. I’ll be back with your food in a bit.”

  “Sure, Lucy.” Meghan blink smiled.

  I blink smiled back. “It’s Lizzy.”

  “Right, sorry.”

  As soon as I turned to leave, Meghan whispered loud enough for me to hear. “I heard she spent time in the looney bin, you know, the coo-coo farm.”

  All three girls snickered like hyenas over a fresh kill.

  “There’s no way Jake is into her,” Camilla added. “No way.”

  My eye twitched into overdrive. I refused to let them mess up keeping my job. But I was so mad. Anger swept over me like a wind of fire, and glasses burst. Their glasses. The girls yelled out, and I turned around. All three of their glasses were shattered in large chunks while water ran off the table and onto their laps.

  “Jesus, let me get that.” I pulled out a rag from my apron.

  Camilla and Abby looked rattled at getting a little water on their designer clothes while Meghan stared at me like she was peeling back the layers of an onion. I could feel her eyes scoping inside of me as though she was searching for something.

  Vye came over. “Don’t you worry about it, hun. You go on and get those orders put in. I’ll get this cleaned up. Jessie,” she yelled. “You girls all right? The strange things that happen in Shadowick, I tell you. How about some fresh cherry pie on the house with your order?”

  Strange things in Shadowick?

  As I walked away from the table, what felt like a force with invisible hands pushed me from behind. I knew that force. It was the same feeling I had the night Meghan nudged me at the party.

  I hit the floor. Hard. I reached for my pen and pad and turned around. All three girls grinned like creepy triplets. Meghan’s grin was the widest.

  Vye came over. “Are you all right?”

  I got off the ground and brushed myself off as I kept one eye on Meghan. “I’m fine. Tripped is all.”

  After putting in their order and dissecting how the hell I fell, I went over to the next table. A woman with blonde teased hair, blue eye shadow, and a hot pink top sat across from a guy with a red beard, a green camouflage cap, and a T-shirt that read I might be a mechanic, but I can’t fix stupid.

  “Welcome to Vye’s. What can I get you?”

  “What happened over there?” the woman asked.

  “Just spilt water.”

  “Didn’t look that way to me,” the man said. “I told you there were ghosts here. The Ghost Reader never lies.”

  “Ghost Reader?”

  The man held up some kind of electronic device in his hand that beeped.

  “Ghosts are everywhere, isn’t it exciting?” the woman said.

  I didn’t know what to make of it. “Uh, yeah?”

  “It’s just like being on Ghost Hunters. Pretty awesome.” The guy patted his machine like a proud pappa.

  Weird, but, okay.

  “Sorry. Don’t mind us. We get super excited about the whole supernatural thing. I’m Charlene, and this is my husband, Duke.”

  I shook her hand. “Nice to meet you.”

  “We’ll have two coffees to go.” Duke turned around in his chair with the meter and pointed it in different directions. “Don’t wanna miss the ghost tour. It starts in twenty minutes.”

  “That’s right. As fast as you can, please.” Charlene chuckled before leaning in. “Did you know Shadowick had its own witch trials? Just like in Salem.” Charlene pulled out a brochure, unfolded it, and then held it up and pointed. “Right there in the center of town. See?” She folded it back up and put it in her bag. “There’s even supposed to be a secret witch’s graveyard somewhere in the area, and we’re gonna find it.”

  “I’m new here.” Clearly, I wasn’t the only one cracked.

  “Yep, thirteen witches executed,” Duke said. “They say their disembodied spirits still roam the streets of Shadowick looking for their bodies.”

  “I’ll be right back with those coffees.” Ghosts and witches? I went over to the counter to fix their orders.

  “Don’t let the tourists get to you,” Vye said. “They love that stuff. Shadowick is basically Roswell for witches, ghosts, and anything else paranormal you can think of. Including aliens. But the best one is The People Under the Lake up at Shadowick Mountain. They get a total kick out of it. Anyhow, if anyone asks, the bus tour runs every two hours up until nine.”

  “Got it.” I wasn’t sure how I felt about ghosts, witches, and aliens as the town norm, but on the brighter side, if I was cray-cray, so was everyone else. I’d fit right in.

  Duke and Charlene scrambled out as soon as I gave them their coffees, and Josie and Cassie sat waiting at the next table. I could only imagine what they were up to.

  “What are you guys doing here?” I whisper shouted.

  “Did you check your phone?” Cassie asked. “We’ve been texting you all afternoon. When you said job, I didn’t know you meant this place. I would have told you Jake works here.”

  “Is it usually like this?” I looked around at the girls in the room from school. All eyes were on me.

  Cassie handed me her phone. Another fake article by All Soul’s mysterious blogger.

  New Girl Ditches Fortune to Become Waitress...

  “If I had a freaking fortune would I be working here?” This anonymous blogger was pissing me off.

  Both Cassie and Josie shrugged. For a split second, I questioned if they were the ones feeding the blog my personal information. I guess they read the suspicion on my face.

  “Wow? Really?” Cassie said. “We came to warn you since you weren’t answering your phone.”

  “I’m not sure if we shouldn’t be offended.” Josie huffed and turned her nose the other way.

  “Sorry. It’s just kind of all getting to me.”

  “Ha,” Josie said. “You should have seen the look on Meghan’s face when she found out you were applying for a job where Jake works. Priceless. Serves the bitch right.”

  “You should have seen the look on mine. Anyway, I’m not giving up this job for Meghan’s peace of mind. Trust me. She’s got nothing to worry about.”

  “If you say so.” Josie smirked and picked up her menu.

  “I do say so.”

  “Great. Now that that’s settled,” Josie said. “Let’s eat.”

  Stressed, I took down both their orders.

  “By the way, what happened over there?” Cassie nodded in Meghan’s direction.

  “Just spilt water,” I said, again while biting on my lip. “I’ll be back in a bit.”

  Vye pulled me to the side on my way to the counter. “Healthy crowd this evening.”

  “Yeah.”

  “Do you think you can handle it?”

  “Absolutely,” I insisted. “By the way, sorry about earlier, the glasses breaking. I’m not sure what happened.”

  “It wasn’t
your fault. I gave the girls some pie. They’ll be fine.”

  Right. It wasn’t my fault.

  It was a long afternoon. Things finally settled down despite the incident with Meghan’s table, Cassie and Josie’s news update, and an onslaught of ghost hunting tourists. Hours later, the girls from school were still there. Meghan and her crew watched my every move while Cassie and Josie watched to see either what would happen between me and Jake, or me and Meghan.

  It was almost closing time when everyone from All Saints finally left. I took off my apron and sat down to rest my aching feet. Vye came out with a burger and fries she placed in front of me. It was perfect.

  “I thought the cook already left for the night.”

  “He did. Someone else thought you might be hungry.” Vye nodded over to Jake.

  My mouth almost dropped to the floor.

  “I know he’s a little rough around the edges. But give him a chance.” Vye leaned in and gently put her hand on my shoulder. “He’s lost a lot.”

  I figured she was talking about his sister, but maybe there was more.

  “Still blames himself, poor thing. He would never tell you this, and you didn’t hear it from me, but he was pretty impressed with you this evening. He doesn’t cook fries and burgers for just anyone. Well, I’ve got to show him how to close the books. Enjoy. And good work.”

  Something warmed inside of me. Just a smidge. Just a crack. I watched Jake from the corner of my eye as I devoured a fry. It was more than the T-shirt that clung tight to his lean arms and rounded shoulders. And it was more than the image of almost kissing him that heated through to my core. It was the strange feeling of having known him before ever coming to Shadowick. But that was crazy talk. Still, for the life of me I couldn’t figure it out—where I knew him from.

  6

  A week later, school was...well, school. Josie was super excited about homecoming, and I kept all conversations with Jake to a blunt minimum. He was still grumpy about my dancing, his toes, and everything else under the sun. I also avoided Meghan like the plague during the day. Afternoons were another story.

  At work, Meghan, Camilla, and Abby watched me and Jake like hawks, while Cassie and Josie hung around for the entertainment and the food, of course.

  Friday afternoon was no different from any other except for a call Vye got. She was supposed to host some kind of event on Saturday and hired some people to set up and man the tables. It sounded like whoever she was talking to bailed.

  I pulled out a rag and wiped down the table. “Everything okay?”

  “Oh, it’s fine, sweetheart. Nothing to worry about.” Vye was about as good a liar as I was.

  I left it alone.

  The bell chimed over the doorway. A regular came in and took a seat. The residents of Shadowick were slowly beginning to grow on me. Everyone had a piece of gossip or a story to tell about what was going on in town or their life.

  “Afternoon, Miss Lyle. The usual?”

  “No, I think today I’m going to try something new. I’ve been eyeing that walnut coffee cake with chocolate streusel for weeks. Let’s try that with an iced espresso mocha.”

  “Somebody's being adventurous today. Coming right up.”

  Miss Lyle had ordered the same thing every day for the past week. I just pretended to write it down. Vye said Miss Lyle was never the same after her husband had been caught cheating and had taken off with the maid.

  “I’m celebrating the first chapter of my brand-new mystery novel. I’m calling it Murder on the Orient Express.”

  I didn’t have the heart to tell her it had already been done. She’d been working so hard on it. And why? When she had more money than she knew what to do with. At least, according to Vye. “Well, good for you on writing your first chapter.”

  “I know.” Miss Lyle clapped her hands together like a child blowing out the candles on a birthday cake. “Isn’t it exciting?”

  I smiled and reached over to take her menu. “I’ll be right back with your order.”

  “By the way, did you hear about Mrs. Ellington?” Miss Lyle waved me closer to her. “Now, you know I’m not one to talk...”

  Of course, not.

  “...but make sure you keep Mrs. Ellington in your prayers.”

  “Is she sick?” I had no idea who Mrs. Ellington was.

  “No. Worse. They say she’s consorting with the devil. Some fancy psychic coming to town to raise her husband from the dead.”

  “Noooo,” I said. “Well, I’ll definitely keep her in my prayers then.”

  Miss Lyle gave me an affirming nod and then turned back to her laptop to pluck out her next chapter.

  Back at the counter, Vye was still looking troubled.

  “So, what do you know about Mrs. Ellington raising her husband back from the dead?” I asked, trying to cheer her up.

  Vye rolled her eyes toward the ceiling. “Oh lord, let me guess. Miss Lyle?”

  I nodded with a smile.

  “Wynona is having a Women’s Society tea party first thing in the morning catered by us. That is if I can find someone to fill in for Curtis. He just canceled to stay home with Fanny. That’s his grandmother. She’s got the flu. And that’s what you overheard on the phone.”

  “I could do it. I helped my mom all the time with catering events, and I’ve got nothing planned for tomorrow.”

  Vye thought for a moment. “Are you sure?”

  “Positive.” Lord knows I could use the distraction.

  “Well, why not. I’ll go and get the address. I’ll be right back.” Moments later, Vye returned with a big smile on her face. “Jake will be there to set up. I’ll need you to manage the table and clean up afterward. He’ll come by later and break everything down. It’s pretty straightforward. All you need to worry about is making sure the ladies have everything they need and then some.” Vye then handed me the address.

  “No problem.” I opened the folded piece of paper and read the address, 149 Coven Ln.

  “Make sure you’re there bright and early.”

  “Yes, ma’am. You can count on me. I will be.”

  Vye smiled, and for the first time in months I felt like I actually had some control over my life. I spent the rest of the day feeling pretty good about myself, like I had accomplished something. That is until I got back to my room.

  Cassie’s card stared at me from the desk. Sure it was turned over so I couldn’t see it, but it didn’t matter.

  Listen to the voices.

  Nope. It had to go. I couldn’t risk it. My life was finally getting back on track.

  I grabbed the card from off the desk and went and knocked on Cassie’s door.

  “It’s open,” she yelled.

  Entering Cassie’s room was like stepping into a Moroccan temple of throw rugs, elaborate pillows, incense, and warm string lights that were hung across the walls. There were also angel figurines everywhere.

  Cassie sat cross-legged on a mat like she was either doing yoga or meditating.

  “Am I interrupting?”

  “Nah. I was just sitting here wondering how long it would take for you to finally stop by.” Cassie always looked at me like she knew what was going on inside my crazy head before I did. “How are the voices?” she asked, not wasting any time digging in.

  “About that, I wanted to return this to you. Appreciate it, but it’s a bit morbid for my taste. I was thinking something more along the lines of butterflies and unicorns. You know, something a bit more positive.”

  Cassie blurted out laughing. I had no idea I was that funny.

  “Butterflies and unicorns, huh?”

  I shrugged.

  “Well, what’s morbid about it?” she asked.

  “I don’t know. Everything? The insanity of it. This guy is losing his mind to voices that aren’t even there. I’d say that’s pretty morbid.”

  “Let’s see.” Cassie took the card from my hand and held it up. “There are two sides to the card. Light and dark. The guy is going insane be
cause he’s not listening to himself. The voices are a part of him and they’re trying to tell him something. What’s the moon doing?”

  I looked at the card again. It was like seeing it for the first time. With its eyes closed, the moon smiled and glowed like it was at peace with itself and at peace with life.

  “When we stop fighting ourselves, our intuition, we become like the moon. Serene.”

  Okay, maybe she had a point. Maybe. Regardless, I still couldn’t get past the insanity of the card. And I certainly couldn’t find anything to feel peaceful about.

  I looked around at all the angel figurines. Trying to change the subject, I picked one up and held it in my hand.

  Cassie smiled. “That would be Chamuel. The angel of love and romance.”

  “There’s an angel for romance?” I could feel Cassie’s mind inching toward Jake and cut her off before she could get any mention of him out of her mouth. “Don’t answer that. He is beautiful, though.”

  “Jake or the angel?”

  “The angel,” I clarified.

  “I’m kidding. And yeah, I’ve got a thing for them. They make me feel safe.”

  I placed Chamuel down and picked up a picture of Cassie with what looked like her parents, a woman with radiant dark brown skin, and an infectious smile that reminded me of Mom’s. The man was fair skinned with dark blond hair, blue eyes, and a birthmark on the left side of his forehead.

  I was about to say something when I was blinded by a flash of light and the sound of a gun going off that roared through my body. The picture fell from my hands, and I gasped.

  “Liz. Are you okay?”

  No. I wasn’t.

  By the time I snapped out of it, Cassie was picking up the cracked frame from off the floor.

  “Crap. I’m so sorry. I don’t know what happened.”

  “It’s okay,” Cassie said looking up. “I can get another frame.”

  The chuckle in her voice felt reassuring.

  “I can’t believe I did that.” Clearly something was wrong with me. Maybe I needed to see someone. No. That was the last thing I needed to do.

  “It’s not a big deal. Really,” Cassie said.