by Harper Lin
“I think she was asking for his opinion on the Elderflower situation. We had an actual person break into my house yesterday. The police are completely capable of handling that. But the Gazzo and his crew—I don’t know. Well, let’s go to the kitchen.” I slipped my arm through Bea’s. “Let’s see what Jake’s idea of helping is.”
As we hobbled to the kitchen, I was overwhelmed with gratitude for the family I had. For all our weirdness and dramatic history, not to mention the adventures we stumbled upon, I would never want a normal life. To be like everyone else would be to not be a Greenstone.
“Oh heck no!” I shouted when I saw Jake’s “gift.”
“Surprise!” he yelled with a cup of coffee in his hand. “We had this in our lost and found at the station for about a year. No one came to claim it, so consider it yours.”
“I am not using a walker. With tennis balls on the legs, to boot.” I tried to sound angry, but I wanted to laugh.
“That’s not all,” Jake said. “Blake, give her the other part.”
My chest constricted as I heard Jake call Blake. I should have known he’d be here too. These two partners were rarely separated for long. I didn’t know how Bea could stand it.
“Hope you feel better soon, Cath.” Blake said as he handed me a gift bag. I peeked inside and frowned.
“You guys think you are really funny.” I rolled my eyes.
“What is it?” Aunt Astrid asked.
“Yeah, don’t keep it all to yourself.” Bea urged, but I could tell from her face that she already knew what it was.
I reached in the bag and pulled out one of those old-fashioned honking horns. It had a black rubber ball on one end and a wide-mouthed horn on the other end.
“Here.” Jake took it from my hand. He was grinning from ear to ear.
“You are really enjoying this way too much,” I said.
“You can attach it right on the top part. Or maybe it would be better closer to your hand.” He fastened it onto my walker and stood back proudly. “There. Looks great! Give it a try!”
“I’m not honking this horn.”
“Cath, don’t be a party pooper,” Bea said.
Reluctantly, I gave the black rubber ball a squeeze.
Hwwwaaa. Hwwwaaa.
The entire kitchen erupted in laughter. Except, Blake, of course. He didn’t laugh. But he grinned. That was as far as he’d let his hair down.
Sadly, I found the walker to be quite helpful. It was a little awkward. The idea of going out in public with it was embarrassing. Bea refused to let me take the horn off. But I couldn’t stay home. Not when we had so much work to do.
After Jake and Blake got their morning funnies at my expense, they left for work. Aunt Astrid had made a simple breakfast of oatmeal with fresh berries. As much as I tried to stay away from fresh fruits and veggies, I gobbled it up as if it were my last meal on death row.
Aunt Astrid was going to open up the café and take care of that while Bea and I went shopping. We had a list of things we needed to get from The Apothecary on the other side of town. After that, we were to come right back to the café. But so often, things didn’t turn out the way we planned.
“I love the smell of this store,” Bea said as we walked into The Apothecary.
Mimi Van Doss was the proprietor. She had absolutely no witch blood running through her veins, but that didn’t stop her from dressing the part. She was also an encyclopedia on stones, herbs, flowers, candles, and half a dozen other things that I didn’t even know were witchy. She often helped us with materials we needed for our spells and never asked any questions. She was worth her weight in gold, if you asked me. And that would be a lot of gold.
“Hey, Bea! Hey, Cath! Where have you two been hiding yourselves?” Mimi maneuvered her voluptuous figure out from behind the counter to give us both hugs. “What happened to you?” She gasped as she looked at the walker. As I feared, she grabbed the horn and gave a squeeze.
Hwwwaaa. Hwwwaaa.
“It’s a long story.” I rolled my eyes.
“She had a break-in at her house.” Bea folded her arms across her chest. I looked at her. Was she really going to tell everyone what happened? “You may as well be honest, Cath. Everyone is going to ask you.”
“Either that or make up a different story for every person who asks,” Mimi suggested, giggling. She wore tight corsets that pushed everything up and out in all directions, so when she laughed, there was a lot of jiggling. But as long as she looked like the stereotypical image of a witch, people were less likely to look at the Greenstones. “Tell one person you lost a wrestling match with a crocodile. Tell the next person you tried out for the Oakland Raiders. Tell another you fell rock climbing.”
“That’s a good idea.” I smiled and felt genuinely better. “You sure do have a way of putting a positive spin on things, Mimi.”
“I do my best. So, what are you guys looking for today?”
The Apothecary was known for having wonderful-smelling soaps and bath crystals. A shopper could find aspirin, cold medicine, and shampoos as well. Mimi also sold beautifully designed talismans, semi-precious stones, and jar after jar of herbs and spices ranging from achiote seed to za’atar and everything in between.
But in her special back room for special customers, she had live crickets, tarantulas, snake skins, dried bat wings, and toads, along with special bundles of sage, cornhusks, and hemlock.
“All of my animal products were obtained humanely, and not a single animal was killed by me or my provider in order to acquire them. Just so you know.” she’d told us the first time we came into the store.
“Mimi, we need some of your very best sage,” Bea said as she pulled Aunt Astrid’s list from her coat pocket. As she read off each item, I started to roll myself along the aisles, looking for something that might be nice for Tom. He had carried me up those stairs, and Valentine’s Day was coming up. I owed him.
“Cath, I’m going in the back with Mimi. I’ll be right back.”
Hwwwaaa. Hwwwaaa.
I heard her laugh and then couldn’t help but chuckle myself.
While I was standing in the aisle with men’s cologne, I heard the chimes over the door tinkle. There was no reason for me to pay any attention to it until I saw the two heads of thick dyed-black hair coming in my direction.
They must have known what was in the back room too, because that was where they were headed. I decided to follow. It was difficult to be tough with a walker, but I was determined.
“Hey. Looking for something?” I barked. “A crowbar? Or maybe a lock-picking kit?”
Evelyn whirled around. She had been crying, but when she looked at me, she smiled until she saw the walker.
“What happened?” She gasped, quickly wiping her cheeks.
“How could you break into my house? You and your friend aren’t going anywhere. I’m calling the police.”
“Break into your house? What are you talking about?”
“Evelyn, my boyfriend saw you, and so did my aunt. Did you really think you could just break into my place and push me down the stairs and get away with it?”
I leaned on my walker and tried to look threatening, but it wasn’t working.
“Cath, I didn’t break into your house. I’d never do that. Not to you or anyone.”
“But they saw you. Are you calling my boyfriend and my aunt liars?”
“What did they see? And when? When did this happen?” Her eyes began to water, and she sniffled. “I’m tired of being blamed for everything! I didn’t do it! Go ahead and call the cops, and when they check my alibi, you’ll see how wrong you are! You are no different from Fern and Ga—”
She cut herself off and looked around nervously.
The three of us stood there in silence for a few seconds.
“This happened last night, Evelyn. Around seven or maybe eight o’clock.”
“I was at home. Heather was with me as well as my father. We watched the original Star Wars and then did ou
r homework, and Heather left around eleven. Go ahead. Check it out.” Evelyn wiped her eyes again.
“She’s telling you the truth,” her friend Heather said, putting a hand on Evelyn’s shoulder. “Look, we might look scary, but we would never break into anyone’s house. This isn’t really who we are.”
Maybe it was because I had the same kinds of issues in high school as Evelyn did, but I couldn’t help feeling she was telling the truth. I looked down, and that was when I saw her feet. She was wearing a pair of black canvas shoes.
“Where are your combat boots? It’s freezing outside.”
“I can’t find them.” She sniffled.
Whoever broke into my house had been wearing combat boots.
My whole body slumped.
“Evelyn, are you and Heather supposed to be in school?”
They looked nervously at each other.
“I’m not going to turn you in. I’m hoping you’ll come with me back to the café.” My strong leg was getting tired, but putting any pressure on my swollen ankle made me wince and clench my teeth.
“I’ve got straight As,” Evelyn offered. “So does Heather. We find it very therapeutic to skip school once in a while. If we didn’t refill the well every so often, we’d probably start to fail our courses.”
I squinted at them.
“Refill the well? Okay. Can you come with Bea and me and spend a little time with us?”
“Okay, but we won’t be able to stay too long,” she said sadly.
“Why? A prior commitment or some Goth-Vampira convention to go to?”
“No.” Evelyn didn’t laugh. “They come looking for me if I stay in one place too long.”
“Who does?”
Evelyn tried not to cry.
“The shadow people.”
19
Loan Sharks
When Bea finally appeared with Mimi, it was as if she had been shopping for Christmas. Her arms were full of bundles and bags, her eyes were twinkling with excitement, and she was grinning insanely.
“Well, Mimi, it looks like my cousin made sure you have money for your bills for the next couple of months,” I chided.
“What is she doing here?” Bea asked, looking directly at Evelyn. “Have you called the police? I’m calling Jake. She’s not going to get away this time.”
“Calm down, Bea. Please.”
“This is serious. You could have died last night.” She scowled at Evelyn. “Do you have any idea what you’ve done?”
“Bea.” I put my hand on my cousin’s arm. “Evelyn is coming to the café with us. Heather too. We’re going to have a nice long talk.”
Bea set down her packages on the counter and mumbled under her breath. Poor Mimi had no idea what was happening. Her big brown eyes bounced from me to Bea to Evelyn to Heather and back to me again.
“Ring us up, Mimi. We’ve got to get going.”
“Fine. But if you hooligans are coming with us, you’re carrying the bags. And don’t even think of running off with them. I was all-star track in school. I’ll grab one of you and drag you to the police myself.”
I looked at Bea without expression. Not only was she not all-star track, but she didn’t play any sports. I didn’t think she’d run even if she were being chased.
The girls were quiet as they piled into the back of my beater. I wasn’t driving.
“Strap yourselves in, girls. Bea might hit thirty miles an hour because she’s upset.” I smirked at my cousin.
Evelyn and Heather chuckled.
“It’s true. Get those belts tight.”
“Ha. You are so funny. Hilarious.” Bea grumbled, watching the girls in the rearview mirror.
Finally, after a fifteen-minute drive that took twenty-five minutes, everyone got out of the car and hurried into the café.
“You really are a very slow driver,” Heather said as she took all the bags Bea piled into her arms.
“Shut up and get inside,” Bea growled.
Thankfully, the café was empty.
“Would you girls take those packages and set them down on that table in the back? Don’t worry. I’ll make sure you are safe here.”
They both nodded and went into the secluded area of the café where Aunt Astrid usually did her private palm or tarot readings.
“Aunt Astrid, can you throw up a smoke screen?”
“What do you mean?”
“Evelyn said that she can’t stay in one place too long, or they’ll find her.”
“Is she talking about her sister?”
“No. She said the shadow people.”
Bea froze as she was hanging up her coat and looked at me. Aunt Astrid narrowed her eyes and bit her bottom lip.
“How would she know about the shadow people unless she saw them too?” I whispered. “And why are they bothering her? You said that those things were like loan sharks. I don’t get the impression that Evelyn took out any loan. She doesn’t even know what she’s dealing with. She’s got to be able to stop and catch her breath. It’s the only way we’ll be able to figure out what is going on.”
My aunt took a deep breath. After dumping a shaker of salt into her hand, she walked along the perimeter of the café and sprinkled the granules around. She whispered her spell and then pulled down a jar of sage used for cooking. She took out a pinch and told Evelyn to stand up.
“Put this in your pocket,” she ordered Evelyn. “You too, toots,” she said to Heather.
Once again, both girls did as they were told without question.
“This is screwy,” Heather said.
“Just do it,” Evelyn said, not wanting to look impolite.
She was really quite naïve when it came to street smarts. Heather at least called it as she saw it. She was obviously a bit tougher than her friend. But Evelyn was truly good. I could sense it. But someone out there wanted her to be bad. Or at least to look as if she were.
“Okay. I’d say we’ve got an hour, maybe less,” Aunt Astrid said to me. We looked at the girls as if we were deciding on a turkey at the grocery store.
“Bea. Why don’t you start?”
“Start what?” Evelyn asked.
“The torture,” I replied seriously.
I got the exact response I wanted. Both girls frowned and looked at each other.
“I’m joking. Bea is just going to bring you some tea, and when she’s done, you are going to hand the cups over to my aunt, and she’s going to read them. In the meantime, who wants cake?”
“You know how to read tea leaves?” Evelyn’s voice shook a little.
“I do. My mother taught me,” Aunt Astrid said as she took her usual seat at the table. “Did your mother teach you anything special while you were growing up?” Aunt Astrid’s voice was soft and kind. I remember hearing that tone many times when I cried over my mother.
“She taught me how to knit.” Evelyn instantly choked up.
“That’s wonderful.” Aunt Astrid let the girl cry. “That’s one of those gifts that you can use for pleasure and profit. The best kind of thing a mother can teach her daughter.” She looked at Heather. “What about you?”
“I can cook. Do laundry. Nothing special.”
“Are you kidding? Do you know how many grown men don’t know how to do those things? To a fellow worth his salt, that will be heaven-sent. Don’t shortchange yourself.”
Bea brought the tea just as the girls were cozying up to Aunt Astrid. I hobbled behind my walker and looked at the cakes underneath the glass domes on the counter.
“When did Kevin make this?” I tried to keep my excitement low, but there was a maple coconut yellow cake with a cherry on top just sitting there without a single slice taken out. Quickly, I cut three pieces and put them on plates. That was when I heard the laughter. Using the counter to move, I leaned away from the walker and peeked around the corner. Bea was holding Evelyn’s hand while Heather was telling a story about a boy she liked.
Bea looked up at me and smiled. It was obvious she had seen som
ething in Evelyn’s aura that was a little more tangible than last time. And if I knew Bea, she absorbed some of the girl’s pain over the loss of her mother. Bea was terribly compassionate that way.
“Help with the cake?” I looked at Bea, but Evelyn jumped up and came around the counter. “Thanks.”
“This looks good,” she said.
“Kevin, our baker, is amazing. Wait until you taste it.”
I hovered around the counter because my gift of telepathy with the animals wasn’t needed at this juncture. I left the pros to handle these girls for the time being, and I listened very carefully.
Heather finished her tea first, so my aunt took a look.
“Heather, you have a tendency to speak your mind, and it often gets you in trouble.” Aunt Astrid didn’t look up as she spoke.
“Sometimes,” the girl said proudly.
“You also have a natural gift around animals. They trust you. You’ve had encounters with birds and raccoons and… what is this? Oh, a pit bull. They came to you for help, and you helped them.”
She gasped. “The pit bull is Roxy. I got her from the pound. They said they were going to put her down because no one wanted her. She was a bit of a runt.”
“That dog will be at your side for many, many years. As long as she’s with you, she’ll never let anything happen to you. She knows you saved her life.”
I heard the sniffles and casually wiped the counter in order to turn around and see Heather wiping her eyes with a napkin.
“I’d look into a career as a vet if I were you. Studying comes naturally. Veterinary school should be a walk in the park.” Aunt Astrid winked. “Now, how about you?” She focused intently on Evelyn’s leaves. I leaned against the counter with my bum ankle raised and watched, waiting for the same enthusiastic reading as Heather got. But Aunt Astrid’s expression fell. Something was wrong.
“Evelyn, you’ve got a heavy burden on your shoulders. It’s weighing on you all the time, isn’t it?”
She didn’t say anything.
“You can talk about it here,” my aunt said soothingly. “You’re among friends.”
Evelyn swallowed hard, and sweat started to break out on her forehead.