Shady Bay Read Online Free PDF Page A

goodnight before the door closed behind him.
    Who were these people?

 
     
     
     
     
    The blinds in the room were jerked open ceremoniously. Celeste stood proudly by the window, humming to herself. She looked a whole lot less like the little old lady who’d greeted me last night and a whole lot more like the fortune-teller she’d claimed to be. Rings were stacked on all of her wrinkled fingers. Those led to bangles stacked on her wrists. A bright, floral shirt was tucked into her gauzy white skirt. She wore no shoes but her toes were also covered in rings. Hair that had been tucked into curlers last night was now teased and held into place by a silk scarf and a lot of hairspray. Her eyelids were bright blue and her lashes were thick with black mascara. Even her lips and cheeks were bright red.
    “Good morning,” she sang. “Time to get up for the day. I’ve got bagels for breakfast and some cereal somewhere around here if you don’t like those.” She stopped and looked at me.
    “Oh, no. Bagels are great.”
    “So, let’s cut the shit. You need a job and a place to stay? Some help getting on your feet?”
    I nodded. “Yes.”
    Clapping her hands. “Great. I’ve got a job for you and you can stay here, but I’m working on getting you a place of your own. I’ll pay you at the end of each workday for now so that you can have some money for food , and well, all the things we need cash for. Okay?”
    “Okay.”
    “Good. Get ready. Get downstairs. Eat and we’ll go to work.”
    “Where are we working?”
    She grinned saucily. “You’ll see.”
    I threw on the same clothes I’d worn yesterday, brushed my hair and teeth , and ran downstairs. After scarfing down a peanut-butter smeared bagel, I cleaned up my mess and met Celeste at the door that led to the carport. She was still barefooted. “Well, come on, Mercy-girl.”
    She locked the door behind us, walked to the sidewalk and when the road was clear, we walked across the road to a tiny little house, whose clapboards had been painted gun-metal gray. Above the awning was a sign which sported two hands atop a crystal ball. The image was encircled with the words, “Madame Celeste, May Your Future Be Bright.”
    Celeste unlocked the front door and we stepped inside. The front room was crammed full of more than my eyes could take in at once. Candles in varying colors and scents, crystals, a wall full of books, shelves of herbs, crystal balls, dragon sculptures, and Ouija board games: if it was weird, this place had it.
    Behind the small register area was a beaded curtain revealing a back room with a small round table covered in cloth and scarves. In the center of this table was a crystal ball. A real one. I expected to see voodoo dolls and eye of newt somewhere. This was just too weird.
    Candles of different colors were strewn all over the mantle in the back of the room, some on candlesticks, some in wrought iron holders, and some in lanterns. Silk scarves hung from the three lamp shades in the room. The scent of sage laid heavy in the air.
    “It’s not a gimmick. I’m not here to amuse tourists, in case you’re wondering. I have a gift and it’s real. Most of my clients are locals, though I’ll read for anyone. I don’t discriminate.”
    I nodded, taking everything in. “You know my nickname.”
    “Yep. I know a lot about you , baby girl. Glad you left when you did.” She patted my shoulder and went about the store flipping lights on and plugging things into the wall outlets. A fountain began flowing in the corner of the room near the main window. It was peaceful, and though a little new age for my tastes, it was cool. It was a fresh start, a new job. And I was damn thankful for it.
    Celeste spent the day showing me how to use the register, explaining how to book appointments and about her “regulars” that had standing appointments with her at designated times and days throughout the week or month. She showed me how to stock merchandise and