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“When the lights came back on, a prominent psychic was missing along with a grimoire said to be ancient and priceless,” Ross reported. “Neither the psychic nor the spellbook were ever found.”

Vic sat back and frowned, thinking through Ross’s story. “I guess it’s possible that the psychic engineered the power failure to steal the book.”

“Except that the power went out across Myrtle Beach, not just the hotel,” Ross pointed out. “And if she stole it, she never showed up again as a seer, so it didn’t do her much good. The book has also never surfaced on any of the shady artifact sites, so either it wasn’t sold, or it stayed deep underground.”

“Or she and the spellbook somehow never left the hotel,” Vic mused. “I don’t know how that would work, but I’m open to just about anything at this point.”

“You think the hotel stole the book and killed her?” Ross asked.

Vic shook his head. “Not necessarily. But someone who wanted to increase the hotel’s spooky power might have ‘spirited’ them both away and hidden them on the property.”

“I guess it’s as good a theory as any,” Ross agreed. “I’ll send you an email with the main points I found, and the names of the most famous people involved. Of course, they’re all long dead and so are the people who followed them at their peak, but you might find some useful connections.”

“Thanks,” Vic told him. “I really appreciate it.”

Ross shrugged. “It’s a lot more interesting than our usual cases. I hope it helps.”

After Ross returned to his desk, Vic dug into the new lead, searching for anything he could find about the missing spiritualist and the event at the Ocean Visions.

He read up on Spiritualism as a movement and checked for living descendants of the main guests at the doomed, long-ago conference. As Ross had told him, no mention was ever made of the missing psychic or the old book after their disappearance, but Vic found plenty about both the woman and the grimoire. He took plenty of notes and was surprised when he glanced at the clock and realized that the afternoon had slipped by.

“Find anything useful?” Ross asked as they walked out together.

“Maybe. I don’t know what Simon will make of it. More interesting than our usual perps.” They parted ways at the parking lot, and Vic’s research stayed on his mind for the whole drive home. Simon greeted him at the door with a kiss.

“Good timing,” Simon told him when they stepped back. “I have a pizza in the oven. It’ll be ready soon.”

Vic took a deep breath, and his stomach growled. “Smells great. I’m starved.”

When they sat down at the table, Simon gave him a questioning look. “Okay. Spill. You’ve got something you’re dying to say.” He tapped his temples. “Psychic, remember?”

“Have you ever heard of Madame Andrea Mason or the Twilight Compendium?” Vic paused before taking a bite from his slice of pizza.

Simon thought for a moment. “Something to do with Spiritualism, a long time ago. That’s all I know.”

“Ross gave me a tip, and I bird-dogged it,” Vic replied, in between bites. “There was an ill-fated Spiritualist convention at the Ocean Visions back in the 1920s. Everything that could go wrong did, almost like the whole thing was cursed.”

“Not surprised.”

“They were going to hold a big ceremony with Madame Mason and her book of magic secrets, but the lights went out, and both she and the book vanished and were never seen again. Apparently, everyone who was significantly involved in the event came to ruin.”

“Almost like it was cursed,” Simon murmured.

“Yeah. I looked into Madame Mason and her book and thought you’d want to know because it might have a bearing on the mess with the Ocean Visions now. By all accounts, Andrea Mason had legitimate talent as a psychic and a seer.” Vic swiped a second piece of pizza and took a big bite.

“She was from Philadelphia, and despite some of the frauds from that era, Mason impressed everyone with her accuracy of predictions and relaying information from ghosts she would have had no way to know. Mason took on notable clients, and her fame grew. That’s how she got to be one of the featured psychics at the Ocean Visions conference. But there was a dark side.”

“There always is,” Simon murmured.

“Other than professional jealousy from the other psychics, the fame seemed to go to her head. Records from back then are limited, but she was famous enough that there were a number of articles written about her. She talked about gaining the ability to affect storms or earthquakes, even stop wars.”

“And the book?” Despite his skepticism, Simon sounded very interested.

“There wasn’t as much written about the Twilight Compendium as about Mason, and the people who did mention it called it a ‘spell book.’ She claimed that with her abilities and the secrets in the compendium she could control ‘cosmic forces,’” Vic said.

“Sounds like a Book of Shadows,” Simon commented. “It’s what Wiccans and other practitioners call the notebook they keep of their personal spells and rituals. If Mason had stumbled onto some very powerful workings, the book would have been an important tool, especially if she gathered—or stole—incantations and charms from older witches.”

“There was quite a hunt for her and the book after her disappearance,” Vic told him. “At first, everyone thought it was a publicity stunt. But as time went on and she didn’t show up with a good spiel about what happened, they started to wonder.”