by Paul Ruditis
“As both a chef and a Charmed One, she’d be offended by that question.” Leo was already heading for the kitchen. “Of course she does.”
“What about belladonna?”
Leo stopped mid-stride and made an abrupt turn and. “That we keep locked up in the attic.”
“What about—”
Leo held up a hand. “Cole, I’m fairly certain we’ve got whatever it is you need to do whatever it is you’re going to do. Just give me the list.”
“A little bit of natural magic might be able to help us out here,” Cole said. “We’ll also need some damiana, mugwort, and marigold.”
“There’s a vase of marigolds in the conservatory, but I can get everything else from the attic.” Leo bounded up the staircase taking two at a time.
“So…” Coop said to fill the silence once he was alone with his wife’s ex, although he wasn’t sure what the next part of the sentence was. He and Cole had spent a fair amount of time together since the former demon’s return from the void, but not a lot of it was with just the two of them. Aside from Phoebe, Coop couldn’t think of much they had in common. Certainly their clothing style was far from the only difference. “How’s living on the Nexus?”
“Marginally more exciting that an existence between life and death.”
Coop nodded. “At least you get to go out and visit.”
“There’s that,” Cole said. “But then I’m leaving Prue stuck there by herself.”
“Yeah,” Coop said as an awkward silence filled the room. “I’ll go get those marigolds.”
Coop didn’t quite run through the sitting room, but his exit was maybe a little faster than it would have been under normal circumstances. It wasn’t that he didn’t like Cole. Phoebe’s ex had proven to be a valuable ally since his return. It was clear that he was over Phoebe, or at least that they both had accepted their current lives and moved on. Coop wasn’t jealous, but he also wasn’t sure how to behave around the man.
There would always be a side of Phoebe that Coop would never know like Cole had. True, some of that was a darker side that she never wanted to experience again, but it was still an integral part of the woman she’d become by the time he had married her. Of course, all that was way too deep a subject matter for small talk.
The clinking of glass preceded the sound of footsteps on the staircase. Leo’s arms were loaded with bottles of chopped, diced, and dried herbs by the time Coop returned with a single yellow marigold from the vase in the conservatory.
Cole was still waiting for them beside the large mirror built into the wooden fireplace mantle. “How many couples are on the list?”
“Six,” Coop replied, realizing what Cole had intended. “Too many for my ring to show us. We’d have to keep cycling through the couples and risk missing something.”
“We could do it here, but I’m not sure this mirror would work for what we need.”
The mantle had one large mirror in the center, bordered by six smaller mirrors. If Cole intended to use the glass to spy on the couples, they would have the number of mirrors they needed, but the images would be rather small. It seemed like Cole thought the same thing since he turned away from the mirror to take in the view of the living room, before realizing what they needed was two rooms away. “Come with me.”
Bright sunlight streamed in through the windows of the conservatory, feeding the potted plants and making the room slightly warmer than the rest of the house. Cole pointed to the wall made of tall clear windows bordered by smaller colored glass. “Help me move the furniture. We need to have an unobstructed view of these six windows.”
Coop held the marigold stem in his mouth while he grabbed the other end of the wicker couch, helping Cole get it out of the way. Leo put the bottles of herbs down on the glass table with the vase of marigolds and picked up one of the chairs. Once the furniture was on other side of the room, they slid a few potted plants to the side as well, leaving six slightly spotty windows free to look through.
Cole picked the bottles off the table and handed two of them to Coop. “Hold these. When I’m ready for them, I’ll want the bay leaves and then the belladonna.” He smiled as he looked up at Coop’s face. “Marigold last.”
Coop blushed as he realized the flower was still between his teeth. He quickly removed it with the hand that held the bay leaves. He did not want that poisonous belladonna anywhere near his mouth.
It was no surprise when Cole pulled a silk handkerchief from his pocket. Of course he was armed with fine cloth. Why wouldn’t he be? He used it to wipe away some of the spots on the glass before unstopping the bottle of mugwort and pouring some into his palm.
Cole threw the magical herbs up against the nearest window before repeating the process five more times as he went down the line. Some of the mugwort stuck to the glass, but most of it dropped to the floor. Coop doubted that mattered since Cole didn’t seem concerned about it in the least. Leo’s eyes were tracking the mess being made and Coop assumed it would all be cleaned up before Piper got home.
Leo and Coop watched as Cole repeated the process with the damiana. Then Coop handed over the bay leaves and belladonna as Cole had asked. When he got to the last bottle of herbs, Cole poured a small amount of the poisonous belladonna into his handkerchief before dabbing it lightly on the glass. “We’ll want to clean this up before the kids get home.”
“Oh, yes,” Leo replied. “That goes without saying.”
“Just one more thing.” Cole held out a hand and Coop passed along the marigold. Cole crumpled the flower in his hand and sprinkled the crushed petals onto the six glass panes before wiping his hands together to clean them off. Coop was genuinely surprised that he didn’t pull out a small bottle of antibacterial soap. “That should prep the windows.”
“Just what kind of magic do you still possess?” Coop asked warily. “I thought you weren’t a demon anymore.”
Cole shrugged as if that were enough of an explanation. “I don’t have the magic required to activate the spell.” He pointed down to Coop’s ring. “For that we need a power source.”
Coop smiled with understanding. “I can take it from here.”
The Cupid waved his hand over the first window as his ring glowed with a pinkish-white light. He concentrated on the first name on the list and up popped a man and a woman in the middle of a picnic lunch on what looked like to be the floor of an empty house. For a moment he worried that it was another couple on the verge of moving out, but the way they were feeding one another made it seem pretty clear that they were still in love. Perhaps, this place was a new start for them, a first home together that signified they were in this marriage forever. Then again, if whatever infected the other couples with hate got to this pair, they were already boxed up for a separation.
Coop pushed that dark thought from his mind as he moved down the line of windows and brought up images of the other couples. Only one of the other pairings on the list was together at the moment. The rest were each in separate locations from their partners. It made sense. Not everyone could skip out from their jobs in the middle of the day like Coop and his family had the luxury to do.
In each of the cases where the people weren’t together, Cole’s magic split the image in the window so they could see both halves of the couple at the same time. The conservatory with its many glass windows was definitely the right way to go. They never would have all fit into the mirror over the mantle.
So far, nothing seemed out of place. The two couples that were together seemed very much together. They weren’t fighting or revealing anything like the kind of anger Coop and Phoebe had experienced earlier. The other couples just seemed to be going about their business as if it were a typical day. Nothing appeared as if they’d experienced a sudden, unexpected end to their marriages.
If Coop had been in the room with any of them he could have reached out with his empathic abilities to confirm his suspicions,
but he didn’t really need to do that. He’d spent enough time as a Cupid to recognize both love and heartbreak at first glance. Nothing any of these couples exhibited showed that they were anything but content in their lives.
“Now what?” Leo asked.
“Now we wait.” Cole pulled the wicker chair back so that it faced the windows and sat down. “Anybody have a good card game to pass the time? I have a feeling this is going to be a slow afternoon.”
Chapter 13
Medusa sipped on some kind of blended iced-coffee drink that her sister had insisted she try. Euryale had called it the true nectar of the gods, but Medusa wasn’t as easily impressed. The drink wasn’t nearly as good as the chocolate and peanut butter treat she’d had earlier. Perhaps not everything about this future world she woken into was better than the one she’d left behind.
So far in the little time she’d been above ground, Medusa was enjoying what she’d experienced, lackluster iced coffee aside. The modern conveniences of this world were beyond what she could have ever imagined back in the time of Plato. This city of San Francisco was louder and much more densely packed than her former homeland, but not overwhelmingly so. There was a diversity to the people here than she had never witnessed before, both in their bodies and the way they carried themselves. It was difficult to believe that with all the different ways that people moved so freely in this century anyone could still be oppressed.
Medusa wasn’t foolish enough to believe that what her sisters said wasn’t true. The people of Greece had been incredibly forward thinking while still set in their ways. Change was difficult. She’d seen images of horrible oppression in the visions her sisters had shared, but there had been glimpses of exceptional progress too.
Stheno grew agitated as she slid her finger across the surface of a computer-type device. Medusa’s mind was so jumbled with the information her sisters had placed in there that she was having trouble connecting some of the dots, although she was getting better at understanding modern colloquialisms.
These magic boxes were apparently computing devices filled with the sum total knowledge of human existence. She understood that there was a connection between the old bulky computers and these newer, streamlined metal devices that were roughly the thickness of a few sheets of papyrus. She just didn’t quite get how they worked. Or why that knowledge would make her sister so angry.
Stheno slammed the device on the café table. “No one is reporting on Ramsey yet.”
“Really?” Euryale asked. “Weren’t you just watching a video?”
“A couple of posts on tube sites,” Stheno replied. “One local news story quickly relegated to the humor page. Not a single news organization has picked it up as an actual piece.”
“Well of course not,” Euryale said. “They don’t realize the statue is actually Ramsey. They probably just think it’s a statue. Give it time. Word will spread.”
Stheno pressed a button and the screen went dark. “With a little help from us.”
Medusa didn’t like the look in her sister’s eyes or the smile tugging at her lips. “What are you planning?”
“It’s time to step things up. Show the world what we can do.”
“Reveal ourselves?” Euryale asked with an eye toward her younger sister.
Medusa tensed, but Stheno quickly took her hand to calm her nerves. “I have taken great pains to ensure that our work goes unnoticed for as long as possible. But there are ways to get our message out while we remain anonymous.”
“Your message,” Medusa said. “I’ve barely had a taste of this new world beyond the sweets Euryale has been filling me with. I am forever grateful for what you’ve done in bringing me back to life, but can’t all this wait? Is the need so pressing—?”
Stheno gently squeezed her sister’s hand. “I’m sorry. I forgot how new this all is to you. Euryale and I have watched this oppressive society for centuries. We have seen horrors that we never showed you, both large and small.”
Medusa looked out at the people passing by. Each of them was lost in their own thoughts, but no one seemed overtly miserable. Some people were laughing together and carrying on animated conversations. “It doesn’t seem so horrific. This new world is actually rather pleasant.”
“On the surface, yes,” Stheno said. “But let us show you what lurks underneath. Not the images we fill your head with. You need to see it with your own eyes.”
Medusa adjusted her sunglasses, making sure that no one could see what she hid behind them. “That was unkind.”
Stheno shook her head. “I wasn’t referring to the curse. But don’t forget that the stronger we become the more control you will have over your power. Soon enough you won’t need those glasses. It won’t require so much energy for us to hide our monstrous forms. We will be free to act individually. At that point, you can go off and live the life you dream of, though I suspect once you embrace our mission you will want to continue the work that we’re doing.”
“I kind of like our other forms,” Euryale said breezily, missing the point entirely. “Makes us unique in this world of boring blandness. I mean, don’t get me wrong. This body is gorgeous, but a change every now and then can be interesting.”
Medusa laughed. Even in the darkest moments, Euryale would look to the light. But Stheno was right. Not many people would share her middle sister’s opinion of their cursed forms. Medusa certainly didn’t. Neither did Stheno if the silent rage that filled her expression was any indication as she rose from her seat. “It’s time you met our next target.”
Medusa considered finishing her drink, but threw it in the trash receptacle while it was still half full. She did not enjoy the aftertaste that clung in her mouth and couldn’t see why Euryale had been so enthusiastic about it. Medusa also didn’t know why Euryale was holding a small plastic container out to her, but she took one of the round tablets inside. She watched as her sister took one as well and put it in her mouth. With a shrug, Medusa did the same. The moment it touched her tongue she felt a burst of refreshing mint and understood. She smiled her thanks in Euryale’s direction.
The one upside to their journey was that Stheno had led them to the trolley stop. Medusa had been entranced when she first saw the vehicle on the street. It carried more people than any single horse could hold, at least any horse not of Trojan origin. The bell that rang out through the valleys of buildings was almost cheerful in its sound. She had been hoping to have the chance to ride one, and this part of the plan did not disappoint.
Medusa leaned out the side of the trolley to let the wind blow through in her hair. She imagined the snakes enjoying themselves as well. Even beneath her glamour, it was hard to forget that her head carried a nest of vipers. The curse would always be with Medusa, but her sisters had allowed her a second chance at life. She did not want to be defined by her deformity, no matter how it could be hidden on the surface.
There hadn’t been a lot of time for Medusa to stop and think of what she wanted from this new life in this modern world. Stheno had seen to that with her obsession over her plan to right the wrongs of the world. It was a noble purpose, but one that could probably use more thought. Medusa loved her big sister, but was also aware of how controlling Stheno could be. That had not changed in the millennia since they had last seen one another. It had only gotten worse.
It was hard to blame Stheno for her reaction to the world that had evolved in Medusa’s absence. Who was she to say how her sisters should react to all that they had gone through in their lives? It could not have been easy to be a woman bearing witness to some of the worst atrocities in history. Medusa trusted her sisters enough to know that they were looking out for her as well as others. This mission they were on served a purpose. It was not simply about vengeance. Their intentions were not that single-minded.
Medusa’s crowded mind kept her from fully enjoying the ride. It was over before too long, as Stheno instructed th
em to descend from the trolley in a neighborhood closer to the water. The buildings weren’t as big as in their previous destination, but still larger than any Medusa had been in during her first life. The designs had more artistry than the glass and concrete monstrosities in the other part of town and the people seemed more casually dressed, but in just as much of a rush to get to their destinations.
“Who are we here to see?” Medusa asked.
“The business owner who runs that.” Stheno pointed to a red brick building on the corner. It was smaller than most of the structures in the area, but still an impressive size to someone with her limited experience in the world.
From the outside, it wasn’t clear what type of business operated within its walls, but that didn’t matter. All Medusa could focus on was the round, stone sign beside the entrance. “Is that… us?”
“A crude representation, but yes,” Stheno said as she led her sister to the carved portrait. The three carved faces looked nothing like the sisters, but the heads full of vipers left little doubt as to the intention.
As bad as Medusa thought her curse appeared outside of her glamour, this was even worse. “What… how?”
“We’re legends,” Euryale said with barely contained glee. “Well, mainly you. Somehow Stheno and I got the short end of the celebrity stick. Not that I’m complaining. Makes it easier to live incognito when no one really knows about you. Good thing, too, since our powers were so weak without you here to give us a boost.”
Medusa recognized the words Euryale spoke in the modern language she was using, but the meaning of the statements completely escaped her. She looked to Stheno for more of an explanation.
“Your legend has grown over the centuries,” Stheno said. “People paint you as a monster to be feared rather than as a victim of vengeful imposter gods. They focus on the gorgon created by Athena’s curse. No one knows of the exceptional witch who championed the innocent.”
Medusa nodded slowly. She was accustomed to being feared. Athena’s curse had seen to that. But she had expected that fear would have been tempered with age. She’d assumed that her story had been lost to time. To see the representation of herself and her sisters on a modern building was a shock to say the least. Her hand reached out for the smooth stone. “And this?”
