“Stoooop!” Poppy screamed, so loud her throat ached. “Stoooop! Please, stop!”
“Jesus Christ!” Nina yelled, grabbing her by the shoulders and pulling her close to her chest. “What’s happening?”
As suddenly as it began, the chant stopped.
Gulping for air, Poppy struggled out of Nina’s arms, looking right at her. “Littleton! I have to get to Littleton!”
Chapter 17
“I’mma tell you one last time, Ballerina, slow the fuck down, or I’m gonna put you down. I’m all for a good hunt, but not when your life’s in the mix. Now sit your ass down on that couch and shut your flappy lips before I sew them shut,” Nina ordered, her face cross.
“We have to go to Littleton now!” Poppy insisted, so panicked, not even Nina’s threat made her think twice. Rick was at Littleton. She was certain. Something awful was happening with him. She needed to see to his safety.
Nina shook her head, flashing her fangs in a threatening manner. “Um, no. We need to wait and hear from the doc. She said today was the day for the crazy. Like, the ultimate crazy. We’re not letting you go stick your nose into that crazy until we can get her advice. And Darnell’ll be here any minute to help. You’re not going to Littleton alone. End of. Now, swear to Jesus, Slick, you make a break for it, I chase you down like a tiger chases a gazelle in a Discovery Channel documentary, and trust this shit, I’ll catch you.”
Marty grabbed at Poppy’s arm, her face so full of concern, it almost made Poppy tear up from her frustration. “Just give us a second to get in touch with January, honey. Please. We have to have a plan before we go on the attack. We’re talking magic here. It takes more than muscle to navigate.”
But her panic was in full swing now and like a pack of stampeding wild horses, that panic trampled her. “Fuck plans!”
She knew she had to go this instant. Right now. It was already dark, they’d already be gearing up for the demo in another hour, and then Rick would be harder to locate. She’d tried texting him, but she’d gotten no response. She’d left him five back-to-back voicemails, and he hadn’t returned a single call.
“Explain to me this vision or whatever it was again,” Wanda insisted, pulling Poppy’s sweater tighter over her chest. “Stay focused and talk this out with me.”
Again, Poppy tried to shake off the horror. “I can’t speak the words, Wanda. It was horrible. I’m almost one hundred percent sure Yash was trying to tell me something with that crystal. Who else’s crystal could that be but Yash’s? He was pretty into the metaphysical, right? It’s not a stretch to think he used crystals for more than just decoration. It had to be his. And tell me this, why did he look so upset in that picture with Rick and Avis? Then the voice, yelling at me to go to Littleton, yelling Rick’s name. This all leads back to Littleton!”
Wanda’s lips thinned as she gripped Poppy’s shaking fingers, her eyes full of worry. “Okay, and what if—what if it wasn’t Yash? What if it was all a trick, honey? What if it was the aura so hell-bent on seeing you dead who’s calling out?”
Tears began to slip from her eyes, her heart bashing so hard against her ribs, she thought it would explode. Her panic was no longer on the rise, it was everything—all consuming.
“No! You all have to listen to me! That crystal belonged to Yash! He was trying to tell me something. I have—to—go!” she roared, the words shooting from her mouth like bullets.
“Miss Wanda? What can I do to soothe Mistress Poppy?” Arch asked, his eyes darting and as frantic as Poppy felt. “Tell me. I’ll do anything to ease your suffering until Miss January arrives.”
Poppy backed away, holding up her hands. She knew she looked like she’d lost her mind, but the pressure of the urgency, this need to get to Littleton, flooded her, overwhelmed her to the point of leaving her head a jumbled mess.
“Nothing! I don’t need anything—I have to leave!”
“Poppy-Seed, my boo, I’m beggin’ ya—listen! Listen to me!” Calamity ordered from the island counter, jamming her round face into Poppy’s shoulder.
Poppy’s eyes darted toward the feline, searching for a focus, a way to rein in this horrible, despicable fear, but she couldn’t. There was no stopping this. So she shook her head again until her eyeballs rolled and the pound in her temples grew.
“Nononono!”
“Miss Nina! What’s going on?” a gruff, gentle voice called from the doorway.
“Jesus Christ, thank fuck you’re here, D! Somethin’ ain’t right with our girl. Help us!” Nina called out.