CHAPTER FOUR
My heart dropped to my toes as I stared at the envelope, wondering how in the hell it had gotten there. There was no way Bree or I would have missed it. And that noise—flapping wings? My mind jumped from thought to thought as I scurried for an explanation that made the most sense. Finally, I settled on one—my mother must be seriously old school and have some carrier pigeons, because I refused to think it could have been anything else.
But, did carrier pigeons even exist anymore?
Swallowing hard, I moved to pick up the envelope before the warm October wind blew it away. It was the same thick and incredibly durable paper as the previous note. My heart hammered as I wondered what this message would say. What if it was an invitation to meet with my mother someplace? Would I go?
The sounds of Bree talking with someone inside floated up the stairs and filled my ears, but I couldn’t move to see whom she was speaking with. My entire body had frozen now that I was holding another letter from my mother.
“Food’s here.” Bree popped her head out the balcony door. She was holding a small cardboard box. Her eyes dipped to the envelope in my hand. “What’s that?”
“I’m pretty sure it’s another letter from my mother.” My stomach flipped as I weighed the possibility once again that it could be an invitation to meet her.
I wasn’t sure I was ready. I’d created a vision of what she looked like and each of the quirky characteristics I assumed she had when I was little, and I wasn’t sure that was something I was willing to have tested. I liked the image I had given her in my mind, and I was stubborn enough to want to hold on to it forever.
Bree stepped to where I stood. “Where did you find it?”
“It just sort of…appeared.”
“Things don’t sort of appear, Kenna. We must have missed it in our excitement to check out the city from up here.”
“Maybe you’re right,” I said, even though I didn’t believe the words.
The letter had appeared out of thin air, or been dropped off by a bird of some sort. Looking up at the night sky, I searched for any creepy-looking bird perched somewhere staring at me, but didn’t see anything. Even with the city lights, it was too dark now to spot something if it was there.
“Well, don’t just stand there.” Bree smiled. “The food’s getting cold. We can read it while we eat.”
Forcing my legs forward, I stepped back into the hotel room, taking special care to be sure the balcony doors closed securely behind me. The last thing I needed was for some creepy ass bird to fly through them and attack me while I was trying to eat.
Bree flopped down on the bed, and opened the box our pizza had come in. Marinara sauce and garlic met my nose, causing my mouth to water. I sat down on the edge of the bed, and Bree handed me a napkin.
“Well, aren’t you going to open it? I know you’re dying to find out what it says.” She took a bite of her pizza and stared at me.
Taking in a deep breath, I readied myself for whatever I would find inside. I slipped my nail along the outer edge of the envelope to open it, and then pulled the postcard-like paper free. My mother’s signature red ink was the first thing I noticed as I read her words.
The Midnight Cauldron, off Bourbon Street, tomorrow
Love, Mom
My eyes focused intently on the letters that made up her—yet again—cryptic note until they blended together. My heart palpitated in my throat as I turned the name The Midnight Cauldron over in my head. There was something ominous sounding about the place, something that made a slight shiver slip along my spine.
“So, I’m assuming that’s the name of a club or something,” Bree said around a mouthful of pepperoni pizza. “What do you think?”
“Maybe. It could be a store or a restaurant too.” The words fell from my lips without much thought, because my mind was elsewhere.
What if this was a place my mother worked at? What if she owned it? What if it was some strange, witchy coffee place she would be sitting at all day while waiting for me to show up?
“Hmm, could be. We should Google it,” Bree suggested.
Snapping from my thoughts, I reached for my phone and typed in the name of the place. I took a bite of my pizza while I waited for the results to pop up, but nothing did. Nothing that seemed like anything.
“It didn’t bring up any shops or clubs.” I scrolled down my screen with my thumb.
“Maybe you should add in New Orleans or Bourbon Street to narrow it down some?” Bree shifted to get another slice.
Wiping my fingers on a napkin, I typed in New Orleans. An occult shop by that name popped up on the next search.
“Bingo.” Excitement I should have been feeling this entire time surged through me at the sight of the shop name across my phone screen. “It’s some sort of witch shop.”
“I can see that.” Bree wiped her mouth with a napkin. “This place is probably crawling with witch shops and palm readers. Isn’t that stuff what this town was built around?”
“I don’t know about all that.” I tapped on the shop website, and scrolled through all the pictures and clickable links for herbs and spells available for purchase. “But in books and on TV, yeah, witchcraft and voodoo play a prominent role in New Orleans.”
Bree slapped my thigh. “Oh my God, wouldn’t it be freaking awesome if we went to this place and found out you’re part witch or something?”
Her words sent spasms of panic ricocheting through my body as they fueled the strangeness that surrounded this trip for me a little more than they should. The idea of learning that I was some kind of witch—or something far worse—was enough to make me doubt coming here and send me packing.
“Yeah, I don’t think so.” I shook my head while attempting to appear unfazed by her words. “That would suck.”
“Why?” Bree tossed her pizza crust and napkin into the trash.
“My life is insane enough already. I don’t need to add some crazy hocus pocus into it to screw it up even more.”
She moved to the dresser and piled her hair into a messy bun on top of her head. “Shut up. You’re life isn’t insane.”
Her eyes locked on mine through the mirror, and I could see them soften as she worried over what she’d just said, having obviously remembering I had lost my dad only weeks ago.
“I didn’t mean that things with your dad haven’t been… That they weren’t…” she trailed off.
Screwing my face up to hide even the smallest sense of sadness, I took a bite of my pizza. “I know what you meant. Jeez, I’m not as sensitive as you think.”
I was more sensitive than I often let on, but that was just me. It was how I was wired. I could conceal my emotions like the best of them, when I wanted to.
Taking a bite of my pizza crust, I glanced around the room. I suddenly felt as though I was grasping at straws while trying to find something to say that would fill this awkward moment that had crippled our conversation so quickly.
“You know, I didn’t even think about it until now, but do you want me to see if I can get the hotel to switch us to another room? One with two beds maybe?” I asked.
Bree rolled her eyes. “We’ve known each other since we were like five. It’s not the first time we’ve had to sleep in the same bed together. It’ll be like old times, except this time it’s a sleepover in New Orleans!”
I laughed. “Okay.”
Bree walked to her suitcase, and pulled out her zebra print makeup bag.
“We’ve found our room, eaten, and located some witch shop your mom wants you to go to sometime tomorrow. Now all there is left to do is have some damn fun!” She rummaged through her makeup bag until she found her eyeliner. “Let’s doll ourselves up and find a bar, because I know you could use a drink just as badly as I can.”
“You have no idea.” I grinned at her as I tossed the remainder of my crust into the trash.
Having a drink to drown the odd feelings that had only festered and grown inside of me s
ince arriving in New Orleans sounded unbelievably good. Deciding to push all of the craziness that was my life aside, and embrace the simple fact that I was in a city I had always wanted to visit with my best friend on Halloween weekend, I stepped to my suitcase to freshen up as well.