Kiss The Witch Part 4

I felt my jaw slacken. I was speechless. I never heard Carlos complain about my treatment of him before. He certainly set me straight a time or two in the past about Spinelli, reminding me to call him Dominic and to treat him like the equal he is. After all, the man went through so much, getting shot in the line of duty, then hooked on pain pills and completing rehab for his addiction. I suppose I owed him that much. But to hear Carlos tell me I do not give him enough credit made me think. Perhaps he was right. Was it a consequence of my return to prime? Being young again, filled once more with all the spit and vinegar that I had lost as an older man; had it eroded my patience, my sense of compa.s.sion, my civility? I looked at Carlos. His hands remained on the wheel at the ten-to-two position, his eyes unflinching on the road ahead.

"Have I changed?" I asked him. "Am I that different now?"

He shook his head, still unwilling to take his eyes off the road. "No," he said, flatly. "You've always been an a.s.s."

"What?"

He broke up laughing, which started me laughing. I felt instantly better, and thoroughly expected him to tell me at any moment he was kidding. He is such a goof like that sometimes, his sense of humor oddly refreshing. Surprisingly though, he did not do that. He simply kept his focus on his driving, and as his laugh wound down to a dull smile, we settled into an uncomfortable silence.

A mile or two down the road, I broke that silence. "Spinelli said that?"

Still not looking at me, he said, "Dominic. Yes, he said that. He told me to watch for it, that you are quick to razz me for slipping up, but slow to compliment me when I do well."

"But you know I think the world of you, Carlos."

"That's what I told Dominic."

"Yeah?"

"Yes, but the truth remains. You suck at handing out compliments."

"Wow, what can I say? I'm sorry."

He shook his head. "Don't be. You can't help who you are. I just thought you should know."

That shut me up for another six blocks. At the turn off on Lexington, I asked Carlos if he would not mind swinging by the house. "I want to run in and get that promise stone for Spin.... I mean Dominic."

He looked at me and smiled. "Sure. No problem."

As we pulled up to the house, I felt a strange compulsion to invite Carlos in to say hi to the girls. I thought he would decline, knowing Spinelli would have Howard Snow back at the precinct ready for questioning. I was wrong. Perhaps he knew I expected him to say no.

"I'd love to say h.e.l.lo to the girls," he said. The wise-a.s.s smirk he gave me proved I was right.

"We'll have to make it quick," I told him, keying the lock in the door. "I want to make sure we have time later to visit both the Williams house and the site of Delaney's wreck."

I pushed the door open and stumbled blindly into a darkened room, illuminated only by the daylight pouring in from behind me. Carlos followed unusually close with his hand on the back of my shoulder. "Did you forget to pay the electric bill," he asked.

"No," I answered, brushing his paw off my shoulder. "Back up, will you?"

"Close the door!" Lilith shouted, her voice rolling down the hall like distant thunder.

"Lilith. What the h.e.l.l are you doing? Why are the lights out?"

"Forget it, Ursula." Again Lilith's voice, only now she was walking it towards me. "Turn the lights on. Killjoy is home."

The hall light came on just as Lilith brushed pa.s.sed me. She headed straight for the front windows and zipped the blinds open.

"Lilith." I followed her around as she continued opening blinds and flooding the room with sunlight. "What are you doing? Why are you and Ursula running around in the dark?"

She turned sharply on her heels to face me and I nearly mowed her down trying to stop. "Once again, Tony, we were doing something you should do more often yourself, but don't."

"Practicing witchcraft?"

She batted her eyes at me, clearly trying to be cute. All I could see, though, was blatant mockery. Ursula emerged from the hallway carrying what looked like a dagger, its blade, long, narrow and waved like a crumpled fender. It took me for a start; I will tell you that much. It had a hilt carved of bone, notched for each finger and topped with a pommel of polished teak.

"'Tis dark sight is all, Master Tony," she said, waving the dagger like a wand. "When shadows lurk in shadows, one can see but naught. 'Tis only light by dark sight doth shadows grow and thus we see."

"What?"

"It's called dark sight, basic level one s.h.i.t," said Lilith. "You gather energy from around you and use it to see in pitch darkness."

"Does it work?"

"Aye," said Ursula. "What light doth come in wake of morrow lingers still yet night doth borrow."

I pointed at Ursula. "Again, I'm sorry dear, but what the f.u.c.k?" To Lilith I said, "Can't you teach the girl modern English. She will never fit into society talking like that."

"Yes and you will never fit in with our new coven unless you exercise witchcraft more often."

"I told you, I have a job that takes priority."

"And that's all right. But you spend more time clipping your toenails than you do practicing witchcraft."

"You told me to cut my nails because you said I stab you when we...." I looked at Carlos and then at Ursula. "You know."

"Have s.e.x, I know. It's okay. You can say it. I think Carlos and Ursula know we have s.e.x, Tony."

"All right. I'm just saying."

"And I'm just saying. You need to practice witchcraft more often and try to be more tolerant when I practice it."

"Why don't you compromise," said Carlos, who until now seemed content just standing back watching the show.

"Excuse me?"

"Sure." He pointed at Ursula and then at me. "Lilith, why don't you promise to help Ursula with her modern English, and Tony, you promise to practice more witchcraft?"

I looked at Lilith. Her hooked brow told me the Cuban Doctor Ruth might have something there. "It is not a bad idea," I said.

"No, not bad," she replied. She looked at Ursula. "Would you mind, Urs?"

She gathered her lips in a ripple, considered it briefly and answered, "Methinks not, my blood. If thee wish it so, I shall try but gladly."

Lilith nodded.

"Great," I said. "Done."

Ursula pointed the dagger at me and shook it loosely. "But hark thee my words, lest thou forget. Thrice be thy luck of bad and not if thou profess and squander."

I shook my head. "See, this is what I mean. I have no idea what the h.e.l.l she just said."

"She is telling you not to f.u.c.k up," said Carlos.

I gave him a warning look. "Who asked you?"

He didn't even blink. "Got anything to drink?" he asked.

Lilith gestured toward the kitchen. "Iced tea in the fridge. Help yourself."

"Thanks." He crossed the room, tapping my arm as he walked by me. "Want some?"

I waved him off. "Lilith, what is that thing Ursula is holding?"

"What, this?" She put her hand out and Ursula pa.s.sed the dagger to her.

"Yes. That."

She held it up for my inspection. "It's called an athame. Every witch should have one, including you. Mine is over a hundred and fifty years old."

"Does Ursula have one, too?"

"She did."

Ursula said, "They took it when they hanged me. I kept only my witch's key, which I hid up my"

"Uh-uh. I don't need to hear that, Ursula. Lilith. I came home to get the thing for Spinelli."

"Thing?"

"The thing you told me not to forget."

"The stone," said Ursula. "What say thee, pray tell, wait and I shall gather it."

"Sure, go ahead."

She ran off to the bedroom to get the stone. I turned to Carlos, who was standing in the doorway between the kitchen and living room. "Almost ready, amigo?"

"Almost," he said, and he tipped his drink back to finish it, allowing the ice to slide down the gla.s.s and dam against his nose. He placed the empty gla.s.s on the kitchen table when he was done, something that would have earned me demerit points from Lilith. Carlos received barely a second look. "Ready now."

I nodded toward the door. "Let's go."

Ursula returned with the stone, presenting it in cupped hands like a fragile flower. "Hear, hear," she said. "To my beloved thee shall bring. Yes?"

I scooped the stone up with equal reverence. "Yes. Of course."

I slipped it into my pocket.

We started out the door, when Lilith called back. "Don't forget about tonight."

I turned slowly, hoping I might remember what I obviously forgot. The look on my face was enough to sour hers. "Tonight?"

"Tony. This is a big deal. You cannot forget."

"Oh," I said. "Tonight, right, the coven thing."

"Yes, the coven thing. Tonight is the new moon. We have to do it tonight. You promised me."

"I know. I know. I won't forget."

Carlos asked, "What's the coven thing?"

I looked at Lilith, confident she could explain it better than I could. Truth was I could not explain it at all.

"Now that we are three," said Lilith, "we can form our own sub-coven of witches. A coven will allow us greater control over our witchcraft. By harnessing the power of three, we can guarantee greater successes, where until now we could only hope. This will also help strengthen the bonding energies for the wedding."

"So it's a big thing, huh? You going to have candles and incense and stuff like that?"

"Yes, Carlos. We will have candles and incense and stuff like that."

"Can I"

"No. You cannot."

He turned to me and pleaded with his eyes. I said to Lilith, "Why don't you let him come, Lilith." Man, the look she gave me, you would have thought I just called her a s.k.a.n.k.

"Tony, this ceremony tonight is a sacred event. It is not a spectator sport. Tonight we will call forth the energies of all the witches in my lineage, from Ursula's mother to mine. It is a hallowed consecration of body and soul to a higher purpose. Tonight the visceral collective shines. Only those engaged can be in attendance." She paused and gave me a tentative look. "Besides, I don't think you want Carlos here for the cleansing ritual."

"The what?"

"That's where we purify our bodies to ease the flow of energy between us."

"Purify?"

"Aye, we shower and oil," said Ursula. "'Tis natural to cleanse proper thy body and thy mind."

"Wait," I said. "We don't all have to shower together, do we?"

She laughed lightly. "What say thee thy thoughts so silly? The bath holds but one in comfort. Three is by thrice too small."

"Okay then." I looked at Carlos and expressed my relief with a smile. "For a minute, I thought we were all going to get naked for the entire ceremony."

Lilith smiled back. "We are."

"Excuse me?"

"Tony, witchcraft is all about connecting with nature and the elements. Ideally, we should conduct the ceremony outside in the woods or on a beach along a deserted sh.o.r.eline. And yes, we would be naked there, too. So be thankful we will be indoors where you can indulge your prudish inclinations."

"What? I'm not a prude. I'm...modest."