Dr. Delph shook his head. “The husband is actually—”
“No,” Lia cut him off. “The girl who told me about this town. I thought I was losing my mind, but I swear she turned into a wolf. Right in front of me.”
“Last night? It was the peak of the full moon.” Dr. Delph rubbed his jaw. “Did she say how she heard about us?”
Lia shrugged. “Something about a cousin living here I think.” Her expression darkened. “She was strung out on drugs and on her way here for help. And I just left her behind for him to find.” Her voice broke and she swallowed.
Dr. Delph reached across the table again and took her hand. “There’s nothing you could have done for her during a full moon. You did the right thing coming here. We’ll send someone to look for her.” He was already adding the task to Graham’s growing list.
Lia took a shuddering breath and pulled her hand away to wipe at the corners of her eyes. Their conversation was ended by the arrival of their order.
“Variety platter and two lemonades,” the warlock’s son said as he set everything on their table. “Can I grab you anything else?”
“No, thank you.” Dr. Delph smiled and dug a five dollar bill out of his pocket. He slipped it on the boy’s tray. “Tell your dad I said hello.”
“You bet. Thanks, doc.” The boy nodded and headed back behind the counter.
Lia looked down at the huge tray of food with wide eyes. In addition to six kinds of cheese, it held a variety of different crackers, meats, olives, fruits, and nuts, all arranged in a spectacular, spiraling display.
“Dig in,” Dr. Delph said, turning the plate so that the meat selection was closest to Lia. He preferred the variety platter, even with that one flaw, and he usually brought the meat back to Orpheus House for Nora and Judy.
Lia sampled the mozzarella and pepper jack, and then the olives and an apple slice. Her eyes closed and she moaned softly with each bite.
“Everything tastes so fresh,” she marveled.
“It is,” Dr. Delph said, crunching through an almond. “All the cheese and meat is local—most of it from Chase Farms. The olives and apples are delivered here weekly, from an organic faerie farm in California. One of their princesses spent a few weeks at Orpheus House, but she’s since returned home,” he explained.
Lia stopped chewing to gape at him.
“We don’t discriminate here,” he said with a wry smile. “Though the fay’s trickster tendencies can be problematic from time to time. It’s nothing compared to Daisy’s mischief.”
“Daisy?”
“A local poltergeist—and technically, Spero Heights’ oldest resident. You’ll meet her eventually. Try not to take her disdain too personally. She hates most everyone.”
Lia swallowed and shook her head in disbelief. “And here I thought I was special for having visions.”
“You are,” he insisted. “Very special. I imagine the talent stretches back through the generations of your family.”
“I don’t know about that.” Lia frowned and took a sip of her lemonade. “My parents were both normal. I had an aunt who was committed, but that was before I was born. I never met her. Everyone always assumed the crazy was hit and miss with the women on my father’s side of the family.”
“Perhaps a lesser known prophetic lineage…” Dr. Delph’s voice trailed off as he recalled the unique circumstances of his own origins.
No one in his barren family tree had escaped the Fates’ calling. And no one survived it long either. He was the only remaining member of the Delphic line of Phemonoe, and he’d lived longer than anyone before him, according to the ancient records. He’d paid extra careful attention to his lifestyle choices for that privilege. Now he was nearing forty, and though his hair had turned silver in his youth, he was in perfect physical condition otherwise.
“Dr. Delph?” Lia panted, snapping his attention back to her. Her face had paled. She pressed a hand to her chest as she took a heaving breath. “I think I’m going to be sick.” Her other hand went to the side of her head, and she squeezed her eyes shut.
Dr. Delph stood quickly and helped her up from the table. “Perhaps the food was too rich,” he suggested, refraining from voicing his true concern, that it was a withdrawal side effect, thanks to the highly addictive, black market drugs wreaking havoc on her system.
“Everything okay, Dr. D?” The boy behind the counter called out.
“Could we get a to-go box?” Dr. Delph asked. “I think we should be on our way.”
The kid glanced down at his watch. “I’m off shift in five minutes. Why don’t I pack everything up and drop it off at the clinic for you?”
Dr. Delph sighed with relief. “That would be fantastic. Thank you.” He grabbed Lia’s sun hat and sat it gently on her head before gathering up the gift basket. “Maybe a little fresh air will help.”
“I’m so sorry,” she whispered as they stepped out onto the sidewalk.
“Don’t be.” He wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “This will pass eventually.”
The crease in her brow deepened. “No, it won’t. Believe me. I’ve been praying for that for twenty years now.”
Dr. Delph squeezed her tighter into the fold of his arm, wishing there was something more comforting he could offer her. “Give me a chance,” he said, half to Lia and half to the Fates, should they be listening.
Chapter Fifteen
Lia’s stomach growled, but it was nothing compared to the pain trying to punch its way through her temples. She had forgotten what it was like to suffer around the clock. With Saunders, the agony was usually remedied within an hour of her visions.
Dr. Delph hugged her close to him as they walked back to his clinic. She felt safe and cared for in his arms. He was warm and kind, and he smelled of patchouli and minty tea leaves. She knew he meant well, but she couldn’t bring herself to open up to him entirely. It had been so long since she had trusted anyone. Not since she’d lost her father to cancer. And seeing how all of his holistic efforts had failed him, she didn’t have much faith in them herself.
As Dr. Delph directed her toward the opposite side of the community center from where they’d originally come, she saw a sign further up the main road. There was a junction for the interstate just seven miles away, down a steep hill surrounded by woods. She wondered if she could walk that far. Just a few blocks around this strange little town had winded her.
“We’ll finish our sightseeing tomorrow, if you’re feeling better,” Dr. Delph said, interrupting her escape planning. “I’d love to take you to the farmers’ market and maybe schedule an official tour of the cheese factory. It’s a highlight during the festival, but I know the manager. I’m sure he’d be happy to take us through.”
“Sure,” she said softly, guilt pinching at her heart. She had no intention of staying the night there. How could she? When she remembered her morning vision, she could barely catch her breath.
He’s going to die. It hit her a million times harder now than it had before. He wasn’t just some random stranger she could pretend didn’t mean anything to her. From what she’d seen, he meant a great deal to anyone he’d ever encountered. But now he was going to die, and it was going to be her fault. She knew it.
Her mind reeled, a thousand thoughts bashing against each other like lottery balls in a machine. Her chances of fixing this mess were about as hopeless as winning a jackpot, and the paradox of her situation only intensified the throbbing of her skull.
Somehow, Saunders knew she was here. The gun in her vision was familiar enough. She didn’t have to see his face to know it was him standing in Dr. Delph’s office, aiming his fury at the kindest heart she’d known in a decade.
Saunders was coming for her. That she was intent on running led her to believe that he was going to kill Dr. Delph for some other reason than keeping her from him. She wondered if Dr. Delph would call Saunders out on his illegal activity. Maybe he would threaten to turn him in. Whatever the reason, she knew it would be somethi
ng noble on Dr. Delph’s part. It was the kind of person he was.
They paused in the front parking lot of the clinic, just as a cloud blotted out the sun. A few drops peppered the brim of Lia’s sun hat.
“Are you okay?” Dr. Delph asked. His tender, gray eyes searched hers as he touched her cheek, and his fingers came away wet.
“It’s raining,” she whispered, explaining her tears away by ignoring the fact that the wide brim of the hat protected her face from the elements. Dr. Delph looked at her a moment longer, and it was all Lia could do to conceal her dark thoughts.
“Let’s get you inside,” he finally said, letting go of her shoulder to open one of the double doors. The gift basket was still tucked over his opposite arm, and he handed it to her as they neared her room. “Looks like Ben included a lot of goodies from his garden and shop in there.”
“I’m really tired,” Lia said, rubbing the side of her head.
Dr. Delph nodded. “Of course. Why don’t you get some rest? I’ll be back in a few hours to check on you, and maybe bring a bite to eat,” he added after her stomach growled again.
“Thanks.” She gave him a weak smile and stepped into her room, quietly closing the door behind her. She waited, listening for the click of a lock to slide into place, but all she heard were Dr. Delph’s soft footsteps as they faded down the hall.
Lia sighed and collapsed on the small bed. She was exhausted, and her head ached fiercely. She knew she should have been planning her escape—her departure. She had the feeling that Dr. Delph wouldn’t physically stop her from leaving if she really wanted to. Which begged the question… how badly did she want to leave?
It didn’t matter. She had to. Saunders would be there by nightfall. If she stayed, he’d kill her too. She was sure of it.
Telling Dr. Delph about her vision suddenly crossed her mind. It wasn’t the sort of thought she was used to entertaining. Before Saunders, anyone she told about her visions accused her of being psychotic or macabre. After Saunders locked her up, she had no way of telling anyone. Besides the cruel sheriff and the saintly doctor, the only other person who even believed in her visions had been her father.
She still remembered the morning her visions had delivered his death. It almost killed her to witness it a second time later that same afternoon. She’d tried to stop it, to warn the doctors at the hospital where he had lain dying a slow death for far too long. She had been too young and selfish to care about his suffering. She just wanted her father to live. But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t change his fate.
Was this a second chance? She wondered. Could she really change the outcome this time? Or would she just fill Dr. Delph’s last hours on this earth with fear and misery?
If Saunders had actually changed the outcome of any of her visions, he’d never told her about it. Of course, it was more impressive to catch a murderer than to prevent a murder, and it was easier to explain away to the media. Confessing that he had a psychic on retainer would not have gone over well.
Lia’s thoughts wandered off into the impossible. She pictured her and the doctor running off together to the Bahamas. He couldn’t die if he wasn’t here, she thought, but she had the feeling he would never abandon his post in Spero Heights.
Then she imagined them waiting in his office for Saunders to arrive, wearing pinstriped suits and fedoras, machineguns at the ready. The scene was more than likely inspired by a gangster movie she’d caught on television late one night. Unfortunately, she was pretty sure the doctor didn’t have any machineguns lying around.
She sighed and dug through the tissue paper in the gift basket, wondering if there might be anything in there to ease the burden of her imminent journey. Her fingers brushed over something rough, and she pulled out a chunky, pink crystal. A piece of twine was knotted around it, fashioned into a rustic necklace.
The rest of the basket’s contents consisted of fresh produce and dried herbs. A tag hanging from a bundled sheath of leaves labeled it as a sage smudge stick, for banishing negative energies from a room or for purifying a sacred space.
Lia smirked. As real and bizarre as her visions were, she just couldn’t wrap her mind around magic. She was also still struggling with the idea of werewolves and faeries and vampires being real and abundant in the small town. It was frightening, but more than that, it was oddly comforting. No one here would think any less of her or question the merit of her visions.
Sadness enveloped her. If Saunders wasn’t set to track her down, she could have stayed. She might have even had a decent life. Dr. Delph might not have been able to ease her pain, but maybe that wouldn’t have mattered so much if she had a real life. Things as simple as a job and a home. A circle of friends who wouldn’t judge her. Maybe even a family.
She wondered why Dr. Delph wasn’t married already. He was an attractive, kind, intelligent man. He’d probably be a perfect husband, and father too… if he wasn’t slated to die in a few hours.
Lia’s throat tightened and she blinked back a tear. She had to get out of there before it was too late. Her mind began searching for more reasonable solutions. She decided that she’d find the first gas station off the interstate, and she’d call Saunders to come pick her up. That would likely stop him from coming to Spero Heights.
Her heart dropped when she realized that she didn’t have his direct number. Maybe she could find it in a phone book, she wondered. Then she remembered that he’d just moved to St. Louis. The directories wouldn’t be updated yet. Frustration stabbed at her brain, and she considered calling the SLCPD directly. Instead of asking for Saunders, maybe she’d just turn him in. Maybe they would arrest him before he could get in his squad car and head her way.
The thought of being taken back to Aldini’s froze the blood in her veins, but seeing Saunders put a bullet in Dr. Delph forced her to push her fears aside. Saunders had to be stopped before he headed for Spero Heights. It was the only way. And Dr. Delph would never forgive her for inviting outside authorities into their strange haven of a town, so she would have to hurry if she was going to reach a gas station and make the call from a payphone before Saunders left St. Louis.
Lia slipped out of her borrowed dress. It had been a nice game of pretend. She was grateful for the taste of decency, but it made returning to her personal hell that much harder.
Her original clothes were clean and waiting on the table near the window, but just as she finished tugging her pink tank top down over her stomach, fresh pain bloomed at her temples again. It tilted her equilibrium, and she was suddenly kissing the floor. She tried to sit up, but her head spun and her stomach clenched, threatening to empty itself.
She was curled up in the fetal position, wearing nothing but her tank top and underwear, when Dr. Delph returned with the leftovers from the deli.
“Lia!” He dropped the food and knelt down beside her, tucking his arm under her neck before pulling her up into a sitting position.
She tried to talk, but all she could get past her lips was a gurgled moan.
“Don’t worry. I’m here,” Dr. Delph said. “I’ve got you.” He stroked her hair back and leaned in closer to look into her eyes. His intimate demeanor melted into something more clinical as his hand brushed her cheek. “We’re going to try something new.”
He stood carefully, slipping his free arm under the bend of her knees and cradling her to his chest as he did. Then he carried her sideways over the threshold of the room.
Like a bride and groom, Lia thought, delirium scrambling her brain. Careful, her mother’s voice hissed from a distant memory. Don’t want to end up like Aunt Celia. Poor thing can’t even feed herself anymore.
If they survived the night, Lia wondered if Dr. Delph would feed her applesauce when her mind gave out. His idea of therapy hadn’t been very effective so far, but his arms sure felt nice wrapped around her body as he carried her down the hallway of Orpheus House.
Chapter Sixteen
Dr. Delph’s pulse trembled chaotically. Lia’
s head curled in against his cheek as he carried her down the side hall that led to his private sauna. He could feel her breath against his neck, and her hair fell over the back of his shoulder, tickling his skin. One of her delicate arms curled around his neck, tugging at his own hair. He didn’t mind. His only concern was easing her pain.
He didn’t realize that she was only in her underwear and tank top until he laid her down on the Himalayan salt slab in the center of the sauna. It was just as well. He was about to crank up the heat.
Lia’s eyes cracked open, squinting in the dim light that glowed through the pink and orange salt bricks set into the sauna walls. She glanced around, taking in the salt ledges that encompassed the small room and the pillars topped with dark stones in each corner.
Dr. Delph unbuttoned his dress shirt and slipped it off before unbuckling his khakis. He preferred to be nude in the sauna, but he left his boxer briefs on, not wanting to make Lia uncomfortable. This all felt highly unprofessional. He’d never brought a patient into his sauna before, but he was sure it would help Lia’s condition.
He stepped one foot out of the sauna and tossed his clothes over a chair before selecting a small vial of lavender essential oil and a jar of coconut oil from a nearby shelf. Then he stepped back inside and closed the door behind him.
“Where are we?” Lia asked as he tapped a few drops of oil out into a water bucket.
“This is my sauna.” He set the vial aside and stirred the bucket with a ladle. “I find the steam and salt quite therapeutic. It helps ease the discomfort of my own visions—” He pressed his lips together, deciding against sharing how those visions had recently subsided. “I’m hoping it will help you too,” he added instead.
Lia tried to sit up, but she didn’t make it far before her hand was reaching for her head again. She moaned. “I should really leave.”
“You’re in no condition to be going anywhere. You can’t even sit upright,” Dr. Delph said, his voice taking on an incredulous tone. “Besides, you’re indecent.”
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