Touch of Light: A Baylee Scott Paranormal Mystery (The Reed Hollow Chronicles Book 1)

by April Aasheim

  “I never fell out of love with your father.” Mother appeared in the corner rocking chair, smoking a cigarette.

  “I know, Mom,” I said, wrinkling my nose. “By the way, how did you get that cigarette, and the coffee, and the Prada purse?”

  “I wished for them, and ‘poof’ they appeared. Neat huh?” She sucked deeply, then exhaled a ring of smoke through her nose. “Thank you for asking.”

  “I suppose lung disease won’t get you in the afterlife. But why did you wish for it? You never smoked when you were alive.”

  “Boredom, I suppose.”

  She took another long drag, and this time I could even smell the smoke.

  “Time stands still for me, but it won’t for you Bay Leaf. You’re going to be thirty soon. In no time at all, you may even pass me up. Do you know how depressing that is?”

  “I do now.”

  She rocked a few moments, the chair squeaking with each roll. I polished the spoons, hoping my silence would dissuade her from staying. It didn’t. “I think I’m having existential dread,” she continued.

  “Since breakfast?”

  “Has it been that long?” She waved her hand and the cigarette vanished. “It all seems so pointless.”

  “Mom?” I said, delicately. “You mentioned that you can tell spirits from humans. Can you visit with any of them? Other ghosts, I mean. Didn’t Mrs. Weatherbee die last week?”

  “That bitch went right into the light. I guess all those years of Hallelujah-ing paid off. I knew I should have been baptized.”

  She leaned forward, resting her chin on her cupped hand.

  “Hey, isn’t that Ella?” Mother vanished from the rocking chair and instantly reappeared by the window, her astral breath steaming up the glass.

  I followed her gaze. “Yes! Oh, dear. I wonder what she wants.”

  Mother disappeared again, this time showing up at the front door just as Ella barged into the empty cafe. The old woman’s eyes flashed in anger as she called out my name, her small fists balled up on her hips.

  I slipped on my gloves to cover the moon ring, and went to face her.

  “You kept Aradia’s ring! You thief!” Ella’s curved finger stopped inches from my nose. I was a foot taller, but I felt somehow dwarfed by her.

  “Aradia?” I searched my mental file folder, trying to nudge out where I’d heard that name before.

  Her beady eyes focused on my hands. “I can see the shape of my ring beneath the silk. You shouldn’t be wearing it. It will serve you right if something happens to you.”

  I tucked my hand behind my back and returned her stare. I might have manners, but I was not going to let anyone treat me with disrespect in my own place.

  “Ella, what are you talking about? Who is Aradia? And what do you mean something may happen to me?”

  “Aradia was a powerful witch from the Old Country who lived centuries ago,” Mother whispered into my ear. “She was the daughter of Diana and there was a large coven devoted to her in Italy. She taught women magick to fight back against the men who had oppressed them.”

  The fire faded from Ella’s eyes. “You really don’t know, do you? Aradia was known as ‘The Dark One.’ She died long ago, but promised to return when the time is right. We can’t let this happen.”

  “The Dark One?”

  I fought back panic as the ring steadily pulsed on my finger. No longer concerned with hiding it, I stripped off my gloves and showed Ella the ring.

  “I put this on. I should have told you, I know, but now I can’t get it off.”

  The small woman lifted my finger, studying the ring. There was power in her touch. Such power that it frightened me. It took my entire resolve to hold steady as she continued her inspection.

  “The rings were created shortly after Reed Hollow was founded, several hundred years ago. The Bog Witches made them out in the woods. Thirteen in all. Most have been lost.” She closed one eye and peered at me through the other. “There is too much magick let loose. Until they’re all accounted for, I can’t be held responsible.”

  I remembered Jax’s story about Bog Witches and curses, and I yanked my hand away. I had studied curses, but I had never been the target of one as far as I knew. I wanted to keep it that way.

  “Do you know anything about the lights in Bog Hollow, over Lake Ogie?”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  I studied her body language as she answered – the way her jaw tightened, the shift of her body weight from one foot to the other, and how she wiped her brow with the back of her hand. She knew something, I was sure.

  “Please,” I pressed. “I can see that you know something.”

  She took a step backwards, wringing her hands. “I need to think.”

  “We found another moonstone on the beach.” I went to my office and returned with the ring, offering it to her. “Whose was this?”

  She snatched it from my hand. “Where did you find this?”

  “At the lake. It was on the beach.”

  “I can’t tell who owned this one. Its uncharged, but authentic. Including the one on your finger, that makes six. We need to find the seven others.”

  “Why?”

  “Because Aradia’s hungry! And she has no problem eating whoever’s available to satisfy her appetite. She will pick the Moonstone Maidens off, one by one!”

  “Moonstone Maidens! I don’t want to be a Moonstone Maiden. In fact, I don’t want anything to do with any of this. If I can get this ring off, I’ll gladly give it back to you.”

  Ella shook her head, peering at me over her wire glasses. “The ring found you. And if you don’t get it off, you’ll be the next victim of Aradia’s curse. Diana be with you. You’ll need it.”

  TWENTY-ONE

  “Aradia: The very first witch. Daughter of Diana and…”

  Lucifer!

  I swallowed as I read the last word.

  Of all the cursed rings in all the world, I had put on one belonging to Lucifer’s daughter.

  I pushed my reading glasses up and read further.

  According to legend, Aradia was born of a goddess and the Devil. She was powerful and restless, and tired of seeing the tyranny of men over women. She descended from the moon to teach mortal women magick so they could fight back against their oppressors. Her covens specialized in magick involving poisons, paralysis, and binding spells.

  She, herself, was detained several times by the Church for heresy, but managed to escape after each capture. Eventually, she disappeared from society, and history, altogether. Her followers were gathered up and burned at the stake.

  I closed my laptop and set it on the pillow beside me. My hands shook, and I interlaced them across my chest to keep them steady.

  “Don’t lose your head, Baylee. That is just a myth. Nothing more. It doesn’t mean anything.”

  I drew my lips inside my mouth, trying to make sense of it all. It seemed that Aradia was only interested in punishing domineering men.

  So why was she taking women?

  Outside my bedroom door, I heard movement. Alex tramped down the hallway, calling for his cats.

  I poured my second – no, third – glass of wine, swished it around in the glass, and downed it in a long slug. As the wine settled, my body began to tingle pleasantly and my mind melted.

  I lifted my hand and looked at the ring. It was beautiful, I had to admit, though gazing upon it for too long brought dread.

  How foolish I was to have put this on!

  I had dealt with strange objects my entire life – I, of all people, knew better than to handle them unprotected.

  My glass was empty so I took the next pull straight from the bottle.

  “Mercy!”

  I caught my reflection in the mirror hanging on the opposite wall. The bottle was poised at my lips. No lipstick. Smeared mascara. Stretched t-shirt. Hat hair. I lowered the bottle in shame and flipped on the television, muting the sound.

  Alex wanted me to let this
go, but I couldn’t. And it wasn’t just for Carrie. If Ella’s warning was right, I could be the next to disappear. I needed to find out more about Aradia, and get the ring off of my finger. But how?

  An old movie played on the box TV. A man and woman were dancing, and he opened an umbrella though there was not a hint of rain. I tapped my thigh along with the beat, as the wine took further hold on me.

  Where did any of us go, I wondered, once we left?

  My attention flitted through those I had lost - Mom, Dad, Carrie, Ryan. One after another. I lifted a limp hand, closed my fist, then opened it again.

  “Poof! Just like that. Someone is in your life one minute, and they’re gone the next. Even after they promise you they’ll never go. Why even bother?”

  “Hey, you still up?” Alex tapped on the door, opening it just enough to show one eye.

  “Does it matter?”

  “Well, I heard you singing. That was singing, wasn’t it?”

  “Was I?” I looked at the wine again. The bottle was more empty than full. Then I glanced back at the TV. “Oh, yes! Mary Poppins is on. A spoonful of sugar helps Dr. Friendly’s pills go down.”

  “You lost me.”

  “Frankly, my brother, I don’t give a damn.”

  “You’re tipsy!” Alex stepped in and took the bottle out of my hand.

  “Give it back,” I said.

  “Or what? You’ll tell Mom?”

  “God no!” I shivered. “She’d tell me that drunk women don’t get husbands. And then I’d tell her, neither do dead women! Now, give me that bottle back.”

  “You’re not a nice drunk, are you?” Alex stepped in front of the TV, holding the wine bottle out of reach. “I gotta play the big brother card. Sorry, Bay.”

  He went into my bathroom and dumped the contents into the sink.

  “Wine hangovers aren’t fun, if you remember how Mom looked on Sunday mornings. You’re going to want some aspirin handy, and plenty of water.”

  I raised my hand.

  “Did you know that grapes quickly turned to wine in ancient Rome because they lacked…hic!...refrigeration. The Romans drank wine every night! Did any of them complain about hangovers? Nope. They were all too busy taking baths and conquering new lands. Meanwhile, I’m stuck here, trying to forget about the past while wondering how to get this stupid ring off my finger.”

  My brother sat on the edge of my bed, then lifted my head and fluffed my pillow. He covered me up to my chin, leaving my hands free above the blankets, just as he had when we were kids.

  “I love you, Alexander,” I said.

  “Please never call me that.”

  He brushed the moonstone with his finger. I hadn’t told him about my earlier conversation with Ella, though I was sure he’d overheard.

  “The lights came and went, and you’re still here,” he said. “If you were cursed, you’d have gone with them. We’ll get this thing off you, I promise. But I need you to be that sober, level-headed girl you’ve always been, okay?”

  “I’m boring,” I sighed. “Just like Dad.”

  “No, not just like Dad. He had as much personality as the fish he caught, God rest his soul. You have tons of personality, more than those gloves and froufrou hats can contain sometimes. But you are very level-headed. You were the glue that held this family together, before our parents passed away… and after.”

  “What if the lights come back?” I asked.

  “Then we’ll deal with it then. I think you’re in the clear for a while.”

  “I thought they only came during a full moon, but this time, they came just before.”

  I lowered my eyes and tried to consider the logistics.

  “If the lights come back during the Christmas season, we’re screwed. I can’t disappear then. It’s our busiest time of year! And if we don’t save this place before the new year…”

  My brother laughed. “I appreciate your enthusiasm in helping me out around here, but I’m guessing there’s more on your mind than just saving The Aunt-Tea-Query.”

  I wriggled out of the covers, sitting up against my headboard. Alex inched back so that we were eye to eye.

  “Dad and Ryan both disappeared,” I said. “Here one day, gone the next! Are they connected? I don’t know. You tell me.”

  “I uh…”

  “And Mom died and somehow came back! She haunts me, Alex. I’m haunted by the ghost of my own guilt-inducing mother. The other day she grilled me on why I never asked her to volunteer at my school when I was a kid. She claims I was embarrassed by her.”

  “In fairness, you were.”

  “Yes! But she didn’t know that then. It was my little secret. And now she has eons of time – eons, Alex! – to contemplate how I failed her as a daughter.”

  “Thanks for taking one for the team,” Alex said. “I’m just glad I can’t hear her. I gotta admit, it’s a relief knowing she’s still around, though. I don’t want her visiting me like she does you, but I’m glad she’s still part of our family.”

  “I’d rather have a pet.”

  “Can I interest you in a black cat? I know where you can get one, cheap.” He laughed at his own joke, though his smile went lopsided. “What else is on your mind?”

  “Carrie,” I admitted, sighing. “I let her disappear out of my life without a fight. In fact, I let everyone go without a fight.”

  “Not me.”

  Alex folded his hands on his lap and stared at the wall, a wisp of hair falling across his face.

  “After my fiancé took off with my best friend, I learned how unpredictable life can be. We can’t control everything, and I don’t think we’d want to. We can either accept the hand life gives us, or end up bitter. Don’t end up like that, Bay Leaf. It’ll rot your gut faster than that wine.”

  I tapped his hand lightly twice, as close as I dared to offering him consolation.

  “I just want a normal life. No curses. No rings. No…” I lifted my hands and turned them over, “gifts.”

  “We’ll never be normal; you know?”

  “I can dare to dream.”

  “The point is, our lives are going to be different than people who still have their parents, and can’t read objects or talk to animals. You pretend you left Reed Hollow because of the mean girls and the small-town gossip, but you’re stronger than that. You left because you didn’t want to live a normal life. You wanted adventure. You still crave it, secretly. I’ve always envied that about you.”

  I looked at him, my bottom lip quivering. I patted the headboard and he joined me sitting up against it, so that I could lean my head on his shoulder.

  “I’m sorry I left you,” I said. “Staying here with Mom and Dad couldn’t have been easy.”

  “I had my cats,” he said.

  “Yes. You had your cats.”

  He picked up the remote and turned the volume up on the TV. The opening credits for The Sound of Music came on. We both smiled.

  “Wish I’d made popcorn,” Alex said. “This reminds me of when we were kids. Us, curled up on the couch together, watching your old crappy movies.”

  “My movies are not crappy.”

  “But they are old.”

  “Quite.” I sighed. “It was a simpler time then, and I long for it. There were rules and decorum and standards. And the clothes were fabulous!”

  “It was only simpler in the movies,” Alex said.

  “People used to talk to their neighbors,” I countered.

  “Women were treated like property.”

  “Gentlemen wore hats.”

  “Classism was rampant.”

  “Everyone had manners and said please and thank you.”

  “No, not everyone said please and thank you. We live in a junk shop, Baylee. You can see by the stuff that gets dumped here how ‘wonderful’ the old world was – riots, wars, the Great Depression! The movies had to be sweet or else we never would have gotten through all that horribleness.”

  I pouted, though I knew some of what
he said was true. “Now that you mention it, I suppose there has never been a better time to be a woman.”

  “Or a worse time to be a thirty-five-year-old single white man,” Alex said. “But that’s where we’re at.”

  He folded himself into a lotus position, pressing his hands together while his index fingers supported his chin.

  “If life were simple, what would we learn? Maybe that’s why Mom’s still here - maybe she didn’t learn what she was supposed to.”

  I looked around, expecting Mother to appear.

  Perhaps Alex was right. Maybe the only way ‘through’ was by facing up to life’s challenges and learning life’s lessons. Mother had spent her years on earth avoiding reality, with wine and antiquing and apparently even witchcraft. Now she had no choice but to stare at it for all eternity.

  “I’m done pretending!” I announced, rubbing at the dried mascara on my cheeks. “No more gloves. No more hats. No more…no more hiding behind my real fears with spectral ones.”

  “Maybe less wine?” Alex suggested.

  “Maybe. But right now, only because there isn’t any left.”

  “Feelings don’t make you weak, Baylee. I know you were always the rock in the family, but I’m here and I have your back. You don’t have to go through any of this alone.” He squeezed my hand. “I won’t leave you.”

  It was a promise he shouldn’t make, but I was grateful for it, nonetheless.

  “Thank you. I feel like an old elastic band that’s gone through the washing machine too many times.”

  My fingers wriggled in his grip, struggling to interlace with his.

  “I miss my husband so much. More than I ever thought I could miss anything or anyone. I swear I still see him, everywhere I look.”

  “I know.”

  “The worst part is that I never even cried for him. Not a single tear, even when they gave me the news. The police came to tell me that he disappeared and I just blinked, thanked them, and sent them on their way. When they closed the investigation months later, I didn’t cry either. No wonder everyone in town thinks I’m a monster.”

  “You haven’t cried for Ryan for the same reason you’ve never cried for anything - because you refuse to give in, or give up. You have hope, Baylee, and that’s the most human thing of all, and something I wished I had a little more of myself.”