Courting the Darkness (11 page)
Read Courting the Darkness Online
Authors: Karen Fuller
“No, all I see is the all-night laundry.” He pulled the Express Van into the parking lot, parking it.
“This must be the place then. Sherry said that only a witch can see the apothecary.” Grabbing the handle of the door, she glanced back at him, biting her lip. “You might need to stay in the van.”
He reached for the door handle. “I’m not letting you go in there by yourself.”
She placed her hand on his arm. “You have to. Agatha is a witch. She will know immediately you are a vampire. If you go in with me, she probably won’t help.”
“Here, take this money.” He handed her a stack of cash. “If you’re not out here in ten minutes, I’m coming in after you.”
Her eyes rounded, looking at the stack of cash he placed in her hand. Grinning, her mouth dropped open. “You can take me shopping anytime.”
He grinned back. “Very cute…just make it fast, please.”
She wiped the smile off her face, trying to look demure. “Since you said please.” She grinned again when he rolled his eyes. “I’ll be quick.” Jumping out of the van, she ran up to the door, and rang the bell.
The light in the front room illuminated, the curtain pulling back away from the window, and a dark-haired woman stared out. The speaker by the door sounded off. “Yes?” said the voice from the speaker.
“Agatha?” she spoke loudly. “I’m Desiree; did Sherry call you and tell you I was coming?”
The woman looked past her toward the van suspiciously. “Who’s that with you?”
“That’s—uh—that’s Mica, my bodyguard.” She looked in the direction of Agatha’s gaze, locking eyes with Mica. Her eyes widened at the expectant look he gave her, and she shrugged, turning back to the speaker. “He’s going to wait in the car.”
The speaker sounded off again. “He’s big enough to be a bodyguard…I don’t know…I don’t want any trouble…”
She blew out a frustrated breath. “We aren’t bringing any trouble with us.” She knew the woman did not have any reason to trust her, but time was a precious commodity right now. She needed the ingredients for that potion, and this witch was the only obstacle standing in her way. Her tone of voice reflected her desperation. “I just need some ingredients for a spell. My life depends on it.” She impatiently tapped her foot when a new thought occurred to her. “I have cash.” She splayed several bills in front of the camera.
“Very well, stand back and I’ll buzz you in.”
The buzzer sounded off and she opened the door. Glancing back over her shoulder at Mica, she smiled, waving her hand to let him know she was okay, and walked through the door, closing it behind her.
The apothecary was a regular store of witchcraft. Picking up a stack of tarot cards, she flipped a card over. Her eyes rounded at the card. She placed the stack back down and shivered. “It would be the death card,” she grumbled under her breath.
A tall, dark-haired woman entered the room from behind a curtain. She was sleek and as graceful as a cat. “I’m Agatha.”
“Hi, Agatha.” She nodded in acknowledgement, sticking out her hand. “I’m Desiree.”
Agatha looked at her outstretched hand, ignoring the gesture. “What is it that you require?”
She took her hand back, wiping it self-consciously on her pants. It was obvious that Agatha was suspicious of her motives, and she did not have the time to try to win her trust, or make a new friend. “I’m on a time crunch.” She handed Agatha a list. “I need the ingredients on this list, a small cauldron, and a mortar and pestle.” Her eyes darted around the shop. “Do you have any amulets for sale?”
Agatha’s eyes skimmed the paper at the long list of ingredients. “I’ll have this ready for you in a few minutes.” She looked up, pointing to a table. “The amulets are over on that table.”
“Oh.” Desiree put her hand up urgently, trying to catch her attention. “I also need a book on the black arts.”
Agatha’s head whipped around, her eyes widening in surprise. “Are you planning on cursing someone?”
She brought her chin up defiantly. “I can handle myself.”
The woman raked her eyes over her skeptically, trying to judge her character. “Black magic can have dire consequences.”
She rolled her eyes at the woman’s condescending tone, crossing her arms over her chest in an impatient manner. She was old enough to be this woman’s great-great-grandmother. “Agatha, what did Sherry tell you about me?”
The woman mimicked her stance and crossed her arms over her chest as well. Her eyes raked over Desiree again in an appraisal. “Obviously not enough.”
“I am the leader of our coven.” She raised her chin a notch. “I am the senior member.”
Disbelief flickered in her eyes. “Does your entire coven consist of children then?”
She could not help it. She laughed at the look on the woman’s face. “No, not hardly.” She shook her head at the woman’s assumption. “I’m a lot older than you think.”
She eyed Desiree up and down again. “I’d say twenty-five or thirty at the most,” she murmured in calculation.
“Try one hundred and twenty-five.” She smiled at the disbelief flickering across the woman’s face. “I was born in eighteen eighty six.”
“That’s impossible.”
“Didn’t your mother ever teach you that with magic anything is possible?” she remarked in her teaching tone.
Agatha sighed, still in indecision as to what to believe. “The book you seek is on the shelf by the register. I’ll be out with your herbs in a couple of minutes.” She brushed behind the curtain out of Desiree’s sight.
Her eyes scanned the room, finding the register. Her fingers skimmed the books on the shelf until she found the one she was looking for. Pulling it off the shelf, she placed it in the crook of her arm. Hurrying to the table with the amulets, she was struck by indecision. She did not usually use trinkets, but she needed to bless something, so she grabbed a handful, placing them on the counter by the register, and set the book down. On impulse, she picked up the stack of tarot cards and placed them with her purchases. She also snatched up several boxes of candles of assorted colors, some incense, and a couple of sage sticks.
Agatha came out of the back room with two large bags crammed with items. Setting them down on the floor next to the counter, she rang everything up. “Will there be anything else?”
“Yes…” She looked around. “I also need a few small pouches, say about ten of them.”
The woman nodded, grabbing the pouches from under the counter, counting them out, and placing them in the bag. “Is that it?”
Desiree looked everything over. “Yes, I believe so.”
The woman added the pouches to the bill. “It will be two hundred and fifty dollars.”
She handed her the money, shoving the rest back into her pocket. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome. Be careful with the dark magic. I don’t want to be reading about you in the newspapers.”
Grinning at her remark, she knew the woman still had a hard time believing her story. “You won’t… But you may be seeing a missing person’s poster about a Jason Hargrove.”
“Is that name supposed to mean something to me?”
“He’s a witch hunter.” She eyed her levelly, nodding. “He’s one mean S.O.B.”
“Witch hunter, huh?” Agatha remarked in thought. “So is that the reason for the bodyguard?”
She winced at the question. “Yes and no.” She glanced back toward the door. “They were sent to rescue me from the inquisition hall. The judges sentenced me to burn, and I barely escaped in time. I won’t lie. I want revenge.”
“I won’t miss a witch hunter.” Agatha shrugged, dismissive. “Go in peace. Blessed be.”
She flashed the woman a smile. “Blessed be.” Grabbing her bags, she ran out of the shop.
Mica paced in front of the Express Van. Upon seeing her, he threw out his arms in question. “Did you buy out the whole store?”
Rolling her eyes, she laughed. “No, I’m not sure exactly what I would need so I bought a little of everything.”
He ran over to help her. “It will be dawn soon. We have to hurry.” Grabbing the bags, he threw them in the back.
They jumped into the van, and he glanced over at her. “I didn’t think she was going to let you in.”
“She almost didn’t let me in.” She shrugged. “If Sherry hadn’t called ahead, I think we would have been out of luck.”
He started the engine and pulled out of the parking lot.
* * *
Jason Hargrove sat in the parking lot of a diner across the street from the all-night laundry. He could not believe his eyes when he saw that black Express Van pull into the parking lot across the street. He watched Desiree get out of the van, but he could not see where she went. She came back out a few minutes later and one large dude helped her with her bags. They climbed back into the van, taking off again. He reached down, starting his mini-van. He pulled out to follow the other van. “I’ve got you now, witch,” he whispered. “Let’s just see where you’ve been hiding.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Mica parked the van behind the bushes. Grabbing the bags from the back, they started the return trek to the cavern. A soft glimmering was visible on the horizon. A low fog had settled over the mountains. That combined with the white snow made the surroundings glow premature of the sunrise.
She hastened her steps. “I told you we’d make it back in time”
Gazing up at the lightening sky, he turned his head back toward her. “Just barely.”
“If I’m successful with that spell, you won’t have to worry about it anymore.”
He sighed. “That would be nice.” He pointed to the ground. “Watch your step, there’s a patch of ice.”
She looked around frantically. “Where?” Slipping, she landed hard on her butt. Rolling her eyes, she grinned. “Ouch…I found it the hard way.”
He could see that she was not seriously hurt, so he laughed. “I told you there was a patch of ice.” Putting his bags down, he reached down to help her up. “Are you hurt?”
She flushed red, and then laughed with him, still holding his hand when she answered, “Only my pride.”
“You two sure are chummy,” Caleb remarked sarcastically. Both Desiree and Mica’s heads snapped around to his unexpected voice, both surprised that he was awake.
Pulling her hand out of Mica’s self-consciously, she looked away. “Caleb…you’re up early.”
His gaze appeared cold and calculating as he raked his eyes over her. “What have you got there?”
She caught the unfriendly tone in his voice, and felt uneasy. “Mica took me to go get some magical supplies.” She glanced at Mica and then back to Caleb. “I wanted to start working on Drake’s spell.”
Caleb reached over and grabbed her bag; he looked down, peeking inside. “I see,” he remarked, glaring over at his friend. “Mica, did you have a look around while you were out? Were we followed?”
Mica could feel his hostility. “The roads were fairly deserted. We weren’t gone long. I don’t think we were followed.”
“You don’t
think
you were followed, but you’re
not sure
about that.”
Mica’s irritation with Caleb grew. He did not appreciate his judgment questioned. After all, this was his mission. Caleb had just come along for the ride. “No, I don’t think we were followed. Caleb, what’s with the third degree?”
Caleb looked between them. “Oh, nothing much. I just woke up to an empty cave, and I couldn’t find the two of you anywhere, no note, nothing.” His voice dripped with sarcasm. “I was left to wonder where you two
really
were.”
She did not like his tone. “I’m not a child.” She snatched her bag away from him. “And last time I checked, you’re not my father. I didn’t know I needed
your
permission to go anywhere. We went exactly where we said we did.” She glanced at the lightening horizon. They did not have time to argue about this outside. “Mica has to go inside now.” She forced herself to calm down. “If you insist on continuing this argument, then we can do it from inside the cave.”
Turning on his heel, he stomped off. “Fine,” he shouted over his shoulder, not bothering to turn around.
She watched Caleb walk away. “Mica, what’s with him?”
“I’ve never seen him act like this.” He shook his head in thought. “It’s usually me with the foul temper.”
She glanced at the horizon again. “It’s getting brighter out here by the second.” She glanced back at him, shrugging. “You better get inside. I’m sure we’ll eventually find out what’s going on with Caleb.”
* * *
Mica and Desiree made it to the cavern as the sun crested at the horizon, and he hurried into the shadows. She paused at the entrance to stare into its inky blackness. Rubbing her hands briskly over her arms, she shuddered. “Mica, I can’t go back in there without a lantern.”
“There’s nothing in there that’s going to hurt you.”
Her eyes grew wider as she continued to stare into the cave. “I know that.” The panic set in again. “I can tell myself that all day, but I can’t make myself walk in there.”
He put the bags down against the wall. “I’ll carry you again.”
Her eyes must have reflected the desperation she felt. “You can’t keep doing this.” She pulled her eyes away from the cave entrance, looking into his eyes. Hating the weakness in herself, she felt as if she was a burden on him. “Just go get me a lantern.”
“No, I don’t want to leave you out here alone.” He looked back over his shoulder and then back at her. “I don’t think we were followed, but you yourself said Hargrove is sneaky. I’ll come back for the bags once I have you inside.”