I nodded distractedly. “Thank you. I’ll have a look.”
“Is everything okay?”
What could I say to that? “We’re going through a bit of a rough spot right now, but the Goddess will put things right soon enough.” I was praying with all my heart that I was speaking nothing but the truth.
“Anything me and Ruby can do to help Her along?”
“Not really, I’m afraid.”
“Well, let us know if that changes. The flowers are coming along really nicely, by the way. And Sapphire is pretty sure she has a handle on the cake now. How are the dresses coming?”
Oh yes. The dresses. “They’ll be ready.”
There was a brief moment of pure silence.
“You haven’t even started them, have you?”
“I have not. But that changes tonight.”
We said our goodbyes, and I looked down at Nancy. She was looking at the house with wet eyes.
“It isn’t going to be the same without them.”
“No, it isn’t. And I’m hoping that we can change Kimberly’s mind about this. But for now, we have to respect her wishes and give her time to adjust to the reality of things.” I was pretty sure that baby Pearl would take care of that for us.
I just didn’t know how long that would take. Or what Kimberly’s reaction to that reality would be.
Chapter 17
I did try to work on the dresses. I truly did.
Neither Nancy nor I really wanted to walk into that now empty house, so we decided to make the drive into Oak Hill. They had a fabric shop there. That was something that Wind’s Crossing was sorely missing. Not that our small population would support such a store.
I made a quick call, and we picked up Sapphire on the way. Nancy and I agreed to stay quiet on what was happening on the home front for now. Should have known better than that. My sister had both of us spilling our guts within minutes.
Surprisingly, she laughed. Not exactly the reaction I had expected from her. It sure as shooting wasn’t the reaction I was personally experiencing at the moment.
“It’ll sort out, trust me.” She glanced over at me, her eyes shining with mirth. “You are totally underestimating Mom, you know. Can you ever recall a single time when that woman didn’t get her way on something?”
Well, when she put it that way. No. No, I couldn’t. Mom had a way of getting us to do exactly what she wanted us to do and making us think it was our idea to do. She was a master.
“But she’s a baby.”
Sapphire raised an eyebrow at me. “And you really think that’s going to change things?”
Again, now that she put it that way... no. Probably not when I thought about it. An unhappy baby was kind of hard to deal with. But then, I knew Kimberly far better than Sapphire did too. She was a stubborn woman who put her kids first and foremost. She’d weather through a lot if she truly thought it was for the best of baby Pearl.
Which is one of the reasons the Goddess had seen fit to make her baby Pearl’s mom in this lifetime. In other words, Mom just might have met her match.
Still, Sapphire’s words did make me feel a little bit better, and Nancy seemed to take her cue from us too. We visited the fabric shop and bought yards upon yards of soft, satiny pink material.
And no, Mom’s dress wasn’t white. She’d always said that white just wouldn’t do for a witch. We weren’t exactly known for our chastity. Kind of the opposite, actually. Not that us Ravenswinds were nearly as wild as the townsfolk believed we were. Not by half.
But we couldn’t exactly deny that we had children out of wedlock, now could we? That fact kind of spoke for itself. So yeah, bottom line, Mom’s light blushing pink wedding dress was perfect for us.
We matched the color as best we could. I was planning to do a wide band of offsetting white at the waistband of each dress anyway. That would help minimize any obvious color differences.
After our shopping trip, we dropped Sapphire off and headed home.
“You think Sapphire is right? Will Kimberly and the kids really come back?”
I glanced over at her. The girl deserved an honest answer. “I don’t know. But she is right about Mom. I know you never got to meet her, but she is a force to be reckoned with when she wants something,”
Nancy nodded, but she was still looking out the window. “So is Kimberly.”
Yeah. That’s what still had me worried.
IN THE END, I DIDN’T get a whole lot done on the dresses. I might have felt a tiny bit better about the situation, but not nearly better enough to concentrate on something as delicate as sewing two wedding dresses.
Or cutting them out, either. I didn’t want to risk ruining the fabric by a wrong cut. So, instead, Orville came over, and we had a nice little small family movie night.
When Nancy finally headed up to finish up her homework before bed—normally that was done right after school, but nothing was normal about this day—I finally turned to Orville. I needed another distraction. Movies just weren’t cutting it for me.
“Tell me about Kenny Driscoll. Any idea who killed him?”
Orville shook his head. “No. But there is a weird thing about it. Whoever killed him tried to make it look like a robbery gone wrong.”
“Tried to? I’m guessing that means they failed?”
He looked at me. “I’d say so, yes. Kenny had a small lockbox of ‘collateral’ for people placing overly large bets. It wasn’t touched. I mean, it isn’t like it was secured or anything. It was just sitting there. And the whole thing wasn’t all that heavy, either. Couldn’t have weighed over fifty pounds total. If it was a thief, I just can’t see them leaving that behind.”
“Kind of sounds like the very thing a burglar would be looking for to me.”
“Exactly. All they took was cash that Kenny kept in the counter drawer, his watch, his phone, and his laptop. Not exactly enough worth killing someone over.”
“Sure wouldn’t seem like it. But I’m guessing that there’s another reason you don’t believe what they’re trying to sell you.”
He smiled at me, and the arm around my shoulders squeezed just a bit. “We’re going to make such a great team, you and I.”
“Well, duh.” Isn’t that what kids today say to someone who says something that’s already a well-established fact?
“If I’m right, the same person that killed Reverend Castle killed Kenny Driscoll. I just can’t figure out what tied the two killings together.”
“Betting?”
Orville scrubbed at his face. “I don’t really see that fitting in here. Kenny was the one that took bets and paid them out. If Castle welshed on a bet through Kenny, it wouldn’t affect the person or people that he was betting against. In all likelihood, they wouldn’t even have known it was him. It’s not like Kenny posted that information anywhere.”
“So what else tied the two men together?”
“That’s just it. Nothing that I’m finding. And believe me, I’ve looked. And looked again. Kenny wasn’t exactly a church-going man, so he wasn’t a member of the church. They were far enough apart age-wise that they hadn’t gone to school together. And Kenny wasn’t exactly a man to volunteer for community services either. So their paths only ever crossed at that betting shop of his.” He threw me a quick glance. “It’s a conundrum.”
I just looked at him. Orville must still be on that word of the day kick. “Feel proud of yourself?”
He grinned at me. “A little. I managed to use today’s word several times. Pretty easy in my line of work.”
It would be.
Even with the household of only three, and no super young kids in the house, Orville still refused to spend the night. Too bad, too. I really could have used the companionship.
I still felt like I’d really messed things up with Kimberly. I was hoping little baby Pearl could mend the fences, but that was quite the task to give to a not quite yet seven-month-old baby.
Still, if anyone would be up to it, it would
be her.
After walking Orville out to his car, and a great goodnight kiss that made me wish even stronger that he was staying over, I made my way to my little apartment. I stared at the satiny fabric for a few minutes, but nope. I just didn’t have it in me tonight. If the shop was going to be closed for a few days, I’d make up for lost time then.
That was my plan anyway.
I fed Bridget her midnight snack and spent a long while trying to console her. I was upset about Kimberly leaving. Bridget? She was inconsolable. I guess to her, it kind of felt like losing Mom all over again.
In a way, it did to me too. I just hoped it wasn’t a permanent loss.
In my defense, the day had been a long one, and a lot had happened. I think that in itself was a good reason to have forgotten such an important thing as Amie’s earlier call.
However, that wasn’t a mistake I was likely to repeat.
Chapter 18
I ended up sleeping on my sofa. Bridget kind of demanded it. And yes, when I say kind of, what I really meant was that she insisted. If I was going to get any sleep at all that night, it was going to happen on that blasted sofa. Not my nice, comfortable bed.
Not that my sofa was uncomfortable. It wasn’t. As much as I was into antiques and the look of things, when it came to my personal furniture? I wanted all the comfort I could get. I’m not sure that it’s a witch thing, but it is sure as heck an Opal Ravenswind thing.
The next morning, Nancy and I ate our cereal and toast for breakfast, and then I drove her to school. I checked in on the shop, but everything seemed okay. Besides, my amulet should warn me if that happened to not be the case. So, I went home intending to settle down to work on those dresses. They wouldn’t be the matter of an afternoon’s sewing, and I was quickly running out of time.
After all, I couldn’t very well wallow in my grief for long. That wasn’t how Mom had raised me. Take what life hands you and deal with it. Try as hard as you can to make it better, but once you’ve done what you could do, let it go to the Goddess.
That was Mom’s entire philosophy of life in a nutshell. Couldn’t fault her for it, either. It made sense to me.
My plans for a day sewing, however, were kind of interrupted when I got back home to find a motorcycle in my front yard. A motorcycle I knew very well, I might add.
A wild-haired Gray was standing beside it. He walked over as I parked the car. When I glanced up at him, I almost did a double-take. The man did not look good. And if his hair was wild, which I gave the motorcycle credit for, his eyes were even wilder. He rather looked like a man possessed.
At the very least, he looked like a man that hadn’t had a wink of sleep in the past twenty-four-hour period or more. Probably quite a bit more.
It wasn’t very charitable of me, but I’ll admit the look of him made me happy. Cheered me right up again. Baby Pearl must be doing her job very well, indeed.
“Can we talk?”
I nodded, then led the way into the house. Once we were settled, I stared into his eyes. Before he started, I had a question.
“How is everyone holding up? Is Kimberly okay?”
He took a staggered breath. “She’s... stressed. Her, Mason, and... Pearl, are all back at the trailer.”
I arched an eyebrow. “Shouldn’t Mason be in school?”
“He should. But Kimberly is making an exception for today.”
Hiding my smile was getting harder. I had a funny feeling that no one in that tiny trailer got much sleep last night.
“So, talk already.”
Gray swallowed. “Is Pearl really... your mom?”
I thought about that for a minute. “Baby Pearl is baby Pearl. Through and through. If you and Kimberly think she’s possessed or something, well, you’re flat out wrong. We don’t do that kind of thing. Even thinking about doing something like that could cost a witch her magic. Not something a single one of us would ever risk.”
“That doesn’t answer my question.”
I chewed on my cheek for a few seconds. “You’ve heard of reincarnation, right? It’s kind of like that.” Or maybe it was exactly like that. I hadn’t ever really researched the idea of past lives. Up until baby Pearl had looked at me with those big baby blues of hers, I hadn’t ever really believed in the concept. Now I did.
“What does that mean?”
“It means that baby Pearl was born with my mother’s soul. And, from what I’ve seen out of her, she knows who she is too. I don’t think that’s normal. Which means the Goddess made an exception in her case and let her keep her memories. At least some of them.” Like how to fly a broom, for instance.
“And what does that mean?”
I shrugged. “Your guess is as good as mine on that one, I’m afraid. The Goddess hasn’t discussed her plans and reasoning with me on this. I just know what is.”
He swallowed again. “Okay.” He drew out the word for all it was worth. “Then I guess my next question is... how long have you known? Did you know before she was born?”
Sitting up a little straighter, I let my eyes bore straight into his. “If you’re asking what I think you’re asking, the answer is no. I didn’t befriend Kimberly and her family because of the baby she was carrying. I didn’t have a single iota of a clue that she was carrying around a child with my mother’s soul. Kimberly and Mason were already family to me before I found that out.”
“And when, exactly, did you find out?”
I hesitated. “Baby Pearl was born at ten o’clock on All Hallows Eve. I’d say I knew right around ten o’five.”
Gray nodded. “I see.” He shifted in the chair. “Right now, Kimberly is hurting, but I was having a hard time putting everything together. I think I have a better picture now.”
“You think you can help Kimberly through this? I wasn’t kidding when I told her that she needed me.”
He barked out a laugh. “Oh, believe me, we need you. It might take her a day or two to come to that realization, though. Kimberly can be a bit...”
“I believe the word you are searching for is stubborn.”
“That would be one word for it, yes. And if it concerns her kids, I can’t dissuade her, you know. This has to be her decision.”
“Agreed.” I was quiet for a minute. “And as long as we’re putting all of our cards on the table, I should tell you that I know what you are.”
His swallow was even bigger this time. “I kind of thought you might. It was a risk I had to take to save Tory. I’d do it again, too, if I had to.”
“Of course you would. Any decent human... or wolf... would.” I wanted to make it very plain that I wasn’t just whistling Dixie. I really knew he was a werewolf.
“You seem to be handling that knowledge very well. I’m going to assume you’ve known that we exist for a time now. I’d be interested in knowing how.”
“Do you know Patricia Bluespring?”
He nodded slowly. “I see.”
“It wasn’t her choice to rat out the whole werewolf thing, just so you know. But it was kind of a life or death situation. She chose life, and I’m glad my family was in a position to help her.”
“I’m glad too. Patty’s an odd duck, but then aren’t we all?”
He stood. I’m guessing in preparation to leave. But I wasn’t quite ready for that yet. I had something else up my sleeve. Luckily, it was something that I had already gotten Orville’s blessings on.
“Can I ask you a point-blank question?”
Gray looked at me for a minute before answering. “Well, it’s not like we have many secrets from each other, now is it? So sure, go ahead.”
“What are your intentions toward Kimberly?”
His head jerked back. Must not have been the question he’d been expecting. “I’d like to marry her.”
“And her kids?”
Another swallow. That Adam’s apple of his was getting quite the workout today. “I want to be a family. I’ve been alone for a long time. With Kimberly and her brood... I’m not. I’
m home.” He hesitated. “But at the same time, my tiny little travel trailer is kind of busting at the seams right now.”
I smiled at him. “Pretty small quarters even for a man living alone. Let alone adding an entire family into the mix.”
“Yeah.”
I stood too, but instead of walking toward the door I jerked my head toward the stairs. “Come upstairs, if you have a minute. There’s something I want to show you.”
He followed me up the stairs and into baby Pearl’s room. My heart about broke all over again seeing that empty crib. Hopefully, it wouldn’t be empty much longer.
I reached up and pulled the rope to bring down the attic steps. Then I motioned for him to go up. I never felt right climbing steps with someone at my back. He gave me an odd look, but he did. Showed a lot of trust, that.
Once we were both in the attic, he just looked at me. “So, what did you want to show me?”
I motioned around us. “This.”
My attic wasn’t some fancy ordeal like Sapphire’s was in her new mansion. It was just one long, somewhat square open space. But it had a nice, if old, wooden floor and plastered walls. The ceiling still showed the beams of the roof, but that could be remedied in time if need be.
“If you truly want to be a family with Kimberly and her kids, then you all are going to need a much bigger space. I have space right here. I was thinking, if the dust settles to the point of Kimberly and her kids moving back in, we could always move you in up here.” I looked around at the massive, open space. Other than a few odds and ends, the space was by and large unused.
He looked around him and then back at me. “You’re serious, aren’t you?”
“Never been more serious in my life. Raising baby Pearl will not be a simple task. The fact that you know the score now and still aren’t running for the hills means a lot to me. Means you just might be a keeper. She’s gonna want you around, and rightly so.”
Gray walked from one end of the attic to the other. “There is so much space.” He looked out one of the end windows down into the backyard. “I do wish it had its own entrance, though. I keep pretty weird hours as a barkeep.”
Witch of a Bride (Witch Reborn, #3) Page 11