Talisman (61 page)

“
Oh
,” Beatrix started to chuckle. “
Yes
.  I meant to tell you first thing this morning, when you ran into the cave in such a huff.  I apologize.  You’re meeting Tanner this evening.  He said to be at the Heritage Inn at five-thirty, sharp.  Room 3…and he said for me to tell you, ‘
No play clothes’
.”

I bent down to tie my shoelaces. 
“Do you know where we’re going?” I asked.  Beatrix didn’t respond.  “
Bea?
” I called out as I lifted my head.  She was gone.  I looked up in the sky to see the majestic falcon flying off, soaring into the horizon. 
Well, the apple doesn’t fall far from the Talisman tree.
  Beatrix was just as evasive as Tanner Grey.

I
retrieved the bottle of sea-salt & water and gave the wound on my arm a quick squirt.  Once I’d gathered up everything, I headed home to get ready for my “mystery date”.

I just hope I still have a home to go to, and that Beatrix is right about Charlotte not selling Shiloh Ridge
.  I still didn’t know how all the magic in the world could stop that from happening.

I arrived at my gravel drive in about 30 minutes. 
Parked outside the house sat two additional cars.  I knew the black Lincoln was Ace Barlow’s, a local attorney, but I didn’t have a clue as to whose sleek, white Maserati was parked alongside it.  It had New York plates and looked rather expensive, which wasn’t a good sign.

Surely
they’re here because of the sale
.  At that moment, my only wish was,
Please don’t let it be Lazarus in there!

My car door was unlocked, so I threw the picnic basket, along with
the wooden swords, in the backseat of my Charger.  As I headed up the porch steps, I surmised that since they were here on “official” business, they would probably be sitting in the front of the house.  Nervously, I peered through the living room window. 
No sign of them
.  I crept over to the other side. 
Definitely in the dining room
.  To my dismay, I couldn’t see exactly
who
was in the room.  The sheers hanging over the window were obstructing my view.  I could only make out outlines of bodies, but I knew there were four of them.

As I crept inside the house, I heard several voices coming from the dining room.  Thankfully, they hadn’t heard me.  I had to make sure Lazarus wasn’t one of them, so I hung back by the front door.  I instantly recognized three of them: Charlotte, Chloe, and Mr. Barlow
’s.  Just as I started to resort to listening in on the thoughts of the stranger, he spoke.  I didn’t know who he was, but it sure wasn’t Lazarus Xcavare.  I’d know his suave, uppity accent anywhere, and that guy
wasn’t
him.

Anxiously, I walked to the doorway of the room.  Charlotte and Chloe were seated on one side,
while Mr. Ace Barlow and the stranger sat on the other.  Charlotte was the first to spot me standing there.  She shot me an icy glare.

“We’
re about to
get started
, Shiloh,” Charlotte announced, clearly perturbed by my interruption.  She cringed at the sight of my soiled clothes.  “
UGH
… What have you been doing?  Go get cleaned up!  This doesn’t concern you anyway.”

Chloe was giggling under her breath.  I tried one more
last-ditch attempt to compel her not to sell the land.  Over and over, I thought,

Charlotte Wallace…

You
WILL NOT sell Shiloh Ridge

today
or ANY OTHER DAY
…

I found myself breathless as I waited for her response.

Charlotte grunt
ed.  “What are you
waiting for?
” my mother snapped.

My heart sank. 
Another failed attempt
.  I turned and stomped up the steps. 
How can this be happening?  Beatrix was so sure she wouldn’t sell it!

I could feel myself break
ing out into a cold sweat as I headed into the bathroom.  I turned on the hot water and began to undress.  Extremely fidgety, I looked at my arm to find that my wound had already healed.  I couldn’t even find any relief in that, not with what was transpiring downstairs.  The mirror over the sink was starting to fog up.  I wiped away the moist haze to stare at the hysterical girl standing before me and took a deep breath.

Calm down!
  You have to calm down.  It’s not like Lazarus will find out tonight
.

The color began to slowly come back to my cheeks with every controlled
breath I took.  As I gazed in the mirror, suddenly I noticed a flicker of sorts swirling within my eyes.  I gave them a quick rub.  Closely, I peered into the two pools of blue to spy a sparking white light swirling in them that seemed to be intensifying the longer I stared.

“
Awwww
…
SHIT!”
I cried out as I gripped both sides of the pedestal sink. 
I
wasn’t fortunate enough to have a “tiger’s-eye” to conceal this oddity like Tanner or Beatrix.

Distraught, I thought,
How in the Hell am I going to explain…THIS?  What am I going to do! 
I started pacing wildly around the bathroom. 
Sunglasses…Sunglasses are good… Really, REALLY dark sunglasses!

I hurried through my shower and flew into my bedroom to get ready.  My only thought was,
Tanner has to know what to do.  He just has to!
  As I rummaged through my closet, it dawned on me that I didn’t have a clue as to
where
we were going or
what
I should wear.  Beatrix had said “no play clothes”, so felt confident that meant something “a little nicer”.  I grabbed a pair of khaki chinos and dressy, fitted blue shirt. 
That’ll have to do
.  After all, there wasn’t a place I could think of for miles around this redneck county that deemed a “dress code” as a necessity (well, other than No shirt, No shoes – No service, but that didn’t count).  Since I was going to be with Tanner (aka – Professor Prozac), I didn’t see the need in bringing the little amethyst along, so I left it under the mattress of my bed (where I’d hidden it before I left the house this morning).  However, I did check to make sure it was still under there. 
Yes…Safe & sound
.  I slipped on my brown leather flats, grabbed my purse, threw on my shades, and headed down the stairs.  I landed on the bottom step, just as Mr. Barlow stepped into the foyer.

“
Good
.  You’re finished.  Could you please come in here and join us, Shiloh,” Ace Barlow requested.

Confused
, I slowly followed the salt & pepper haired, lanky attorney into the dining room.  Somehow the mood of the room had changed.  Charlotte and Chloe were sitting in their seats, staring down at the cherry dining table, apparently sulking.  Their current demeanor surely didn’t reflect the fact that they were about to become instant millionaires — quite the opposite.

I wonder what’s up?

Mr. Barlow pulled out the chair at the head of the table and motioned to me cordially.  “
Please
take a seat, Shiloh,” he requested.

I hesitated and thought,
That’s Daddy’s spot
.  I felt a small twinge of sadness as I lowered myself into the armchair.  Charlotte continued to stare blankly at the table.  She may have been ignoring my presence, but my eyes were locked on her.

Mr. Barlow began, “Shiloh, we have t
o take care of one minor detail…before we can sign off on the sale of the property.”

“
Well
, let’s hope it’s
minor
, Mr. Barlow,” the stranger interjected gruffly.

I loo
ked curiously at the impeccably-dressed older man.  He didn’t exude Lazarus’ sophistication, but he seemed highly educated, nonetheless.  His hair was slicked back, and it had an unnatural, wet-look to it.  The frameless glasses he was wearing didn’t flatter his face one bit.  Neither did his dark, over-tanned leathery skin.  Even his cologne had a harsh, spicy aroma that lingered like a heavy cloud.  Clearly he’d used too much, but it was tolerable —
somewhat
.

Greasy and slea
zy
, I thought silently.

“Shiloh,
this is Mr. Winston Holdbrooke.  He handles all Xcavare’s financial transactions and legal matters.”  Mr. Barlow winked at me and stressed in a juvenile tone, “He’s the one who brought the
really big check
.”

Perplexed by the situation, I
glanced at Charlotte.  She hadn’t moved an inch and her expression still appeared “blank”.  Chloe’s face was more telling.  Now she looked
worried
.

“Mr. Barlow, I’m confused.  How does this concern
me?
” I asked.  All parties in the room remained silent.  I couldn’t even hear their daggone breaths.

“Well, it’s r
eally
funny
you should ask that,” Ace Barlow finally replied with a forced, fake laugh.

Uncontrollably, Charlotte let out a sharp cry under her breath, like a dog would when it got its tail
pinched, and swiftly put her hand up over her mouth.

Mr. Barlow continued, “It seems Caiden left all the acreage on Shiloh Ridge to
…
you
, Shiloh.”

Flabbergasted, I shot straight up in my seat.  “
What?
”

Mr. Barlow flashed an uneasy smile.  “Your father left the land to you.  I
didn’t think it would be an issue when I discovered it this morning as I was reviewing his will.  Usually the surviving spouse has the authority whenever a child is involved, and I knew Charlotte’s wishes.  However upon checking, I learned that you just turned eighteen.  Is that
correct?
”

Intrigued by his question, I replied
slowly, “
Yes
.”

“Well then, you aren’t a
minor
,” Mr. Barlow concluded.  “Your mother has no rights to the property.  The sale can
only
be authorized by
you
.”

I couldn’t believe what I’d just heard.  As the corners of my mouth drew up, all I could think was,
Christmas sure came early this year
.  I stayed silent for a moment, just staring at Charlotte.

“Shiloh, I need
to review the contract with you,” Mr. Barlow insisted.

“That won’t be necessary,
” I answered flatly as I continued to eye Charlotte.

“Shiloh, you really should let me go over the contract
before I hand you this check,” Mr. Barlow urged.

“May I
see
the check?” I asked.

From out of the corner of my eye, I watched Mr. Holdbrooke pull something out of his briefcase.  As soon as
the stiff paper hit my hand, I held it up for a curious look.  I slid my sunglasses down my nose, just a fuzz, and tilted my head.  Sure enough, it was fifteen million dollars, made out to:

Pay to the order of:
 
Shiloh
Charlotte
Wallace

I stared at the check and thought,
Fifteen million dollars…This is going to hurt.
  I pushed my shades back up to their original spot and then swiftly tore through the paper in one swoop.

Charlotte sprang
out of her chair screaming, “Are you
CRAZY!?!
  Chloe, get the
DAMN TAPE!
”

“Sit down, Chloe,” I ordered and then turned to Mr. Holbrooke to announce, “I’m
not
selling.”

Mr. Holdbrooke immediately countered calmly, “How about twenty-five million?”

I was stunned, not by the amount, but by the apparent orders given to Mr. Holdbrooke fueled by Lazarus Xcavare’s desperation to seal the deal.  I wondered,
How high is that bastard willing to go?
  I decided to take a polite and civil approach.

“Mr. Holdbrooke that’s a very generous offer, but you’re not
listening
to me.  Shiloh Ridge is
not
for sale.  Not today, or any other day.  My father,” my voice began to crack, “…wouldn’t have wanted that,” I added confidently.

Pandemonium swept through the dining room like a runaway train.  Charlotte started crying uncontrollably, Mr. Barlow rushed to her sid
e (and almost crashed into the china cabinet doing so), Chloe was cussing up a storm, bitching about all the things she couldn’t buy now, and Mr. Holdbrooke began punching keys on his cell phone in a panic.

I just
stood there, calmly taking in the scene.  Within seconds, Mr. Holdbrooke was standing beside me.