The Curse Keepers Collection (23 page)

I hugged it to my chest, grateful I’d actually gotten it back. “How much do I owe you?”

“Five hundred dollars.”

“Only five hundred dollars?” I asked in surprise. I knew she paid more than that. “You don’t want more? Are you sure?”

Collin squeezed my arm. “Of course she’s sure,
sweetie
. Don’t be questioning Mrs. Abernathy.”

Mrs. Abernathy nodded, “Yes, I’m sure. Five hundred.”

Holding the cup in one hand, I dug five one hundred dollar bills out of my purse. I stood and handed her the money, then hugged her tight. “Thank you.” My tears made my voice crack. The guilt of this woman losing money to help me was about to do me in. I lied to her and took advantage of her kindheartedness. I tried to comfort myself with the knowledge that I might actually be saving her life.

Mrs. Abernathy took a step back and patted my face. “You take good care of that cup now.”

I nodded.

“And be careful about who you give your heart to. Too bad Enrique isn’t . . . your type.”

Collin twisted his face into an exaggerated smirk. “Don’t you know it.”

“You’re so lucky to have a friend like Enrique.” She patted Collin’s arm. “And maybe you should give that Collin a chance. You just never know.”

“See?” Collin said. “Even Mrs. Abernathy thinks you should give that fine man a chance.”

I pushed him toward the door. “Thank you again, Mrs. Abernathy.”

“God bless you, dear,” she said standing in the doorway, watching us head to the steps. “You take good care of her, Enrique.”

“Don’t you worry your pretty little head about that. I’ll take care of her all right.”

He pushed the small of my back, practically shoving me down the stairs and toward the truck. I was too busy clinging to the pewter cup to care. We had my relic. Now we only needed Collin’s and we were set.

We got in the truck, and Collin turned to me with a glare. “Your gay friend?”

“I’m lousy in bed?”

He waved his hand from his face to his abdomen. “What about this suggests that you can call me gay?”

“Do you really want to ask that? Besides, it worked. When will you learn to trust me?”

His mouth tightened. “When will you start doing what I ask?”

“Probably never.”

“Well, there you go.” His grimace made his mouth pucker.

He left the neighborhood and pulled onto the highway, his irritation ebbing after a few miles. “Did you have that planned when you knocked on her door?” I heard appreciation in his voice.

I curled my feet underneath me. “No. I worked it out as I went along.”

He laughed. “Are you sure you didn’t take Con Artist 101? You’re a natural.”

“I was too busy in my Entrap Your Man With Hot Sex lab.” What possessed me to say that? The adrenaline rush for what we just got away with was making me reckless.

“They have a lab for that?”

His eyebrows rose and he looked me up and down, a different look in his eye than I was used to seeing. What was it? Respect? Lust? My brain wasn’t sure I liked his change in attitude toward me, but my traitorous body did, tingling in unmentionable places. I shrugged. “Gotta make sure I can ensnare my rich husband, right? Obviously, I need help with the exterior package since my ass doesn’t meet the Collin Dailey QA standards.” Good God. What the hell was I doing? It was as though I was drunk. I was drunk on thievery.

A grin spread across his face, but both hands gripped the steering wheel so tight that his knuckles turned white, as though if he let go, his hands might do something he’d regret.

Now that was a laugh and a sure sign that my imagination had jumped into overdrive. I doubted there was much in Collin’s life he regretted.

“Good story about your mom. That sealed the deal. And the tears. Perfect.” He shook his head. “I never thought you had it in you, Ellie Lancaster.”

I looked out the window, my euphoria evaporating.

Collin must have sensed my mood change. “That was a story, wasn’t it?”

My throat burned, and I blinked to keep the tears in my eyes from falling.
I will not cry. I will not cry.
I took a deep breath and exhaled. “No. My mother died when I was little.”

He paused. “Was the cup hers?”

“No. My father was the Keeper before me.” We sat in silence for several seconds. I looked out the windshield, refusing to look at Collin. “My father told me the Curse Keeper stories before I could talk. Daddy took his role very seriously, and my preparation to take over when I was eighteen, even more so. He worked at the Fort Raleigh National Historic Site visitor center, the home of the Lost Colony, always watching. Always waiting. My mother, on the other hand, did
not
believe.” I bit my lip. “She was an archaeologist at the site and thought the curse was nonsense. She always told me to remember that they were just stories. But she loved my father more than the air she breathed, and he loved her just as much, so she indulged us our
fairy tales
as she called them. But I could tell she hated every minute of it.”

I took a deep breath and rested my elbow on the window, my head in my hand. I turned to Collin. “We were perfect. The perfect family until everything changed.”

Collin swallowed, looking uncomfortable. “What happened?”

“One cold and stormy winter night when I was eight years old, a man broke into our house.” I released a dry laugh. “It sounds so freaking cliché doesn’t it?”

Collin didn’t answer, his gaze on the road.

I should stop. It was obvious from the horrified look on Collin’s face that he didn’t want to know the intimate, ugly details of my life, but I’d suppressed it for so long, once I opened the door, it was all rushing out. Besides, he deserved an explanation. “Daddy wasn’t home. He was at a meeting or something. Momma had just gotten me ready for bed. I remember I was wearing my favorite nightgown. It was long and white and very lacy. I always felt like a princess when I wore it. I was picking out a book to read with Momma when I heard a noise downstairs. I think it was the sound of breaking glass. I’m not really sure.” I shook my head, as though I could lodge the memories back in place. “I haven’t thought of this in so long.”

“Ellie, you don’t have to tell me this.”

But I did. I needed him to know. “I grabbed my stuffed bunny and stood at the top of the stairs. I heard a man shouting, ‘Where is she?’ My mother was screaming, screaming my name. I was so scared. I didn’t know what to do. I wanted to help Momma, but I couldn’t make myself go downstairs. I sat on the top step, clutching my bunny.” I took another breath to steady my shaking voice. “I don’t remember much else, bits and pieces that make no sense. A man, but a hood covered his face. And blood. So much blood. I was covered in it and so was my bunny.”

“Ellie.” Collin’s voice broke.

“It was my fault. It was my fault she died.”

Collin pulled the truck to the side of the road. He shoved the gearshift into park and turned toward me, pain in his eyes. “It wasn’t your fault, Ellie. How could it be your fault?”

“I told Claire. Only days before. Daddy always told me terrible things would happen if we shared the secret.”

“Ellie, you don’t know that’s why she died. It was some sick, horrible person.
That
wasn’t your fault.”

“No, Collin. He was looking for me. The man was looking for
me
. He knew my name.”

Collin’s face paled.

“If I’d gone downstairs. If I’d just gone down there, he wouldn’t have killed my mother.”

He looked like he was going to throw up when he grabbed both of my arms. “No, Ellie. He might have killed you too.”

My chin trembled, and I choked back a sob. “But then my mother might be alive.”

Collin’s chest heaved as emotions flickered in his eyes. Fear. Worry. Indecision. Finally, he shook his head. “No, Ellie. There was nothing you could have done.”

“I was a coward.” There it was. The burden I’d carried for years. That my cowardice killed my mother, along with my disobedience. I’d never confessed it to anyone. Not even Claire, yet I was telling Collin. Why?

“If that man killed your mother, a grown woman, how could an eight-year-old girl stop him? You are far from being a coward. Look at this morning. You stood up to Marino. Most grown men won’t do that.”

I closed my eyes. “I didn’t tell you this for pity. I told you to explain.” I opened my eyes and found him watching me with a guarded expression. “When my mother died that night, all my knowledge of the curse disappeared except for the most basic information. I don’t remember anything about the spirits or gods. Or the words of protection. Or anything about the ceremony. Daddy tried to teach me again, but I was sure the curse killed my mother as punishment for me telling Claire. I decided if the curse could kill my mother for something
I
did, it was evil and I didn’t want anything to do with it. If nothing else, I figured I owed it to my mother for giving her life for mine. She didn’t want me to believe the curse so I wouldn’t.”

Collin dropped his hold on my arms and turned to look out the windshield.

“I’d ask my dad to tell me now, and I have since you showed up, but he has Alzheimer’s. He has more bad days than good and I haven’t gotten anything.” I shook my head in self-disgust. “I had a chance to learn it all again, and I threw it away. But I regret it now. I’ve regretted it since the moment you walked into the New Moon.”

Collin sighed. “It’s okay. We’ll figure this out together.” But he refused to look at me.

Collin would have never given up on his Curse Keeper responsibilities. He had a symbol tattooed over his heart, knowing there was little possibility that he’d need it. How did I make up for that kind of dedication?

He turned back to the steering wheel and turned on his blinker. “We need to get you back to Manteo so you won’t be late for work.”

“But you didn’t want me to go to work. You said I needed to get my priorities straight.”

He shrugged, keeping his eyes on the road. “I don’t want to do anything else curse related until I mark you with the henna tattoo, and I want to wait until after dark to mark you. So you might as well get some hours in at the restaurant while you wait for sunset.”

“Thanks.”

We drove the rest of the way in silence, Collin doing his best to ignore me. When he parked outside my apartment, I got out of the truck and started for the stairs.

“Ellie.”

I looked over my shoulder at him.

His mouth opened, but he hesitated, then smiled softly. “I’ll see you later tonight.”

And then he was gone.

C
HAPTER
S
IXTEEN

Tourists had flooded Manteo, even more so than usual, and the New Moon was packed. I was busy nonstop with people waiting thirty minutes or longer for a table. I had the outdoor patio section, which I liked from time to time. Sure it was hot, but it fed my people-watching obsession. And working the patio meant I could keep an eye on things, not that I’d know what to do if a spirit showed up. It was hard to believe that only a few days ago I was looking for adventure.
Be careful what you wish for, Ellie
.

Claire’s ghost tour started and ended a block away. She waved to me when her group—the largest I’d ever seen—passed by so I wasn’t surprised she dropped in half an hour later. The sun had begun to set, and I was getting nervous. What if a spirit attacked with all of these people around? The responsible part of me wondered if I should take off from work, but now was very bad timing. The New Moon had never been busier and Marlena needed me. Not to mention I really needed the money.

Claire leaned against the exterior wall and gave me a mischievous look. “Well?”

“Well, what?” I asked, picking plates off a table since our busboy had called in sick.

“Did Collin Dailey ever show his face again?”

I looked at her dumbfounded for a moment, my brain scrambling to catch up. The last time I’d seen or talked to her was when Collin had walked out of the back of the restaurant the day before. That seemed like a week ago. I shook my head with a snort.

“Is that a yes? What did he say?”

“You have
no
idea.”