Scars, Spells and Secrets

Chapter 14

Elizabeth woke surprisingly early the next day, stretching in her bed and yawning. She swung her legs over to the cool floor and padded into the small bathroom, quickly showering and brushing her teeth. When she went to put on some of her favorite lotion-an orchid scented one-she was disappointed to find that it was nearly empty. Elizabeth used what she could and reluctantly set the bottle aside. If nothing else she might be able to rinse it and reuse it; the pump would be convenient, especially if she worked out something to ease muscle tension. Her upper back and shoulders were terribly stiff from being hunched over on the floor. Elizabeth briefly considered buying a larger table for her room, but there simply wasn't the space.

She dressed herself and left her hair slightly damp, simply untangling the curls with her fingers and adding a bit of mousse just before leaving the house. She grabbed her bag on the way, leaving the spellbooks at home-after all, they seemed to come when she needed them, and she could probably use the empty space in her bag for shopping. It had gotten cooler outside overnight, and so she had to pull a light shrug on over her dress. Elizabeth's hair began to dry in the light breeze outside as she made her way towards the shopping center. The custom lotion and soap shop was only a few blocks from her favorite art supply store. Elizabeth considered stopping on the way and getting breakfast, but decided against it; after all, she didn't want anything tainting her sense of smell before she selected a lotion. Considering that the summer was melting away into fall, the owner likely even had some new autumn scents ready.

Elizabeth hummed softly as she strode down the uneven sidewalk, feeling the cracks and pebbles beneath her thin soles. The air was thick with the scent of nearby coffee shops and bakeries tinted with the smell of exhaust as vehicles passed by. The sky was overcast and threatened to rain, the weather probably brought on by whatever cold front had come through during the night. The air felt humid on her skin, bringing the promise of later rain. She made a quick mental note to check later to see if there were any spells that had to be done during a late summer shower, or if she could use the water itself.

The young woman turned a corner and frowned, slowing her steps. The lotion shop was one block down, one turn left, and three storefronts in to the next street. Normally it would only take five, maybe ten more minutes to get there.

At that moment, though, the entire street that the store was on was blocked off. There was a wooden barricade up and a police car with the lights flashing but no siren to be heard. A large crowd had gathered and was watching whatever was unfolding. Elizabeth quickened her pace and found a group of shorter people, standing behind them and craning her neck to see what was going on.

There were at least five police officers gathered in front of the store's entryway, and it looked as if the large glass window in front had been smashed. Elizabeth gasped and looked through the crowd of rubberneckers, quickly finding the person she was searching for. It was an older woman that ran an antique store two doors down from her destination. "Excuse me?" she called out.

The woman turned to face Elizabeth, face red from crying. She was worrying a handkerchief in her hands and trying to fight back further tears. "This just doesn't happen here. Don't they know this just doesn't happen here?" she asked, though her eyes weren't focused on the tall woman before her. She seemed to be asking herself more than anyone.

Elizabeth hunched down to be more on her eye level. "Was he robbed?" she asked hesitantly, dread coiling in her gut.

The woman simply kept repeating "It doesn't happen here," and turned back towards the cordoned off street. Elizabeth jumped when she felt a hand on her elbow, spinning around to face the waiter from Vines. He tugged her gently back from the crowd, glancing around nervously.