Phoenix Tonic

by Shelley Martin

  Strained silence weighted the air, but Hailey’s curiosity got the better of her. “How did it happen?”

  Kallian played with the balloon a little before answering. “We didn’t live in the U.S. then. She was treating some sick villagers. It was… like the dark ages. There wasn’t much to work with. So when she helped someone get better, it often seemed like magic to the people. Everyone loved her as much as we did.” He toyed with the pulley rope as he spoke. “We heard rumors that some crazy zealots thought she was practicing black magic. They used a poisoned blade. But it was a quick death… so, yeah.”

  After a moment Hailey spoke up. “So, it was in a third world country? Did they ever find who did it?”

  All he could do was shake his head. He missed Abelina and her cheerful smile. Malachi was like a ray of sunshine compared to his current gruff exterior. He wished he could tell Hailey the whole truth— that it wasn’t a third world country, but Europe. That a long time ago was three hundred years ago. And that the poison and the suppressant were very rare forms of liquid. Someone had known Abelina was a phoenix when they killed her. And they had gone to great lengths to do so.

  “There is so much pain in this life,” she whispered. “I wish I could just grow wings and fly away.”

  Kallian flashed her a bittersweet smile. If only she knew… “The problem with flying is you eventually have to land.” She nodded. “I’m sorry you’re still suffering so much. If you choose…” He wanted to say “choose me,” but didn’t feel like driving home the thought that got him a plate of fettuccine on his head two days ago. “If you choose those things I told you about then everything would even out for you. You wouldn’t be a danger to everyone and—”

  “I seem to remember you agreeing not to speak to me while we were up here.”

  Kallian closed his mouth at her harsh tone. “Yes, I did.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Hailey left Markham to deal with the hot air balloon rental team and marched back inside the house. The view was amazing. Besides the lake there were a few very small towns in the area. Other than that, the forest stretched on, only broken by an occasional river or body of water. If Markham hadn’t been there it would have been perfect. Except for that one remark he’d made, she was actually enjoying herself. And that was the problem.

  She swung the door to her room open, reached for the grocery bag with the jug, and marched down to Markham’s room. She knew she was angry at herself for being content in his presence. And she knew she was taking it out on him. Did that make her unbalanced? Probably. But she didn’t know what else to do with herself at the moment, so this would have to do.

  Glancing over her shoulder, she entered his room and closed the door behind her. His scent hit her like a ton of bricks, diminishing her anger and any heat brought on by her irritation. She forced her feet to move toward the huge bed and drop his stupid shirt on the comforter. She wanted to curl up under the covers and bury her face in his pillow.

  It’s just a trick of the mind. I really am mad at him. He deserves this.

  But as she rounded the corner to the show stopping bathroom, her doubts began to wage with her anger. She was really angry with herself, wasn’t she? She wanted to be in his arms, not making him mad…

  Then the reason peaked through. You’re not yourself. You never are when you’re around him or his scent. Just do what you came to do so you can return to normal.

  The plastic grocery bag crinkled as she removed the bottle of bleach. The cap came off quickly and she peeled back the foil cover. Her body braced for the overwhelming assault to her senses, but a flowery smell came instead. She smiled. Floral scented bleach? Kira had done well.

  She searched the marble wall and found Markham’s shampoo and conditioner on a shelf on the far end. Once she’d gathered all the bottles in the sink she began pouring and shaking the bleach into the other two bottles. And just like with the ipecac, she added a little more than she should have. It thinned out the shampoo more than she wanted, but it was too late to change that now.

  After replacing the bottles, Hailey washed her hands off in the marble sink. With bleach bottle in tow, she slipped back out of Markham’s room, unnoticed.

  ~***~

  The next morning, Hailey had to hold back a surprised yelp as she glanced at the incoming email. She scrolled down and read it again.

  Dear Mr. Markham,

  We’re so happy you chose to send your interview to us. We will happily run the article in this month’s magazine, as per your request. This is just what we were looking for. Please give your photographer our best. They have quite a good eye. If there is anything else we can do for you, please let us know.

  Sincerely,

  Karen Day, Senior Editor

  “Yes.” With her heart soaring, she took a shower and headed down stairs. Her trump card had worked. On top of all that, the editor actually liked her pictures. Who ever knew photography class would come in handy? If he didn’t divorce her after those photos, then nothing would work. As she bounded down the grand stair case, the doorbell rang. She paused on the bottom step, her hand on the railing. A delivery man glanced through the panel glass windows. He smiled and held up a clip board. After looking around a moment she went to the door and opened it.

  “Can I help you?”

  The delivery man smiled under the olive green cap. His matching uniform sported a nametag that read “Sam” and North Land Nursery. “Hi there. We have your Eucalyptus trees. We have a full order to plant them as well. Where would you like them?” He handed her the clip board and a pen. “Just sign on the highlighted line.”

  “I, uh…” Markham suddenly appeared beside her with noticeably lighter hair. She stifled a snicker.

  “Oh, wonderful. Just take them around to the back. I’ll get the doors pulled open on the arboretum.” He glanced at her. “Could you sign for them, please?”

  Hailey stared at them as both men went their own ways to the back of the house. Shrugging, she closed the door. As she walked along she scrawled her name on the line, then stopped. She’d signed Hailey Simmons. Technically she was Hailey Markham now. Did it really matter though? She didn’t plan for her marriage to be very long. Rolling her eyes, she signed “Markham” after Simmons. Who cared?

  As she met the men in the back, she watched the men carry several Eucalyptus trees into the arboretum. All the windows stood open and half of them had been completely removed. She handed the clipboard to the first man who didn’t have something in his hands, and stood back. Way back. The room suddenly filled with the intoxicating, earthy scent of all them men straining to get the trees upright.

  She back out of the room and ran into Kira. “Perhaps it would be better for you to wait inside?”

  Hailey nodded and headed for the kitchen. She wanted breakfast, anyway.

  After microwaving some leftovers, she stood at the counter while eating. Sitting in a chair would only slow her mad dash to get away from any poor, unsuspecting men if they wandered in.

  With a full stomach, she settled in her room with a movie. The frat boy comedy promised to sport epic shenanigans, and she took notes. Maybe she would be able to twist the lame pranks to help her. One of them included blue dye in a bathtub. Another put itching powder on toilet paper… And of course, the ever popular, clear wrap over the toilet seat. She sat back and shook her head. At this rate it would be easier for her to just move into his bathroom.

  A knock at the door didn’t stop her writing. “Come in,” she said, assuming it was Kira. She heard the door handle turn, but no one came in. She stopped writing and stared at the inch-wide crack. “Hello?” She leaned to the side to check for movement when a little black and gray claw appeared. Her brow furrowed and a furry head with a big nose pushed its way through the opening.

  Hailey gasped and slid off the bed. “Ian?” She knelt down as he galloped over to her. She wrapped her arms around the little koala as he nuzzled her. “What are you doing here?”

  “He
’s here to pay my tab.” Markham appeared in the doorway with Sapphire on his hip. Goosebumps lit up her skin at the sound of his voice, but she ignored it. His lightened hair had her biting back a giggle. But something else was off about him. The coloring in his cheeks seemed different. Or nonexistent.

  She stroked between Ian’s fuzzy ears. “What tab?”

  He cocked his head. “Just before you conditioned my hair with Alfredo sauce, you mentioned you were keeping track of all my misdeeds. You said I owed you either an island, a cruise ship, or Ian.” He smiled. “So, he’s yours now. And Sapphire comes by default.”

  She looked into Ian’s curious eyes and an image of her stuffed Koala disintegrating in her hands came back to her. “No. I can’t.”

  Markham’s smile disappeared. “Why not? I had those eucalyptus brought here just for them.”

  She shook her head at his stupidity. “Don’t you know how big eucalyptus trees grow? You’ll have to have them removed before they reach maturity. And the Koalas will strip them bare. And I don’t want them to end up like Bon-Bon.”

  He raised an eyebrow. “Bon-Bon?”

  She nodded. “The stuffed koala my grandfather gave me. If I get too upset I might…”

  Markham shook his head. “Not as long as you’re near me. You’ll be fine.”

  “But I don’t want to always be near you.” She buried her face into Ian’s wiry fur.

  “Then raid my closet and grab a shirt whenever you’re around them.” He sighed. “I know Ian makes you happy. I want you to be happy, even if you don’t choose me.” He hoisted Sapphire up to his chest. “It’s time to feed them. I have the kitchen stocked with eucalyptus branches, if you want to come.”

  As he walked away, Hailey encircled Ian closer to her. Eventually, she joined Markham for the koala’s dinner. She didn’t want to go, but there was no trust between her and the fire that lived inside her. So she was forced to be near Markham’s scent so she didn’t flare up and hurt the adorable little fuzz ball.

  Ian mewed and clung to her as she deposited him in the Arboretum. “Oh, come on, boy. Here’s Sapphire and yummy trees for you to nibble on.” She gently set him next to the tree and backed away. He needed to spend his nights with Sapphire. Hailey refused to come between them. Or rather, she refused to let the tonic that bound them to come between the natural order of things.

  The next morning, as she showered and got ready for breakfast, her heart sped up at the thought of playing with Ian and Sapphire. The simple act of touching another living being had become a rarity in her life. But first, she needed one of Markham’s shirts. Knowing that she didn’t want to face him, she moved slowly. Hopefully he’d be making breakfast by the time she finished getting ready. She chose dark blue skinny jeans and a long sleeve tee. The days were getting cooler as fall settled in, that and she wanted her arms covered if she was going to have those little claws all over her. Or if she overheated, the smoldering spots on the arms would warn her.

  As she walked to the fourth door on the left, she thought of Sapphire. She needed to get to know her better. Every time they were around, she always seemed to be with Markham. As she approached Markham’s door, she paused. The door stood wide open. Sunlight and the scent of chemical cleaners spilled out of the room, along with a woman’s soft humming.

  Hailey tentatively peered around the door to see an older woman making the bed. She wore a blue uniform with a name tag. “Um, hello?”

  The woman turned and smiled broadly. “Why, hello there, dear. Are you the new missus?”

  The new missus? Ugh, she wasn’t going to say out loud she was married when, in her mind, she wasn’t. She nodded instead.

  Her gray hair pulled into a tight bun atop her head, the woman continued smoothing wrinkles out of the sheets as she spoke. “I’ll be done in just a moment. I was surprised when Mr. Markham said he was married now. Well, not all that surprised. I mean he’s so handsome, it was bound to happen sooner or later. Oh, and you’re so pretty. I bet you make a beautiful couple. When did you two get here?”

  Oh, she really didn’t want to have this conversation. “Almost a week ago.”

  The lady changed the pillow cases and plumped them. “Really? That means you two are honeymooning. I’m rather surprised. I can’t find any evidence of you here. I was thinking, well… you know, the room would be a little more… disorganized.” The woman’s face reddened.

  Oh great. She was expecting underwear to be slung around on the furniture and the sheets to be a mess. Not to mention the lack of her stuff. “I’ve been staying in the purple room.” She pointed her thumb over her shoulder.

  “Oh.” The woman’s brows rose as she stood up. “But he’s so…” She stopped herself. “I, um, would you like me to clean in there?”

  She was going to say he’s so hot, or beautiful or sexy. Yeah, this is uncomfortable for both of us. Time to end the conversation. “No thanks. I just need to grab something and I’ll be out of your way.”

  “Oh, no, Mrs. Markham. I’m already finished in here.” She gathered up her cleaning supplies from the bathroom and wheeled the vacuum cleaner out. “I hope Mr. Markham feels better. Have a nice day.”

  Hailey waved. “You too.” She dropped her hand as soon as the woman was gone. The cleaning lady, huh? Did every woman fall all over him? But she said she hoped Markham was feeling better. Was he sick?

  A light breeze rustled her loose hair, causing her to shiver. She realized, for the first time, she was standing in Markham’s room and it didn’t smell like Markham. The harsh smell of bleach mingled with pine in the cooling air. In this instant, his masculine cedar and ash scent no longer clouded her mind. Her head was clearer in this place than it had been since they’d arrived.

  And she was over it. She wanted out, now. She wanted her hatred to direct her, because hatred meant that the tonic wasn’t in control. The problem was that she didn’t hate him anymore. Her head was clear, and she wanted his french toast and his laughter and his koalas. And that was bad.

  Just because she didn’t hate him anymore, didn’t mean she should be married to him. And she really didn’t want to give her body to him, because it had a mind of its own these days. She wanted to be clear headed. She wanted to be free.

  Her mother’s fearful face and bone chilling scream came back to her. Yeah, she didn’t want to accidentally kill someone. And if she wanted to see the koalas, she had to drug herself with his scent.

  Baby steps, she thought. One day at a time. She didn’t have a secluded place set up for her to escape to, yet. She hoped Kallian would do that once he got rid of her. Well, maybe he’d be closer to that after using his shampoo this morning.

  As her emotions rose, so did her heat. By the time she reached the closet, she was ready to grab the first shirt she saw. Only she didn’t see shirts at first. All she saw was ridiculously expensive suits and whole panel of silk ties and an assortment of shoes. She gawked at the cubbies and racks of silk and leather and imported fabrics. Then, she finally saw the array of colored shirts. They were crisp and pressed, hanging by range of color. But none of them smelled like Markham. As her frustration grew she began pulling one sleeve after another to her face and breathing in. But they were all clean. The closet was useless. She needed to calm down, or get a shirt… After a moment, she realized that maybe letting go was in her best interest.

  She had never tried to make fire on purpose before. But his closet seemed to be the perfect place to practice.

  Hailey held her hand up and concentrated, letting all her frustration flow to her finger tips. She thought about heat rising, and her feet staying cool and relaxed. Her fingers advanced from pink to red to crimson. The sleeve on her shirt started to burn, but she wanted flame. Not a lot. Just enough to show she had control, even at that level. When the tendrils of fire began to move over her hand, she grinned. The fire was small, just little peaks reaching into the air. With a steady mind, she dragged that hand slowly along the many garments. Some, like the shirts,
she burnt holes or entire sleeves off. Others, like the jackets and slacks, only took on an angry black and brown mark. Even his underwear drawer suffered, though not as much since it embarrassed her. She now knew he wore boxer briefs.

  Once finished with her work, she closed her eyes and willed her mind to calm. She used meditation techniques she’d learned at the cancer treatment hospital to slow her breathing and heartbeat. When she opened her eyes again, the fire had dissipated and her fingers had returned to their original flesh tone. Except the right half of her shirt hung charred from her body. She shrugged. The loss of one of her shirts was a fair price against his whole wardrobe.

  As she walked out, the acrid smell of burnt fabric wafted after her. She closed the door, hoping the open windows would clear out most of the stench. As she headed back to her room to get a new shirt, she ran into the laundry basket, standing next to the cleaning cart. On the top sat a rumpled white button up, ripe with Markham’s scent.

  With a smile, she scooped it up and put it on.

  ~***~

  Hailey spent the day contented with her book in the arboretum. The koalas loved on her, then ate, then cuddled on her some more. The sunset glowed pink on the horizon when she put her book down and stretched. “You guys are gonna get lazy and fat if you just hang around me all day.” As she kissed them and set them in the trees, her muscles tensed. Markham was near.

  His luscious scent proceeded quizzical words. “I thought you weren’t supposed to call a pregnant woman fat.”

  Hailey turned to look at him in the low light. She hadn’t seen him all day. Acid-wash jeans hung low on his hips, held up by a brown leather belt. A half tucked, gray thermal shirt sported a few buttons undone at the collar. By his cheery disposition, she figured he hadn’t come upon her little practice session, yet. “What do you mean by that?”

  He stepped into the arboretum and motioned to the koalas. “Sapphire is with child. We actually have to go back to Eden tomorrow for her sonogram.”