by Rose Pressey
“Where?” I jumped up.
“I’ll show you.” He gestured for me to follow him.
“Show me?” Why did I not like the sound of this?
“Don’t give me that suspicious look. Just trust me.”
“Fine, but it’ll have to wait until after work tomorrow. I have to run a few errands first after work, then we’ll go.”
“Okay, but when this is the answer to all your problems and you waited, you’ll be sorry.”
I rolled my eyes and he frowned.
Pulling back a sliver of curtain on my bedroom window and peeking out, I said, “I forgot, I have to stay here by myself. Alone in the dark with dark shadows, black magic, and dangerous intruders on the loose,” I said.
“What about us?” Anthony asked.
“Well, no offense, but you’re ghosts. I almost want to call my mother back and ask to stay at her place.” Nope, nothing was that bad yet. Only a natural disaster warranted such drastic measures.
“How about your grandparents?” Mae asked.
“They’re out of town, although I guess I could go to their house. I do have a key. I'd still be alone, though. No. I'll be brave and stay here by myself. After all, that’s what Mindy said I needed to do since she thinks I act like a baby.” I sighed. “Do I act like a baby?”
“Of course not, dear. Well, you could stand to toughen up a little, but you’re not too bad.” Seth smiled.
“Gee, thanks.”
***
I had closed the store a little earlier than usual because I couldn’t wait to find out more information about Cooper and begin Operation Save Mindy. It had been a long day, but the real work was just about to begin. I still hadn’t spoken with Callahan. He’d walked by the store window a couple of times during the day as if he wanted to come in, but something had stopped him. When I finally had a free moment to walk over to Full Cup, he’d already closed for the day. I’d made up my mind to go to his house as soon as my other mission was complete. If he wouldn’t answer my calls, I’d go to him.
“So, where do we start?” Seth asked, as I locked up Book Nook for the day. “I don't know the first thing about snooping.”
“You just said earlier that you knew how to snoop.” I said, as I walked to my car.
“Oh, right, well, I just wanted you to feel better.”
“Well, it didn’t work.” I scowled.
He rubbed his chin, deep in thought.
When Mindy forced me to spy, we had used binoculars to look out the front window of the bookstore. And there may have been a snooping incident behind tall shrubbery.
“We need to figure out who’s behind the disastrous event at your store and breaking into your house,” Anthony said from the backseat. Mae had beat him to the passenger seat this time.
“Yes,” I said softly. Thank heavens no more messages had appeared in my house. Maybe that meant it really was a living person and not a demon.
“You’re a real genius, young man. We would have never thought of that.” Seth smirked.
Chapter Thirty-One
First, Cooper had warned me about demons, then Becky and Mark. Was this demon talk really something to worry about? I had seen the black figure that night after the investigation, but I’d seen no signs that an evil spirit had followed me home…other than the message on the mirror. But a demon couldn’t break into my store or home. Well, I guess technically it could…if someone was possessed by said demon. Could the demon really have something to do with Mindy’s strange behavior? Was that why Cooper had warned me? Or was his warning just to throw me off the scent of his black magic?
It was certainly something to consider and I’d have to look closer for the signs of demonic possession from her. From what I’d seen, Mindy showed no signs of it, although her behavior was way off from the norm. Could it just be that we were growing apart? It happened all the time. I just assumed Mindy and I would be friends forever. I guess that just showed that nothing was forever.
Anthony blew me a kiss and I rolled my eyes.
“If you keep up with that look, your face will freeze that way,” Anthony said.
I scowled. “I can’t force you not to do those things, but please remember to kindly refrain from your commentary when I’m having a conversation with a living person. Do you have any idea how hard it is for me to not blurt out for you to shut up?”
“You don’t expect us not to get involved, do you? That’s like asking a kid not to eat candy when all the other kids are eating candy.”
I frowned, then let out a deep breath. It was like talking to a brick wall. Pointless.
If only I could have a few minutes without their constant chatter to think through my thoughts. It was like having a radio on in my mind all day and all night. The whole demon thing warranted more investigation, though. Just to rule it out. I still thought witchcraft was to blame for Mindy’s behavior. It was no coincidence that she started acting weird the very night Cooper had ambled into town.
As far as the demonic possession, I’d call my colleague and ask for his advice. He was the top demonologist in the country. I was lucky to have such friends. But what if it was a demon? How would I convince Mindy that she was possessed? I guess the same way I was going to convince her that Cooper had her under a magic spell. Neither option would be easy.
“One way or the other, I’ll get Mindy back because I’m convinced she wouldn’t act this way on her own,” I said.
“You do what you have to do, sweetie. We’ll help you if you need us to,” Mae said.
Seth and Anthony looked at each other. A rare moment when they weren’t bickering. Finally, they nodded.
“Yeah, we’ll back you up,” Anthony said.
Forty-five minutes later and I was sitting in my car, parked in front of Becky’s apartment building. I contemplated asking the ghosts to stay in the car, then realized I’d be wasting my breath. They wanted to know what was going on just as much as I did. And I couldn’t say I blamed them. I’d brought them into this chaos called my life; it wasn’t fair to exclude them now. It was my problem if I couldn’t concentrate with them around. As long as they behaved, I’d be okay.
“Can I count on you guys to be quiet? No comments in my ear while I’m talking to her, okay? It’s distracting.”
Anthony crossed his heart with his index finger.
“We’re just here to help you.” Mae winked.
Seth nodded in agreement.
I rang the doorbell and waited, shifting from foot to foot. I was almost ready to turn around and leave when Becky answered the door. She was a lot different from Karyn. Becky’s hair was a bit disheveled, and she wore a black T-shirt with a hole in it and sweatpants. I’d never seen Karyn’s hair out of place; she was always so put together.
It was a good thing Becky didn’t want to be the coven leader because I couldn’t picture her in that position. Then again, I couldn’t picture myself in that position either. Someone needed to take over for Karyn. Whether she remained in the hospital or moved. Would Karyn ever get the chance to move away? It looked as if she might never get the opportunity. My stomach turned at the thought of Karyn never getting better. I didn’t even want to consider the possibility.
“Larue.” Becky looked at me with surprise.
“I hope you don’t mind that I found your address,” I said.
“I’m surprised to see you here.” She touched her hair as if smashing it down would help the unkempt look. “Is everything okay?”
I looked over her shoulder at the inside of her home. Was she going to invite me in? She met my gaze and a look of realization spread across her face.
“Um, do you want to come in?” she asked hesitantly.
“Sure, thanks,” I said.
She frowned and opened the door wider, motioning for me to enter. If she was worried about a little thing like her housekeeping, I didn’t care. I’d been to my cousin’s house many times and she kept that place like a pigpen. I was used to it. I just stepped around the
mess.
“So, is something wrong?” she asked again.
“Well, yes. I mean, nothing like an emergency. Okay, maybe it’s an emergency, I guess. Kind of….”
Her eyebrows knitted together. Okay, I was rambling.
“My visit has to do with our new guy in town.”
She nodded. “Oh, yes, Cooper. Have a seat.” She motioned in the general direction of the kitchen table. “I’m afraid I haven’t been able to find out much. Other than he’s a good-looking man and everyone finds him charming.”
I pulled out one of the wooden chairs and sat. “Yeah, that’s obvious, but not worth much. I was just wondering—”
“More questions? I don’t think I can answer them for you, but you can give me a try.” She played with the hem of her T-shirt.
“Since I’m assuming he does magic, doesn’t anyone in the coven have info about him?”
“Well, I don’t know him. How the heck should I know anything about him? But from what I’ve heard, he’s on the up and up. He’s exactly who he says he is. Never practiced black magic that I know of, but then again, no one thought Brianna did either.”
Becky sure had a way with words. She was a real charmer.
“Sorry. I didn’t know who else to ask. And since Karyn can’t help…and you seemed to be closest to her, I thought you might know. I mean, after all, he is a witch, right? Or is that a warlock? I don’t understand the difference. I mean, I know one is a man and one is a woman. But is a male witch a warlock? It’s kind of confusing.”
She looked at me with a dazed and blank look. I suppose I was rambling again, but stress would do that to anyone.
“Well, first of all, Karyn didn’t leave me in charge. Second, he’s Brianna’s cousin, but you already knew that. Um, he’s from Savannah, Georgia. He came here to take over her shop. That’s about it.”
“Was he close to Brianna, you think?”
She shrugged her skinny shoulders.
“Why would he come and not another family member? What about Brianna’s parents?”
“I think most of Brianna’s family doesn’t want anything to do with her.” Becky leaned against the kitchen counter, all the while still fumbling with her shirt.
Her fidgeting was making me nervous.
“So, if he does, that must mean he practices black magic, too?”
“Probably.” She paused. “You’re asking a lot of questions. Is there something wrong that you haven’t told me about? I know you were suspicious of him, but did something else happen? Something beyond the store break-in?”
I wasn’t sure I should share this information with her, but I needed to tell someone in the magic community. And she was all I had at that moment.
“Well, some other strange things have been happening. My best friend is mad at me.”
“And you think this has something to do with black magic because?” She raised her eyebrows.
“She wasn’t mad at me until Cooper showed up. I hardly think that’s a coincidence. We were fine until he came into the picture. I think he showed up to take revenge for Brianna.”
Mae, Seth, and Anthony paced around the small space.
“Her place is a real pigsty,” Mae said, while kicking a T-shirt out of the way. I was glad Becky hadn’t turned around to see the T-shirt moving on its own. I knew they couldn’t behave themselves. It was worse than babysitting four-year-olds. At least the little kids would be cute.
Becky stared for a beat. “I suppose you’re right. It makes sense. Don’t worry about anything, I’ll take care of it. I’ll alert the coven. We need to figure out what this guy’s up to. But did you consider the demon thing I mentioned? Maybe your friend is influenced by a demon? I told you performing magic could be really, really bad.”
Again with the demon talk. Was everyone trying to freak me out? Becky had spoken the exact words I’d wanted to hear about Cooper. Alerting the coven and getting to the bottom of his motives…now, we were getting somewhere. With any luck, they’d drag him out of town on his butt. He thought he could waltz into town with his good looks and woo everyone. Well, I wasn’t falling for it. But the part about me performing magic and attracting demons? I wasn’t convinced.
“What happened to Brianna anyway?” I asked.
Anthony leaned against the counter right next to Becky. “They took away her broom and cauldron.”
I shot Anthony a shut up look. He winked.
“What happened to Brianna is something I can’t discuss.” Becky stood and walked over to the sink, turning her back to me. She began wiping the counter with a small towel. Now was not the time for housekeeping, no matter how much her place needed it. I had questions and needed her help for answers.
“You’ll have to ask Karyn these questions. I can’t and won’t answer them,” she said over her shoulder.
Maybe I was being overly sensitive, but I felt her comment was insensitive. She knew I couldn’t ask Karyn anything right now, and maybe never.
“It’s kind of hard for me to ask her, don’t you think?”
“Yes, well, she’ll snap out of it.” She placed a jug of juice that had been sitting on the counter into the fridge.
She’ll snap out of it? I thought she cared about Karyn? What a callous thing to say.
“I certainly hope she snaps out of it.” I used air quotes for emphasis. “Does anyone have an update about her condition today?”
Becky turned to look at me and shook her head. “No change.”
“That poor woman,” Seth said, as he paced the floor.
He brushed past Becky. She turned, looking in his direction. Had she sensed him? There was no way she had seen him. She’d have mentioned the little fact that I’d brought three ghosts into her house if she could.
“Well, thanks for stopping by, Larue.”
I guess that meant the conversation was over.
“Okay, yeah.” I stood. “I need to get going anyway. Thanks for the help, Becky. I really appreciate it.”
“It’s no problem, dear.” She smiled wide.
“I don’t like this woman,” Anthony said. “She’s one of those clingy types, I can tell.”
I wanted to give him a smart-aleck answer, but it would have to wait until we were outside. It was hard to bite my tongue when Anthony was around.
“I’ll tell the coven about our suspicions about Cooper and let you know how they want to handle it. I’ll call as soon as I hear something.”
“Our suspicions?” Anthony asked. “She had no suspicions. It was all you. She could care less what he does to you. She just wants to live in her own little messy world.” Anthony had really taken a disliking to this woman.
I walked toward the door. “Thank you, Becky. I know you’ve been a lot of help to Karyn, and I know she appreciates it.”
She nodded. “I’m going to the hospital. Several of us are. We’re doing a spell. The nurses don’t want a lot of us in there at once, but we’re going to try and slip in.”
“Let me know if I can help.”
“Sure will, Larue. I’ll be in touch.”
I waved over my shoulder and headed toward my car.
“Oh, she’s just so irritating,” Mae said.
“Why in the world don’t you guys like her?”
“She’s snooty,” Mae answered without hesitation.
“Yeah, that’s not the word I was thinking, but I’ll be a gentleman,” Anthony said.
Now he finally decided to have some manners? “Now you’re going to start being a gentleman?” I climbed in the car and started backing out before Anthony had a chance to get in the backseat.
“Hey, you almost left me at that dreadful woman’s home. And I take offense at what you said. I’m always a gentleman.”
I smiled to myself. Finally, I’d almost gotten one over on him.
“I’m really hurt. You were driving off without me.” He was still yammering on while I drove.
“Don’t listen to him,” Seth said.
“No, don�
�t listen to the old man,” Anthony huffed.
“Y’all are bickering again and giving me a headache.”
“Darling, men are nothing but headaches, but sometimes it’s worth the pain. Like in the case of that hunk of man you got.”
“I don’t think I need to hear this discussion,” Seth said as he plugged his ears with his fingers.
“Honey, where do you think he got his good looks from?” Mae wiggled her eyebrows.
“You’re too kind.” Seth chuckled.
“Oh, man. I’m getting sick back here, please stop.” Anthony made a gagging noise.
“Listen, all of you. Just stop talking for a second and let me do the talking. I think I’ll know what I’m doing next if you’ll give me a chance to think it out.”
“Atta girl,” Mae said.
“I was thinking…perhaps a little bit of exercise would help me clear my thoughts.”
Oh, good, calisthenics,” Anthony said.
“Um, yeah, sure, that’s what we’ll call it,” I said.
No way was Anthony seeing me perform pole fitness.
***
When I pulled up to Mindy’s studio, the parking lot was full. I squeezed my car into an available spot in the back and made my way toward the door. Halfway across the lot, I stopped.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa. No men allowed.” I made a stop signal with my hands.
“What? It doesn’t say that anywhere,” Anthony said, looking around for the invisible sign.
A gray-haired woman approached me. “Did you say something, dear?”
Heat went to my cheeks. “I was just talking on my cell phone, sorry.”
She scowled. “Oh, I’m sorry.” She looked me up and down. “I didn’t see your phone.” She glanced down at my empty hand.
I couldn’t tell her I had a speaker stuck in my ear because with my hair pulled back in a ponytail, it was obvious I didn’t. Great. I really was losing my touch. People would think I was a crazy loony tune.
When she walked away, Anthony said, “You’re really slipping there, my dear. People will think you talk to yourself.” He smirked.
“Stay out here or I swear I’ll force you into that light, if it’s the last thing I do,” I said, trying not to move my lips. A ventriloquist I was not.
