Maslow's Needs

by Sheri Gilmore

  She hoped Aunt Mae didn’t find out she’d dabbled in witchcraft. The old woman already swore Jessi was headed straight for hell because she’d divorced her husband ‑‑ a hard-working, God-fearing man ‑‑ and worked at a job that traditionally belonged to men. No one had wanted to hear how that same husband had beat her up every chance he’d gotten, because she had forgotten to buy his beer, or hadn’t scrubbed the bathroom just so.

  “Good. First, we have to take a bath.”

  Konstantinos’s voice brought her back to the situation at hand. “What?”

  “To purify or clear away some of the daily negatives we’ve accumulated.”

  She nodded. Seemed like she remembered that in his book.

  “I’ll run our water.”

  He stood, then moved toward the hall, but she grabbed his arm.

  “Our? Oh, no, buddy boy. I’m not taking a bath with you.”

  “It will save time.” He looked over at the stove clock. “It is already past three o’clock.”

  “So?” Jessi crossed her arms and angled her head. She’d give him an “A” for originality. She’d never heard that excuse before.

  He sighed. “The optimal psychic quiet time.”

  When she didn’t respond, he looked like he wanted to strangle her. Instead, he continued in a soft voice, like he was trying to explain how to do something to a child. Jessi refused to get upset. She truly didn’t understand this stuff. She listened to his words and the hypnotic quality of his voice.

  “The hours of three to five in the morning are the best times to perform magick. The nocturnal ether helps to maintain your circle. It is the substance you will be using to mold your spell.”

  “W-Wait.” She stood straighter. “I thought you were doing the spell, not me.”

  “It’s your protection spell. You have to do it ... with my help.”

  “I’m not a witch.”

  “Doesn’t matter. I can show you step-by-step what to do.”

  She watched him turn and stride into the hallway. The sound of the bath water erupted into the stillness of the early morning. She puffed up her cheeks and blew the air out, slowly, then bit her lip, not sure if she could go through with this. She had to perform the magick, not him. She frowned.

  The sound of running water stopped; Konstantinos didn’t step back into the hallway for several minutes. She hoped he’d decided to bathe without her. A lump formed in her throat, and she swallowed what she knew was nervousness at the unknown. Everything came down to what she could accept to be real. Did she believe in magick? Were there really witches and vampires?

  Her mind conjured the lifeless form of the murdered victim ‑‑ her cousin. The muscle in her jaw tightened.

  “Jessi, everything’s ready. I went ahead and performed the banishing rite.”

  Jessi looked at the ceiling, but saw no divine inspiration to tell her what to do. She looked back at him, bit her lip, then sighed. “Okay, Aunt Mae, I guess I’m about to find out if I’m going to hell, or not.”

  With those whispered words, she took a step toward the unknown.

  Chapter Seven

  The bathroom felt smaller with Konstantinos’s large frame standing behind her. Candles were lit and positioned around the space, and the overhead lights were off. The atmosphere smacked of intimacy.

  “Um, I can’t do this.” She shook her head and stepped back, bumping into him, like a brick wall.

  “We’ve already discussed this.”

  “No, you discussed this.”

  “I’ve seen a woman’s body before. Many times.”

  “I just know you have.” She turned to him. There was no way around him. His body took up the entire space that served as an entrance. “You haven’t seen me, though.”

  He grinned. “There’s always the first time for everything.”

  She smiled and stepped closer to him. The heat from his body radiated in strong waves across her skin. Jessi put her hands on his chest. She watched his eyes narrow, then his grin intensify.

  His stance relaxed, and she took the advantage. With her feet planted, she shoved him hard. He staggered back into the hallway. She slammed the door in his surprised face and turned the lock.

  “Jessi.”

  “I’ll be out in a second.”

  “You need me to instruct you.”

  “I’m twenty-eight. I think I know how to bathe myself.”

  She heard his exaggerated sigh as he leaned against the door.

  “Not this way, you don’t.”

  “You can tell me through the door.”

  “You don’t trust me.”

  It was a statement, not a question. She paused. “I do, but not without clothes. I’ve seen you in action, Romeo.”

  His laugh sounded, warm and deep, through the barrier between them. “Are you naked?”

  His voice had lost the humor and taken on a deeper, seductive tone. She knew she’d done the right thing. He couldn’t help coming on to every female that happened along his path. He was a born charmer.

  “Yes.”

  “Jessi ‑‑”

  “No. It’s not going to happen. We work together.”

  “Temporarily. What about afterwards?”

  Jessi thought of Drayden. Her heart ached. Another man she couldn’t allow to get too close. Their acquaintance was a fleeting piece of time; then she’d return to Hattiesburg ‑‑ alone. She didn’t do casual affairs. “We’re friends, and that’s all it’s gonna be.”

  Silence. “Okay. We’re friends.”

  Jessi slipped into the water, letting the warmth ease into her tired and aching joints. She looked at the gauze on her hands, which left only her fingers free to wash.

  “Um, what do I do?”

  “The water is an energy field. Imagine that field surrounding you.”

  She listened to his voice take on that hypnotic quality he used, and sat back. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and relaxed into the warmth. She pictured her body, but it wasn’t, really. The form she observed was more ethereal than physical. Her skin tingled as the energy field washed around her.

  “Can you see your astral body?”

  “Yes.” Her heart rate increased. She held out her hand and observed a white glow, ebbing and flowing around her whenever she breathed. She really did see it.

  “Okay, look at your astral body for any dark spots that stand out.”

  A few seconds passed while she examined her aura, turning her hands and arms this way and that. “I don’t see anything.”

  “Good. Now, repeat several times, with your eyes closed, ‘I am shielded from all psychic attack; I am protected from all harm.’”

  She closed her eyes and repeated the phrases he told her, feeling the glow tighten around her, like a protective glove. After the third repetition, she sighed.

  “Do you feel clean?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then you’re through.”

  “That’s it?” She couldn’t keep the surprise from her voice. He hadn’t lied. It hadn’t hurt a bit, and she hadn’t experienced anything horrifying except a slight dazed feeling when she’d been studying her aura. She rubbed her forehead where a dull pressure throbbed.

  “For this part, anyway.”

  Jessi smothered a groan. She should have known there was more to this than taking a bath. She stood, and water ran from her body in rivulets. She grabbed a thick towel and wrapped it around her damp skin. After she dried, she slipped her pajamas on. When she opened the door, Konstantinos stood there with one arm propped on the frame, shaking his head.

  “My turn.” He moved to pass her. “Go get a glass of milk and eat something while you watch television. Don’t think about what just happened. Okay?”

  She nodded.

  * * * * *

  He joined her several minutes later, sitting on the sofa next to her. He took her hand in his. Jessi turned from the infomercial and stared down at their entwined fingers. She frowned.

  “You okay?”r />
  His voice sounded miles and miles away. Her gaze traveled up to his face. A buzzing sound filled her ears, and she blinked to keep him in focus. His mouth moved, but she couldn’t understand the words. She watched him raise his hand in front of her face in slow motion.

  He snapped his fingers.

  She jumped, then looked around. “W-What happened?”

  He shrugged. “I brought you back.”

  “From where?” Why did she feel hazy?

  He smiled. “You didn’t eat, did you?”

  “No.” She shook her head. “There’s nothing in the fridge except the leftover pizza I was eating earlier.”

  “During the ritual, you were in an altered state of consciousness, like a person under hypnosis. To help bring you out of that state, you need something ordinary to do, like eating.”

  “You hypnotized me?” She sat forward, not believing he’d done this to her.

  “Calm down.” He pushed her back into the cushions. “You did it yourself. The thought processes needed for the cleansing and protection rite, or any magick, require you to think beyond the norm.”

  “So, magick’s not real. It’s just a figment of the imagination.”

  He picked up what was left of her cold pizza and took a bite. “Oh, it’s real. It just requires imagination to work.”

  “So, I’m protected now? Just from a bath?”

  “That was the cleansing rite. You need to settle back and get comfortable.”

  “Why? What are you going to do?”

  “Nothing.” He shook his head. “You are going to picture your astral body again, but this time with spikes extending outward to ward off any psychic attack that comes your way.”

  Jessi leaned back and closed her eyes, taking several deep breaths to relax.

  “Now, picture your astral body.”

  She did, but this time the white glow came quicker to mind. “Okay.”

  “With each exhalation let the glow expand until it reaches two feet away from you.”

  She exhaled and watched the glow extend, again and again. When it had reached the designated two feet, she breathed in and held her breath for a second. When she exhaled this time, the shield stayed in place.

  “Good. You need to picture needles extending all around the shield, like a porcupine.”

  “Hmm, got it.” She kept her eyes shut, and the aura glowed brighter. “I am protected; I am shielded.”

  “Good.”

  The surprised note in Konstantinos’s voice scratched the edge of her consciousness, but she didn’t stop her visualization. Next, she focused on the needles growing into long spikes.

  “You should be seeing spikes right about now.”

  “Yeah.”

  “Repeat three times, ‘These spikes shall repel all harm, by day and night.’”

  She did as he instructed, seeing the spikes all around her embedded into the white glow of her aura. A sense of peace and security passed through her. She smiled.

  “That’s it. Let the shield come back to your body, but know the spikes are there to protect you whenever your psyche feels threatened.”

  “Okay.” Her aura shrank to resemble the outline of her body, then faded altogether. She opened her eyes to find Konstantinos staring at her with a look of pride.

  “You’re a natural. You knew what to do without my help.”

  “I wouldn’t say that.” A rush of pleasure encased her at his words. Warmth crept up her throat into her face. It wasn’t often she heard praise from a man, at least not for her capabilities.

  He handed her a piece of cold pizza and a can of soda. “Eat. We have work to do.”

  She bit into the hardened crust that tasted like cardboard, taking a gulp of soda to wash the unsavory meal down. “Like what?”

  “Grocery shopping, for starters.” He threw the pizza crust back into the box. “This is pitiful.”

  Jessi laughed. “I like you.”

  “I like you, too.” His shoulder bumped hers in a playful thump. “Sure you just want to be friends?”

  She bumped him back. “Positive.”

  He shrugged. “Ah, well, I tried.”

  * * * * *

  Grocery shopping wasn’t all they did that morning. Jessi held the cropped burgundy velvet top up to herself and grimaced at her reflection. The sight of her new hairstyle caught her eye. “Good God, what have I done?”

  Her long chestnut-colored hair hung loose around her face ‑‑ darkened now to black with burgundy highlights. She swallowed, wondering what Drayden would think of the “new” her. She quickly squashed that thought and focused on her disguise. Konstantinos had sworn this was the “in” goth look. She’d be able to enter any of the clubs without being conspicuous in her normal attire of jeans and tennis shoes.

  When she’d continued to debate the issue, he’d turned her around to face the mirror. “Look at yourself. You are a one-hundred-percent prime goth babe. The killer will be coming after you instead of vice versa.”

  She fingered the ends of her hair. The texture was soft and silky. She studied her complexion ... the color brought out the smoothness of her skin. She’d always wanted long black hair when she was younger. Now, she had it.

  “Not bad, Detective Tanner. Not bad at all.”

  She looked at the leather skirt they’d bought, and her doubts resurfaced. She didn’t have much experience wearing skirts and fishnet hose. Her new boots were several inches high, too. She hoped she could pull this off without breaking her neck.

  “I’ll find out soon enough.”

  She glanced at the clock, which read nine-fifteen. Konstantinos had told her to meet him at Club Arcadia at ten-thirty. Picking up her new thong underwear, she headed to the shower, determined not to be late. She planned on turning up some leads tonight in this case, one way or another.

  Chapter Eight

  Jessi glanced at her watch. Eleven o’clock. Where the hell was he? She hugged her arms tighter around her middle. The moisture from her breath produced a fine vapor in the cold air. Moving her legs and stamping her feet, she tried to generate some warmth in her feet and legs. The frost of the night bit into her skin through her fishnet hose.

  “Fuck this.” She glanced at her watch one more time. “I’m going inside.”

  A couple entered in front of her. A blast of music assailed her ears; she was grateful for the warmth of the club’s interior. The same girl from her last visit checked their coats.

  Jessi took her stub and slipped it into the tiny pocket in the side of her skirt. She released a sigh of relief when the girl didn’t recognize her. Her confidence increased at the thought that her disguise had been worth the trouble. She needed to blend so she could try to gather some pertinent piece of information that might lead her to the killer. She’d have to watch her drawl for sure. The times Konstantinos had taken her out to the various clubs, she had listened to the accents around her. If she kept her discussions brief, she might be able to pull her illusion off. She intended to get into Drayden’s office tonight, too. How, she hadn’t quite figured out. There had to be files on these people.

  Inching her way forward through the heavy throng of people, she headed for the bar. Ten minutes later, she crawled onto a stool to face the bartender. This guy was definitely not Drayden Maslow. She breathed a sigh of relief. Her luck must be holding.

  Blue hair hung down the guy’s back, but on top of his head he wore a Mohawk dyed red and black. Jessi tried not to let her surprise and horror show in her expression. She smiled. “Hi.”

  She had to yell over the din of voices and goth music. DJs worked at the edge of the dance floor, spinning tunes. She recognized a couple of the groups ‑‑ Type O-Negative and Sisters of Mercy ‑‑ from her previous outings with Konstantinos.

  A new song began, which she didn’t recognize, but liked the beat.

  “What’s that group?”

  The bartender studied her for a second. “Torrent Vaccine.”

  She snapped her fingers.
“Oh, yeah. That’s right.”

  She hoped he bought her act of forgetfulness. Truth told, she’d never heard of the group before. The goth music she’d heard over the last week sounded loud and angry ‑‑ not the soothing tones she usually listened to back home.

  “Seraphim Shock will be here next week.” He wiped a glass, then held it up to the dim light.

  “Great!” Who? “I’ll have to make sure I’m here.”

  The bartender jerked his chin up. “Whadaya have?”

  Hell. She hadn’t thought about drinking. “Club soda.”

  She had to give the bartender credit. His only response was a lift to his heavily pierced eyebrow before he loaded a glass with ice cubes, filled it with soda, and slid it to her. He leaned on his elbows toward her.

  Jessi took a sip of her drink and let her glance peruse the crowd. She could feel his interest, like a physical touch. She barely prevented a visible shudder.

  “Nice outfit.”

  “Um.” She missed the edge of the glass, and soda spilled down onto her skirt. “Thanks. You got a napkin?”

  When he handed her the napkin, she inched off the stool, deciding it was time to mingle. He wasn’t bad-looking, but he didn’t quite meet her standards. And would those standards revolve around a certain six-foot-four vampire? She kicked her subconscious and argued the fact.

  Just because the man can rock my world with a kiss, doesn’t mean jack. But it sure as hell helps. She groaned, knowing she couldn’t win a losing battle. She wanted Drayden Maslow on a gut level she’d never experienced, whether he happened to drink other people’s blood or not.

  Ugh. She shook her head, not sure she could accept that aspect of these people’s lives. Aunt Mae would have a field day with this assignment, even if she found her cousin’s killer. In the Bible Belt, everything was either “good” or “bad.” Nothing gray or in-between. Jessi could feel the flames growing hotter and hotter.

  She weaved her way to the two lone pool tables squeezed into an area off to the side of the stage, like they had been an afterthought. A second, smaller bar stood vacant in the corner of the space. She eased over and found a stool, turning her body so she could watch the dance floor and the players.