When the toilet in her stall flushed, I darted to one of the two sinks and pretended to be washing my hands. In the mirror's reflection above the sink, I watched Venus’ stall door swing open and a small look of surprise appear on her face when she saw me there
I pumped soap out of the dispenser on the wall, much more than I’d normally use. “I’m, uh, a little of a germophobe,” I lied quickly, impressed at my quick wit, as I scrubbed my hands so hard it hurt to make it more convincing. “Bathrooms really set me off, even just touching the door handle.”
Venus shrugged and joined me at the sinks, a small purse bouncing from a thin strap on her shoulder. She shrugged the bag off, set it on the floor beside her, and switched on the warm water faucet. “I can’t blame you there. They’re pretty gross, and you’re handling our food, so I definitely won’t complain about overzealous hygiene,” she said with a smile.
“Glad to hear. So, are you having a good time so far?”
“Sure, all things considered,” she said, and though it was slight, her smile faltered.
That wasn’t the answer I’d expected, so I looked at her with my brows furrowed. “Is something wrong?”
Venus shook her head in the mirror. “Not really, no. It’s just that things feel a little, well, weird. I haven’t talked to Miranda in nearly twenty years, and we parted on an unpleasant note, so it’s just taking me some time to adjust to being around her and the others again.”
Miranda’s version of the story didn’t entirely match Venus’, but I stored that away for later and played dumb. “Really? I wouldn’t have guessed. You seem so close, so I assumed you two had a good time together during your days at the Institute.”
Venus laughed. “Actually, we barely knew each other then. I mean, sure, we knew of each other, but we weren’t friends. We became soul sisters after I started working at the resort with her and…” she trailed and turned off the faucet. She shook the excess water off her hands in the sink and cleared her throat. “With her and her ex-husband,” she finished as she reached for a paper towel hanging from the nearby dispenser on the wall.
“Wow. Twenty years is a long time to go without seeing a soul sister, isn’t it?” I asked, testing her tolerance for tough questions. Venus froze with her back to me, her hands tangled up in a damp paper towel. Finally, she turned to face me with a half-smile on her face.
“It is, but honestly, it feels like we just saw each other yesterday,” she said and balled up her paper towel to toss it in the trash beside the sink. “Anyway, I’d better get back to the party before I miss all the fun. Thanks again,” she said and strolled toward the locked door — which she’d find suspicious if she got to it before I did.
Sensing my opportunity slip away, desperation swelled in my stomach until I realized she’d left her purse. “Venus, wait!” I shouted, my voice booming off the surrounding walls. She jumped and turned with her hand on her chest. “You forgot your purse,” I said, pointing down at it, and she laughed and shook her head.
“Oh, dear Lilith, you scared the Hades out of me,” she laughed and came back to the sink to retrieve it. I went to reach for it with my wet hands, but as I moved, she snapped, “I’ve got it, thanks!”
Venus scooped up her purse and flung it over one shoulder. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to sound so snippy. It’s just a really expensive, genuine leather bag, so I’d be devastated if water ruined it. Besides, I’m sure you don’t want its germs all over your clean hands.”
“No, definitely not,” I agreed with a smile, though I kicked myself mentally for already giving away my germophobic facade while I tore off a couple of paper towels and dried my hands. “I can only imagine how much something that nice that must’ve cost.”
“You have no idea. Working in a tea shop pays my bills, but when it comes to buying designer bags? Not so much. I had to pick up more shifts than I care to remember to save up for it,” Venus said with a strained smile that answered my question about what she did these days — and confirmed that she’d had a hard time getting hired for anything more than retail, and even that probably hadn’t been easy to get.
“Really? I would’ve guessed you were more the entrepreneurial type,” I said, poking again.
Venus eyed me suspiciously like she thought I might be fishing but couldn’t be sure. “What makes you say that?”
“Oh, I dunno, you just have that independent spirit about you,” I lied, hoping she’d buy it. Judging from the flattered smile that split her face, she did.
“Well, thanks. I definitely march to the wave of my own wand, but I don’t think I’d be very good at running a business. I’m not always the most responsible with money,” she said, jiggling her designer purse to illustrate the point.
“Well, we all have our vices, right?”
“Right,” Venus agreed. “I just wish there were more people here to see it. I hate to admit it, but I bought the bag just for the reunion. You know how these things go; everyone’s trying to brag a little and prove they’re more well off than they were back in school.”
“Yeah, it’s a shame more people couldn’t make it. That reminds me, I heard there was another guest who should’ve been here but didn’t show up.”
Venus’s eyes raked over me before resting on my eyes. “Well, to be honest, I don’t think anyone’s really disappointed about him not being here.”
“Are you talking about Declan Redwood?”
“More like Demon Redwood, but yes, that’s him,” she said with venom in her voice. Unlike Miranda, Venus clearly hadn’t let go of all her resentment toward Declan, which made my skin prickle. “He must’ve realized at the last second that showing his face here would be a terrible idea, and I’m glad he did. I haven’t seen him in twenty years, and I hope I never do again.”
“Sounds like you aren’t fond of Declan.”
Venus scoffed. “Honestly? No one here is, but who could blame them? He’s a liar and a scam artist.”
“Did he rip you off too?”
“Worse. He accused me of stealing from his cash register — falsely, of course — and that’s the reason I’m still working in a Lilith-forsaken tea house at my age,” Venus spat, but instantly regret flashed across her face. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that. I guess the wine is kicking in.”
“Hey, you know what they say: what’s said in the girl’s room, stays in the girl’s room.” I turned an invisible key in front of my mouth and flicked it away. “My lips are sealed. But while we’re on the subject, why do you think Declan changed his mind about coming? Seems kind of strange to back out at the last second like that.”
Venus rested a hand on her hip and gave me a withering look. “Would you want to spend the weekend with a bunch of people you’d cheated out of their money and livelihoods?”
“No, definitely not.”
“Well, then there’s your answer. But then again, who knows? I’ve heard some other rumors.”
My heart rate doubled. Could Miranda really have told her about how she’d seen an undead Declan? “Oh? Like what?”
Venus glanced at the door to make sure no one was coming, though she didn’t know they literally couldn’t. She leaned closer to me and lowered her voice, although we were alone. “You didn’t hear this from me, but I don’t think Declan decided not to come so much as he finally got what’s been coming to him for twenty years.”
I deflated like a leaking balloon at that because Miranda had to have told Venus about Declan’s dirt nap. Why else would she say something like that? “So, you think his past could’ve finally caught up to him?”
Venus shrugged. “I have no idea, but it’s definitely possible. Anyone else with his history and an ounce of self-awareness would’ve known better than to come to this reunion, but Declan doesn’t care about anyone but himself, so you’re right, it’s kind of weird he backed out.”
Her comments made me second guess if Miranda had really shared the news of Declan’s zombification with her. She wasn’t talking about him in the past tense. “That’s not something he would do?”
Venus scoffed and shook her head. “No, not at all. He’s more likely to show up smug and smiling just to make the rest of us uncomfortable out of spite.”
“Is there anyone in particular you think might’ve gone after Declan?”
“Plenty of people would like to, believe me,” she said, her eyes flashing mischievously, so I risked a more direct question.
“Would you?”
Venus chuckled. “Don’t get me wrong, I hate Declan’s guts, but I’m not that type of person — I’m a lover and a healer, not a killer,” she said, clutching a decorative vial full of what looked like dried, crushed tea leaves that dangled from her neck. “Besides, I’m more focused on my daughter than stupid grudges.”
“Is there anyone you know who might still hold a grudge against Declan?”
Again, Venus’ eyes shot to the door, and she lowered her voice even further. “You didn’t hear this from me either — it’s a pretty well-known secret in town, but still — Fallon and Declan were inseparable during their time at the Institute, and Fallon’s a computer whiz, so it wasn’t a surprise when Declan hired him to be in charge of all the tech at the ski resort after they graduated. But then Fallon abruptly quit or got fired; no one’s sure which.”
“What happened?”
“The rumor is that the two of them had a big falling out over an accident that happened on the resort not long after Declan hired Fallon. A young witch got permanent back damage when the lift she was on broke and she fell from it. Fallon ‘left’ shortly after that,” Venus said, curling her fingers in air quotes when she said “left.” “Declan claimed Fallon quit to take another job, but the timing was way too coincidental. I’ve always thought Declan threw Fallon under the bus and blamed him for the accident to save his own hide.”
It sure sounded like the something Declan would do, based on all I knew about him already, and if he’d tarred Fallon’s reputation like that it definitely would’ve given Fallon enough of a motivation for revenge, even after twenty years. I wanted to ask Venus more about Fallon and his relationship with Declan — she seemed like she knew something about everyone — but I never got the chance because someone pounded on the bathroom door, startling both of us.
“Selena! Are you in there?” Jadis’ voice called through the closed door, and my skin rippled at the fear laced in her tone. I hurried to the door and blocked it with my body to unlock it as discreetly as I could, and Jadis came spilling in. “There you are!”
“What’s wrong?”
Jadis looked past me at Venus and shook her head slightly. “Come with me,” she said and snatched my hand to drag me out of the bathroom. I stole a glance over my shoulder and found Venus hurrying after us, but there wasn’t anything I could do to stop her.
We dashed down the hallway to the foyer where the front door was wide open, allowing snow to rush in and pile on the stone floor. “What the heck is going on?” I shouted through the howling wind as I peeked around the edge of the door to look outside. Through the sheet of snow and darkness, hundreds of feet away on the outer grounds, I saw an orange ball and Blair and Kiki’s silhouettes darting around it and casting spells.
“It’s the tool shed. It’s on fire,” Jadis whispered vacantly from behind, and my heart dropped because I knew right away what it meant.
Someone had tried to finish Declan off for good this time.