Page 62 of Patio Lanterns

Mrs. Crawley put the stack square in front of Robin and tapped it with an overgrown nail. “Cut the deck using your non-dominant hand.”

“Why?” she asked.

Mrs. C shook her head and sighed. “Must you question everything, child?”

Robin shrugged.

“Are you right-handed? Then use your left. It’s closer to your heart, and it’ll let the intuition come through.”

Doing exactly as she was told, Robin slowly lifted a portion of the cards off the top of the deck with her left hand. Carefully, she turned it over and placed it down on the table. The card on top was upside down and presented a strangely dressed fellow about to step off the edge of a cliff. And his little dog was going to take the fall along with him.

“The Fool.” Mrs. Crawley exhaled deeply. “Oh dear, this is what I was afraid of.”

“Afraid of what?” Robin asked with trepidation. “What does it mean?”

“Be careful.”

A chill ran down her spine. “Okay, I’m definitely sensing a theme here. You’ve told me to be careful several times already, but I still don’t understand.”

“The Fool reversed brings a warning about being irresponsible,” the old lady advised. “Heed what it says. You must be more cautious in your decisions and careful in your relationships with others.”

“It says all that?” Robin examined the card closer. “Actually, that tracks. Most of my life, I’ve been criticized for not looking before I leap.”

Mrs. C’s forehead crinkled as she raised her wispy eyebrows. “What was your question when you cut the deck?”

“I don’t know. There was quite a few swirling around up there.”

“Pick one.” Mrs. C snapped like she was running out of patience. “The one about you and that Hunter fellow, perhaps?”

“How…? Oh, never mind.” Robin sighed. No point in trying to argue with a witch. “Okay, so maybe sometimes I still leap before looking. But Rick is great. Yeah, he’s older than people I usually date, and some might see our age difference as odd or even taboo, but I really don’t give a flying—”

Without saying a word, Mrs. Crawley tapped on the picture of the Fool perilously close to the edge of doom.

Robin slumped in her seat. “So, the spirit world thinks I’m a fool for wanting to be with Rick?”

“The card doesn’t mean you are a fool, child. Sometimes it appears at a turning point in your life. It’s a reminder to slow down and think things through. Consider the consequences.”

The consequences. It sounded ominous. What exactly were the consequences of being with Rick, Robin wondered. She already knew that his relationship with Aidan was at stake. But what about her? Did she really stand to lose more than she would gain?

Mrs. C restacked the deck of cards with care. “You must ask yourself, is this risk worthwhile, or am I being reckless?”

Geez, that doesn’t sound ominous at all, spirit world. Thanks a hell of a lot.

The bell at the register pinged.

“Don’t get up. Stay here, I’ll get it,” Robin told her. Still in a daze as she made her way out to the store, she thought she recognized the couple in line as longtime cottage neighbours, fellow lifers who had been friendly with her parents.

“Mr. and Mrs. Stanhope? Hi. I’m Robin. You probably don’t remember me, but I’m Marc and Micki’s youngest daughter.”

Mrs. Stanhope smiled in recognition. “Oh, Robin, of course. We remember all of you girls fondly. You work here now?”

“Only temporarily,” Robin told them.

“Thank you for the invitation to your mother’s celebration of life tomorrow,” Mr. Stanhope told her. “We’ll be there.”

Relief swept over Robin. “Wonderful, I’m happy to hear that.”

“We adored Micki. We wouldn’t miss it,” Mrs. Stanhope added. “In fact, we’re picking up a few things today, including ingredients for my famous potato salad to bring for the potluck.

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