“Long story short, we were in the Twih,” Quinn said.
“For three days?” Gramma hurried forward to help Quinn with Echo’s weight.
“Three days?”
“You left on Friday night. It’s Tuesday morning.” Gramma swiped Echo’s wet hair from her face. “She’s cold. It’s spell-shock, isn’t it? Why is she all wet?”
Harvest staggered in and laid the boy on the couch. He mumbled and turned over. A small sense of relief crossed her face.
“You’re not going to ask why we’re naked?” Quinn, with Gramma’s help, got Echo into the wingback chair and covered her with a blanket.
“Witches get naked all the time. It’s usually one of the first things you learn.” Gramma Em’s face puckered. “I should’ve listened to Mary. We should have been teaching you girls all along.”
“Don’t fret, Gramma. We’re catching on.”
“Still.” She shook her head.
“Right now, we need to get Bobby and Echo to the ER,” Harvest said, sitting in the recliner. She did her best to cover up. “After we get some clothes.”
“Who is Bobby?” Gramma examined the boy.
“Bobby Novak. He supposedly drowned last fall,” Quinn said.
“Honey amethyst,” Gramma said, taking a sniff of the boy’s hair. “He was in the Twih all this time?”
“Not for very long. If an hour there translates to three days here—” Harvest started.
“Omigod, what am I going to tell my boss?” Quinn breathed.
Gramma tugged her robe tighter. “Harvest is right, at least about Bobby. He needs to go to the hospital.’
“Not Echo?”
Em’s face sank. “No doctor can ease spell-shock. How did it happen?”
Quinn gave her the rundown, Echo’s transformation, and the other sisters’ sharing it. Harvest showed her the jade ring.
“Jade. Your mother told me that jade affected her powers.” Gramma shrugged, helplessly. “I’m not a Twih witch. The only thing we can do for Echo is keep her warm and safe, and hope that she comes out of it intact.”
Quinn felt her eyes prickle. “It’s my fault. Damn it, she was so excited to be a mermaid. Or were-seal.”
“Selkie,” Harvest tried again.
The stairs creaked, and Aunt Mary appeared. “What’s all the ruckus?”
As they told her, Aunt Mary took off her glasses and rubbed sleep out of her eyes.
“Why is it always Echo? She went all wacky when she spied on that house with spider eyes, too.” Quinn covered her youngest sister better.
“Young people are more adept at magic, more accepting of it,” Mary said. “But they are also the most vulnerable to it. Has she said anything since the spell-shock?”
Harvest and Quinn exchanged a glance. “Peanut butter,” Harvest said.
“Ah.” Mary headed into the kitchen. “I’ll make cookies.”
“It’s five in the morning,” Gramma said.
“Echo said peanut butter. She’ll need peanut butter cookies.”
“Five a.m.?” Quinn groaned. “I gotta wash the mermaid off me and face the music at work.” She ran her hands through her damp hair. “I think I might need a new job.”
“I’ll stay with Echo,” Mary called. “You and Harvest get that boy to Warren General. Quinn, you better go talk to your boss.”
Gramma patted Quinn on the shoulder. “Maybe it won’t be so bad, honey.”
“Well, at the very least, we solved a missing person case.” Quinn tried to smile.
“Not just one missing person case.” Harvest sat, staring at the ring. The look she gave Quinn told her that her middle sister would reveal no more.
“I HOPE EVERYTHING’S okay with Quinn’s job,” Harvest said when she heard Quinn in the shower. “I don’t want to be all happy about my new one if she gets canned.”
“What are you talking about?’ Gramma asked.
Harvest shrugged into her coat, still unable to feel her extremities. “I’m pretty sure I solved my own case as well. The DA might not be happy to hear what I have to say, but I’m pretty sure he’ll have to give me the investigator position. At least, if he keeps his word. It’s a really good thing I didn’t drown. I hate loose ends.”
“You know, Mary and I can handle this. I think you may be more spell-shocked than you think.”
“No, I’m fine, Gramma. Better than fine. Except...”
“What?”
“I may need to borrow your phone later. When we changed into selkies, I lost all my stuff. I’m going to need some new uniform shorts, too. And a gun. And a vest. And a new set of keys.” She sighed, exhaustion overcoming her enthusiasm. “Aw, man.”
ECHO THRASHED IN THE water and woke herself up. Sun was in her eyes. That was odd, because at this time of year, the bunkhouse didn’t get sun in the morning. She found herself in the wingchair by the window. A blanket smothered the ottoman under her feet. Otherwise, she was naked.
“Here you go, honey.”
At the sound of Aunt Mary’s voice, she grabbed the blanket and pulled it over her.
“I’ve changed your diapers way too often for you to be modest.” Aunt Mary brought a tray with tea and cookies.
“Peanut butter cookies? How did you know?”
“I may just be a plain old country witch, but I know what my girls need.”
She shoved a cookie in her mouth and washed it down with hot tea. “What happened? Where is everyone?”
Mary took a cookie and sat on the couch across from her. “Well, I came in late. As far as I can tell, your Gramma and Harvest took some strange boy to the ER. Quinn got all gussied up so she could go to work and get fired.”
“Fired?”
Mary shrugged. “It’s Tuesday.”
“Tuesday?” The news stunned her. “We were only in the Twih for an hour at most.”
“Some part of it I never heard of, somewhere deep. We country witches tend to stick to the Arcadian Calm. It’s a nice picnic spot, if you can afford to lose a day.”
“Tuesday. Holy moly...”
“Don’t look so sad, honey. You’re on break.”
“What happened to me?”
“Oh. Well, apparently you got bitch slapped by a jade ring. Harvest, too. Nearly killed her. You saved her, and when you touched her, you got zapped.”
She gasped. “Spell-shocked?”
“Since the spell primarily focused on you, you took the bigger hit. I think cookies will make you better. And more sleep.” Aunt Mary reached for another cookie, but stared at Echo. “What did I say?”
“Nothing. It’s not you. It’s just—what’s the upside to being a witch? I’m always getting a spell broken on me, or stuck in one. The first guy I really like goes all nutty when we fall into the Twih. Quinn gets fired. She hasn’t even been back home a year. Why did we ever take that vow? I thought it would be so lit. Being a witch is a total suck-fest.”
“Drink your tea and have another cookie.”
“And Nick and Cora—Nick’s a big-shot witch, with all kinds of tricks and spells. Cora is afraid of him. Should I blame her? I’m afraid of myself sometimes. But neither one of them is happy, either. Maybe that’s just the way it goes.” Echo sipped the tea but didn’t taste it.
“Well, I’m hardly the sensible one, but you didn’t take that vow because it was lit. You took that vow to protect innocent people from bad magic. And you did that. No one else could’ve brought that boy back from the Twih. No one. Not Nick, not the Leshy. Even if you’ve lost your powers, that is something to feel good about. You have no idea how proud we are.”
Echo felt a little teary. “I guess it is. It would’ve been horrible if we didn’t pull that little kid out of that place.”
“Things don’t always have to be so melodramatic. Neither does your love life. Me and your Uncle Bob never had a lot of fights. The usual stuff, money and whatever. He was a farmer, not a witch. But he accepted what I was. People can, you know, they can accept the strangest thing
s if they love someone. It’ll happen, Squirt. Probably not the way you expect, but it’ll happen for you. Don’t worry your head over it right now.”
Before she knew it, Echo fell back to sleep.
Chapter 18
EVEN THOUGH SHE WAS early, Dr. Park and Rae Devon had already arrived. No way to sneak in. The shower and super-large gas station coffee was barely enough to keep her on her feet after the night’s activities. Or, the past three days’ activities, by the regular clock. She blew out her cheeks and walked into Human Services.
“Hey, Quinn.”
She turned at the sound of Rae’s voice. To Quinn’s shock, Rae had a party blower in her mouth. With a squeak, the paper part unraveled and hit Quinn in the ear.
“Oops. Sorry. Awesome news, Quinn. Good job.”
Rae went down the hall and into her office. Quinn had known her since college. While her friend could be cynical, this was way over the top. How could she blame Rae? Even if the reasons were important, she’d missed a day of work without calling in. It wasn’t acceptable. Rae had recommended her for the position, after all. That probably made Quinn’s irresponsibility smart all the more.
She peeked into her office. Quinn was going to miss the cramped space. She’d never even put up pictures or a calendar. Maybe that was for the best; fewer things to box up and drag out of here.
“Quinn, you’re early.” Dr. Danielle Park managed to sneak up behind her. “That’ll make things quicker. My office, please.”
She nodded, not speaking, and followed in the director’s wake. At least Dr. Park was going to give her the axe in private. Even if Rae already knew. Oddly, Park gave her a smile as she opened her office door.
Nick and Cora sat on the visitor side of the desk. They were holding hands. Cora blushed, her smile looking guilty.
Dr. Park took a seat behind the desk. “I have to admit, I found your request a little baffling, Quinn. But we hardly ever get a victory like this in Human Services. Usually, I have to hear how badly some abusive father is going to sue me. If we had awards to hand out, you’d certainly deserve one. You’ll have to settle for a job well done.”
Quinn’s gaze moved from Park, to Cora, to Nick. There was a mischievous twinkle in his eye. “I will?”
“Certainly, it’s out of the ordinary. But to turn what might have become an ugly custody battle into a reconciliation? In this office, I’ll take all the happy news I can get.” Danielle smiled. “And such a glowing review. We should be on Yelp.”
Too confused to speak, Quinn took the remaining chair. What on Earth was going on here? It wasn’t until Cora, looking ready to burst, held out her hand that she began to catch on. There was a ring on her finger. A jade ring. Quinn stopped herself from backing away.
“He proposed,” Cora managed. “I said yes!”
At least there could be no family controversy over love spells. The jade ring would protect Cora from any Twih-borne spell. But what. The. What?
“Thank you for everything you’ve done,” Cora gushed. “I don’t think it could’ve happened this way without you.”
I didn’t do anything, Quinn didn’t say.
“I believe it took someone outside the situation to really show us that our differences were hardly even that,” Nick said. “Thank you for your council.”
“My...council.”
“It was so simple. Talk to her, you said. I didn’t think she would even see me.” Nick shrugged.
Quinn wanted to shrug, too. She remembered Cora’s opinion about the idea: No freakin way am I sitting down with Nick.
“The things you wouldn’t say, I get it now. You knew I needed to hear them from Nick.” Cora looked away, embarrassed. “And the things you did say, I knew they were true, but I didn’t want to believe any of it. Because I was afraid.”
Nick and Cora found each other’s hands again. It was all Quinn could do not to shake her head in confusion.
“Above and beyond the call of duty, Miss Hutchinson. This is going to look very nice on your upcoming review.” Park stood up, extending her hand. “Congratulations to both of you, and your daughter. Now, if you’ll excuse me, this department isn’t going to run itself.”
Quinn stumbled to her feet. “Why don’t I walk you two out?”
Once they were in the parking lot, she scowled at Uncle Nick. “What the heck happened?”
“I knew you were engaged in the Twih. You needed a little backup.”
“No, not that,” although she’d had no idea what that was about. One small mystery cleared up. “Why are you two even talking? Last I heard, you were ready to take Nick to court, Cora.”
“Fear. Fear of the unknown, fear for my daughter’s safety. You’re the one who started the notion in my head, that Nick would be better able to protect Zuri than anyone else. It made perfect sense to me, but I had no idea why. No conscious idea why.”
Quinn then realized that Nick had mentioned the Twih in front of Cora. She turned wide eyes on her Uncle. He peeked over his Ray Bans at her and nodded. “I came clean. I told her everything. About me, about you and your sisters, about Zuri.”
Holy cow.
IT TOOK HER THE ENTIRE morning, exhausted as she was, but Harvest finally parked outside the courthouse in Warren and walked upstairs to the district attorney’s office. She had a single file folder in her hand, and a secret weapon in her pocket.
“I didn’t realize you had an appointment, Miss Hutchinson.” Mudge’s secretary gave Harvest a glare over her half-glasses. Nancy Battleby had taken a dislike to Harvest since she’d applied for the investigator position. Harvest had no idea what she might have done.
“I don’t. I didn’t expect to finish this little favor for him so soon.”
“Don’t be too hopeful. His calendar is very full. There are two cases coming to trial next week. Let me talk to him. Maybe I can get DA Mudge to squeeze you in.”
Harvest’s intuition kicked into high gear. Nancy was going to walk into the office and ask if she could send Harvest away, seeing that the district attorney was so busy. Her nerves felt sandblasted, her head hurt, and she needed a good twenty hours’ sleep. “Be persuasive, Mrs. Battleby.”
She stopped halfway to the door and faced Harvest. “Excuse me?”
“Persuade the DA that I have some important news for him. Trust me, he’ll thank you for it.”
“That’s very presumptuous of you, Constable.”
“It’s not. Trust me on this.”
Chapter 19
NICK SIGHED, TAKING off his sunglasses to look at Quinn. “I never agreed with what Cade and Trinity did to you girls. It came to the point where I could no longer ignore these feelings. My daughter should be allowed to reach her full potential, whether that is as a witch, or in her mundane pursuits. At the same time, I never realized how inconsiderate it was to leave Cora out of the loop. Zuri is her child as well, and she’s done a fine job of bringing her up, even without the knowledge of her true nature.” Nick turned and put his arm around Cora. “A spectacular job.”
“What really changed my mind was seeing Nick and Zuri together for the first time. It felt so right. So real. Even the initial awkwardness was so sweet. Nick was so worried Zuri would reject him. I couldn’t recall ever seeing him vulnerable like that.” Cora unconsciously leaned into Nick’s embrace. “Just like that, the spark was back. I can’t explain it.”
“I don’t think you need to,” Quinn said.
“No, I do. I’ve been rude to you and your sisters. Even Echo, though Zuri loves Echo like a sister. When you helped me, I pushed you away, because I was afraid. You can’t believe how good it feels, not to be afraid. But, don’t get the idea that I’m totally bamboozled by love, here. There’s a long, long way for us to go. There are huge obstacles, adjustments, all kinds of logistics. But I’m excited to face all of it. Because I’ll face all of it with Nick.”
Quinn didn’t feel any less confused. It was like she was gone for a year instead of three days. Could such opposed people re
concile so easily? She honestly hadn’t had enough serious relationships to know for sure.
“Well, I don’t feel like I actually did anything. But good for you. I’m happy for both of you. If you need anything else from me, to help you along, just let me know.”
“Actually, we might need you to talk to Zuri about this. Given your background, you can probably explain things to her. Maybe ask Echo, too?” Cora’s hands wrung together. “She’s just getting used to the idea that her father is around. I don’t want her too confused.”
“You know what? I think it’s best that you clue your daughter in. Both of you. Most kids are pretty stoked by the idea of their parents being together. But I’ll stop by your place. I’m sure Echo could use a little dinosaur time with her bestie.”
“I DIDN’T EXPECT TO see you so soon, Harvest.” Mudge gestured to his guest chair. “Find something?”
“Yes, sir. I found Alan McGooby.”
“Found him. Found my grandfather.” He studied her for a few heartbeats. “Alright, I’ll bite. Where did he go?”
“He didn’t go anywhere. He’s been here the whole time.” Harvest put the file on the desk, but kept her hand on top of it.
“Really? You have some proof of this?”
“Hold out your hand.”
His expression said that he was not willing to indulge her for long. Still, he held his palm above his desk. Harvest grabbed the ring out of her pocket and dropped it in his hand. In truth, she was glad to be rid of the thing.
“Exhibit A.”
“What’s this?” He brought it close for inspection. Then closer. Mudge turned it over, not speaking for a full minute. His eyes flicked up at hers. “You have my attention.”
“My sister is taking a scuba class from the new shop in town. Their first open dive was on the reservoir. That’s where the ring was found—outside the ruins of Fishburn.”
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