Samhain Publishing

“Well, Suzanne?” Rhiannon Godfrey asked. “What do you think? Do I look hot enough to melt Jared’s socks off?” She picked up the hem of her silver, floor-length dress and twirled, beyond nervous about her very first dance, with her first ever boyfriend.

The spirit sighed softly. “You are a beautiful young lady. Why would that affect Jared’s stockings?”

Rhee stopped spinning and shook her head. “Sometimes I forget that you lived a hundred years ago. Forget the socks. I was just asking if I look, you know, awesome.”

Suzanne’s giggle held a wistful quality. “I think you look lovely. The silver of your dress makes you shine like a moonbeam.”

Whoa. Rhiannon stopped checking herself out in the mirror and addressed her invisible friend. “A moon beam? That’s pretty cool.” A chilly rush of air fluttered the curtains. “Do you miss dressing up? Dancing?” Even though Rhee had asked a bunch of times what Suzanne’s current existence was like, the spirit was tight-lipped. Secrets of the dead, she supposed, were secret for a reason.

A light touch brushed Rhee’s forehead. “I envy your joy of life. You make me wonder what my life would have been like had I lived beyond eighteen years. I might have danced.”

“I’ll dance with you,” Rhee promised, hating to hear the sadness that lingered in Suzanne’s voice. “The second we can figure out how to get you a solid body, I’ll twirl you around until you get dizzy.”

The spirit didn’t need words to exude happiness, and the feeling vibrated around the four walls of Rhiannon’s attic bedroom. “Soon?”

“I’m trying, Suz. I’m trying.” None of her scientific books from the Institute of Parapsychology covered how to turn a spirit into a flesh-and-blood person. Sooo…she’d resorted to witchcraft, without much luck. Rhiannon knew that Mrs. Edwards, being a very talented psychic who was training Suzanne to be Rhiannon’s spirit guide, would so not approve.

The spirit whirled through the bedroom, fluttering curtains and knocking over pillows. A loud screeching noise came from the pile on the bed, and an orange bolt of energy jumped straight into the air.

Thor bristled like a porcupine as he landed in the center of the bed. His puffed tail flicked back and forth as he glared at the chilly air, then his ears went back and wham—the angry kitten attacked the curtains with a vengeance, clawing and yowling.

Suzanne waved the curtains back and forth. “Here kitty, kitty…” the spirit teased.

The cat spat, his back hunched even as he slid down, shredding the second set of curtains in a week. Rhee sighed, knowing she was going to end up with extra chores for sure. “Suzanne, be nice to Thor.”

“But cats make me sneeze. I don’t like them.”

“You’re dead. You can’t be allergic to anything. Why do you keep forgetting that?” Rhee exhaled with exasperation, then rescued Thor, who was dangling by three claws from the curtains while meowing pitifully. “C’mon sweetie, maybe next time you’ll catch the nasty ghost.”

The air froze and Rhiannon’s curls came undone, spilling red down her back.

“I am not a ghost!”

Rhee grinned at the affronted tone in Suzanne’s voice. “Might I remind you that, according to The Book of Psychic Phenomenon, you are nothing more than an entity of ectoplasmic energy?” Rhiannon figured that the people who had written the book had never met an entity like Suzanne, who definitely had personality to go with the invisible-to-the-human-eye ecto-package.

The wind stopped blowing and Rhee’s curls were carefully pinned back in place by gentle, unseen hands. “I am sorry. I am tired now. But I will return this evening so that you can tell me about the dance. I’ll even pet the nice kitty.”

Thor growled as an invisible finger scratched behind his ear.

“Just stay out of trouble while I’m gone, got it? Mom didn’t like it when you reorganized her cupboards.”

A cool breeze took Rhiannon’s breath away. “I was just trying to help,” Suzanne said from what sounded like the opposite end of a long tunnel. “I want your mother to love me. Will she?”

Rhiannon’s stomach clenched as she thought of what her mom would say to a suddenly solid Suzanne. Pushing aside the feeling of foreboding, she told the spirit, “Of course she will! Duh. My mom loves everybody.” Rhee set Thor down and brushed a few stray orange cat hairs from her silver gown.

“Have a good time. But Rhiannon, be careful. Trouble has a way of finding you.”

Unease flickered at the spirit’s warning, but Suzanne was gone. Rhiannon bent down so that she was staring eye to eye at Thor. “Why does she always have to have the last word?”

There was a quick knock on her door, and before she could say “come in”, her mom was already there.

“Fast bird? Don’t tell me that cat caught another one. He’ll be dangerous when he’s older.”

Rhiannon’s lips twitched. Last word. Fast bird. Her mom was sweet, but a little on the wacky side. “You know what happens when you try to read my thoughts. You get the wrong thing nine out of ten times.”

Starla shrugged, a sheepish look on her pretty face. “I can’t help it, sometimes your thoughts just pop in my head. And Mrs. Edwards told you that it wasn’t my fault—it’s our mother-daughter connection. If you weren’t telepathic, I wouldn’t be able to read your mind.”

“So it’s my fault?” Rhee grinned.

Her mom walked over to the vanity table and picked up the moonstone amulet that hung from a delicate silver chain. “Fault, schmault. Will you be wearing this tonight? You should—oh, honey, I think I’m more nervous than you are. Bless the Goddess, Rhiannon, you look beautiful.”

Rhiannon felt her cheeks go hot. “You’re just saying that because I look like you, Mom. From my obnoxious red hair to my size-seven feet.” She took the crescent shaped amulet and set it back on the table. “I’m wearing the silver heart from Jared. I won’t need any extra protection tonight. This is all about fun with friends and dancing—” her stomach jiggled, “—and being with my guy.”

Starla eyed the amulet before shrugging. “Speaking of Jared, shouldn’t they be here any minute? It was so nice of his parents to offer to drive.”

Rhiannon heard the hurt in her mom’s tone, and her defenses immediately rose. “Mom, going to the winter dance with Jared Roberts, in a burgundy van that has Celestial Beginnings painted with gold glitter on the side, well…that isn’t the statement I want to make. I know dad’s car doesn’t have four-wheel drive, and I’m not letting you drag me to the dance through the icy streets on a toboggan. We talked about this already.”

“Sled dogs can be very romantic,” Starla said with a small smile before turning for the door. “So long as we get enough pictures before you go—the coven will want to see how wonderful you’re doing here.”

Rhiannon applied light bronze gloss to her lips, shivering at the word coven. “Please tell me you cleaned up the altar in the living room?” Jared knew her parents were Wiccan, but his parents didn’t. Not officially, anyway.

Her mom’s eyes narrowed with annoyance. “Yes. But Rhee, honey, the grand opening of Celestial Beginnings was two weeks ago. People know that I own a New Age store.”

Fingers trembling with adrenalin, Rhiannon managed to cap the tube and put it in her purse without dropping it. “Fine. But they don’t have to know you’re a witch.”

“You say that like it’s a bad thing,” her mom said quietly.

Rhee swallowed the guilt she felt at making her mom feel bad in order to make her point. “You made me come here from Las Vegas so that I could have a chance to ‘blend’ and be normal.” She snorted. “Well, you bought a haunted house, so that plan pretty much went up in smoke. What would’ve happened if Melody and Bonnie couldn’t keep a secret?”

She patted her mom’s arm, willing her to understand. “I would have been laughed out of Crystal Lake High if anybody would have found out about what happened that night. The last two months have been quiet. I’ve studied, made friends and learned how to play monopoly. Don’t screw it up for me, okay, Mom?”

Starla covered Rhee’s hand with her own, her bracelets clinking together like chimes. “We wanted you to have a chance at normal. We didn’t want you to completely smother your own personality!” She sighed. “I guess you’ve forgotten all about how the Goddess came to your rescue?”

Rhiannon turned cold at the memory of the evil spirit she’d banished, with the help of her friends from the Institute of Parapsychology. “How can I forget when you bring it up all the time?” She wished she could forget the malevolent presence that had held Suzanne’s spirit captive in this house for a hundred years.

“There’s still time for you to change your mind and spend part of the winter break in Las Vegas. Tisha would love it if you stayed with her.”

Bracing herself for another familiar argument, Rhiannon pulled her hand from her mom’s. “Tisha’s awesome, but she’s also the High Priestess, and I’m not staying with her. If I went—which I’m not—I’d stay with Matthew and Tanya at the institute. But Jared promised he’d teach me to ski over winter break.”

“I say thanks many times over that you’ve made friends, but you are forgetting your spirituality. What about—”

Her dad shouted from the second floor. “Ladies? Do you need to take your separate corners?” He came out on the landing, his fists pumping against a fake opponent. “Got your gloves? Wait for the bell!”

“Dad!” She loved her parents, but why did they have to be so embarrassing?

Her mom gasped and Rhee knew her mother had caught that last thought super clear. “Sorry. I wish you’d stop eavesdropping in my head without permission.”

“Beauty is as beauty does, Rhiannon Selene, remember that. Miles, do you have the camera ready?” Starla turned her back and climbed down the narrow stairs, leaving Rhiannon to deal with the sting of her disapproval.

Well, she thought with a twinge of rebellion, I can’t always be perfect. I won’t always do what you want, and sometimes…sometimes you are embarrassing. So there. Rhiannon grabbed the silver handbag that was just big enough for her cell phone and lip gloss before following her mom down the stairs.

Starla’s flowing skirts and layers of beads practically screamed Wicca. Rhiannon had heard some of the kids at school make sarcastic comments—namely Janet and her posse of wannabes—but for the most part, they’d left the Godfrey family alone. Which could all change if more of the good citizens of Crystal Lake figured out what her Mom’s shop really was. A supply store for witchcraft.

Rhiannon was enjoying being normal for the first time in her entire freaky, psychic life.

Sure, sometimes it could be boring, but dating Jared, the hottest freshman in school, more than made up for any milliseconds of longing for her old life. Thanks to email, she, Tanya and Matthew stayed in contact practically every day. Rhiannon didn’t have to be at the institute to know what was happening with her friends.

She stopped at the bottom stair and peeked into the living room to see if her mom was still mad. Why did growing up mean arguing with her parents?

Her dad was waiting by the large fireplace, digital camera in hand. “It’s all clear, Rhee. You look gorgeous, and everything will be just fine. Let’s get a picture of you and Mom in front of the fire.”

“Thanks, Dad,” she said, glancing in the corner to make sure that the Goddess altar had been hidden away. It had been her parents’ idea to give her a normal teenager experience, but they were totally clueless when it came to their own practices. In the small town of Crystal Lake, Wicca wasn’t any more socially acceptable than being a psychic phenomenon. Yet they wanted her to embrace the Wicca traditions and deny the science that made up her genetic code.

No wonder she was all screwed up.

Starla fiddled with Rhee’s shoulder strap. “Are you sure about the moonstone?”

Rhee folded her hands at her waist and fake-smiled for the camera. “Yeah. Why are you so freaked out? This is what you wanted for me.”

“It’s just that, honey, you’re growing up so fast, and—”

Rhiannon had to really work to keep her smile in place as her temper started to heat. “I’m not a baby.”

“I know, it’s just—”

“What’s wrong, Mom?”

Miles whistled and gave an exaggerated wink to lighten the mood. “I’m looking at the two most beautiful women in the entire cosmos. What could go wrong?”

Rhiannon giggled, her dad snapped the picture and the doorbell rang. She jumped, her tummy flipping like an Olympic gymnast.

Starla quickly gave her a one-armed hug, and Rhee pretended not to notice the thin shine of tears in her mom’s eyes as she chattered. “Dad’s right, honey, you’ll have so much fun. I just wish we could have chaperoned.”

Rhee blinked a few times, hoping she masked her thoughts quickly enough. Starla, as pretty and fun as she could be, just wouldn’t blend with her broom skirts, beads and jingly bracelets. And her dad? His tendency to wear all black, with his dark hair and goatee, well, he didn’t look a thing like the other dads. Her mom would be broken-hearted if she knew that Rhee hadn’t turned in the signed chaperone sheet on purpose.

“Well, like I said, there are plenty of chaperones already, so stop worrying. And Jared’s parents said they’d give me a ride home too.”

“You have your cell phone? We’ll be waiting up.”

The doorbell rang again and Rhiannon strangled her purse strap instead of her mom. Who knew that dating could be so stressful? “Yes.”

“I know we said to cut down on the telepathic thoughts, but maybe a brief zip would be all right, so I know you’re okay.”

Rhiannon escaped her mom’s hug, blew out a breath and walked to the door, trying not to trip in her heels. “Fine, Mom. Just chill, geez.”

Opening the front door, Rhee smiled wide, hoping her nervousness wasn’t written all over her face. “Hey Ja—”

She did a double take. “Matthew?”

“Hey.”

She looked down, noticing his suitcase. “What are you doing here?”