Chapter 3

STEVIE

The old-style wooden sign outside the shop blows back and forth in the wind, and its metal rings clanking off the base. Though weather-torn, the lettering is still clearly visible to passersby as they make their way down the usually bustling street.

Seeds Of Change. Herbal Apothecary.

Balancing the tray of coffees and bagels in one hand, I unlock the door and quickly head inside the small shop, leaving the empty street behind—the rich scent of black sage and sweetgrass assaults my nose when I enter. Knowing Jesse won't be far behind, I leave the door unlocked and flick on the dim lights that dangle from the large wooden beams on the ceiling. The light reflects off the vast array of jars and vials littered around the shop's counter, tables, and shelves. Each one is filled with an all-natural salve or oil. Some housing dried herbs and flowers. Brown mylar bags of herb mixtures and teas line the wooden shelves with small tin containers of balms and tinctures. Bundles of herbs hang to dry from the ceiling around the compact storefront. It's nothing fancy, with its natural brick walls and creaking floors. Especially compared to other shops on the block whose owners have more money to put into their space. But fancy or not, it's mine.

And that's all that matters.

Making my way to the back, I slide my bag off my shoulder, placing it on the staff table in the back room before unlocking the back door for the delivery guy. Today's delivery is a big one, and while a lot of my stock is running low, there's one plant in particular I found a few saplings of that I'm incredibly excited about. They aren't a common plant, especially around these parts. So I was surprised when I came across them.

Eucalyptus.

It will need a lot of special care, but these little saplings will have many benefits, both health-related for my customers and personal. From fresh breath to an anti-inflammatory aid, eucalyptus is one of the best natural remedies for so many conditions. But it's not those that have my attention. While I can appreciate and respect a plant that can help so many, it's the oil that can be extracted from its leaves that has my attention.

Poisonous and incredibly flammable, the eucalyptus plant is one that I'll never understand people looking over.

The chime of the shop's front door draws my attention, and I peer around the corner from the back to see Jesse twisting the deadbolt in the door.

"I was wondering when you'd make it in," I call, lifting the tray of coffee from the table. "Look, I brought breakfast. Consider it a peace offering."

Turning, he cocks a brow at me. "Well, I should hope so. Takes some nerve waking someone up before the damn sun," he scoffs. "Micah isn't happy with you either. Today was his only day off, so we didn't even get to bed until after midnight, thinking we'd both be able to sleep in for once. But of course, those plans were quickly ruined by someone needing me here incredibly early in the morning despite the fact that she's done delivery days alone plenty of other times," he adds with a playful tone.

"Tell Micah that maybe you guys should get to bed earlier then," I reply coyly with a smirk as I hand him his coffee. "After all, it's not my fault if you two decided to stay up all hours of the night, probably watching those god-awful true crime docs you're both so obsessed with."

He furrows his brows and leans against the counter as he lifts the cup of coffee to his lips and takes a sip. "We were up late watching the news."

"The news?" I mock, taking a sip of my coffee. It won't be long before the delivery guy gets here, and hell knows I need all the caffeine I can get before he does.

"Yeah, didn't you hear about the Magnolia?"

"Well, yeah, of course. Everyone has heard what happened. It's terrible," I lie. Placing my coffee on the table, I pull my hair up into a pony at the back of my head, securing it with the thick, silky scrunchie around my wrist.

"The eleven o'clock news featured an in-depth story about the investigation and what a loss it is to New Orleans history, but then some local detective came on talking about how they think that the Magnolia fire is possibly connected to all the other fires around the city."

I freeze. My body tensing with shock at the news of other fires.

Burning buildings? I only know of one building that's burned down, and that's because I lit the match. But there's more?

"Other fires?" I ask, my hands finding their way to my hips.

" Girl , there is some shady shit at play here. I can just feel it," he adds. Curiosity hits me. How have I been living here for months and never known there have been other fires? Ones that I didn't set? My thumb slides just below the waist of my black leggings. Trailing softly across the raised flesh of the brand mark that's tainted my skin since my capture. I can still remember the sharp sting of the smoldering iron as it was pressed into my flesh. My heart rate increases as anxiety builds with the memories. The flashbacks replay in my head like a movie. A nightmare I'm forever haunted by. Like the pale blue eyes of the man who took me. Claimed me. Used me.

Checking the time on his watch, he sighs, "Well, I guess I better make room back here. Do we know exactly how many boxes he's dropping off?" The sound of his voice snaps me back to reality.

"Uh, yeah, it should be on the inventory chart in the back room," I reply, trying to steady my breath.

Jesse nods and heads to the back room while I pull my phone from my purse and quickly bring up the local news. If someone else is lighting fires around here, I need to know. I stand there for a few minutes, scrolling through video footage and articles about the previous fires around the area, and my lips pull into a smile. Sure, these fires are decent. They're big, and I'll admit that whoever is responsible knew what they were doing.

The tricks to get the hottest flames and the prettiest array of colors throughout them. I can't help but find it amusing that they'd think my fire and these could even possibly be connected. Mine was bigger and way more significant. Whoever this other person is, they lack balls.

They care too much, and instead of seeing how a building's meaning can add to its overall beauty, they ignore it, making their fires fall flat.

I can't help but wonder if they've noticed mine despite me living under a rock and being utterly oblivious to another Pyro living in my city.

The doorbell on the back door chimes, signaling this morning's delivery is here. Placing my coffee on the table, I grab my apron off the wall and tie it around my waist while Jesse opens the door.

"Morning, you two," Johnathan nods as he enters through the narrow doorway with a dolly full of boxes. He hands me the clipboard off the top. " It's a big one today, and something was definitively stinking up the entire truck. It's smelled like a cleaning van since I loaded it, so thanks for that," he adds with a smirk.

"I can tell you right now it was most likely the Lemon Verbena," I explain with a soft smile. Johnathan has been delivering to me since I placed my first order with his distributor, and over time, I've enjoyed our brief chats when he arrives. He's an older man in his mid to late forties with thick dark hair and a matching beard. Born and raised in New Orleans, he's happily married with twin boys and a little girl.

"Lemon, what?" he asks, cocking his brow.

Jessie laughs, "It might smell strong, but it overpowers some of the worst smells. I make Micah this all-natural deodorant with it. Don't get me wrong; I love that man to death, but he has the most rancid B.O."

Johnathan smirks, "Now you sound like my wife."

"I mean, it makes the best tea. Especially when you're sick, it doesn't even taste bad. Add a little bit of honey, and your sore throat will be gone before you know it."

"Tea, you say? Uh, well, the wife is a big tea drinker. Not that I fricken understand her obsession with the shit. It all looks and tastes the same to me. Like leaves and dirt. I wonder if she'd like it."

Signing the forms on the clipboard while Johnathan and Jesse unload, I place it on the table and cross my arms over my chest.

"All this time, and you've never told me that Kathy is a tea drinker," I mock jokingly.

Johnathan places a large box of rosemary and thyme saplings on the back shelf and shrugs. "It's not like it's something that comes to mind. When you say herbs, I don't think of tea. I think roast beef. Herb-crusted chicken. Stew─"

"Stop. Right now! Don't say another word," I laugh. "To think I thought we were friends," I scoff playfully. "Listen, I'm going to get her up a little bag of different teas from the shop, okay? You let me know what she thinks of them."

"Are you sure? You don't have to do that."

"I want to. Besides, I have some teas here that will surely help her put up with you all day long," I wink. Jesse chuckles while Johnathan rolls his eyes.

"Alright, but I have to be out of here quick. I have a lot of stops today."

"Don't worry. It will only take a minute," I explain before heading to the storefront. I collect bags of the most popular herbal teas and my personal favorites and tuck them into a small fabric shopping bag, making sure to slide in a couple of flyers and my card. Lastly, I grab a mesh loose-leaf tea sifter, just in case she doesn't have one.

By the time I'm finished and make my way to the back room, the guys have finished unloading the delivery, and Jesse is already hard at work checking stuff off on the inventory chart before handing it over to Johnathan to sign.

"Here," I hand Johnathan the fabric bag. "Hopefully, there will be at least one or two in there she'll enjoy,"

He graciously takes the bag, peeking inside at all the goodies. "Stevie, you didn't have to,"

"Oh stop, it's my pleasure, honestly. I hope she likes them, and tell her once I have the Lemon Verbena restocked, I promise to send her some."

"Thank you. She'll love this," he adds. "Well, I'm off now. Don't work too hard today, you two, and Jesse, if I were you, I'd invest in a nose plug."

Jesse pauses his unpacking and arches his brows at Johnathan. "Some of us actually enjoy the smell of nature, you know, Johnathan," he replies cockily.

A laugh erupts through me. These little moments, blips, are things I cherish. To some, it might not seem like anything special, but after how I was raised and the life I was forced to live, alone with nothing but the cruel, cold company of whatever man paid to spend the day with me, these small interactions with real people, the people I consider friends, are priceless.

These are the things I will miss when the time for me to leave comes. Because eventually I will have to give up my life here. Eventually, Sweet Dreams will find me and I'll be forced to abandon everything I've built in order to not only stay alive but to protect the people who have come to mean something to me.

Because Sweet Dreams will hurt anyone or anything that matters to me in their path of vengeance.

Johnathan exits out the back door, dragging the red metal dolly behind him. Jesse locks up the door and turns his sights back on me.

"Well, this is going to be a long day. I hope you know all the coffee I'll be ingesting today is going on the store's tab," he adds, shoving a box of herbs at me.

"I'd expect nothing less," I smirk, taking the box. Jesse smiles softly before returning to the boxes and getting to work unpacking and sorting when it hits me.

Leaving him, my friends, and this shop is going to destroy me more than Sweet Dreams ever could.