Secret Worlds (106 page)

What a wonderful contrast to her mother’s icy disapproval. Skye had rushed in to redeem herself. “But I absolutely love crystals. I design jewelry based on a person’s energy and needs.”

Skye pulled out the design sketchbook she’d brought with her, and Claribel flipped through the pages, nodding in satisfaction. “You have a great talent.”

She’d noticed Claribel’s unusual thumb ring: it looked like a moon or planet orb set atop a band of titanium. Tiny obsidian circles formed craters and random chips of moonstone cast tiny flecks of light on the dark metal.

Claribel never looked up from the sketchbook, but said, “The ring – it was a gift from my late husband.”

“It’s very unique.” Skye wasn’t sure if she liked it or not. A bit large and gaudy for her taste. Maybe it was the kind of piece that grew on you because it was given by a loved one.

She jumped when the sketchbook slammed shut. “You’re hired,” Claribel said. “The fairies like you.”

“Uhm . . . great.” Fairies? Well, a job was a job. And working at The Green Fairy would be a training ground for learning more about matching crystals to customer needs. Not to mention she needed the money.

Skye looked around the dingy basement and sighed. The job would be perfect if it wasn’t for Glenna. But she could put up with her black moodiness.

An odd humming noise caught Skye’s attention. She stilled and listened. The sounds were like the faint droning of insects, possibly bees. She walked further in the back, trying to find the source. The humming volume increased and drew closer, buzzing near her ears. Mosquitoes? But summer was over, even in the Deep South. She didn’t see anything, but it was darker here further in the back. She sniffed and the aroma seemed linked to some childhood memory . . . but at the edge of her awareness, like trying to recall a dream. The more you tried to remember, the further it receded into some gray nether-region.

“Skye?” Claribel’s voice drifted downstairs. The humming noise stopped at once. “Time to lock up. No sense staying until closing tonight. After the game, everyone will be heading out to eat and drink. Spiritual matters will be the last thing on their minds.” Claribel did a quick scan of the room. “You got a lot done in a short amount of time.”

“I’m weird, I know. But whenever business is slow, I’d like to come down here and finish the job.”

“You don’t find it a little creepy in here? It’s dark and messy. Most people avoid this room.”

Skye opened her mouth to mention the strange noises, then snapped it shut. Like Michael said, she was only hypersensitive and imaginative sometimes.

“Don’t worry about cleaning the basement,” said Claribel. “I plan to hire a crew to come sort it out eventually. Probably best if you only come when you have to get supplies.”

Skye dutifully followed her boss up the steps, watching the fairy wands-as-barrettes wobble precariously in Claribel’s bun. The hem of her skirt was frayed and another loose thread dangled, but Skye wasn’t about to scare her with the scissors again.

Glenna was already pulling on her coat and scarf in the break room when Skye walked in. “Trying to earn brownie points with the boss?” she whispered fiercely, careful for Claribel not to overhear.

“You’re being ridiculous.” Skye put on her jacket and dug car keys out of her purse.

“Just remember, I’ve worked here a whole year almost. Claribel depends on me, not you.”

Skye rolled her eyes. “Fine. You’re the A+, number-one employee in this vast corporate empire. Lighten up for a change.” Glenna flounced out, Skye behind her.

“‘Night, girls,” Claribel poked her head out of an office door, the one she used for tarot readings. Skye saw a shadow in the room; someone had stopped by after all. “Be careful going home. Traffic’s murder now the game’s over. Oh, wait a minute.” The door closed for a moment and Claribel came out, shutting it quickly behind her. Skye caught only a glimpse of a man sitting in a chair, his legs clad in dark suit trousers.

Claribel waved a fairy streamer in their direction. It looked like something a five-year-old girl would buy in a toy store, with long cascades of pastel-colored ribbons tied to the end of a white stick —or wand, as Claribel called it.

“May the Wee Ones flitter around you, and keep your spirits bright,

May they cast their protection on you this night.”

“Thank you, Our Lady of the Fairy Dust and High Priestess of the Sparkly,” Glenna muttered.

Skye elbowed her into silence and they walked into the dark coldness, where Glenna immediately vanished in the throng of fans leaving the stadium and swarming the streets. The mood was ecstatic with people screaming ‘Roll Tide’ and the marching band still playing in the background. The few Tennessee fans, conspicuously clad in bright orange, kept their heads down, hurrying to their cars.

She kept up a steady walking pace. Normally she drove to work, but with the game crowd, walking was less of a hassle than maneuvering MacFarland Boulevard.

The slightly creepy feeling she had earlier in the storage room returned, stronger. Someone was following her. Skye stopped abruptly and looked around. No one was paying her the slightest attention. Probably her imagination in overdrive again. Maybe it was an after effect of being around Gloomy Glenna, a self-proclaimed psychic, and with Claribel who was convinced fairies surrounded her.

She continued on, walking past the Tutwiler freshman dorm for women. She’d been lucky to find a small garage apartment another block away. She’d flirted with the idea of dorm life, but years of being the mystic misfit in her hometown high school soured her to the idea. She wasn’t exactly the sorority girl type.

The air pressed in on Skye, a subtle invasion of personal space that made her stomach dance the cha-cha. Her night vision strained, uselessly searching for a watching set of eyes. Her pace quickened. When at last she reached her upstairs garage apartment, Skye glanced behind; double-checking to be certain she was alone before unlocking the door. Again, she scanned the darkness and saw no movement, heard no unnatural noise.
Nothing out there
. Inside, she locked the door and flipped on light switches.

Her jitters vanished with the domestic haven of familiarity. She loved her little space. Here, she could be anybody she wanted to be, could stay up until three o’clock a.m. if she chose to, making crystal charm jewelry or watching old movies. There were no frigid eyes of distaste or disappointment haunting her every move. She could flop at spell incantations, eat ice cream for dinner, and hang a poster-sized spreadsheet of daily, weekly and monthly goals without fear of ridicule. Sure, Michael had been over to her new place and shook his head at the spreadsheet. “You’re so OCD,” he’d laughed. But it was a teasing laugh, not mocking or biting in any way. Thank the goddess for a cool brother to offset her mother’s negativity and her dad’s neglect.

Skye lit the salt lamp, a discounted gift to herself from The Green Fairy, which gave off a tangerine glow. She put some drops of patchouli oil in a diffuser and kicked back with a Diet Coke. The cell phone rang and she grinned at seeing Tanner’s number on the screen.

Pretend everything’s hunky-dory. Like last night never happened.
“Hey big shot, how many touchdowns did you score?”

“Caught a pass and ran for sixty yards. What? Don’t tell me you missed my debut performance.”

His voice sent warm vanilla sparkles down her spine – which reminded her. Her back hurt again. Skye reached in her purse and popped a couple of aspirin to ease the nagging backache. “You tellin’ me the truth? Cause I Tivoed the game.”

“A slight exaggeration,” he admitted. Skye pictured his easy smile. “Okay, since you’ve got it all on tape anyway, a total lie. Still my biggest cheerleader?”

“Always.” She strove to match his own tone – light and airy, instead of husky with longing and hidden meanings. “Did Michael get any playing time?”

“Yeah, a single substitution, which is more than the coach gave me. We’ve got to make sure your brother doesn’t get the big head.”

They both laughed. Seriously, Michael was the nicest guy in the world. No danger of him turning into a prima donna. The buzz of people talking in the background grew louder. “You must be calling from the locker room.”

“Just outside it. A group of us are heading to Dreamland Barbeque. Wanna tag along?”

She was about to accept when a female voice squealed his name. “Depends on who all is going.”

“Michael, me, some other bench-warming freshmen, and our adoring entourage of female fans.”

The last time she ‘tagged along’ had not been a success. She was the one benched on the sidelines watching the action while Tanner and Michael shone with the chicks. A repeat of high school.

“I’m staying in tonight. Get caught up on schoolwork. I’ve been working so many hours I’ve fallen behind.”

“Not keeping up with your spreadsheet under the homework column?” He made a tsking noise. “The shame.”

“We can’t all have those special classes for jocks. Why don’t you and Michael come over for brunch tomorrow? Just call an hour or so before you leave the dorm so I’ll have it ready. Consider this my school pep spirit in supporting the country’s number one football team.”

A high-pitched giggle erupted close his phone. She did not want to imagine how close.

“Gotta go, I’ll call you tomorrow,” Tanner said quickly.

Click
. Skye laid the phone on the coffee table. “This sucks –” her voice trailed off and her throat burned imagining Tanner casually giving another girl the kisses and attention she craved from him. Best to keep busy tonight. She looked over her spreadsheet before grabbing a couple of textbooks and pen and paper. If she couldn’t be happy-in-love, she could at least be productive. One day, when she was married to Tanner and had a career as a much sought-after jewelry designer, she would look back on these lonely nights and recall only that they shaped her into the strong, successful person she’d become.

Yeah, right.

Skye dumped what was left of her watered down Diet Coke into the scraggly philodendron. The few leaves left on it were either brown or yellow, probably a slow death from soda poisoning. This dose might put it out of its misery.

As she did most nights, she put
Night Castle
by the Trans-Siberian Orchestra in her CD player for background music, and settled in for a marathon study session.

***

Kheelan had followed the girl back to her apartment again, but stayed only a few minutes this time. One block from her apartment, he removed a small glass vial from his duster pocket. Much as he hated opening his eyes to the fairies, he had to do it to watch for possible clues in solving the pixie murders. He popped open the top and stared in distaste at the slimy, green liquid before pouring it on his fingers and rubbing the mixture on his eyelids.

“Welcome to Fairyland,” he said aloud with a sigh of resignation.

The transformation was immediate. Silvery forms and winged creatures appeared where moments ago all was darkness. The usual red cap and green cap fairies scampered about, tending to their business. A few pixies fluttered amongst shrubbery and trees, flying back and forth. You had to look closer to discover the faces etched in the oak trees lining the sidewalk. Knots and twisted bark morphed and formed features resembling long-suffering old men.

An odd twittering noise drew his eyes to the brown, dead grass below. The blades danced with the movements of insect sized mugwumps, tiny furry fairies with pointed ears and teeny tails.

A red cap, about four feet tall, almost bumped into him before realizing Kheelan stood there.

“Ach. See me now, do ye?” His voice was scratchy and high-pitched, with a distinct Scottish accent. His deeply slanted eyes twinkled in mild amusement and he stroked his long, fiery red beard with fingers twice as long as that of any human.

Kheelan nodded and the red cap went on his way, leaving behind the clean smell of rain and damp earth.

Kheelan cast a quick look in all directions to make sure there were no
cu sith
, fairy dogs, about. He’d never forget his first encounter with one at age eleven when the large green beast had seen Kheelan watching him and began its death howl, ready to attack. Only the swift action of his guardian, Annwynn, had saved him. Ever since, Kheelan wore an iron medallion that at least gave the Fae creatures pause before they regarded him as easy prey. Iron had the ability to painfully burn the Fae.

Back to the business at hand
. Finvorra, his current guardian, would expect some kind of report. Kheelan studied the fairies around him. The only thing different tonight was that there weren’t as many pixies as usual. No surprise there, he was sent to find out
why
so many were missing. A small group of them flew near the hedges, looking like giant fireflies. You had to be really close to see their tiny, delicate faces lit in the dark.

This evening was like the previous, as far as Kheelan could tell. He knew from his wanderings that if he returned to The Green Fairy there would be a large cluster of them flying around the shop. Something about that store made it mighty attractive to pixies. The key to their disappearances had to be connected with that shop, and possibly the red-headed human girl who worked there.

“
Tacharan
! Changeling!”

The squeaky taunts came from the edge of the woods, but Kheelan couldn’t see the fairy creatures.

“He can’t even see us,” one of them said. A chorus of laughter followed.

“Are ye simple-minded human one?” called out another.

Finally, Kheelan made out the forms. A group of about a dozen
ghillie dhus
, wearing moss and leaves, ran in and out of the woods.

Stupid Fae. And those were the good ones, the members of the Seelie Court.

He walked on, ignoring the fairies as they, for the most part, ignored him. He picked up snippets of conversation, eavesdropping to see if he could learn anything about the upcoming Samhain battle.

“If only The One of legend would come, we could defeat the evil Unseelie without firing nary a weapon,” a voice warbled.