Sugar Hearts

Many thanks to Girl in a Tree, Rin-chan, and Pudding333 for their lovely feedback. You guys always leave such long, detailed reviews -- I really appreciate the work and thought you put into them. Thanks! I couldn\'t figure out a way to work in a detailed description of Pepper, so I\'ll just tell you. She\'s a little taller than average, thin, with pale skin and bright red hair that falls down to her shoulders in gentle waves. Her eyes are bright green. She tends to dress in bright red, and all her outfits usually have some slightly outlandish item, like a hat, or a pin, or striped stockings. She\'s twenty-three years old, two years younger than Marzi. And I\'d love it if you drew a picture of her, Rin-chan! That would be wonderful.

Y\'all know that James belongs to my friend Queenie, right? *Smile*

Love,
Falcon

Sugar Hearts

Chapter Seven

Pepper was talking to lollipops.

“So, Officer Kelley,” she began, addressing the green one she had just popped from its mold. “Would you like to get together sometime? I could pack us a picnic lunch.”

No. ‘Officer Kelley’ sounded too formal. And a picnic? In December? They’d both freeze to death. Better try again.

Pepper held the green lollipop up to the light, checking it for air bubbles. When it passed her inspection, she set it aside, and turned her attention to a yellow one. “So, James, I was thinking. I know this lovely Russian tea room. They have the best pumpkin vareniki. And the borscht is to die for.”

No. James didn’t seem like a vareniki and borscht kind of guy. Besides, the tea room was quite expensive. Pepper remembered hearing that policemen didn’t make much money. And she felt certain that James would insist on paying. He was so gallant and old-fashioned. Old-fashioned. Would he be put off by a woman making the first move?

“Dammit,” Pepper muttered. “How on earth do normal people date?”

After checking the yellow lollipop, she set it next to its green counterpart, and lifted a pink one. “James,” she proposed, made bold by frustration. “Why don’t you just sling me over your shoulder, carry me home, and fuck the living daylights out of me?”

Hearing the words echo in her ears, Pepper blushed, shocked by her aggressiveness. No. There might be some honesty in that approach, but she doubted James would be impressed by it.

Pepper wished she could consult Marzi. Marzi had charisma to spare – surely he‘d know exactly what approach to take. The only risk would be that James might end up dating Marzi instead of her.

“Miss Penicandey?”

Looking up from the lollipops, Pepper saw that one of her salesgirls had entered the kitchen. “Yes, Jenny? What is it?”

“There’s a police officer here to see you.”

Hastily, Pepper tossed a towel over the lollipops, as if they might somehow betray what she’d just been doing. As if they might have caught her words, and trapped them within their sugary depths, hidden from sight until they melted on someone’s tongue. “Send him in here.”

“Right.” Jenny turned and left the kitchen.

A few moments later, James came in. But he didn’t greet her with his familiar smile. Instead, he seemed reluctant to meet her eyes, and the gravity of his manner made Pepper forget all about her plans for flirtation. Fear rushed through her like a chill wind. “Marzi?”

James nodded. “Yeah. I found out what happened to him.”

“Oh!” Dead. He must be dead. Her brother was dead. The room seemed to waver around Pepper, and she reached out for something to steady herself. But her hand missed the countertop. Completely thrown off balance, Pepper lurched sideways, and would have fallen if strong arms hadn’t caught her. “Dead, dead, dead...”

“No,” James hurried to correct her. “He’s not dead. Forgive me for letting you think it.”

“Not...?”

“Not dead. But the news still isn’t good.”

Reassured that Marzi remained among the living, Pepper forced herself to overcome the shock that had nearly toppled her. And, as her surroundings once more became solid and clear, she realized something. James was holding her. Pepper felt herself blush all the way down to her toes, and again, her balance betrayed her.

Fortunately, James seemed to interpret her second fit of dizziness as a continuation of the first one. “You better have a seat,” he advised, helping her get settled on a nearby stool. Then he started to search through the kitchen cabinets. After a few minutes, he discovered a bottle of brandy, and poured a little of it into a measuring cup, which he brought over to Pepper. “Drink that.”

“I’m alright,” Pepper assured, taking the cup from him. “But what’s going on with Marzi?”

“The thing is, he’s gotten himself involved with Kale. Intimately involved.”

“Kale.” Pepper spat out the name as if it was a bitter seed she’d accidentally bitten into. Marzi had never possessed the slightest bit of common sense, but to have allied himself with an evil like Kale – that was something beyond Pepper’s wildest expectations. “You’re sure?”

James looked grim. “I’m sure.”

Dazed, Pepper lifted the measuring cup to her lips, and swallowed the brandy in a single gulp. “What can we do?”

“I’ll tell you what I’m going to do.” Lines of determination cut across James’s face, transforming it into a harsh and formidable landscape. “I’m going to post a man outside Sugar Hearts. Kale has plenty of enemies, and I’m sure they’ll be quick to exploit this new situation. They’ll try to get to Kale by going through Marzi. I don’t want them going through you first.” James shook his head. “You don’t deserve to get hurt just because your brother is – if I may speak plainly – a reckless idiot.”

Pepper sighed. “That’s Marzi. But he’s such a charming reckless idiot.”

“He should have more regard for the welfare of his sister,” James muttered. Then he dug into his pocket and pulled something out. Pepper caught a flash of silver before his hand closed around it. For a moment, he just held it, seeming to consider its weight, to consider what he was about to do. Then he offered it to her. “I want you to be careful, Pepper. And I want you to have this.”

As his fingers uncurled, Pepper saw a silver charm, strung on a leather cord. The front of the charm depicted a winged man about to drive a sword into the demonic figure lying at his feet. Intrigued, Pepper lifted it. “What is it?”

“The Medal of Saint Michael. Patron Saint of those who risk themselves to oppose evil. It’s only tin, and a little scratched, but it’s kept me safe for a lot of years. I hope it will keep you safe, too.”

Pepper turned the charm over, and read the inscription on its back. Pray For Us. But, instead of being comforting, the words stabbed her like knives. She knew that religion had a word for people who did what she did. And she knew that people who got labeled with that word generally ended up being burned at the stake. With an aching heart, Pepper attempted to place the medal back in his hand. “I can’t take this, James. It’s a lovely thought. But I don’t think your god protects people like me and Marzi.”

Despite Pepper’s protests, James resisted her efforts to return his gift. “I’m pretty sure He protects everyone who asks Him.”

“Does he?” Torn between sadness and hope, Pepper twisted the leather cord around her fingers. She wished she could tell James. She wished he wouldn’t think that she was crazy, or wicked, or both. But he was such an honest, forthright man. How could he possibly understand about things that needed to remain unspoken? How could he ever forgive her for them? “What about people with secrets?” she asked. “Does your god protect them?”

James stared past her, past the confines of space and time. He seemed to be gazing into some hazy, long ago, part of the world. Then he touched her hand. “I hope so, Pepper. I hope so.”

“James, there’s something I need to tell you. I—“

At that moment, a shrill ringing filled the kitchen. Like a man jolted from a dream, James pulled his cell phone from his pocket, and barked a curt greeting into it. But as the other person spoke, his expression changed from impatience to excitement.

“I need to go,” he informed Pepper, after hanging up. “One of my leads just paid off. You’ll be alright?”

“I’ll be alright,” Pepper assured.

One last time, his hand brushed against hers. “Be good, Pepper. Be safe.”

Then he was gone.

For a long time, Pepper just stared into space, her thoughts flapping about like startled birds. Finally, however, she forced herself back into the present, and her eyes settled on the Medal of Saint Michael. “Pray for us,” she murmured. “Well, if the prayers of a witch can do any good, I’ll pray for you.”

Pepper hung the medal around her neck, and returned to work on the lollipops, wrapping them in brightly colored squares of cellophane. And people who purchased pieces from that particular batch wondered why they dreamed of tea rooms, picnics in December, and being slung over the shoulder of a handsome policeman.