Madeleine’s aura wasn’t changing. It flowed steadily from her, a rainbow of luminance that didn’t quite hurt Adele’s eyes.
Devin’s aura still had the darkness swirling through it that she had seen in the afternoon. But she did notice throbbing snatches of scarlet and pink winding through it, pulsing larger with every spin.
Adele turned her attention to her sketchbook. She drew a faceless head and imagined a person with deep sexuality, someone who oozed sex with every step, every wink of the eye, every toss of the hair.
She didn’t care if the person was male or female or even human. It could be the person who washed up on the beach. The idea was the sensuality, the warmness that enticed the anticipation of something deeper.
Adele dumped out her pencil crayons and held several in her hand. Her fingers worked quickly, sometimes using pencils together, sometimes separately. As the aura took form, she added androgynous features to the face. Large, soulful eyes, pouty lips with a sly smile, and a strong chin stared out at the world. The person’s eyelids were half-drooped, the patented sleepy-eyed stare of a starlet. The lips were slightly moist. A slight line along the cheek gave the subject a seductive quality.
The aura shimmered out in winding, twisting shapes varying from round to oblong that wrapped around and through each other.
Adele put her pencils down and stared at the clock. She had been working for almost an hour without stopping. It was amazing. Energy flowed through her, and she was strangely aroused. She was glad she wasn’t a man or she would have been trying to hide a massive erection. As it was, she walked gingerly to the front of the class.
“Okay, that’s about it. Take time to do any last-minute things and display your work to your classmates.”
The class turned their easels around so everyone could look at each other’s work.
Adele had to look away from the eager stares of her students as their auras were blinding. She tried to look at the paintings, but with the exception of Madeleine’s, all shined with brilliantly sensual sexuality. Madeleine’s painting was optimistic but didn’t convey the urgent anticipation Adele was looking for in the exercise.
Adele held her own painting up as well and welcomed critiques. The next half hour passed quickly, and soon everyone was packing up to go home.
“Hey, Adele,” Devin said softly, approaching her.
“Hi, Devin.”
“Do you want to come over for a coffee? Maybe we can talk about the other night.”
Adele sighed and looked at her watch. “I can’t tonight, Devin. Maybe another time. Catalogs and such.”
“Sure.”
Adele watched as Devin sadly packed up his supplies. He looked over at her, waved good-bye, and was gone.
* * *
Once Adele arrived home, she relaxed on the couch, sprawling out from one end to the other. She wiggled her stocking-footed toes. Devin obviously didn’t know she’d seen him that day. He had no clue that almost anyone would have been hurt or confused by his weirdness the night before. She knew she wasn’t supposed to count on anyone second-guessing or anticipating her needs. How could they when she didn’t know what her own needs were?
Really, what did she need? Especially from Devin?
She had her store, her career. She fulfilled her obligation of sharing her talents with others, and it brought her joy. She had friends. She had the circle.
All she needed was a companion to share it with. And she wasn’t even sure what she expected such a companion to do.
Well, she knew one thing she wanted a companion for, and that was to have great sex. Devin was providing that quite nicely, and the other-dimension thing was a weird little bonus.
Should she be worried about it all? Was there a connection between the adventures she and Devin shared and the bodies washing up onshore?
She leaned over to grab her phone and dialed Maggie’s number. “Do you have a minute?” Adele asked her.
“Sure. What’s up?”
“I want you to take a look at Devin. I guess at his intentions or something like that.”
“Sure,” Maggie said. Adele could hear the sound of cards being flipped around.
“Hmm...” Maggie said. “Weird.”
“What?”
“I wish you could see this layout. It’s interesting how the cards landed. Doesn’t really matter to you.”
“And what do they say about him?”
She heard the sound of shuffling and flipping as Maggie searched through the cards. “He’s confused. He’s torn between two worlds. It’s like he’s in the grip of something he can’t quite control.”
“I bet. And how is this going to affect me? Us?”
“The cards are so dark. You both have challenges and decisions to face. It’s a matter of choosing the correct options that will decide your fate.”
“What are the options? What are the choices?”
Maggie sighed. “I can’t quite see it. The Tower, the Devil, the Ten of Swords, so many stressful cards. Miscommunication. Cross purposes. Different goals.”
“Is that our age difference?” Adele asked.
“No. I would say it’s more about your expectations, which I guess could be related to your age differences.”
“So the cards are basically saying what they did before. There’s nothing new there.”
“No, there doesn’t appear to be anything different. And that’s because much time hasn’t passed since the last reading, nor have you guys been through any kinds of experiences since then either.”
“Is there something I should know? Some kind of warning or advice you might have for me?”
“I think,” Maggie said, “that you need to be careful. Just keep your guard up, that’s all. I think it’s all going to work out in the end.”
“I don’t even know what that means anymore,” Adele said. “Keep my guard up. Be suspicious of everyone? Carry a gun? What?”
“Caution and intuition are your best guides. Just follow them and hopefully you’ll land on your feet.”
“Maybe I should just stop seeing him. Sounds too complicated.”
“No, I wouldn’t stop seeing him. You have shit to get through, but who doesn’t? He’s cute as a button and adores you. Go for the ride and see what happens.”
“I guess,” Adele said pessimistically.
“Seriously. That’s all any of us can tell you, really. Just chillax and enjoy life.”
“Easy for you to say. You haven’t seen the scary crap I’ve seen, and somehow it feels like it’s just the beginning. You know, I was asked to identify one of those bodies today.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. I was walking back from lunch and there was a commotion on the beach, so I went to check it out. I had to look at one of them. It was horrible.”
“Was it human?”
“Could have been. She had human features. But it was weird. It was like everyone said. She was kind of sucked out, hollowed out, yet pools of blood were forming as rigor mortis set in. Her face looked locked in a scream or something. And man, the smell... Jesus Christ.”
“Gross. But you know, dead things by the ocean never smell nice. At least it’s March and not some hot, sweltering August day.”
“I guess. But it sure wasn’t on my to-do list to see that poor woman like that.”
“Well, hopefully they’ll figure out what’s killing everyone and how to handle it.”
“I hope so,” Adele said. They chatted a little longer, then said their good-byes.
Adele paced around the room. Maggie didn’t seem too concerned, but she wasn’t in Adele’s shoes. And not much really ever concerned Maggie, unless it was about herself.
Still, she had been cautioned, and caution seemed to be an understatement.
Chapter Eight
Though you yearn to live in your dream world, keep your feet firmly planted in reality.
Adele was finishing up with a customer when Natasha bustled in the door. She wore her scarf tightly w
rapped around her head, and large black sunglasses. With her long, black coat, she looked either like a movie star or a spy. Natasha pretended to busy herself with the teddies until the customer left the store.
Within seconds, Natasha was at the counter. “I don’t mean to be a nuisance,” she whispered, her throat tight.
“What is it?” Adele asked.
Natasha gripped her scarf tighter around her head with long, leather-gloved fingers. “It’s Gus, again, as always,” she sighed.
“What did he do?”
“I haven’t seen him and was wondering if you had.”
Adele shook her head. “I haven’t seen him since he came in for the fitting.”
“Dammit,” Natasha said. “I swear that man is going to drive me crazy.”
“I’m sure he’ll turn up.”
“I just—I just don’t know what to think,” Natasha lamented. “These bodies, and him so weird and now just nowhere... I don’t know what to think.”
“Don’t think like that. I really don’t think it was him,” Adele said. She leaned closer to Natasha. “I saw one of the bodies yesterday. It wasn’t Gus who did it. I’m almost positive.”
“How do you know?”
“There was no blood. No wounds. No rips or tears,” Adele said, wincing.
“None? Drowned, then?”
“They said no. The body was kind of hollow or something. But it was no regular murder.”
“Who was it?”
“They don’t know who any of them are. She didn’t seem like a vagrant. I don’t even know if she was human, though she seemed human.”
Natasha cocked her head. Adele couldn’t see where she was looking through the dark lenses of the glasses. After a moment, Natasha spoke. “They aren’t human. They’re from another world.”
“Aliens?”
“Not space. Just another world. I don’t know what that means, but that’s the message,” Natasha said.
“Weird. So how come you know that but you don’t know where Gus is?”
“I don’t know. Maybe that’s what frightens me. No one is telling me anything.”
“They, whoever they is, just told you the bodies are from somewhere else but not who killed them,” Adele pointed out. “That’s not right.”
“That’s the joy of spirits. They like to confuse you.”
“Messing with your mind,” Adele said.
“Something like that. Teasing, really,” Natasha said firmly to the ceiling. “Why won’t you tell me about Gus?” She stared at it and frowned for a few moments, then sighed. “They mock me, and I deserve it. So be it.”
Adele looked up to the ceiling too, but she saw nothing. “How many ghosts are in here now?”
“Oh, I’d say...” Natasha looked around the store, “Mmm, there’s six that came with me, and another four that live here.”
“I have ghosts?”
“Who doesn’t have ghosts in this town?”
Adele shivered. “Should I be scared?”
“No, they like the place. They are fine here,” Natasha said. “Now that you know about them, don’t be surprised if they play tricks on you.”
“Oh, great,” Adele said, fingering the obsidian ball in her pocket. She pulled it out to show Natasha.
“That’s a beautiful ball.” Natasha admired it. “Can I touch it?”
“I don’t see why not.”
Natasha held it in her hands. “It has a lovely energy.”
“Yes, it does,” Adele said. “It was given to me to ward off evil spirits, should I need to.”
“You just might,” Natasha said, giving it back to her. “Keep it with you at all times.”
“I do.”
“Good. Well, I’m sorry to bother you. I guess I’ll just go to bed and not let Gus ruin my beauty sleep.”
Natasha’s tall, lean form slipped through the door and out to the street like a shadow.
* * *
The rest of the day passed uneventfully and Adele was just going into the back to retrieve her coat when the door jingled. She returned to the front and saw Devin standing in the doorway. He grinned as he shut it against the brisk March wind that had blown up.
“I’m just in time.” His beard was nearly grown in, and his hair was shaggy. His eyes were wild with excitement. His aura spurted in white-hot bursts from his body, although a string of blackness wound around the upper portion.
“You are?”
“I’m taking you out to dinner. I think it’s been wrong of me just to have you over. I want everyone to see us,” he declared as he stepped toward her. He smelled of rose incense.
“What are you talking about?” she said, covering her nose. The incense made her dizzy; the scent of roses was too strong.
“When you didn’t want to come over the other day, I realized I must have offended you somehow. So I looked up some sites and got the advice that maybe you’re starting to feel like you’re just a booty call and that I need to take you out on real date. And here I am.” He held his hands out to her.
She stared at him.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, his eyes wide. Then his face changed. “Oh, you might already have a date. Of course...”
Adele shook her head. “No, it’s not that. And wow, no, I don’t feel like a booty call, though now that you’ve put it like that...”
Devin’s brow furrowed. “Now I’ve insulted you,” he said.
“No, you haven’t insulted me,” she said. “It’s okay. It’s just that... well, our last visit to Harmoni was unsettling for me.”
“I still don’t even remember it,” Devin said.
“Really? Still?”
“Yes, really.”
“Well, I can’t be mad at you for something you don’t even remember, can I?” Adele said, taking his hands.
Devin sighed with relief. “Oh good. So you’ll go out for dinner and dancing, then?”
“Sure,” Adele said. “But first I have to have a quick shower and change. You can come and have some wine while I do that, if you like.”
“Love to,” Devin said, kissing her on the cheek.
Adele closed up the store, and together they braved the wind down the muddy sidewalks toward her house.
“It sure is a lion day. All blustery,” Adele said, trying to keep her purse from blowing away. The walk was quite a challenge for many blocks. At last, they arrived at her house.
“Where are we going?” she asked as she took off her coat.
“Wherever you want. Casual. Fancy. It’s all good.”
“I’ll take casual. I’m feeling kind of mellow. I’ll be right back,” she said. “Oh, help yourself to the wine.”
Adele took a quick shower, keeping her hair dry. As she slipped on a sweater and pulled a caftan over it, she fretted about going out at all. She wasn’t even sure if she wanted to be with Devin that night. Maybe she should just call it off and stay home with the TV.
But he was so earnest. She wanted to believe he was sincere, not grandstanding. Still, it was sweet, and it’d been a long time since a man had bothered to surprise her like that.
She slipped on the herb pouch and pocketed the obsidian and the key in the long vest she wore over a sweater. Checking the mirror, she freshened up her makeup and patted her hair. There was no point in trying to style it because the wind would blow it into a mess the minute she set foot out the door.
Devin had poured her a glass of wine as well. “You might as well have some too,” he said, holding it out to her.
“Thanks.”
Devin studied her up and down and nodded approvingly. “You look great.”
“I didn’t worry about my hair... the wind...”
“Your hair is fine,” he said.
They drank their wine in silence. When Adele was finished, she stood up.
“Lead the way,” she said.
* * *
By the time they arrived at Devin’s loft, Adele was in high spirits. She had drunk several glasses of wine, and they
had burned up the dance floor at the Dance Cave. Maggie, Weldon, and Ellie had been there too and were great company.
Adele held Devin’s face in her hands as they tumbled through the door. She tried to kiss him but stumbled on a shoe and kissed his shoulder instead.
“Whoops,” she said. “Shoe’s in the way.”
“No worries,” Devin said, kicking away the offending shoe and leading her through the labyrinth of chairs, easels, and clothing until he placed her on the couch.
Adele grinned and leaned back. “I’m so happy.”
“I’m glad,” Devin said. “Would you like some more wine?”
“Just a little one. And a big glass of water too, please.”
“Coming right up,” Devin said as he went to fetch them.
Adele stared around the room. His place was never the epitome of neat, but right now it was a total disaster. Well, maybe not a total disaster, but it had certainly gone awry. Clothes were everywhere. And shoes. She didn’t know a man could own so many pairs of shoes. There were water bottles and a couple of pizza boxes. She stared at the clutter until her attention was drawn to the paintings.
Harmoni.
Dark and destroyed.
The mural was in the same sad state it had been in when last she saw it.
Devin entered with two glasses of wine and a water bottle. “Do you want a glass with that?”
“No, this is safer,” she said, unscrewing the cap. “Why is Harmoni so sad?” She turned to look at him.
“I don’t know. But something’s happened, hasn’t it? I don’t like calling it Harmoni anymore.”
“I wonder...” Adele said, sipping her water. She screwed the lid back on and put it down. “I wonder if something bad happened in Harmoni and you’re recording it.”
“Maybe. It could be anything. You know I don’t know how I paint it, so I don’t know why it’s sad. Maybe I’m sad,” he said in exasperation.
Adele stared at him. “Are you sad, Devin?”
Pisces: Teacher's Pet Page 14