by T. A. Foster
The candlelight dimmed and our shadows were closer to the floor. Helen was becoming more agitated. Both men in the corner advanced toward her chair, but she held up a hand to stop them. In one motion, she rose from the chair and prowled toward us.
There it was again, the pull, and my witchy tingle displaced all over my body, humming in my ears and misting my thoughts. She crept closer with her hands outstretched, swaying between us. Jack was now completely in front of me and eyed the door. He looked like he was prepared to pick me up and run.
“Helen, wait. I want to know what I can do to help you.” My voice sounded small. She stopped in mid-stride. I had to make the humming stop. “The diamonds? You need them, right? I’ll find them for you.” She backed down and slinked toward the chair.
“Ah yes. I’m in a bit of a financial situation, dear, which you’ve already so rudely pointed out. That little bitch hid her half of the diamonds. How is a woman supposed to live a life of comfort with only half of the diamonds?” She said it as if diamonds were as necessary to live as air. She stared into an empty space off to her left. Her eyes drifted back to us. “You see, when Simone died so unexpectedly in that car accident.” She winked at Jack then me. “I was supposed to inherit her half of the diamonds, but we haven’t been able to find them. I need you to travel back to the day of her accident and tell me where those diamonds are. Even better, just bring them here, my dear.”
She needed me to Time Spell again.
“Helen, may I ask how you got them? How did you and Simone manage to pull off the largest, unreported diamond heist?”
She laughed again. “Simone was beautiful, wasn’t she?” Helen sighed. I didn’t think she was going to continue. Every time she paused, it was as if her mind wrapped around a thought and settled there. “She was the one. It was her contribution to the plan. I underestimated her sex appeal. It was quite simple for her. The guards at the tour, they just handed them over to her.”
“Just like that?” I asked.
“Oh my dear, you and I both know she did more than ‘just that.’ I let her do all of the dirty work. It made her feel valued.” Helen twisted a thread on her dress.
Jack squeezed my hand and looked at me. He cleared his throat. “Helen?”
She perked with the sound of her name on Jack’s lips. “Yes, Mr. Coleman?”
“You said you had a true love? What does he think about all of this? About you threatening Ivy and me and our families?”
The wicked Proxy cackled and buried her head in her hands. She lifted her chin toward us and stripes of mascara ran down her face. “He’s dead, Mr. Coleman. He has been for some time now. He spent ten years protecting me and shielding me from the heinous company Holden kept. But eventually, they found him. Holden sold his soul to the devil when he got involved with those mobsters. He thought he could control them and not be the one under their control. I knew better. That’s why I escaped and why Langford helped me. He died too young, way too young, and all because of Holden. I must face the rest of this life alone, unless…” Her words trailed off and she locked eyes with me.
The more Helen’s story unfolded, the more I realized we were in deeper than I could have imagined. She was motivated. She needed the diamonds to fund her deteriorating lifestyle, and she wanted my magic for herself. She wanted the Time Spell for love. Evil was a powerful enemy, but it was never stronger than love. We had the dynamic duo wrapped into one—an evil Proxy in love with a ghost.
I knew I was on shaky ground confronting her, but I needed to know what she was planning. “You aren’t thinking about trying to change his death, are you, Helen? You can’t change the course of history. The effects would be beyond our comprehension.”
“Shhh shhh. Don’t tell me what I can change! I love him. Langford never should have died. My beautiful man.”
I hadn’t noticed the picture on the mantle until Helen pointed in its direction. In the black frame was a tattered photo of Helen and the tall bald man with the pointy nose, whom I had seen dump Holden over the side of the canyon. Her high cheekbones were rosy and her eyes glistened. The bald man was kissing her on the cheek. It looked like they were at the beach, and he was holding his arm out to take their picture. She did look happy; they both did.
“And with your Time Spell I can save him. I can bring him back.”
I was stunned. “But you won’t just be bringing him back, you’re rewriting history. You can’t be that selfish, Helen. You can’t do this.”
Her glare penetrated my eyes and the witchy, tingling pull whirled through my body. She wasn’t interested in reason. I positioned myself behind Jack again to block the invisible link she had created between us.
“Ivy, what’s happening?” Jack whispered to me over his shoulder.
“She’s showing me what she can do. She wants me to feel her power. I don’t think we have a choice, Jack. We have to listen to her.” I could barely form the words as I wrapped my hands around my head. My thoughts were being ripped in half.
The Proxy perked up. “Oh, wonderful. I thought you would see things my way. Here you go, dear.” She held up a piece of folded paper that had been tucked in the side of the chair. Jack pushed me back and strolled over to retrieve it from her. “Oh, he’s quite the gentleman, Ivy.” She handed the paper to Jack and patted the top of his hand. He pulled his hand away as if it had been burned by the contact.
“What is this?” Jack asked.
“Why, Mr. Coleman, it’s her instructions. All the details you need to track Simone are right there. How about we meet again tomorrow night? I’ll see you both then. Oh, oh, and don’t forget I need those diamonds.” She waved us off with one hand.
Jack walked back over and handed me the folded paper. Helen peeled herself out of the chair and started swaying again. She reached for another cigarette and traipsed around the room, unaware of anything except the music she heard in her head.
I looked at Jack and mouthed, “Let’s go.” The minions in the corner opened the double doors, and we headed down the hall and out of the manse.
Jack and I had already created a habit of ordering room service in the penthouse. Tonight, neither of us had much of an appetite and the silver trays were filled with our uneaten dinners. The trip from Chestnut Hills to the Starlight had been a quiet one, and I didn’t know who would break the silence first.
“What did it feel like—what she was doing to you? Did it hurt?” Jack reached a hand toward me and brushed his fingers through my hair.
We sat on the couch, the television on mute. I loved the nearness of him, his warmth, his strength, and how his eyes told me how worried he was.
I let his fingers linger there. “It didn’t hurt much, but it felt weird. I could feel her pulling at me, pulling at what’s inside me. She wasn’t trying hard. She just wanted me to know what she is capable of doing.” I closed my eyes.
“I don’t like this. It’s too dangerous for you to be near her. You can’t go back there tomorrow night.”
“You can’t be serious. We have to. If she can tug at my magic like that, she can do a lot more to my family. She knows where an entire family of witches lives. I can’t put them in jeopardy. This is my chance to stop her. I can’t let her anywhere near them.” I shuddered at the thought.
Jack shifted on the couch. “And how do you propose to do that?”
I pulled the folded piece of paper from my pocket and traced Helen’s writing. “Tomorrow, I follow Simone and tomorrow night I give Helen the diamonds.”
“But that means seeing her again. I want to know what the actual plan is.” He stopped playing with my hair and I felt a small hollow of sadness.
I bit my bottom lip. “I don’t know yet. Diamonds first. Proxy second. I’ll think of something.”
He arched an eyebrow at me.
I promptly corrected my statement. “I mean we’ll think of something.”
Jack turned and held my face with both of his hands. When his mouth pressed down on mine, I felt the
warm surge rush through my body. I reached up to run my fingers through his hair, something I had dreamed about a hundred times. His lips trailed to the side of my face, and he kissed my ears and neck, tracing my collarbone with his hands and pulling at my sweater so he could access more of my skin.
He was intoxicating, his mouth, his strong hands, the way he smelled like the perfect combination of cologne and a little masculinity. And he tasted like bourbon and something wonderful I couldn’t describe. He growled a low mumble when I pushed him back and started a trail down his neck with my teeth and tongue. Every part of me was on fire. His hand slid under my shirt, and I groaned as I felt the roughness of his palm against my skin. His mouth claimed mine and I relaxed into his hands as he fumbled with my bra strap. I didn’t have thoughts or plans, only need and want for all of these clothes to be off.
He smiled as the clasp popped free and his lit up while he began to work my sweater over my chest. Just as he worked it along my side, my pocket started vibrating.
Oh my God, I breathed into his neck. “Uh, I better see who that it is.” I pulled my sweater down.
Jack sat back and took a heavy breath. He had that really-you’re-going-to-answer-your-phone-now expression on his face. With everything going on, I couldn’t be unavailable. What if my family needed me? I retrieved the phone from my pocket and stepped away from him. I needed to space myself from make-out central.
I looked at the screen. Dammit, it was Finn. Shit, shit, shit. “Hey, what’s up?” I turned my back to Jack so he couldn’t see my expression. My chest was still heaving, and I had an unfastened bra dangling from my shoulders.
“Babe? What’s going on there? You ok? I haven’t heard from you. I’m worried.” Finn sounded frantic. Something I wasn’t used to.
“Oh no, everything’s great.” I smiled and covered my mouth with my other hand.
“Great? Ivy? Wait a minute. He’s there, isn’t he? The editor boy? You can’t talk to me?”
“Yeah, everything is going great. What’s happening there? How is everyone?” I looked at Jack, gave him a little shoulder shrug, and then stepped into my temporary bedroom.
“Seriously, Ivy?” Finn’s smooth voice echoed in my ear with a tint of sarcasm.
I closed the door. “Ok, I’m in the other room. I can talk now. Really, everything is fine.”
“Fine?” He sighed. “Ok. Did you find out who the Proxy is?” I pictured Finn from the other night leaning against that shadowy oak in the park. Who knew where he was calling me from now.
“Yeah, yeah, it’s Helen. Turns out, she faked her death, had her husband killed, then his mistress, who she completely double-crossed. Now she wants the other half of the diamonds.” I wanted to get off the phone.
“She sounds insane.”
“You could say that. She’s still in love with the man who helped her escape her marriage, but he died over thirty years ago. That’s why she’s after me. She wants the Time Spell to prevent his death and she’s desperate for money. She needs diamond money.” I sat on the bed.
“Ok, I’m coming out there, babe. If I leave now, I can be there in a few hours.” He said it so calmly and casually, as if he was making a trip to the grocery store for milk.
I jumped from the bed. “No! I mean, no, Finn.” I steadied my voice. “I don’t know the extent of her network. My parents and Ian—I need you watching them. She knows about them. They could be her next targets, and if one Proxy captured all that magic, I don’t know what would happen. I can handle this side of it.”
“They are fine. I’ve patrolled hourly. Let me come to you.”
I couldn’t think of a worse scenario than to have Finn show up in Las Vegas now that I finally knew Jack had feelings for me. I closed my eyes.
“No, please don’t. Just stay. Stay and watch them.” I didn’t want to tell him everything.
“Ok, babe. But you call me the minute you need something.” He paused. “Anything, I’ll do anything you need.”
Finn and I both knew there was no apology he could give to fix everything that went wrong in Savannah. I would always wonder if he made offers like this to repent or if there was more to it.
“I will. Thank you. Thank you for this.” I hit the end bar on my touch screen and sat down on the bed. Jack was still in the other room, waiting. Waiting for me.
I peeked around the door and smiled at him. “Hey.”
“Hey.” He smiled and the little lines around his eyes crinkled in that oh-so-sexy way that made my heart beat a tiny bit faster. His arm was stretched out on the back of the couch, with an open space for me to nuzzle into his warm chest. But I didn’t.
“I think we should get some sleep. Tonight kind of took a lot out of me.” I tucked my hair behind my ear. The call from Finn had cooled things off. Another reason to be irritated with him.
“Oh yeah, I’m sorry. I wasn’t really thinking about that.” He laughed a little. “You should sleep.” He reached for the remote.
“Aren’t you going to turn in too?” I was worried I had shredded the threads of heat we were weaving together.
“Nah, I’m going to see if there is a game on or something.” He smiled again and I relaxed. He was ok. He was going to watch sports like it was any regular night back in Sullen’s Grove. “I’ll be right here if you need me, Ivy. I don’t sleep much anyway.”
“Ok, good night, Jack.”
“Night.”
I closed the door behind me and leaned into the frame. Oh, Jack. He’s been right here all along but always out of my reach. What was happening between us? I tossed my clothes in my bag, pulled on a T-shirt, and climbed into the oversized king bed. I needed to focus on Helen and Simone, not Jack. In less than twenty-four hours, I had to face the strongest magical force I had ever encountered and I still didn’t have a plan.
I looked at the ceiling. “Twinkle.”
The little glimmering stars faded in and out over my head. I could hear Jack flipping channels in the other room. Ugh! This was going to be a long night.
THERE WAS a light tapping sound. I heard it again. I pulled the covers over my head and buried myself in layers of sheets and blankets. Tap, tap, tap.
“Ivy? You awake, yet?”
Oh shit! Jack was at the door, and I was still in my T-shirt and had crazy bed-head. “Uh…yep. Just a minute.”
I jumped from my cozy nest, pulled on a pair of pants, and dug through my bag for a hair tie. I pulled my hair high on my head and wrapped it with the stretchy elastic. I pinched my cheeks a few times and straightened my shirt before cracking the door. Jack was standing at the door with a cup of coffee. How did he manage to look so incredibly sexy first thing in the morning? His hair was still damp from the shower, and his shaving cream scent lingered. It would only be a few hours before his jaw would show the first sign of his shadow.
“Thought you might want some coffee.” He shoved the mug through the crack in the door.
“Oh, thanks. Perfect.” I took a sip and let the door slide open. I saw him glance toward my shirt and the faded, thin fabric that was barely covering my breasts.
He smiled. “I think I woke you up.”
“No, I needed to get up. What time is it?” I didn’t know if it was the sleepy haze or the nearness of Jack that had me dizzy.
“Ten thirty.”
“Ten thirty?” I panicked. “We have to get going. I should be trailing Simone all day. Crap!” I ditched the cup of coffee and padded off to the shower.
“Um, I’ll just wait for you out here,” Jack called from behind me over the surging shower water.
“Ok, give me fifteen minutes. I’ll be right out.” I heard the bedroom door close behind him.
I jumped in the shower and washed away my morning haze, but when I got out, I knew I didn’t have time for my usual girl rituals. I needed to hurry. I pointed at myself in the mirror.
“Glamour.”
My messy, impromptu bun was replaced by a swept-up style that kept half of hair out of eyes a
nd let the rest fall around my neck and shoulders. My makeup was perfectly shaded and the sleepy look in my eyes was erased by a green sparkle. I had paired a low scooped, striped cami with a black shrug sweater and slim pale pink ankle jeans. I knew it was cute and I hoped Jack noticed. I pulled my phone from the charger next to the bed and walked out to greet him.
“Ok ready.” I smiled at him.
“Whoa, you look…” His eyes raked over me.
“Ready to kick some Proxy ass today?”
“That’s not what I was going to say, but yes, that too. Where are we going?”
I handed him Helen’s note from last night. “She says Simone’s car went off the road around 8 p.m. Simone was supposedly headed to meet a diamond dealer. That’s why Helen thinks she did something with the diamonds that day. Helen’s crew examined the crash site before the police got there, and the diamonds weren’t in the car. I need to get to Simone’s suite now. I may have already missed the window today.” I looked at him. “I didn’t know I was so tired. I didn’t mean to sleep late.”
“You needed it. You went through a lot yesterday. Ok, let’s go.” Jack held one of the doors open for me, and we descended through the hotel to the corridor behind the casino floor.
“I don’t know how long I’ll be gone this time. It could be all day. Can you watch the wall the whole time?” I asked.
“If you can do what you’re getting ready to do, I think I can watch the wall. Go. I won’t let anyone in or out.” He resumed his guard pose, and his arms were crossed, legs firmly planted a few feet apart.
I faded myself into invisibility, unfolded the seam, and walked into 1968—six months after my last visit there. I brushed the seam’s coldness from my shoulders and arms and ducked into the casino. My next stop was Simone’s suite at the Diamond Towers.
Las Vegas, 1968
The door of Suite 710 was locked. I pressed my ear against the cool surface, straining to hear if Simone was on the other side. I Open Spelled my entry into the foyer and searched for the sultry brunette.