"Isn't the shop supposed to be open?" Robin asked.
I didn't say anything. I was too irritated as I made my way around the side to the parking area and to the back door. There sat my Rubicon, where Arden said her girls left it. I pulled my key out of my purse and opened the back door. Cool air hit me and immediately turned every drop of sweat on my body to ice. Robin followed me into the back.
"Kyle?" I called out. "Jack?"
No answer. Everything was like I'd left it that morning. Coffee mugs draining in the sink, the great oak table wiped down. I moved into the front, and sure enough, the lights were off. No one was there. I knew Dharma was with Ivan at Tulane, but Jack and Kyle were responsible for keeping the doors open. We needed revenue!
"I take it Jack is a new employee?" Robin removed his backpack and put it on the oak table as I came back through the door to the break area.
I set my purse beside it. "Yeah. He's Kyle's boyfriend too. And they're both usually pretty responsible. But neither of them told me they were closing the shop early and it's not lunch time." I glanced at the Goddess clock on the counter, a Wallendorf statue with an analog clock in her extended belly. It wasn't a great seller, so we just used it for the patrons.
Robin moved to the kitchenette and opened the cabinet door to pull out the first aid kit. He opened it on the table and motioned for me to sit down.
I guess when I looked confused, he pointed to his own head. "You have a cut, remember? You were attacked?"
Oh yeah. The attack. I'd almost forgotten about it. Made more sense now, thinking back to the weird look the taxi drive gave me, and the mean look he gave Robin. Guy prolly thought Robin was an abusive husband. So I sat down while he cleaned the wound and put a bandage on it. I had to pull my long hair back so he could get to it. Now that Robin had reminded me, the memory of that attack filled my thoughts. The guy had just attacked for no reason and his whole dialogue…
…didn't do that…need to listen…couldn't strike a woman…there is danger…can't be happening…friendly face…am I crazy…don't trust…please don't press charges…
It was almost like two different conversations.
"Dollar fifty for your thoughts," Robin said as he sat down in front of me.
I described the attack from my side of things, the guy in the suit, talking on the phone. "I'm just trying to figure out why he attacked me."
"People just don't go attacking pregnant women." Robin sat back. "Maybe he was mentally ill? We were near the hospital."
"Yeah…" But somehow I didn't think that was it.
"You said Ivan's in the hospital? What for?"
"Oh—" The mention of Ivan's name brought my friend into sharp focus. "He's…" I looked at Robin. "You know about Ivan, right?"
"You mean that he goes into computers with his mind?" Robin smirked. "I do remember some of the crazy, Sam."
"Oh yeah. Sorry. Well, apparently, he went into a computer and didn't come back. His girlfriend called the ambulance and Arden's seeing to his care personally. I just…I can't imagine Ivan not putting up safety precautions in coming back from a cyber strip like that. Or a dive. He calls them dives."
"So he's still in a computer?"
"Maybe. I don't know enough about it. Or how he got stuck. I just know he's on life support right now and that scares me." I found myself touching my belly. I was doing that a lot. I also thought about the whole DDoS conversation and decided my head hurt too much for me to have that discussion with Robin, even though I was pretty sure he'd understand it. More so than me. "Arden's going to find someone to help him."
"She can do that?" Robin looked genuinely interested.
"Yeah." That's when my phone started buzzing again. I reached into my purse and pulled it out. But like before…it wasn't ringing. There wasn't a text showing up or a call.
"You checking for messages?"
I held up the phone. "It's ringing."
Robin's brows arched. "Is it a silent ring?"
"You can't hear the buzzing?"
"Uh…no?" He reached out and touched the phone. It stopped vibrating. "Is it supposed to?"
"No, it just—" I stared at the phone and then at him. "You didn't hear that buzzing noise?"
"No." He smiled at me. "Maybe you should lie down?"
"I will. But I want grape juice first." I got up and went to the fridge to see if maybe Jack or Kyle had bought any—
There was grape juice! Two huge containers of Welch's! I let out a whoop and pulled one out and grabbed a glass.
"Looks like Kyle was looking after you," Robin said as he stood and meandered over to Kyle's herb counter. He'd set up the old banquet and hutch a few years ago as a place for his tools and where he could dry out and put together herbs for potions and quick spells for us when we go out—
When we used to go out and hunt down bad things.
I'd noticed the thin layer of dust coating it and the remaining bottles and herbs that remained untouched. After he and Jack bought Ina’s house, Kyle didn't spend much time there anymore putting together his potions and tinctures.
"I see Kyle's lost interest in this stuff?" Robin ran a finger over the table and it came away with dust.
"Yeah." I poured a tall glass of juice and drank half of it before I got brain freeze. Ouch. With my fingers pressed to the bridge of my nose, I joined him there and started looking at the jars and their labels. There were five or so whole jars with labels on them and a few smaller vials. I read them out loud. "Presence of Mind, Peace and Healthful Home, Clearing, Vanquish That Bitch—" At that one, I had to laugh because I remembered when he made it and we used it to destroy a pretty nasty poltergeist.
Robin read off a few. "Illuminating Night and"—he picked up a vial and turned it sideways to read—"Not the Droids." He blinked. "I don't get that."
I did and laughed again. I took the vial from him and smiled. "Kyle made this when he and Ivan had to blend in with a bunch of trees one night. He used it and they looked like trees. It was pretty ingenious." I put the vial back. "If either of them moved, the illusion wore off."
That's when I noticed another vial behind the others. It wasn't as coated with dust and it looked like it was full. The liquid inside was clear and the label read one word, in what looked like Kyle's handwriting. "Camouflage." I held it up to the light. "What does that mean?"
"No idea," Robin said as he continued looking at the shelf. He opened a drawer, pulled out a small notebook, and flipped through it. "Looks like he wrote down a few notes in here."
I set the vial back on the shelf and took the book when Robin handed it to me. The handwriting inside was a mixture of block and cursive, and again, looked like Kyle's. There were headings with the label titles like Presence of Mind with lists of ingredients below. I flipped around until I found one that said Camo. Under it was a list of ingredients, some of which I recognized and others…well…I wasn't sure if it was Kyle's handwriting or I just had never heard of them.
After the list of ingredients was a short sentence. Hides what you do not wish seen.
Really?
I looked at my belly and looked at the vial on the shelf. I thought about my doctor and the test in the morning. It was true I didn't have to go. I could just call in and say I wasn't feeling well, but I wasn't just taking care of one person anymore, but two. What if I needed help with my sugar and it could affect the baby—and what if not going could prevent her from finding something vital out? Putting my child's health at risk just wasn't worth it.
Or I could go to Arden. Ask her help. I was pretty sure one of her coven members could help a former Witch carry a Dragon baby to term, right?
"What are you thinking so hard about?"
"Hmm?" I blinked at Robin, who was looking at me with his beautiful eyes. I really had forgotten how nice looking he was. "Oh, I just…" I sighed. "Robin…I know you weren't always that happy with the whole magic thing."
"Well, it was more that I just didn't understand it."
"And you
do now?"
"Let's just say…I'm not as freaked out as I used to be."
"You know about Crwys, right?"
He nodded, tight lipped. Not sure what that expression was about.
"Well…you might not know he's not…well…he's not…human."
"He's a Witch too?"
"No…" Oh, this was gonna be delicate. "He's not a Witch."
Robin put up his hand. "Let's not worry about your husband. What's wrong with you?"
I put my hand on my belly. "Here's the truth. I just found out I am pregnant, like at ten this morning. She said I was around two months, which didn't make sense because I'd had my period over a month ago, even though she said it is possible to have a period when you're pregnant—" And that's when I stopped myself from carrying on like a crazy person.
He blinked. "You were two months pregnant this morning." Robin tentatively put his hand on my tummy. "Uhh…Sam…you look more like seven. Not that I'm an expert. I just remember what my sister looked like during her pregnancies."
"I know what you're thinking, but Lady Darksome, Robin. I know when my body is doing something it shouldn't. And right now, it's growing a baby at quadruple normal speed. I don't know if it's normal for this kind of child. What I do know is the doctor found a problem with my glucose, sugar…whatever. And I'm supposed to be at her office at eight in the morning for a test because if I am having issues, that could affect the size of the baby."
He slowly nodded. "Uhm…if you went from two months to four months in the span of a few hours, and she said sugar can complicate the size of the child—" He eyed my belly. "I'd say lay off the soft drinks."
"Not funny, Robin. Logically, for a human to have a baby growing this fast, there's something else happening here. The baby not being human is probably the answer. But I don't think a human doctor is going to understand my sudden…" And I gestured to my protruding tummy.
"Then why not just find a Witch doctor…" He laughed at himself. "You know what I mean."
"Because I don't know any and that means I'd have to go through Arden—"
"So? Wouldn’t she be a good friend to have right now with—" He made a sad face. "You haven't told him yet."
"No. I haven't been able to get a hold of him. And I'd rather sit him down by myself and us talk. We didn't plan this, but fate or whatever had a different idea." I pointed to the vial. "I want to try to see if that'll camouflage the baby."
"Uh…" He looked a bit panicked. "You might not want to do potions or tinctures or whatever these are when you're pregnant. What if it has an effect on the kid?"
"Well, I read the ingredients." I held up the book I'd laid down on Kyle's work table. "None of these things are dangerous. You said you're working at the hospital, right? As what?"
"A nurse," he said and picked up the notes and read them. He gave a long sigh and shook his head. "There's no instructions here on how to take it."
"If it's a tincture, I know what to do." I grabbed the vial and went to the table. After carefully removing the stopper, I tapped a single drop into what was left of my grape juice, then re-stoppered the vial. I swirled the juice in the glass around and then nodded to Robin. "Here we go."
"I'm not sure—" he said.
But I'd already downed the rest of it. I smacked my lips and waited. I didn't taste anything different in the juice, but I did get a flushed feeling and put my hand to my stomach—
And it was flat.
I did a squeal and scream and held out my hands.
"Holy shit," Robin said and put his own hand on my tummy. My now flat tummy. "You…is the baby still there?"
"I think so."
"How long do these things last?"
"I don't know. I can time this"—I looked at my watch—"and see how long before my pooch shows up again."
"So…" He narrowed his eyes at me. "How do you feel?"
"Fine, actually. Just a little flushed." I smiled at him and then my smile faded. "Robin…I never did ask how you were doing. Is Kathy okay? How's the little one? When did you start studying to be a nurse?"
Robin held up his hands. "Whoa…you switched tracks on me. Why don't we have some warm tea and sit down and fully catch up, okay? And then if you want, I can come by in the morning and take you to your appointment? If I remember Rose's pregnancies correctly, she had gestational diabetes with Kathy and I remember her getting very sick from the glucose test. That is what you're taking, isn't it?"
I agreed with Robin. I'd prefer Crwys take me so we could spend some real time together. Maybe tonight, when the tincture wore off, I could show him and we could talk. Maybe…maybe…we could make some plans. I wanted to make plans with someone. I hadn't realized how lonely I'd gotten till I finally had someone to talk to.
And if not…well…Robin seemed happy enough to rekindle a friendship.
SEVEN
Apparently Brave was a Houngan who lived out near the Blind Lagoon. It was getting dark by the time Crwys, Tas and Levi arrived. The road turned down a rutted two-wheel path that came pretty close to Aces land before it made a sharp right. It abruptly opened up into what Crwys could only call a small community, a lot like the Aces den, Bastien's Wolves, complete with a few homemade cabins, a well for water, and what Crwys guessed was the Houngan's place of worship on the left. He identified it by the bones hanging from the porch awning.
The three of them cautiously exited from the Mustang, once Crwys parked it, and several of the community's members appeared out of those houses. If there was one thing he noticed about them, it was they didn't feel human.
Apollo…
Yeah, I noticed. But I don't know what they are.
Neither do I, came Tas's mental voice.
The door to the Houngan's place opened, and a tall, dark-skinned man stepped out. He wore a simple maroon shirt and jeans. His feet were bare, and on his head, he wore what looked like a Tyrolean style hat, complete with an assortment of pins decorating the right and a large grouping of pheasant feathers sticking out of the left. He approached them with his hands out, and Crwys thought he saw swirls of colors moving in curling patterns on his palms.
"Welcome," the man said. "I am Brave."
Crwys gave the man a bow. "I'm Crwys, this is Tas and Levi."
"Levi is known to us. The dead cannot hide from the dead." Brave smiled and Levi gave Crwys a raised brow. "We know you are Revenant, Detective. And we have been very happy with the work you've done within the Quarter." He looked at Crwys. "Both of you."
Tas took a step closer. "Sir—"
"Brave is fine."
"Brave…you know about Levi. Do you know about me and Crwys?"
Crwys wanted to snatch her back and stuff her into the trunk of his car. He liked being reunited with one of his own "family", but he'd also forgotten how curious and open his "sister" could be.
"Yes, but we are not concerned with what you are. We are concerned with the one called Solomon."
I’m starting to think we should have grabbed Quan. I think he’d know more about this stuff, Crwys said to Ashur.
Crwys and Levi glanced at one another. So…did this guy read minds? Might be a good idea not to communicate with the Demon.
Crwys stepped forward. "You said he was here. Did you bring him here or did he come here?"
"He sought us out. Not here, but in the Quarter. He knew what to say to find me, which intrigued me. It wasn't until I was able to examine him that I discovered his peculiar behavior was due to his living in two worlds."
The three of them looked at each other, but it was Tas who said, "Two worlds?"
The door to Brave's place opened and Solomon came rushing out. He was dressed in tattered warm ups and a sweatshirt. Most of one side of the sweatshirt was missing, and he had several cuts and bruises on his chest. His hair was a tangled mess around his head and he'd grown a beard. He ran to Brave and then turned to see Crwys and Tas. He pointed to the two of them and started screaming.
Crwys looked at Tas. It's true. He's se
en the Eye.
Tas sighed and lowered her head. There's only one thing we can do for him. She held out her hands to Solomon. "Please…Papa Dumaine. We're not here to hurt you. We know what's happened to your mind. We know how to fix it, but you have to trust us."
Solomon stopped screaming and looked at Levi. "No…no. You don't want to help me. You're like him. Dead is dead! I won't let you hurt her! You don't understand!" He started to jump at Levi, but Tas appeared between them and did a beautiful chop to Solomon's neck. The man dropped like a stone, but didn't fall. Tas caught him in her arms and lowered him to the ground.
"I'm sorry, Brave," Crwys said. "Solomon shouldn't have bothered you."
"What did he see?" Brave asked as the others gathered around. There were six of them total, and each of them had a distinctive look about them. Something unique to their appearance. "What is it that drove him from this world, partially into another?"
"He saw something he was told to stay away from." Tas watched as Levi lifted the now frail man and placed him into the back of the Mustang, with Crwys's help. "He saw the Dragon's Eye."
"Ah. Bondye."
Tas frowned. Crwys stepped away from the Mustang. "He means God. Bondye is the name for the Vodouisants God."
Brave nodded.
"But the Dragon's Eye isn't our God," Tas said. "It is the crossroads—"
The Houngan's sudden movement to them made Tas and Crwys step back. "Forgive me, but you mean Solomon saw the crossroads?"
"Yes." Crwys narrowed his eyes, remembering a little of what Kyle had said earlier. "Baron Samedi is the guardian of your crossroads, isn't he?"
"Yes. Crossroads of life and death."
Crwys turned to Tas. "You hear what Solomon said? He said, 'You want to bring her back. You're like him.'"
She searched his face as Levi joined them. "Are you thinking that Solomon has something to do with the victims?" She shook her head. "No…I won't believe that. The Eye does not drive people that mad. He can't be responsible for skinning those people!"
"You speak of the three victims found in the Quarter," Brave said. "The ones dressed up like Papa Ghede." He tapped his lower lip. "Many of our people have been enraged by these sacrifices. They are not what Voodoo is about. Baron Samedi would not approve, nor would he be tempted, if he were still in his world."
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