After a moment I noticed an unsettled quiet had fallen in behind my friend’s words, so I broke it with a heavy sigh. “I guess I need to go ahead and make these calls,” I said.
She nodded again. “Sure. I’ll see about that coffee and aspirin.”
I was already stabbing out a number with my thumb when she exited the room. A pair of rings later a gruff, male voice came on the line.
“Only been a coupl’a hours. Missin’ me that much, are ya’?” Ben almost cooed the words, an uncharacteristically tender note in his voice.
“Not really,” I replied.
The immediate shift in his tone was almost jarring. “Row?”
“Yeah. I’m using Constance’s phone, but I’ll let her know you’re fantasizing about her.”
He ignored the jab. “You two all right? Everything okay down there?”
“Constance is fine,” I told him. “Me…well, I’m about as okay as I can get under the circumstances.”
“Yeah, sounds ‘bout like you. So, you keepin’ your hands off my girlfriend?”
“Depends. Are you keeping your hands off my wife?”
“Hell yeah, white man. I’m afraid of ‘er.”
“Me too.”
He chuckled. “Well that answers that, doesn’t it? So… I doubt ya’ called ta’ shoot the shit. Guess I oughta ask… What’s really goin’ on down there?”
“I sort of blew it with Miranda.”
“How?”
“Believe me, you don’t want to know.”
“Jeezus, Row, I hate when you say crap like that…”
“Yeah, I know.”
“Then tell me what the hell ya’…”
I cut him off before he could continue to press me on the subject. “I promise I’ll fill you in on the whole story when I have time. But listen, right now I called about something way more important. You know that thing I gave you this morning when we were on the way to the airport?”
“That bottle with the jewelry in it?” he asked. “Yeah, what about it?”
“Where is it?”
“I dunno. Prob’ly sittin’ in the console of my van where I left it.”
“Dammit, Ben…”
This time he interrupted me instead. “Relax, will ya’? I’m just yankin’ your chain. I got it right here in my pocket. You were pretty damn clear about not just leavin’ it layin’ around.”
“You’re sure it’s there?”
I could hear him shuffling around a bit on the other end of the line, then he replied, “Well, now it’s in my hand and I’m starin’ right at it, so yeah, I’m sure.”
“And you can see the necklace in there, not just the salt?”
“Salt. So that’s what that is.”
“Ben…”
“Yeah, yeah, Jeezus… Chill out white man, I can see the goddamn necklace floatin’ around in the salt.”
“Good.”
“Where the hell’d ya’ think it’d be?”
“I’m just checking, Ben. That’s all.”
“Uh-huh… So you really think a friggin’ piece a jewelry is why Firehair got all Twilight Zone weird on us?” he mused, referring to Felicity by a favored nickname.
“Yes, I do,” I replied. “And Miranda just all but confirmed it.”
“How?”
“Something she said. She told me she knew I wanted to ask Annalise about the necklace.”
“So?”
“So I hadn’t even mentioned it.”
“Yeah, okay,” he replied. I could almost see him nodding. “So what you’re really talkin’ about is spooky, dead person, Witch shit.”
“Something like that.”
“Okay, so then ya’ wanna tell me what’s goin’ on? You’re soundin’ a bit ramped up.”
I let out a quiet but heavy sigh. “I’d like to say just me being paranoid, but we know how that usually turns out.”
“Yeah,” he grunted. “Usually you ain’t paranoid, they really are out ta’ get ya’. So, really, fill me in. What’s the story?”
“I haven’t really figured it all out yet, but I have a sneaking suspicion the FBI is keeping me in the dark about something,” I said.
“Mushroom treatment, eh… No big surprise there,” Ben grunted. “What’s Constance think?”
“Same thing as me, unfortunately.”
I could imagine him shaking his head as he breathed, “Fuckin’ wunnerful… Goddamn Feebs.”
“You date one.”
“She’s an exception.”
“Yeah, I’d have to agree with you there.”
My friend sighed heavily and then adopted a curious tone. “So, lemme ask ya’ somethin’. Why are ya’ puttin’ yourself through all this shit? Why don’t ya’ just do some hocus-pocus on this Miranda bitch and be done with ‘er?”
“I’ve tried. Believe me, I’ve tried.”
“What’s the deal? Your Witch-fu not good enough?”
“That’s one way of saying it,” I replied. “Hoodoo is some very intense stuff, Ben. It has no moral restrictions, and it’s like the guerrilla warfare of magick.”
“Yeah, so? I thought the stuff you do was pretty serious too.”
“It is, but hoodoo is seriously down and dirty. It can…” I stopped mid-sentence and took a mental step back. Rather than giving him a detailed lesson in magick, what I really needed was a mundane analogy that would get the point across. “Look at it this way,” I said after a short pause. “The particular magick I’m dealing with here is like two-part epoxy. You need both parts to make it work. Same basic principle applies. For me, or even an expert practitioner of Vodoun and hoodoo for that matter, in order to stop what Miranda has set in motion, both parts of the magickal working are necessary. That necklace you’re holding onto for me is only half of it. Without the other, the situation is at best a stalemate.”
“You ain’t actin’ like it’s at its best,” he observed.
“That’s because it’s not.”
“Great,” he grunted. “So what happens if ya’ can’t find the other half?”
“I’d rather not think about that.”
“Yeah… I ‘magine not.”
I swallowed hard and slowly let out a breath. “Yeah… So, listen, I still really need to call Felicity and check in with her. Just do me a favor. Don’t let that necklace out of your sight, okay? And don’t go anywhere near Felicity with it.”
“Yeah, okay,” he agreed. “I kinda got that part already.”
“Thanks, Ben.”
“I’ll put it on your tab. Hey…you do me a favor too. Have Constance call me when you’re done screwin’ around with ‘er phone, okay?”
“Yeah, I will. Later.” I stabbed the end button even as the last word was coming out of my mouth and then began dialing a new number.
A moment later my wife’s near panicked voice issued from the earpiece. “Constance? What’s wrong? Is Rowan okay?”
“It’s me,” I told her.
“Rowan? Sorry… The caller ID came up with Constance’s cell number.”
I explained. “My phone’s still in a personal effects locker, so I’m using hers.”
“Row… Is everything okay?” The concern that was initially apparent in her voice had dropped considerably, but a thread of tension was still palpable.
“Yeah…I’m okay…” I told her. “What about you?”
“I’m fine,” she replied, her voice a bit hesitant. “Why?”
“You don’t sound fine.”
“I’m fine… Rowan, what’s wrong?”
“Nothing… I just wanted to hear your voice, that’s all.”
“Breugadair.”
I met the Gaelic insult head on. “I hate to tell you this honey, but you might want to look in a mirror. I can tell you’re lying too.”
“That would be breugag.”
“You say potato…”
“One is masculine, the other feminine…”
“I’m sure it is, but I didn’t call you for a lesson in Ir
ish Gaelic, and I hate to tell you this, but you aren’t any better at changing the subject than I am. Tell me what’s wrong.”
“You first.”
“Good Gods, Felicity, I’m fine…”
“If you were really fine you wouldn’t be calling then. Not yet,” she chastised, then stated as much as asked, “You’ve been in to see her already, haven’t you?”
“Unfortunately.”
“Who was she?”
“Miranda. But that’s pretty much who I expected.”
“Aye… So…what happened?”
I stifled a snort. “Just what she wanted, I’m afraid. She pushed all the right buttons and set me off.”
“Are you really okay then?”
“Yeah…” I half whispered. “Yeah… At the moment I think she bruised my ego mostly. But, she’s not going down without a fight, and that has me worried.”
“So…you didn’t find out anything?”
“Other than the fact that Miranda is still in control, no, not really.”
“Annalise?” she asked, a different sound of concern threading through her words.
“No…” I replied, shaking my head out of reflex. “Not even a glimmer. But Miranda is definitely dangling her out there in front of me like some kind of carrot.”
“How do you mean?”
“When today’s interview ended, she told me to come back tomorrow and she might let me speak to her.”
“Do you think she really will?”
“I doubt it,” I replied. “Why would she? Besides, other than the corporeal body itself, I honestly don’t know if Annalise even exists anymore. If she does, she might not even be lucid at this point.”
There was no reply, but I could hear Felicity breathing softly on the other end of the line. And based on some of our past conversations, I had a fairly good notion what she might be thinking.
Finally, I said, “Remember, honey, Annalise tried to kill you.”
“Aye, that’s true…but she’s still blood.”
“Blood you didn’t even know existed until less than a year ago, and that discovery didn’t come under the best of circumstances I might add.”
“I know. But…” She allowed her voice to trail off before saying, “I suppose you’re right then. I’m damned either way. One of them wants to consume me, the other wants to kill me.”
“Not going to happen,” I soothed. “Either one. I won’t let it.” I paused briefly and then said, “Okay…your turn.”
“What do you mean?”
“I told you the truth, now you owe me the same. What’s wrong?”
“I’d hoped you’d forgotten about that then,” she replied.
“I know you did. But I didn’t.”
She tried to object. “It’s nothing important.”
“Then it shouldn’t be a big deal for you to tell me, right?”
I heard her take a deep breath in resignation. After a suggestive pause she said, “I’m having…feelings…urges.”
Her admission sent a fresh chill tap dancing along my spine. I knew all too well the kind of urges she meant, and the hollow feeling now expanding through the pit of my stomach told me I knew why.
“These aren’t just your normal…you know…” I left the rest of the hopeful question hanging.
“You mean my normal desires to tie you up and play the dominatrix?” she answered, unabashed as always. “I thought so at first…but…no… That isn’t exactly how they feel. These are…” She hesitated before finally saying, “These aren’t just urges to play. They’re…much darker.”
The answer wasn’t what I wanted to hear. I asked, “How dark?”
“Very,” she replied, her voice leaning heavily on the word.
“How intense are they?”
“Enough. But, not so bad that I can’t cope.”
“You’re sure?”
“Aye, Rowan, I’m sure. They’re nothing I can’t handle.”
“You need to drink…”
She finished the sentence for me. “…salt water. I know, and I already am… And sage tea as well. You aren’t the only Witch here, you know.”
“Yeah, I know. Is it helping?”
“Aye. It seems to have taken the edge off then.”
“But the feelings are still there…” I replied, offering the words as more of a statement than a question.
“I’ll be okay, Row,” she appealed. “Really, I will.”
I wasn’t convinced, and she didn’t necessarily sound like she was either. But, right now there was a little too much distance between us for me to do anything other than worry.
“When did they start?” I pressed, a bit of hesitation creeping into my voice. I already knew what she was going to say, but I had to ask.
“About an hour ago,” she replied. “Maybe a little more. Why?”
I closed my eyes and whispered, “While I was in the room with her… That’s what I was afraid of.”
The ache bouncing around inside my skull took on a new dimension, making the back of my throat tickle with a thin wave of nausea. Recent events stuttered through my brain like a cartoonist’s flipbook until one exploded forth to fill my thoughts.
In my mind’s eye I could clearly see Miranda’s smug grin as she stared back at me. But even worse, I could also hear her mocking voice as she chuckled and said, “Really? How do you know I am not trying Felicity on for size again right now?”
CHAPTER 6
As soon as my mouth was able to sync up with my brain once again, I mumbled to Felicity, “Let me see about changing my flight. Just hang in there, and I’ll be home as soon as I can, even if I have to buy a new ticket out of my own pocket.”
“No,” she replied, a sudden sternness in her voice.
“What do you mean, no?”
“Exactly that. No. You can’t come home yet. You just told me you have to meet with Annalise tomorrow.”
“Honey, I also told you I don’t even know…”
She cut me off. “…if she even exists any longer, I know. And before you say it, I know Miranda might only be stringing you along with this.”
“There’s no might to it,” I replied. “I know she is, and so do you. It’s what she does. Besides, after the way things went today, the powers that be around here might not even allow another meeting to happen.”
“Why?”
“Let’s just say I doubt the FBI is very keen on their consultants losing their cool during an inmate interview.”
“Oh, Rowan…” she sighed. “What did you do? You aren’t in any trouble are you?”
“I’ll tell you later, and I don’t know for sure on the trouble just yet,” I said. “But I don’t think so, which seems a little weird in itself if you want to know the truth. I’ve had a bit of a hinky feeling about all this ever since the interview ended.”
“Well, it is Miranda after all.”
“Yeah, but not just that. It’s something different. Something a little closer to home and definitely grounded in reality.”
“What?”
“That’s something else I don’t know for sure,” I admitted. “But I get the impression I haven’t been told everything that’s going on. Plus, with the way things have played out so far, it appears as though my presence here may be more important to the FBI than I originally thought it was.”
“I told you I had a very bad feeling about this,” she lamented.
“I know, honey. Me too. But it might all be moot. Like I said, after what happened today, I’d be surprised if they were actually willing to let me into a room with Miranda again.”
“I wish you would tell me. Not knowing is just going to make me worry more.”
I swallowed hard and said, “Let’s just say she’s going to have some bruises and I’m responsible.”
“Oh Gods, Rowan…” she breathed. “You assaulted her?”
“It’s okay,” I told her. “No permanent damage. It really sounds worse than it was.”
“You’d best be right.
Should I call Jackie then?”
It didn’t surprise me that she brought up our attorney. Her name had crossed my mind too. “No. Not yet, anyway. If I get charged with something then yeah, for sure…”
“Okay then. If you’re certain.” After a pause, Felicity ventured, “Aye, but you still have to try to talk to Annalise if they will let you. That’s why you made this trip in the first place.”
“A trip that has turned out to be a huge mistake,” I told her. “Especially in light of what you just told me a minute ago. Your problems today started while I was in the room with Miranda. I’m willing to bet that she’s somehow using me as a conduit to get to you. That was something I didn’t even consider, which was stupid on my part. I should have thought of that.”
“Don’t allow her to use you then.”
“Easier said than done, obviously, or it wouldn’t have happened in the first place.”
“Maybe, maybe not,” she replied. “What if it’s you who should be drinking salt water?”
“I’ve tried that before, remember? Apparently I’m immune to its positive effects.”
“Try it again.”
“Felicity…” I said. “Even if that would work, it’s all a moot point. The door to Annalise has most likely been closed. On all fronts.”
“Only if you allow it to be.”
“You’re putting way too much faith in me, honey. Besides, we’re getting off track. The real issue here is you. I can’t stay here and leave you by yourself if she’s found a way to connect with you again. On top of that, if she’s using me as the conduit then the farther I am away from her the better.”
“But what if the closer you are to me the worse off I am?”
“Don’t…” I stuttered, paused, and then said. “Dammit, Felicity.”
“You know you have to take that into consideration too.”
“You’re being awfully damn logical, you know that?”
“One of us has to,” she replied. “Besides, I told you, Rowan, I’ll be fine.”
“I wish I could make myself believe that.”
“Aye, I wish you could too because it’s the truth.”
“I can’t take the chance.”
“You have to, Row… You know you do. I’ll be fine. Really.”
I sighed heavily, leaning forward and resting my elbows on the edge of the desk in front of me as I massaged my forehead with my free hand. “And what if you’re wrong, Felicity? What if they’ll let me talk to her again and she gets to you through me?”
Miranda: A Rowan Gant Investigation Page 6