psychic vampire in every sense of the phrase. Her husband had divorced her two years ago and married a lovely young woman, who was now pregnant with his child. Even these small details did nothing to deter Adele from her firm belief that her ex-husband still loved her and would be realizing that fact any day now. Secret wasn’t even sure why the woman kept coming to see her, because all she did was argue about everything the cards turned up.
Lacing her tea with plenty of honey, Secret stirred it thoroughly and went out onto the deck off of her kitchen. This was a wonderful place to her; a place of calm and peacefulness. She had added the deck just after buying the house. With such an incredible back yard, she just knew the house needed a small deck so that she could enjoy it.
She sat down at the round table, sheltered from the sun’s heat by a large umbrella. The Louisiana sun showered down on the grass in her yard, as well as her large plants and flower garden. A green water hose snaked out into the yard from an outside water spigot that Secret used on the days that the heat wasn’t broken by a rain shower.
Not today, though, she thought. It’s going to rain within a couple of hours.
It never occurred to her to wonder how she knew those things. But she had no doubt that it was going to be raining by the time she was able to close her door in relief on the departing back of Adele Dubois.
At the moment, she felt completely at peace and would enjoy that for now. Adele would arrive soon enough to drain her of both solace and energy.
Secret wished that there was some way to convince the woman that she needed to move forward rather than staying mired in the past. It seemed that there was no moving Adele from fixating on her ex-husband. Secret almost felt sorry for the man.
Checking her watch, she realized that she only had about fifteen minutes before Adele arrived. Finishing the last of her tea, she stood and went back into the kitchen. Rinsing out her cup, she placed it into the dish drain beside the sink and headed into her bedroom to freshen up a little.
By the time Adele was ringing her doorbell, Secret was ready for her.
Well, at least as ready as she would ever be for someone like Adele.
Secret opened the door.
“Hi, Adele. Please come in,” she said.
“Hi, Secret. I sure hope you have some good news for me today,” Adele began her monologue that wouldn’t end the entire time she was here.
Just as Secret was closing her door, she felt that familiar chill down her spine. Glancing out at the street, she saw no one, but was positive that someone was watching her.
“I’ve just had the most awful week,” Adele continued to whine in the background. “You just won’t believe what Sam’s wife has done to me now. I called Sam only because I needed to ask him a very important question and… Secret! Are you listening to me?”
“Hmm?” Secret asked, continuing to scan the street for whoever was focused on her. “Oh yes! Of course, Adele. Certainly. Please, let’s go get started, shall we?”
Looking once more, she closed the door and walked with Adele back to her reading room.
----
SHE FELT ME watching her! That’s nearly all the proof I need that she’s the one.
From his concealed perch in one of the many trees lining the street, Kane Broussard knew that the woman hadn’t spotted him. But he knew when she had sensed him. He could feel her as she searched for him both visually and psychically.
He had first noticed her a week ago when she and some women were exiting a bar in the French Quarter. Her scent was intoxicating and immediately caught his attention. He had surreptitiously followed them that night, watching the woman and trying to figure out what was so unique about her.
Sure, she was quite beautiful. Her black hair hung straight and thick to the middle of her back. She had almond shaped eyes, the color of whiskey, with what seemed to be green flecks in them. High cheekbones and a full
Mary Crockett, Madelyn Rosenberg