*
*
*
On her way out,
Vivienne took a quick detour through the parish garden to find the Saint
Francis bird feeder. As she had seen in the vision earlier, it was located in
the center of a group of small shrubbery that was protected from the harsh
winter by pieces of burlap. Vivienne could see several patched areas where a
primitive stitching had been performed to shore up the material where it had
ripped open.
As she stood
before the feeder, she had a clear view of the rear entry to the church. She
tried to position herself exactly as Mother Superior had. From this view, she
could see movement from the exact spot where the figure would have come from.
Only instead of a person, it was a flock of gulls. Still, she was convinced
that Mother Superior would have easily seen something as large as a person
leaving the church from where she was standing.
She started to
walk toward the lake shore area when two police officers emerged from the front
entrance. Vivienne wisely hurried back to the parking lot where her car awaited
and decided to save her questions for another day. The last thing she needed
was Sheriff Rigsbee to read Joshua the riot act about his girlfriend snooping
around. She had spent a little time in jail during the Christmas holiday as
part of a ruse to flush out a killer and she was in no hurry to make a return
visit anytime soon.
As she was
driving home from the church, Vivienne couldn’t get the image of the figure
darting away from the church out of her head. Mother Superior must have noticed
it, yet she didn’t mention it to Sheriff Rigsbee. Why would she withhold
something like that from the investigation?
She was so
lost in thought that she almost rear-ended a white news van from the Channel
Four news crew that was attempting to execute a parallel park maneuver in front
of Carriage House Antiques. With quick action, she slammed on the brakes and
came within inches of striking their rear bumper.
A large group
of people were gathered on the sidewalk facing the store and Vivienne feared
that Pastor Kilpatrick was behind another protest of Tristan and Nathaniel’s
business. She didn’t see any picket signs nor hear any shouts or chants. She
was surprised to see another two news vans parked on the street and a few
reporters and camera people testing their equipment. As she slowly drove past
the now parked news van, she saw a small podium set up outside the front door
of the antique store.
Vivienne had
to drive two blocks down Main Street before finding a spot in front of
Hearthside Books. She locked up her car and hurried down to see what all the
commotion was about. There was no way anyone could know about the death of
Father William just yet.
She arrived
just as the front door to the business opened and both Nathaniel and Tristan
took their place at the podium. The lights from the news cameras cast a harsh
glow as they stood before the assembled crowd with huge smiles. Unable to get a
front row view, she walked along the parked cars and was able to stand on the
curb to gain some height.
Nathaniel and
Tristan were joined by a short woman with dark hair who was dressed in a very
flattering business suit. She adjusted the microphones and spoke with a very
polished tone that easily identified her as a company spokeswoman. “The New
York State Lottery Commission is pleased to introduce the newest millionaire
winners in the multi-state Spring Ahead Raffle game, Nathaniel Schroeder and
Tristan Carr.”
There was a
round of applause from the crowd and several flashes as cameras took still
photos. The Lotto spokeswoman was handed an oversized novelty check which she
then held out for Nathaniel and Tristan to grab from each end. “They were the
holder of the ten lucky numbers drawn on Wednesday afternoon, joining nine
other top prize winners across seven states.”
She posed with
them for another round of photographs and then stepped aside with the check as
they were given the podium for the reporters.
“How does it
feel to be a millionaire?” A male reporter shouted.
“This couldn’t
have come at a better time for us.” Nathaniel spoke softly.
“After taxes,
we aren’t exactly millionaires, so you might better save that question for the
Mega Millions winners.” Tristan answered as several audience members chuckled.
“Still, you’re
going to clear a very nice sum after taxes.” A female reporter chimed in. “Do
you have any big plans for the money yet?”
“We are going
to take a nice vacation someplace warm, especially given the winter we’ve gone
through.” Nathaniel smiled.
“Definitely.”
Tristan agreed.
“Who bought
the ticket?” Another reporter asked.
“I picked it
up the other night at the Monarch Grocery.” Tristan replied. “Best ten dollars
I ever spent.”
“Are you both
regular lottery players?”
Tristan and
Nathaniel both looked at each other and shook their head. “It was just a lucky
break.” Tristan answered.
“We are
planning on donating to the Cayuga Cove Animal Shelter, a charity very near and
dear to our hearts.” Nathaniel added. “We want to make sure they are well
stocked with food, toys, and medical needs for all the pets in need of
adoption.”
There was
another burst of applause as they continued the press conference. Vivienne felt
a great sense of relief that the money they desperately needed had come. She
had always thought of the lottery as a fool’s quest, with the odds of winning
so remote. Yet, here in town she had proof that it could actually happen and it
couldn’t have happened to two nicer guys.
“Vivienne.” A
familiar voice called out from the crowd.
Vivienne
searched left and right to see who was addressing her. She suddenly saw Miss
Octavia waving to her from near the Channel Four news van. Wrapped in an
oversized woolen coat that went down to her ankles, she stood out from the
crowd with a colorful neon-green crocheted hat and matching scarf. She motioned
for her to join her away from the noise of the press conference. “Hi there!”
Vivienne waved back.
“Child, have I
got news for you.” Octavia’s smooth voice had a habit of making the most
mundane words sound elegant, no doubt thanks to spending most of her life on
the exotic island of Barbados.
“Isn’t it
great about the Lotto win?” Vivienne smiled. “Cayuga Cove of all places.”
“Oh, it’s
great.” Miss Octavia replied. “But, it’s not natural.”
“Whatever do
you mean?”
“We shouldn’t
talk outside like this where someone may hear us. Can you come to my shop?”
“I’d love to.”
Vivienne frowned. “I’ve had the worst morning today.”
“I’ve got some
wonderful new herbal tea in at my shop.” Miss Octavia smiled broadly. “This
bitter cold weather gives me all the more reason to brew it. So why don’t you
follow me back to the shop and let’s swap news?”
“Sounds good
to me.” Vivienne replied.
Vivienne
offered her vehicle up for the journey to Mother Earth Mercantile over on Weyer
Place. Octavia was more than happy to get out of the cold, even if the trip was
less than a five minute drive away.
They settled
into a comfortably stuffed pair of antique bishop’s chairs that Octavia had
placed around a small coffee table. Sequestered away from the rest of the shop
by a pair of folding bamboo screens, Vivienne could easily imagine she was in a
quaint tea room somewhere in the Far East. “The store looks better every time I
come in.” Vivienne said as she sipped some of the warm Japanese cherry rose tea
from her mug.
“Thank you.”
Octavia poured herself a cup of tea and then set the pot down on the table. She
waved her manicured fingers over the steam, taking in the vapors. “Just like
sitting under a tree in Kyoto when the blossoms are at their peak.” She was
dressed in pair of relaxed khaki pants and an exquisitely knit sweater that was
the color of the Caribbean Sea. It proved to be quite flattering against her
mocha skin tone.
“It’s so
fragrant.” Vivienne swirled the liquid around in her mug. “It’s just what I
needed after a terrible morning.”
“Time to lay
down your burdens.” Octavia spoke softly. “What happened?”
“I found
Father William dead in the baptismal pool this morning at his church.” Vivienne
felt better getting the news out to someone. “It looks like he accidently fell
off a ladder while cleaning and drowned in the water, but something about it
doesn’t feel right to me.”
“That is
terrible, Vivienne.” Miss Octavia empathized. “But I can’t say that I’m all
that surprised.”
Vivienne
gasped. “You’re not?”
Miss Octavia
reached over to an end table near her chair and retrieved a piece of parchment,
about the size of a wall calendar. “I have no doubt that you’ve noticed the
sudden rise in fortunate events, both good and bad, that have been happening
here in town.”
“Of course.”
“Then it
should not come as shock to you when I say that there must be a reason for all
of it.” Miss Octavia continued.
“Please don’t
tell me that we’re dealing with a manic-depressive leprechaun that has a grudge
against the town.” Vivienne pleaded.
“If only it were
that easy to fix.” Miss Octavia chuckled. “No, I’m afraid that we’ve got
something even more dangerous on the loose.”
“What could be
more dangerous than that?” Vivienne asked.
Miss Octavia
handed the parchment paper to Vivienne. “This is a map of Cayuga Cove that I’ve
been working on for the past few months for the Elder Council.”
Vivienne
glanced at the hand-drawn paper in her grasp. There were several town landmarks
noted, along with a slew of ovals sketched out in dark blue and a few diamonds
in bright red marked all across the document. “What am I looking at here?”
“Those ovals
are the magical portals that have opened up all over the town.” Miss Octavia
revealed. “The very ones that let ghosts like Natalie come into our world.”
“Nana Mary
mentioned that they were looking into ways to get them all sealed up.” Vivienne
replied.
“She speaks
the truth.” Miss Octavia answered. “I’ve been tasked with locating each one and
mapping it so that the Council will be able to find a solution for sealing off
the portals safely without any repercussions that would impact the local
residents.”
“What do the
red diamonds represent?” Vivienne pointed to one of them on the map.
“That is the
danger I was talking about.”
“New portals?”
Vivienne asked.
“No.” Octavia
sighed. “Those are magic voids.”
Vivienne
lowered the map into her lap and sipped some of the warm tea. “I haven’t read
anything about those in my grimoire.”
“Someone in
this town is draining the portals of magic, in effect closing them, but in a
very dangerous way.” Octavia lowered her voice. “Someone who is not working for
the Council, I might add.”
“A rogue
witch?” Vivienne asked.
“Doubtful.”
Miss Octavia reasoned. “The Council has forbidden anyone from dabbling with the
portals until they have a plan in place.” She took another sip of her tea.
“Besides, a rogue witch would be easily discovered with all the attention
Cayuga Cove is getting lately.”
“Then who
could it be?”
“Based on what
I’ve been tracking for the past few months here, I’d say we’re dealing with a
sorcerer.” Miss Octavia revealed.
Vivienne let
the word sink in for a moment before responding. “Isn’t that the same as a
witch?”
“Witches are
born to the craft, my dear. Sorcerers are mortals with no genetic history of
witchcraft within their family line. They skirt the rules to bring the power of
magic within their grasp.”
“Are the
capable of casting spells?” Vivienne worried and sipped some more of her tea.
“Only with the
aid of a talisman.”
Vivienne
thought back to what limited magical knowledge she currently had committed to
memory. There were so many terms to learn, it made a medical textbook look like
a leaflet in comparison. “I thought only people skilled with magic could
manipulate magical objects?”
“An amulet is
an object that is infused with power during its creation. It can only be
utilized by someone who is skilled in the art of releasing the magic trapped
within.” Miss Octavia corrected her. “But a talisman is an object that draws
its power by draining from another source. It can be used by anyone regardless
of skill.” Miss Octavia’s eyes narrowed. “A tool that we witches must keep out
of the hands of mortals at all costs.”
“So Cayuga
Cove is under attack by a sorcerer and their attacks are causing extreme good
and bad luck events to happen to the people who live here?”
Miss Octavia
sighed. “Yes. Cayuga Cove has more magical portals open right now than anywhere
on the planet. This is a magic-infused utopia to any sorcerer who desires to
harness the power for their benefit.”