I pause and look around, hear someone shuffle around in the back. This place wasn’t robbed, but something isn’t right. It’s not my problem. I need to grab the sage and get out so I can work on breaking the curse. And getting naked with one of the guys doesn’t sound too bad either. I’ll welcome any distraction.
It takes me a minute to sort through the box of herbs, and once I finally locate the sage smudge sticks, I grab three and go to the counter. A minute passes before Lyra comes out, wiping her eyes. Dammit. I should say something comforting, or at the very least ask if she’s okay.
“Are you all right?” I ask.
“A friend died this morning.” She takes the sage sticks and rings them up.
“I’m sorry for your loss.”
“I saw it in the cards,” she goes on, reminding me why I don’t ask people what’s wrong. They open up and spill their guts. “I saw the warning but didn’t think…In the deck, death can represent the end of a phase, not actually death. And Josh…” She stops, turning away and wiping her eyes.
“Josh?” I blurt, thinking there’s just no way. “Josh Pickett?”
“Yes, you knew him?”
Trading my wallet for my badge, I show it to Lyra. “I’m going to have to ask you a few questions.”
She blinks a few times, mouth falling open in shock.
“Okay.” She stares at me for another second, almost looking nervous. Then she sniffles, finishes ringing me up, and hands me the bag. “Do I need a lawyer?”
“Are you guilty of anything?”
She shakes her head. She might scam people with her tarot readings, but I don’t get a feeling she’s a murderer. Not at all. “What was the nature of your friendship with Josh?”
“I was kind of like his mentor.”
“Kind of like?”
She plays with one of the crystal necklaces hanging around her neck. “He was new to this,” she starts, sweeping her hand out in front of her. “Maybe a year or so ago, he came into my shop for the first time looking for answers.”
“Answers to what?”
“Life,” she answers with a watery smile. “It’s how a lot of people become involved in the craft. They can sense there is more in the world and want to get to know the spirits. Josh told me he’s always felt the pull but resisted, knowing his parents wouldn’t approve. He was home in the city for summer break and would come in a few times a week. We’d mostly talk about Wicca or our experiences with the paranormal. Josh was having visions from a past life. I taught him how to channel the visions into lucid dreams so he could get the answers he sought.”
“And did he?”
“In a way. He met his girlfriend at a divination workshop I held around Yule.”
Reaching into my purse, I pull out my phone and log onto Lily’s Facebook account. “Have you seen this girl before?”
Lyra leans in, studying Lily’s face. “No. Do you think she killed—”
“I can’t discuss matters of the case at the moment. When was the last time you saw or spoke to Josh?”
“Last week. He and Ginny—his girlfriend—came in and were looking forward to the tarot class coming up. Josh has grown so much. He was going to do a reading.”
Nodding, I take a minute to think. “You said he knew his parents wouldn’t approve of him.”
“Right. They’re rather old-fashioned.”
“Did he ever tell them?”
“Yes, around the same time he met his girlfriend.”
“Do you know how that went down?”
She nods and trades the crystal in her hand for another. “It wasn’t as bad as we expected. His parents didn’t take it seriously and believed he’d lose interest in being Wiccan eventually.”
