“Dammit,” I muttered. I had been afraid that was going to be the case, and I knew it meant I would have to ask a different question he wouldn’t be nearly as quick to answer. I sucked in a breath and blurted it out anyway. “Okay, then is there any chance you can tell me where Annalise is right now?”
“Yeah, in an eight-by-twelve cussin’ the fact that bright orange ain’t ‘er color. Don’t worry, she’s not gettin’ out.”
“I’m not worried. About that anyway. But I do need to know where she is specifically. Saint Louis? Somewhere else?”
“Ain’t important, white man,” he returned with a hard, dismissive tone underscoring the words. Even with that, at least his overall reaction was calmer than I had expected it might be.
“Do you even know where she’s being held, Ben?”
“Yeah. She’s in an eight-by-twelve, just like I said.”
“Dammit, you know what I mean.”
“Yeah, well actually I do know where she is. But I’m tellin’ ya’ to leave it alone, Row.”
“I can’t.”
“Yes, you can.”
“No, seriously, Ben. I can’t.”
“Okay, I’ll play. Ya’ wanna give me a good reason why?”
“Maybe I’m wrong, but I’ve got a bad feeling this isn’t over yet.”
“What isn’t over?”
“Miranda.”
“What? How the hell can it not be over?” he almost barked the question. “The bitch is in custody. There’s enough hard evidence ta’ get ‘er the needle. It’s a slam-dunk. Once the Feebs are done with her, she’s gonna be puttin’ in her order for a last meal. It’s done. Finished.”
“You’re talking about Annalise,” I told him, nodding my head in agreement. “But I’m talking about Miranda. The Lwa that was using her as a horse.”
He shook his head. “Horse. Jeez, that gets me every time I hear it.”
“It’s just Vodoun terminology for the body a spirit possesses, Ben.”
“Yeah, I know, you told me. Still sounds weird though.” He threw up his hands and shook his head. “Either way, white man, it doesn’t matter. Like you said, Miranda’s a ghost.”
“Actually she’s a Vodoun ancestral spirit.”
“Say it however ya’ want. Horse, Spirit, Low-ahh, Miranda, I don’t care-you’re still talkin’ about a friggin’ ghost.”
“If that’s what you insist on calling her, fine. But the fact remains, she’s still out there.”
“Row, she ain’t real.”
“Yes, she is. You’ve seen way too…”
“Gimme a break, you know what I meant,” he interrupted. “How many times do I hafta tell you I can’t help ya’ there? I can’t arrest somethin’ I can’t even see.”
“I’m not asking you to.”
“Then would ya’ like to explain exactly what it is you’re wantin’?”
“Access to Annalise.”
He snorted out a sarcastic chuckle. “Yeah, like that’s gonna happen. Get real. Why don’t we go back ta’ me arrestin’ the ghost, it’d prob’ly be easier.”
“It’s my only recourse at this point,” I replied.
“What’s seein’ her got ta’ do with Miranda?”
“Maybe everything.”
“Well, ya’ might as well forget it. Even if I wasn’t suspended, there ain’t enough strings on the planet I could pull ta’ get you access ta’ her. Not that I would if I could.”
“Well I need to find some way to make it happen, so if you won’t help me I’ll have to find someone who will.”
“Yeah, well good luck. C’mon, Row. Seriously. Whaddaya need ta’ see ‘er for?”
“To find out what she did with that spell.”
“Okay, so we’re back around to the missin’ bottle-jar thing.”
“It’s more than just a bottle, Ben,” I replied. “You know that.”
“Uh-huh. All I know is what you said, and the way I remember it, you didn’t know exactly what it was yourself.”
“At the time I didn’t, but now I’ve got a theory.”
“Why am I not surprised?”
“So are you suddenly doubting me?” I asked.
“I didn’t say that…” He shook his head and huffed out a resigned breath. “Okay, fine, so you wanna share this theory or is it top secret?”
“I think the spellwork she did might have something to do with bonding Felicity to the Lwa.”
“So you think the jar thing is why Firehair flipped out again and went all psycho bitch even though you did a bunch of hocus-pocus to keep it from happenin’.”
“That’s pretty much it.”
“Why?”
“I just do.”
“Are ya’ sure?”
“Like I said, it’s a theory.”
He shook his head. “Don’t tell me… Ya’ got a feelin’…”
“Yes.”
“Friggin’ wunnerful,” he huffed. “So five minutes ago ya’ stood here and told me I was wrong about Deck and Constance, but now you got a feelin’, and I’m s’posed ta’ just accept it without question?”
“Yeah, Ben, I know how that sounds… But, that’s usually how this works. You said it yourself. I’m the Witch, not you.”
“Uh-huh, well you oughta be glad you don’t really ride a broom ‘cause I’d shove it up your ass right about now if ya’ did…” He paused, and looked at me for a moment then finally said, “Jeezus… Okay… So just how bad is this feelin’ anyway?”
“Bad enough.”
“Lovely,” he muttered. “Does Felicity know?”
“I haven’t mentioned it just yet. I don’t really want to worry her with this right now.”
“Crap, Row… Isn’t she the whole reason you’re…”
I cut him off. “Don’t worry, I plan to tell her. I just didn’t want to drop it on her just yet. She’s still coming to terms with the fact that Miranda possessed her to begin with. Not to mention finding out that Annalise is actually her half sister. It’s like a damned soap opera, and she’s got a lot to digest. Not to mention that everything else that’s happened the past few days isn’t making it any easier.”
“Yeah… I know… I’m just sayin’ don’t wait too long on that, or she’ll be the one gettin’ hold of ya’ with the broom when she finds out… Hell, I know how she is, and I ain’t even the one married to ‘er…”
“I know, Ben. Believe me, I know. And I’ll tell her.”
He fell silent for a moment then shook his head. “So… ‘Bad enough’. Just exactly how bad is that? And gimme somethin’ specific. Like, is Miranda gonna climb inside Firehair’s head again or what?”
“Well, we know for a fact she’d like to. And if I’m right, that’s what the spell meant to facilitate. But I don’t plan on letting it happen.”
“Seems ta’ me you weren’t too successful at stoppin’ it this last go ‘round.”
“I know, but let’s just say this time I’m holding an ace,” I replied.
“What kinda ace?”
“A necklace.”
“A necklace?”
“Long story. Just trust me.”
“Yeah. Trust you,” he harrumphed. “Famous last words. Okay, so if you got this necklace, then why do ya’ hafta find this bottle so bad?”
“Because I don’t like loose ends. Especially this kind. Besides, if I’m right, the necklace and whatever is in that bottle are connected, so it’s really the key to ending all of this.”
He stared at me for a second then looked at his watch. “Look, I really gotta get movin’. So is this just a Witch thing, or do I need to be worried at my end?”
“It’s definitely a Witch thing,” I said. “Like I said, it’s not a good idea to leave magick like that to its own devices. It can have a tendency to take on a life of its own.”
“Yeah, yeah, okay, but cut ta’ the chase. Are ya’ tellin’ me this is just you bein’ anal, and it ain’t an emergency, or is it somethin’ else?”
“Could be all of the above or maybe none of the above. I don’t know for sure.”
“Jeezus, Row. Do you ever give straight answers?” He huffed out the question in a disgusted tone and didn’t wait for my reply. “Just tell me straight-are there gonna be more bodies turnin’ up because of this?”
“I’d like to say no, but I can’t for sure.”
“Dammit, Row…”
“Honestly, I don’t know, Ben,” I appealed. “I certainly hope not. But, we know Miranda wants to use Felicity as a horse just like she did with Annalise, and she’s proven she’ll do anything to get to her… If I don’t sever the connection and finish this for good… Well… It’s hard to know what she’ll do. I will say this though-it’s a good bet that if you do end up with more bodies, mine will probably be the first.”