Honey House (6 page)

My knees buckled. Quinn caught me and carried me to the couch. That bloody thing had been Jason? I hadn’t even recognized him. I’d let him die alone.

I asked, as if needing to hear the words, to watch his face, “That was
Jason
? Dear God, what happened? It looked as though he’d been eaten.”

My mind flashed to the image I’d had of him when I’d performed the reading. Jason flying through the air. That awful blackness. Had I somehow foreseen this? Could I have prevented this if I’d told him what I’d seen?

Quinn looked at me, his face solemn. “It was Jason. I need to go. Will you be all right alone, or should I send Gabrielle in?”

“I’m all right. I just need some time.”

He nodded, passed a surprisingly gentle hand across my forehead, smoothing my hair away from my face, then left.

Chapter Five

The woman wore a neon green caftan today and had decorated herself in coral and silver jewelry. The contrast was startling between the two, and she brought to mind a giant parrot.
Scary.
She hovered as I busied myself around the great room, and it wasn’t long before she made her intentions clear.

“I’ve been waiting until the hubbub died down to speak with you, dear,” she chirped in my direction. “I wonder if I might have a reading today?”

“Listen, Mrs. Kensington, this just isn’t a good day for me. Besides, I don’t do readings anymore.”

“Oh, but darling, you must. We have so much to talk about,” she said.

Why is it people don’t want to take no for an answer? They think they can just rephrase the question and despite any of your misgivings, you’ll suddenly say, “Sure, I’d love to.” Well, I wouldn’t love to. I’d let Jason talk me into it and I’d seen something. Something remarkably similar to the reality of his bloodied and beaten body. I never wanted to
“see”
anything again. I needed to be polite; after all, she was a guest of the Honey House. On the other hand, no means no. She needed to accept that I wasn’t going to do a psychic reading for her.

“I’m really sorry you’re disappointed, Mrs. Kensington, but I won’t read for you or anybody. Would you like me to ask Gabrielle if she knows of any good psychics in the area?”

“Oh, child. You really don’t understand. Please, let’s find some privacy. I have a great deal to tell you.”

“About what?” I was being less than polite, but I didn’t want to be tied up in a conversation about palmistry all afternoon. I needed time to sort through my thoughts about Jason. Plus, I knew Quinn would eventually return to ask more questions than he’d asked this morning.

Up until now, I’d taken Mrs. Kensington as a piece of tourist fluff, a woman completely absorbed by her own interests. Now, I was forced to reevaluate my initial impressions. Somehow, she’d pulled energy like a cloak around her. Her shoulders lowered and chin rose, so that she looked positively regal. She looked at me a long minute and it made me feel young, caught in the act even though I’d done nothing wrong. I was uncomfortably reminded that the House wouldn’t have let her stay if it hadn’t wanted her here.

“We really must talk. Joanne was a friend of mine. There are things you need to know. Please, can we go somewhere private?”

Surprising myself with the offer, I said, “Let’s go into the library.” 

The library was a wonder. Located in the exact opposite corner of the House from my apartment, it caught the afternoon sunlight. Joanne’s books covered two walls, floor to ceiling. I loved to read, and I’d intended to spend a great deal of time in here when I first saw the room. So far, the details of running a bed and breakfast had consumed me. Looking around, I was reminded of the attraction.

“Please, have a seat,” the woman said, as if this was her place, not mine. She indicated two low-slung leather and wood chairs that faced catty-corner in front of the large window that held a spectacular view of one of the more famous red-rock formations. The kind you usually only saw on post cards.

I sat and waited for her to begin. She had certainly aroused my curiosity.

“Have you found Joanne’s Book of Shadows?” she asked without preamble.

“Book of Shadows?” I repeated.

“Yes,” she nodded. “It’s a book used by the Wiccan and witches to record their work and research. Joanne’s contained a list of her herbs and their uses, the moon cycles, our Sabbats and holidays, and even her spells. I take it you haven’t found it?”

“Joanne was a witch?” I asked. Without waiting for an answer, I pressed on. “Mrs. Kensington—”

“Please, call me Amelia,” she interrupted.

“All right. Amelia. Why are you here?” I asked, cutting to the chase.

“The question, child, is why are
you
here? You’re a very unusual young woman, KC,” Amelia said.

I waited. She sighed. I waited some more.

“Either you are remarkably uncurious or you have iron control over your nerves. I wonder. You know, I never thought you’d come. When Joanne returned from the cruise, she told me all about you. She was quite impressed with your innate power, although she reiterated you were barely aware of it yourself. I didn’t believe that could possibly be true, but I see now that she was right.

“I was surprised when Joanne told me the House had selected you. An untrained power unleashed in the House, let loose in this part of the world is a frightening thought for an old woman. Joanne would know, though. Honestly, I expected you would ignore the request when Malcolm came to get you from the ship. I certainly never imagined you would move in that very day and not return to your old life. Why is that? What made you so willing to give everything up to come here? Do you feel compelled, child?”

Did
I feel compelled? I suppose in a way I did. This was a life that was far different from any I had known. This was a life with “normal” written all over it. I had a home, a job, and I was even starting to make friends.

“I don’t know if I can explain it well, Amelia,” I said, wondering why I was explaining at all. “I’ve lived mostly as a nomad, with no real roots, no real connection to anything. I came with lawyer-boy, er, Malcolm on a lark. I figured Joanne was trying to lure me here to be her pet faux fortuneteller, to help drum up more business for her bed and breakfast. I never imagined for a minute that she was really dead. When I got here, something about the place got to me. I still didn’t believe, but I saw Joanne’s, uhm, ghost?” My voice rose as if in question.

I was really squirming now. When I had arrived, nothing could have persuaded me to share this experience, but I suppose Amelia hit the nail on the head. I did feel compelled. Compelled to share with her, compelled to stay. I took a deep breath and continued.

“I saw Joanne’s ghost, except I still wondered how she was pulling it off, what the scam was. I had no reason to go back to the ship; I had plenty of savings to last a while and a place to stay, so I thought, why not stay and see what happens next?

“Somehow, I just keep getting sucked deeper. I still don’t really believe I own the House. Partly because I’ve never owned anything and partly because it seems wrong to think of this place as capable of being owned. It’s fascinating. People just show up, we don’t advertise, they’re just suddenly here. I don’t know what I’m trying to say,” I added, and I could hear the frustration in my own voice.

Amelia smiled then, a smile full of knowledge and almost pride. It was as though I had mastered some particularly difficult skill, and Amelia was proud of me. I hated secrets. Her smile made me feel left out of whatever knowledge she had that I lacked. She wanted me to ask, to seek her superior knowledge. I wouldn’t. She wouldn’t be able to keep her secret, people seldom could.  

“The House did pick you. It picks all of us, but has very few other real powers. The real power, my dear, is within you. Most of us that the House picks are aware of the power within, but we need training and a safe harbor. You truly seem unaware of that which roils beneath your surface. I imagine the House is energized by you.”

“What are you saying, Amelia? Are you telling me you think the House is yours, too?” I asked edgily. Was she trying to move in here permanently?

“Oh, dear child, put your back down. I explain myself poorly. I was the owner before Joanne. I have no need of the House now. No, the House has chosen you, and now it’s up to you to discover the power that makes you special. I am a witch. Oh, there. Now I’ve shocked you.”

“No, I’m all right,” I said. “Please, tell me more. How did you come to own the House? And you’re not dead, so how did Joanne get it?”

“Well, it has been a long time since I owned it. The owner before me was named Syvia. She found me one day as I was passing through Sedona on my way to Flagstaff to the teacher’s college there. There weren’t as many jobs available to independent young women back then as there are today. Regardless, I stayed at the House for one night. The House took a shine to me, and before I knew it, Syvia offered me a job running the place and she left for what she told me was a safari. I never did find out where she really went. Two days after she was gone, an attorney presented me with the deed and the place was suddenly mine.”

I gasped. That was very similar to my own experience and said so.

“Yes, it’s the way of the House. I knew it was time for me to go when Joanne and I quite literally ran into each other. I had gone to Phoenix on an errand and we bumped into each other passing through the door to an herbalist’s shop. She was interested in witchcraft and was just starting her Book of Shadows. She’d gone to the herbalist to learn about alchemy. I invited her to the House and when it was time, I transferred it to her.”

“So the House just decides when it’s time for the owner to move on? Then what happened to Joanne? Is she really dead? Because I saw her ghost. Didn’t I?”

“Oh, yes. She’s quite dead. But that had nothing to do with the House, dear. Just because Joanne has passed to the other side doesn’t mean she can’t still visit from time-to-time. I’m sure she was just helping the House, doing a little playacting to give you a push in the right direction.”

She paused to let me absorb all that she’d told me so far. I wasn’t sure what to ask next. Was I supposed to be a witch? Is that what she was trying to tell me? I wanted to know, so I asked her.

Amelia smiled and leaned forward to pat my hand. “Oh, it is far from me to predict where your talents will emerge.” With a final squeeze, she leaned back before continuing. “Joanne wanted to be a witch, and so she was. I had ideas to be a teacher. Once I moved here, I kept meeting powerful witches, and each of them saw something in me and taught me. Syvia was a powerful psychic. Each of us has a special talent. Be patient, dear. Yours will emerge. You already demonstrate some awareness of the other dimension and psychic abilities. Keep yourself open to possibilities beyond what you know now. Turn no one away from the House.

Brushing her hands over her lap, Amelia looked toward the window for a moment. KC had the absurd notion the woman was listening to something only she could hear. Turning back, she smiled again, but it looked a little forced. “That’s all for now, dear. I’m tired. I have two things for you before I leave. First, find Joanne’s Book of Shadows. I don’t know where she kept it, but it’s critical we not let it leave the House. It could be dangerous in the wrong hands.”

I knew she wanted to go, but I still had questions. I sat up a little straighter…not exactly easy in the low-slung chair. “Can you explain more about the Book of Shadows?” I asked.

“It’s the collection of all of Joanne’s work. It’s where she stored all the information about her magickal traditions; it’s an item of power. She should also have her Grimoire, her spell book, stored nearby. Combined, the two books contain a tremendous amount of information and should not be seen by anyone other than you.”

I think I must have blinked funny, because she laughed a little. “KC, you should keep your own Book of Shadows, while you’re still learning about your powers. Even if you don’t become a witch, it’s an excellent idea for you to develop your own traditions and rituals.”

Pushing up from the chair, I crossed the room and looked back at Amelia. “You said two things. What’s the other thing I need to know? Or is it the other thing I need to do?” I asked.

“Very astute. You need to become closer to the House. Ask it why you are here; test what I have told you so far. You will sense I am telling you the truth. The House will not hurt you. It is here to bring a great power to the Earth, and that power lies within you. Go ahead,” she said. “Try it now, reach out. Think about the House and yourself. See if you can sense that I’m telling you the truth.”

Turning away from her, I looked out the window, at the shadows stretching across the yard. I wasn’t sure I wanted to know if this was the truth. It seemed more palatable when I thought this was an elaborate scam by Joanne. Now Amelia was telling me this was all part of some cosmic plot to bring me here so I could learn of some yet to be defined power within me. Was this way too woowoo, even for me?

Tentatively, I stretched out my senses to see if I could tell anything about the House. I was prepared to be freaked out, to demand my freedom and run screaming from the House. I wasn’t prepared for the feelings that washed through me. Calm and light, and sense of destiny.
I was home
.

When I turned to tell Amelia, she was gone and Quinn stood in her place.

“Miss Carmichael,” he said. “I need to see Jason’s room.”

Abruptly drawn back into the reality of the day, I nodded. I led Quinn next door to Jason’s suite, and used the master key from my ring to unlock the door. Quinn placed his hand on my arm, stilling the movement. He took over and unlatched the door himself. I noticed he had his right hand on the butt of his gun, the strap unsnapped.

When he drew his gun, I reversed direction until my back hit the cool plaster of the hallway wall. It hadn’t occurred to me that someone might be waiting inside. I was really slow on the uptake on this one.

Quinn made a gesture with his hand that I took to mean, “Wait here,” and stepped to the doorway. He sighted his gun around the room, then entered cautiously, leaving the door partially opened behind him. He verified the closet, bathroom, and under the bed were all free from intruders, then invited me inside. The room was blank, no imprint of Jason had been made upon the space.