Page 2 of Dead O’Clock

Taking a deep breath of his own, Ten set to work trying to wade through the intrusive thoughts, fears, and panic in Lorrianne’s mind. Once she began to calm down, Ten could see a man. He was tall and thin, with movie star good looks, dark eyes, blonde hair, huge dick. He could feel the love Lorrianne had for this man. He, no, Jason, was the air that she breathed. At first, Lorrianne couldn’t believe a man like Jason could love her too. She’d thought he was too good to be true. It turned out she’d been right. “Tell me why your relationship with Jason ended.”

Lorrianne’s eyes popped open. They instantly filled with tears. “Jason said I wasn’t giving him what he needed, but didn’t really explain what that was.”

“Had you come into your mother’s estate before or after you met him?” Ten asked. He could see with absolute clarity what it was Jason had wanted from Lorrianne.

“After,” she said, looking confused. “What does that have to do with anything?”

“Did you get the money right away or is it in some kind of trust until you reach a certain age?” Ten asked.

“I got it all at once.” Lorrianne started at Ten. “Are you trying to tell me Jason was after my money?”

“Yes, that’s exactly what I’m telling you.” Ten hated delivering this kind of news, but he figured it was better for Lorriane to know now than to find out after she’d spent a fortune trying to win him back.

“That’s impossible. Jason had his own money. His father was a former professional baseball player. He didn’t need my money. All he wanted to do was get married and start our lives together. I wanted to wait a while and let our relationship grow, but he kept pushing. A month ago, he gave me an ultimatum, marry him or he was out. He said his biological clock was ticking and he didn’t have time to waste.”

It wasn’t Jason’s clock that was ticking, but rather the wolf knocking at the door. “He was over one hundred thousand dollars in debt with various credit cards and a loan shark, whose patience was wearing thin with Jason’s excuses.”

“I don’t believe that.” Lorrianne shook her head, as if the motion could somehow cancel out what Tennyson was saying.

“Did your string of bad luck start before or after the break up?”

“After,” Lorrianne said.

“Which is why you thought you’d been cursed, right? All of these bad things started happening all at once.”

“Right, but, Jason would never-”

“Jason came to see you one last time. Gave you a lame excuse about having forgotten something in your apartment, right?”

“Right, he said he left a ring in his nightstand. I let him go into the bedroom to get it. He was in and out in a matter of seconds. He begged me one more time to get married and when I said no, he stormed out of the apartment. It was the next day that I was fired from my job and when I left the office, all four of my tires were flat. I could see nails sticking out of the rubber.”

“You keep your purse in your bedroom,” Ten said. It wasn’t a question. He could see her Coach bag sitting beside the closet door.

“I do,” Lorriane agreed. “Again, what does that have to do with anything?”

“I need you to look through your purse for something that doesn’t belong.” Ten got up from his seat and opened the reading room door. “I’m gonna need your help,” he called to Carson and Cole, before ducking back into the reading room.

“I’ve got my wallet, sunglasses, phone,” Lorrianne laid the items on the table as she named them. “Checkbook, date book, and, what’s this?” She pulled out a small blue velvet bag. It was tied with twine and Ten could smell something faintly earthy. “I’ve never seen this before.”

“What is it, Ten?” Carson asked, walking into the room.

“It’s a gris gris bag.” Ten didn’t know a lot about black magic, but this he knew for certain. “I need latex gloves, scissors, one of our selenite bowls, a piece of charcoal, and matches.”

Carson shot Ten a confused look, and left the room. Cole stepped in behind his brother.

“Oh, and a hammer or something to break up the charcoal.”

“Tennyson, what the hell is going on?” Lorrianne asked.

“Jason cursed you. This bag is proof. What we need to do is counter the curse.” Ten felt slightly out of his depth here, but had a clear course of action.

“You know how to counter curses?” Cole asked.

Ten nodded as Carson walked back into the room with the items he’d asked for. He slipped on the gloves, hating the way they smelled, and picked up the scissors. He began gently cutting the twine that held the pouch together. “About a month ago, we got a shipment of new books. One of them was damaged. It was about curses and countermeasures. You were going to send the book back for a refund-”

“But you asked for a few days to read it first,” Carson said.

“Exactly,” Ten agreed. “One of the chapters was about curses involving mandrake root and how it’s carved to look like a person. You put a personal item in the bag with the root and hide the bag somewhere it can do the most damage. I assume Jason stuck it in your purse because it’s with you day and night.” Ten snipped the last piece of twine. He gently pulled the fabric apart to reveal a diamond earring and a small figure.