Page 19 of Safe in Shadow
The strangely tall man with the hooded features.
A flash of red eyes in the crowd.
A clip-clopping sound like hooves on pavement—but there were no horses.
And this woman with the broad smile and lilting voice seemed to scream otherworldly.
“Miss? Did you see something you liked?”
“Huh? Oh! The-these chairs. Can I have them? I mean, how much are they?” Grace stammered, backing away. The woman’s voice made her ears vibrate.
I’m having low blood sugar. That’s all. I need to eat. Everything will be fine once I eat.
“The set of four for one hundred.”
“Oh, wow! That’s amazing. My car is stuffed right now, but I can come back tonight after I unload,” Grace said as she decided on the spot. “How late are you open? When does this flea market operate?”
The woman laughed. “We’ll be here all night! We’re open every night, but some nights you’ll find tons of stalls, and other nights you’ll only find a few. In the winter and bad weather, there are slim pickings. But—” the woman handed her a small business card that she seemingly snatched out of nowhere. “I have another location, just a few blocks up on the second floorabove Mad Hatter Music. If you like those chairs, I have the table to match.”
“That’s awesome!” Grace temporarily forgot the strange floaty feeling in her head and the heavy feeling in her eyelids. “Any furniture that’s in good shape and not too modern is what I’m looking for. I’m renovating Hilltop House to turn it into a B&B. I originally thought about having one big table for the dining room, but then I thought—sometimes you don’t want to ruin a romantic weekend by talking with total strangers. I think I’ll get about eight tables and spread them out in the dining room and maybe some in the sunroom—solarium, the Victorians called it. And—why am I rattling on? Uh. Sorry. Do you take credit cards?” Grace stopped speaking and reached into her jeans for her wallet.
“A girl who loves decorating and secondhand furniture? We’re kindred spirits. Sure, I take cards. Also, since it’s your first purchase, you get 10% off. That’ll be ninety bucks—when you collect.”
“How much is the table?”
“I’ll throw it in for fifty. I hate to see a furniture family split up.” The owner smiled. “I’m Chloe, by the way.” She patted the sign with a smile.
Grace nodded and licked her lips. Her unease wasn’t lessening—but she was forcing herself to ignore it in favor of making a good deal and getting information. “I’m Grace. What other attractions are around here? Local events and things like that?”
“Well, in the fall, Pine Ridge is the place to be! Apple Fest in September, Pumpkin Fest in October, Halloween events like the parade and a big ball up at White Pines. Then, of course, there are always concerts in the park and a big Fourth of July picnic for the town and the Labor Day cookout... It’s a nice place.”
Grace swallowed a polite rejoinder as a large, dark shadow seemed to spread over her, swooping against the rising moon. “What the hell was that?”
To her surprise, Chloe looked equally freaked out, but not about the giant shape that had rustled overhead. No, she was looking at Grace with a confused, alarmed look on her face. “You saw that?”
“I don’t know what it was, but yeah, of course I saw it! What the heck was that? You have owls the size of Hondas around here?”
Chloe blinked, mouth open. “I’ll see you shortly, Grace. Do you have room to pick up the table tonight?”
“Uh. Yes. I think so.” Grace frowned, brow furrowed. Her mouth itched, like other words were meant to come out—but she couldn’t form them.
Chloe nodded slowly, her eyes never leaving Grace’s, her voice soft but seeming to throb in the night air. “You go home now. Unload.”
But that’s not right. I have to go get food. I wanted to look around the open-air market.
Grace heard her voice replying, “Right. I’ll unload. I’ll be back soon. Table and chairs.”
WHEN GRACE SAT BEHINDthe wheel of her car, the strange fog lifted from her mind.
“What the fuck Jedi mind trick was that?” she whispered, pushing her key into the ignition with shaking hands. “We were talking about... Hell, I don’t knowwhatwe were talking about. Something in the sky...”
Her stomach suddenly growled, and she remembered food. She just needed food to kill the strange, eerie feeling.
And maybe... Maybe a glass of wine to relax her. And maybe that glass of wine could be had in the huge, deep tub, where she could soak the kinks out of her muscles, muscles that surely deserved a treat after a day of hauling heavy things?
That would keep the dark thoughts and feelings at bay.
“THAT’S GOING TO HAVEto stay there for tonight.” Grace let the table rest on the porch, now covered with a tarp. Her back ached. Her muscles screamed. Her stomach and mouth protested that she had a yummy manicotti in a foil pan right next to her, and she hadn’t even taken a single bite.
