by Lana Melyan
“Maybe we should leave you alone,” said Nate.
“No. I want you to stay. I’ll look through them later,” I said, closing the folder.
I glanced into the safe again and pulled out a worn, brown-leather journal. As I pulled aside the cover, I recognized my dad’s handwriting.
The first page was dated January 17, 2015.
Nicky,
I never meant to keep a journal, but following our ancestors’ tradition, I finally decided to record at least the most important steps taken by our coven.
I opened the last record. It was dated August 21, 2019, only a couple of weeks before his death.
I closed the journal, put it on the table, and looked in the safe again. Under it’s back wall there was a brown envelope. I picked it up, and when I looked inside, I saw a few passports. I pulled one of them out, opened it, and looked at the small photograph of my dad. The name next to it was Vincent Miller. I opened another one. The name in this one was Vincent Ross. The other two passports were for my mom. Nathalie Miller and Nathalie Ross.
“They used them to buy plane tickets,” said Nate.
I nodded and put them back in the envelope. Then I put the album and the envelope back in the safe, and the moment I closed the door, it shimmered and vanished, and the family crest that no one but me could see appeared in its place.
“That was some magic,” said Connie, looking stunned. She turned around and headed to the living room, and we all followed her.
Nate burned the paper towels with my blood in the fireplace.
4
We returned to the hotel. There was still time before dinner, and we all welcomed Nate’s idea to stay inside and rest.
“There’s never enough time,” Nate whispered into my ear after we spent an hour in bed.
“We have the whole night ahead,” I said, kissing him. “But now I’m hungry. And I need to take a shower and put something nice on.”
“You could make a sack look nice,” he murmured, kissing my neck. “You’re the one who makes the clothes beautiful, not the other way around.”
“Aww, you said that to get another kiss?” I teased him, pulling his face up and lightly touching his lips with mine.
No matter how much Nate, Connie, and Logan tried to distract me during dinner, thoughts about my parents' house stayed in the back of my head, and they could tell every time I fell out of the conversation.
It was nearly nine p.m. Connie wanted the four of us to take a stroll down Bourbon street, so we did. But we didn’t really stop anywhere for a drink, planning to do it at Sam’s bar, which was down the street behind the corner of our hotel.
Nate pulled open the door and let me, Connie, and Logan through before following us inside. Next second we were immersed in muffled, yellow lights coming from lamps on the tables and the brick walls, loud conversations, and rhythmic music playing in the background.
The moment Nate walked in, his eyes narrowed, and he scanned the place. Looking satisfied, he moved forward.
“Wow, this place looks cool,” said Connie. “I like it.”
“It’s nice,” I said. My eyes traveled around and stopped at the bar at the end of the large room, where Sam stood behind the counter talking to Brian while another guy served a customer.
The people sitting at the nearby table turned to look at us, and one of them nodded to Nate. Nate nodded back, and as we passed a couple of tables, another guy turned his head.
“Nate, Logan,” he said, raising his hand.
Nate nodded, and Logan raised his hand in return. I felt the guy’s gaze follow us.
“I didn’t expect this,” I whispered to Connie. “Why are they staring at us?”
“Our boys,” she chuckled, “must’ve been coming here a lot.”
Still talking to Brian, Sam absently glanced from one side of the bar to the other, looked back at Brian, and then abruptly turned his gaze at us. He froze for a second, then rushed out from behind the bar and headed toward us.
“Nicky.” He gave me a one-armed hug.
“Hi,” I said.
“Why didn’t you tell me you were coming?”
“We wanted to surprise you.”
“Connie, hi.” He hugged her too. “Hi, guys.” He glanced at Nate and Logan.
We moved forward and greeted Brian, who looked as surprised as Sam. Connie and I sat on the vacant bar stools.
“What brings you to New Orleans?” asked Brian. “Is there any news?”
“No,” said Nate, leaning on the counter next to me. “We came because Nicky wanted to see her parents’ house.”
“I found some of Dad’s papers,” I said. “I’ll see if there’s something in there we can use.”
Brian and Sam nodded.
“When did you arrive?” asked Sam.
“This morning,” I replied. “It’s Connie’s birthday tomorrow, so we decided to celebrate here.”
“Really?” Sam glanced at Connie. “Mine was last week.”
“So we’re all adults now.” Connie beamed. “Except we’re still not allowed to drink.”
“Hey.” Sam raised a brow. “Here you’re allowed to do anything you want. If you let me, I’ll make you a cocktail. My mom’s recipe.”
“Let you? I’ll beg you.”
While Sam was making drinks for us, we moved to the table next to the bar the waitress had just cleaned up.
“I’ll be right back,” said Nate as I sat down. “I just need a word with Brian.”
Nate approached the bar and beckoned Brian to follow him to the opposite end of the counter. I sat facing the bar, and my eyes kept turning to them automatically.
It wasn’t a long conversation, but Nate wore a frown during those few minutes. He threw a few words to Sam, who frowned back, then spread his hands in a way that could be translated as why me? Then he said something to Nate, and I heard Nate answer him while he walked back to us.
“It’s not your business. I’ll deal with it.”
His face brightened as he approached us and dropped into the seat.
A moment later, the waitress came with our drinks: cocktails for me and Connie, and two glasses with amber liquid for Nate and Logan. After another few minutes, Sam joined us, and the rest of the evening went pretty well. Nate tried not to react at Sam’s warm looks to me.
At the end we decided to come back tomorrow and celebrate Connie’s birthday all together.
Before we left, Sam caught a moment alone with me, while Nate and Logan went to say bye to Brian and Connie went to the bathroom.
“This place is great,” I said. But he didn’t follow the subject.
“I missed you,” he said quietly, sitting across from me at the table.
“Sam, it’s been only a couple of weeks.”
“Seemed much longer to me.”
I couldn’t bear it. The sad tone of his voice, the longing in his eyes. “Sam, please.”
“I’m sorry, but I had to say it. I know I shouldn’t . . .”
I really didn’t know what to say. If I said You need to get over it, it would sound rude, and he was hurting already. I was relieved to see Nate and Logan heading back to us.
5
Next day, we let Connie and Logan have their romantic Happy Birthday! morning and went out to buy some balloons and cupcakes. When we came back, I placed the cupcakes on a plate and stuck candles in them. Nate held the balloons and I carried the cupcakes, and we approached Connie and Logan’s door. Before knocking on it, Nate lit the candles with a wave of his hand. The second the door opened, we shouted,“Happy Birthday!” to Connie, who was still in her robe and looked absolutely happy.
The rest of the day we spent visiting the most interesting places in town. We started from Cafe Du Monde, where we had delicious beignets with coffee, and finished our trip with a tour to Oak Alley, where Nate asked Logan to take a picture of the two of us.
After dinner we came back to the hotel to get some rest before going to the bar.
I stood
in front of the mirror looking at the loose, cream-colored short dress with straps I had just put on. Nate approached me from behind holding a small, wooden, rectangular box in his hand.
“You look stunning,” he said, kissing my neck. He held the box in front of me. “I think this will fit with your dress.”
Smiling, I took the box. “What’s the occasion?”
“I wanted to give it to you at your birthday, but I didn’t think I was allowed then.”
With him looking over my shoulder, I opened the box. I saw a chain with a metal pendant in the form of two branches, one a bit shorter than the other, the rods attached at the bottom and enclosed in a circle.
“That’s us,” he said into my ear.
“It’s gorgeous.”
I pulled the necklace out and held it up for him to help me put it on. The moment I felt his touch on my skin, my eyelids slid down. I turned around. As I kissed him, he pressed me to the wall, and his hand moved up my thigh, under my short hem.
“I love you,” I whispered against his lips.
Waiting for us in the bar was a table decorated with flowers, candles, and champagne glasses. Looking impressed, Connie hugged Sam, thanking him, and the moment we sat down, Sam dashed behind the bar and came back with a bottle of champagne in his hands. He opened it, letting the cork pop out, and filled the glasses.
“To my Connie,” said Logan, raising his glass.
“To Connie,” me, Nate, and Sam repeated. We all took a sip, and Logan kissed her.
“Happy belated birthday, Sam.” Connie offered another toast.
“Thanks, guys,” said Sam. We all raised our glasses and said, “To Sam.”
I had a couple of glasses of champagne, and to Nate’s surprise it went well, and I didn’t get drunk, but more gleeful.
The time flew by, and soon it was past midnight. There were fewer people in the bar now. Brian left too. We were all having a good time, but of course I could see how hard it was for Sam to watch Nate kiss me and hold me in his arms.
“Well, would you look at that?” came a female voice from behind us.
I turned my head to see a young woman, around twenty-five, approach our table. She had a shoulder-length black hair, and big, beautiful black eyes.
“I see you boys are having fun,” she said, glancing first at Logan, then at Nate.
Nate’s jaw tightened, and he threw a sideways look at Sam, who, with a barely perceptible shrug, frowned back at him.
“Hi, Ruby,” said Logan.
“Hi, Logan. Haven’t seen you in awhile.” She put her hand on Nate’s shoulder. “Hello, Nate. Would you like to introduce me to your friends,” she said, emphasizing the word “friends.”
Nate glanced up at her from under his eyebrows.
“Hi,” he said dryly. “This is Logan’s girlfriend, Connie. We’re celebrating her birthday.”
“Happy birthday, Connie,” said Ruby, no emotion on her face.
“Thanks,” said Connie, equally indifferent.
“And I assume this lady’s name is Nicky.” She glanced at me with a smirk.
“Yes, this is Nicky.”
Ruby’s eyes narrowed. “That’s nice,” she said, looking back at Nate. “But you still owe me a drink.”
“Would you like to have one with us?” said Nate, but the tone of his voice definitely said, “Go away.”
She didn’t answer, but turned an accusing gaze on Logan. Connie narrowed her eyes.
What the hell is going on here? I didn’t like Ruby’s tone, and the way she looked at us pissed me off.
“You came to town and didn’t even tell me?” Looking upset, she turned her eyes to Nate.
“I told you we’d stop by. You just didn’t want to wait,” said Nate.
“Yeah, that was a month ago. And you could have dropped a message when you arrived.”
“Okay, that’s it,” muttered Nate. “I’m sorry, but I need to take care of this.” He kissed my temple and got up. “Logan.” Nate gazed at him.
“Don’t worry, she’ll be safe,” said Logan.
I assumed she meant me. What the heck? How long is he planning to be away? And who the hell is Ruby?
Nate grabbed Ruby by her arm and led her out of the bar. She didn’t resist.
“Who is that?” Connie glared at Logan.
“She’s someone we know. She has a bar nearby, and she’s just angry that we didn’t stop by to say hi.”
“Yeah,” said Sam, looking really annoyed. “She’s just . . . it’s just her temper.”
“She hasn’t seen my temper,” I said, and realized my words came out angry. “Sorry, guys.”
“Don’t be,” said Connie. “I’m right there with you.”
But Connie didn’t understand what made me so angry. At first I thought Ruby had something to do with Logan. But now it was clear I was wrong. Was this the woman Nate came to meet last time? That would explain her behavior.
She knew my name, and that meant Nate had told her about us. I felt different now. Even bad. Breakups are tough. And she seemed to be taking it hard. If you love someone . . . Did she truly love him?
Oh my God. I’m like that other woman, who took him away from her.
“Nicky?” said Sam. “Are you okay?”
“Nicky, don’t worry,” said Logan. “He’ll be back soon.”
“Guys,” I said, raising both hands, “you don’t have to pretend. I know exactly what’s going on. He told me, okay?” I grabbed my bag and got up. “I need to go to the bathroom.”
I stood in front of bathroom’s mirror, looking at my burning cheeks.
Calm down. It’s not your fault. He didn’t love her. He just needs to explain it to her.
I looked at the pendant on the necklace on my chest.
The bathroom door opened. It was Connie.
“Nicky, what the hell is going on?” she asked, looking worried.
“It’s Nate’s ex. I should’ve known this might happen, but I was so happy that I . . . God, why didn’t I . . .”
“Nicky, I’m so sorry.”
“Connie, I’m the one who’s sorry. It’s your birthday, and we ruined it.”
“Are you seriously thinking about that right now?” She stared at me. “I had a perfect day, and guess what? It’s over. It’s nearly one a.m. It’s already tomorrow.”
“Still sorry,” I sighed.
“How freaked are you right now?”
“I’ll be okay when I see him. Really. It must be tough to have this conversation. She looked pretty upset.”
“She did.” Connie nodded. “She’ll be fine too. You wanna have a drink?” She arched her brow.
“No.” I shook my head. “I’m afraid it’ll make me cry.”
Laughing, Connie hugged me.
We returned to the bar, which was nearly empty.
“Can I have a water?” I asked the bartender.
“Sure.” He filled up a glass and put it in front of me.
“You know?” I said to Connie as I took a sip. “It’s late. Maybe we should go to the hotel. I don’t want to wait here.”
“Okay. I’ll tell Logan.”
I pulled my phone out of my purse.
We’re going to the hotel.
I typed the message and sent it to Nate. Thinking it might take some time until he answered, I put the phone on the counter and waited while sipping my water. Looking into the bar mirror, I saw Sam walking toward me.
“Roy, you can go home,” he said to the bartender. “I’ll close up myself.”
“Thanks,” said Roy. “See you tomorrow.”
“Nicky, I’m sorry.” Sam sat on the bar stool next to me. “I don’t know how she found out you guys were here. I swear. Nate thought I was the one who told her. But I didn’t. I wouldn’t do that to you.”
“Sam, relax. I believe you. There were other people who saw him here yesterday. And it doesn’t matter how. They had to talk sooner or later.”
“If there’s anything I can do to make you
feel better, just tell me.”
“Thanks.” I smiled. “But I just want to go back to the hotel. I’m really tired.”
“We’re ready to go,” said Logan, handing me my jacket.
“Thank you for everything,” said Connie, hugging Sam.
“You’re welcome anytime.”
“Bye.” I hugged him too. “We might still see you tomorrow.”
“That would be great.” He let go of me with a sigh.
There were still people outside, and the street was a bit noisy. We walked less than five minutes to get back to the hotel, but it was nice to get some fresh air.
6
“Do you want me to stay with you?” Connie asked when we reached our doors.
“No. Get some rest, guys. I’m going to take a shower and lie down.”
I walked into the room, closed the door, and leaned on it. I stayed like that for a moment. It had been nearly forty minutes since Nate left with Ruby.
I dropped my purse from my shoulder and took off my jacket. I was about to take off my dress when I remembered he hadn’t answered my message. Or had he? I hadn’t checked the phone on the way back.
I picked up my purse and rummaged through for my phone. But it wasn’t there. I turned the purse upside down and emptied it on the couch. But the second I did, I remembered that I had set it down on the counter.
Damn.
I stood thinking for a moment. I could get it back tomorrow, of course. But what if Nate came late, and what if he sent me a message to warn me, or to . . .
“Aaaah, crap.”
I better go before Sam closes the bar. I grabbed the keys and headed back.
Nate will kill me if he finds out I went back alone in this hour, I thought the moment I stepped out into the dark street.
God, what the hell is wrong with you? For God’s sake, he left with his ex, and God knows what they’re doing right now, and you’re the one who’s afraid to make him angry?
Suddenly I got pissed off, and I wanted to pour my fury out on someone. But then I convinced myself I was overreacting and kept walking, trying to calm down.
I was more cautious out here alone. Trying to avoid people if they looked drunk or suspicious, I crossed from one side of the street to the other.