by Schulte, Liz
“No,” Josephine said. “I thought maybe some shopping. Would you like to come with us?”
“I would love to, but I have the Children’s Hospital Committee meeting and the dinner with the Women’s Club.” Jeanette focused on me. “I am sure we will have plenty of time to get to know one another better. Are you an academic like my sister?”
“No,” I said truthfully. I liked college okay, but I was more than ready to be out of it. “It’s actually my dream to own a bakery.” Josephine kicked me under the table.
Jeanette raised a thin dark eyebrow. “But what will become of it once you are married?”
I bit the inside of my lip, trying to come up with an answer that would be both the truth and not back pedaling on my dream. “I suppose I shall be very busy.”
Jeanette’s cold mask finally cracked and she laughed. “Yes, I can see why you and my sister get along so well. Very busy indeed.” She set her empty coffee cup in its saucer and stood. “I’m sure I shall see you this evening.”
When she was out of earshot, I breathed a sigh of relief. The first obstacle had been overcome. Maybe we could pull this off after all. We spent most of the day shopping and exploring Chicago. It was amazing how different yet ultimately similar the city was. After a few hours of the fast talking rhythm of speech in everyone around me, I started to automatically copy it.
“How shall we spend our evening?” Josephine asked as we walked back toward the greystone.
“There’s someone I know who might be able to help us with our problem of reconnecting to the future.”
She gave me a curious look. “Anyone you know from your time cannot possibly be here now.”
Right, she was human. She wouldn’t understand unless I explained the Abyss to her. I weighed my options. If Olivia was right, then no matter what we did now, it wouldn’t change the fact that Josephine was going to die. So if I told her about the Abyss, it probably wouldn’t make a huge difference.
“You mentioned ley lines before.”
“Yes.” She perked up, talking excitedly with her hands. “The invisible lines that run through the earth and align significant geological, manmade, and cultural items. They also attract supernatural phenomena and disasters. It is a terribly interesting field of study and relatively new. Alfred Watkins has written two books that touch on the subject, but there is still so much to explore. Learning of them gave me the idea that I could contact the future if everything lined up and I did, for here you are.”
At least she mentioned the supernatural. That had to be a good sign. “Do you believe in ghosts?”
She nodded. “I was once visited by Uncle Henry just after he passed. He told me everything would be okay and the key was in the flour tin.”
“Was it?” I asked.
She shook her head. “No, it was quite baffling what other flour tin he could have meant. Jeanette was positive I was dreaming, but I know what I saw.”
“Right.” We walked a bit further. “Do you believe in angels?”
She nodded. “Of course.”
“Great, how about monsters?”
She frowned. “Are you feeling well, Maggie?”
“Um, yeah, I’m fine. I know these questions seem strange, but there’s something I need to tell you, but I’m not sure how to do it.”
“And it has to do with the spiritual world?” I nodded. “Well, don’t beat your gums, just get right to the point. That’s the best way to give bad news. Otherwise the message could get lost in the words.”
I drew in a deep breath. “There’s a supernatural world parallel to this one—though sometimes they overlap. That’s how I can know someone who is alive both now and in my time. Everything I asked you about is real. In fact, I am pretty sure what you are doing with the mirror is a form of witchcraft.”
Josephine’s smile grew uncomfortable. “Are you quite mad?”
I shook my head. “I promise I’m telling the truth. If you can use a mystical ley line to reach through time and space and pull people through it, don’t you think there could be a lot more going on in the universe than you are aware of? Heck, in my time there is technology that would seem like magic to you. There is so much in the world that has yet to be discovered.”
She was quiet for a couple blocks. “What exactly are we talking about?”
“Ghosts and angels and vampires and demons and jinn. You name it, it’s there.”
Her eyebrows rose again. “And do you have some sort of proof you could offer?”
Coming up with something to convince her wouldn’t be hard. It was not scaring her that would be difficult. Would she think I was evil if I showed her my red eyes? She was the only way I had to get home. Turning her against me now would be horrible. “I don’t want to scare you.”
“I want to see,” she said. “If I don’t witness it with my own eyes, I will forever doubt you. It’s the only way to be sure that you are not completely bonkers.”
I nodded. Fair enough. “I’ll show you inside.”
We made a beeline for her office where she shut and bolted the door. “I’m ready.”
I poked around on her desk until I found a letter opener that looked sharp enough. I steeled my nerves. I hated these demonstrations. I could heal from most wounds, but they still hurt initially.
I held up my hand, then I stabbed the opener through my palm and pulled it out, gasping a little at the shock of pain. I let her watch as the wound closed.
She came closer, inspecting the front and back of my hand, then felt the blood on the knife. “That is remarkable. May I?” She took the opener from me and ran it hard down my palm, making me hiss, and then watched it heal again. “It ties itself back together. There isn’t even a mark.” She ran her fingers over the back of my hand, shaking her head. “I believe you, but what are you? Do you age?”
Well, that was a story in and of itself, and I wasn’t quite ready to dive into all of that tonight. The Abyss revelation was quite enough to handle at the moment. “I was just a normal girl who met an extraordinary man. He opened my eyes to the supernatural world and I was scared. I thought I wanted to know, but ultimately I wasn’t prepared for what I was about to see. Because once you know, really know, there’s no going back. I had a choice: I could live my life in fear and depend on him to protect me, or I could find a way to take care of myself. I chose the latter.”
Josephine’s eyes widened. “You accomplished this transformation on your own? Remarkable. Such independence. I envy you.”
I shook my head. It wasn’t at all as magical as she made it sound. “I found a vampire who was willing to turn me, but halfway through the transformation an angel intervened. Now I am half vampire and half human. My heart beats and I can go in the sunlight, but my vampire half is strong, too strong, actually. Sometimes it gets the better of me.”
She backed away. “Am I in danger?”
I sat on the edge of a chair and crossed my legs, giving her space. “Not at all. I can only feed on dark souls. I don’t know if that is a product of the transformation or if the angel did that on purpose. Regardless, that’s my reality now. I’m no threat to humans. In fact, I try my best to help them.”
Josephine dropped down into the same green velvet chair she’d sat in the night before. “The person you want to find, is it the vampire who changed you? How can a vampire help? Well, I guess, depending on how old he is, he could be quite knowledgeable on many subjects.”
I shook my head. “Not a vampire. I wouldn’t know how to find him even if I wanted to. The man we are looking for is the one who revealed the Abyss to me. He’s a good person—smart and ancient. If anyone alive knows something about time travel, it’s him. Or he’ll know who to talk to about it. He’s our best chance.”
Josephine’s breath was shaky but determined. “Where will we find him?”
Now that was a good question. It wasn’t like there was a phonebook or anything in 1923—though even if there had been, Baker, no doubt, would’ve had an unlisted number
. My mafia knowledge was mostly lacking and I didn’t have Google at my fingertips. “Does O’Banion mean anything to you? The North Side Gang? They wouldn’t happen to have a hangout or you wouldn’t happen to know one of them, would you?”
“You intend to involve criminals in this?”
I shook my head. “Not directly, but Baker worked for him at this period in his life. If we can figure out where they meet, maybe we can find Baker. I just need to talk to him.” A board creaked in the hallway by the door, but Josephine didn’t seem at all troubled by it. She carried on just as she had been.
She scrunched her nose. “I’ve visited a couple of … special clubs. So long as they haven’t been raided, we could try them. They are all on the North side.” A smile eased over her lips. “And why not? A dying woman is allowed to have some fun.”
Chapter 10
We stood outside my bakery, only it wasn’t a bakery. It was a Barbershop—and currently closed. Jeanette had watched us leave the house with a cool, thoughtful expression, refusing to come with us, though Josephine invited her.
“This way,” Josephine said, looking right then left down the empty street before slipping into the alley. She knocked on the bright green door.
It cracked open.
“One-eyed moose,” she said.
The door pushed opened and it was hard not to break into a grin. It was just so cool. I was visiting a genuine 1920s speakeasy!
Inside the entrance, a long narrow hallway, lined with well-stocked shelves, took us toward the front of the building. It looked nothing like my bakery. The bouncer eyed us, but a moment later, a wall swung open and we went through. Two more armed men in suits were in the next room. The hatch in the floor was open, and I followed Josephine down the stairs.
Butterflies danced in my stomach as the sound of laughter and music lifted up from the cellar. “This is fantastic,” I said.
Josephine smiled, already swaying to the music. “I adore dancing.”
The packed room was low ceilinged and smelled like a musty basement mixed with liquor and sweat, but no one seemed to care. Small tables were buzzing with laughter and conversation, and alcohol was flowing. Almost immediately, Josephine was pulled onto the floor by someone she hopefully knew well.
I pushed through the crowd toward the makeshift bar. I had no idea what the drink was that the bartender handed me, but I took it. It was clear and smelled a little bit like gasoline. I took a small drink and it nearly boiled my throat on the way down. I blew out a breath, half expecting to see fire, but recovered quickly enough. When I was sure I wasn’t permanently damaged, I scanned the faces in the room, trying not to linger on anyone long enough for it to appear like an invitation. There was only one man I wanted to talk to tonight.
The longer I went without finding Baker, the antsier I was to leave, but Josephine was still on the dance floor, having the time of her life. And that’s exactly what she should be doing with only a month to live if we couldn’t save her. I resigned myself to having to find Baker another night. I finished my drink with a grimace. Alcohol had certainly improved.
“Hey, doll, looks like you need to wet your whistle.” A man put his arm over my shoulders. “The name’s Alfred.”
I fought the urge to glare at him, while I mentally translated what he said.
“That would be great,” I shouted over the music, giving him a faint smile. He was short (about the same height as me) with round red cheeks and yellowish eyes. Out of habit, I turned with him toward the bar to make sure he didn’t drop anything in my drink. He didn’t look like much, but people kept greeting him as they went by. Maybe he’d have an idea who Baker was and where I could find him.
“First time?” he shouted.
I nodded. “How’d you know?”
“I would have remembered a keen dame like you.”
“Do you come here a lot?”
“Every night.” He winked at me. “I own the joint.”
“Really?” I asked, suddenly more interested in old Alfred. “Maybe you can help me. I’m actually looking for someone.”
Alfred handed me another drink—the same swill I downed before. He must have saved the good stuff for himself. He leaned in close. “Would you like to come up to my office?”
I pulled back gently. There was no way in hell that was going to happen.
He grabbed hold of my arm, his face turning red.
“Hey, baby, what’s a swell tomato like you doing with this palooka?” The voice behind me laughed heartily as Alfred turned his glare to him. Then the anger disappeared from Alfred’s face and he shook hands with the man behind me.
My heart stopped. I closed my eyes as they filled with involuntary tears. It wasn’t him. It wasn’t him. It couldn’t be. I wasn’t that lucky. He wouldn’t be in the first place we checked.
Alfred laughed, half shouting over the music. “Baker, you ragamuffin. Where’ve you been? What do you know?”
I pulled my arm away from Alfred and turned. Then immediately lost all ability to speak. It was him. From his infectious grin to the kindness in his eyes. Nothing had changed. Well, his face was slightly different. A little harder around the edges, and his nose looked like it had been broken more than a few times. I wanted to throw my arms around him. “Baker,” I whispered.
Alfred didn’t hear me, but Baker obviously did.
His smiled faltered for just a moment. “That’s my name, baby. Have we met?” He offered me his hand, curiosity brimming in his eyes.
I put my hand in his and his skin crackled against mine. All air evaporated from my lungs. “God, I’ve missed you.” I couldn’t help it. It slipped out because it was so true. I had missed him terribly.
He blinked and his eyebrows knitted together, but his shock was short lived. He looked back at Alfred as if nothing had happened. As if the earth had not stopped moving and lightning hadn’t just struck between us. “How’d the likes of you get a Moll this fine to come to a juice joint like this? You need a ride home, baby? Ol’ Baker’s your fella. Stay far away from this bimbo and his office, if you know what I mean.”
Alfred slipped his arm around my waist. “This choice bit of calico is mine.” The words and the tone were good-natured enough, but something sinister lined them.
I snorted before I could stop myself. “I don’t think so.” I removed Alfred’s hand from my waist and edged toward Baker.
Alfred’s open palm came flying toward me, but Baker’s hand was faster than mine, catching him by the wrist. “I think it’s time you walk away.” Baker’s smile was hard and unforgiving. “Before I forget my manners.”
“It’s my club.”
“Who provides the gin? I’d hate to have to take you for a ride and find this juice joint a new owner.”
Alfred immediately disappeared into the crowd, his face so red it nearly matched his gaudy tie.
My mind scrambled to keep up with what they were saying. “Did you just threaten to kill him?”
Baker’s gaze stayed on me as I watched Alfred walk, making sure he got far away from me. “Welcome to Chicago. He won’t bother you again tonight, but don’t come back here,” he finally said. “It’s best if you stick with me the rest of the evening.”
I finally looked back at him, expecting the mischievous grin that promised there was fun to be had. Or the softness he always had around me. That wasn’t what I got, though. His jaw was hard and his eyes were filled with deadly intent as he stared down at me.
“But before any of that, you best tell me how you know who I am, before I’m forced to take drastic measures.”
My mouth fell open.
“I don’t like hurting dames, but that doesn’t mean I won’t do it. Start talking. Who sent you?” he growled.
I shook my head. “No one. I came to find you. Baker—”
“You see, baby, you keep sayin’ my name like you know me, but ol’ Baker here has a hell of a good memory and I’d never forget gams like those or a face like that. So one more time be
fore I lose my temper, who sent you and what do they want?”
My heart sank. I didn’t know what I thought would happen when I found him. Maybe I expected that he’d feel our future even if he didn’t understand it. At the very least, I’d assumed he’d give me the benefit of the doubt, but now even that didn’t seem likely, given his reaction to my knowing his name. I stood on my tiptoes and leaned in close, resting my hands against his chest. “I know what you are,” I whispered in his ear. “And I need to talk to you, but not here.”
Though I didn’t think it possible, his shoulders hardened even further. “Do I look like a pushover? You don’t know anything. Get out of here before I change my mind and let Alfred have you.”
“Chol.” That was all it took for the dam to break. Baker grabbed my arm and dragged me to the stairs. I stopped, refusing to be taken further, before he got me to the door. He glanced back, shock clear on his face as I jerked my arm from his grasp. I may not have looked it, but my vampire half was strong. “No.” I wanted to talk to him, but I wasn’t leaving Josephine in this place.
Baker stalked toward me. “You wanted my attention? Well, you have it. I will pick you up and carry you out if you do not come with me now.”
I shook my head. “If you try, you’ll be humiliated in front of everyone. I don’t go anywhere I don’t want to go, even with you. I do want to speak with you, but I came here with a friend and I won’t leave her. Find her and we’ll all go together.”
“Which one is she?” he asked.
“The human in a red dress with black hair.”
He gave me a double look. “The human?” He shook his head, then scanned the room until he spotted her. He leaned in close (he still smelled the same). I rested my hand lightly against his shoulder. “Don’t move a muscle,” he said into my ear.
After a few minutes, he was back, holding a smiling, laughing Josephine by the arm. She had a drink in her hands and a cigarette between her fingers.
“Maggie,” she called, tossing back the rest of her drink and putting out her cigarette before throwing her arms around me. “Have you met Baker? Isn’t he swell?”