Me and My Ghoulfriends (26 page)

             
Me and My Ghoulfriends

Chapter 24

Mindy fell through the door of
Book Nook
. She shook her umbrella, splattering water everywhere. Then shook her body like a wet dog.

“Hey, be careful. You’re getting water everywhere.”

“How are you doing? Are you still moping around?”

“I was never moping. Why does every one keep asking me that? I was sore from your stupid class. As far as those two are concerned…” I pointed across the street. “I’ve moved on with my life and I’m doing an excellent job of ignoring both of them. I mean, I did just have a few dates with him. It’s not like we were engaged or anything.”

Thankfully, Mindy didn’t remind me of the fact Callahan was now engaged to that she-devil.

“It’s just rotten of them and it makes me furious. I want to beat them up,” Mindy chimed as she sidled up to the counter.

“Obviously they are in love. Let them have each other. I don’t want to talk about it anymore,” I said with a wave of my hand.

Abe was standing next to me and slumped his head down; I couldn’t understand why he was so sad. What did he care if I had a date or not?

“So tell me. How is pole fitness really doing?” I asked, trying to take my mind off my worries and change the subject.

“Honestly, it’s not so great right now. But I’m convinced business will pick up soon,” she said, trying to sound positive.

“Have you ever thought of offering different classes? Maybe different options for everyone? Maybe add aerobics and pilates or something?”

“I guess,” she said lackadaisically. “Is this safe to eat?”

“Yes.” I gave her a thumbs up. She grabbed a piece of the candy from the jar I always kept on the counter and popped it in her mouth.

“I’m not sure how to ask this,” she said.

“No!”

“You don’t know what I was going to ask, how can you say no?”

“Whatever it is, it can’t be good,” I laughed.

She frowned. “Just hear me out.”

“All right, what is it?”

“I have a date for you.” She unwrapped the candy.

“No way.” I waved my hands in a
no
gesture.

“Why?”

“Who could you possibly have to fix me up with?”

“Robert has a friend, and we were thinking you may hit it off with him. He’s really nice.”

“So he’s not that good looking?”

“Looks aren’t everything. You have to look beyond the surface.”

“No, looks aren’t everything. You got me there. But psychical attraction does count for something.”

I had her on that one.

“Okay, you’re right, it does. But how do you know you won’t like his looks if you’ve never seen him?”

“What does he look like?”

“He’s a dentist in Frankfort.”

“He’s not even from around here?” I screeched. “That would never work.”

“Maybe you’ll fall in love, and he can move his practice here.”

“We already have a dentist in Magnolia, no need for two.” I shook my head. “Besides, I didn’t ask what he did, I asked what he looked like.”

“You are all about looks. That’s why you fell so hard for Callahan.”

“I am not. And I didn‘t ‘fall hard’ for him.”

Just then, I caught movement outside and turned my head to look out the windows lining the front of
Book Nook
. Brianna was slinking into her store, carrying that same strange looking bag we’d seen before, purple with gold stitching and tassels. It looked like nothing I had ever seen before, and for some reason, this time, it cast a bad vibe with me. I felt the negative energy zinging off it.

“What is she up to now?” Mindy asked as she followed my gaze to see Brianna.

“Who knows? She always has some weird-looking junk that she’s carrying into that store. She acts suspicious if you ask me.” I popped a piece of candy into my mouth. I was trying to ignore the negative vibe I was getting. However, I couldn’t seem to shake it.

“Really, why didn’t you tell me? I know we saw her once with that bag, but there have been others?”

I didn’t answer. Instead, I gave her a blank stare.

“Hold on, I’ll be right back,” she said, as she walked toward the front door.

I prayed Mindy wasn’t going over to confront Brianna. That’s all I needed today was to break up a cat fight.

After a minute, Mindy reappeared through the front door holding her binoculars.

“Oh no, not again.”

I placed my hands on my temples. I felt a headache coming on already.

“Maybe you should have become a private investigator instead of a pole dancer.”

“I am not a pole dancer!”

I snickered. She always hated it when I said that.

“Mindy Childs, P.I.. not a bad ring to it,” she said, smiling as she pondered the thought.

Mindy was probably envisioning herself catching some cheating husbands. Staking them out at some seedy hotel, and then gleefully handing over the photo evidence to a distraught wife the next day. I watched as Mindy slid over to the window, hiding herself behind a tall stack of books on a high display shelf. Her sleuth mode was already setting in. She motioned for me to join her.

I trudged over, reluctant again to be a part of her spy games. They hadn’t yielded anything before, and I felt it was pointless. Though, I had to admit, I was a tad bit curious.

Mindy steadily held up the binoculars and positioned them for the optimal viewing of her suspect. We stood in silence; the only thing I could hear was her breathing. Whatever she was watching must have been good because her heart rate was obviously mounting.

A few more seconds of silence and then Mindy yelled, “Oh My God. She’s a witch.”

“It’s all right. We all know she’s a witch with a capital B. That’s nothing new,” I said impassively.

“No, I mean literally, she’s a witch.” She turned her gaze away from Brianna just for a second to give me a hard glare.

“What? What are you talking about?”

“Get over here and take a look.”

I removed the binoculars from her tight grip and then held them up to my eyes, trying to keep them steady.

“These things are so heavy,” I said, with shaky hands.

“If you came to my class more often, your hands would be strong enough to hold them.”

“Humph,” I said.

As I focused in on Brianna standing in her store, I saw a bright flash that looked just like lightening as it filled the air and, in an instant, a puff of smoke swirled around Brianna.

I couldn’t believe my eyes.
What was I seeing, an optical illusion?

“Did you see that smoke and lightning?” I said, with bated breath.

“Yes, why do you think I said she was a witch?”

I gasped as I watched another flash of lightning fill the air, followed by another cloud of smoke, this one a different color to the first. The first had been white, and the second one was blue. And not a pale blue, but a rich sapphire color that floated through the air.

My mouth gaped open at what I saw.

Slowly, I pried the binoculars away from my face and turned to look at Mindy. She had the same expression splashed across her face. Suffice it to say, we were both stunned.

I pulled the binoculars back up to my face.

“We need two pair of those,” Mindy glowered.

Brianna had black candles lined up in a circle all around her, flickering and casting dancing shadows across her face. The dancing shadows seemed to be laughing at me all the way from over there.

“Isn’t she afraid someone will walk in there and catch her doing that?”

“Look. The sign is turned to closed. No one can walk in, and she doesn’t think anyone can see her, either,” Mindy said pointing at her door.

“What do you think she’s doing?”

“I think she is up to something not good at all.” I frowned. I didn’t like what I was seeing. “And deep down, I feel Callahan has become a victim in her bizarre world.”

“Unfortunately, I think you’re right. I knew Brianna was spiteful all along. I got that vibe from her instantly, you know?”

I shook my head, ‘yes.’ “I know.”

I handed the binoculars back to Mindy so she could watch, I had seen enough. I felt my stomach turn.

Mindy stared across the street at Brianna as I became lost in thought.

“I have an idea.”

Mindy looked at me.

“I’ll send Abe over and the others to do some up-close spying. Maybe they can discover what she’s up to?”

“Actually, that’s not a bad idea.” Mindy had a wicked little smirk. “I like the way you think.”

I giggled, proud of myself.

Intently, I watched as Abe and the others glided across the street. I was anxious to see what would happen. Mindy and I were huddled together, hovering in the corner of the store hidden amongst the many books. We had been taking turns passing the binoculars to each other, while the scene unfolded across the street in Brianna’s boutique.

Brianna had a strange-looking bowl that she had been adding unknown ingredients to for some time. All the while, she appeared to be repeating words out loud. The strange-looking bowl was dark in color, wooden with muted blue, green, red and yellow symbols on the sides. Symbols I’d never seen before, but then again, it was difficult to see that far away, even with the aid of the binoculars. If only I could have heard what she was saying, it looked as if she was in an almost hypnotic state. Actually, not at all unlike the way Callahan had looked lately. Sullen eyes with a far off look to them.