Born of Illusion by Brown Teri

Author:Brown, Teri [Brown, Teri]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2013-06-11T04:00:00+00:00

Seventeen

Several days later, I’m surprised to find Mother up and dressed after my morning’s shopping is done. She’s been on her best behavior the past few days—our shows have gone off seamlessly and she’s made no more references to our last séance. It makes me wonder what she’s up to.

So far, I’ve managed to avoid Cole, but perhaps he’s been avoiding me, too. Truthfully, I’m a bit miffed he hasn’t sought me out to see how I’ve been. Maybe he’s waiting for me to come to him. I probably will eventually, but I’m in no hurry.

I haven’t had the vision again and I am praying it was just some sort of strange anomaly, but Dr. Bennett’s words keep going around and around in my brain. What if he’s right? What if I can’t stop it?

“Where have you been, darling?”

I shake my basket at her. “Shopping.”

“All you ever shop for is food. I want to go buy you some new clothes. You have nothing to wear tomorrow night.”

My mind blanks. “Tomorrow night? I thought I’d just wear what I always wear for the show.”

“No, I meant with Owen, afterward. You want to look smart, don’t you?”

I let out a breath. “Oh. I forgot.” What’s wrong with me? Here I am a mere day before going out dancing with a handsome young man and I’ve completely forgotten about it. Sometimes I despair of ever being normal.

She throws up her hands in mock hopelessness. “What am I going to do with you? Come on. I’ll call Jacques and he can send a car over for us. Let’s go to Bonwit Teller and find something.”

I shake my head. “No, I have plenty of clothes. Or I can borrow something of yours.”

“But don’t you want something new?”

“Mother, I don’t need it. And what’s more, we can’t afford it.”

She sits at the table, her mouth pursed with disappointment. “Sometimes it’s hard for me to believe you’re my daughter.”

“That makes two of us,” I say dryly.

“Now, none of your sass. And what do you mean, we can’t afford it? We’re making good money, aren’t we? The apartment is practically rent free and electricity is cheap. I don’t know why you’re so worried all the time.”

Because someone needs to be, I think. “We’re almost the same size, and you have lots of clothes. I might as well take advantage of it. Come on; let’s go see what you have.”

The thought of looking through her clothes mollifies Mother and I spend the next hour choosing what I’ll wear. We decide on a short-sleeved beige shift with silver beads dressing up the front. It has a daring handkerchief hemline and I’ll wear it with a long silk scarf tied about my neck. It’s fussier than I want and half as fussy as my mother would prefer.

After picking out my clothes, a knock on the door sounds and I answer, hoping it’s not Jacques again. He’s taken to coming over almost every day now.

To my surprise it’s Cole, holding a huge bouquet of flowers.

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