“You know why.” River gave her a gentle smile. “Other people can be unscrupulous and pretend they’re talking to someone when they’re not. I won’t do that. If Mr. Crabtree was here, I’d tell you.” She shrugged and squeezed Mrs. Crabtree’s hand. “And that’s why you keep coming to me instead of going to someone else.”
Mrs. Crabtree seemed to melt a little, like she was a sugar cube someone had poured water over. Her misty eyes teared up, and she stared at the quartz. “I miss him so much. I’d give anything to have just one more word from him.”
This was the hardest part of the job. River could feel Mrs. Crabtree’s genuine pain. Her loneliness clung to her like a wool blanket, suffocating whatever joy she might have had after her husband’s death. “I’m sorry. I wish I could offer you that. But I hope you can take at least some comfort in the fact that he didn’t linger. He went straight off to whatever waits beyond this world. And that’s what we want for our loved ones. Not that they drift around, unable to let go.”
“I disagree. I want him to hang around to be withme. Not lazing about on some stupid cloud with a woman half his age.”
“I don’t…” River began and then stopped. Who was she to say what the afterlife looked like? “I’m sure if he could be here, he would be. Everyone knows how in love you were.”
She nodded and then pushed to her feet, thankfully not using the cane to whack River over the head. “We were. I’m sure I’ll be with him soon enough, and I’ll kick that young hussy right off his cloud, believe you me.” She shuffled back out, the bell on the door tinkling softly.
River shook her head and went to get her coffee. There was a faint earthy taste in the coffee from the CBD, but otherwise, it was just a normal brew meant to keep her awake and moving through the day.
“I have news!” The bell rang again, immediately followed by her business partner’s voice. “I have news!”
River came out, cradling her coffee, and smiled at Audrey’s enthusiasm. “I’m sorry, I couldn’t hear you.”
Audrey huffed. “I have news. We’re going out tonight!”
River shook her head. “Unless you’re talking about you and Tony, your statement is incorrect. I’m not going anywhere tonight.”
“No, you are. There’s a gala at the Hawthorne Exchange. They’re showing Wendy’s work!”
Now the enthusiasm made sense. Wendy was Audrey’s daughter, and she’d been working on getting her own art exhibition for years. “Okay, so we’re going out. What time?”
Audrey pulled out her phone. “It opens at six, but I want to be there by five thirty so we’re the first ones in and I can get my embarrassing mom moment out of the way before the people with money show up.”
“I’ve got an evening séance with the McAllisters, but I’ll just let them know we need to reschedule.” River pulled out her phone and then went to the appointment book behind the counter to get the phone number.
“Are they the ones trying to get hold of Grandpa to ask questions about the will?” Audrey started pulling things from a bag and placing them around the room. They already had price tags, which meant she’d been working from home again.
“Yeah. They don’t like the will he left behind, so they want me to tell them he updated it, and who he left everything to. I explained that it wouldn’t hold up in court even if he did deign to speak through me, but they said they’d take my word for it.”
“And when you don’t tell them what they want to hear, they’ll head over to the Psychic Emporium to find someone they can pay to say what they want to hear.”
River shrugged. “Fine with me. I’m not about to demean myself by making shit up.”
“Same old River. Always standing her moral ground, even when it gets her picked on. Or in this case, loses us a client.” Before River could object, Audrey pulled her into a hug. “It’s something I love about you.”
River settled. She’d had enough people pushing her over the years. She didn’t need Audrey doing it too.
The day was mostly routine after that. She did a few tarot readings, sold a few books, and attempted to reach a few souls who had passed over. Though two of them didn’t appear at all, one of them had been a musty smell, a shadow made of disappointment. They’d refused to come closer to talk, and she’d given up after about ten minutes, sensing the futility of it. The man had said he’d come back another day and left looking bereft.
Audrey turned the sign to closed and wafted her hand in front of her face. “What’s that smell?”
“Necrosis.” River stretched out the muscles in her back, which were tense despite the CBD in her coffee. “They hardly ever smell of roses, you know.”
“I don’t get why they smell at all. Why attach a scent to a ball of energy? Seems like a waste.” She waved a sage stick around, ridding the shop of the odor.
“I’m going home to change. I’ll see you at the exhibition. Or did you want to ride together?” River asked, grabbing her keys and already planning what she’d wear.
“No, we’ll see you there.” Audrey gave her a kiss on the cheek after she locked the shop door behind them. “Don’t be late.”
“Am I ever?” River asked, backing down the sidewalk.
“Are you ever on time is the question.” Audrey waved and got into her little VW Bug that looked like a lime on wheels.
River took her time getting ready and wore her favorite cologne. She glanced at the Wheel of Fortune card. Maybe whatever it was about would come up tonight. A feeling of anticipation niggled at the back of her mind, and she grinned.
