Page 31 of Blue-Eyed Jacks
“Crystal Dawn.A former hooker Mom helped out.She’s a bit eccentric.”
“How?”
“She’s Wiccan and believes all sorts of stuff like the occult.In summer, she does local demonstrations, that sort of thing.”Last time I was here, I caught her dancing naked in the trees.Should I warn Kate about that?Naw.She’d find out sooneror later.
“That’s not eccentric.”
Wait until you meet her.I kept that to myself.“She smokes a lot of pot.”
That got her attention.“Who does she buy from?”Her posture stiffened, which was understandable.The Destroyers moved drugs.A lot of drugs.
“A local guy, he’s a lobster fisherman with a grow lab in his basement.He’s got a select clientele, John being one of them and Crystal being the other, so you’re good.”
“What’s the catch?”She motioned to the house.
I stared at the room.The old place was an eyesore inside and out.“Keep the walls up.That’s all.There’s a fund for repairs, and Crystal gets a stipend for that, but I’ll work something out with John that it becomes rent, and her role is landlord or some shit.”I snapped my fingers.“One catch, no major upgrades, additions, or renovations.The building is historic, believe it or not, and needs to comply with the historic preservation rules.That could get tricky and expensive.”
Kate scanned my face for lies.There weren’t any to be found, but she spent so long doing it that I wanted to squirm.I continued so the silence would end.“There are jobs during tourist season.Most pay cash.Stockpile as much as you can during the summer months, and live frugally in winter.It’s the best I can do.”I wanted to tack on “sorry” at the end, but refrained.
“It will be enough.Thank you.”
On the tip of my tongue were the words, “Don’t thank me until you’re safe,” but honestly?This was the safest place I knew.John was a good man.He looked after the residents here like they were family.Hell, better than family.And Crystal?Despite the oddities, she was a friend.One of the first women Ifell in love with outside of my mother.And in her day, she had been like a sister or an aunt to me when push came to shove.Three people knew where she lit off to when her pimp almost killed her.My father, who killed that asshole, my mother, who loved Crystal like a sister, and me.Dad was dead.Mom was completely removed from my current life; and my role in Kate’s disappearance would get me killed, so there was no way I’d talk.My biggest regret would be never seeing the place again.I’d have to find another hidey hole to run to if the law ever caught up with me.
“Are you leaving tomorrow?”Kate asked.
“I should.I’ll introduce you to John and Crystal, then head out.”
The fear in her eyes grew.
“I swear by them.On my life.”Saying that made me doubt.What if John had changed?What if Crystal was crazier?
“We have one more night.”She picked at the stray threads popping up from the couch where it was worn through.Her head tilted as the devious and obvious flirtation flickered in that glance.But her cheeks flushed to a brilliant rose.
Oh.Sometimes I was a clueless son of a bitch.
She wasn’t afraid; she was… something else.“If I’m not mistaken, there are two beds upstairs.”
“We only need one.”
Thank-fucking-God.I motioned to the stairs, but stopped, remembering the quirks of the place.“Don’t drink the water out of the tap; it’s from a cistern, and flushing is a bit tricky.”I pointed to the bathroom under the stairs.
“That’s… rustic.Where’s the tub?”
Oh shit.“This way.”I motioned to the kitchen.There was an old round barrel half in the kitchen with a hose that went from the sink to the tub.Another hose ran out the bottom where there was a crude spigot that clamped the contraption shut.The set up was simple.Turn the water heater on, wait two hours, fill the tub halfway, then uncoil the drain hose and run it out the back door when you were done.
“You’ve got to be kidding me.”
I was beginning to regret this.“You had more at that shelter, didn’t you?”
A scrunched expression of disgust flashed across her face.“At least I don’t have to share this.Right?I don’t have to share this, do I?”
“It’s all yours.”The sum extent of my wealth so far, except for the seed cash I’d dipped into hard for this trip.
She searched the room.There was a fairly new refrigerator, a freezer, a sink, the tub, and various shelves with all sorts of tins, containers, and cans.Then, her gaze landed on the stove.“Whoa, that’s old.”
“Really easy to use.Wood’s outside.Load up the bottom, here,” I pointed at the belly next to the oven drawers, “the heat goes up to the burner plates, or you open up the holes for higher heat.Smoke goes out the vent, and on this side, you can keep stuff warm or cook in the drawers.”
“How do you know what temperature it is?”
