3
I had decided that Ultan’s behavior was unruly and he had probably just been drunk. I wasn't going to give his crazy accusations the time of day and I hadn't mentioned any of it to Gran, or Joy when she returned. Joy seemed to be in a better mood when she came back and we decided to go shopping in downtown Salem. I was specifically looking for a new book, but Joy was always on the lookout for a new fragrance or the newest clothing line.
“So how was your visit with your family?” I asked inquisitively. Joy hadn’t mentioned much about them and I was interested to see who she felt was finally worth her time.
Joy was distracted and answered absentmindedly, “Oh, you know, fine.”
I squinted at her. “See anyone in particular?”
She stopped for a moment and looked into a store window. “Just my aunt. She lives in Virginia.” She shrugged, turning back to face me. “I don’t know, she just… doesn’t get it. You know how non-artsy people are. They think our livelihood is a hobby. I find it exhausting.”
“Is that why you don’t go to visit often? She doesn’t believe in your work?”
“Yeah. But whatever, right? I refuse to let her ruin my great shopping mood today. Let’s go in here.” She motioned to a small apothecary shop on the corner.
“In there? Why?” Joy had never taken me into one of the Wiccan shops before. I didn’t really want to go. They smelled like incense and I didn’t want to smell that on me the rest of the day.
“Oh, come on,” she said, taking my hand.
I followed her dutifully into the shop and looked around. The place was chalk full of clutter from floor to ceiling. All I could see was pentagrams and books, bottles and candles. It was hard to breathe and even harder to move. From behind the counter emerged an elderly woman I had seen visit Gran on occasion. For the life of me I couldn’t remember her name.
“Joy, dear,” said the wrinkled woman from beneath at least three shawls. She was short and stout, with white hair piled in a bun on the top of her head. It made her appear slightly taller than she really was. She took Joy’s hand in her own and cupped her frail fingers around it. She closed her eyes for a moment and turned her face as if she were listening, though neither of us were talking. I looked at Joy but she seemed relaxed. “We need to brew you up some mint chamomile tea dear. I’m guessing you went to see your Aunt Myra again?”
The hunched over woman shuffled away as Joy answered, “Yes. I know you don’t like her, but she’s family.”
“Poppycock!” The woman threw her small hands in the air. She turned to glare at Joy, “Family doesn’t abandon their own. Especially in a time of need. Myra knows that.” She began muttering to herself while collecting vials and pouches. “Nasty woman. Think she knows everything.”
The old woman continued to bustle around her counter, clinking small bottles and pouring things into a carafe. Suddenly she stopped and turned her head once again as if she was listening, until she turned to Joy and said, “Joy! You didn't tell me we had a visitor.”
“I was waiting for you to ask,” Joy said smiling. “This is Paige. Paige this is Beatrice.”
“Not Aine's grandchild is it?” She shuffled back around the counter and slowly approached me.
Joy continued to smile as if she was proud of me for some unknown reason. “Yes, the very one. I know you wanted to meet her for some time. I thought since we were in the neighborhood it would be as good a day as any.”
“Yes, yes. I’ve been to house several times, but I always just miss you.” Beatrice came right up next to me and stole my hand. She cupped it in her cold, bony fingers, just as she had with Joy’s, but I didn't feel the sense of relaxation I had suspected that Joy had been feeling, instead I felt warm. Warmth emanating from her small hands, filling my body from my fingertips all the way into my heart. “What is she...”
“Shhh child, I'm working.”
“Working? Working on what?”
Joy smiled from above the older woman. “Beatrice she doesn’t know what your gift is. You’re scaring her.”
“Yes, well,” she released my hands began to walk away. “Joy come over here for your tea and then you two should be on your way.”
Joy approached the counter and laid her hands in front of the older woman. “But aren’t you going to tell her?”
“Not for me to tell, child. The only thing I can say is that she has a strong protection on her. Someone is watching over her.”
“Me? Someone is watching over me?” The feeling that I'd always had that I was lucky for no reason at all, or that I had a Guardian Angel, the old woman was verifying that for me. It felt strange but at the same time like a weight was being lifted off my shoulders, someone upstairs really did care about me.
“Yes, child, someone watches you. Many do. They have waited a long time for your arrival.”
“What does that mean? Who’s waiting for me?” I couldn’t figure out what she meant, unless she was losing her marbles in her old age. Or did she actually know something that I didn't?
“Like I said before, family takes care of their own, especially in a time of need. You will be needing them soon. Don't turn your back on what you don't understand. Now, Joy, take your tea and go. I have other matters to attend to.”
She left the carafe on the counter and entered a dark hall behind her through some beads into the back room. I was about to go around the counter and follow her but Joy shot out her arm to stop me. “Don't. She must just be upset about something. She reads emotions, it's her gift. But she also wears her own emotions on her sleeve. She's probably just upset that I went to see my aunt. If you couldn't tell, she doesn’t like her very much.”
Joy grabbed the bottle and began to walk out of the store. I stood for a moment more, watching the beads in the dark doorframe sway back and forth, deciding whether or not I should have to come back to see Beatrice. I would and hopefully she would have the answers I was looking for.
As soon as we reached daylight, I turned on Joy. “What the hell was that in there? Why did you drag me in there anyway? You knew she wanted to meet me?”
Joy chewed on her lower lip, showing how uncomfortable she was in the situation. “Beatrice just wants to know what’s going on in town. She’s a bit of a gossiper, I’m sure she didn’t mean anything by her attitude. Besides, she’s an excellent reader, if you feel like someone's watching over you, that's what you'll push out, so she'll see that. But people in this town do care about you Paige. Ultan certainly does.”
“What you know about Ultan and me?”
“Only that the more you turn him down the more he'll come crawling back for more. He's totally smitten with you!”
“With me? Why? We've only just met, besides every time he’s with me, he’s so damn weird.”
“Sometimes our emotions come about in strange and mysterious ways,” she winked at me and turned to walk away.
I stood there frustrated, not quite understanding what Beatrice had meant and now understanding the small revelation that Ultan was clearly interested in me. Since moving to Salem, everything had become so confusing and difficult, even though was this was my escape. I wasn't sure how I would continue taking these little discoveries about my new life. But I guess when you have big changes like I've had that discoveries come pretty quickly thereafter.
We turned onto Main Street as I continued to mull over a relationship between Ultan and myself. I noticed Joy had gotten ahead of me, probably to dodge anymore uncomfortable questions, when an attractive looking couple caught my eye. They were both wearing extremely dark clothes for the weather and the guy had his arm draped over the girl’s shoulders. They looked charming yet serious, they weren’t a new couple. I was walking behind them and focused on the fluidity of their movements. It was almost like they were floating. Guess that’s how you look when you’re in love.
But as they sat down on a bench, I noticed something was off about their relationship. She seemed to be totally in control of him. When he turned his head to kiss her, I stopped dead in my tracks and openly stared at him, probably looking like a total stalker. He looked just like Nick. “Oh my God,” I said aloud. But it couldn’t be him. Nick was gone.
As I studied him closer, I thought that he wasn’t an exact replica, but something just felt so similar. The guy looked up from underneath his dark bangs and made perfect eye contact with me, but there was no recognition. I tried to collect myself and looked over his head, making it look as though I was interested in something in the store window behind him. He looked at me inquisitively, but then turned his attention back to the pretty girl he was talking to. She was stunningly beautiful with pale white skin and flaming red hair. He was also paler than normal, almost like he hadn’t seen any sun all summer. His eyes never left her lips while they were talking. It was almost like he was drawn to her, like a moth to a flame. He simply couldn’t look away when she had his attention. I realized I was intruding on a private moment so I turned and walked away. But I couldn’t help thinking that something was so familiar about him, something I just couldn’t dismiss. I took one more look at him over my shoulder, but he hadn’t given me another look.
I walked into the shop of bath supplies and soaps, knowing Joy would be in there trying to find a new perfume. She seemed to do that every few weeks, change her scent. She purchased fragrances like most people bought underwear.
“Oh Paige, you have got to try this one!” She sprayed me full in the face with something that smelled like a cross between roses and pure sugar. It smelled terrible.
“Yuck! What is that? Eau of old lady?” I noticed a few of the older customers suddenly turn and walk away from me, I also noticed their dirty looks my direction. “Oh sorry.” I said without really meaning it.
“You don’t like it?” Joy said sheepishly.
“No, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have reacted like that. I just saw something out on the street that kind of freaked me out.” I shook my head as if I would shake away the mental image of the two people together, but I knew it wouldn’t go away.
Joy put the bottle back on the shelf with all the other testers. “Why? What happened?” She put her hand on my shoulder. She was great at stuff like this. The comforter role, I didn’t really have that down so much, I was more of the “wear your emotions on your sleeve” type of girl.
“No, it was just weird. I saw this couple and I thought I knew the guy, but I guess not. He kind of looked like someone I used to know, but he must’ve had one of those faces, you know?”
“Well, I want to see him,” she hurried me out of the store, “point him out.”
I saw them, still sitting on the bench, looking totally enamored with each other. But I wasn’t going to point them out to her. I was already some random stranger, I mean I might have looked creepy before but I wasn’t psycho level yet.
“No! I can’t do that, I don’t even know them,” I protested.
“Fine. I’ll just have to find them myself.” She began scanning the crowd, though with her large Gucci sunglasses you probably couldn’t even tell that she was looking for them, but the second her head stopped I knew she had found them. She pulled her glasses down slightly to the bridge of her nose with her right hand and looked over them. Her blue eyes almost appeared brighter but I assumed it was just the sun. There was something else in her eyes, a flicker of recognition? Maybe this guy really did have one of those familiar faces.
She slowly put her sunglasses back up and took my hand. “Paige, it’s time for us to go.”
“Huh? Did you see the guy or not?” I looked back to the couple and sure enough they were still sitting there, but now the redhead was staring directly at us. There was a dangerous fire in her eyes.
“Paige, now.” She started pulling me in the direction of her car. She walked quickly with her head down.
Once we got to the car she popped the trunk and put her packages in the back. She hurried around to her door, fumbling with her keys. After sitting down she put the A/C on full blast. I sat down in the passenger side seat next to her and turned my body so I was facing her full on. I wanted answers now.
“Are you going to tell me what’s going on here or not? I swear things are so bizarre in this town.” I sighed heavily, letting her know my frustration with her lack of explanation as to why we left so quickly. I hoped that she would catch my drift.
“Paige there’s just some things about here that you don’t understand. Some things I can’t tell you.”
“Like what? You obviously knew her, but from where?”
She sighed and turned to look at me directly in the eyes and said, “Another life.”