by S. E. Akers
I’m really going to miss Welch… The only home I’ve ever known.
I finally told Katie about Tanner’s gift. She was so excited that I had to get it out of his bag when we stopped to gas up. Katie had its top whipped off before I could even place the plain brown box in her overly eager hands. Tucked inside was a cell phone (an iPhone, no less) and a brand new wallet, just for her.
“It’s Prada!” Katie squealed as she opened up the camel-tan leather wallet. Staring back at her was a brand new driver’s license. She pulled it out and shoved it in my face. “Hepburn? Katherine J. Hepburn?” she protested in a huff.
I held back my laugh. “Well, you needed a new name. Maybe he thought it would be easier if your first stayed the same?”
“But Hepburn?” she griped. “Do I look like a ‘Hepburn’ to you?”
“I think it’s a joke,” I laughed as I started to pull out. “Look at it this way, she had red hair…and so do you.” I knew she was rethinking the chunky streaks she’d put back in her hair.
“No shit,” Katie groused. “But why couldn’t he have picked Heigl? Or McPhee? Hell, even Middleton?”
“Calm down, princess. Those are already taken by people walking around.” I pointed to one of its pockets. “Why don’t you open the other side?” Knowing Tanner, there was probably more.
“A checkbook,” Katie revealed and started thumbing through the attached register. My BFF let out a gasp so abrupt and hard, I thought she’d choked.
“WHAT?” I demanded.
“There’s FIFTY-THOUSAND DOLLARS…in an account set up in MY NAME!”
I slammed on the brake. “You’re kidding?”
“Nuh-uh, and here’s a safety-deposit box key issued from the same bank, and a credit card with my name on it,” she revealed. “Cha-Ching!”
My teeth made a loud “pop” when I forced my gaping mouth shut.
“That was sooo thoughtful!” Katie gushed. “See…Somebody thinks I’m worthy of a little charity.”
“Yeah.” Tanner had told me that he was making some arrangements so Katie could establish her “new” life, but he failed to elaborate on his generosity. “And all I got was a car,” I remarked dryly. “That’s still in the shop.”
“Oh they’ll have it fixed and ready when you come home at Thanksgiving, or maybe sooner?” Katie encouraged, trying to lift my sagging spirits. “Wonder what’s in the safe-deposit box?”
“Probably a stockpile of gold and jewels,” I mumbled.
“You think?” Katie asked.
I shook my head as I veered onto the highway. “I was kidding.”
We drove for hours, breaking only for gas and personal needs. Katie begged me the ENTIRE WAY to stop somewhere so she could do some shopping. I think her new wallet was about to burn a hole in her purse. Maybe it was her hours of badgering or my guilt over her situation, but I decided not to look for a motel when we crossed into New Jersey like I’d told her we would.
She caught on after we had passed enough motel signs. “It’s after six?” Katie hinted. “I thought we were going to split up the trip?”
“We are,” I replied, keeping my face as straight as I could. The jig was up as soon as I flipped on my blinker to take the Holland Tunnel/New York City Exit.
Katie stomped her foot against the floorboard. “NO WAY!”
“Isn’t that number three on your list?”
Katie nodded, wide-eyed and speechless. Honestly, she looked like she was about ready to cry. “Thanks, Shi!”
“You’re welcome,” I beamed back. “But we can’t stay all week. Just a few days. You still need to get settled, and I have to be at Tanner’s by Friday.”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah.” Katie whipped out her new cell phone and started punching keys. I almost lost control of the wheel when I heard her chatting with someone on the other end from The Plaza hotel.
Katie lowered the phone. “Tanner would want us to stay somewhere safe,” she claimed with sly grin, waving her new all-access plastic card proudly in the air.
“Whatever… Since this is your vacation,” I asserted. “AGAIN.”
We combed every inch of the city for the next couple of days, though we didn’t do too much sightseeing. Our bite out of the Big Apple was strictly limited to boutique hopping and refueling at a number of restaurants. I finally had to cut her off by telling her that nothing else would fit in the car. And her reply was simply, “Duh — That’s why we have FedEx!”
The fun was officially over when Tuesday morning arrived. I wanted to get on the road early, but Katie talked me into breakfast downstairs before we checked out. I wished I had held firm on my original “NO” because there was a surprise waiting for us, five tables away. Of all people, Malachi Xcavare happened to be dining there too, with Olaf right by his side. He was sitting across from an older pale-skinned woman whose hair was swept up and underneath a sienna-colored turban secured by a large green gemstone, possibly an emerald. I didn’t even want to take a stab at “who” she was or “what she could be”, considering her present company. I ended up making Katie switch seats with me. She kept an eye on the Malachite Talisman while I held on to my purse, tightly.
“Can’t you eat any faster?” I snapped.
“What?” Katie mumbled through her stuffed mouth. “You’re overreacting. That sack of voodoo still works.”
I placed my fork down on the table. “I’m going to have them bring the car around. Just hurry up and settle the bill.” I bolted out of the restaurant and flagged down a valet. He retrieved our bags and followed me straight out the door. It didn’t take long for the car to arrive, but Katie was another story.
I glanced at my watch. It had only been ten minutes, but it felt like an eternity. Just as I turned to go inside and drag her out if need be, I ran straight into Olaf’s broad chest. There was no disguising the look on my horrified face.
“Watch it!” Olaf grumbled and pushed me out of the way.
Malachi came strutting over. “What is the problem?” he asked Olaf. He couldn’t have looked any more stunned if he tried. “Ms. Wallace, isn’t it?” he posed.
“Yes,” I replied, my mind racing.
Malachi looked around. “Funny running into you…here,” he added.
I smiled. Horrendously hilarious.
“What brings you to New York?” Malachi questioned. “On holiday with Mr. Riverside?”
“No,” I answered slowly, trying to come up with a reason. Katie rushed over and threw her arm around me.
“Girls-Trip,” she interjected. “You know, for Graduation.”
“Ah,” Malachi observed with a knowing nod. “Who is your friend, Ms. Wallace? I don’t believe she was with us on the trip.”
Katie took his extended hand. “Katherine,” she announced in an uppity tone. “Katherine Stowell.”
Hepburn, I raged to myself. There may have been a slight mental image of me ringing her neck that happened to follow. Ugh! The first time she addresses herself and she screws it up!
Malachi turned to me. “Again, Ms. Wallace. I would like to apologize for the trip being cut so short. I do wish your chaperones hadn’t acted so rash. Individuals get sick or even injured all the time when traveling abroad,” he claimed with a cavalier wave.
They get stabbed too.
“As a matter-of-fact, even my right-hand here suffered an accident of sorts, unexplainably,” Malachi announced.
“What happened?” Katie asked, stirring the pot. She knew.
“He woke in his cabin groggy and beaten to a pulp,” Malachi Xcavare replied. “But the funny thing was…he couldn’t recall how he managed to get in that shape.”
“How awful,” I said, only glancing at Olaf for a second.
“Yes. He said he simply felt ‘fuzzy’,” Malachi remarked curiously. “My driver said the same thing too, though his injuries weren’t as severe.”
“Bar fight, maybe?” Katie chimed in.
Malachi kept his eyes solely on me. “Possibly,” the Malach
ite Talisman added with a curt smile. Olaf handed him his bowler. “I think I’ll let you ladies head off to enjoy the rest of your trip, but this was an unexpected treat. Good day,” he added with a tip of his hat. I caught a bothersome gleam shining in his eyes as he lifted his head. “Honestly, Ms. Wallace, you wear such lovely pieces. I must get the name of Mr. Riverside’s jeweler from you sometime.”
I smiled uncomfortably as I headed around to the other side of the car. I knew he was talking about my new ruby cuff, and Katie did too.
“I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry!” Katie repeated. “Do you think he felt anything?”
“Felt? No,” I replied while I watched the Malachite Talisman eyeing my car as he slowly edged into his limousine. “Suspects? You bet your ass he does!”
Katie bit her lip. “We can go now.”
I shot her a look. “THANKS.”
The Traffic Fairies must have been smiling down on me because I managed to cut our 4 1/2 hour drive down to a solid 3 — no ’Vette necessary! Of course Malachi Xcavare discovering who I was, what I claimed, and the things he would want do to me if he ever found out I’d killed his son was enough incentive to sway my heavy-footed pedal. I finally stopped fussing about an hour ago. No one had followed us that I could tell. Then again, at the rate I’d been bookin’, only someone with a death wish would have.
After several wrong turns directed from Ms. Garmin sitting to my right, we finally arrived at our destination and with any luck, Katie’s new “home away from home”.
“Are you sure I can’t stay with you at Tanner’s house this summer?”
“No. He said not with the training he’s got planned,” I stressed. “I’m to give him my ‘undivided attention’.”
“Yeah,” Katie hummed with a grin. “I bet.”
I smacked her arm. “Look, I’m just an hour and a half away. And I’ll come down on weekends.” That didn’t do much to boost her spirits.
Katie lowered her head. “I’ve got this horrible feeling, Shi. Like everything is changing…all at once. I’ve got enough change on my plate. I just want to make sure that we stay the same.”
“We will,” I vowed.
“Yeah, but you’re going to be up there, and I’m stuck down here.”
“I’m only a phone call away,” I assured. “And don’t forget, I can run back here pretty quick.”
“I’m scared too,” Katie mumbled.
“Of what? The Onyx?” I asked. Katie nodded. “I don’t think he’ll come after you. And even if he does, you have one of my diamonds. It will protect your mind even if he tries anything. And I’ll leave you Bea’s ruby perfume. It’ll keep his hands off you…just don’t abuse its other power.”
“I don’t know,” Katie hummed with a smile. “I think I might like having to beat a few guys off me with a stick for a while.” Katie threw back a clump of her streaked red locks theatrically and tapped her lip. “I wonder if the Kennedy’s have any cute grandsons that live around here?”
“Hey remember — low profile, dead girl,” I warned.
“All right…But you better be glad that Ben Affleck is married. He likes West Virginia girls,” Katie winked.
“I’m seriously rethinking the perfume,” I advised her with a scolding glare.
“Kidding.”
“Okay. I’ll go up, first. You stay here,” I instructed.
“But—”
“No ‘buts’, Katie. I mean it,” I ordered as I exited the car. “RIGHT HERE. This is going to be tricky enough as it is.”
The sounds of the wharf were eerily reminiscent of New Orleans. I spotted a street sign on the corner that read, “Shellise Cove” and an old rundown warehouse that had the right numbers hanging over its door bearing, “467” in tarnished gold.
Five Floors and the loft letter is E… To the top it is, I confirmed with a nod and crossed the street.
There was a freight elevator, but it was out. Perfect. I hurried up the stairs, hoping to get this over with before Katie’s impatience had worn-out. The higher I climbed, the more nervous I grew.
This is the right place, isn’t it? The right person for her to stay with? After all…she is “family”.
I gave the door marked with a crooked“E” several tense taps. It couldn’t have opened any sooner if her hand was already on the handle. There stood Bethesda, appearing to be nothing less than dumbstruck. She looked the same as she did at the funeral, except for her hair. The burgundy highlights that kissed her harsh raven locks were gone, replaced with an iridescent shade of blue.
“Shiloh?” Bethesda gasped. “Shiloh Wallace? From Welch?”
All I could muster was a cutesy country, “Hi” and throw her an over-the-top wave.
Bethesda blanked for a second. “W—What are you doing in Boston?”
“I’m attending Yardley in the fall, but I came up to spend the summer here… And I remembered that you said, ‘if was ever in the neighborhood’…”
“YES!” the now bubbly witch confirmed with the same enthralled smile I’d seen at Katie’s funeral. She wrapped her arms around me in one swoop and dragged me into her loft. “OH MY! You feel even better than I remember,” she cooed, not letting go. Strangely, I couldn’t help but feel a little like Red Riding Hood. She released me in a swift jerk. “I have to summon my friends! I told them all about you.”
Great… Fire up the cauldron.
“They’re dying to meet you!” Bethesda shrieked and started fervently searching around the cluttered bohemian-looking room. “Now where did I put my cell?”
“WAIT,” I pleaded. “There’s something I need to talk to you about first. It’s sort of…delicate.”
“Delicate?” Bethesda questioned while she ran around the room pulling books off her shelves, rummaging through boxes, and even lifting the lids off odd canisters. “What’s so delicate about it?”
“Well, it’s more private than anything,” I rephrased.
Bethesda darted into the bathroom. “Don’t worry, Shiloh,” she called out. “That’s what’s great about my friends. Nothing leaves our circle. We’re one big family!”
I bet y’all are. “Yeah, but this is sort of a favor I need from you.”
Bethesda popped her head out. “A favor?” she questioned.
I nodded humbly.
The witch’s eyes lit up. “Do you need a place to stay for the summer?” Before I could answer, she started rambling, “I have an extra bedroom! A member of our circle was using it, but she split town. The price isn’t bad. It’s rent-controlled. Three-fifty a month and that includes your share of the utilities.”
“Well, that’s good to know—”
“Ahh! I’m so excited!” Bethesda clapped and went back to playing find-the-phone. I’d actually spotted it on the floor first and quickly kicked it under an oversized beanbag-like pillow. “I knew that lucky charm I picked up last month would finally pay off. I’m getting a new roommate AND fulfilling the last spot in our circle.”
Whoooa! “Back-up a second! The favor is for…Katie.”
“My cousin?” Bethesda questioned.
“Something you can do for her.”
Bethesda held up her hands piously and shook her head. “I know what you’re going to ask,” she sighed.
I raised my brow. “You do?”
“Yes,” Bethesda stated in a consoling tone and rubbed the side of my cheek. “But I promise you, I tried everything to find her soul,” she revealed. “I called upon some very powerful forces and chanted to them throughout the service. What else could I possibly do?” Suddenly the sound of a throat clearing rocked the room, directing our eyes over to the open doorway.
“You could shut up and give your cousin a place to crash?” Katie announced with a thud, dropping her suitcases right along with her shell-shocking bomb.
I looked at Bethesda. She couldn’t have been stiffer if someone had dunked and dried her frame in cement.
“Bethesda?” I called out. No sooner than I’d tapped her sh
oulder, she fell straight back like a lead domino. Luckily her floor pillows absorbed most of the blow.
I bent down and checked her pulse. “Real subtle,” I remarked to Katie.
“Oh, please. I just cut to the chase,” Katie defended. “She claims she’s a ‘witch’… I figured she’s seen crazier things!” Katie sauntered over to her cousin, actually taking more interest it the room’s kooky décor. “Is Broom-Hilda okay?”
I checked her head. “She’s fine,” I replied. “Just out cold… No thanks to you.”
“Well, no worries then,” Katie sang with a shrug.
“Go find a rag and wet it with some cool water,” I ordered. Katie let out a pouty grunt and headed over to a small kitchenette beside a long bank of windows.
Katie returned immediately, slinging the wet rag. She then stepped right over her body and dropped it smack on her face. I snatched it up and folded it into a square. Katie started sifting through a plastic crate sitting beside the TV, making a ton of racket.
“What are you doing?” I asked.
“Checkin’ her movies,” Katie replied.
Is she kidding? “Now?” I posed as I searched through my purse.
“Yeah… What are you doing?” Katie inquired back.
I pulled out my hand and flashed the lapis lazuli ring. “This will wake her up.”
Katie lunged at me and knocked the ring right out of my hand. “NO!” she begged.
I pointed to her cousin. “She’s passed out! Why not?”
“Because…this is probably the last time we’ll be alone for a while,” Katie pleaded. “Just a little bit longer.” My bosom friend cupped her hands together. “PLEASE?”
Katie spoke the truth. Even I knew Ms. “I-brought-someone-back-from-the-dead” wouldn’t give us a chance to catch our breaths when she came to, let alone leave either of our sides for one daggone second.
