by T. A. Foster
I painted on a smile and faced Jack. “All right, let’s get to work! Didn’t you say you were going to call room service for us? I’ll take the biggest chocolate dessert on the menu.” I pulled out the chart again and planted myself on the couch.
“Yes, ma’am. I’m on it.” I could feel the energy in the suite transforming as Jack ordered our big dessert buffet with a smile. “Yeah, that’s right. A large double chocolate decadence and a vanilla cheesecake with raspberries. Make that extra raspberries.” He shoved the room service menu back in the drawer. “They said twenty minutes. If it’s ok with you, I thought I’d go ahead and jump in the shower before they get here. I need to wake up. I think a shower might help. I didn’t get much sleep last night, and it’s already midnight on the East Coast.”
“Oh yeah, good idea. I’ll keep working on the chart.”
I focused on the legal pad and pretended to jot down a few words. The thought of Jack undressing and stepping into a steamy stream of water only a few feet away was more than enough to distract me from my earlier state of rising despair.
He turned the shower nozzle and I heard the trickling water. Ok, Ivy, think about something other than a naked, wet Jack on the other side of the door. I reached for the stereo remote and flipped through the satellite channels on the radio. Funny, Prince’s Diamonds and Pearls blared through the speakers. I hummed a few lines and sipped on my vodka concoction. I hit the up arrow again, and Rihanna’s voice filled the suite with Diamonds. Last chance, I thought, and I hit the scan button and The Beatles started singing Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds. Now I knew the universe was trying to tell me something. I leaned in a little closer to the speaker while the song played out, and I scribbled down the names of all three songs and some of the lyrics on the paper. I mumbled the Beatles’ lyrics. Why hadn’t I thought about this earlier?
“Jack. Jack.” I raced to the hall bathroom and pounded on the door. “Jack, I think I might know something about the diamonds.”
He cracked the door, and a whoosh of steam funneled into the hallway. Jack peeked around the corner with a tight grip on the door handle. Water rolled down his chest and arms. It dripped from his dark brown hair. He securely wrapped a towel around his waist and tucked the corner near his hipbone. My eyes were stuck on repeat, tracing his toned and muscular chest down to the slight shadows of his ab muscles.
“I, um…was just going to tell you…” I started wishing for Holly’s memory spell so I could erase my stammering from his mind.
“What’s up?” He waited while I tried to form a coherent sentence.
There was a light knock on the foyer door, and I left a dripping wet Jack in the doorway. I sprinted toward the room service valet with our cart of coffee and desserts.
“Ivy?”
Jack stood as I wheeled the cart into the center of the living room and unveiled our sweet treats. I poured two cups of coffee and sat one cup on the edge of the cart while I dumped cream and sugar into mine. Jack walked toward the cart, shaking another towel against his head to dry his hair. He wasn’t making this any easier for me.
“I was jotting down a few things and I realized we have completely missed the obvious.” I took a sip from the porcelain mug and tried to avoid eye contact with his ridiculously hot body.
“The obvious? What is it?”
“The diamonds. The real VonRue diamonds were never found. At least, when I did all of the research on Simone and Helen, I never found anything about them. The diamonds weren’t reported in the plane crash and nothing was ever written about Simone and the diamonds after her death. Aren’t diamonds marked somehow?”
He threw the extra towel on the couch and reached for the cup I had poured for him. “I think so. They have some kind of microscopic label on them.” He was obviously confident his towel tuck was going to hold as he used both hands to bring the cup to his lips. Secretly, I was hoping it would slip just a little.
“So if the diamonds had been found by one of the agencies investigating Helen’s plane crash or even Simone’s death, someone would have had the diamonds checked and they would have been identified as the VonRue diamonds. Everyone would have known then that the collection was mostly a fraud. That never happened since I’m the one who called and alerted the Dallas Museum of Art. I saw Helen with the diamonds hours before her plane crash. It seems unlikely she would have had time to do something with them in that amount of time. They should have been on the plane with her.” I waited for Jack to process my new hypotheses. “I think the Proxy knows Helen and Simone’s diamonds are out there somewhere, and they need me to find them for them.”
“But how are you going to do that? That’s like looking for a needle in a haystack. All of those events were forty-five years ago. There is no telling where the diamonds are now.” Jack still didn’t grasp what I was capable of doing.
“I can find the diamonds just like I found Helen and Holden. I’m going to Time Spell.” I felt a sudden sense of confidence that maybe I could stay a step ahead of this Proxy. I picked up Jack’s spare towel and threw it at him. “Are you going to get dressed? We’ve got a lot of work to do here.”
He grabbed the towel in the air before it made contact with his glistening body. “Oh yeah, be right back. Don’t eat my cheesecake.”
I sat on the floor, using the coffee table as my desk when Jack walked back in wearing jeans, no shoes, and a half-buttoned white shirt. That was definitely my new favorite look on him. “Did I miss any new revelations?”
“No, I’m just mapping out the Time Spell for tomorrow. I have to follow Helen from Simone’s suite to the airplane. It’s probably only about thirty minutes worth of time, but somewhere in that stretch I’ll know what happened to Helen’s half of the diamonds. I just wish I knew when the Proxy was going to get in touch with us tomorrow, but I can’t worry about it. I have to do the Time Spell in the morning. I think as long as I arrive at Simone’s suite by 10 a.m., I should be able to follow Helen.”
“So, you can just go back and watch the whole thing happen again?” He ran his fingers through his hair.
“Yes, I can go back as many times as I need to as long as I don’t reveal myself to anyone. Once I do that, I can’t go back to that time again. It sort of seals it off.” I drew out a rough map of the Diamond Towers and the Starlight. “That’s one of the reasons I stay hidden. It keeps me from interfering with history, but it also makes sure I never close the door to the past.”
“Have you ever wanted to, though? Have you ever revealed yourself?” He sat on the couch.
Sometimes I thought Jack would have made an excellent reporter instead of an editor. He always had so many questions for me. “Yes. All the time. But the bigger picture is much more important.”
“But why not reveal yourself now? You could go back to 1968 and confront Helen. Tell her you know she’s a Proxy. Barter your safety in exchange for saving her life and warn her about the plane crash.”
I wished everything was that easy. “I can’t do that. Do you have any idea what kind of effect it could have on history? Think of all of the people involved with the plane crash and everything that happened because of it. Something far worse might happen if I warn her. I can’t take that chance. I’m not trying to change history even if it means putting a stop to this Proxy.”
Jack seemed to accept my directive. “I guess I hadn’t really thought about all of the ramifications of changing one event. I get it. So, how can I help you? I want to do something tomorrow to help with your Time Spell.” He shoveled cheesecake onto his fork, looking at me intently.
The only person I had ever shared my Time Spell with was Finn. I thought back to the long weekend trip we took to Savannah. Finn had convinced me at the last minute to throw a bikini, some flip-flops, and a couple of tank tops in a bag and hit the road with him. He had already asked Holly to watch Cooper. He stood on the curb in front of my little cottage, grinning from ear to ear, while the engine of his car purred in anticipation for my answer. It didn’t
take much for Finn to convince me to do anything.
The highway stretched for miles, but we didn’t care that we had a six-hour drive ahead of us. The trunk was packed with our two bags and a small cooler of wine. We argued over what radio stations to listen to while we dared each other to fess up in our “have you ever” game.
“Oh, come on, babe, you’ve never done a Charm Spell to get a date? Seriously?” He had one hand on the wheel and the other sneaking up my thigh. We had put three hours of southern roads behind us.
“Seriously. Why would I do that? Is that what you did with me the first night we met at the charity ball? Did you put me in a trance?” I smiled at him, but there was a slight pit in my stomach at the thought of Finn using magic on me to lure me up to the rooftop, especially since he already knew I was a witch.
Instead of answering, he winked, blasted the radio, and returned his hand, but to a little higher position. I couldn’t stay angry with him. I sang along with his terrible eighties rock song and leaned back with the wind rushing through my hair.
That night, as we sprawled across the bed, Savannah winds crept in through our open window. I loved how the moonlight looked on his skin. We still glowed from devouring each other. I loved witch sex. It was amazing. Finn rested his head on his propped arm and drew circles on my stomach with his fingers. I inhaled deeply, amazed that we could still want each other after hours in bed.
“I want you to teach me your gift, Ivy. Will you?” He leaned in and traced the outline of my neck with his tongue, slowly moving downward, pausing only to kiss me on the lips before returning.
“Oh, so you think you can seduce me into teaching you how to Time Spell?” I laughed as I ran my fingers through his hair and inched my way down to meet his mouth. I let my fingernails dig into the warm skin of his lower back and caress toward his shoulders.
“You think you’re the one being seduced?” He moaned in my ear as I worked my hands over his body, leaving light marks from my nails.
He rolled me onto my stomach and pinned my wrists above my head so he could continue kissing my neck uninterrupted.
Now I was the one moaning. “Finn?”
“Uh-huh?” He moved his tongue down my back.
“Yes, I’ll show you how to Time Spell.” I let him kiss me as much as he wanted. It was unreal how he felt. “But you know, you probably won’t be able to do it.” I let a little laugh escape.
My skin tingled as he grazed his teeth along my shoulder, and then nipped. “Babe, don’t you know I can master any spell?”
I giggled. “I know you’re good at a lot of things.”
I arched as he rolled me on to my back and scooped me up. “Where are we going now?” I laughed.
“I thought we could move this to the shower. I want to make sure you know just what all my skills are.” He winked, his eyes brimming with seductive mischief, and carried me to the double shower where we hoped the running water might help drown out some of our sounds.
“Ivy?” Jack’s voice was gruff and interrupted the memory like rough sandpaper. “Did you hear me? What can I do tomorrow? There has to be something I can do to help you track Helen or Simone.”
I looked at my plate of chocolate decadence and tried to shake my Finn trance. “I don’t think so. The last time I shared a Time Spell, it didn’t go well. I don’t know if that’s such a good idea. I’m ok on my own for this.” I hopped up, leaving my half-eaten dessert, and headed to the master suite.
Jack had insisted that I take the larger room while we stayed at the Starlight. I felt a little weird, knowing it was Holden and Helen’s bedroom, but I didn’t want to confess that to him, so I agreeably accepted our sleeping arrangements.
I wanted to scream. It didn’t seem to matter if it had been two years or two hours since I had been with Finn, he was interfering. Dammit, I cursed, angry I had let him back in to my thoughts.
“Goodnight, Jack. I’ll see you in the morning.” I closed the door behind me before he could rebound with a barrage of questions.
I left him alone in the next room, and he had turned to TV and probably a nightcap. I heard the muffled sounds of the Vegas news announcers as they began their nightly rundown of crime alerts in the city. Tonight I would say a little prayer that Jack and I didn’t make the list of the latest Vegas victims. We had to make it through this. I had to be able to keep us both safe.
THE BLACKOUT drapes overlapped, and I had no idea what time it was when I woke up in the penthouse suite. I checked my phone for the time. 8 a.m. I had plenty of time to get dressed and Time Spell before Helen left for the airport. I punched in the shower settings and waited for the steam to rise before I stepped into the shower. The water felt good. I needed some pampering after the last two days. I cranked the dial again, pointed the arrow to the hottest end of the spectrum, and soaked in my self-prescribed aquatic therapy. I couldn’t keep the images of a wet and towel-draped Jack from sneaking into my alone time. He probably wondered what caused my abrupt departure last night.
I dried my hair and put the finishing touches on my makeup. There was a fitted pair of jeans in my bag and a navy sweater with a boat neck cut that I pulled on. No one in 1968 would see me today, but the rest of the day would be spent with Jack, and it didn’t hurt to steer clear of frumpy fashion.
Just in case he was still asleep, I quietly turned the handle and nudged the door open. I looked through the crack. Jack was sitting on the couch with the paper and a cup of coffee.
“Good morning.” He gave me a quick hello and returned to the morning headlines. He was wearing jeans and a fitted, gray, long-sleeve T-shirt. There were a few buttons at the neckline revealing a glimpse of his chest. The cuffs were pushed up just enough I could see his forearm muscles flex each time he shook the paper, ordering it to stand up straight.
“Hi, good morning.” I crossed the room and poured a cup of coffee. “How’d you sleep?”
“Fine. Thanks.” He continued to read.
“Jack?”
“Uh-huh?” Still no eye contact.
“Sorry about last night. I know I was kind of weird and left sort of in the middle of our planning.” I stirred cream into my cup.
“Nah, not a big deal.” He turned the page of the paper and took a sip of coffee.
My heart sank a little. He was mad at me. I had left him last night.
“Jack?”
He kept reading. I knew my evasive approach with him was starting to take a toll on his ability to trust me. Each time he asked me about my magic or how he could help, I doled out the smallest morsel and dodged any follow-up questions.
His leg was propped over his right knee. He shuffled the paper again. I walked into my room to grab my phone and sat on the bed for a minute, thinking through the options. I had to give him something. Jack was not a man of inaction and he wasn’t used to working with only some of the facts. It would drive any sane person crazy. He needed more than what I had been giving him. I walked to the living room.
“There is something you can do today.” I glanced at the clock. It was now nine, and there wasn’t much time before I needed to be in 1968. “Will you watch the seam for me?”
His eyes perked up and he folded the paper in half. “Seam? Sure. But first tell me what that is.”
“The seam is what I call the doorway I create to travel back and forth. It’s the part that is actually my magical gift. I make a door that takes me from one place to another.”
“Can anyone walk through it? Into the past?” His shoulders had eased and the tension between us was ebbing.
“Yes, that’s a problem. It’s where you come into this. Anyone can pass through the seam. I’m the only one who can open and close it.”
“Ok, so you make the seam, then how do you know what part of history you’re walking into?” He stood from the couch, abandoning the newspaper.
I felt nervous giving him this bit of information, but it was the only peace offering I had. “I have to decide the date before I go. The p
art of the spell I perfected is being able to choose the exact date of where I go. The time of day is the same on both sides of the seam, which is why I need to get downstairs before I miss Helen. If I miss her, we have to wait until tomorrow. I don’t think we can wait another day.”
“Why downstairs? Can’t you do it here?”
“Last time I traveled in the Starlight, I used a service corridor. There are no cameras in that hallway, so I don’t have to worry about security recording my trip. Since we know Helen was the Proxy, I don’t want to risk running into her again, and traveling in this suite is way too close to bumping into her. I can keep a good distance from her in the air. I’m going to trail her car and then get in closer at the airport.” I headed for the door, but Jack stopped me with more questions.
“How do you do it? How do you make the seam? Do you just think really hard about where you’re going?”
I turned to face him. “Well, I need my ring. It was my grandmother’s and was passed down to me when I turned sixteen.” I twirled the swirly blue gem around my finger. “Without the ring, I can’t make the seam.” I laughed a little. “And yes, there is a lot of concentration involved, but it’s a little more complicated than just thinking about the date.”
“Is all of your power in your grandmother’s ring? Are you just like me without it?” He took my hand in his and turned it side to side so the light bounced off the stone. “I’ve always seen it on your hand, but I didn’t know. Well, I didn’t know any of this.” He chuckled as if discovering someone you had worked with for years had magical powers was a regular office prank.
He squeezed my hand in his, and I could feel a fragile warmth growing between us. I didn’t want to break away from the energy holding us in place. It felt too delicate, and I worried my protective antics had pushed him away too many times. Ever since the package arrived, we had teetered between edginess and fabricated pleasant banter. I wanted to wrap myself in this new budding warmth and freeze time for a little bit, but the clock pendulum kept ticking and I needed to go.