"It's from yesterday, isn't it," Carmen murmured, clutching the gold cross around her neck nervously.

"You were scratching at your face real desperately Amb," Shelby gulped.

Amber stared at the wooden table hard before looking back up at her friends. "I thought I was going to die. It's hard to explain.. but it's like," she closed her eyes and rubbed her head.

Shelby and Carmen exchanged a sympathetic glance, waiting for their friend to go on.

"I was panicking, but I couldn't even pinpoint the reason. The only way.. that was the only way I thought I could get rid of it, at least at that moment."

"That sounds terrible. I'm really sorry, Amb," Shelby apologized.

"It's the risk we had to take. Anyway, Carmen what was your dream?"

Carmen paused, recalling the odd vividness of the night before. "I don't think it's that important."

"Carmen, please." It was rare for Amber to pester or beg, so Carmen finally complied.

"Fine," she sighed. "I think I may have knocked out of fright, FYI. I dreamt that I snuck out late at night, hopped into a friend's limo, and went to some kind of underground punk club. Gosh," she laughed in disbelief, "I don't know what the heck we were wearing. Looked like something my mom would wear. People were dancing really weird and bumping around in some kind of circle. It totally looked like a cult to me."

"Was that all?" Shelby's eyes twinkled with curiosity.

"Yeah, that was pretty much it. I told you it wasn't that important," Carmen took a bite of the mozzarella stick that had been tempting her this whole time.

Suddenly, someone slid away her tray.

"Hey, what's the big idea?"

"Guys," Shelby announced. "There's someone you have to meet."

***

"You do know that the majority of fortune tellers are frauds, right?" Amber questioned her friend dubiously as they walked down a street full of small businesses after school.

"Duh! But this one's not a fraud, trust me," Shelby spun around and led the group as she blew some bright pink gum.

"Tss, says who?" Carmen scoffed, crossing her arms over her pastel rose-colored button-up cardigan and surveying a mural of graffiti on the wall beside her.

"Says ME. I've gone to her before to get my tarot cards read, and her interpretations haven't been wrong before."

"If you say so," Carmen finally submitted. A sudden wave of apprehension washed over her as they approached an apartment with multiple teenage guys hanging out on the front door steps.

Some were shirtless with tattoos. Others wore graphically inappropriate t-shirts along with sagging trousers. The smell of tobacco permeated the air around them. They radiated energy you didn't want to mess with.

A loud whistle followed by some risqué comments caught the girls' attention as they walked past.

"Damn girl, look at them legs! She's thick as hell!"

Carmen cheeks flushed with embarrassment and she turned away, quickly speeding up her pace.

"Wooh, man, look at the size of those ti-"

"Thank you!" Shelby winked and laughed loudly, continuing on as if nothing had happened.

Amber walked close to Carmen and glared back, relieved that they were farther away now.

"Dude what the he-" Carmen muttered furiously under her breath, her fists trembling. "Why would you thank them?!"

"Sometimes all you gotta do is thank them and they'll leave you alone," she shrugged, blowing another bubble after it had popped. "Anyway I'm already used to it."

"Shelby," Amber started while tugging at her blazer. "This street looks kinda sketch. Can we at least leave soon?"

"Yes. Please," Carmen urged.

"Ok ok, we'll visit the fortune teller and then we'll leave. It's no biggy!"

Amber may have been all book-smarts, but even she recognized that they stood out like a sore thumb in this part of town. The buildings here were the total opposite of their neighborhood. They were old and although still in use, looked clearly as though they hadn't been renovated in ages. The pavement had cracks in it where the few wimpy trees that lined the sidewalk laid claim to expansions of their roots.

The trio wore flashy, bright, neatly ironed clothes with pricey accessories. Their hair: from Carmen's lusciously long brown curls, Amber's silver pins, and Shelby's sleek black bob boasted uptown preppy girl like nothing else.

At last, they came to a small shop with the unlit neon sign: Madam Vadoma's Psychic Readings. The interior was hidden from view by velvet curtains. Mysterious posters advertising the psychic's skills with tarot cards, palm readings, astrology, potions, and numerology decorated the windows.

"This is it guys," Shelby nodded at her friends before pushing the door open.

The wooden beads hanging behind it tapped against each other as they entered, alerting the psychic of their presence. The heavy fragrance of burning incense greeted them first, providing a strange sense of comfort and ease.

A branched chandelier in the center of the room lit the business dimly. The floor was covered in dark red carpets, and the walls were draped with shiny purple velvet curtains and gold fairy lights, muffling the noise from the busy traffic outside and businesses next door.

Rustic wooden shelves stored jars of all sizes with various herbs and ingredients. A table nearby displayed candles and incense burners for sale along with different brands of tarot card packs.

A wider table on the other side featured occult knick knacks, ranging from enchanted jewelry, small statuettes, and tiny magic crystals.

A young woman with curly black hair and a nose piercing spotted them while counting stacks behind the counter.

"Hello, welcome to Madam Vadoma's Psychic Readings. What can I do ya for?"

"Hey Liliana, is Madam Vadoma here? I wanted to get a.. crystal ball reading," Shelby answered.

"Sure thing, she's in the back sorting out some stuff. Her last costumer just left so you can go in."

"Perfect, thank you!"

Shelby confidently led the girls to a beaded entrance on the far right of the counter.

Meanwhile, Amber wondered how anyone could make so much bank from this. At least ESP and paranormal research had some scientific merit. She concluded that some people would believe just about anything.

Carmen surveyed the room and cringed at a goat statuette. Her mother would kill her if she found out she'd been involved with a business like this. It was too late anyway. If any of the night before was real, then the only option they had was to go deeper.. right?

"Why Shelby, I had a feeling you'd be coming in today," the beautiful psychic mused, the hint of a Russian accent on her tongue. Her light blonde hair curled inwards to just below her ears, with sideswept bangs almost covering one eye. Her eyes were an enticing clear blue under soft purple eye shadow, her nose slim, and cheekbones high.

"Wow, you already have everything set up too!" Shelby gasped while pulling out one of the three fancy chairs set around the table across from Madam Vadoma.

No duh, she just heard us come in a few minutes ago, Amber thought while squinting her eyes.

"Of course," she chuckled softly. "What brings you here today?"

"Wouldn't you know?" Amber said sarcastically.

"Amber!" Shelby kicked her friend under the seat, to which her friend glared.

The psychic raised a thin painted eyebrow in not so much offense as amusement. The corner of her narrow red lips lifted in a soft smirk. "I like your spirit, young one."

Amber rolled her eyes and looked away. Touché. Not.

Shelby cleared her throat. "Sorry about my friend, she's kind of a selective skeptic. Anyway, I was hoping you could help us out on an ordeal here."

"What would that be?" Madam Vadoma leaned in intriguingly.

"Well," Carmen explained, casting a wary glance towards her friends. "We went to a graveyard the other day hunting for ghosts. I think we saw one, because a lot of weird, inexplicable events happened. My friend here went into a panic and scratched her neck, and I had a very vivid dream after seeing an apparition close up."

Madam Vadoma nodded, holding intense eye contact. "You know, sometimes the mind plays tricks on the senses when you expect to see something."

"We really did see something!" Amber spoke up defensively, to the groups amazement. "I have the evidence to prove it. My EMF Meter wouldn't have been going crazy if there weren't any paranormal energy in that area. Carmen even recorded everything with a camcorder. Which we have yet to look at..."

"Fair enough, I believe you. Carmen, dear, would you mind going over the dream you had?"

Her voice was so soothing, it almost gave Carmen nostalgia. She complied and told her the details of her vision, from the neon mirror to the underground nightclub.

"I.. wow, now that's something isn't it?" The Madam removed the cap from a nearby flask and took a sharp sip. "It seems that this spirit was trying to communicate with you. Amber, you went into a panic because you have a unique sensitivity to the emotions of those around you. Carmen, you were given access to a window in the life of a departed soul."

"Clairvoyance," Shelby uttered.

"That's right," the psychic nodded grimly. "May I ask, who is the ghost you went hunting for? With such concentrated energy, I'm almost certain you had a specific person in mind."

The girls shared a nod and agreed to place confidence in the psychic.

"The ghost we went looking for.. was Rain Wilson."