by Kristie Cook
“If their magick became muted when my mother left, then how can Adam and Callie’s parents still use it to run their businesses?”
“They don’t use their magick, obviously. This is where the Hoodoo comes in.” He took a large bite of his cookie and made several noises that I thought should only be heard in the privacy of a bedroom.
My cheeks heated as my thoughts seemed to cloud with images of him in a bedroom and all the things I could do to him that would make those noises come from him.
“There’s a family here in town that our parents … worked out a little deal with a while back,” Kace said matter-of-factly, oblivious to my dirty thoughts. “That way they could keep up the lifestyles they’d all used magick to create before your mom left. The deal with the Van Rooyens they created is pretty simple, actually … We pay for their services and they provide them, no questions asked.”
“For their services?” I asked, wanting a little more information. “What type of services?” Please don’t say Hoodoo dolls and hexes.
Kace hunkered down a little more so that a couple who’d just sat at the table beside us couldn’t hear. “Spells and stuff—ones to take away sickness, keep a business thriving …” He held up the last remaining piece of his cookie. “Make food to satisfy everyone’s tastes.”
I glanced down at the cookie of mine resting on my napkin. Picking it up, I took a small bite, testing to see if what he said was true. It was pure bliss on my tongue. “Oh wow, this is the best!”
“I know, right?” He grinned.
Nothing Kace was saying sounded so horrible; I didn’t know why I had been so freaked out by it all. Or better yet, why my mom had left when it sounded like she’d had things so good here.
“So, that’s it? You don’t do anything to harm anyone or put hexes on people and stuff?” I asked seriously.
Kace laughed; its rich loudness startled me. “Of course not, why would we? When you have magick to make things go well, there are no negative things that come about. And now that you’re here … well, things can only get better for all of us.”
“What do you mean?” I asked before polishing off the last crumb of the cookie I’d devoured in seconds.
“You’re our fourth. With you here, we’re balanced and we can initiate our group. Then neither our parents nor us will need to pay for services we can do ourselves ever again. You’re the catalyst to this all, Addison, our salvation from being under the Van Rooyen’s thumb any longer.”
Catalyst? Salvation? I wasn’t so sure I liked the sound of either of those two things being associated with me, but I could understand where he and the others might be inclined to think those things. After all, it seemed like me being here allowed them to be free from their dependence on the Van Rooyen’s spells finally. No pressure, though, right?
“Don’t look so scared.” Kace smiled.
“I’m not, I mean … it’s just a lot to take in at once, that’s all,” I lied.
I took another sip of my coffee and left the cup resting against my lips before pulling it away, hiding the fact that my bottom lip was now trembling. What the hell had I gotten myself into by deciding to come here in the first place?
CHAPTER TWELVE - Antsy
“Morning, sleepyhead,” Vera said as I hobbled down the stairs and passed the living room where she sat on the couch with Binks beside her. “I didn’t think you were ever going to wake up.”
“What time is it?” I asked groggily as I rubbed the remaining sleep from my eyes.
“Almost twelve,” she answered. “Did you and lover boy have a good time last night?”
I started toward the kitchen, desperately needing my morning cup of wild berry green tea with just a dash of honey. Had we had a good time last night? I smiled at the thought. Of course we had. We’d talked for nearly two hours at Paisley’s before taking a long walk through downtown and continuing our makeshift date.
“Last night was … interesting to say the least,” I said.
I grabbed a cup from the cabinet by the sink and filled it with water from the tap. Vera walked into the kitchen and leaned against the counter beside me.
“What did you guys do? Go tromping through some woods or something someplace?” she asked with a slight amount of snip to her words.
I glanced at her as I unwrapped my little baggie of tea. “What are you talking about? We went for coffee like I said we were and then we just walked around Main Street.”
“How did you manage to track in so much dirt last night, then?” she asked and then took a long sip of what was probably her fourth cup of coffee today. “There was dirt all over in the foyer this morning when I woke up, like you’d gone for a walk in the mud and then stomped your shoes off as soon as you walked in the door instead of outside. Let me tell you, it was not a fun thing to clean up first thing in the morning, but I didn’t want it tracked all through the house.”
“I didn’t track mud in. I don’t know how that got there,” I said with a frown. “Are you sure it wasn’t sand or something?”
Vera scoffed like she couldn’t believe I was questioning her and walked over to where the trash can stood. She dragged it over to me and lifted the lid. “See, dirt. If there’d been a plant beside the door or something I would have thought your creepy cat had knocked it over, but there isn’t, and I know it wasn’t me, so that only leaves you.”
I glanced in the trash can at the deeply rich-looking soil that was tossed on top of our garbage. It definitely wasn’t sand. It looked like soil from a garden, and there was something red mixed in with it … a reddish powder.
“Huh, well I don’t know. Sorry you had to clean it up, though,” I said with a shrug of my shoulder.
There was no sense in arguing with her. Vera was not one to lose a fight, even if she was wrong. I wasn’t sure how the dirt mixture had gotten in the house, but I knew one thing—that it hadn’t been brought in by me. And considering the amount, I was sure it wasn’t something Binks had done.
“I’m sorry I’m so snippy. Ugh, I feel like I have to get out of this house! My hangover lasted for like a year. Please tell me you don’t have to work today at that incredibly boring job you applied for?” Vera asked as she rinsed out her mug and sat it in the sink.
I chuckled at her as I pulled my tea out from the microwave. “Not today. I start tomorrow.”
“Awesome,” she said, hoisting herself up onto the counter. “Let’s go hang out at the beach all day. I could use some vitamin D and some eye candy.”
“Sounds good to me.”
“Yes! I still haven’t gotten to use my new bikini I bought for this trip yet,” Vera said as she hopped off the counter and bounded toward the stairs.
Binks trotted into the kitchen lazily as soon as she exited. He walked straight to me and began winding though my legs and brushing up against me, meowing.
“Are you ready for some food?” I asked as I bent down and scratched behind his ears. I was answered with a long meow. “All right then, I’ll take that as a yes.” I smiled.
I stood and attempted to walk toward the pantry where I kept his food, but Binks darted in front of me, nearly tripping me. I caught myself, but knocked over the trash can in the process. Everything came tumbling out and scattered across the kitchen floor.
“Aw crap,” I said, staring at the mess with my hands on my hips. “Look what you made me do, you crazy cat,” I said to Binks.
He was huddled in the corner of the kitchen, staring at the trash pile with the hair along his spine raised.
“Guess it scared you more than me.” I grinned at him.
I bent down to pick up the larger pieces of trash, but Binks began hissing and I paused, hand still extended toward the mess.
My eyebrows drew together as I glanced at him. “What’s the matter, Buddy? It’s just trash.”
Pulling the trash can back up into a standing position, I reached for the larger pieces of trash again. This time Binks didn’t just hiss at me, he lunged at me and swiped
at my hand with his paw.
I jumped back. “Geez, what the hell is your problem?”
I was answered with another vicious meow. Binks darted toward the broom that leaned against the wall. Vera must have forgotten to take care of it after she’d cleaned up the mess she’d blamed on me. He began brushing against it lovingly, and I got the distinct impression that he wanted me to use the broom to clean up everything and not my hands. I glanced back at the mess in front of me and decided it wasn’t a bad idea.
“Okay, guess I’ll use the broom then,” I said.
***
After cleaning up the mess in the kitchen the way Binks seemed to want me to, I got changed into my newest lavender bikini and met Vera at the bottom of the stairs. We spent the day at the beach, soaking up the sun and coating our skin in thick layers of sunblock. The day was gorgeous and exactly what I’d needed after all the craziness that had been introduced into my life lately.
As nice as it was to hang out with Vera like I’d intended to during this break, I had to admit there was something off about her. She seemed incredibly antsy and unable to sit still. We’d walked up and down the beach a dozen times in just a few hours. Something was bothering her and I wished she’d just tell me already.
“What is going on with you?” I asked finally, after we started back toward our little adopted piece of sand from another one of her walks she insisted that we go on.
Vera sighed and tugged her long hair free from her hair tie. Combing it with her fingers, she twisted it up into a higher bun on top of her head. “I don’t know. I just have this feeling I can’t shake.”
“What kind of feeling?”
She sighed. “I don’t really know how to explain it … It’s almost like I need to leave here, like if I stay in this town any longer I’m going to burst into flames.”
I laughed at her. “What? That’s crazy.”
“You asked, so I told you. I don’t understand it myself, but I can’t help how I feel.” She frowned. We’d finally reached our beach towels, and Vera bent to scoop up hers. She shook out the sand and wadded it up to tuck beneath her arm. “I’m sorry, Add, but I really think I’m gonna call my mom and see if she’ll meet us halfway. I wanna go home.”
My mouth fell open at her random confession. She wanted to go home? “You’re not serious, are you? What happened to the Vera who wanted to find a hot fisherman fling and have fun before she went off to college?”
She picked up her bottle of sunblock and tossed it into the hot pink polka dot beach bag she’d bought especially for this trip. “I know, I know. I just—can’t explain it.” She shrugged a shoulder and started toward my house without another word.
What the hell? Had I done something, said something maybe, that would have ticked her off? I couldn’t think of anything. Surely cleaning up one small mess of whatever the heck that stuff was wasn’t enough to make her want to leave so soon. I shook out my beach towel and crammed it into my bag, tossing my sunblock on top. I scooped up my bottle of water and started after her.
***
Vera called her mom shortly after we got back from the beach. Two and a half hours later, we sat at the diner we’d found that was halfway for both of us, waiting on her mom to show up.
The car ride had been awkward to say the least. I didn’t get what had her acting this way, but I wasn’t going to fight her on it. If she wanted to go home, then she could go home.
“I’m so sorry I’m bailing on you after only a few days. I don’t know why I felt like I had to get out of there so soon. I just did.” She fumbled with a stray fringe of her jean skirt as she spoke. “I’m not even kidding you when I say that I felt like bugs were crawling under my skin and the only way to get them off was to go home. It was weird.”
“Promise it wasn’t something I did?” I asked.
“Psh, it wasn’t anything you did. I just felt like I couldn’t spend another second in that house or that town. I don’t know where the feeling came from or why … All I know is I had to get out of there.” She leaned her head back against the headrest and rubbed her forehead with her hand. “God, I sound crazy. I’m sorry. Worst case of homesickness ever.” She chuckled, trying to lighten the mood, I was sure. It didn’t help much.
“No, it’s all right. As long as you’re not mad at me for something, then I don’t mind. I mean, I’m sad you’re not staying—we haven’t even gotten to have that much fun yet—but I get it. I think.” I didn’t really, but she seemed to be feeling bad enough about her decision to leave and I didn’t need to make it any worse.
Her mom’s silver minivan pulled into the diner, and Vera perked up some. “There she is, guess I’d better go.”
I got out and helped her gather her things from in the back. An ache began in my chest and made its way up my throat.
“Well, this sucks. I wish you’d stay,” I said.
Vera nodded. “I know, I can’t explain it, Add … I just wanna go home.” Her blue eyes glimmered with tears.
After a tear-filled goodbye, I drove the two and a half hours back to my house in silence with my mind going in circles as I tried to figure out what had happened, what had made my best friend leave so soon. I pulled into the driveway and cut the engine. Glancing up at the darkened house, all I could think of was how ominous it appeared without any lights on.
I headed inside and up the stairs, anxious to change into some PJs and veg out on the sofa with whatever I could find in the fridge and Binks. I’d made it to my bedroom door when a creaking noise at the end of the hall startled me—the door to the stairs that led to the attic had opened all on its own.
My heart pounded in my throat as I slowly crept to the opened door. I slid my hand against the smooth wood and pulled it open farther. Glancing inside, I noticed the red door at the top of the stairs—the one that had been jammed before—was now opened.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN - To Reveal
My heart raced as I continued to stare at the slightly ajar red door from where I stood at the bottom of the steps. Binks appeared by my side from out of nowhere to rub his head against my bare legs while he meowed, what I thought of as some sort of reassurance to me.
“How did that door get opened? It was broken before … The knob was broken,” I said, distinctly remembering how hard Vera and I had tried to open it.
Binks stopped rubbing against me and darted up the narrow staircase.
“Binks, don’t go up there,” I called after him as he disappeared behind the door and into the room. “Of course you aren’t going to listen. Why would you?” I scoffed after him.
There were scary movies with scenes like this in them—with the girl going into some creepy room and finding a monster of some kind or a serial killer lurking within. Either way, it never ended well.
If I’d been smart, I would have let the stupid cat come back down on his own. But I wasn’t smart, and it wasn’t just about the cat. I was curious to see what was behind the only painted door in the entire house. The only door that had been locked. After learning what I had about my family over the last few days, I was sure it would be something of interest behind there.
Before I realized it, my legs were moving and I was halfway up the narrow stairway.
My hand gripped the edge of the red painted door and slowly pushed it opened farther. The room was dark with little to no light filtering in through a circular window. I fumbled along the wall at my left for a light switch. Flicking on the light—which was nothing besides an exposed bulb hung in the center of the room with a short pull chain attached—I stepped farther into the room.
The air was thick and moldy smelling, like it had been sealed up for far too long.
Binks meowed at me from atop a folded white blanket on a table near a pedestal of some sort in the center of the room. Exposed wooden beams, dusty hardwood floors, and bright purple walls made up the basics of the room. The floorboards creaked beneath my bare feet as I made my way farther inside. A thick scent of moldy herbs clung to the air the
farther I went. Glancing around, I found the source of the smell—dried bunches of something hung from the lowest section of the roof. I walked over to them, my eyes trailing every inch of the room as I went.
There were two walls of bookshelves—one filled with books with spines of every color imaginable and the other crammed with little glass jars, Ziploc bags clearly labeled, candles, and crystals galore.
It was a real witch’s room.
I reached out and touched the dried plants hanging from the ceiling. They crumbled upon contact, turning into a fine dust, and a brief scent of rosemary fluttered to my nose.
Pivoting to glace at the rest of the room, my attention was captured by a book sitting in the center of the room atop the pedestal. I brushed my hands together to get off the crushed rosemary and walked to where it stood. Strange symbols clustered into a diamond shape were carved into the brown, leather-bound book’s cover. I traced the first symbol with the tip of my finger. Red and orange flames sparked to life and danced within it. I pulled my finger back, startled, and the colorful flames disappeared, dying down to nothing but the dark color of the leather book once again.
I touched the symbol beside it, which looked like droplets of water chasing each other in a circle, and they began to move beneath my fingertip, slowly circling as they pursued one another in a never-ending chase. They turned a brilliant blue while doing so, and I let out a slight gasp.
“Wow …” I breathed, unable to contain my awe.
I moved on to the next symbol—two little leaves attached together. The moment my finger brushed over them, they became a vibrant green and began shifting from side to side. The last symbol resembled a pinwheel, and it spun in an unfelt wind once I touched it.
“It’s the four elements,” I said aloud. “Earth, Air, Fire, and Water.” My skin tingled as I said the words aloud, and I swore each of the symbols on the book gained more color and moved a little faster.