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I almost remarked that I wasn’t sure whether the Old Globe Theatre Company could afford my seamstress’s prices, but I thought that might have sounded a bit too much like bragging. Anyway, since I’d made a series of fairly large donations to the theater group, their costume budget had expanded considerably.
“Absolutely,” I said.
Noreen took a step back and gave Calvin the once-over. “Not bad,” she said. “Of course, you’re much more handsome than Fred Gwynne ever was, but you make a decent Herman Munster…if I do say so myself.”
Calvin pushed himself up from the folding chair and peered in the mirror. Standing, he seemed even more impressive. As I’d thought, he hadn’t bothered to put any lifts in his boots, but they were still much thicker-soled than the boots he usually wore, and so gave him an extra inch of height — as did the facial appliance Noreen had so carefully attached to his forehead. Coupled with the suit’s broad shoulders, it all looked a lot more imposing than I’d thought it would.
“It’s pretty amazing,” he said after a long pause. “Thanks, Noreen.”
“Nothing to it,” she replied. “I just can’t wait to see Josie’s face when she gets a look at you two. Speaking of which, it’s your turn, Selena.”
I went over and seated myself on the folding chair, and Noreen got out a fresh cloth and swathed it around my shoulders, protecting my filmy gown from any foundation spatters or other mishaps. She rummaged in her makeup kit and got out several different bottles of liquid makeup, then did a test on my neck to find the correct shade. After wiping it clean, she went to work.
Since I was sitting in profile to the mirror, I couldn’t see much of what she was doing. No, I just had to sit there and try not to move too much as she dabbed away at my face, whistling a bit under her breath as she worked. Despite my love of Mac lipstick, I’d never had my makeup done by someone else before, and so it felt strange to have Noreen hovering so close, to do my best to not blink like a madwoman when it came time for her to apply some false eyelashes. I’d never worn eyelashes before in my life.
Eventually, though, she was done, and took a step back to inspect her handiwork. “Very nice,” she said. “Of course, it helps to be working on someone with such excellent bone structure.”
Maybe I flushed — not that anyone would have been able to see it under the pancake makeup she’d applied. Calvin chimed in, saying, “Yes, I’ve long admired Selena’s bone structure.”
I resisted the urge to stick out my tongue, figuring that wasn’t exactly mature behavior in someone who’d turned thirty some four months earlier. Instead, I got up from the chair and stared at myself in the mirror.
Wow, Noreen had done an amazing job. Yes, I suppose if you looked really close, you could still tell it was me, since the makeup didn’t really hide my longish nose or full-lipped mouth. However, my skin looked far paler than it normally did, and my brows were dramatic black swoops. Heavy liner ringed my eyes, with the false eyelashes giving extra definition, and a deep maroon shade covered my lips.
“I love it,” I said.
“Good,” she replied. “But we’re not done yet.”
Oh, right. My own hair was sleek and glossy and very dark, but since it only reached a few inches past my shoulders and had thick bangs, it wasn’t exactly appropriate for a Lily Munster impersonation.
Noreen went to the bed and picked up the bat necklace and the wig from the spot where I’d left them. After I sat back down on the folding chair, she hung the necklace around my neck, then expertly pinned up my hair so it lay flat against my scalp. Once it was out of the way, she settled the wig on my head and anchored it with a few more strategic bobby pins. She pulled the wig over my shoulders so the long, waist-length locks would lie just so, and took a step back.
“Oh, yes,” she said. “That’s perfect.”
Calvin nodded. “I like the hair. Maybe you should grow yours out.”
This time, I decided he deserved to have me stick my tongue out at him. He chuckled, but Noreen only shook her head and then went about picking up all the cosmetics and various makeup brushes and other applicators she’d left lying on the tiled bathroom counter. Everything went back into the large tackle-style box she used to carry her supplies.
“Well, you two are good to go,” she said. “I’ll see you at the party.”
“What are you dressing up as?” I asked, genuinely curious. There was still almost an hour to go before the party started, and so she had enough time to do something pretty impressive if she left now, headed straight home, and got to work.
Noreen shook her head. “I like transforming other people. I’m not so big on it for myself. I usually go for a black dress and a witch hat.” She paused there, looking almost embarrassed as she appeared to consider her current company. “I hope that’s not offensive.”
“Not at all,” I replied at once. I’d long since gotten past the point where I worried about whether popular representations of witches and witchcraft were accurate or even attractive. Anyway, that pointy hat had its basis in history, so I couldn’t get too bent out of shape about it. “I’ve dressed up as a witch for Halloween parties from time to time.”
“Very meta of you,” Calvin remarked. The Herman Munster makeup had altered his face considerably, but I’d recognize that tented brow anywhere.
Since I’d already stuck my tongue out at him, about all I could do in response was lift an eyebrow of my own. “Anyway, Noreen, you definitely don’t have to worry about offending me. I’ve got a pretty thick skin when it comes to witchy stuff.”
“That’s probably stood you in good stead around here,” she said. “A lot of people in Globe are still stuck somewhere in the last century.”
Including the cursed cat who was my current roommate, although I knew better than to say anything about Archie. On the other hand, I had to admit that Archie was pretty mellow about all my witchy practices. I got the feeling he didn’t care much what I did as long as he was fed on time and I didn’t decide to do the horizontal mambo with Calvin on the dining room table or something.
I waved a hand, a careless gesture I’d picked up from Josie. “Oh, it’s not that bad…with a few notable exceptions.”
The most notable of those exceptions being Henry Lewis, the chief of Globe’s police department. I’d rubbed him the wrong way pretty much from the moment I set foot in town, and I knew it didn’t help that I’d been intimately involved in the unfortunate string of murders that had taken place since I arrived. Of course, I wasn’t actually responsible for any of those deaths, but just sticking my nose in where Chief Lewis didn’t think it belonged was enough to earn me a permanent place on his so-called fecal roster.
From the way Noreen Little’s mouth twitched, I got the feeling she knew exactly who I was thinking of. She didn’t comment, however, but only hefted her case of makeup supplies and said, “Well, I’ll get out of your hair. You can go ahead and eat and drink with that makeup on. Just be careful. Oh, and here.” She reached in a pocket of the barn jacket she was wearing and handed over a tube of lipstick. “It’s the color I put on you — you might as well bring it along for touch-ups.”
