Chapter 6
Chapter Six
Natalie paused in her post-book club clean-up to notice the rain outside.
“No one told me the rain would be purple.” Frowning, she turned from the window. It took her a moment but she finally located Harper, sprawled in a chair. “I mean, they predicted rain, but not purple rain.”
Head lolling to the side, Harper said, “Purple Rain. That was a great song.”
Natalie turned back to the window. “Do you think it’ll stain?”
“What will stain?”
“The purple rain.”
“Purple rain, purple rain…” Harper sang, then sighed. “I miss Prince. Such a shame he’s gone.”
The meeting room was empty of people, save for Harper and Natalie. What it was not empty of was trash.
There were disposable cups and napkins on every surface. Natalie had meant to clean them up, but now that they were dancing, how could she? It’s not every day a row of red Solo cups danced a conga line.
She did wish they’d stop spilling the remains of their contents all over the table though.
“I’m surprised there was so much tea left over. Alice brought home both jugs like three-quarters full. I thought it was good. I had like three big cups full.”
“I drank a bunch too. I mean it was a little bitter, but I just added more sugar to mine.”
“Yeah. I added lemon wedges and honey to my cup,” Natalie said as she watched the napkins join in the festivities, dancing the Can-Can like a line of French showgirls.
Natalie.
“Yeah?” She spun, looking for the sound of the voice that had called her name.
“What?” Harper asked.
“Did you say something?”
“Maybe?” Harper shrugged.
Don’t I scare you?
She frowned over the disembodied voice. She was going to call a ghost council meeting and demand answers.
After all the stuff she did for the spirits in this town, serving as their spectral liaison as well as their personal secretary and basically their living servant, how dare one of them try to scare her!
“No, you don’t scare me, whoever you are. I’ve been through a lot worse than you. Believe me.”
“Who are you talking to?” Harper asked.
“I don’t know.”
Harper nodded like that made all the sense in the world.
Are you sure? I scared Doug—
“Hey, Nat. It’s getting late. I came to see if you needed help cleaning up.” The new voice was louder, drowning out the whisper beneath it.
Natalie spun, ready to take on whoever or whatever was there. But all she saw was a big handsome man. After a second, she realized it was her big handsome man.
“Liam. It’s you.”
“Of course, it’s me. Who were you expecting?”
“I don’t know. Were you here for a while whispering to me?” she asked.
He frowned, making his forehead appear to shrink, then grow comically large. “No.”
She gave up on that line of questioning when she realized his dark hair was damp. A drop of water hung off one lock before it dripped onto his shoulder. “Did you walk here through the rain? You’re wet. But you’re not purple.”
“Little Red Corvette was a good song too. Prince did like using colors in his song titles,” Harper said from the chair.
Liam’s arms stretched out towards Natalie from across the distance. Like a good three feet but he somehow reached her. When did his limbs become rubber?
She felt his palms on her cheeks as he tilted her face up and stared at her, too close now, with eyes that bulged as they popped in and out, like a cartoon character.
“What did Alice make you to drink this time?” Liam asked, his voice sounding too low. Muffled. Like he was under water.
“Nothing. She swore.”
“Yeah. No mushies. No pot.” Harper shook her head vigorously, then stopped and pressed her fingers to her forehead. “Ooo. Dizzy.”
“Where is it?” Liam asked.
“Where is what?” Natalie asked.
“What Alice brought you to drink.”
“She took the jugs. But there’s lots left in those dancing cups over there. Whatever didn’t spill while they were doing the conga line.”
Liam yanked her eyelids up.
“Ow. What are you doing? Leave my eyes alone.” She pulled away and rubbed a hand over her face.
He grabbed her again. Why was he suddenly obsessed with her eyes?
“You’re high and you’re hallucinating.”
“Am not.”
“Dancing cups? Purple rain?” he pointed out.
“Remember when Prince had to stop using his name?” Harper asked. “The artist formerly known as Prince. That was crazy.”
Liam drew in a breath that had his chest expanding, huge, like someone had blown him up like a balloon. “Where’s your cell phone?”
“Um.” Did she have a cell phone? Why did she need one? Everyone just came to the store to talk.
“Gabe! Are you in here?” Liam shouted.
“He’s not here.” Natalie sucked in a breath. “Ooo, unless he is and he’s hiding. And it was him whispering to me. Ga-abe? Are you here? Nope. Not here.” She shook her head then stopped, feeling herself sway a bit. “Ooo. You’re right. Dizzy.”
“Told you,” Harper said from the chair nearby, even though she sounded far away.
“Why do you need Gabe?” Natalie asked. Then said, “Isn’t it crazy I can see ghosts?”
“Right? It really is!” Harper agreed.
“I want to see if Gabe knows what Alice spiked the drinks with this time.” Liam pulled out his cell phone and stabbed the screen with a finger that seemed extra-long today. Although she really did enjoy what his long fingers could do to her.
“From now on I’m testing anything that woman brings in here.
” Liam pressed the cell to his ear. “Stone, hey. I need you over here at the shop. Alice drugged the women at the book club again… Yeah. It’s bad.
Harper and Natalie are tripping. Full on hallucinations.
God knows what’s happening with the others who were here.
Is Agnes there? …Good. Can you check if she’s all right? ”
“Agnes. She’s fun. I like her,” Natalie said spinning to face Harper, then swaying again.
With one hand, Liam manhandled her until she was sitting on the sofa.
“Hey!” Natalie was going to complain until she realized how soft and comforting it was as the sofa cushions reached out and hugged her.
“Agnes. It’s Liam. What the fu—uh, hell did Alice put in the book club drinks?
…Be glad you didn’t drink any. Harper and Nat are both high as a kite.
Can you call Alice and ask what’s in it and then call me back?
…Thanks. And tell Stone to come to the shop to collect Harper.
That is, of course, if we don’t end up at the hospital getting their stomachs pumped…
Yeah, it is that bad… Okay, bye.” Liam lowered the phone and looked over at the girls.
“Stomach pump? I don’t think I want that,” Harper said.
“Yeah. That doesn’t sound very pleasant at all,” Natalie agreed.
The cell rang again. Liam’s boring normal ringtone. The one that comes with the phone.
“Liam, you should change that ringtone to something fun.”
“Ooo! Like Purple Rain,” Harper suggested.
“Yes!” Natalie agreed. Then frowned at Liam’s dark expression. “I don’t think he’s happy.”
“Is he ever?” Harper asked.
With a less than indulgent glance at the two of them, Liam pressed the phone to his ear. Then followed up whatever he heard with a string of obscenities Natalie had never heard come out of him before.
“Ooo, he cusses like a sailor. I like it.” Harper said.
“He was a soldier, not a sailor, but yeah. You’re right. He’s got a potty mouth tonight.”
He lowered the cell again and glared at Natalie. “Want to know what your friend Alice drugged you with this time?”
“Sure,” she answered.
Why not? She was the curious sort. She liked to learn things.
“Peyote,” he said, his tone flat. Angry.
“Ooo, I’d always wondered what peyote was like,” Harper said. “Native Americans used it for ceremonies and vision quests, you know. I researched it for a book once.”
Liam shook his head, a head which seemed to be growing larger the angrier he got, like the time she watched the inflating of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade balloons.
The dancing cups had been cool. But the angry expanding Liam coming at her now? Not cool.
Maybe this peyote wasn’t so great after all.