by Belle Malory
“That must be Lina,” Lola explained.
The silhouette of a young woman ran through the inky darkness at full-speed, crashing into Lola, wrapping her arms around in a tight hug. Giggles resounded throughout the forest.
Long, auburn hair swished around the woman as she bounced. A glimmer of bangles illuminated her wrists and ankles, clinking together noisily.
“You’ve made it,” Lina cried happily. “I knew you would!”
“Yeah, well we had our roadblocks, believe me. Salazar’s men managed to follow us to the train.”
Lina scowled. “Of course it would be Salazar. But you made it anyway. I’m ridiculously happy about that. So where is it? I want to see it.”
Lola chuckled, as if she were in on a secret her friend didn’t know about. She gestured to me. “In the flesh.”
Lina turned to me, giving me a once over. I shifted my stance awkwardly. I felt as if I were a novelty item, being appraised at an auction. Then Lina put her hands on her hips, confused. “I don’t get it. Does she have the crystal?”
“She is the crystal.”
It finally occurred to me where Lina’s confusion stemmed from. Earlier on the train, Lola had explained to me that before her memories of me came back, everyone believed the oracle was a crystal ball. No one ever considered their legendary oracle would be flesh and blood.
Wonder spread over Lina as she pieced it together. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“Crazy, right?”
Lina nodded, still staring at me in wonder. “How does it work?”
I stuck my hand out, not caring much for being referred to as an object. “Nice to meet you. I’m Estelle Spencer.”
“Sorry. How rude of me. I’m Lina Drynski, and the pleasure is all mine.” She smiled brightly, shaking my hand. Lina’s features were exotic like Lola’s, but she looked slightly older than her friend, probably somewhere in her mid-twenties.
“We’re both exhausted,” Lola said. “And starving.”
I nodded my head in agreement, feeling my stomach growl at the mention of food.
“Of course you are,” Lina said. “I brought my own RV. It’s about a quarter mile that way,” Lina pointed. “There are two bunk beds and the sleeper sofa. I imagine we’ll all fit comfortably. And I’m a dancer, not a cook. You’ll have to make do with some grilled cheese sandwiches.”
“Sounds delicious,” Lola replied. “Practically gourmet.”
Excitedly, Lina led us through the campground filled with RVs and trailers. Most of the residents were outside, sitting around huge bonfires, laughing and talking. Some of them stared curiously at us as we walked by. I gathered these must be the Irish travelers Lola had mentioned.
Lina showed us to her tiny but cozy RV. There wasn’t much room inside, just a sofa, a built-in dinette and basic kitchen appliances occupied the front room. Two sets of bunk beds and a small bathroom occupied the back.
Once settled, she fed us her specialty grilled cheese sandwiches, and then showed us to the showers. I scrubbed at my body with a vengeance, trying to remove the dirt and grime produced from traveling over the last two days. After I was completely washed and towel-dried, I felt so much better.
Thankfully, Lina had a small heater running in her RV. It kept the tight confines of the space warm and toasty.
Everyone sat in the living area talking when I walked back inside.
“There’s a wedding tomorrow,” Lina announced, just as I closed the door. “It should be fun, perhaps take your minds off reality for a while.”
I took a seat at the dining table, listening quietly.
“Will any Roms be attending?” Gabe asked. “We can’t risk coming into contact with more mind readers.”
“As far as I know, it’s only Irish,” Lina replied. “I don’t think you’ll have anything to worry about. However, I’ll keep my attention focused on the future as a precaution.”
Gabe nodded, indicating he thought it was a good idea.
“There’s something else you should know,” Lina said. “I spoke with Zetta earlier. She wants to speak to you about Estelle. I think she’s had one of her dreams. I never mentioned the oracle was a person, yet she knew.”
Lola presented me with a sideways glance. “I’ll call her. Maybe she can tell me what to do from here.”
“Who is Zetta?” I asked. Everyone turned their attention to me, making me wish I hadn’t interrupted.
“She’s my aunt,” Lola answered. “The one I told you about. She originally erased our memories with her spell. If she wants to speak to me, it must be important. So let’s just hope her news is good rather than bad.”
“She’s a powerful psychic,” Gabe explained. “Whatever she sees happens. There’s nothing we can do to change it.”
They seemed afraid to hear what this Zetta woman had to say. I didn’t understand their fear. I was ready to meet this woman, excited even. If she had originally placed the spell on me, then it only made sense for her to know why I’d been cursed in the first place.
“Come on, I’ll show you to your bed,” Lina said. “You look sleepy.”
I yawned as soon as she said it. I shouldn’t be that tired; I slept during the drive. However, I felt exhaustion slowly creeping into my body. I also wanted to lie down on a bed for a change.
Lina took me to the back of the RV to two sets of bunk beds. “You can have your pick,” she said. “Top or bottom?”
“Bottom, definitely.”
I wasn’t exactly fond of heights, or falling out of bed in the middle of the night.
“Rex gets the top then, because I’m taking bottom on the other side.”
“Rex is sleeping in here, too?”
“Yeah, I figured we’d leave Gabe and Lola the sleeper sofa in the front, and the rest of us can bunk back here. It doesn’t make you uncomfortable does it?”
“No, it’s fine,” I lied. The truth was, it would make me uncomfortable under normal circumstances. I was so sleepy at that point, a grizzly bear sleeping in the top bunk wouldn’t bother me.
“What about Abby?” I asked. She leapt onto one of the beds, circled around, and then plopped down.
Lina chuckled. “Apparently she made her decision. She’s sleeping with you.”
I waited until Lina left the room before I changed into some flannel pajamas. Indie would’ve made fun of them. At sixteen, she was against wearing anything un-sexy to bed. Then again, she had many boys to impress. I didn’t have any. So flannel pjs were perfectly fine in my book.
Shivering, I crawled into bed, snuggling next to Abby. The warmth of the heater hadn’t traveled to the back of the RV yet. I pulled the blanket up and covered us both.
“Good night, Abby.”
Eight
Someone was shaking me.
“Estelle, Estelle!”
My eyes shot open and my body stiffened. Both Lina and Rex stood over me, wearing equally horrified expressions.
I realized just how heavily I was breathing. Practically gasping for breath, the air wouldn’t go into my lungs quick enough. My hands clung to the sheets, clutching the fabric in tight knots. I loosened my grip, wondering what would cause me to hold onto my bed for dear life.
“Are you okay?” Lina asked me in a concerned voice.
“Yes, I think so,” I said between short, choked breaths. I rubbed the sleep from my eyes. “What’s the matter?”
Lina seemed confused. “You were screaming. . .”
It took me a while to process what she told me. “Screaming?”
“Something about a girl in a white dress,” Lina said. “And lots of blood.”
I immediately thought of the little phantom girl from my bedroom. Had she been haunting my dreams as well? I raked my hands through my hair, pulling long strands away from my face. My skin was uncomfortably clammy. I wrapped myself with a blanket.
“I don’t remember,” I told them. “I’m sorry.”
They met each other’s anxious expressions. That must
have been code for what the hell is wrong with this crazy chick? But I didn’t know what to say to make the situation less strange.
Rex spoke, his voice more serious than I was used to hearing. “Lola said her first sets of memories came back to her through her dreams. Do you think that’s what’s happening to you, Spencer?”
Finally calm and breathing normally, I shrugged and said, “I honestly don’t know. I can’t remember anything.”
Rex knew I wasn’t being entirely honest. I hadn’t forgotten about his ability to read people. He was probably reading me now, wondering why I was lying.
Lina broke the awkward moment. “Let’s eat some breakfast. I’ll bet you’ll feel better.”
Rex rolled his eyes. “Because food is the Romanian answer for everything.”
Lina yelled at him in another language. She turned back to me, asking sweetly, “Do you like mămăligă?”
“What’s that?”
“Lina, no one likes mămăligă,” Rex said. “That shit is disgusting.”
Lina yelled at him again in the other language. It sounded as if she were cursing him out.
“I’ve no problem letting you starve, you ass,” Lina said in English, ending her tirade.
As soon as Rex left the room, Lina said, “That man is the devil. I slept with him once, two lives ago, and I swear it was the only time I’ve ever seen him be nice.”
I stared at her blankly. “I really didn’t need to know this.” And I definitely didn’t want to picture it.
“He’s lucky he’s good in bed,” she continued. “It’s the only thing he has going for him.”
“What do you say about that breakfast now?” I attempted to change the subject.
Lina wasn’t listening. “You know what they say, ‘Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.’ I, personally, cannot be fooled twice. He’s a heartbreaker, that one. Luckily, I got away unscathed.” She looked at me, remembering my presence. “Sorry. He just frustrates me.”
“You and every other female on this planet, I’m sure.”
“Let’s go get that breakfast,” she said. “And later, I’ll rummage through my closet and find you a dress for tonight.” She grinned in anticipation.
Mindlessly, I looked down to see what Lina was wearing. A sheer, cutoff tank top, exposing her bright pink bra underneath, paired with a beaded mini-skirt. She had a dancer’s body, so it looked nice on her. Even so, I decided I didn’t want to borrow anything from her closet.
“That’s really not necessary.”
“Of course it is!” she exclaimed excitedly. “An Irish Traveler wedding is no joke. They go all out. Did you bring a dress?”
“No,” I admitted, “But I do have--”
“Say no more, I’ll fix you up. You’ll look fabulous!”
I forced myself to smile. As much as I wanted to, I couldn’t bring myself to say no. “Sounds great,” I managed.
Lina squealed with delight. “This is going to be so much fun. Lola never lets me make her over. Well, once, but I won’t go into that.”
I definitely didn’t want to think about why Lola never let Lina make her over. I was determined to stay positive.
Besides, if the dress was really horrible, I could always fake a headache and stay in bed. As long as Rex wasn’t around to spot my lie, I could probably get away with it.
A little while later, I found myself sitting in the RV’s little breakfast nook, spooning a giant bowl of cornmeal mush. I sniffed at it while Lina wasn’t looking.
It smelled edible. I supposed.
“Aren’t you going to eat with me?” I asked Lina as she cleaned the countertops.
“Oh, no.” She scrubbed at a spotless counter. “I never eat carbs before dancing.”
“Where’s Lola and Gabe?” I asked. “Aren’t they coming for breakfast?”
“Nope. They left about an hour ago to call Zetta. No service out here on their cells.”
I picked up the spoon and turned it over, watching the white goblets of mush fall back into the bowl.
Closing my eyes, I shoved a bite into my mouth. It tasted as good as it looked. I forced the food down, feeling grainy chunks sticking to my throat like sandpaper.
Lina loaded dirty dishes into the sink. “Is it good?”
Snapping my head up, I pretended the food wasn’t torturing me and plastered on a huge smile. “Dee-lish”.
She seemed appeased, and went back to tidying up the kitchen. When she wasn’t looking, I lowered the bowl to Abby.
Abby, a puppy that normally devoured everything, gave it a timid sniff. I’m sure she whimpered as she looked up, waiting for me to give her something else.
“Eat. It. Now.” I said through clenched teeth, giving her my most menacing stare. She tilted her head to the side, not in the least bit afraid of me.
“Good for nothing dog.” All those wire cords and leather shoes Abby chewed to shreds, and she wouldn’t eat this one little bowl of mămăligă.
Thankfully, Lina left to take a shower. Rex walked through the door holding a bag of McDonald’s. “There’s a Mickey D’s around here?”
He tossed me an Egg McMuffin.
“Thank you,” I breathed gratefully.
“Better hurry and eat it before she comes back.”
Abby and I split the Egg McMuffin. She had no qualms with McDonald’s. She devoured the food in seconds.
While I ate, I watched Rex through the fringe of my lashes. The thought of Lina and him together bothered me.
I wondered if I was jealous. That had to be crazy, right? Why on earth should I care about what Lina and Rex did in a past life? I didn’t even like Rex-or did I?
Must have been Stockholm Syndrome. I was stuck with the guy so it seemed like a logical explanation.
I trashed my sandwich wrapper right before Lina came back. Wrapped in one towel, she dried her hair with another. As soon as she saw Rex eating McDonald’s, she mumbled another string of Romanian curses. Rex didn’t seem at all offended. He just looked smug, as usual.
Lina headed to the back of the RV to get dressed, and a few moments later Lola and Gabe opened the door.
“Good morning.” Lola greeted us with a smile.
“What did Zetta have to say?” Lina yelled from the bedroom.
“Nothing important,” Lola yelled back. She tipped her nose to me. “She wants to meet you and get a read on your past, try to figure out how you came by your sight. Are you okay with that?”
“Of course.”
“First, she has to get permission from my father to leave their troupe. As long as he agrees, she can probably get here before tomorrow evening. She may be able to help us, Estelle. At least, I’m hoping she can. Because I honestly don’t know what to do at this point.”
There was a definite apprehension in Lola’s eyes. Gabe took her hand, squeezing it. “It’ll be okay, Lo. We’ll figure this thing out.”
“It’s fine,” I agreed. “We’re not running anymore, so that’s a plus.”
“Not to be negative or anything, but I don’t know how long the not running part will last.”
An out-of-the-blue idea hit me. “Hey, I want to try something. I don’t know why I didn’t think of it before. Here, take my hand.” I placed my palm over Lola’s. Understanding lit up her eyes.
“I see where you’re going with this. What do you want me to ask for?”
“Ask how to keep the mind readers away.”
She nodded, closed her eyes, then cleared her throat. “Ahem, dear Oracle,” she began in a powerfully loud voice.
“Um, Lo?” I interjected.
She opened her eyes. “Yes?”
“That’s really not necessary. All you have to do is tell me what you want.”
“Oh, okay.” She laughed at herself. Gabe shook his head, suppressing a smile. Rex coughed, choking back his own amusement.
Lola began again. “I want to keep the mind readers away. How can I do that?”
All the familiar symptoms wa
shed over me. “Surround the camp with an invisibility charm. Lina knows the ingredients.”
After my vision returned to normal, I looked up at Lola. “Invisibility charm?”
She shrugged. “Don’t look at me. You said to ask Lina.”
Lina sauntered out of the bedroom, fully dressed, by her standards anyway, combing out her wet auburn hair. “It’s a simple mixture of herbs, like sage and tea leaves, ground together to make a type of dust. In the old days, gypsies would trespass on land that didn’t belong to them. They used the charm to keep themselves hidden from irate landowners.”
I raised a skeptical brow. “I know I shouldn’t be questioning myself because the words came out of my own mouth, but does this stuff actually work?”
Lina nodded. “Oh, definitely. It’s how the Royals keep Redwood Forest so well hidden. And sage has been used for centuries by many different cultures to ward off negativity. It may not make the camp invisible, per se, but it keeps the wrong sorts of eyes from finding us, if you get my drift.”
“I’d say it’s worth a shot,” Gabe added. “Do you have the ingredients?”
“I think so.”
“Then let’s get started.”
Lola and I helped Lina to concoct the invisibility charm. It only took us a few minutes to crunch up the herbs and mix them together. Afterwards, everyone left me alone with Lina to encircle the camp with the stuff.
It wasn’t long before Lina remembered she planned a makeover for me. I’d just gotten back from the showers, walked into the RV and found it transformed into a dressing room.
“I have to get ready for my performance tonight so I was wondering if I could start on you early?” She grinned ecstatically, holding up her makeup case. She could hardly contain her excitement.
She terrified me.
I wrung my hands behind my back. “Are you sure I won’t be an inconvenience to you?”
Lina shook her head emphatically. “Noooo. Of course not.”
Her huge brown eyes were too damned eager to resist. She looked like Abby, begging for food. I couldn’t say no. “Let’s do this thing.”
I sat on Lina’s bed, fidgeting nervously while she rummaged through her closet. She showed me a few different dresses, all of them being either too short, extremely revealing, gaudy or just very flamboyant.
