Story Series | Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten | Now

After an hour of wandering aimlessly through the neighbourhood, Audrey finds herself perched on a crumbling stone wall overlooking the downward slope of Montmartre and, beyond, the rest of Paris. She’s munching meditatively on a croissant and sipping strong, black coffee. Next to her is a newly purchased basket, containing one item: an ornately decorated picture frame to house Jonah’s portrait. Despite being a cottage man, Jonah loved his gaudy decor, and Audrey thinks this frame, the ugliest she could exhume from a pile of tacky treasures at a local flea, would please him immensely. She plans to place it right in the middle of the mantle, amongst his lineup of paranormal tools.

The basket will soon be filled with more finds. A few minutes back, she took note of a tiny boutique nearby selling witchy wares. She doesn’t have much confidence in celestial tricks, but since the last twenty-four hours basically kiboshed her entire world of beliefs or lack thereof, she decided it might be worth a browse. Besides, some of Jonah’s things proved to be of some use last night. The EMF detector, at least, seemed to pick up on whatever disheveled existence she currently shares a home with, and the sage in the fire definitely pissed something off. And the holy water… she reminisces on the chaos that ensued after pelting some of that shit through the air, the furniture levitating, glass breaking, the man-shaped shadow showing itself, however blurred… 

Yes, it wouldn’t hurt to pick up a few more tools for Jonah’s kit. 

A few minutes later, she enters the heavily perfumed, floral-infested shop. Tinkling instrumental music cascades from an unseen speaker, and a white-haired woman sits serenely behind the cluttered desk. 

“Salut,” the shopkeeper sings. 

“Salut,” Audrey returns, already eyeing the walls, which are all stuffed with trinkets and treasures. 

“Can I help you find anything, dear?”

Audrey walks over to the counter, which is littered with crystals, various packs of Tarot cards, smouldering incense and the woman’s own to-go coffee from the same cafe Audrey went to. 

“Actually, do you carry any white sage? And anything else to... you know,” Audrey wafts her hands around dramatically, trying to convey the action, “banish bad vibes? Bad spirits? Bad shit in general?”

“Oui, oui. Viens-ici.” The woman pitters around the counter and Audrey follows her as she begins touring the walls of the shabby little shop.

“Well,” the shopkeeper says, pausing at one wall and turning back to Audrey. “What’s your budget?” 

“I don’t have one.” 

The woman blinks, then nods. She looks back to the wall, glances bemusedly back at Audrey, then looks to the wall again and begins pointing out items.

“I’m not sure how familiar you are with these things, but this is what is most commonly known as the Evil Eye,” she explains, gesturing to a collection of gold jewellery embedded with blue and white stones painted to look like eyes. “This is known to protect against evil spirits and bad luck.” 

“I’ll take the ring. Size six, s’il te plait.”

The woman nods, plucks a ring from a velvet cushion and places the ring in Audrey’s basket. 

“And this,” the woman continues, now waving an arm at a large shelf stuffed with crystals, “is our crystal collection. For protection, I’d suggest Amethyst, Fire Agate, Black Obsidian…”

“I’ll take one of each.”

The woman gapes at her. “But, mademoiselle, there are nine crystals known for their protective properties, and even the small stones aren’t cheap…”

“That’s okay,” Audrey says with an encouraging smile. “Trust me, I need them all.”

The woman places nine shimmering crystals into Audrey’s basket like she’s trick-or-treating. 

“What’s next?” Audrey asks, but the woman is now looking at her like a concerned grandma might look at a wounded grandchild. “Um. Everything okay?”

“Everything okay with you?” the woman asks, stepping a bit closer. She eyes Audrey’s bandaged hand, which is still oozing blood. “Look, dear, I know I’m snooping on your business but I know about this shit. I own this place. If you feel comfortable sharing what the hell happened to you, I can probably help you even more. Just know that. Okay?” 

Audrey blinks at her, slightly alarmed at the directness. She’s not sure she can share with anyone what happened to her last night, not even this little witch, but before she can conjure a reply, another voice chimes in from behind the counter. 

“Audrey?” 

Audrey looks around in surprise, and sees Madame Caron emerging from a room behind the counter.

“Madame Caron!”

“Call me Marta, remember?” The singer whacks a beaded curtain out of her way and steps over to where Audrey stands with the helpful owner. “This is my sister’s shop. My sister, Isabelle. Have you introduced yourselves?”

“I’m Audrey,” she says, holding out her undamaged hand, and Isabelle shakes it delicately.

“So,” Marta says, thrusting her hands onto her hips and looking almost sternly at Audrey. “What brings you to this kooky little place?”

Audrey laughs. “Well, I just thought it would be a good idea to get some, er, pieces to bring good vibes to the new house. Cleanse the place, you know.”

Marta nods, her eyes narrowed, and looks down into the basket. “I see an evil eye ring in there. Good choice for warding off ghastly spirits. And such.”

“And such,” Audrey says, feeling both women’s eyes boring into her. “Well, Isabelle, do you have any other suggestions?”

Isabelle finishes touring Audrey around the small space, and soon the basket is full. 

“Thank you both very much,” Audrey says after paying, hoisting the basket more securely up her arm, and she catches the sisters exchanging a significant look. 

“I’ll walk you out,” Marta announces. 

Outside the shop, Audrey pauses to slide her new ring onto her finger and Marta continues to watch her with that same penetrating gaze. 

“It was such a nice surprise seeing you here,” Audrey says. 

“Are you okay?” Marta interrupts. “Like, really?”

Audrey blinks up at the woman. “You know, I really think I am.” 

Marta ponders this for a moment, then reaches out to pat Audrey on the shoulder. “Good. You know where to find me or Isabelle if you ever need anything else, all right?”

“All right,” chuckles Audrey, turning away. 

“And Audrey,” Marta adds, “I believe you still owe me that drink!”

Audrey grins back at the woman. “I do. I’ll come by the bar soon.”

“How about tonight? You can come before we open.”

“Sure,” Audrey says. “I’d love that.”

“Come for eight. We’ll sneak some of the good stuff from Julie’s repertoire.” 

On the walk back home, Audrey passes an antique shop with patio furniture on display outside. She taps her credit card and scoops the delicate iron chairs and small matching table over her shoulder and under her arms.

As she approaches the house, she spots something colourful perched against the gate: a bouquet. 

“The hell?” she murmurs, putting down her purchases and picking up the large vase of posies. She opens the small card attached to it. 

This is probably lame. But we’re in Paris, right?

Thanks again for a great night. Hope to see you soon. 

Suddenly feeling very hot, Audrey swallows a smile and carries all her new wares through the gate. After positioning her new patio set under the tree, she finds herself stalling in front of the door with the flowers tucked under one arm and her full basket dangling off the other. 

“This is my house,” she exhales. “I want to do this.” 

She pulls the key from her purse and then, as an afterthought, blindly reaches into the basket to snatch a few random items for protection, which turn out to be three crystals and a single stick of incense. Sure. It might not be much, but she feels armed now, so she unlocks the door and pushes it open with her foot. She leans back warily, peering into the main floor. Then she steps gingerly inside, thrusting her handful of crystals around like a sword. But the place looks exactly how she left it. The lights aren’t even flickering. She hangs her purse and places Jericho’s bouquet on the kitchen table. 

She doesn’t know what to expect from the house today, but she’s as ready as she’ll ever be. After forcing down a light lunch, she gets to work scattering her new energetic gems around the house, carefully maintaining a sense of calm as she moves in and out of each room, locating nooks, crannies and tabletops on which to place the crystals, incense and other items she just spent a small fortune on. 

An hour passes without incident, save for the ominous hum of her blood, the prickle of her skin and that unnerving sense of being closely watched, all of which she’s accepted by now as her new normal. So she decides to reclaim her day.

Audrey pours herself a glass of white wine and brings a plate of fruit and crackers to the courtyard, where she nestles into one of her new patio chairs. She takes a sip, then takes out her phone and opens her chat with Jay. 

So very, very lame, she types. 

Jay replies: You’re so very, very welcome. 

I kid, Audrey types back. They’re very pretty. This place definitely needed some life. 

What are you doing this afternoon?

I’m free until eight.

Good, I have something to show you.

Is it more impressive than that thing you did with your thing the other night?

Of course not. But this is really something, I think you’ll really love it.

Dare I ask?

It’s a surprise.