Page 57 of Haunted Hearts

“Come in, my dear. Don’t be frightened.” Minerva walked over and closed the door behind her.

“I’m not frightened.” Lillith slowly approached the table. “I’m just . . . intrigued, that’s all.” She reached out to touch the cards, but Minerva swooped in and scooped them up and sat down on a chair.

“Sit,” she instructed, nodding to the chair across from her. “I’m going to read the cards for you. However, we’d better do it fast, before Blaze returns. He still doesn’t like when I do this.”

“Why do you do it in his solar then, instead of your own chamber?” asked Lillith, sitting down atop the chair.

“The vibrations are better in here. Plus, this is probably the last place he’d think of looking for me,” Minerva answered with a smile. “Are you ready, my dear?”

“I – I’m not sure. After all, you said Blaze won’t like it.”

“I’m doing this for him. For you. For both of you.” She leaned forward and smiled. “I know you two are in love. Now, don’t you want to see if you’ll end up together?” She shuffled the cards and then pushed the deck over to Lillith. “Cut the deck, please. The cards need for you to touch them.”

“This won’t matter in the least,” said Lillith, cutting the deck of cards. “After all, I already know my future. I’m betrothed to the baron and I will never be able to marry Blaze.”

“Things don’t always turn out the way you think.” Minerva stacked the deck again and then dealt a few cards. She turned the first one over, and then the next. “Oh my,” she said, studying the cards, not sounding too enthusiastic or happy.

“What is it?” Curiosity got the best of Lillith. She leaned forward to see the cards. One of them was the Lovers. Two naked people were embraced in each other’s arms. There was a mountain behind them and a bright sun above them. She didn’t think that was a bad thing, but had never had a real card reading before. She and Blaze had played with these cards once as children, and they had frightened her out of her mind. Why was she even in here, she started to wonder?

“I see love in your life with a man with dark hair,” said Minerva, taking a deep breath and then releasing it.

“The baron has dark hair,” Lillith told her.

“So does my son,” answered the woman. “Turn over the next one, dear.”

“Well . . . all right.” Lillith decided this wasn’t so bad after all. Mayhap it would restore her hope, even if it was false hope. Her hand shook as she reached out and turned over the next card. “The ten of wands? What does that mean?” She inspected the card of a man carrying a bunch of staves, unable to handle them all.

“It means you have the weight of the world on your shoulders, or possibly that you have entered into a situation and are in over your head.”

“Oh,” she said. “That sounds about right.” This wasn’t telling her anything about her life that she didn’t already know. Neither was it saying anything other than she would end up marrying the baron. She flipped over the next card and heard Minerva gasp.

“What? What is it?” Lillith needed to know.

The card was the three of swords. Three swords were stuck into a heart with blood dripping down. It made her swallow hard. “This can’t be good,” she mumbled, swishing away smoke from the sage that was clouding up her eyes. “Please, tell me what it means.”

Minerva hesitated, reached into the bowl of salt, and threw some right into Lillith’s face.

“Oh!” cried, Lillith, wiping the granules off her cheeks, tasting salt on her lips. “What was that for?”

“Salt is a form of protection,” said Minerva. “You can never be too cleansed.”

“This card means something bad, doesn’t it?” asked Lillith.

“Well, I won’t lie, it does mean heartbreak, sorrow and pain.”

“Oh.” All the air left Lillith’s lungs. She didn’t need to hear this.

“However, it also means it won’t last. Better things are on the horizon. You just need to let go of your emotions -let go of the past and move on.”

“Oh,” said Lillith, realizing this meant she had to let go of Blaze, but she didn’t know if she could do it.

Minerva flipped over the next card, and Lillith realized the woman was not smiling. Minerva’s mouth turned down into a frown. Lillith could barely bring herself to look at the card. The card was the devil with a naked man and woman chained to it.

“I don’t like this one,” Lillith mumbled.

“It signifies poison in a relationship,” said Minerva. “As well as desire, shamelessness, and being reckless.”

Lillith thought about the kisses and caresses she’d shared with Blaze lately, even though he was betrothed to her sister. Part of her was ashamed by the way she’d acted. She’d let her emotions get out of control, and she hadn’t acted like a proper lady at all. She supposed she was being reckless, just like the cards said.