Chasing the Witch (Boston Witches) (6 page)

Caroline woke up early the next morning. She had not slept well the night before and she was filled with apprehension. She dressed quickly and called her friend Allison Talbot; so they could grab breakfast. Allison had been her best friend for five years; they had both worked for the same PR management firm and instantly hit it off. Alli was tall and willowy with long black hair and hazel eyes. Twenty minutes later, Caroline was walking down Madison Avenue to her friend’s apartment for breakfast. She walked up to the chic tower and pressed the buzzer.

“Hello?”

“Hey, Alli, it’s me.” She heard the click of the lock, walked in and pressed the up button for the elevator. Twenty floors later, she was standing in front of Alli’s door, knocking. The response from inside made her laugh.

“Get your butt in here, Caroline, my hands are dirty.” She walked in and found her friend in the kitchen making breakfast.

“You didn’t have to go to any trouble for me. You know I would have been happy with bagels,” she said when she saw the spread Alli was setting out.

“Oh, be quiet and set the table. I’ll be done in a few minutes.”

Caroline did what she was told and soon they were both seated at the table eating.

“So, what time do you meet Jack, today?”

“Ugh, don’t remind me. We’re meeting at noon. He was mad that I wouldn’t tell him where I was staying; but I couldn’t risk him showing up last night. I don’t know what to say to get through to him, Al. He was the one who gave up first, not me.”

“I think he realizes what he’s done. Now he’s freaked out because he knows he’s really lost you; but he doesn’t want to believe it. I think if you tell him it’s really and truly over, and tell him you’ve built a life for yourself in Boston with your sister, he might just have to believe you.” They were both silent for a few minutes while they ate.

“It’s sad that it’s ending, I get that. I loved him more than anything; but it’s time for me to get on with my life.”

“Tell him that, tell him exactly those words, Car,” Alli said.

“Enough about him, do you want to go out tonight? I feel like getting all dressed up and hitting the town.”

“Yeah, I’m totally up for that. I’ll call the girls after you leave and set it up.” Caroline left after a few hours of laughter with her best friend, with just enough time to make it to the park by noon.

Jack was already there when Caroline walked up. He jumped to his feet when he saw her.

“Hey, Jack.”

“Hey Car, it’s good to see you,” he said, smiling.

“Here, let’s sit down on this bench and talk.” She gestured to where he’d been sitting and sat on the other side. He started to speak, but she raised her hand to stop him.

“I’m not interested in any more of your excuses. We need to end this, Jack.”

“How can you say that? We’ve been married for almost seven years. We can’t just throw that away.”

“I’m not throwing anything away. You did that over a year ago when you started seeing little Miss Slutty behind my back. And don’t bother telling me that nothing happened between you, because I know that something did.”

He sat in stunned silence for a moment, trying to regain his footing. “Ok, I won’t lie to you, but it shouldn’t make a difference anymore. That was in the past. I ended it with her months ago. We should just move past it and get on with our lives, together.”

“I can’t. Every time I think I can, I picture you with her and I want to be sick. There is nothing left for us anymore. I get that this is hard; it’s hard for me too. I loved you more than anything, but it’s time for me to get on with my life without you. I have a life in Boston with Jill now; I’ve moved on already. You need to do the same. Please just sign the papers and let me go.” He looked at her as she stood up.

“Don’t go, Caroline. I need you. Let’s talk about this some more.”

“There’s nothing left to talk about, Jack, please sign the papers. I’ll call you in a few days and hopefully you’ll have signed them by then.” With that, she turned and left. She thought she would have cried, but she did not feel anything, anymore. She was over him and over their sham of a marriage.

Caroline was just getting out of the shower when her phone rang; she quickly wrapped herself in a towel and ran out into the bedroom. “Hello?”

“Hey, Car, how did it go with Jack today?”

“Ugh, it was terrible, Jill. I hate that I have to practically beg him to sign the papers. He still doesn’t understand why I want out.”

“I’m sorry, that’s really frustrating. What else are you doing while you’re there?”

“I went over to Alli’s today, and we’re going out tonight with the girls. I’m so ready to cut loose for a while; I’ve been so stressed out. I’ll call you tomorrow, I need to get ready.”

“Ok. Have fun, and be safe. Talk to you tomorrow.”

Caroline hung up and started getting ready. She picked out a sleek black mini-dress and matching heels. Forty-five minutes later, she was out the door and hailing a cab. She gave the driver Alli’s address and they were off. They pulled up to the building five minutes later; she paid the driver and pressed the door buzzer.

“Yeah?”

“Al, it’s me.” She heard the click and pushed the door open. Caroline pressed the button for the elevator and soon she was walking through Alli’s door.

“Give me a second; I need to find my shoes. Make yourself comfortable while I look.” Caroline sat down on the couch and put her feet up.

“So, who’s coming tonight?”

“Um, Charlie, Lexie, Claire and Josie; plus some new friend of Charlie’s, I don’t know her name, though. It should be a good time, all the girls are excited to see you.”

“I know. It’s been too long since we’ve all been out together. Where are we going, anyway?”

“I think we’re going to make a stop at the Rose Bar and then hit up Marquee. Do you see my gold heels in there anywhere?” Caroline got up, looked around the floor, and finally spotted them half under the kitchen table.

“I found them; they’re in the dining room under the table.” Alli emerged from her room dressed in a tight one-shouldered gold and black mini-dress. “Wow, Al, I love that dress. You look hot tonight.” Alli winked at her, grabbed her shoes and her keys and they were out the door.

“I told Lex that we’d just meet them there. I didn’t really feel like cramming in a cab with everyone.” They finally managed to hail a cab after standing outside for ten minutes and Alli gave the driver directions.

They pulled up outside of the Gramercy Park Hotel and paid the driver. Caroline spotted Josie and Claire standing outside. Josie and Claire Andrews were sisters; Caroline had known them for almost as long as she had known Alli. Josie was short and petite with a chin length chestnut bob and dazzling green eyes, while Claire was tall and thin with a platinum pixie cut that matched her spunky personality. They always joked that the only thing they had in common was their eyes.

“It’s good to see you guys, I’m so ready for a night of fun after the day I’ve had.” She squeezed them into a tight hug.

“Alli told us you were meeting Jack; I take it that it went bad?” Josie asked.

“It was just draining; I don’t want to talk about it tonight. I just want to have fun and not think about him for the rest of the night.”

Claire smiled at her. “I think that can be arranged. The rest of the girls are inside already, let’s join them and raise some hell.” She linked her arm with Caroline’s and they walked through the hotel and into the bar. They found the other girls in the back at a table in the corner. Charlie jumped up and hugged Caroline tightly. Caroline had been friends with Charlotte Miller and Alexandra Griffin for a few years. Charlie was tall and curvy with bright red wavy hair and brown eyes. Lexie was tall and athletic with straight brown hair and blue eyes. After they all finished their greetings, they sat down and ordered drinks.

“My friend is going to meet us at Marquee. You guys are going to love her, she’s so much fun,” Charlie said as she waved the server over with the check. Twenty minutes later they all piled into two cabs and headed to Marquee.

 The line was around the block when they arrived. However, since Alli had done some work for the owner a few years back, they always got right in. Charlie went off to find her friend and the rest of the girls grabbed a table down by the dance floor and ordered a few more drinks. Caroline was looking around the club at everyone when her heart stopped. She felt faint when she saw who Charlie’s friend was. She stood up quickly as they approached.

“Caroline, how lovely to see you again, cherie,” Sabine said, her accent thick in Caroline’s ears. She nodded, her eyes wide in shock, but quickly plastered on a smile so the others wouldn’t be alarmed.

“Yeah, it’s nice to see you, too. Please, join us.” She gestured for her to sit down. Charlie sat down next to Sabine.

“So, how do you guys know each other?” Charlie asked

“Sabine is an old friend of my sister’s fiancé; we met a few months back in Boston. How did you guys meet?”

“Oh, Sabine accidentally bumped into me while she was looking for her apartment building. She’s new here and she had gotten lost. I showed her the way and we’ve gotten together a few times since then.” Caroline narrowed her eyes at Sabine.

“How lucky for you that you bumped into Charlie,” Caroline said, her voice sugary sweet. “If you ladies will excuse me, I need to use the restroom.” She stood up quickly and walked away before anyone could join her. Once inside the safety of the ladies room, she dug the phone out of her bag and punched in Jilly’s number.

“Hello?”

“Jill, Sabine is here in New York!” she yelled into the phone, her terror finally coming out.

“What?” Jilly all but screamed.

“Yeah, I think she was trying to get to me through Charlie. She told her sister everything that had happened so far. “What should I do?” She paced in the bathroom stall, nervous energy getting the best of her.

“Hang on a second, let me grab Will.”

“Caroline?” William’s voice was concerned. “Jilly says Sabine is in New York with you?”

“Yeah, she showed up at a club with one of my friends. What should I do?” Her voice was bordering on hysterical

“First, you need to calm down. Don’t do anything, just act normal. You don’t want to alarm your friends. In an hour, make an excuse and get out of there and away from Sabine. Jilly and I will be on the next flight to New York. We’ll see you in about four hours. Be careful.” He hung up.

Caroline stood with her back against the door trying to calm herself down. A minute later, she walked back to the table. Everyone was laughing at something Lexie had said. She jumped into the conversation quickly. Sabine sat across from her, eyeing her speculatively. She tipped her glass in salute and drank deeply, never taking her eyes off Caroline.

The next hour flew by in a blur. She told them she had a headache and that she needed to go back to the hotel. She said her goodbye’s and quickly walked out to hail a cab, too preoccupied to notice Sabine as she came up behind her. Sabine grabbed her arm as she was getting in.

“Running away so soon? Don’t worry; I’m sure we’ll see each other again before you leave.”