Chapter 14 #2
The florist’s van was already there, and Delia could see two men moving the arrangements of white hydrangeas and peonies that Olivia had ordered, lush and old-fashioned, into the chapel.
She approached the front entrance, noting that the chapel’s energy signature felt the same as it had yesterday — neutral and blessedly free of the twisted supernatural resonance that marked the places where Vinea’s people had been working.
At least she’d succeeded in getting the wedding moved to a safe location, even if everything else felt horribly unsettled.
“Ms. Dunne?” A woman around Delia’s age emerged from the chapel, carrying a clipboard and looking harried. “I’m Taylor from Desert Rose. Everything’s almost ready, but we wanted to check the placement of the altar arrangements with someone from the family.”
Delia followed Taylor into the chapel, where the other members of the florist’s team were putting finishing touches on displays that were, she had to admit, absolutely stunning.
White peonies and sprays of miniature white orchids cascaded from tall arrangements flanking the altar, while smaller bouquets marked the ends of each pew.
Everything looked elegant and romantic, exactly what Olivia had dreamed of.
“It’s perfect,” Delia said, glad that her words were no false praise. “My cousin is going to love this.”
“Wonderful. We’ll finish up here and be out of your way in about twenty minutes.”
As the florists worked, Delia found herself drawn to a window near the back of the chapel where she could look toward downtown, about a mile away.
It all seemed normal enough, neon lights flashing even though the sun wouldn’t set for a few more hours.
Those streets were probably filled with tourists and locals getting an early start on their Saturday evening activities, whether that was shopping or gambling or catching a show.
If she and her friends didn’t do this right, all those people’s Saturday nights were going to turn out to be horribly different from what they’d planned.
For the first time in hours, a surge of energy hit her, and she winced and grabbed hold of the pew nearest to where she stood.
Behind closed eyes, she caught a brief glimpse of Caleb.
He was being moved from the room where he’d been held, escorted through endless corridors that surely couldn’t exist inside a structure built by human hands.
More importantly, though, she sensed that his determination had crystallized into something specific — he was planning to sabotage Vinea’s ritual from the inside.
Be careful, she thought, hoping the message would somehow reach him through the supernatural static that seemed to have filled the Las Vegas valley. Don’t sacrifice yourself to save everyone else. We need you alive.
Luckily, no one from the florist seemed to have noticed anything off about her behavior.
They finished their work and packed up their supplies, leaving Delia alone in the chapel with arrangements that seemed to glow in the late afternoon light filtering through the stained glass windows.
She walked down the center aisle, letting her fingers trail along the smooth wood of the pews, trying to imprint this moment of peace before the chaos that was surely coming.
Her phone rang, and Delia pulled it out of her purse.
Linda Dunne.
“Hi, Mom.”
“Delia, where are you? We’re all gathering in the hotel lobby before heading to the chapel.”
Right. The plan was for everyone to meet at the hotel where both sets of parents were staying and then caravan to the chapel together, a bit of last-minute pre-wedding bonding that Olivia had come up with during their shopping expedition earlier that afternoon.
“I’m actually at the chapel already,” Delia said. “I just finished checking on the flowers. They’re beautiful. After this, I’m going to head home and get changed. I’ll meet you at the hotel after that.”
Her mother must have detected some of the tension in her daughter’s voice, because she didn’t urge her to hurry but only said, “Okay. Just come join us when you’re ready.”
“I’ll be over as fast as I can.”
They ended the call there, and Delia walked back to her car. The whole time, she kept tensing, thinking she was going to get hit by another blast of supernatural energy at any moment, but things seemed to have calmed down for now.
She couldn’t take any real comfort from that, unfortunately. Not when she knew those waves of power could come at any time.
Her house was about fifteen minutes away from the chapel, and she drove faster than she should, wishing that Olivia hadn’t insisted on everyone gathering at the hotel first. It was really kind of stupid to have to keep zigging and zagging back and forth across the city when she could have just gone back to the wedding venue after getting into the dress she’d bought for the ceremony.
But brides got what brides wanted, so Delia pulled into the garage, hurried inside her house, and went straight to the master suite.
Since she wasn’t part of the wedding party, she didn’t have to worry about an elaborate hairstyle or anything too fancy.
She’d bought a pretty sleeveless silk sheath in a becoming shade of celery green, and she brushed out her long red hair and pulled it up into a simple twist at the back of her head.
A pair of green tourmaline drops that matched the silver ring she wore more often than not, and she figured she was as ready as she’d ever be.
The drive to Anthem took around twenty minutes, giving her time to center herself and reinforce the mental barriers that had kept the worst of the psychic interference at bay over the past few hours.
She needed to be fully present for her family, to play the role of supportive cousin and dutiful daughter while also doing her best to secretly monitor the supernatural crisis unfolding across the valley.
The resort’s lobby was all polished travertine and moody lighting, with floor-to-ceiling windows that offered spectacular views of the mountains to the east. Delia spotted her family immediately — her parents talking with an attractive couple who looked a few years older than they and who had to be Alec’s parents, while Olivia stood nearby in a strapless white dress that was all about perfect tailoring rather than any fussy beading or lace.
“Delia!” Olivia’s face lit up, and she hurried over for a hug. “How did everything look at the chapel?”
“Absolutely perfect,” Delia replied, knowing she could be truthful about that even when there were so many other things she had to keep to herself. “The florists outdid themselves.”
“I can’t wait to see it.” Olivia’s dark eyes shone with excitement, and for a moment, Delia allowed herself to forget about demons and rituals so she could focus on the simple fun of watching a family member prepare for one of the most important days of her life.
“You look beautiful,” she said, which was only the truth. The gown was perfect for Olivia’s tall, willowy frame, and her dark hair had been styled in an elegant updo that showed off a pair of delicate pearl and diamond earrings that looked like antiques.
There was her cousin’s “something old,” Delia supposed.
“Thank you,” Olivia replied. “I know it’s silly, but I keep waiting for something to go wrong. Like this whole thing has been too easy.”
If only she knew how much effort had gone into making it look “easy.”
“Nothing’s going to go wrong,” Delia assured her. “This is your day, and it’s going to be perfect.”
Aunt Vicky appeared at Delia’s elbow. “We need to head over to the chapel. The photographer is waiting for us.”
Right. Olivia and Alec obviously weren’t worried about seeing each other before the ceremony, and they’d scheduled a photo session to precede the main event, taking advantage of the warm, golden-hour lighting in the chapel’s gardens.
Everyone hustled out to their cars. Soon enough, Delia was back at the chapel, standing off to one side as the photographer posed the happy couple and the small wedding party in various locations around the garden.
The sunset had turned out to be spectacular, with beams of gold and amber breaking through the heavy clouds, and Delia guessed the lighting was just perfect.
But as they were just finishing up and getting ready to head inside the chapel, another massive energy surge hit the city, strong enough that the photographer and Alec’s one groomsman, a tall, sandy-haired guy named Nick, paused and looked around as if they’d heard something.
“Did you feel that?” asked Alec’s sister Abby, a petite brunette. “Like the whole grounds shook or something?”
“Probably just a truck going by,” Alec said easily, but Delia caught the worried glance he sent toward Olivia.
Her cousin, meanwhile, had gone pale. “I felt it, too. Like a vibration, but not quite.”
The psychically sensitive members of the wedding party were picking up on the ley line activation. Delia realized she needed to get everyone inside and through the ceremony as quickly as possible, before the supernatural interference became too obvious to ignore.
“I’m sure it was nothing,” she said. “The chapel grounds back up to a main street, and there’s a lot of truck traffic around here.”
To her relief, everyone appeared to accept this explanation, and they headed inside.
The chapel had looked beautiful when Delia checked the flowers earlier, but now it had been transformed.
Candles flickered on every surface, their warm light making the white peonies and orchids and hydrangeas seem to glow.
Soft music played from hidden speakers, and the atmosphere seemed to be exactly what Olivia had dreamed of…
lush and romantic, and utterly peaceful.
Or at least, it was peaceful if you couldn’t sense the supernatural storm building across the city.