My upper thigh heats. The Beaumont ruby shard is acting up again. I shove my hand into my pocket to adjust the stone digging into my flesh. An icy charge shoots up my fingers. Yanking my hand away, I peer at my bright red flesh. The gem is so cold it burned me.
Even I can’t ignore the fact that something strange is going on here. It can’t be a coincidence that the locket’s adorned with rubies and the Beaumont ruby is doing its weird temperature thing again. Maggie and my spirit guide must want me to do something. But exactly what, I’m not sure.
I squint at the locket behind the glass. The only way to see it up close is to break the glass and liberate it.
But I’ve done that sort of thing a couple times already this summer. And though stealing the ancestor’s mortar and pirate’s dagger gave us the clues we needed to break The Creep, it also led to trouble with Claude and could possibly end up with Miss Delia or us in jail. Breaking into Beau’s study helped us get the dagger back, but it also revealed that someone—though I’m still not sure who—was at the very least present when Missy died. Each larceny has had its consequences, so I’m hoping these bossy spirits will understand that I’m not exactly anxious to rush into another one.
Still, there must be a reason Maggie has brought me here. She is, after all, the one who led us to the treasure in the first place, igniting this whole summer’s events.
Running my fingers over the glass, I try to gauge its thickness. It doesn’t feel too substantial, though there’s really no way to tell from looking at just one side. My palm tingles, then itches. An irresistible urge takes over, willing me to find a rock and smash it against the pane until I free the locket encased within. But I’ve been through this before. That’s Maggie’s desire. Not mine. Resisting the compulsion, I try to think for myself. It’s one thing to decide to do it on my own; it’s another for her to force me.
The ruby chips twinkle in the sunlight, drawing my eye. The expression on the mother’s face is tender and filled with so much love, it softens my resolve. And then it hits me. This mother’s face is why I’m supposed to get this locket. It must have belonged to Clarissa and very likely dangled close to her heart.
I want the locket. I need the locket.
I search for a rock or stick big enough to shatter the glass. But all I see is the endless green carpet of kudzu and the occasional corner of gravestone poking out from under the brush. Shoving my hands down into the leaves, I root around, fumbling for something that will break the compartment. Finally, my hand lands on something cold and hard. It’s a round, smooth stone, like one of the rocks that line some of the older graves. It’ll do.
Racing back to Clarissa’s grave, I hold the stone over my head, ready to strike. Realizing I’m about to desecrate her grave to some extent, I bite my bottom lip and offer a word of apology. “I’m sorry, Mrs. Beaumont, but I’m pretty sure I need to do this.”
The rock crashes against the case and cracks the glass. I slam it twice more before it shatters. Carefully, I sift through the shards and lift out my quarry. The silver locket is in perfect condition. I pry it open. Inside are two small photos. One of Clarissa, the other of Cooper. Snapping it closed, I flip it over. The back is inscribed.
Your heart and mine
Forever entwined
Love everlasting
Till the end of time
My chest swells. The locket is filled with Clarissa’s love for her son. A mother’s pure love. It couldn’t be more specific to Cooper. And just like the Beaumont Curse, which was first cast when Lady Rose gave birth to her only child, this too features a mother and son. I’d say that’s pretty curse-specific.
This is the key to combating the Black Cat Bone and breaking the Beaumont Curse.
But now that I’ve got it, what am I supposed to do with it? My heart pounds as I gaze at the top of Clarissa’s headstone to where I imagine Maggie sitting. “I don’t know what to do with this. Cooper’s not wearing his mojo anymore, so I’m pretty sure I’ve got to break the curse as soon as possible. But the ancestors’ mortar still needs to rest, and my energy’s not back.”
“You have everything you need.” Maggie’s voice carries on the breeze.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
The refrain repeats, this time more faint. “You have everything you need.”
Chapter Twenty-three
I set aside Miss Delia’s spell book and rub my tired eyes at the table in the caretaker’s cottage. I’ve read it cover to cover three times this afternoon. I think I’m ready. At least I hope I am. Picking up my phone, I dial Jack. He answers on the third ring.
“Hey, can you pick me up at Dad’s in about an hour? I’ve got one more thing to do but then I think we’ll be ready to try to break this.” Not really. I’m actually only half betting we’ll be ready but I’m not going to let him in on that.
“Yeah. Just so you know, you owe me big time. It hasn’t been easy to keep him here.” His voice is clipped.
“It’ll be worth it. I promise. We’ve got to do this thing tonight. I can feel it.” At least that’s what I think the green and white psychic power beads on my collier have told me.
“You’re lucky you’ve still got feeling. I don’t.”
Um, I’m not exactly sure what that’s supposed to mean, but I’m too busy and overwhelmed to decipher it now. “All right then, see you in an hour. Oh, wait. Before I forget, make sure both you and Cooper have your ruby pieces.”
“Sure.” He cuts the line.
I glance down at the list I’ve started on the pad in the middle of the kitchen table. Between the stuff in Dad’s workshop, the supplies I brought back from Miss Delia’s, and a few plants I can clip from the forest around the cemetery, I should have everything covered.
In the meantime, I’ve got to take the strongest purifying bath I can whip up and hope the Planetary Sun bath crystals I snagged from Miss Delia’s will help restore a little bit of my physical vitality. Otherwise, I’m not sure how I’ll get through the night.
An hour later, exactly to the minute, Jack pulls up to the caretaker’s cottage in the golf cart. Cooper’s in the front passenger seat, his arms crossed, and a scowl on his face. Though he’s ditched the leather jacket, he’s still sporting the rest of his new getup, plus one new accessory: his bottom lip is red and swollen. Jack slides out of the cart and walks around to the screened porch. Though he tries to hide it, there’s a hitch in his gait. His left eye is purple and swollen.
I suck in a gasp. “What the heck happened?”
“I kept him at the Big House.”
I squint at the shiner. “You okay? Did you ice it?”
“Yeah. I’ll be fine. It’s nothing compared to losing chunks of my skin. Plus I got in a few good swipes of my own. That felt better than any cold pack.” He smiles.
I glance at Cooper who’s slumped in the seat, looking about as happy to be there as a kid in the principal’s office. “Awesome. I guess. You think he’ll help load these in the cart?” I point to the pile of tools I’ve pulled from Dad’s workshop.
Jack smirks. “Doubtful. You’re lucky he’s here at all. All he wants to do is be with Taneea.”
“Great. I’m going to need a little more cooperation when we do this.”
“Good luck with that.”
Together Jack and I load a few shovels, a pruner, and some other supplies. Luckily Dad’s been busy running errands for Beau. Otherwise he’d freak if he saw us taking this stuff.
Twenty minutes later, we’re at the cemetery. The sun’s just starting to set and the sky’s the same orange hue as a ripe cantaloupe. Jack jumps out and gets to work on my instruction to bring back a bunch of tall wildflowers I saw growing along one section of the graveyard. Cooper stays slumped in his seat.