Liam opened the front door of the police station, motioning for me to go ahead of him. The crisp air hit me square in the face, but it was rather refreshing. I’d been worried about rain ruining this All Hallows’ Eve, but the meteorologist had assured the public this morning that our area would get a respite from the incoming storm front until well after midnight.
I don’t know about you, but isn’t this day just grand? After our visit to the antique shop, I think I’ll go see how Skippy’s little operation is going over at the park.
I could literally hear Leo take a deep breath as we walked down the sidewalk to the cobblestone crosswalk.
Do you smell that wonderful scent, Raven? Someone is burning some firewood. Doesn’t that just get you into the Halloween spirit? What a beautiful morning it is, and I have the good ol’ sheriff to thank for it. I fear I might have been too harsh of a critic this past year, so you’ll have to extend my apologies.
“What did you say to Leo back in your office, and where did my cantankerous hungover familiar go when I wasn’t looking?” I murmured, waving to Candy as she made her way to the salon. She had a box of donuts that she must have acquired at Bree’s bakery. “I might have to make him an appointment with Dr. Jameson.”
Can’t a familiar simply be in a good mood? Why do you have to go and ruin it with mentioning that doctor associated with the V word, Raven? Way to go, birthday girl. Just pour your poison in someone else’s ear.
“No need to call the vet,” Liam said with a laugh, though it faded quickly the closer we got to Candy on the other side of the street. “I just told Leo a trick to rid himself of that pesky hangover. Hang on a minute, Raven. Hey, Candy? Is everything okay?”
By this time, we’d made it across the cobblestone crosswalk. Candy’s face was almost as white as the box she was carrying in her hands, though she tried to cover up her pallor with a half-smile. Those pesky little tingle sensations began to pierce my right palm.
“Of course, everything is fine,” Candy responded immediately, attempting to cover up the fact that something clearly had her rattled. “Raven, happy birthday. I’m looking forward to the party at the pub tonight.”
“Thank you, Candy. I—”
“Running late! Have a good day, and I’ll see you later,” Candy said in a rush, cutting of my question.
Liam and I both stood in shock as Candy continued to hurry down the sidewalk to her salon. I honestly wasn’t sure how the donuts hadn’t ended up face down on the street.
You’re going to ruin my good mood, aren’t you?
“How much do you want to bet that she saw the spirit of a loved one?” I whispered in dismay, the itch to search through the inventory at the antique store becoming quite unbearable. I should be at the tea shop with Beetle, organizing things for the big trick or treating event that began at six o’clock this evening. “We really need to find that object, Liam.”
Have I ever told you that you’re just about on par with Skippy when it comes to ruining my good moods? No? Well, you are. Good going, birthday girl. Good going.
Chapter Nine
“Lydia, good morning,” Liam said after we’d walked into the antique shop. “How are you today?”
The quaint manner in which the old and delicate items were arranged on the vintage tables made a customer feel right at home. It was as if the family hearth had been lit, and the warmth spread throughout the room. Kathleen hadn’t used the usual modern glass display cabinets, but instead opted to use various pieces of antique furniture that the patron could also purchase for their home or business. Among them were numerous curio cabinets to house the store’s stock of knickknacks and collectable figurines. I’d often mulled over adding a few of the Queen Anne-style items to the tea shop, or maybe the early American seventeenth century William and Mary style tables she had closer to the built-in shelves along the wall. Of course, nearly all of the shop’s inventory were late 1800 reproductions, but even they had tremendous value on the current market.
You should buy this nice oak rocking chair. It doesn’t look pleasing to the eye in the least with this hideous shade of azure blue on the cushion, but it’s very comfortable.
I cringed when I heard the slightest tug in the fabric from where I suspected Leo was sharpening his claws. The only reason Lydia couldn’t hear the minor shredding was due to an old-fashioned granite birdbath that had the sound of calming running water splashing into a series of urns at its center.
“Liam, what a wonderful surprise,” Lydia exclaimed, turning away from a table that she was arranging a display of tall white candlesticks on with the obvious care of a small business employee. “Have you heard anything new on Kathleen’s case? She has a meeting with her attorney and the DA next week, and her lawyer believes there will be no charges filed against her. No one can say for sure until the DA says so.”
I want to go on record saying that if you put something in my tea and I keel over from a previously unknown allergic reaction…I’ll haunt you from the grave until you go completely insane.
Lydia had taken a brief pause after greeting Liam to tell me happy birthday, but her sole focus was unabashedly concentrated on him. Her appellant eyes sought a resolution that Liam didn’t have in his power to reconcile. By this time, she’d made her way over to us with earnest to hear his reply. I remained silent while they chatted, giving time for Liam to work up to the reason we were here and using the opportunity to peruse the shop to make sure nothing else had been brought out from inventory in the days since I’d last visited the store.
“…have a request, if you’d be so inclined.” Liam had finally finished the small talk and gotten to the reason we were here. “I was asked to check the local shops for an original antique object that has mysteriously gone missing in the not too distant past. Would you mind if I take a look at your inventory?”
“Of course,” Lydia replied, grabbing a set of keys from the table in front of her. “You should know that we still have some items boxed up in the back, with the more expensive smaller ones locked in a safe.”
That reminds me. We should get a pawprint safe for my premium organic catnip and my favorite Meerschaum pipe. You never know when Skippy might try to retaliate against my efforts to stop the squirrelpocalypse.
“Do you mind if I take a peek, too?” I asked, having already discussed with Liam how I could finagle my way into the inventory room with him. As for a safe for Leo’s catnip stash, that wasn’t going to happen. “I’d love to have first dibs on some of those items that you and Kathleen were able to get from that estate sale a few weeks ago.”
You’ll regret that decision when Skippy and his band of ninja misfits find a way into the tea shop, wreak havoc with all the china, and then scatter all the tea leaves in the wind. They’re those kind of rogues…without honor.
“I’ll let you join Liam in the back only if you don’t tell anyone,” Lydia said, shaking her finger in warning. “You know how Cora and the ladies from the auxiliary club are when it comes to exclusive previews of the items that we find at some of those estate sales. They hold special secret meetings for that exact purpose. It all makes for a very conspiratorial atmosphere. They thrive on it. I always sell at least half of the items that Kathleen and I cherry pick every time they ask to see some of the previously undisclosed inventory.”
Not to sidetrack our current birthday scavenger hunt, but have you considered that Cora or one of her socialite disciples might have actually already bought the item in question?
Honestly, the thought hadn’t even entered my mind. Leo had added on another layer of peril that now needed to be looked into, but he hadn’t realized that only he would have the ability to make sure such an item hadn’t already been purchased.
How do you figure that? And it better be good, because I have a squirrelpocalypse to stop in between these headache-inducing mysteries you keep stumbling over in a vain attempt to save this small village from obscurity.
One, I hadn’t been the one to stumble ov
er this particular mystery. That credit belonged to Leo, when he was the one who’d discovered all the occult items in the antique shop in the first place. Two, Leo was the one who had the ability to sneak into all their houses without being seen, all in the name of safety and justice.
I find your propensity to rationalize violating our neighbors’ personal privacy quite disturbing, Raven.
“I promise not to tell a soul that you let me take a peek,” I said, giving my pledge to Lydia that I wouldn’t tell anyone about my little visit to the back room. Truthfully, the less anyone knew about it the better. “You’re the reason my birthday is getting off to a great start, Lydia, so thank you.”
It’s too bad you can’t just do a locator spell.
Leo and I had this conversation this morning, but it was quite difficult to cast an incantation such as that when we had no idea what we were looking for to begin with. My mother had suggested before heading to Beetle’s last night that I tap into the energy level of the community. An object that could allow spirits to cross through the veil as if it were nothing more than thin air had to give off a moderate level of psychokinetic paranormal energy. It would cause a vibration in elemental forces that power the weave. The source of all arcane magic.
“Here you are,” Lydia announced, flipping a light switch on the wall. The overhead lights instantly highlighted what could only be described as an antique treasure trove. If I hadn’t set a financial budget, I could have very well ended up broke at the end of this tour. “Take a look around and let me know if you find anything you like, Raven. Liam, do I need to contact Kathleen about this missing artifact? Is there cause for concern?”
“No,” Liam replied in reassurance, watching intently as Lydia unlocked a massive safe that could not be moved by a half-dozen humans, let alone us. “There’s no need for immediate concern. I’m just doing a favor for someone, that’s all.”
Look, Raven. An antique scratching post. I wonder if it’s better than the ones used today. I’ll test it out to be sure.
I had to bite my lip to warn Leo that what he saw wasn’t a scratching post, but instead an early American style oak coatrack. It was a good thing that the bell over the entrance chimed when someone had walked into the shop out front.
“Take as long as you need. I’ll go and wait on my customer.”
“Leo, don’t you dare sharpen your claws on that,” I whispered fiercely, batting at the air around the coatrack. “Start looking around for…”
Exactly. We have no idea what we’re looking for, so do your thing with the energy. I’ve got parks to peruse and squirrels to chase. That home remedy the good ol’ sheriff told me about needs to be packaged and sold in stores. We could make a mint.
“What are we looking for again?” Liam asked, having overheard my comments to Leo. “Remember, this is all new to me. I have no idea what a magical object is supposed to look like.”
“Well, this is where it gets tricky,” I said, cautiously glancing at the door that Lydia had walked through to the main part of the shop. The last thing I needed was for her to come back and find me doing a bit of magic. “It’s not like witches can sense when other supernatural beings are around, and the same goes for magical objects. But if we tap into our inner abilities, I might be able to get the slightest hint of an object’s energy, unless it is somehow cloaked. The more powerful an object is, the easier it should be able to detect. At least, in theory.”
“So, it basically comes down to concentration,” Liam said, trying to sum up what I was attempting to do in layman’s terms. “Alright then. This wasn’t how I pictured spending part of your birthday, but there’s nothing wrong with a little improvisation. Work your magic, Raven.”
Actually, let’s not be quite so hasty. No flubbed-up spells, Wonder Witch. Simply close your eyes, hone into the element powers around us, get a sense of…oh, never mind. That’s just malarkey. Basically, relax and attune yourself with the energy flowing around you. Do it until you think you’re going nuts, then you will begin to feel the hum of things around you.
I sighed in resignation, closing my eyes as instructed and doing my best to meditate. I was actually quite good at it after having taken a couple of classes in meditation when I lived in the city. It didn’t take me long to even out my breathing, focusing my attention on draining all the tension from my body. Within a couple of minutes, my heartbeat was steady and I could even hear the faintest murmurs of conversation drifting from the main area of the shop.
There was a drone of quietness that came from being in a place filled with so much history, but nothing was giving off a wave of energy that might indicate that it was magical. I tried again, and then a third time, before utter defeat washed over me.
“It’s not here,” I said, not doing a very good job in keeping my desperation at bay. “Liam, what are we going to do? Tonight is All Hallows’ Eve, when the veil is at its thinnest.” I realized that the thickness of the curtain that hung between us and the afterlife wasn’t the cause of the townsfolk encountering their long-lost loved ones, but it still worried me all the same. “You’re the one who pointed out that we have no idea what we are looking for, and I don’t have a spell for this.”
“If we can just get through tonight without any major ghost encounters that have the residents calling Ghostbusters, the veil returns to normal, right?” Liam asked, trying to put a positive spin on our failed search. He even rubbed my arm in comfort, but nothing was going to take away my uneasiness of having spirits visit their loved ones as if they were simply going on vacation. “Maybe we don’t need to do anything but wait it out.”
The palm of my right hand immediately warmed at the suggestion we do nothing.
Wait just half a witch’s twitch. I might have a brilliant idea. You know, the good ol’ sheriff’s homemade remedy really starts the day off right.
“What idea, Leo?” I asked, not wanting him to get sidetracked quite yet. I was hesitant to even bring up the fact that he hadn’t had a memory blip, as I liked to call it. “I’m at a loss here.”
Hear me out, oh student of mine. I’m pretty sure I saw Skippy using the sandbox at the park to map out the best areas in town for his brothers to collect acorns.
I waited for Leo to reveal his brilliant plan, but he remained silent. I really, really needed to ask Liam about that home remedy for hangovers. It seemed to have given Leo a new lease on life, but I needed him to get back on good terms with the old lease. Skippy was probably using the sandbox as his own personal pantry to get through the upcoming winter months. Leo’s brilliant plan was a few acorns shy of the ultimate squirrel trap blueprint.
It’s not nice to be critical, Raven.
“Um, not to interrupt whatever it is that is happening right now,” Liam muttered, rubbing the back of his neck in wariness, “but it’s only a matter of time before Lydia comes back here to check on us.”
“Leo, what does a sandbox and Skippy have to do with ghosts running around town?”
My nemesis keeps a list.
I waited for a more clearer picture, but Leo provided nothing. Now that I think about it, it was just like Leo to have paid a visit to the tea shop in order to ingest more edibles.
You’re the one who seems to find it hard to follow my train of thought, Raven. We need a list of items that can attract spirits. Once we have that list and can narrow the objects down, we should then be able to cast a locator spell on each object. Mic drop! Is that a brilliant plan or what? You may now call me Professor Leo, Arcane Magister of the Mystical Arts.
I had to admit that Leo did have a great idea. One couldn’t do a locator spell without knowing what item was being sought. Not to split hairs, but we usually needed something that belonged to whom we were attempting to locate, but this was an object. This type of locator spell was completely different than if we were searching for another person.
Genius, right? I know. I know. Speaking of knowing, that good ol’ sheriff sure does know his stuff on hangovers, doesn’t he? I
feel good! So good. I feel good…da da da da da dat!
“Good job, Leo,” I commended, not looking forward to when Leo had another crash. He was actually singing, and Leo never sang aloud. Of course, he was messing up the lyrics, but it was easy to distinguish the song. “Why don’t you head back to the tea shop for your morning nap? I’ll be there momentarily, and we can then work on that list together.”
Leo was still humming as he walked toward the exit, disappearing from sight right before crossing over the threshold.
“Liam, you told him that old wives tale about hangovers, didn’t you? The one where if you drink a little bit in the morning, it reduces the hangover symptoms? He went back over to the tea shop and ate some more edibles, didn’t he?” I put my hands on my hips in disbelief as Liam’s grin turned into a full-grown smile. “You realize that you only delayed the symptoms, right?”
“Hey, it works. That is, if you allow it to work by getting some rest and hydrating,” Liam replied with a laugh, holding both hands up in defense. “I’ve been to my fair share of poker games. A Bloody Mary usually does the trick, but I wasn’t sure that cats can drink that…so I resorted to the tried and true holistic remedy. Trust me, Leo’s symptoms won’t nearly be as bad as they were first thing this morning, given some time.”
“Holistic remedy? Really?”
“Really,” Liam answered boldly, following me out the door before I could disagree with him. “Trust me. Now, would you like to tell me about this list you’re about to generate? Those one-sided conversations are really hard to keep up with.”
Spirited Blend Page 8
