by Brenda Drake
“Thank you,” she said. “I’ve wanted one of these for years. It’s just been too expensive for me to afford.”
“I hope you enjoy it.” Reese plucked open the door and stopped. On the other side was Aster, her back to the door, about to leave. “Aster?”
“Thanks again,” the woman said, passing her.
Aster turned around. “I’m sorry, I…I have to go…” She started to walk off, but Reese caught her hand.
“Please, don’t leave.” What he should be doing is chasing her off, saying something to make her run from him. But he couldn’t. The sight of her weakened him. Her red eyes betrayed her. She’d been crying. It was in that moment, seeing her so distraught, he knew that he must tell her the truth. “Come in.”
She backed up a step, pulling from his grasp. “I didn’t realize you were busy. Why are you selling your stuff?”
“I have to return home.”
“Without saying good-bye to me?” Her voice broke on the last word and with it, a piece of his heart.
He sighed. “I was going to, as soon as things settled down with your family.”
“I see.” She stared at her shoes. “And were you going to tell me that you used me, too? You know, the part where you had sex with me so I would fall in love with you and change your fate?” She glanced up and held his gaze. Her eyes held so much anger that Reese shrank back at the sight of them. “You used me,” she said, speaking with so much force, spit flew from her mouth. “You betrayed my trust. How could you do that to me?” She looked away and then back at him, lowering her voice to a whisper. “I was a virgin.”
He stepped closer to her. “Forgive me,” was all he could get out.
She pushed him away. “Ha, now that’s funny. Should my family forgive you, too? Did you know that every fate I changed followed me, and anyone I touched afterward took it on? I hope not, because that would mean you’re just plain evil. A monster.” She flung something tiny at him, and he picked it up. My pin?
He inspected his shirt to see if his pin had fallen off, but it was still there. The one she threw at him was the one he had lost. It must’ve fallen off at Miri’s place.
He didn’t know what to say. She knew about his curse and his betrayal. There was nothing he could do to change her resolve. Let her go, his inner voice said before he could protest and profess his love for her. Let her hate you. She’d be much better off thinking you’re a horrible person. She could eventually move on. Find someone to love.
“Great. You have nothing to say for yourself? All you’re going to do is just stare at me like a moron?” She turned and stomped down the sidewalk, kicking the sign as she passed it. “I hope you do die,” she said over her shoulder and jogged to her vehicle.
Her words stabbed his heart and his knees went weak. He grabbed on to the doorframe and watched as she sped off. His eyes moistened, making the taillights of the Bug blurry. A part of him hoped she’d turn around, but the other part was relieved she had kept going. She deserved far better than what he had given her, more than he had to offer.
Suddenly, the bit where she said he knew the fates would harm her family registered. He knew the curse would fall on her family, but he didn’t know she could transfer fates around like a deadly virus. He was a monster. He didn’t deserve her. She was better off without him.
A couple approached, blocking his view and breaking the spell the street held on him. He swallowed hard and shook the threatening emotions away.
“Welcome,” he greeted the couple. “We have a few items left.”
The couple bought the rest of the furniture and told him they’d return with a truck the next day. Reese followed them out, removed the sign, and went straight for the refrigerator. A sold sign, stuck to the front with a piece of tape, swung as he opened the door. He grabbed a beer and popped the top.
Jan grabbed a beer as well and joined Reese on the sofa. “Do you regret staying here instead of going to Florida?”
“No.” He took a swig of his beer. “I could have had many meaningless romps with numerous girls. Instead, I got to taste love. To die and never know that feeling would have been a tragedy.”
“Dude, you’re speaking like a girl.” Jan tipped his bottle back and took a long sip.
“Dude?” Reese laughed. “Good thing I’m taking you away from here. You’re starting to sound like a Yank.”
“And you’re a wanker,” Jan countered.
They sat in silence, drinking beer. Jan knew Reese better than anyone. He knew when not to speak, when to listen, and when to act the jester. Before long, they had finished off an entire six-pack. Leah arrived with Chinese food, and the three of them sat around the coffee table to eat.
Leah struggled to get some rice on her chopsticks. “So this is it? You’ve sold everything, huh?”
“It’s all spoken for,” Jan said.
“I’m so sad,” she said, leaning over and kissing him smack on the lips. “I’m going to miss you like crazy.”
Jan scooped some rice onto his chopsticks and offered it to her. “I won’t be gone but a few weeks, and then we’ll have the entire summer together.” He quickly pulled his arm back, causing the rice to fall off the sticks. He gave Reese an apologetic glance. “It’s not like I won’t mourn you.”
Reese picked up a pot sticker. “I’m confident you will. You’ll be a regular pauper without me around.” That was, until Reese’s parents passed away.
“What are you two talking about?” Leah glanced from Reese to Jan. “I leave one jacked-up place for another. Why is everyone so crazy lately? Aster’s family has gone all freakazoid. I was just there looking for Aster and her mom was tearing the house apart looking for a lost deposit.”
“For the shop?” Reese asked, feeling guilty that he had caused her family’s recent bad luck. If he hadn’t stolen that tarot deck, allowing Miri to coax Aster into changing fates, none of the unfortunate things afflicting Aster’s family would have happened. He was as much of a louse as he felt.
“A huge deposit.” Once Leah got started, she rattled on so fast, Reese had a difficult time keeping up. “Some bride paid cash for her wedding flowers. Who does that nowadays? She must have bad credit. Anyway, Aster’s mom isn’t sure how long it would take other customers to replace their checks. If she pays the mortgage or pays her employees, she can’t buy flowers to keep the shop open. It’s a huge mess.”
She took a deep breath and continued, “First her gram gets sick, then her sister almost kills herself, and their tenant dies. Bad luck has fallen on that family. It’s like they’re under a black cloud or something.”
As the pit in Reese’s stomach grew larger, Jan offered Leah a pot sticker, most likely in an attempt to quiet her. It worked. She took a bite.
Reese rubbed the back of his neck. It only got worse. What a mess… “How much was it?” he asked.
“Nine or ten thousand dollars,” she said. “Only three of it was in cash. But it’ll take her some time to get the checks replaced. Good thing there were some credit card tenders for the week.”
Reese wished he could help Aster’s family. Guilt weighed on him. Then an idea hit him. “Jan, we could give Aster’s mother our earnings.”
“You mean what you made from the sale?” Leah asked, her face lighting up.
Jan’s eyes widened. “Surely she’ll find it. How does one lose such a significant amount of money?”
Reese pushed his plate away. He didn’t feel much like eating anymore.
Leah wiped her mouth with her napkin. “I guess it happened the night Violet almost drowned. It got misplaced during the commotion.”
“You haven’t answered my question, Jan. How much did we earn?”
“I haven’t counted it yet. The furniture alone went for five thousand, which doesn’t come near to what you paid for it.” Jan picked up one of the water bottles Leah had brought with dinner. “With the other items, maybe eight thousand, I suppose.”
“Right, then.” Reese turned to Leah. �
�Now, how can we give it to them anonymously?”
Leah pondered the situation for a second before her phone chimed. She read the text. “Oh my, it’s from Daisy. She wants a ride but doesn’t want one from her family. She says she needs to talk to me.” Her fingers rushed over her screen as she responded to the message. “I’m asking her why. I don’t know what has gotten into that girl. She used to be so innocent, and now she’s kind of wild. And there’s so much shit going on in that family that Daisy has fallen through the cracks.”
The response came fast. Daisy was in trouble. She was at Abby’s house along with other kids. Abby and her friends were getting out of control, and Daisy wanted Leah to give her a ride home. Reese insisted that he and Jan go with Leah. He said it was in case there was any trouble, but Reese had a sinking feeling he had caused Daisy’s woes.
As they approached Abby’s house, Reese spotted Daisy sitting on the curb, her head buried in her knees. She glanced up when the headlights of Leah’s auto hit her. Mascara ran down her face in rivers, and she was clutching a vinyl pouch in her hands. Leah pulled alongside the curb and practically tripped out of the car.
“Daisy, are you okay?” Leah rushed to her, plopped down beside her, and wrapped her arm around her back. “How come you didn’t call Aster?”
“I tried. She didn’t answer,” she said. “I just want to go home.”
“What’s that in your hand?” Leah pulled the bag from her grasp. “It’s a bank bag.”
“It’s my mom’s. Abby stole it from our house.” Daisy wiped her nose with the back of her sleeve. “The cash is gone, but the checks are still in there. I kept asking her for the cash, but she said she didn’t have it. How do I prove she took it and not me?”
“What did she do with all the cash?”
“Bought stuff.”
Reese stepped over to them. “First, we go back to our flat and get her cleaned up. Then we’ll take care of the rest. But you will have to change this dark and winding road you’re on, Daisy.”
Daisy glanced up at him. “I don’t ever want to see Abby or her horrible friends again. I don’t know why I started hanging out with them. I never liked them before.”
Her resemblance to Aster tugged at Reese’s emotions. She had the same doe-like eyes, auburn hair that fell in waves around her shoulders, and a dusting of freckles across her nose. He worried that the mess she found herself in was his fault. Had Aster touched her with someone else’s ill fate?
“Come on, kid,” Leah said, grasping her arm and helping Daisy to her feet. “Life is all about lessons. And we’re going straight to your house, mess and all, and you’re going to tell your mom the truth. No one is bailing you or Abby out of this.” She looked pointedly at Reese. “Though we appreciate your offer, she has to learn from this. It’ll make her a better person in the long run.”
“Yeah, I just want to tell the truth,” Daisy said. “I’m tired of lying and worrying I’ll be caught.”
“Good.” Leah guided her to the car. “We’ll rip it off like a Band-Aid.”
Reese was disappointed, but he understood Leah’s reasoning. He just wanted to make things right for his own selfish reasons. It was time for him to go. He couldn’t wait two more days. It would torture him to stay. In a moment of weakness, he might beg Aster to take him back and change his fate. And she would cave and do it for him, no matter the cost. Then he’d be a true monster, just as Aster believed he was.
Chapter Seventeen
Aster
Aster sat in the idling car, staring at the closed door to the apartment—the apartment attached to the garage where Tillie used to live. But now Tillie was dead.
Because of her.
Although Tillie had told her it wasn’t her fault that she had ruined everyone’s lives and cost Tillie’s hers, she still felt guilty about it.
Strangling the steering wheel, Aster couldn’t bring herself to go into the house. She feared what she’d find. Who would be her next victim? Had every changed fate been accounted for? She couldn’t remember.
Her mood was so dark… She wanted to be numb and not care about anything. Reese’s face kept popping in and out of her mind. Tormenting her. She had memorized every one of his smiles—his crooked one, his amused one, and his sexy smirk. And when that hadn’t tortured her enough, a 3-D tour of his toned body would play in her thoughts.
I’m such a masochist. Stop thinking about him. Jeesh. He’s just a guy. There’s a million of them in this world. She got out of the car and went in through the kitchen door. Love is dumb, she thought, taking off her sweat jacket and hanging it on a hook. It really messes a person up.
Voices came from the living room, and the male one caused her to pause. Dad? She rushed into the other room. Her dad sat beside Violet on the couch while her mom sat in the chair beside them. Aunt Roselyn was on the floor beside Nathan’s infant seat, cooing at him.
“What’s going on?” Aster asked, not sure what she should do.
“Hey, baby,” her dad said, standing and greeting Aster with a hug. “I came down to help out your mother.”
She paused, wondering exactly what he meant and if something else horrible had happened while she was out. Biting her lip, she wrapped her arms around her dad’s torso. “Help her out?” He released her.
“I’m giving her a loan until she gets things straightened out with the missing deposit.” He returned to his seat on the couch. “Also, Violet is going to come stay with me for a while.”
Aster looked at Violet. “You are? Why?” She squatted on the footrest in front of her sister.
“Josh was text-bombing me with horrible comments. He posted pictures of me on his page…” She swallowed hard. “Um…kissing Dena. Some of his friends made fun of it. Said some inappropriate things.”
Aster tried to catch up with her sister’s confession. “Wait. You dated that guy… What’s his name?”
Violet sighed. “This isn’t about a guy. And there are many different sexualities, Aster. I’m bisexual.”
Wow. I didn’t see that coming.
But who was Aster to judge Violet or anyone for that matter? If being bi made Violet happy, then so be it. Aster smiled genuinely. “Okay, that’s cool. Do what makes you happy.” Aster stood and faced her mother. “I’m going to beat the crap out of Josh the next time I see him. How can you let Iris go out with him? He’s a jerk.”
“Aster, you’re to behave yourself,” her mom warned. “We’ll deal with Josh. And Iris broke up with him, so try to be kind to her.”
“She did, huh?” It seemed like all her bad fate stuff was turning out okay. “Well, I’ll let you guys talk. I’ll be back down later, Dad. You’ll still be here, right?”
He smiled up at her. “Yeah, we’re not leaving until tomorrow.”
Before Aster left the room, she turned to Violet. “Baltimore’s not too far. Not even a three-hour drive. I’ll come out to see you as often as I can.”
“I’d like that,” Violet said, a smile hinting on her lips.
…
Aster dragged herself up the stairs and pushed open her bedroom door. She stopped short before entering. Gram perched at the edge of her bed, Tillie’s hatbox on the comforter beside her.
“You’re going to have to face me one day,” Gram said. “Might as well be now.”
Aster eased into the room.
Gram picked up the box and patted the mattress beside her. “We have much to talk about, wouldn’t you say?”
If they had so much to talk about, Aster wasn’t getting any ideas on what to say. She plopped down next to her grandmother.
Gram took Aster’s arm and pushed back the owl bracelet, exposing the mark. She swallowed a sob. “I should have guessed it would be you,” she said. “You do favor your grandfather’s side of the family. I was hoping you and your sisters wouldn’t have to suffer this.”
“Tillie told me she caused Gramps’s death.” Aster felt a lump forming in her throat and she cleared it. “How could you take her i
n, knowing that?”
“It wasn’t her fault,” Gram said. “Just like her death and the happenings going on around here aren’t yours. I take full blame. It was the wrong decision to withhold the truth from you. You were bound to encounter tarot cards eventually. But after your grandfather died, I was scared. I wasn’t thinking clearly.”
“How did you know about it?” Aster picked at her cuticles. It kept her from looking in Gram’s eyes. She was ashamed of what she’d done. Of the trouble she had caused. Tillie’s death.
As if she knew what Aster was thinking, Gram said, “Tillie chose to take the fate from you. She was old and tired. I don’t want you to blame yourself for what happened to her. It was her way of righting a wrong.”
Aster blew out a sigh. “That’s what she said. But she’d still be alive if I hadn’t…” She swiped a tear from her eye.
Gram grabbed her hand. “Stop it, you hear. You had no idea what would happen.”
Aster nodded. Gram was right. If she’d known the consequences, she would have never touched a single tarot card ever. “So are you a fate changer, too?”
“No. Your grandfather told me about his family and their history.”
Aster was amazed Gram hadn’t run as far away as she could get from Gramps. “And you believed him? ’Cause it’s sort of crazy. Even though I’ve witnessed it for myself, I still find it hard to believe.”
Gram chuckled. “If it had to be one of you, I’m glad it’s you, Aster. You’re stronger than your sisters are. I have faith you will do the right thing with this gift. She lifted the lid of the hatbox, removed the deck of tarot cards from the top, and held them out to her. “You must either keep these on you at all times or find a better hiding place for them. Under your bed wasn’t a safe enough choice. Anyone can use your cards to call you to them and persuade you to change fates for them.”
“I know,” Aster said, frowning. “It happened with a tarot reader on the boardwalk. She stole my fate card.” When Gram’s eyes widened, Aster added, “Don’t worry. I got it back.”