by Diane Darcy
The eye-catching black-and-gold lettering proclaiming, Psychic Readings and Tarot cards tended to draw in the more adventurous, and she hung her — Madame DeVille is in — sign, and stepped back out to mingle with the late afternoon/early evening crowd.
As per usual, a couple stopped to pose for a photo in front of the wagon and, after much giggling by the woman, Lena was able to interest them in stepping inside to get their fortune read.
Easy, peasy as everyone here was looking for a good time.
Business was steady for a couple of hours, especially once the sun went down. When she hit a slow patch, she stood outside watching the comings and goings of the tourists, and the antics of the street artists. She jumped when something soft brushed her ankle.
She glanced down to see a gray cat winding itself around her legs. “Well, hello again. Where did you come from?”
It meowed, big yellow eyes looking up at her. It was definitely the same cat she’d seen earlier. It had the same big patch of black on its chest like a badge.
She scratched the fur on its head. “You certainly get around, don’t you? I wish I had something for you to eat.”
The cat ran off and she straightened, only to be surprised, once again, when two teenaged boys stopped in front of her.
Surprised, because she knew one of them.
“Hi, Noah.”
He shot a smug look at the other boy. “Can we talk?”
“Who’s this?” She nodded toward his friend.
“I’m Ethan Trask,” said the other boy. He had dark hair, an easy grin, and roving eyes that slid up and down her body, lingering on her bare legs.
She snapped her fingers twice to regain his attention. “Follow me.”
They climbed the stairs, and when everyone was situated on a cushion, she waited.
“Can we shut the door?” Ethan asked.
She gave them both a smile. “Not on your life.”
“Look,” Noah said, leaning forward, his hands clasped between his open legs. “I wanted to talk to you without your boyfriend around because he’s a freak.”
After witnessing him interrogate people she could see his point. She was certainly glad she’d never been on the other end of his harsh stare.
“I understand,” she said soothingly.
“Here’s the thing,” Noah said. “I didn’t exactly tell you everything, so, if we told you some stuff, could you pass it on to your boyfriend, but tell him to leave us alone?”
“Sure.”
“My brother Logan called, and said you guys had been to see him.”
“Yes.”
Noah cleared his throat. “See, here’s the thing. Ethan wasn’t actually watching TV with me last night. He was outside with Logan and Addison waiting for the taxi.”
“Go on.”
“Logan didn’t know who the Uber driver was, but Ethan recognized him. But he’s not gonna talk to that boyfriend of yours.”
“Yeah,” Ethan spoke up. “I hear he’s one scary dude.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll keep him away from you, just tell me what you know.”
Ethan shot her a sly look. “I was hoping I could sell you this information.”
Lena’s heart sank. Having cash around wasn’t the best idea in this business, so she slid money earned into a locked box hidden under a shelf. They all did it, and Grandma kept the key.
She actually wished she had some money to give the kid, because she was caught up in the mystery and wanted to find the girl. Wanted William to be impressed that she’d gotten the information.
“Look, guys. I don’t have any money, either.”
Their faces fell.
“William, however, does. I know you don’t want to talk to him, but if you did, I’m pretty sure he’d be willing to pay. I could call him and see?”
“No! No way!” Ethan shook his head vigorously. He stood up, as if ready to go.
Lena stood as well. “If you’ve got some information that could help find Addison, you’ve got to tell me. She could be hurt, and the longer she’s missing, the more likely that is.”
She spread her hands. “Now, I’ve said I won’t tell William, and I won’t. But I could get some money from him, say,” she considered a moment. It wasn’t her money to spend, she didn’t know what William would offer, didn’t know if the kids were telling the truth … “fifty dollars? And if you come back later, I’ll give it to you. I swear it. But in the meantime, you’ve got to tell me what you know.”
“Only fifty dollars?” Ethan looked disappointed.
“Yes, and that’s only if we find the girl. No girl, no money.”
“But why can’t you pay more than fifty dollars?” Noah asked.
“Maybe I could get more. But no info, no money. The money is good for now. If you wait, we might find her without your help.” She paused. “Tell me what you know and I guarantee you’ll get paid.”
Ethan seem to think for a long while, and then he took a breath and released it. “Okay. Here’s what I know.”
Chapter 12
Ten minutes later, Lena escorted the boys out, stood on the pavement, and called William.
“Hello?” His voice was warm and friendly. Lena hadn’t heard William use that tone with anyone else. Maybe he’d entered her number in his phone already so her name came up on the caller ID.
“Hi, it’s Lena.”
“I know.”
That answered that.
“Noah and his friend Ethan came by to see me tonight. Apparently they were scared to talk to you because you’re kind of intimidating.”
He chuckled. “What did they want?”
“Remember how Logan claimed he didn’t remember anything about the driver?”
“Aye?”
“His friend, Ethan, was outside after all,” she said. “He recognized him.”
“Recognized him? Who is he?”
“Apparently, he’s a reporter, and he has a billboard off of I-15.”
“Vince Ramsey?” William sounded disbelieving.
“Yes. That’s the name.”
“I just saw him here earlier,” William said. “And just as I thought he didn’t know a thing. He was just after information.” William hesitated. “Or mayhap digging tae see what we knew.”
“Also, just so you know, I promised you would give Ethan fifty dollars for the information.”
“That’s not a problem. I’m glad tae give it tae them.”
“You’ll have to give it to me. Because he’s going to meet me tomorrow night to collect. He doesn’t want to see you.”
He chuckled. “I wish ye weren’t working. I would have liked ye tae come with me tae see the reporter.”
“Oh, I’m going.”
He chuckled. “I’m on my way.”
She hung up her phone, grinning.
Chapter 13
They were soon on their way to the reporter’s house. Lena was feeling nervous about confronting the man, but she wasn’t sure why. She had William at her side, and he was intimidating. The reporter shouldn’t be any trouble.
It turned out he lived in a condo connected to three others. They knocked on the door, but he didn’t answer.
“Any chance ye want tae cast a lock spell and open the door?”
“What? No.” She rolled her eyes. “Maybe I can read its mind. See what it wants, and coax it to open.”
William chuckled. “No’ tae worry.” He took a small leather kit out of his pocket. “Can ye shine a light on the lock, please?”
She pulled her phone out and switched on the flashlight app as William knelt down and started to pick the lock with what looked like professional lock-picking tools.
“I didn’t realize you had a part-time job. Do you do cars, or is it just houses?”
He chuckled.
“Any chance you can teach me how to do that?”
He shot her a grin. “I’d be glad tae, but I thought those of yer kind would use spells rather than lock picks.”
“What
? You thought psychics unlock doors with magic?”
He shrugged one shoulder. “I’m no’ sure how it works. I’ve never had an interest in learning before now. So, ye cannae open a lock?”
“Not yet. But I’m highly motivated, and I’m a fast learner.”
“That’s a great attitude for a student. If there’s anything else ye’d like me tae teach ye, just let me know.”
The sly, teasing way he said the words made her chuckle. She glanced around to make sure no one could observe them breaking and entering.
The way the building was situated, it offered complete privacy to the people who lived there, by having the door at the end of the 6-foot walkway. No one would see them unless they walked right up to them.
Two minutes later, William had the door unlocked, and they went inside.
They looked around. “Do ye see a security system? It’s usually near the front door.”
Lena opened the nearby closet, walked a few more feet into the room, but didn’t see anything. “It doesn’t look like it.”
“That’s a nice break for us.” He closed the door. “Let’s look around.”
They searched the kitchen, living area, closets, the pantry, and even a cupboard that was apparently used for under the stairs storage. There wasn’t much in the cupboard, so it was easy to see the girl wasn’t inside.
They walked up the steep staircase and searched the upstairs rooms. It looked like he was one of those guys who kept the downstairs nice for show, but he was a total slob in his personal area.
His bedroom smelled terrible, probably from the dirty socks and clothes littering the floor. There was an office, a storage room, and a bathroom. It didn’t take them long to search the place.
“I doonae see any evidence of Addison ever being here.” William wrinkled his nose. “Nor do I smell her.”
“How would you know what she smells like?”
“Her mother gave me a nightshirt she’d worn.”
“And you sniffed it? That’s not creepy at all.”
William laughed. “I’ll use any trick at my disposal tae find the girl.”
“When we do find her, trust me. Do not tell her you’ve been sniffing her clothes.”
“Just her nightshirt,” he protested.
Lena laughed in response. Just then, William put a finger to his mouth, signaling her to be quiet.
That’s when she heard the front door opening.
William walked silently across the carpet of the spare room and slid a window open.
“What are you doing?” She barely whispered the words. “We’ve got to be twenty feet off the ground up here.”
“I’m going tae jump out, and then ye’re going tae jump and I’ll catch ye.”
“Why don’t we just confront the guy?” Because she was not going to jump. No way, no how.
“He might call the police, and then things could get complicated. Unless ye wish me tae kill him?” He made the suggestion nonchalantly, as if it was an offer to squash a spider.
She sputtered. “You had better be kidding.”
He grinned in the darkness, and she realized that almost getting caught didn’t faze him at all. There must be something wrong with her because, regardless of her pounding heart, she was excited as well.
“I’m not sure you’re good for me,” she whispered, padding across the carpeted room to stand next to him by the window. “You might be a bad influence.”
“I absolutely intend tae be,” he whispered.
He slid the window all the way open, removed the screen, and flung it into the grassy area between the next set of condos.
Then he swung both legs over, ducked his head, and jumped.
She clapped her hand over her mouth and fought back a scream. She’d thought he was going to hang as low as he could from the windowsill and drop to the ground, but he just jumped!
She looked out to see that somehow, William had landed on his feet. He turned around, seemingly uninjured, and held up his arms to her. Did he seriously think she was going to dive out a window into his arms?
Behind her, someone was coming up the stairs.
With her heart racing, she swung both legs over the sill and settled her butt on the edge. It felt like time stood still, and she was frozen in place.
The footsteps grew louder and William waved her forward frantically. She took a deep, bracing breath.
She closed her eyes and jumped. A scream flew out of her mouth as she somehow landed in William’s arms. He barely staggered at the impact, and then they were flying across the lawn, as she bounced in his arms.
The man ran fast.
“You caught me,” she said in disbelief. “I can’t believe it.”
He was grinning again, obviously enjoying himself. He wasn’t even breathing hard. “O’ course I caught ye. I always will.”
She clung to his neck to minimize the jostling, when she heard a shout behind them.
“Hey! Hey! What do you think you’re doing?”
Lena started giggling as they approached the tree line on one edge of the property. William sprinted through the trees to the top of the hill as if she weighed nothing. They made it to his car in no time at all, and soon they were on the road, speeding away.
Lena threw her head back and laughed.
William grinned at her, seeming very pleased with himself.
“I can’t see how that told us anything, but it was sure fun,” Lena said.
“We’ll have tae do it again sometime.”
Lena pressed a hand to her thundering heart. “I’m not going to say no, but maybe not right away.”
He chuckled. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
Lena drew in a breath, exhaled, and asked, “What do we do now?”
“Have Vince followed.” With that, he called one of his men and set up the surveillance, then asked about Logan.
When he hung up, she asked, “Did Logan do anything suspicious?”
“Nae, just work and home.”
“Do you really think Vince had something to do with Addison’s disappearance? Or do you think Ethan got it wrong? It was dark, after all. And we didn’t find anything.”
“Time will tell. In the meanwhile, Quinn found one of the cameras outside The Hemlock was disabled by a short-term spell. I’m going tae interview the witches tae see if they will tell us anything about that.”
“Is that how you think Addison left the building?”
William shrugged. “Mayhap. I’m not sure it matters anymore, but I’d like tae know so I can decide.” He glanced at her. “So, is it back tae Fremont Street, or are ye with me now?”
The way he said it, it sounded as if he was asking if they were together.
Because of that, she hesitated to answer. She really liked this guy, she really did. He was fun, flattering, and so attractive that it almost hurt to look at him.
Still, how did she trust something that was happening this fast?
“Let’s go talk to the witches,” was all she said.
Chapter 14
Once in The Hemlock, William took her hand again.
As they walked through the mall area, she couldn’t help but note that she was starting to get a real feel for the place.
The space was made up to look like a medieval village and had a very small town feel to it, and it had just about anything you might want.
There was a bank with an ATM set back under a thatched roof.
There was a convenience store, which sold a little bit of everything. It had a crooked tower above it, announcing Drinks and Sundries.
There were clothing stores, knickknack shops, and a large range of leather goods under a blacksmith sign. Purses along one wall caught her attention.
She wouldn’t mind exploring the stores in greater detail sometime soon. It had been a while since she’d shopped here.
Eventually they arrived at the witches’ hut, Natural Magic. As always, they looked busy. The couches and chairs were filled with people waiting their turn
as they ordered tea and then kept the leaves for a reading.
“Lena!” The brunette witch, Esmerelda, called from the back. She was sitting across from a customer and Lena and Esmerelda exchanged waves.
She couldn’t help but note the greeting was for her alone, excluding William.
“Give me a few minutes, and I’ll be right out,” Esmerelda said.
After Lena nodded, Esmerelda returned her attention to the customer, charming him with her smile and, no doubt, the tight costume which displayed her cleavage quite nicely.
Lena turned around and saw the two other witches looking her way. Scarlett she recognized. The blonde must be Ava, the one William warned her about.
A few minutes later, Esmerelda was running the man’s credit card and gesturing for Lena to come forward.
William took a couple of steps and Esmerelda said, “Only Lena,” her eyes like ice.
He stopped with a sigh, and touched Lena’s elbow. “Ye know the questions we need answered, lass?”
“Are you really not coming?”
“Ye’ll get more out of them than I will.”
“You want me to ask about the spell that deactivated the cameras?”
“Aye. And ask if they’re willing tae give any more information about anything.”
Lena walked forward, and Esmerelda gestured her into the back.
She was invited to take a seat in a very comfortable sitting room, which featured ample seating and a top-of-the-line fake fireplace in one corner. A black cat lay curled up on the red fireplace rug, and elemental symbols decorated the walls.
Lena didn’t know if it was all for show, or if this was truly where they relaxed for comfort. Either way, it really did look like somewhere witches might actually hang out.
“Can I get you some tea?” Esmerelda asked.
“Sure.” Lena took a seat on one of the oversized armchairs near the fireplace.
“Do you have a favorite? Or, if you’d like, I can make you my special blend?” Esmerelda made the offer in such a hopeful tone, Lena couldn’t help nodding. “That would be great.”
Within minutes, Esmerelda returned with a tray carrying cups, saucers, teabags, and a kettle of hot water. She tossed a manila envelope aside and sat across a small table from Lena, poured her a cup and handed it to her. “Sugar?”