Mahogany took a deep breath and opened the door to the Haughty Hemlock. The cool autumn morning tickled the hairs on the back of her neck, sending a chill through her body.
Neema looked up from her order form as the bell above the door jingled. She opened her mouth to say something, but Mahogany stopped with a raised hand.
"Let's just see if this will work, all right?" Mahogany brushed past Neema, and she got to work refilling jars with herbs.
Neema closed her mouth and smiled.
Several hours passed with little conversation save for the pleasantries offered to customers. Beyond that, Mahogany and Neema worked in relative silence.
Neema sighed with relief when Mahogany's phone buzzed with a text.
She picked up her phone, and her face fell.
"Anything wrong?" Neema asked, hoping to fill the silence between customers with something.
Mahogany sighed. "It's Tony. The hospital released Blair, and she wants to see Evelina and me."
"Well, that's a plot twist. Any idea why?" Neema placed jars back on the shelves after the last customer's purchase.
"He says she's starting to remember the attack."
Neema turned to face Mahogany. "No offense, but shouldn't they tell that to the police? I don't like the idea of you and Evelina pursuing someone desperate enough to go around bludgeoning folks with hammers."
"I feel the same way." Mahogany groaned and slipped her phone back into her pocket. "Blair is such an attention seeker. It drives me crazy. Part of me wonders if she didn't hit herself to get Tony to nurse her back to health."
"He's not?" Neema blanched. "He has that woman in his home after all the BS she's pulled?"
"Probably waiting on her hand and foot as we speak." Mahogany glared at Neema.
"When does he want you two to come over?" Neema gazed at her niece, her eyes soft with emotion.
"Now."
"Well, better to get it over with than prolong the torture, but first." Neema moved around the apothecary, gathering herbs. With deft precision, she measured and poured them into a bowl carved from a single chunk of quartz crystal. Neema placed her hand over the mixture and closed her eyes. To the untrained eye, Neema did nothing more than send good vibes into the dried leaves and flowers, but Mahogany caught a suitable shift in the light around the bowl.
"There. Give this to that Blair girl. It will help with her healing." Neema bagged the tea.
Mahogany shoved the tea into her backpack and headed for the door.
****
Evelina rushed to Mahogany when she pulled up outside Tony's house.
"Have you been inside yet?" Mahogany asked, stowing her helmet.
"Hells no. I waited for you," Evelina said, glancing at the bungalow with disdain.
"Come on, let's get this over with. Maybe she'll have something interesting to say," Mahogany said, adjusting her pack.
"I doubt it."
They headed to Tony's front door and stood on the stoop.
"I feel like Inanna descending into the Underworld," Evelina said, staring at Tony's front door.
Mahogany pictured the beautiful Mesopotamian god dressed in her fineries to visit her recently deceased husband, now residing in the Underworld, the realm ruled by her jealous older sister, Ereshkigal. The visit didn't end well for Inanna, who had to pass through the seven gates of the Underworld, stripping off a piece of her royal dress until she stood naked before her sister, who then murdered her.
Squaring her shoulders, Mahogany knocked on Tony's door. "Let's make a pact to stay dressed, at the very least."
"Deal," Evelina said when Tony opened the door.
"Thanks so much for coming. I know it's a big ask," Tony said, stepping aside to let Mahogany and Evelina enter.
"You're darn right it is. I was in the middle of a very sexy phone conversation with a hot doctor," Evelina said, breezing by Tony.
Tony raised an eyebrow. "Sexy doctor?" He glanced at Mahogany.
She shrugged. "From Neema," Mahogany said, holding the baggy filled with tea. "It will help Blair's injuries."
"Thank you again, and thank Neema." Tony took the tea and held it like it was precious cargo.
The shades were drawn on the windows, leaving the cozy cottage in murky darkness. The smell of potpourri filled the space, reminding Mahogany of vases filled with dying roses.
Blair sat propped up on Tony's new couch in the living room. The last one met its end when a burglar slashed the cushions to ribbons. Despite the day's rising heat, a heavy quilt was tucked around Blair's legs.
"Thanks for coming." Blair smiled and waved. "Please, have a seat."
Mahogany and Evelina surveyed the room. Since Blair took up the whole couch, the only place to sit was the floor.
Evelina tilted her head at Mahogany and rolled her eyes as she lowered herself onto the ground.
Mahogany smirked and sat cross-legged next to Evelina.
"Tony, did you offer them refreshments?" Blair asked, tilting her chin at Tony.
"We're good," Mahogany said. "What did you want to talk to us about?"
Blair sighed and gently touched the stitches at the back of her head. "As you know, the murderer attacked me in the clock tower while I investigated."
"Something you shouldn't have been doing yourself," Mahogany said.
"Yes, I see that now," Blair said, nodding. "I didn't understand the full weight of the situation."
"Did you see who hit you?" Evelina said.
"No, they caught me by surprise in the back office." Blair frowned and then winced. "Sorry, I have a splitting headache."
Mahogany nodded. A pearl of sympathy surfaced in her chest. "If you're not up to this, we can come by another time."
Blair gave her head a controlled shake. "No, no, I'm all right. There was something I found while I was in his office." The frown deepened on Blair's brow.
"What kind of something?" Evelina asked, leaning forward on her heels.
"I can't quite remember, but it had to do with the floor."
"Was it a hidden compartment?" Mahogany asked.
Blair's eyes brightened. "Yes! Oh my gosh. You don't know how much that has bothered me. It was a latched compartment in the floor, hidden by the rug."
"It's where Ace Hitcher hid the real accounting book," Mahogany said.
As quickly as her eye had lit, Blair's face fell. "You already knew about the compartment?"
"Evelina and I found it the other day when we went back to look over the tower," Mahogany said, leaving out Guy and the magic clock.
"Are you sure it's where you found an accounting book?" Blair said, confusion clouding her face. "I could have sworn it was a deep hole."
"Maybe your memory is playing tricks on you," Evelina said. "When we were there, it was only six inches deep."
Blair nodded, careful not to jostle her aching head. "Yeah, that's probably it. I'm remembering it wrong."
"It was probably the light playing tricks on you," Tony said. He motioned for Evelina and Mahogany to stand, and they hopped to their feet, grateful that this strange visit was coming to an end.
"We'll let you rest, Blair. I bet your memory will be right as rain in a few days," Mahogany said as she and Evelina headed for the door.
"Right," Blair said, her voice far away, her eyes staring into the distance.
Tony walked them to the door, thanking them again for coming over.
"Well, that was weird. Why couldn't we have done that over the phone?" Evelina said, squinting as she stepped out of the dark house into the bright late morning sun.
"Blair is the kind of person who likes an audience," Mahogany said. She closed her eyes and tilted her head back, relishing the warm sun on her face and the fresh air free from the scent of stale roses.
Evelina checked the time on her phone and stomped her foot. "Peachy is at work now. Our conversation was just getting good, too."
Mahogany grimaced. "It's it a bit early for phone sex? It's not even noon."
"It's never too early for sex, thank you very much," Evelina said, dropping her phone into her purse. "How did things go with Neema?"
"Fine, I guess. We didn't talk much, but I could stand to be in the same room with her."
"Well, that's an improvement," Evelina said, slipping her arm through Mahogany's. "Mind if I come to keep you company while you work? I need to keep my mind off the good doctor until my next check-up."
Mahogany gagged. "Gross."
Evelina giggled. "We need to find you a real man or a good vibrator."
"I vote for a vibrator," Mahogany said, glancing back at Tony's closed front door. The sight carried a feeling of finality. "Vibrators only need batteries."
"My grandmother was a scryer, and I can feel a change in the wind for you, Mahogany." Evelina hugged Mahogany to her as they walked.
"As long as this 'change' only takes double A batteries, I'm game."
****
"Ah, Evelina. Nice to see you," Neema said, smiling warmly. She placed a finger in the magazine she was reading to hold her place and greeted the girls.
"Good to be here," Evelina said. "Please. Put me to work."
Neema raised an eyebrow. "All right. You can check in and price those candles." Neema nodded to a box on the glass display counter. "The price gun is in the back stock closet."
"Great, thanks." Evelina scurried past to fulfill her task.
Neema turned her attention to Mahogany. "Did that Blair have anything useful to say?" She reopened the magazine, scanning the table of contents.
Mahogany smiled at the phrase, 'that Blair.' Now that she knew Neema was her aunt, Mahogany could see the sublet tells the older woman had let betray the true nature of their relationship, even if her actions on the day-to-day had been that of a captor to their abductee. "Not really. She found the trap door hidden in Matt's office, but that's all." Mahogany set her backpack behind the counter. "You know what's odd?"
"Hmm," Neema said, peering over the magazine as she browsed the articles.
"Guy found the hidden compartment in Matt's office floor, and so did Blair, but I don't think the police did."
"Are you sure they didn't?"
Mahogany nodded. "If the police had, they would have discovered the real accounting book and found out about Ace's embezzlement of the clock tower funds." Mahogany's brow pulled together.
"Is there something else?" Neema closed the magazine again and stared at Mahogany.
"I'm not sure. Blair said that when she found the compartment, it was more of a hole, too deep to see the bottom, but it wasn't deep at all."
"You said she was hit on the head pretty hard. She's probably just mistaken." Neema went back to her magazine. "The tea I crafted will help. Give it a day or so."
"I think Blair just wants attention," Evelina said, slicing open a case of candles with a box knife.
"Yeah, you're probably right," Mahogany said, but she couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right.
"We could always sneak back in and check for ourselves?" Evelina said.
"Over my dead body," Neema said, flipping the magazine shut. "That Blair girl was nearly killed." Neema shook her head. "It's too dangerous."
"The police found the key Matt kept hidden in the teapot, and Tony's the only person we know who can pick locks."
"Stupid, Tony. Making himself indispensable." Evelina squeezed the price gun with too much force, and a rogue sticker flew out of its mouth, sticking to the glass countertop.
"Speaking of stupid," Mahogany said. "Have you seen Bazgul? He's been acting odd."
Neema and Evelina exchanged a pointed glance.
"What?" Mahogany's face pulled into a confused frown.
"Try the cat tree. Bazgul was in there earlier," Neema said, placing the magazine on the counter.
Mahogany narrowed her gaze at Neema and Evelina and headed into the kitchen.
Bazgul perched in his spider form at the top of the cat tree. His front legs pressed against the window as he watched the neighbor cat stretched seductively in the late morning sun.
"There you are, Bazgul," Mahogany said as she approached. "I think we need to talk."
Bazgul shifted his legs on the glass, his tiny claws tinkling but gave Mahogany no further acknowledgment.
"Bazgul, what's wrong?"
The demon spider turned and leaped to a lower level of the tree and positioned himself at a window again, getting a different view of the teasing feline.
"Really? The silent treatment?" Mahogany folded her arms over her chest and glared at the lesser demon.
Bazgul continued to gaze out the window, paying Mahogany no mind.
Glaring at her familiar, Mahogany pursed her lips. "This isn't fair, you know. I am under a lot of stress with Blair showing up, Matt's murder, and Agalia playing nasty, practical jokes on me. The least you could do is be a bit more understanding."
At this, Bazgul turned to face his master. The demon's eight eyes narrowed as he glared at her.
Mahogany took a step back. Never had Bazgul shown her anything but love and affection. In her opinion, his sudden change toward her was unwarranted and, well, plain mean.
"Bazgul?" Mahogany said, her voice carrying a slight quiver.
The demon spider clicked his mandible and turned back to the window, ending the conversation before it began.
"Fine, be that way," Mahogany said, her eyes burning, and she headed back into the apothecary.
________
A/N: Do you find it interesting that Blair saw something different in the clock tower's floor? I wonder if that will come back around in the story.