All in Bad Time

by Yvonne Montgomery

  "No stranger than you seeing a hand reach through your perfume tray." Noreen ruffled her hair in distraction. "From what she told us yesterday, Eve's been under attack for a while. She must have been hoping for a break now that she's here."

  "No such luck," Andrea muttered. "When I began sketching ghost images after I first came here, the support I got from everyone was what kept me from going nuts. Even you, Kerry, and you were still little Miss Skeptical at the time." She rolled her eyes when Kerry stuck out her tongue. "We all leaned on each other and it helped us figure out what was going on. I can't help but think we're working against ourselves if we don't have the same solidarity with Eve."

  Aura Lee nodded. "You're right. Just because she came here before she was supposed to doesn't mean she's involved in a plot against us."

  Rose trailed back into the kitchen in time to hear her. Her shoulders drooped and her eyes were shadowed with frustration. "Margery's in a meeting for the next couple of hours. Damn," she groused as she dropped into her chair. "I want to get this taken care of. I hate feeling guilty." She glanced around the table. "I suggest we work separately until Margery calls me back."

  Andrea glanced down at her hands. "I assume you mean the Wisdom Court investigation."

  "Right." Kerry's voice was dry. "Sure. Who'd want to pass that up?"

  Rose shrugged. "Except for Eve's arrival, things haven't changed much. We still need to look for accounts of earlier hauntings in the files of former associates."

  "And don't forget finding possible explanations for the hauntings we've experienced." Aura Lee continued to turn the turquoise ring on her forefinger. "I'd still like to know why that hand reached through my perfume tray. It's such a random thing to do."

  Brenna sighed. "Somebody hunting for new nail polish?"

  "Didn't have the right shade inside the tray," Kerry snickered. "Couldn't get a ride to the mall."

  A giggle burst from Andrea and she slapped a hand over her mouth.

  Noreen groaned. "Frivolity rarely masks fear, but rather heightens it to the point of discomfort. Agnes Corning Poindexter, eighteen twenty-seven to eighteen eighty-three."

  "Really?" Kerry rolled her eyes. "That has to be a ringer. No way did anyone ever say that. Especially a Poindexter."

  Noreen's smile was smug. "Au contraire. She lived near Philadelphia and ended up marrying a traveling minister who undoubtedly buried her in children and admonitions."

  Kerry pushed away from the table. "I give up. Max is due back in a bit. I'll find out if his witch book has anything interesting in it. I'm out of here." She headed for the back door, Brenna close behind her.

  "I've got things to do, too," Brenna said. "See you later." Cool air rushed into the kitchen as the two left.

  "Was it something I said?" Noreen asked, the innocence in her voice undercut by the mischief in her eyes.

  Andrea picked up cups and saucers and carried them to the sink. "Do you need anything from the little store?" she asked Aura Lee. "I'm going to walk down that way."

  "No thanks, dear. You have a nice walk." Aura Lee waited until the door shut behind Andrea and turned to Rose and Noreen. "I have to tell you something I don't want the others to know yet."

  Rose registered the trouble in her voice and frowned. "What is it?"

  "It's about a dream I had last night." Aura Lee caught the glance exchanged between Rose and Noreen. "Listen to what it was before you start judging."

  "Sorry." Rose dropped back into her chair. "What kind of dream?"

  "It was short, thank the Goddess." Aura Lee took a deep breath and said quickly, "We were all together here at Wisdom Court, but we'd been fighting. Someone was crying—I couldn't tell who it was—and then we were running away." She paused and her hands trembled. "I knew we were trying to escape someone—or something—terribly dangerous. A sudden explosion knocked us all to the ground and smoke was everywhere. And then..."

  When she didn't continue, Noreen touched her arm. "What?"

  Aura Lee wiped at tears filling from her eyes. "I heard someone say, Oh, God, she's dead." She choked, "That's when I woke up." She looked from one to the other in fear. "What if it was one of us?"

  * * *

  The hours crawled. Kerry had undertaken global searches of Wisdom Court alumnae and was both surprised and disheartened at how lackluster many were. While a good number of former associates had used their experiences at the institute as springboards to rewarding careers, she continued to stumble across names sunken in obscurity. Or bizarre lives, she thought with a shudder. Like the woman who'd given up a fellowship in botany for her own five-acre botanical garden in Central America. The photo of her smiling from a chunk of rain forest, tattered hat and vines curling around her shoulders, depressed her. "Maybe it's the crazy in her eyes," Kerry muttered as she finished her notes and moved on.

  When the landline buzzed, she pounced on the receiver. "Tell me something good."

  "Were you sitting on the phone?" Andrea exclaimed.

  "I'm bored out of my tiny mind." Kerry waited a nanosecond. "So, come on, why did you call?"

  "Rose heard from the board secretary. All is clear on the western front."

  "Huh?"

  Andrea sighed. "Eve has been cleared of nefarious intentions."

  Kerry looked at the pile of notes she'd made about earlier associates. "She may be the only one that's ever happened with."

  "What do you mean?"

  "Tell you later. What's the plan?"

  "We're supposed to meet outside Eve's place. We're going to talk to her and make nice."

  "What time?"

  "How's now grab you?"

  Kerry was already turning off her computer. "Suits me. See you in a bit."

  Within ten minutes most of the Wisdom Court women had crossed the courtyard to gather outside the west associate house. The sun was hovering above the Flatirons and the late afternoon air was chilly.

  Andrea's jean jacket was obviously too light since she clutched her arms in an effort to stay warm. Her chestnut hair swirled around her face in the rising breeze and she grabbed at it to keep it out of her eyes. Her hands were speckled with paint.

  Brenna pulled her hoodie over her flyaway black hair. "Are we waiting for Rose?"

  Noreen glanced beyond them. "Here she comes. Aura Lee, too."

  "That's all of us." Kerry rubbed her hands together. "Let's get this show on the road."

  Rose approached ahead of Aura Lee, hearing Kerry's last remark. "That's my intention." She waved them up the steps to the house. "After you." She pulled a key out of her pocket and opened the outside door. "I'm not looking forward to this."

  Andrea patted her shoulder. "You had to check her out. Nobody has a quarrel with that. It's your job."

  Kerry held the door for Brenna and Aura Lee and slipped in behind Noreen. "Here's hoping Eve will see it that way."

  Noreen rapped on the door and they waited. She knocked again but nothing happened. "Well." Rose turned to Aura Lee. "Did Eve say anything about going out?" She turned her head to the door. "Did you hear that?"

  "What?" Kerry took a step closer.

  "Meowing. It must be her cat." The sound came again, this time more loudly.

  "Danica." Noreen made a face at the surprised look from Brenna. "It's her cat's name. Danica."

  As if she could hear her name, the cat meowed again and then began yowling.

  "Wow." Kerry bent toward the door. "Kitty-kitty?"

  The wail was repeated, and a soft thud against the door was followed by another plaintive cry.

  "You think something's wrong?" Kerry used the side of her fist to hammer on the door. "Eve! We need to talk to you."

  The following silence was oppressive.

  Rose sorted through the keys, pulling out one and sliding it into the lock. At the click of the latch the door swung open. Eve's cat was at their feet, and it was clear she was trying to communicate with them. She rubbed frantically against Noreen's slacks, purring loudly. Brenna knelt and sm
oothed the cat's black coat until the creature slowed down.

  "Poor kitty," Brenna said softly, stroking the cat all the while. "Poor little kitty."

  Kerry slowly moved past them into the living room. "Eve," she called quietly. "Are you here?"

  There was no answer.

  "I'm going to check upstairs." Andrea ran up the steps and returned in a couple of minutes. "Nobody's up there."

  Together the women searched the rest of the apartment.

  "Will you look at this?" Aura Lee was standing beside the archway molding to the office. "Big gashes in the woodwork."

  "How strange." Rose rubbed her fingers over the scars. "Could the cat have done this?"

  "I suppose." Aura Lee cast a dubious look at Danica. "She has long claws."

  "I have a friend whose cat sharpened his claws on wood." Brenna glanced down at Danica, calmly licking her paws. "She found him another home after he ripped the hell out of her antique rosewood desk."

  "That would tend to kill the joy." Kerry knelt on the floor beside the molding. "I can't believe Danica's had enough time to do this much damage." She scratched at the wood with one fingernail. "Huh. This stuff is softer than pine. Maybe she has been responsible for all the damage."

  "It's only in this one spot." Aura Lee surveyed the rest of the woodwork. "I wonder what possessed her to scratch here."

  Kerry stood up just as the door to the apartment swung open.

  "Kerry, are you here?" called Max.

  "In the study."

  As he approached, her eyes widened at the grim expression on his face. "What's wrong?"

  He pulled her into his arms and held her to him for a moment. "I need you to come with me. All of you," he added over her shoulder.

  Rose drew closer. "What is it?"

  Max took Kerry's hand and started tugging her toward the living room. "I'll tell you as soon as we're out of here. Something's wrong in this place. I got a message about it."

  "A message?" Noreen eyed him keenly. "What kind of a message."

  Before he could answer, Aura Lee shouldered Noreen aside. "Was it from the Other Side? Did Cottie get in touch with you?"

  Max's face softened at her eagerness. "Let's go to the main house and I'll tell you about it."

  At the sound of scratching, they turned and saw that Danica was once again sharpening her claws. She meowed loudly as she moved her paws over the molding. She dropped to all fours and scrabbled at the baseboard.

  "What's all this?" Max asked. He bent to stroke the cat's fur.

  "She was yowling when we got here." Rose looked around the room in frustration. "It's as if she's trying to tell us something."

  Brenna exchanged a wry glance with Kerry. "Timmy's fallen into the well again!"

  "Oh, stop it." Aura Lee shivered dramatically. "Something's going on in here. We just can't see what it is."

  "Which is why we need to leave now." Max herded them out of the office. "I'll tell you what I know and we'll try to figure out what to do."

  When they got to the door, Andrea looked behind them. "What about the cat? Should we leave her here?"

  Noreen frowned. "Perhaps not. I'll go get her." She called for Danica as she walked back to the study.

  Aura Lee shivered. "Do you smell ozone?"

  Rose sniffed the air. "The faintest bit."

  "I don't smell anything." Kerry raised her brows at Max. "You?"

  He shook his head, frowning. "I want to leave. Why is Noreen taking so long?"

  "Here she comes."

  Noreen wasn't carrying a cat as she came toward them.

  "Where's Danica?" Brenna asked, frowning in concern. "You look like you've seen a..."

  "Ghost? No." Noreen kept walking, leading them out of apartment. "I didn't see the cat, either. I hunted around a bit but she was nowhere to be seen."

  Their footsteps echoed in the hallway. Max pushed open the door and held it for them as they filed out onto the steps. "You appear to be upset."

  Noreen nodded. "I checked the bathroom near the office and went back to look under the desk again. On the floor was a thumping thick book with a devil on the cover. The Punishment of the Disbeliever it was called. It frightened me."

  Kerry looked puzzled. "Just a book?"

  Noreen smiled sourly. "Just a book that hadn't been there two minutes before. Just a book I didn't hear fall from a shelf." She marched steadily toward the main house. "I hope that little cat is all right because something else is in that house with her."

  "But where is Eve?"

  Noreen shook her head, still walking to the door. "I don't know, but I don't want to stay there while we try to find out."

  Chapter 8

  The small scraping sound awoke Eve and her eyes popped open. The dark pushed against her like a sentient being only waiting for her to return to awareness. The smell of dirt and musty leaves was familiar now, as was the thick silence. Her stomach growled and she fought against knowing how hungry she was. But hunger couldn't compare with her thirst.

  "Charlie?" she whispered.

  Nothing answered.

  How long was it since he'd been there with her? She had no way of knowing. She didn't want to think about the other question in the back of her mind: did Charlie even exist?

  Eve moved her hands over the ground on either side of her, feeling clods of earth and pebbles rolling against her skin. She sat up, recoiling immediately at the brush of strands against her cheeks. Oh, God, the spider webs.

  With reluctance she waved one hand over her head, grimacing at more contact with whatever was hanging over her. How big an enclosure was this place? How would she ever find her way out?

  Eve pushed herself to her feet, biting back a groan at the pain in her knees and shoulders. But it was bruising pain, not the agony she'd felt when her leg had broken. Maybe, by some miracle, she wouldn't have to use a boot again, or a cast.

  She tried to ignore what now felt like sheets of cobwebs touching her everywhere. The prickly feeling against the back of her neck made her think of crawling legs. In an instant her imagination supplied huge spiders hanging from the ceiling—was there a ceiling? "No spiders, no spiders," she muttered. "There can't be any spiders."

  The scraping sounded again. Eve turned toward it. "Hello?" She took a clumsy step. "Is someone here?"

  In the next instant her heart jumped. She was looking into two glowing eyes. As she watched, they blinked and then slowly moved closer to her.

  She put one foot behind her, then the other, praying she wouldn't trip on a rock. The eyes blinked again and continued toward her.

  Her breath came faster and her heart thundered in her ears. She reached from side to side with her hands, touching nothing but webs. "Charlie," she whimpered, taking another step back. "Charlie, Charlie, Charlie!" Her scream filled the space, filled the world, tearing from her throat.

  Her foot came down on something and her ankle turned. She felt herself starting to fall. "No!" She would be at the mercy of whatever was stalking her.

  She landed hard.

  * * *

  "Max, we're wasting time. We've got to find Eve." Rose was pale and kept worrying the nail on one thumb, peering out the kitchen window every few minutes to see if Eve was coming across the courtyard. They'd gravitated to the kitchen, Andrea and Noreen sitting at one side of the table, Brenna and Aura Lee at the other. Max and Kerry sat beside each other at one end, but as the minutes crawled by, the gap between them widened. Max had convinced them to return to the main house to await further information. In the last largely silent half-hour he'd reverted to the stiff stranger he'd been upon first arrival at Wisdom Court.

  "What was the message you received about Eve's apartment?" Rose asked again. "Where did it come from?"

  "I don't feel I can rightfully tell you where the message came from."

  Kerry slapped one hand on the kitchen table. "That's bullshit. We've looked all over for Eve. You charged over to her place to get us out because of some undefined danger, from so
me unidentified source, but what about her? What are we supposed to do? If you know something, you have to tell us."

  Max ran his hand through his hair. "It's one of the Society's most guarded studies. We're sworn to secrecy on this, Kerry. I'm sorry."

  She visibly bit back her impatience and reached for his hand. "Can you tell us anything? Is someone at your Paranormal Society aware of what's happened to Eve? Trying to help her?"

  He searched her face, cupping her cheek. "It's been over an hour since I received the message, and there hasn't been another. I can assure you that we don't leave people in harm's way. If there's anything to be done, my... associate is doing it. That's all I can tell you right now."

  Aura Lee stood up and came around the table to where Max and Kerry sat. "We've been working together for weeks against whatever is attacking Wisdom Court. You're one of us." Her voice roughened and she paused to regain control. "Your loyalties are divided between us and your colleagues at the Society, aren't they?"

  Max nodded, guilt darkening his eyes.

  She patted his shoulder. "You have to help us, Max. The Goddess only knows what's happening to Eve right now. If you can't side with us on this, I don't know what we'll do."

  "Aura Lee—" Kerry sighed heavily. She let go of Max's hand and got to her feet, brushing impatiently at her eyes.

  Max observed the gesture with dismay and stood up, too, stepping toward her. "Kerry, I can't just—"

  She shook her head. "You have to." When he moved closer she held up her hand to stop him. "No, Aura Lee is right. You have to choose."

  Max caught her hand and pulled her into his arms. "I choose you, luv, every time." He held her to him and looked at Aura Lee over her head. "A colleague has been in contact with Eve."

  "In touch with her! Is she all right?" Rose asked quickly.

  "What do you mean, in contact?" Andrea frowned at him, eyes narrowed in suspicion. "How can that be?"

  Max nudged Kerry into her chair and put his arm around her shoulders as he sat beside her.

  The teakettle whistled and Brenna hopped up to turn off the burner, bringing the kettle to the table and setting it on the pumpkin-shaped trivet. She fixed Max with a cold look. "How has your colleague been in touch with Eve?"