A lot of the work Jolene did involved sitting in her car waiting for someone to go somewhere so she could follow them. She had to admit, it could get kind of boring, so having Celeste along today wasn’t that objectionable.
“Eliza sure spends a lot of time in her room,” Celeste said as they sat in the Subaru along a side street near Gail and Steve’s house. “I pictured that she’d be doing more stuff with us.”
“Maybe she’s a loner and likes to keep to herself.” Like me.
“Maybe. We have been busy, too, and we do spend all day at work. I’d just like to get to know her better.”
“Maybe we can plan something for all of us to do together this weekend,” Jolene offered.
“Good idea.”
“Here she comes.” Jolene kept her eyes on the side mirror where she had spotted Gail’s green Subaru motoring down the street toward them. She waited for it to go by, then pulled out a few seconds later. “The key is to follow along behind, but not so close so that the person suspects they are being followed.”
“Hopefully she won’t be looking for anyone tailing her,” Celeste said. “Do you expect her to be up to something?”
“Yep. Steve said he heard her make a date for this afternoon.”
“Oh. Gosh, that’s terrible. He must feel awful.” Celeste stared out the window. “I don’t know how you can do this job sometimes.”
Jolene shrugged. “It’s not bad all the time. Besides, someone has to do it. I’m just sorry you have to tag along. It’s probably boring for you.”
“Well, I like the company.” Celeste smiled. “I just wish Luke would give us more information. The place he works for can’t really be keeping him as much in the dark as he pretends.”
“You think he’s holding back on us?” Jolene asked. She hadn’t considered that. But why would he?
“I don’t know. The whole thing is strange.”
Up ahead, Gail pulled off onto a less traveled street and Jolene slowed down so that she wouldn’t be too close before she took the same turn. She glanced uneasily in her rear-view mirror after she turned down the road.
“Is someone following us?” Celeste half turned in her seat to look out the back.
“No. I don’t think so. I’m just nervous about it, I guess. Luke has me all spooked now.” Jolene didn’t mention the part about getting knocked out at the storage facility—no sense in getting Celeste all worried.
“Have you found out anything more about Mom?” Celeste’s tentative voice at the mention of their mother made Jolene’s stomach lurch.
“Well, I’m not sure if it’s about Mom, but I did find something strange at Jeb’s the other day.”
“At Jebs?”
“Yeah. I was out there asking about the traps that he thought Gordy had taken and he showed me something he found in one of the remaining traps. He thought it was a whale jaw, but it was a human jaw!”
“What? Gross.” Celeste scrunched her face up and then her eyes widened. “And you think it might be from …”
“Her body was never found,” Jolene cut in so her sister didn’t have to say the words.
“Oh.” Celeste stared out the side window and the two girls fell silent as Jolene followed Gail further into the boonies.
“Where the heck is she going?” Celeste said after a few minutes.
“Maybe to some out-of-the-way motel?” Jolene felt her heart sinking for Steve. It looked like he was right. She was off to meet her lover at some remote destination.
“I don’t know of any motel down here,” Celeste said as they watched Gail pull off onto a narrow dirt road.
“You know all the motels in the area?” Jolene raised a brow at her sister and pulled over. It would be too obvious if she followed Gail down that narrow road. “What do you think is down there? It looks almost like it could be a driveway.”
“You never know out here.” Celeste opened her window and craned her neck to see down the road. “I think there is a mobile home at the end.”
“That’s weird. Maybe that’s where the professor lives.” Jolene reached into the back seat and pulled out her camera and telephoto lens. “Come on, let’s go see what she’s up to.”
The two girls closed their car doors softly and crept through the woods, taking care to stay off the road and out of sight of the house. They hid behind a large bush about two hundred feet from the well-kept mobile home.
“What are all those cars?” Celeste pointed to the yard where six cars were parked at various angles. “If she was meeting him for an affair wouldn’t there be only one other car?”
Jolene brought the camera up to her face and aimed it at the mobile home. “Maybe it’s some kind of swingers club or something?”
“Wait. I think I see movement in the living room,” Celeste said.
“They left the curtains open?” Jolene focused the lens so that she could see straight into the living room, gasping as she scanned the group of people, recognizing some of the objects she saw in their hands.
“What is it?” Celeste danced on her tiptoes squinting with her hand shading her eyes trying to see all the way to the mobile home.
Jolene snapped a few shots as proof for Steve, then handed the camera to her sister. “Look for yourself. You won’t believe it.”
Celeste grabbed the camera and plastered it to her face, adjusting the lens. Then Jolene heard her breath whoosh out. She lowered the camera and stared at Jolene. “A Pampered Chef party?”
Jolene shrugged and the girls giggled as they turned to go back to the car. “I’m kind of glad we didn’t catch Gail doing anything. I hate to have to be the one to give Steve the bad news. He’s really stuck on her.”
“Hmmm…” Celeste’s distracted nod set Jolene’s nerves on edge. Celeste was looking to the left, scanning the woods. Jolene squinted in that direction. The hairs on her neck tingled.
Someone was out there. Watching them.
She turned her head forward and kept walking, focusing on the energy of whoever was watching, honing her senses like a torpedo zeroing in on an enemy vessel. Then suddenly she turned and thrust her palm out in the direction where she thought the watcher was.
A ball of bright blue electricity shot out of her hand, zinging through the woods and crackling against a tree. Sparks flew out, falling to the ground like the sparkles of a firecracker. The electricity was a little off target and a lot stronger than Jolene had intended—maybe she should have been trying harder to hone her skills.
“Jeez, I guess you’ve been practicing.” Celeste’s face was pale. “Was someone out there?”
Jolene frowned into the woods. “I’m not sure. I felt like someone was, but I didn’t hear a yell and don’t see anyone running.”
“Maybe you missed.”
Jolene scowled at her sister and Celeste laughed.
“Anyway, the important thing is that you have been practicing and you can fend off a bad guy. Luke and Jake were worrying for nothing … at least about you.” Celeste glanced around uneasily. “My skills seem to be more geared toward the energy of the past. I don’t really have any paranormal ability to defend myself.”
“Aww, don’t worry, sis.” Jolene put her arm around Celeste. “I’ll protect you.”
She was rewarded with Celeste’s warm smile. “I appreciate that. But what am I going to do when you’re not around?”
***
Jolene dropped Celeste off at her yoga studio. Cal would pick Celeste up after work and bring her home, which was where Jolene was supposed to go now as Luke had some of his minions watching the house to make sure nothing bad happened.
She had no idea what bad thing they thought was going to happen, but she wasn’t too worried. She’d proven in the woods that she could take care of herself, even if her intensity and aim was a little bit off.
On the way home, she decided to stop at the bakery in Noquitt Center and get one of her favorite blueberry muffins—the kind with giant plump berries and crunchy crystals of sugar on top.
It was a bright sunny day in the mid-eighties and Noquitt Center was crowded with tourists in bright colors and noisy flip-flops. They strolled along the streets eating ice cream, lugging beach bags and taking up all the parking spots. Jolene had to park a few blocks away, but she didn’t mind. The walk would do her good.
As she walked, she let her gifts take over and scanned the crowd from a paranormal perspective. The auras were mostly happy. The center of town was filled with vacationers who weren’t paying the least bit of attention to her. She wondered if there was someone in the crowd who was watching her, but she couldn’t tell from any of the energy signals she was feeling.
She wasn’t too worried about it, either. What could “they” do in a crowded downtown area? It’s not like someone could rush into the street and grab her without being noticed. This was probably the safest place for her.
“Jolene!”
She heard her name being shouted from the right and spun around to see Steve Flint sitting on a bench. His clothing was rumpled, his face lined with worry.
“Hi Steve.” She walked over and stood in front of him.
“Did you find anything about …” He let his voice trail off, but Jolene knew what he meant. She could feel the anxious energy coming off him in waves and she stepped back a bit.
“Well, as a matter of fact, I did find something.”
Steve’s face crumbled. He slouched back in the chair. “I knew it.”
“But, it’s not what you think.”
His forehead wrinkled and he squinted up at her. “What?”
“I did follow Gail earlier today like you asked, but she didn’t go to meet her lover … she went to a Pampered Chef party.”
“Pampered Chef? What the heck is that?”
“Oh, you know, it’s when a bunch of girls get together to chat and buy expensive items. They have parties for jewelry, makeup and so on. The Pampered Chef one is for kitchen items.”
Steve looked perplexed. “Kitchen items? But Gail barely steps foot in the kitchen.”
“Well, my guess is that most of the people go to these parties for the gossip. That, and to help their friend get enough hostess points to collect a bunch of freebies.” Jolene had little use for these types of parties and always dreaded being invited. She usually showed up late, left early and bought the least expensive item.
Instead of looking happy, Steve looked more worried than before. Jolene noticed how gaunt and pale his face was. This thing is really taking a toll on him, she thought.
“I just wish you could get some proof so this whole thing would be over. It’s killing me.” His pleading eyes looked up at her and her heart twisted.
“I know. I’ll try harder,” she promised. “I’ll have something concrete for you by the end of the week.”
“Okay. Thanks.” Steve leaned back in the chair and his eyes took on a faraway look. “We’ll talk later.”
“Okay. Bye.” Jolene continued to the bakery, the thought of the plump blueberry muffin not seeming quite so sweet anymore.
Chapter Sixteen
Morgan and Fiona were having a conversation similar to the one Jolene and Celeste had had about their Aunt Eliza as they worked on their separate projects at Sticks and Stones.
“There’s something kind of strange about her, don’t you think?” Morgan asked as she pinched some dried herbs from a container and crumbled them into the bottom of a stone mortar.
Fiona shrugged, holding a pink tourmaline earring up to the window so that the light filtered through it like stained glass. “I guess so. But maybe she’s just nervous being around us or something.”
“Not too nervous to go skulking around in the attic, though.”
“True. And she hasn’t been around that much. Like Jake said, how many friends can she still have in Noquitt? She’s been gone a long time.”
“Good point. But we really should try to spend more time with her. She seemed nice the first night when we all had supper together. Maybe she’ll be around for supper tonight.”
The bells over the door chimed, causing the girls to look up from their work.
An old woman stood in the doorway silhouetted by the sunlight streaming in behind her. She must have been ninety if she was a day. Her skin was pale, almost translucent like tissue paper.
She paused uncertainly in the doorway, holding something in her hand—a piece of jewelry, it looked like. Morgan knew right away this was no ordinary piece.
“Can we help you?” Morgan asked, unable to take her eyes off the unusual piece of jewelry.
“Yes, I hope so.” In contrast to her appearance, the woman’s voice was strong with a slight lilt to it.
She walked over to Morgan, still holding out the jewelry, which Morgan could now see was a locket.
Fiona must have seen it, too, from her workbench on the other side of the shop, because she appeared next to the woman, bending her head down to look at the piece that she had placed on the counter.
“This was my grandmother’s.” The woman said. “Passed down through the family, but as you can see it’s got some damage.”
The locket appeared to be ancient. It was made from the strangest material Morgan had ever seen. It appeared to be some sort of stone with geometric striations through it. The sides and edges were decorated with delicate gold filigree and a small garnet set in a filigree frame glowed from the middle.
“It’s beautiful,” Fiona said.
Morgan reached out to re-position the locket so she could see it. As she touched it, she felt a surge of energy.
She gasped pulling her hand back and looked up at the woman who was assessing her with clear, amber-colored eyes. Morgan had the fleeting feeling that this was about more than just fixing a locket.
She cleared her throat and turned to get one of the contact forms the girls kept behind the desk.
“If you can just fill this out, we’ll take a look.” She turned to Fiona who seemed to be mesmerized by the necklace. “Do you think you can fix it, Fi?”
“What?” Fiona looked up, apparently startled by the question. “Yes, of course.”
“It’s very unusual,” Morgan said. “Do you know anything about it?”
The woman glanced up from the form she was filling out. “Just that it’s very old. My grandmother always wore it and after she died I kind of lost track of it. I just found it in the attic with some of her old things yesterday.”
“It’s some sort of crystal or stone … but I don’t know what it is.” Fiona’s eyes were still glued to the locket.
The woman put the pen down and pushed the form to Morgan. “Well, that should do it. Do you need anything else?”
Morgan glanced at the form. “Nope. We’ll call when it’s ready.”
The woman turned and headed to the door. Pausing with her hand on the knob, she looked back at them. “Take good care of it, it could be more important than you think.”
Morgan’s brow creased, thinking that was an odd thing to say, but when she looked up to ask the woman what she meant, she was already gone, the shop door firmly shut even though Morgan couldn’t recall hearing the bell.
“I’ve never seen a stone like this.” Fiona dangled the locket in front of her watching it twirl at the end of the gold chain. “It’s not really that pretty of a stone, but unusual enough to be interesting.”
“The garnet and filigree help, though,” Morgan said.
“Definitely.” Fiona put it back on the counter and slipped her fingernail under the edge of one of the broken sections of filigree. “It will be no easy task to match this fine work.”
Morgan put her fingers gently on the locket to turn it to face her. Her fingertips tingled and she felt a surge of something go through her. Power? Energy? She pulled her hand away.
“What is it?” Fiona looked concerned.
“When I touched it … it felt strange.”
Fiona hovered tentative fingers over the locket, then cautiously rested them on top of it. Her eyes widene
d and she looked at Morgan. “It feels tingly. I feel energized. Like the stone is giving me energy or something.”
“That’s how I felt!” Morgan looked down at the locket. “We should find out what’s inside this thing.”
Fiona picked the locket up to inspect the hinge. “The hinge looks okay. I wonder why it won’t open.”
Turning the other side to face her, she gently pushed on the clasp but it appeared to be wedged stuck.
“Hmmm … that’s strange.” Fiona took the locket over to her worktable. “Let’s see what I have here that might help…”
She rummaged through the tools, coming up with a thin dental pick and very carefully put the tip into the locket near the clasp and moved it ever so slightly to pry the locket open.
A bolt of electricity shot out of the locket, zinged across the room and incinerated a wooden side table in a puff of smoke. The cut crystal vase full of fresh cut roses that had been on the table hovered in the air for a split second before crashing to the floor in a watery mess of glass shards and petals.
Fiona and Morgan gaped at the mess.
“Wow. That sure isn’t any ordinary locket,” Morgan said.
Chapter Seventeen
Jolene started her car and pulled off the top part off her blueberry muffin before edging out into the traffic.
Biting into the muffin top, she felt the satisfying crunch of the large sugar granules that were sprinkled liberally on top as the carbs raced through her bloodstream, making a bee-line to her brain.
She needed the sugar from the muffin to maneuver her way around the downtown Noquitt traffic. It was tourist traffic, and tourist traffic wasn’t like regular traffic because they tended to slow down to gawk at shops, scenic views and even other tourists. Tourist traffic was also known to suddenly stop without warning. One needed to have their wits about them to navigate it successfully and, for Jolene, sugar usually did the trick.
Deadly Intentions Page 9
