Fear Thy Neighbor (21)
Alison smiled. “So how did you know that? Can you read minds?”
“No one expects a medium or psychic to look normal. Follow me,” Valentina said. “It’s more comfortable in the back.”
Alison followed her down a short hallway, stopping in front of a door with a sign that read: SILENCE, I’M READING.
“That was Renée’s idea, not mine.”
“Catchy,” Alison remarked, still amazed at her ability to home in on her thoughts almost instantaneously.
“And to answer your question, I can’t read minds. Come inside, let’s get comfortable.”
Expecting a round crystal ball, candles, and incense, Alison was pleasantly surprised when the room looked just like any other room in the back of a shop. Small, with two cushy chairs, a small table between them with the latest novel from James Patterson on top.
“Can I get you a soft drink or water? Or I think I still have iced tea.” Behind the chairs in the corner stood a small refrigerator with paper cups on top. Valentina searched through the bottles.
“A water is fine, thanks.”
“Good! I was hoping you’d say that. I’m out of tea, and the sodas are all diet. I’m due for a trip into town.” She gave her the water. “Have a seat.” She motioned to the chair closest to the door.
Alison sat down. The chair’s soft cushion against her bare skin felt luxurious, soft. “This is nice,” she said, for lack of anything better. What did one say to a person who may or may not be able to guess her thoughts?
“So, how long are you planning on staying on the island?” Valentina asked.
“I was hoping you could tell me.” Alison chuckled. “Truly, I don’t know. I went to the—”
“Don’t tell me anything about yourself. I don’t want you to feel you’ve influenced what I tell you in any way. Are you good with this?”
“Sure,” she said.
“We’re simply going to have a conversation, and if I say anything that is or isn’t true, try not to respond. Verbally or visually, as it will distract me. Lots of fakes out there, and this is part of their method. They’ll get you to open up with a few basic questions, then before you know it, you’ve told them something about yourself that you’ll think they just whipped out of thin air later. These types give people like myself a bad name.”
As instructed, Alison didn’t comment or show any physical response. No eyebrow lifting or chewing on her lips. She’d learned way too early in life how to blend in with the background. Now was no different.
She waited for Valentina to close her eyes, put her fingers on her temples, anything to indicate she was receiving a message. Instead, she remained calm, as though she were waiting for a bolt of lightning to jar her into a semiconscious state. She spoke just like she did before, as though this were a normal conversation.
“You have concerns about many issues in your life. Pretty basic for most folks, but yours are intense. Life isn’t easy all the time, but you’re an achiever, maybe an overachiever, though you don’t acknowledge these things about yourself. Hard work is your strength. You like being alone. Now you’re considering a change. A first for you, possibly what brought you here. Whatever you decide will change you, in ways you’ve never thought of, but you will walk through this change with much success, though not right away. Struggles will cause you to question yourself, your ability to make decisions. You will work through the struggles. It’s in your core—you never give up.” Valentina took a sip of water before continuing.
“You value your intuition, your instinct. Go with your instinct. Never doubt yourself. You have strong values.” She stopped speaking again, took another drink of water.
She was quiet for a moment, then said, “This is all I’m able to say now. I believe in my heart this decision you will make when you leave here today will be the right one.” She smiled. “Not sure if any of what I said hit home with you, and I don’t want to know. I’m not getting much else right now. But there will be other times.”
“Very impressive,” Alison said, though she wouldn’t dare tell her how spot-on she was. “Renée is right to brag about you. Speaking of, she asked me to meet her at the beach at sunset. Does she usually cozy up to strangers so easily? Not that I’d ever harm her; she’s a sweet girl, but you know how the world is today.”
“Renée never meets a stranger. However, she has excellent instincts, so I trust her to trust in them.”
“Good. She told me about John. I had an encounter with the guy last night; not a pleasant one, either. I told her to be careful.”
“He is an evil man. I won’t allow him, or anyone related to him, inside the store. He’s rotten with young girls. The family has connections with the governor and the local police. Renée knows to stay away from him. He’s bad news.” Valentina’s face turned several shades of red. “He disgusts me.”
“I sensed bad vibes about him the moment I saw him. I didn’t know the beach was public. I hoofed down a path next to his house, and he followed me to my car. We had a few words, and then again later at the mango festival.”
“Which was a total bust this year,” Valentina concluded.
“Yeah, I thought so, though I’d never been before. I didn’t see a lot of mango anything, just a few boats anchored around that old bridge.”