Seeing Witchy Things

by Leigh Raventhorne

  Just as I finished tending to the rug with the bloodstains, I heard the dogs bark and saw a newer white Dodge Ram truck pull up to the front of the house. It occurred to me that Jeremy wouldn’t be able to see or hear Rand or Jake, so to him, it would appear that only Toby was out there to greet him.

  By the time I got out there, Rand had called Toby and Jake away from the truck, but Jeremy still remained seated inside it. Not that I could blame him. “Hi guys! Thanks for coming,” I told them, going over to Jeremy’s side. Gloria had already jumped out and was off to greet her buddy. “It’s safe to get out, Jeremy. Toby’s really well trained. As soon as you’re ready, I’ll call him over to meet you. We have a routine to introduce friends, and then you’re good with him.”

  He nodded, but his crow kept showing every time his head turned toward Toby. “If you say so, Ms. Roxanne.”

  “Toby, come meet Jeremy.” He whined, probably over being called away from Gloria, and obediently trotted over to me. “Toby, friend. Meet Jeremy. Hold out your hand and relax, Jeremy.” Toby sniffed his hand and sat down beside me. Gloria came over, gave me a quick hug, and the three of us went inside, much to Jeremy’s relief.

  “I thought you was gonna shift and fly away, Boss,” Gloria teased, as we walked through the door. If I had to place her accent, I would probably guess New York. “Toby’s a good boy. Helluva tag player, too. He’s not mean.” She stopped and looked around as she slowly removed her sunglasses. “Whoa. Look at this place, will ya?!”

  “Pretty impressive, isn’t it? Just wait until you see the rest of it!” I led them to the front parlor where Aunt Stella awaited their arrival. “Aunt Stella, this is Gloria Jackson. You already know Jeremy Crow, I know.”

  Stella stood up and shook hands with each of them. She looked Gloria over, a welcoming smile on her face, before turning her attention to Jeremy and covering his hand with both of hers. “Jeremy, it’s been too long since I’ve seen you! How have you been?”

  “Jeremy good, Madam Devraux, he good. You be pleased t’ know dat many a shifter is benefit by yer magicks, dey is. Spirits, too. Gloria here, all way from New York, she is. We all be at yo’ service, Madam. You jus’ tell ole Jeremy what you needs.” I don’t know what was more funny, the fact that Jeremy switched back and forth between referring to himself in first person and third person, or that I understood him so easily.

  “Thank you, Jeremy, you’re always so kind! Please, would you sit?” Stella reached over and rang the bell.

  “You rang?” I asked, doing my very best attempt at Lurch. We all laughed at that. Even Gloria. “And here I thought you’d be way too young to have seen the Addams Family.”

  “Oh, my goodness, I’ve forgotten already!” Stella admitted, embarrassed.

  “Yeah? Well, thank you, Roxie, but I think you’re mistaken about my age. We shifters age differently than—other people. I’m probably as old as your mother.”

  “Ha! Doubtful, but we’d better talk about that another time . . .”

  Zara jumped up onto Stella’s lap from wherever she had been. Stella’s eyes lit up when she looked at Gloria again, probably Seeing her poodle side through the familiar.

  “Will Madam Devraux tell Jeremy how dees people get here in de firs’ place?”

  Stella returned her attention to Jeremy, shaking her head sadly at the question. “Because I’ve become an old fool, Jeremy. There is no other answer but that. You knew the Smythes. When they retired I didn’t know who to hire to replace them, but I knew I was unable to care for all of this—” she made a sweeping gesture, “—by myself. My tenant at my old shop in town, you know the one, recommended them to me. I took her word for it and, well, look where we are now.”

  “Oh sheet, oh sheet, Jeremy has to say it. Dat Margo woman sell differ’nt kind o’ herbs dan Madam Devraux did der. Bad herbs an bad magicks. She no good. She set Madam Devraux up, she did.”

  Astonished, I asked, “Like drugs? Do you mean to tell us that Aunt Stella’s tenant is selling drugs out of her store, and that she purposely sent those idiots here to do what, rob my aunt?” I didn’t know enough to ask what bad magicks could possibly be.

  “Jeremy ‘fraid so, Ms. Roxanne.”

  “So Boss, maybe you should have some of the boys pay this person a visit?” Gloria said this so nonchalantly, I wasn’t sure what to think. She seemed so sweet. Hopefully, she was joking.

  All eyes turned to Stella at that suggestion. “I fear that you may be correct.” She looked heartbroken at the thought.

  Jeremy just nodded his head several times, but said nothing. Everyone was silent for a few long seconds. Then he stood up. “Jeremy should go, he should. Ms. Roxanne, you calls Jeremy if you needs anyt’ing.” He gave a small bow and kissed Aunt Stella’s hand, surprising me yet again. I walked with him out to his truck so Toby wouldn’t scare him.

  “Thank you, Jeremy.” He nodded his head only once. He looked furious.

  As I watched him pull away, Rand walked over to me, both dogs at his side. “What’s up with him?”

  I told him what Jeremy and Stella had discussed and he looked down the drive, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

  “What? Do you know something I don’t?”

  Turning back to me, he replied, “I know that look. I’ve seen it dozens of times when I was in the service. It doesn’t generally bode well for someone.”

  Now it was my turn to look down the drive, even though Jeremy’s truck was surely out to the road by now.

  “There’s not much we can do about it now. I’ve got a lot to figure out in the house and dinner to cook. You coming in?”

  Jake woofed and flopped down on his side. Rand nudged him with his foot. “Yeah, we’ll come in, but I think Jake and I will be taking the rest of the day off. We’re out as soon as we cross. Just holler if you need me. I can make it back, but I think Jake is done for a couple days.”

  Gloria decided she wanted to help me with dinner, so I gave her a list of everything I needed and we started going through the cupboards and pantry. Zara tagged along, sitting on top of one of the cupboards, watching us gather everything. Toby was tired from playing outside with Rand and Jake so he stayed in the library with Stella, his head resting across her feet as he napped.

  The walk-in freezer was unbelievable. There were all sorts of hanging meats, a variety of cheeses, frozen rolls of dough, and several racks of what appeared to be meals that were already prepared, all neatly packaged and labeled. Nearly half of one shelf was filled with buckets of premium ice cream. Picking one of the meals up, I read the label. Étouffée from Atchafalaya Restaurant. There were several of them. Looking through some of the others, there were gumbos, soups, puddings, casseroles—all from various cafes and restaurants. They were dated within the last two weeks.

  Paulette couldn’t cook to save her life. Zara sounded far more serious than she normally did. Turning, I saw her sitting in the doorway to the freezer.

  Not wanting Gloria to know I was talking to the cat—she didn’t know my aunt was a witch, yet, nor what Zara was and there was no way I wanted to scare her off her first day—I answered her telepathically. Did Aunt Stella know? She said everything was made from scratch.

  No. It wasn’t important and Paulette used the extra time to go through more rooms. It worked out. At least the rooms got a thorough cleaning. The familiar’s tail twitched in agitation.

  I see. Well, I guess meals wouldn’t be an issue for a little while. It looked like there were at least three weeks worth of easy meals here. As I rummaged through, I even found several breakfasts. There were a couple labeled sausage gravy and biscuits.

  Ooh! That one’s a favorite of Stella’s. I’m glad there are a few left. I don’t suppose you know how to make a good sausage gravy?

  I do. I make a pretty mean milk gravy, too. Zara sat up straighter at that, licking her lips.

  Grabbing a couple of frozen rolls of bread dough for garlic bread, I closed up the freezer and went back out to start the sauce.
With help from Zara, I found the wine refrigerator, ingeniously disguised as a cabinet, and picked out a nice red to go into the sauce. The rest could be served with dinner.

  Gloria asked questions about every step, helped stir the sauce while I prepared the stuffing mix for the shells, and was thrilled to help stuff the manicotti shells when they were ready. Zara kept a running commentary, as well, adding her two cents about everything from how much seasoning I used to whether I made enough filling for the shells. By the time the bread was done, the shells were ready to go in the oven, and my head was nearly spinning.

  Zara was able to point me toward the china and we finished setting the table just minutes before I pulled the manicotti out of the oven.

  I’ll let Stella know dinner is ready. She’s fallen asleep in the library. Being on her guard for so long while those idiots were here drained her. It’s good she feels she can relax enough to sleep anywhere other than her room, now. As much as I hate to admit it, that dog of yours may have been helpful with that.

  “Thanks for showing me all of that. If everything tastes even half as good as it smells, it’ll be amazing!” Gloria’s enthusiasm over the food brought me back from Zara’s comment. “Why don’t you guys sit and eat while I serve everything.”

  “No, Gloria. You and I will bring everything to the table and we can eat together. If you are going to stay on to help, we eat our meals together, as a family.”

  Gloria was silent as we carried the food into the dining room. She looked out of doors leading to the terraces. “I think I’m gonna like it here.”

  I bumped her shoulder with mine, smiling. “Oh, just wait until you pick out your room!”

  Dinner was a huge hit. Gloria didn’t even question the fact that Zara had her own place and plate at the table, taking everything smoothly in stride. Not long after we cleaned everything up and had the dishes loaded into the industrial size dishwasher, Stella retired for the evening. Thank goodness Gloria had already fed Toby and taken him out for a quick run, because I felt like I had put in a full day. Checking my phone, I saw that I had missed Sam’s return call. I sent her a short text, letting her know everything was okay and I would call her tomorrow.

  Chapter 18

  “We should look at rooms for you to settle in, Gloria.” Her bags had been tucked into the laundry room until we had a chance to consider where she would sleep.

  “Would you mind if I looked at the rooms on the other side of the laundry? Madam Stella mentioned it earlier.”

  Since I hadn’t seen them yet, either, we bypassed the laundry and her bags to explore the Smythes—and Paulette’s—former living quarters. Toby and I stayed back while Gloria entered the room, letting her check everything out first.

  “It’s perfect!” She was so excited, her whole body was quivering. I kept getting small flashes of her tail wagging in my peripheral vision, which was just disconcerting. She dashed from room to room, inspecting everything.

  The main room wasn’t very large, but it fit a small sofa and chair, coffee table, and there was a flat screen TV hanging on the wall. The windows looked out over the backyard and the river.

  “It’s got it’s own little kitchen!” she squealed, making Toby tilt his head quizzically and woof as he looked around for the source of her excitement, his tail wagging. “And there’s even a bathroom attached to the bedroom!”

  “Well, if you’re happy with it, it’s yours for as long as you want it. If you decide you want one of the rooms upstairs, it’s no trouble to switch. And if you change your mind about working here, I’ll completely understand.”

  “What? No way! I love it here, Ms. Roxanne. And I don’t have to share it. Wait, I don’t have to share it with anyone, do I? I had to share a small camper with two of the other shifter waitstaff at the resort. It was so cramped! Do you think Madam Stella would mind if I shift every once in a while and run around out back with Toby? Do you know if this place is protected like Jeremy’s is? Oh, silly me, of course it is! Madam Stella’s the one that put the protection in place at the resort.” She was talking so fast, her words all ran together. When she stopped for breath, she was panting. It was weirdly doglike.

  My tired brain struggled to make sense of all of it. “Um, no, you don’t have to share it. And please call me Roxie—no Ms., Madam, or anything else. For that matter, why don’t you just refer to my aunt as ‘Stella’. I don’t think she’ll mind if you drop the Madam. So far, it’s just you and I taking care of this place until I can find more help. Go ahead and run around all you want, I’ll let my aunt know and make sure there are no surprises out there anywhere.” Thinking of the ward that kept Rand out, I needed to ask about that first thing. Maybe Zara would know.

  It’s perfectly safe for them to run. Neither have ill intentions toward anyone in the household, so they’ll be fine. Tell the shifter the entire property is protected, but to stay within the boundaries.

  That was good enough for me. Now for the fun part.

  “There’s one more thing, before you make any final decisions, Gloria. I would feel bad not telling you about—”

  “Your aunt?” Gloria interrupted. “That she’s a witch? Totally already knew. Jeremy goes on about her every time she comes to renew the protection spell. He talks to himself—a lot! And shifters have excellent hearing.” She was back to checking out the living quarters, completely unconcerned.

  “Oh, okay.” Maybe this would go better than I’d hoped. “Do you know about Zara, then, too?”

  “The cat?” That got her attention. “What about her? She’s not a shifter, I would know.” She tapped her nose. “She didn’t smell like a regular old cat, though.”

  “She’s my aunt’s familiar.” I waited, trying not to hold my breath.

  “Familiar? That’s really a thing?” she asked, excited. “How does that work?”

  “I don’t really know all the particulars. I’m only a couple days ahead of you for knowing about Zara. And I don’t know how far behind you knowing about my aunt. Zara can communicate telepathically, though, so if you hear her voice in your head, don’t freak out. She’s got a bit of an attitude sometimes, but she’s been pretty helpful overall.”

  An attitude? Pretty helpful? Really? How she managed to convey herself yawning in my head, I had no idea. Thankfully she didn’t explain.

  Gloria’s eyes widened. “That’s her? That is so cool! I’m totally glad I didn’t chase her, now.” She leaned over and whispered, “I really wanted to.”

  I heard that!

  Gloria yelped, immediately covering her mouth in embarrassment.

  “Yeah, you might want to guard your thoughts, if that’s even possible.”

  I helped Gloria bring her bags into her new space and headed up toward my new room, Toby in tow. I suddenly realized I didn’t have any of my own things with me, not even a sleep shirt or fresh clothes for tomorrow.

  You’re what, a size twelve or so?

  I’m a ten, thank you very much! Did that cat ever sleep?

  Only when it’s quiet! And it hasn’t been quiet in months, she lamented grumpily. Anyway, check some of the drawers in your closet. I think there are a few things in there that would be suitable for sleeping. The next bedroom down from yours, on the other side of the stairs, has clothes that might fit you in the closet. Now, if you don’t mind, I would really like to get some sleep.

  Clicking the light switch on in the bedroom she had directed me to, I looked around for the closet, while Toby explored the rest of the room. It was a very nice room, but it didn’t hold a candle to the one I’d chosen. Opening the first door, I found the adjoining bathroom my aunt had mentioned. I think it was called a Jack and Jill bathroom, but I wasn’t positive. I backed out and opened the only other door in the room, fumbling a bit as I found the light switch. Blinking, it took me a moment to register everything. The closet was full of clothes—mens on one side, womens on the other, including several full-length dresses. The built in shoe organizer held dozens of shoes, as well.
If I wasn’t so tired I would have stayed to check all of it out, but I was at the point I could barely keep my eyes open. Pushing through a few things, I grabbed a pair of pants that looked like they might fit and a button down blouse.

  Turning the light back out, I went to my room to get ready for bed. Toby, bless his heart, was fine with the towels I laid down on the floor for him to sleep on. I didn’t bother looking for something to sleep in, barely staying awake long enough to take my outer clothes off and falling into bed. My last waking thought was, if I was this tired after the first day, how would I make it through the next couple weeks . . .

  Toby woke me up far too early the next morning. Blearily, I took care of my morning needs, tried not to think about the fact that I was wearing the same undergarments two days in a row as I threw on the clothes I’d found in the closet, then took him down to feed him and let him answer his own call of nature. I felt guilty feeding him eggs, with a little cooked rice and burger thrown in, this morning. He had eaten the only dog food we’d brought with us the evening before, since we thought we would only be staying for dinner, not the night. Or longer. I’d have to head back to the resort to collect both of our belongings today. Briefly, I wondered if Jeremy would refund the remainder of the month's RV rental, but I immediately felt bad for even thinking that. I had signed a contract; it wasn’t his fault everything had hit the fan here. And it wasn't like Aunt Stella was charging me to stay.

  That reminded me—I needed to discuss everything with Gloria more in depth today. She hadn’t even asked what her pay would be. Heck, I didn’t even know what kind of budget we were working with here.

  As if she had heard me thinking about her, Gloria bounced into the kitchen, cheerfully greeting Toby and I.

  “Good morning! I slept so good last night! It was a dream, having my own room and not having to wait in line for the bathroom. Sometimes I used to have to shift so I could go outside to . . . you know. Do you think Madam Stella, I mean Stella, will really let me stay on?”

  Zara must have been listening in, because she answered for me. Yes, Stella approves of you, so you may stay. We’ll go over your duties and your pay sometime after breakfast. When will that be ready, by the way?