"Hey, I'm the career woman remember? Determined to get to the top, even making my co-presenter disappear. If you want a new friend, I'm available. Because you're a suspect too, so we have a lot in common." She sniggered.
I held out my glass towards hers in a toast. "To new friendships and to sisters doing it for themselves."
She clinked her glass against mine.
"So now tell me about Dray because I've seen him hanging around you like a dog on heat."
I sighed. "I like Dray, we've been dating. I've kept it all second base and fun though because he flirts with other women. The guy is clearly not a one woman man and while I'm not averse to a bit of fun, I'm concentrating on the competition from a musical rival standpoint, not a romantic one."
It was true. I had zero interest in climbing between the sheets with anyone right now. I wondered if Noah was the same.
Stop thinking about Noah.
"If you could date anyone from one of the bands, who would you go for? I promise not to tell. Only I feel you know far more about me than I do you."
"That's because I'm so boring." Harley laughed. "Well, actually I quite like one of Noah's friends."
"Oooh, who? Let me guess. Zak. Everyone gets the hots for Zak."
She turned her face up. "Not me. He's too much. One minute he's being rude to me, one minute nice. Far too high maintenance. I like a quiet man. I think Roman's really cute."
"Roman, huh?"
She raised a brow at me. "Don't you dare try any matchmaking shit. I can't date them. Not as presenter of the show. I'm serious."
I held up my hand. "I swear I won't do anything…" I trailed off. "While the show's happening, but after… well, can't promise."
She laughed.
"Oh." I thought. "If you can't be seen to be hanging around with contestants, doesn't that mean people could say I was trying to get a helping hand?"
Harley's smile dropped clean off her face.
"Oh fuck. I never thought of that." A deep sadness hit her features. "Thanks for the gossip and the drink. Maybe we can be friends after the show finishes?"
"I'd like that." I told her honestly. I passed her a card with my phone number on it. "If you need a friend, call me, okay? Fuck the media."
"Stacey?"
"Yes?"
"Think carefully about the competition. It's going to lead to fame and with that comes a price. There's more to life than an amazing dressing room."
"Are you considering quitting?"
"No. I'm not cut out for a boring, ordinary life. One day hopefully I can find some happy medium between fame and a family, but for now I'm pushing through until I'm the household name I always wanted to be."
"A happy medium. That sounds good." I left her dressing room, feeling sad that we couldn't hang together because I liked Harley. What I didn't know was I was going from talking about a happy medium to meeting one.
The rest of the coven sisters had left by the time I finally exited the building, and there was also no sign of Noah, or Dray.
Good. I fancied a hot bath and an early night.
I soon saw that wasn't going to be happening though when I found Donna at my door.
"Finally. I've been messaging you. I was worried. Where have you been all this time?" She did look worried as well, bless her. She was rubbing her face and clasping her hands.
I took my phone out of my bag. Dead battery. "Oh shoot, my phone ran down. I'm so sorry. It's been one heck of a busy day."
"The last time I saw you the police had escorted you out of the canteen. I thought they'd flung you in a cell."
I laughed. "No, thank God. Anyway, I appreciate you looking out for me. Do you want a hot drink before you go?" It was a hint I needed time to myself, and I'd thought it was pretty clear.
"Yes, and then I want you to tell me everything that's happening; only we're all worried about you."
Inwardly, I let out a heavy sigh. Outwardly, I smiled and invited her in. Then while we enjoyed a coffee I told her about the police and about Jack Brooks. I didn't tell her about Noah, or about Harley, as although we were all close, I was getting fed up of everyone knowing everything about me.
I was starting to crave space and alone time. Things were changing in me, and I wasn't sure how I felt about it. Harley's statement about if I was sure this was what I wanted was weighing deep and possibly why I felt I needed a bath and some space. Time to think.
"As if you'd do anything to harm anyone. We need to know if we're around danger though, so I brought some things with me." Donna reached around for her backpack and opened it up. "We'll start with a protection spell and then I'm going to demonstrate my new talent, because I have a secret." She smiled coyly.
"Oh yeah?"
"I've been practicing mediumship." She told me matter-of-factly like she'd been learning Spanish.
"Pardon?"
"I've been practicing mediumship."
"Under whose guidance?"
Donna's voice and demeanour got haughty. "I borrowed two books from the library. I know about protecting myself."
"We know about spells and protecting ourselves from the harm of spells. Not from the harm of wayward spirits." I reminded her.
"That's why I got books from the library. They told me what to do. It's all fine. Stop panicking. I know I'm small, but I do sometimes get a little frustrated when you talk to me like I'm a baby. I'm a year older than you and brought you into this fold, remember?" She scowled.
Oh God. I'd really fucked her off and she'd just been concerned for me earlier.
"I'm sorry, Donna. It's just been a stressful day. I think it's great that you're trying to develop another string to your bow as it were."
Her face relaxed. "Thanks. So I'll get everything prepared and then reach out. I was going to see if I could contact Dan Trent because then we'd know he was dead, but I can also try to contact Jack Brooks too. If they don't answer, we know they're alive and well."
Or you can't contact the dead because you've tried to learn through Mediumship for Dummies or something similar, I wanted to add, but didn't as otherwise I'd be the dead one.
It therefore transpired that rather than enjoying a hot bath, instead I had to move my coffee table off my grey rug, the only decent thing I owned, and that covered up a threadbare carpet, so she could lay out Scrabble letters in an Ouija style arrangement on top of an upside down Monopoly Board. I daren't question her about any of it because I'd opened my mouth once to ask if we were going to have a yes, no, and a proceed to go and she'd not found it as amusing as I had.
"Okay, everything is out now. As you can clearly see we don't have a glass out because we aren't having a séance. Through mediumship I will invite anyone to talk through me. The letters are laid out simply to let the spirits know that we are open to communication."
I needed a glass out, and to commune with spirits, but vodka and whisky were my preferred options.
"Okay. Please sit with me and hold my hand. When I have said the spell, you can let go. We don't need to remain tethered in the real world; we will still be tethered in the astral realm. Time for a protection spell."