“I think she smells that black cat on you. She’s probably mad at us.” Jolene pulled the piece of paper out of her pocket and put it on the table in front of them.
“She’ll get over it.” Celeste looked back over her shoulder at the doorway of her room. “I just hope she doesn’t show her displeasure by hacking up a hairball in my bed.”
Jolene tapped her finger on the little piece of paper. It was about a half-inch long and triangular, with black lines on it. “So, what do you guys think this is?”
Morgan slid it toward her, twisting it around so she could look at it from different angles. “Well, it’s printed, and the paper is kind of shiny. Is it from the packaging of something?”
“You mean like maybe the lines are from a barcode?” Fiona picked the paper up and rubbed it between her forefinger and thumb. “I don’t know. That doesn’t feel quite right. It’s too thick.”
“Mew!” Belladonna hopped on the table and sniffed at the piece of paper in Fiona’s hand.
“Looks like she’s done being mad.” Jolene plucked the paper from between Fiona’s fingers and studied it.
Celeste glanced back at her room again, her forehead creasing. “Or she's exacted her revenge already.”
“Merow.” Belladonna hopped down from the table and sidled over to the bookcase, rubbing her cheek against the row of books. She snaked out her paw and knocked a book off the shelf.
“What the …” Jolene frowned at Belladonna. “I guess she really didn’t like smelling that other cat on us.”
“Merow!” Belladonna shot Jolene a look, then knocked another book off the shelf.
The book thudded on the floor upside down. Fiona bent to pick it up, her eyes going straight to the white block with the black lines on the back of the book, the ISBN number barcode.
“Wait a minute!” Fiona took the paper from Jolene. “This isn’t a barcode from packaging—it’s the ISBN barcode from the back of a book!”
“Let me see.” Jolene reached over and retrieved the paper. “It’s not the full code, but maybe I can figure out what book it is.”
Jolene proceeded to futzed around online, muttering something about an app, while Fiona and the others sipped their coffee.
Belladonna, content that she’d done her job well, curled up in Morgan’s lap and promptly went to sleep.
After a while, Jolene got her cellphone out and used it to scan the piece of paper, then she tapped furiously on the keys of her laptop. “Yes! I’ve got it!” She swung the laptop around so they could look at the screen where a book cover was displayed:
Uses of Crystals and Crystal Balls.
“Crystal balls,” Fiona said. “What would be so important about that book that the killer would take it?”
“Obviously, Amity was interested in crystal balls.”
“You mean like the crystal balls that people look into to see the future?” Celeste turned to Fiona. “You’re the crystal expert. Are crystal balls like that real?”
Fiona knew that crystals and gemstones had special powers, especially when she touched them. She’d seen it with her own eyes that carnelian gemstones could speed up healing. She’d seen obsidian protect her and her sisters from negative energy and she’d also seen geodes drain their energy. She knew crystals were very powerful, but she wasn’t sure they had the power to see into the future.
Of course she’d heard of crystal balls, but she’d always thought they were a fantasy, like witches flying on broomsticks. “I don’t know. I don’t have any experience with it myself, but then again maybe I haven’t been looking into the right kinds of crystals.”
“Wait a minute.” Jolene jumped up from her chair and retrieved the cryptic note that had sent them on the journey in the first place.
She read the note out loud: “The key stone that is emerald by day and ruby by night will unlock the path to viewing the future - at the source of the stone you will find the first clue.” She pointed to the middle. “That’s it. We’re looking for a crystal ball—that’s what it means by viewing the future—the relic is a crystal ball.”
Fiona tilted her head to read the note even though she had it memorized. “And the keystone—the stone we got in Freeport—unlocks the path.”
Morgan’s brows tugged together. “But if that were true, I think that would imply that the actual crystal ball was in Amity’s house.”
“I don’t think that’s what it means,” Jolene disagreed. “The alexandrite stone unlocks the path to the crystal ball and the first clue is at the source of the stone. The source of the stone was Amity’s house and this book is the first clue.”
“The first clue … meaning there are more to follow,” Celeste said.
“Sounds like it,” Morgan replied. “But how do we get the next clue?”
“And how does the alexandrite stone figure in?" Fiona asked. "It didn’t really unlock any path other than to lead us to Amity because she owned it.” Fiona pulled the stone out of her pocket and it flashed orange. “I have to think it has more use than just leading us to Amity’s house.”
Morgan reached over and touched the stone. Her brows arched upward in what Fiona recognized as a flash of intuition. “Oh yes, it has much more to do with it. This stone is very important. We need to keep it safe.”
“But how does the book tie into this?” Celeste asked.
Jolene was behind the computer typing furiously. She swung it around again to show them the screen. “You know what they say: there are no coincidences in life. The person who wrote this book is named Opal Mines. And Opal happens to have a shop right here in Salem.”
7
Opal Mines' store was located on a small side street in downtown Salem. Morgan followed her sisters down the sidewalk to the awning-covered storefront. She paused as they passed the display window with its variety of crystal balls winking in the sunlight and refracting a rainbow of colors. Was one of these the crystal balls the one they were looking for?
Bells tinkled as Jolene opened the door and they entered the small patchouli-scented store. It was loaded with crystal balls on every shelf and table, and in every display case. Morgan watched the colors of the orbs pulse as Fiona walked past them.
The eyebrows of an old, red-headed woman sitting behind the counter rose slightly when she noticed the orbs' reaction. She pushed herself up, her gnarled fist pressed into the ivory handle of her cane. "Help you girls?"
Morgan spoke up, "Yes, as a matter of fact we're looking for Opal Mines."
"What for?"
"We're interested in crystal balls. Amity Jones sent us," Morgan stretched the truth.
The woman's eyes narrowed at the mention of Amity and Morgan's intuition warned her that she might have made a mistake in telling the little white lie. It was sort of true in a round-about way that Amity had sent them, but she could tell this woman was sharp enough to see through them. Best to stick as close as possible to the truth if they wanted her cooperation.
"Amity sent you to see me?"
"Well, she didn't exactly send us. We bought a gemstone from her estate." Morgan leaned toward Opal and lowered her voice, "We're very interested in gemstones and crystals. Anyway, we talked to Amity's niece who's handling the estate and she mentioned the book you wrote." Did poor Nancy having a scrap of the book cover in her hand count as mentioning it? Morgan didn't think it was necessary to mention that Nancy was dead.
"Yeah, so?"
"We got the impression you were working with Amity on something." Okay, maybe this was stretching the truth more than she should. It was more like she hoped Opal had been working with Amity, or at least knew if Amity had a clue about a crystal ball, which might be the relic they were after. Morgan gestured to indicate the clear, round crystal balls in a display case. "Maybe something that had to do with crystal balls."
Opal laughed. "You mean scrying balls. I am famous for them. I wrote the book on it, you know." She hobbled out from behind the counter, her cane tapping on the floor as she pushed past Morgan,
stopping to look in at the crystal balls in the display case.
Morgan looked over the woman's shoulder and thought she saw one of the balls flash with images as Opal gazed into it, but when Morgan blinked, she realized it was just a reflection of the Blackmoore sisters.
Opal turned quickly to face them. "I'm still not sure what you ladies actually want."
Jolene, with her usual impatience, cut to the chase, "What was Amity Jones working on that had to do with scrying balls?"
Opal shrugged. "I wish I knew."
"She wasn't working with you?" Celeste asked.
Opal shook her head. "I knew Amity for years, of course, both being from Salem and interested in crystals and all. She was a good friend. I know she was onto something, but she wouldn't tell me what it was."
If Opal knew Amity was onto something, then maybe someone else knew, too, which made Morgan wondered if Amity had died because of it. She hadn't heard any controversy about the woman's death so she'd assumed it was of natural causes, but what if it wasn't? "Was Amity ill?"
Opal frowned. "Amity? She was as fit as a fiddle. It was a big shock when she died suddenly of that heart attack."
The girls exchanged a look of silent understanding. Heart attack or paranormal murder? Skilled paranormals could easily kill someone and make it appear like a heart attack. Negative energy used in a certain way could stop the heart, and if they were careful to not leave burn marks, no one would know what had caused the attack. They already suspected a paranormal killed Nancy, so it was becoming very clear that a paranormal was after the relic. Maybe even more than one? Possibly even Opal?
Opal leaned back and studied them shrewdly. "Now, you ladies come clean. What are you up to? Obviously you're after the same thing Amity was."
"We're not really sure what Amity was up to, either, but we are interested. Was there anything in particular she talked about or any place she was interested in?"
Opal crossed her hands over the top of her cane and leaned on it, her wrinkled face turning thoughtful. "She was tight lipped. But the one place she kept talking about was the Rebecca Nurse house. Something about the witch trials."
"Rebecca Nurse?"
"Yes, she was hung for witchcraft back in 1692. Her house is a museum now. Amity made a few trips over there, kept talking about it." Opal shrugged. "I don't really know much more."
Morgan's intuition told her that Opal did know more, but she wasn't about to trust four strangers with it. Pressing her on the matter would only backfire. "Okay, thanks. If you think of anything, will you let us know? We're staying at the Craig Hotel. Name's Blackmoore."
Something flickered in Opal's eyes at the mention of their name. "Blackmoore. Right."
Morgan could feel Opal's eyes following them as they exited the store.
"Well, that didn't get us very far." Fiona paused in front of an ice cream store, her attention captured by the menu of fifty-one flavors.
"No, but we at least have another lead. We need to get to this Rebecca Nurse place and maybe it will lead us somewhere else." Celeste tugged her sister away from the menu.
"And what about Opal?" Jolene asked. "Do you think she's friend or foe? I got the impression she was holding back."
Morgan glanced back at the shop in time to see Opal quickly pull back from the window. "Opal Mines has more to do with this, I know it. Let’s just hope she isn't the killer, because if she is, her sights might now be set on us."
8
Jolene agreed with Morgan—Opal knew more than she was letting on. She'd tried to read the woman's aura, but everything had been fuzzy like a television station that wasn't tuned in. She didn't know if Opal was a skilled paranormal and blocking her aura reading, or if it was the energy from all the crystals in her shop interfering. And if she was a paranormal, did that mean she was an enemy?
She'd studied the shop floor while Morgan had kept the woman talking, to compare the energy trail of Opal to the distinctive energy trail that she'd seen at Amity Jones' house. But, again, her abilities were stunted. Jolene decided to proceed with caution when it came to Opal Mines.
"Dang! We should have asked Opal for a copy of her book," Morgan said after they were settled in the car.
"We could go back and ask, but I'm not really sure we want Opal to know too much about what we're up to. We told her a lot already." Jolene glanced down the street toward Opal's shop. "I don't know if she's friend or foe. Did you get any kind of an intuitive feeling from her?"
Morgan shook her head. "It was hard to get a reading in there. I didn't feel anything except that she might know more than she shared. Maybe all those crystals caused some kind of interference."
"That's what I thought, too," Jolene agreed.
"We could try the library," Fiona suggested. "If you guys think there might be something in the book that could be useful."
"Seems like there should be. Nancy had it in her hand and the killer took it. There must have been a reason for that," Celeste pointed out.
"Good point." Morgan drove the SUV away from the curb. "Where's the library?"
Jolene got out her phone and used voice commands to ask where the library was, then programmed the address into the GPS map system. She directed them three streets over to a tall stone building.
"I'll run in," Fiona said. She hopped out of the car and then leaned back in the window. "I'm starving so let's go for lunch afterwards."
By the time Fiona returned with a shiny new guest library card that the library provided for tourists staying in the area, and the book in her hand, Jolene had found directions to the Rebecca Nurse house and a cafe on the way to grab some lunch.
Morgan drove to the cafe which was on a street crowded with restaurants. Since it was June and a crystal clear day, most of them had tables set up outside. As they were driving by a Mexican food diner, a familiar dark-haired man caught Jolene's eye.
She whipped around in her seat. "Hey, I think that's Mateo!" She craned her neck to see out the back window of the SUV. They'd driven past, so now all she could see was the back of the man, and the face of his drop-dead gorgeous, long-haired dining companion, the same long hair she'd seen streaming behind the motorcycle. "What would he be doing here?"
Jolene resented the feeling of jealousy that punched at her gut. Mateo had been a mysterious force in her life for several years now. Always coming to her rescue when she needed him most. She'd been attracted to him from the first moment they met, but Jolene wasn't one to go gaga over a man. Even though they weren't dating, she'd always felt there was something special between them so the thought of him eating lunch with a beautiful woman felt like a betrayal.
Morgan angled the rearview mirror to scan the restaurants behind them. "What would be unusual about that? He shows up all the time at strange moments."
"Yeah, but usually he's not having lunch with a beautiful woman." Jolene couldn't keep the emotion out of her voice.
Morgan smirked. "I knew there was something going on with you too. Spill it."
"There's nothing going on. Really. I haven't seen him in months. Not since we got the last relic." Jolene settled back in her seat, her arms crossed. "Honestly, I don't care who he has lunch with."
Jolene was relieved that they were pulling into the cafe parking lot. The moment the car stopped she hopped out, hoping the change of scenery and promise of food would change the topic of conversation.
They sat at a table outdoors under a large umbrella that shaded them from the sun. Jolene tried to relax and enjoy the warm day, delicious smells of their food and the company of her sisters, but her gaze kept stealing out to the street looking for traitorous Mateo.
"So, what's in this book that can help us?" Celeste pushed her salad to the side and flipped the book open on the table. It was a large book, six by nine inches with pages of colored pictures in the middle. She flipped to the pictures, which showed a variety of round crystals.
"Here are some different types of scrying balls." Celeste pointed to one of the pages
. "Looks like they come in different sizes but they're all perfectly round."
"So we know we are looking for something round. That ought to narrow it down," Jolene said sarcastically as she crunched on a potato chip.
"And you can see the future in it," Fiona said with a laugh.
Jolene scowled. "You don't really believe that, do you?"
Celeste looked up at her. "It could be true. Look how the stones that Fiona infuses with energy have been able to do magical things."
Jolene chewed another chip. It was true. Fiona had been able to amp up the powers of stones, but those were all stones that had their inherent properties enhanced with energy, like the healing power of carnelian and protective power of obsidian. Seeing the future wasn't an inherent property of any crystal she'd ever heard of.
"It's about as true as witches on broomsticks," Jolene said.
"Maybe the book can tell us more about how to find a real, working scrying ball," Morgan suggested, ignoring Jolene's sour mood.
"Perhaps they emit some special energy or are stored somewhere special or even look special." Fiona finished her Reuben sandwich, threw her napkin on her plate and reached for the book. "You finish your salad and I'll flip through it."
The girls munched in silence while Fiona thumbed through the book. "This might be something." She read from the book: "Though there's little to differentiate the real scrying ball from ordinary crystal or glass balls, folklore has it that some special scrying balls had a partner—a certain gemstone that would glow with energy indicating the direction of its partner scrying ball."
"The alexandrite gemstone!" Jolene said.
"Yes! It makes perfect sense. The clue we got from Dorian said it would unlock the path to viewing the future. I'd wondered what that meant," Morgan said.
Fiona fished the alexandrite gemstone out of her pocket and held it in her palm. It glowed a deep emerald green in the sunlight.
Jolene scrunched up her nose. "It looks like any ordinary alexandrite. I don't see it indicating which path we should take."
Spell Found (Blackmoore Sisters Cozy Mysteries Book 7) Page 4
