Ida Belle parked in front of Nora’s house, and we could see she’d already been decorating, of sorts. Purple, green, and gold condoms were blown up and attached to the front porch posts. As we walked up, Nora threw open the door and beamed at us.
“Isn’t it great?” she asked, waving a hand at the condoms. “Party favors. People can take one on their way out, and I’m doing my part with that whole safe-sex movement I just heard about.”
“Nora, what year is it?” Ida Belle asked.
She frowned. “Let me get back to you on that one.”
“I’m convinced she thinks this is still the ’70s,” Ida Belle said as we walked inside.
“She would have been a little kid in the ’70s,” I said.
“Who was probably raised by hippies.”
Nora was practically bouncing as we headed into the kitchen, and I studied the spread. Not a single inch of space was left on any surface in the room, and Nora had a decent-sized kitchen with a big island. It was loaded with bags of chips and boxes of crackers, and a bunch of boxes of cookies, brownies, and cakes, and I let out a breath of relief when I saw the logo for Ally’s bakery on them. Eating brownies at Nora’s was always a roll-the-dice sort of thing, but if Ally made them, we were good. Two kegs of beer were in the corner.
“I have a whole fridge of cheese and sliced meat in here, and the one in the garage has dips, salsa, and a ton of fruit juices for those who want to rock my party mimosa-style. Then there’s the wine and champagne fridge, of course.”
“You have a whole refrigerator for wine?” Ida Belle asked.
“You don’t?”
“What’s this?” Gertie asked as she picked up a dainty teacup and smelled the contents. A matching white pot with pink roses on it sat on the table with more cups and saucers and looked completely out of place in the rest of the fraternity party setup.
Nora hurried over. “I’ve started reading tea leaves. I met this incredible herbalist in Holland… Well, incredible in the romance department, but he couldn’t mix a good muscle relaxer to save his life. Anyway, he did a reading for me, and I was hooked. I gave it a whirl and he said I was a natural.”
Ida Belle snorted. “You’re telling me you look at leaves and tell people their future?”
“I have a gift. Finn said so. Let me do your readings.”
“No way in hell,” Ida Belle said.
Gertie clapped. “I’ll do it!”
Nora studied us for a moment, then shook her head. “Not yet. The spirit is guiding me to do Fortune’s.”
I stared. “You don’t strike me as the kind of woman who can be led around, even by a spirit.”
“Guided is not led. I have this overwhelming feeling that there’s something important for you in the tea. Please? I won’t feel right if I don’t get this out.”
“Like eating a bad hot dog,” Ida Belle grumbled.
I gave the tin of tea leaves a suspicious look. “What kind of tea is that?”
“Kratom.”
“Don’t drink that,” I said to Gertie as she was just about to put the cup to her lips.
Only Nora would be brewing opioid-adjacent tea.
Nora waved a hand. “A sip won’t hurt anyone.”
“You’re not serving tea at the party, right?” I asked.
“No time for all that brewing and reading, and I imagine it will be too noisy. Plus, I only have one five-pound bag, and my Indonesian supplier won’t make rounds for another two weeks. I’m going to be selfish on that one.”
“I think you should be,” I said, struggling to imagine just how big a five-pound bag of tea leaves was and how she could possibly consume it in less than two weeks. Ultimately, I decided it was safer not to know.
“But I must do your reading,” Nora said. “The spirit is not going to give me a moment’s peace until I do. And I’m a peaceful soul. I can’t live in turmoil. It ages you.”
Since Nora’s lifestyle already had me guessing her age at ten years older than she was, I didn’t think a little stress was going to send her tipping over into Crypt Keeper territory, but I also didn’t want her harassing me every time she saw me.
“Fine,” I said as I sat. “What do I have to do?”
She put a small spoonful of the leaves in an empty cup and poured hot water on them. “First, formulate a question.”
“What kind of question?”
“Something specific that you desire an answer to. The thing that is pressing on your mind the most.”
I held in a sigh. “Fine. Am I going to solve the case I’m currently working on?”
Nora nodded, then motioned to the cup. “Pick it up with your left hand and contemplate the question while you sip the tea.”
I put the cup to my lips and pretended to sip, but I wasn’t about to consume it. Fortunately, she hadn’t poured much in the cup, and given her usual vague state of mind, I didn’t figure she’d notice the oversight.
“Okay, now swirl the cup around three times, then put the plate on top of it and turn it upside down with the handle facing south.”
I raised an eyebrow but followed her instructions to the letter. Ida Belle stood behind Nora, shaking her head.
“Now, we wait one minute,” Nora said. “Think about the question while you let the tea assimilate into your system.”
The only thing that tea was going to do was bounce off my lip balm, and I’d make sure I wiped my mouth as soon as I had a chance. It seemed like forever, but finally, Nora told me to turn the cup back over and remove the plate. Then she slid it over in front of her, leaned over the cup, and studied the mess of tea leaves inside.
“There’s a cross,” she said. “That signifies unforeseen trouble ahead.”
“We’re at your house and Gertie is still holding her purse,” Ida Belle said. “Your cat could have made that prediction.”
“My cat doesn’t have this skill.”
“He can shoot people.”
Nora’s face screwed up in concentration. “You’re right. I’ll need to contemplate that later. Back to the tea. I see a life-changing event in your near future. It has to do with someone close to you. There are factors beyond yours or this person’s control.”
I frowned. “Is this a good or bad life-changing event?”
“I can’t tell. The spirit isn’t clear. Maybe because he doesn’t know how you’ll receive it.”
She straightened back up, staring at me with a concerned expression. “I think you’re at risk.”
“Me? I’m probably the safest person in Sinful. I sleep with one eye open and a loaded weapon practically in my hand.”
She shook her head. “I don’t see your heart stopping. I see it breaking. Be very careful, Fortune.”
“Careful about what?”
“You have to decide. When the time comes.”
“Good grief.” I rose from the chair and headed to the kitchen for a napkin.
I pretended to be amused by the whole thing, but I caught Ida Belle’s quick glance as I walked by and knew she’d zeroed in on my unease. The truth was, when I’d drunk the tea, I hadn’t been contemplating the question I’d given Nora.