Magician's Muse (10 page)

“Deliver the predictions by Thursday at noon,” Manny was saying.

I hesitated then nodded. “I’ll do my best.”

“Great! This is going to be an amazing column. I won’t even tell you who to write about. Pick anyone, even teachers if you want.”

He handed me last year’s Sheridan High yearbook.

* * *

I walked home from school, since Penny-Love had texted me that she was going off with Thorn. I didn’t ask where; I didn’t want to know.

All I wanted was Dominic back in his loft apartment, waiting for me.

But his truck was still missing and there was a sense of emptiness around the barn. In my heart, I knew he was really gone.

A part of me was gone, too.

He hadn’t even said good-bye. Not even a crummy text message. Hearts do break and die, I thought miserably. Even though I had a long list of things to do when I got home, I felt aimless and empty. I longed to hide in my room, shut the door and turn off the light, and disappear into sleep.

I started up the front porch, then stopped.

What was that mewing sound?

Looking around, I saw Lilybelle jump down from the porch rail and hurry toward me. Her multi-colored tail was swishing back and forth.

She looked up and mewed loudly; this was not her usual request to be petted, but a demanding sound. I set my backpack on the porch swing and reached down to pick her up. She squirmed a few feet away. Then she stopped to stare back at me.

“What’s with you?” I murmured.

She meowed with attitude, then moved farther away and once again stopped, giving me a demanding, pleading expression.

“Are you hungry?”

She twitched her tail.

“I take that as a no,” I said, puzzled.

She kept circling in an agitated manner. I wished Dominic were here to decipher her language. I’d never had any luck trying to understand animals.

“So what do you want?”

Lilybelle pounced over to my feet and started chewing on my shoelaces.

“Hey, stop that! These are my best sneakers!”

I reached down and pushed her away from my shoes. She nipped at my fingers, not actually biting. Then she scampered away a few feet and paused with a demanding twitch of her whiskers.

“Do you want me to follow you?”

She waved her tail up and down like a nod.

So I followed.

She led me past the barn, through the corral and across the pasture where horses and cows grazed. She didn’t slow down, either, hurrying on her four little legs as if she was in a race. I had to run to keep up with her. When we came to the edge of my grandmother’s property, the fence that bordered the woods, Lilybelle jumped over the gate.

“I hope you know where you’re going,” I grumbled as I heaved myself up on the gate and jumped down on the other side.

She was disappearing down a narrow path that led into the woods, and I followed at full speed. I lost her a few times, but then saw her colorful tail. The trees all around us came together in a shady, dark canopy, and the dirt trail made by wild animals was extremely hard to follow.

Then suddenly, Lilybelle stopped in front of a tree trunk that was as large as a refrigerator, dark and gnarled with rough bark. I stopped, too, bending over to catch my breath and beginning to feel like a total idiot for following my cat into the woods. It would be dark soon, and I didn’t dare stay long or I might not find my way back out until morning. While we weren’t high enough in elevation to have bears, there were mountain lions here—distant DNA relatives of Lilybelle who I did
not
want to meet.

Where was Lilybelle, anyway?

I glanced around, not seeing any sign of my calico.

There was a rustling sound and something soft landed on my shoulder. Reaching up, I picked off a leaf. Then I tilted back my head and looked up, up, up into the tree, expecting to see my cat.

Instead, I saw sandy-brown hair and blue eyes.

“About time you showed up,” Dominic said.

Then he reached down and lifted me into the tree.

I stared in astonishment as my feet landed, not on a branch, but on carpet.

“Welcome to my humble abode,” Dominic said, not letting go of my hand. I didn’t let go either, enjoying his warm, firm, wonderful touch.

“A tree house?” I asked. Not a crude tree house made of sticks and boards, but an airborn cabin with sturdy walls, a kitchen nook, a patched leather couch, and a rocking chair underneath the gray-blue halo of a skylight. A light brightened inside of me, too, knowing that Dominic had brought me here, that he wanted to see me.

“Like it?” Dominic grinned.

“It’s amazing! Did you build it?”

“No.”

“So who did?”

“Your grandmother.”

“Nona? No way!”

“Don’t underestimate her,” Dominic said, leading me to the couch and gesturing for me to sit down. He sat close beside me. “She told me it was her retreat when being a mother and wife stressed her out and she needed a private place of her own.”

“That was like decades ago!” I looked around, still overwhelmed by this miniature home in a tree. “It’s been here since before I was even born? But I used to play in these woods and I never noticed a tree house.”

“It’s camouflaged well,” Dominic said.

“Like a magician’s illusion.” I stared around in astonishment.

“No lame stage tricks here, just clever construction. Branches have grown around the walls, and this tree is an evergreen variety that doesn’t lose its leaves. When you look up from the ground, all you see is a jumble of thick, gnarled branches.”

“Wow. How did Nona get that up here?” I pointed to a mini-fridge.

“She didn’t—I brought it when I knew I might be staying here for a while. It runs on propane.”

“Does Nona bring you food?”

“No. She’s paranoid about the PI and thinks he might be spying on us with high-tech equipment. She doesn’t even want me using a cell phone. So my animal posse helps out.” He gave a shrill whistle and dark wings fluttered through an open window. His falcon landed on a wooden post.

“What does Dagger do?” I asked.

“Relays messages.”

“Apparently so does Lilybelle.” At the sound of her name, my cat lifted her tail proudly and rubbed against my legs, purring.

“Lily’s cool,” Dominic said, smiling. “I would have sent Dagger but he was out hunting.”

“Hunting food for you?” I asked, a little grossed out by that mental image.

“Nah, I’m not that desperate yet.” Dominic chuckled. He walked over to the fridge and opened it to show leftover cartons from fast food restaurants. “When I want to go out, Dagger unlatches the corral so Rio can gallop here. Then I ride him to my truck—it’s hidden at the edge of the woods near the road.”

“You ride a horse to your truck?”

“A horse pulling up to a drive-through window would draw attention,” he joked. “Last night I got Chinese.”

Then he invited me to share sweet and sour pork, noodles, and veggie leftovers.

We ate, played cards, and talked. I was surprised to find out he’d even gone back to Josh’s house.

“How’s Horse?” I asked.

“Much better—and not because of anything I did.”

“So who helped him?

Dominic set down the hand of cards he was holding and gave me a look that warned me I wouldn’t like what he was about to say. “Evan. He’s been taking care of Horse—feeding and walks at the park.”

“Well … that’s good,” I said begrudgingly. It was hard not to hate Evan, even when he did something nice. “What about Josh? Any news?”

“Yeah.” Dominic nodded. “Good news—he called his parents.”

“Oh my god, huge relief! What did he say?”

“That he’d be back by Christmas.”

“Mrs. DeMarco must be thrilled.”

“Yeah. She was. What about you?” It was a question, and not a light one.

“I’m glad he’s okay … but only because he’s still a friend.” I met his look. “Nothing more.”

“Good,” he said, picking up his cards, checking them, then discarding one in the center pile on the table.

“Did Josh explain anything?” I picked up his discarded card and added it to my hand. “Like why he’d left and where he was?”

“Only that he was with Arturo for secret magician training.”

“Why all the secrecy?”

“You don’t want to hear my opinion,” Dominic said.

“Anyway, it’s great that Horse is better—one less thing for you to deal with.”

“Yeah. He’ll be all right.”

But will you? I thought, thinking of the PI.

Except for the rustling leaves outside the tree house and unseen creatures whispering across branches, the air inside our haven grew silent. I stiffened, inches away from my love yet feeling as if I was slipping away from him.

“So with Horse okay, you can leave,” I said, fighting not to cry. “You’ve kept your promise to help and now there’s no reason for you to stay.”

“There’s you.” He tugged on my hand and drew me into his arms, whispering a kiss. “I don’t want to leave.”

“You’ll stay?”

“As long as I can.”

Then he pulled me closer, our hearts beating in sync, and there was no more talk about Josh, Horse, or leaving.

During school the next day, I replayed my wonderful evening with Dominic. Thinking about him made me feel less alone, like he walked along with me.

With only a few more days of school until Christmas vacation, not much happened in my classes and even less on break and lunch. Thorn and Penny-Love were mysteriously absent. When I texted Pen to ask what was going on, her replies were very cryptic. I knew it had something to do with Jacques. There still hadn’t been any news about his murder, and no one at school seemed to be aware he was gone. Normally I’d ask Manny to use his hacker skills to check online, only I couldn’t tell him about the murder … if it
was
murder. I was starting to doubt my vision of Jacques’ bloody body. It wouldn’t be the first time I’d misinterpreted a vision—there was the time I’d astral-traveled to Jade’s house and thought something horrible had happened to her mother. But Crystal turned out to be fine.

I didn’t dwell on this for long because the clock was ticking down the minutes to my rendezvous with Dominic that evening and my thoughts were all about love. I just wanted to be with Dominic in every way. Images would flash in my mind—and not the psychic variety. I’d be sitting in class, watching my teacher write on the board, when suddenly I’d imagine Dominic’s face or shirtless body. I’d feel his touch on my skin, his lips on my mouth, and the heat of our bodies close together.

And I wondered what it might be like to
really
be with Dominic. I’d never gotten that close to any guy before and to be honest, I wasn’t sure if I was ready. Still, I kept thinking how getting that serious would bond Dominic to me so securely he’d never leave. Our hiding place in the woods was completely private (except for feathered and furry visitors). High above the ground, sounds muffled by leaves and branches, we could do whatever we wanted … oh … and how I
wanted
.

Dominic hadn’t made any moves, though, which confused me. Didn’t he feel the same way? My longings were hot enough to spontaneously combust the tree house, but Dominic never asked for more than hand-holding and kissing. Even with my psychic connection to Dominic, I didn’t know what he was thinking.

After school I couldn’t wait to get home. But I had to wait till dark to sneak out so that no one would see me. When it was finally late enough, I took extra time brushing my hair into loose waves rather than twisting it into a braid, and I wore a sexy tank top under a silky low-V sweater and low-rider jeans. I knew Dominic wasn’t big into makeup so I only dabbed on peach gloss.

With only glowing cat eyes to guide me, I found my way to the tree house. I loved the way he looked at me. His gaze darkened, deep with something I hoped was desire. But then he just sat down at the table and started shuffling cards.

Not the game I had in mind.

But I could wait …

Dominic taught me thirty-one different versions of poker and I came close to suggesting #32: strip poker. Bad, bad, Sabine, I thought to myself. Instead, I taught him a game I’d learned from Nona called “Spit and Cuss.” We didn’t spit, but I cussed a little when he won four times in a row.

And we laughed a lot, especially at the silly antics of Dominic’s animal posse. Hanging out in a tree seemed to give the wild life an open invitation. A chubby squirrel and a scrawny squirrel bickered over a nut as they chased each other across the branchy ceiling. Dominic tried to solve this by offering them a second nut, but the scrawny squirrel grabbed both nuts then scurried out the window. Other animals stopped by, too—an owl with a white heart-shaped face, a raccoon with an adorable baby, and even a skunk (Dominic assured me she was tame and wouldn’t stink-bomb me, but I still refused to pet her.).

Lots of wildlife, but nothing wild happening with me and Dominic. Seriously frustrating.

When I got back home, I channeled my pent-up energy into coming up with twelve predictions for Manny. Meditation was relaxing and opened my psyche, so that when I flipped through the yearbook Manny had given me, it was easier than I’d expected to glimpse the future. I finished twelve predictions, and during lunch break the next day in the computer room, I proudly handed them to Manny. When he read through the names I’d chosen—mostly mutual friends, a teacher, and even one for Manny—he threw back his head and laughed. This article was definitely going to stir things up around school, he told me. He couldn’t wait for Friday.

I couldn’t wait till Friday, either, but for completely different reasons. Dominic didn’t know it yet, but I’d decided that evening would mark the beginning of a deeper love between us.

Friday dragged on like each second was a decade. We had substitutes in two of my classes, which meant more messing around than learning. Jill, head cheerleader, invited me to join the squad for lunch, which was cool but awkward when she asked about Penny-Love, who was still mysteriously absent.

I shook my head. “No idea what’s up with that girl.”

Fortunately, there was plenty of other news buzzing during lunch. The
Sheridan Shout-Out
special issue had been printed and there was lots of drama over Mystic Manny’s future predictions. I smiled whenever I heard someone gasp, “Is Mr. Blankenship really going to get rich?” Or, “No way is Kaitlyn going into the Army!”

But beyond my smile, something deep was simmering.

And that evening, when Dominic lifted me into the tree house, the touch of his fingers shocked electricity through me. The heat between us was so intense that Dominic would have to have been a robot not to notice.

But his only reaction was a glance at the food sack I was carrying. “What did you bring?” he asked.

I brought
me
, I wanted to shout.

“Fried chicken,” I told him.

“Hmmm, smells great. You hungry too?”

“Oh yes.” But not for food.

He put paper plates on the lopsided coffee table and offered me a cold drink from his fridge. I scooted very close beside him on the ripped couch.

“Nona sent you a message,” I told him, wiping my greasy fingers on my jeans.

“What?”

“About the PI,” I said seriously. “Nona talked to a clerk at the Valley View Hotel and found out that Mr. Caruthers is checking out tomorrow. Isn’t that great news?”

Dominic chewed and shook his head.

“But aren’t you relieved? With the PI gone, everything can go back to normal.”

“I don’t think so,” he told me.

“Why not?”

“I’m still a wanted man.”

“Wanted, yes.” I nodded, scooting close to him on the couch. “By me.”

“I want to be with you, too.” He reached up to touch my cheek, softly. “But you deserve better.”

“No one is better for me than you.”

“How can you say that, knowing what I did?”

“Because I know who you are. Here.” I touched my hand to my heart.

He followed my gesture, so close that I could feel the heat flaring between us. But he drew back with a shake of his head. “I wish things were different.”