Chapter 23
Chapter twenty-three
Noah
Mika showed up on Wednesday morning with a container of lemon bars. I’d mentioned how much I liked them the other day, and he’d remembered. I’d noticed Mika did that. Made special things for people based on what they liked.
“Hawk said Jackson’s at camp today,” he said. “And Julius is at the salon.” He opened the container and set it on the coffee table. “So it’s just us. I thought we could do something fun.”
“Like what?”
“No idea, but we’ll figure something out.” He sat down on the couch and looked at me. “How are you doing?”
“I’m okay,” I said, which was true. The days since the Gala had been quieter. Nothing was resolved, but here in this apartment with Jackson by my side, I’d managed to find some semblance of peace. I was sleeping anyway.
Mika smiled. “Good.”
I looked at the open container of lemon bars. “Those look so good. I think I’ll make myself a cup of tea and have one. Do you want a cup? Or I can make a pot of coffee if you’d rather have that.”
“Tea is perfect,” he said. “What kind do you have?”
I opened the cabinet. “I have a variety that Jackson had at the cabin that we brought here with us, but Chamomile is my favorite.”
He sat up straight and looked at me. “If you like tea, I know exactly what we should do today. We should go to The Chrysalis Moon. It’s a metaphysical shop over on the north side of town. My friend Mars makes all his own teas and incense.” He tilted his head. “Have you been?”
“No. I didn’t really go many places when I was here before.”
“We should go today. Mars is wonderful, and his shop is the most calming place I’ve ever been. I think you’d love it.”
I looked in the tin of tea bags Jackson had given me. The selection was getting pretty thin, and I thought it would do me good to get out of the apartment. “I want to, but let me check with Jackson first.”
Mika smiled at me and nodded. “Yeah, that’s probably a good idea.”
I took my phone to the bedroom and called.
He picked up on the second ring. “Hey, baby boy, what’s up?”
“Hi. Mika wants to take me to a shop on the north side of town. A tea place. Is that okay?”
“Which shop?”
“The Chrysalis Moon. He says his friend Mars owns it.”
“I know it, but take someone with you just to be safe.”
“Okay.”
“Noah.”
“Yeah.”
“You don’t have to ask permission to go places.” His voice was even. “You’re not a prisoner. But I appreciate you calling me first.”
I leaned against the bedroom doorframe. “I know, Daddy.”
“Wear your watch and have a good time. Text me when you’re back.”
“I will.”
When I came back out to the living room, Mika was hanging up the phone.
“Jackson says to take someone with us,” I said.
“I already called Hawk. He said just to stop by his office and grab him when we’re ready to go.”
“I’m ready if y’all are.”
We stopped by Hawk’s office, and Caden looked up from his desk. “What are y’all up to?’
“We’re going to my friend Mars’ shop so Noah can get some custom tea blends,” Mika said.
“I switched from coffee to tea a while back, so I’m excited to try some new kinds.”
Caden glanced over his shoulder at Wolfe’s office, then back to us. “I think a few people around here could do with a little less coffee.”
“You should come with us then,” Julius said. “Mars’ shop is amazing. He has so much to choose from, not just tea.”
He looked hesitant. “I don’t know. I have work to do.”
“I think they can survive without you for a couple hours,” Mika said.
“Who can survive without who?” Hawk stepped out of his office and looked at the three of us.
“The office,” Mika said. “We were telling Caden he should come with us. That we were sure the office could survive without him for a couple hours.”
Hawk chuckled. “I’ll go talk to Wolfe and let him know you’re coming with us. I think he can manage to answer the phone for a couple hours.”
“But—” Caden started, but Hawk had already gone into Wolfe’s office.
A minute later, he came back out and said, “All good. Let’s hit the road.”
The north side of Vesper was older than the downtown area, and it had that look of a place that had once been the busy part of town but wasn’t anymore. The Chrysalis Moon was in an old house with a painted sign by the front walk and wind chimes on the porch that moved in the breeze.
Hawk held the door for us, and we went inside.
The front room was lined with shelves of figurines, tarot decks, books, and the earthy scent of patchouli hung in the air. A cat was laying on a window perch, and it opened one eye, assessed us, and closed it again.
“That’s Kismet,” Mika said. “She’s very judgmental.”
“She sounds like Trixie,” I said.
“They would either be best friends or mortal enemies.”
From somewhere in the back of the house, a voice called out, “I’ll be right there.”
And then a man around my age walked into the room. He was wearing a pair of loose linen pants and a flowy shirt. He carried what appeared to be a bundle of dried herbs, and when he saw Mika, his face broke into a genuine, unguarded smile.
“Mika, Hawk. It’s good to see you.” He set the herbs down on the counter and crossed the room. “I didn’t know y’all were coming in today.”
“I know. It was a last-minute decision.” Mika hugged him. “This is my friend Noah. Noah, this is Mars.”
“Nice to meet you, Noah.”
“Noah is a tea drinker, and I was telling him he had to come in and try your teas, and Caden wants some, as well.”
“Great. Come on back to the tea room, I’m sure I have something that y’all would like.”
The tea room was exactly what its name suggested.
It had a wooden table, mismatched chairs, shelves of tea along one wall, and a peaceful feel.
There was a cat bed in the corner that Kismet apparently used when she felt like gracing the room with her presence, though she was still in the front window as far as I could tell.
“I just made this pot. It’s a new blend, and I’m curious what you think. Hawk, do you want a cup?”
“No, I’ll leave the tea to you, but thank you.”
“Does this one have caffeine?” Caden asked.
“It doesn’t, but I have some made with black teas that are just as potent as coffee if that’s what you’re looking for.”
“No, the opposite actually.” Caden smiled. “I was hoping for something without the caffeine.”
“Great, hopefully you’ll like this one then.”
Mars poured three cups from a pot that smelled extraordinary and set them on the table without ceremony. Hawk stood leaning in the doorjamb, while Mika, Caden, and I took a seat at the table.
“This one is Hibiscus, rose hip, and a little lemongrass. All the ingredients come from the Wildflower Ranch. All organic,” Mars said, taking a seat across from me. “I’ve been trying to get the balance right for weeks. Tell me what you think.”
I took a sip.
“It’s really good,” I said. “The lemongrass is just enough. If there was any more, it would take over.”
“Perfect. I’m planning to call it my reset blend. For when you need to breathe and remember you’re okay.”
I let out a little chuckle. “Sounds like just what I need.”
Mars just nodded his head like that was what he’d expected me to say. “So what do you do for work, Noah?”
“I work with flowers.”
“Oh, wonderful. Flowers and tea have more in common than people think,” he said. “Both are about paying attention. About understanding that small things have a lot to say if you’re willing to listen.”
“The language of flowers,” I said.
“Exactly.”
“You know it?”
“The ranch I said my stuff comes from is my family’s place,” he said. “You don’t grow up on a commune called Wildflower Ranch without learning a bit about flowers.”
He got up, went to one of the shelves, and started pulling tea packets like he knew exactly what he was looking for. “What do you drink at home?”
“Chamomile, mostly. I started drinking it a while back, and I haven’t stopped.”
“Ah, Chamomile is a good choice. Quiet strength and calm in the storm. The ability to withstand difficulty and keep growing.” He set a packet on the table in front of me. “I think you chose well.”
I looked up at him.
He met my eyes steadily, not pushing. “You don’t have to tell me anything,” he said. “I’m not asking. I just notice things sometimes. Energy mostly.” He shrugged, easy about it. “You’ve been through something, but you’re doing well. Although you’re still carrying the weight of it.”
Hawk stood by the door, and Mika sat there taking small sips of his tea. Neither of them said a word, but neither of them seemed surprised by Mars’ accurate assessment of my situation.
“Yeah,” I said. “That’s about right.”
Mars nodded. He went to a different shelf and came back not with tea but a tray of bracelets, which he set on the table between us.
“I don’t want to make this into a bigger thing than it is,” he said. “But I’d like to give you something. If you’re open to it.”
I looked at the tray. “What kind of something?”
“Black tourmaline,” he said, picking up a simple bracelet with a dark matte stone.
“For protection. Grounding. The kind of energy that creates a boundary between you and whatever’s trying to get in.
” He set it on the table in front of me.
“I’m not saying it’s magic. I’m saying it’s a reminder.
That you have boundaries. That you get to take up space.
” He looked at me. “Sometimes a physical thing helps you remember that.”
I picked it up. The stone was smooth and cool against my fingers.
“Thank you,” I said.
“You don’t have to wear it,” he said. “But I hope you will.”
I put it on my wrist.
He smiled and picked up his tea.
We stayed for an hour and a half just talking and swapping stories about our lives.
By the time we left, both Caden and I had an assortment of bags of tea, and I had the bracelet, a small bundle of something Mars called protection incense.
But most importantly, I thought I was leaving here with a friend.
On our way out, he asked us to wait while he grabbed a card from the shop and wrote something on the back before pressing it into my hand.
Hawk held the car door, and I got in. I sat back and looked at the bracelet in the afternoon light and at the card that Mars had pressed into my hand. I flipped it over to see what he’d written on the back.
You are stronger than you think.
“Well?” Mika said. “What did you think?”
“You were right,” I said. “I loved it.”
“Mars has that effect on people.”
I pulled out my phone and texted Jackson.
Me: Headed back to the apartment. I liked the shop. Also I bought a lot of tea
His reply came in under a minute.
Jackson: Good. I’ll be home by six. Save me a lemon bar if Mika left any.
I smiled at my phone and looked out the window, and for the length of the drive home, I wasn’t thinking about Corvane or the case that Chance Kelly was still building.
Instead, I thought about all the good things I had.
Jackson, the guys at Three Bears, and now potentially Mars.
About the life I could see building here in Vesper as long as I got the chance.