by Raven Snow
Tiffany looked at her sisters. It was disheartening that Rowen’s own mother looked uncomfortable with this latest news. Clarence was fine with it. At least there was that. “Awesome,” he said, beaming. “You’re like Romeo and Juliet, uniting your two families.”
“I’m not sure that’s how Romeo and Juliet ended,” Aunt Nadine said quietly to him, still as stony faced as the rest of her family about this.
Rowen looked at Margo. She tried to glare at her, but Margo was looking straight ahead, avoiding her gaze. Well, then. Fair was fair. “If you want to hear about some real family news, Margo only knew about that because she’s having an affair with Jasper Stonewall.” At least, Rowen guessed that was how she knew. She could feel Margo’s eyes on her as soon as she said that. She didn’t regret it. Margo deserved it. Who betrayed someone who had more dirt on you than you did on them? It was her own fault.
“Is that true?” asked Norman, brows drawn together like he was genuinely upset to hear this. “I thought things were good between you and David.”
“They were,” Margo said quickly. “I mean, they are. We’re working this out.”
“But you cheated on him with Jasper Stonewall?” Lydia asked, like she couldn’t wrap her head around that. “Why him?”
“I don’t know,” Margo blurted. “It was a spur of the moment thing. I regret it. Can we just… I’d really like to talk about this later.”
Maybe Rowen felt a little sorry for Margo. Stooping to her level didn’t feel quite right, even if it had taken the heat off of her and Eric. She opened her mouth to say something in Margo’s defense but couldn’t come up with anything.
“Maybe we should do this some other time,” Lydia said, putting the large envelope that contained the funds from Grammy’s estate down.
“Why?” asked Clarence. “The family meeting just started, didn’t it?”
“There’s a little more to this family meeting than we had bargained on, I think,” said Nadine.
“You can just hand out the checks,” suggested Norman. “You don’t have to hold them hostage until the mood is right.”
Aunt Lydia put the envelope on the table. “Do what you want,” she said with a sigh. “Your grandmother would not be pleased with any of this.”
“Why?” asked Margo, beginning to sound more angry than defensive. “Because she hated the Stonewalls? If the only thing anyone here did wrong was hate the Stonewall family a little less than the previous generation did then… then I think it’s just stupid to get mad about that.”
“I don’t think that’s the only reason she would be disappointed,” said Lydia. She didn’t specify what else Grammy would be disappointed with, but she clearly seemed to be implying she would be angry about the cheating itself.
“Lydia,” Norman snapped as his daughter stood to leave. “That’s enough.”
Margo left the room anyway. On Rowen’s right side, Eric nudged her. “Maybe we should leave,” he whispered. Rowen was definitely tempted. The meeting seemed to be dispersing on its own, though. Norman went after his daughter. Lydia went after him. That left Tiffany, Clarence, and Nadine. Nadine looked around as if considering leaving herself. Finally, she just gave a big sigh and opened up the envelope the checks were in. She handed Tiffany and Rowen theirs.
Rowen glanced down at the check in her hands. It wasn’t a ton. It was being split so many ways, she hadn’t expected it to be, but it was even less than she had imagined. That was probably because a large portion of the inheritance had gone to the Stonewalls. Rowen wasn’t too worried about it. She slipped the check into her purse.
Tiffany looked at the check for a while, considering something. “I might as well sign this over to you guys. I think I’d like this to be put into the store. I’d like to expand our stock.”
Nadine actually managed a genuine looking smile at that. “I like that idea. I might do the same.”
Clarence frowned. He leaned a bit closer to Tiffany, lowering his voice to a whisper everyone could still hear. “I didn’t think we were sticking around that long.”
Rowen didn’t like hearing that. She was unsurprised, but it always came as a huge disappointment when her mother upped and left them all. She made a point to pretend she either hadn’t heard or didn’t care. She felt her mother’s eyes on her, checking for a reaction.
“I’d still like the shop to do well while I’m not here,” Tiffany whispered back. “I’ll be back again. I always come back here.”
Clarence shrugged his broad shoulders. “If that’s what you think is best, Honey.”
“I think Eric and I are going to head home,” Rowen said, beginning to stand.
Tiffany looked away from Clarence to offer her daughter a smile. She quickly turned that smile to Eric. “So, you’re a Stonewall. Really?”
“I’d like to think I’m a Greensmith.” That was just about the best thing Eric could have said. It even seemed to drum up some sympathy from Nadine who suddenly looked like she felt a touch guilty for being so scandalized after hearing the news of his parentage. “But, yes. I guess technically I am,” Eric continued.
“That’s so weird. I never would have guessed.” Now that she’d had some time to think about it, Tiffany looked pleased by what she now knew about Eric. “I don’t suppose you’ve discovered any latent magical abilities?”
“We’ve been trying,” said Rowen. She shot her husband a dirty look. “Not that he’s really been taking it seriously.”
“I take it seriously!” Eric said in his own defense. “I just don’t think I have any.”
Tiffany waved a hand like that didn’t matter. “Well, either way, this is good news.”
Rowen was surprised to hear that. “How do you figure?”
“It has to be fate, doesn’t it?” Tiffany glanced at her boyfriend. He nodded readily in agreement. “There’s been a rift between our two families for long enough. It’s about time we bridged that gap.”
Rowen wasn’t sure about all of that, but she did appreciate her mother being so positive about the news. She doubted Margo was going to get off the hook as easily.
Chapter Eleven
“She’s not answering my calls,” Rowen complained, throwing her cell phone at the other end of the couch. It bounced off the arm and tumbled onto the floor.
“I’m not sure why you’re so surprised,” said Eric, slipping on his shoes. Flint would be here any minute to pick them up. “I’d be surprised if she answered the phone any time this week. She does have a reason to be mad at you.”
“And I don’t have a good reason to be mad at her?” Rowen stared up at the ceiling, thinking back on the last family meeting. She was wrinkling her clothes lying on the couch like she was, but she didn’t really care. She was too annoyed to care.
“I think ratting her out for cheating is a little worse, but that’s just my opinion.” Eric scooped his wife’s phone up off the floor. “Come on,” he said, offering it to her as well as a hand to help her up. “I can see Flint in the driveway.”
Rowen relented and got up. Flint had offered to drive them to the prison. They could have taken their own car, but he said he wanted to talk on the way. Rowen figured he was just bored being back in town. Either way, she didn’t want to make him wait. She let Eric help her up and made it to the front door before he even had time to knock.
“Come on,” Flint called to them, standing next to his car door. “We need to hurry up. I told my sister we would meet her before the class started, and I’m running behind.”
Rowen and Eric got into the back as Flint climbed into the front seat again. “So how have you two been?” he asked, pulling out of the driveway.
Eric didn’t answer. He just looked at his wife, like he wasn’t sure how much she was willing to share. Rowen saw no point in lying. “Bad,” she said, being blunt about it. She proceeded to tell him about what had transpired at their family meeting. Flint made seething, scandalized noises at all the right times.
“I can see why you a
nd Margo would be mad,” said Flint, not picking sides. “And I can see why you would be angry, even if what you said probably wasn’t a choice thing to blurt out.”
“It was the first thing that came to mind.” Rowen wasn’t going to defend herself on that anymore. She knew she made a mistake. She was still angry with Margo, but she definitely could have handled herself better. “How’s Jasper?” she asked, changing the subject.
“A wreck. If you had him pegged as your killer, I would give your theories a second thought.” Flint glanced back at them like he didn’t approve of any of his family being suspects. “I do believe she finally got through to him that they’re finished as a couple.”
“That’ll be news to David,” Eric muttered, raising his eyebrows in mild surprise. “He left town last night. To hear him tell it, he’s done with Margo.”
Rowen looked at her husband, scandalized. “You didn’t think to tell me about that?”
Eric shrugged. “It’s not like we don’t have plenty of other drama going on without me keeping you updated on that. Besides, you know how your cousin and my brother are. They could be back together by tonight.”
Rowen considered that. “Margo doesn’t take being single well.” There might be a chance for Jasper and Margo yet. She didn’t tell that to Flint, but she was sure he inferred it.
“So!” Flint interrupted the awkward silence as it descended. “We’re going to be stepping in and helping my sister with the guided meditation today. I assume all of us here know how that works.”
Rowen nodded while Eric shook his head. “I’ve never meditated a day in my life.”
“Sure you have,” Rowen told him. “Maybe you didn’t know it was meditation, but you’ve meditated. You’ll be fine. Just close your eyes and follow instructions.”
“I told her you were interested in taking on work at the hospital,” Flint explained. “I told her that your Grammy’s death really inspired you to work for… I dunno, positive change or some nonsense. Just remember that when we get there.”
“I think I can manage that.” Rowen had already imagined a similar excuse for herself being here. By the time they were actually at Lainswich Correctional, Rowen felt very confident with her lie. She and Eric got out of the car and followed Flint inside.
The correctional officer behind the front desk smiled at them, but it looked forced. She couldn’t have known why Flint was there or the Greensmiths, for that matter. It wasn’t like Rowen had anyone there left to visit.
“I’m helping out my sister today,” Flint explained. “These two are helping me. She should be expecting us.”
“Oh.” The correctional officer’s face lit up. “More volunteers? That’s great. Let me lead you on back.” She stood from her seat behind the window and made her way down a hall that required a keycard. Rowen and the others followed close behind. Eventually, they were led to a wide-open room with a hard tile floor. It was empty save for Amber in one corner of it, unloading gray, rectangular mats from a pile.
“Hey, sis,” Flint called, walking into the room without hesitation.
Amber jumped, nearly dropping the mat in her hands. She had already laid out a couple of rows of them. They looked like cheap yoga mats. The surprised look on her freckled face quickly shifted into a smile. “Flint! I was wondering if you would actually show up. I’ve never known you to be big on charity.”
Flint waved a hand, dismissing her words. “Yeah, well, Rowen and Eric wanted to come check things out. I promised I’d come with them.”
Amber didn’t question why he’d tagged along. “I get it. We Stonewalls are sort of intimidating.”
“I wouldn’t say that,” Rowen said reflectively. “It’s not like I’m scared of you or anything. I’m more scared of our respective relatives, to be honest. They sure can hold grudges.”
Amber gave a low whistle. “Amen to that.” She turned back to the yoga mats. “So, you’re interested in helping out around here? It’s a good cause, really rewarding.”
Rowen nodded. She reached for a stack of mats and moved to set those out herself. “They treated Grammy right. At least, that was the impression I got. I would have sooner she’d been back at home, but if she had to be in a prison, this place seems above average.”
“Oh, it is,” Amber assured her. “It’s quite a drive for me, unfortunately. That’s really the only problem.”
“How far do you have to drive?”
“About an hour and a half with traffic, if you can believe that.”
“That’s a good chunk of time.” Rowen couldn’t find a sane reason why Amber bothered. Surely, there were causes that were just as good within a more reasonable driving distance. Maybe she just really cared about this place in particular. Rowen doubted it. She didn’t think the Stonewalls had any distant relatives imprisoned there.
“It really is,” Amber said with a nod. She carried more mats to Rowen. Shoulder to shoulder they were about the same height. Amber just had a slimmer frame. “That’s why I got so excited to hear that you might try volunteering. It would be a real help. You could take over here, and I could keep to Tarricville.”
“Oh.” That caught Rowen by surprise. It must have sounded like it too. Amber’s eyes widened.
“Sorry,” said Amber. “My brother made it sound like you wanted to take this whole weekend meditation thing over.” She glared at her brother. “I didn’t mean to jump to conclusions.”
“I would,” Rowen said quickly. “Seriously. I would love to if I had the time. It’s just that I have so much to do between the Lainswich Inquirer and Eric’s business and the store my aunts own. It seems like I never stop running some weeks. I’d love to help out when I can, but I don’t see how I could possibly commit to a regular weekly thing.”
“Ah, yeah.” It seemed like Amber was trying not to make a big deal out of things, but it was difficult to miss the way her expression fell. “I must have misunderstood Flint. My bad.”
“I never said she would be taking over,” Flint said in his defense. He looked at Rowen. “I only said you’d taken an interest in volunteering some. Which is true.”
Rowen nodded. “I’m impressed you dedicate so much of your time. I wish I could do that.”
“It’s just because I have free time to spare,” said Amber, dismissing the compliment. “It’s not like I have a day job.”
“It sounds like Jasper doesn’t volunteer nearly as much as you do,” Rowen offered. “He doesn’t have a job either.”
“Jasper doesn’t volunteer at all,” Amber corrected with a laugh, like she couldn’t even picture a scenario in which that was the case. “But he does have a job— sort of. He’s the next head of the family. Our parents have to teach him all they have to pass down. It’s not like they can pass it down to Flint. He skipped town on them.”
“I don’t regret any of it either,” Flint said without hesitation.
“Are you learning from your parents, too?” Rowen asked, wondering if that was why Amber didn’t have a job.
“Sort of.” Amber laid the last mat down herself. “They teach me, but I’m not really expected to lead the family when the time comes. I’m expected to be more of a backup. That, and I’m expected to pass the knowledge on to my own children.”
“That’s sort of presumptuous, isn’t it?” asked Rowen. “That you even want to settle down and have children.”
“You’re telling me.” Amber rolled her eyes. “Our parents certainly expect things to be a certain way. Some days I envy Flint for up and leaving.”
“But you don’t have any desire to up and leave yourself?”
“There aren’t many magical family lines out there anymore. My family is one of the oldest. They expect a lot from me and, well, I feel like I owe them that much. You came back home even after you had made a life for yourself out there in the city. You get where I’m coming from.”
Rowen wasn’t sure that she did completely. “I feel like my family is a little more lax than yours. We don’t exactl
y have a designated head of the family.”
“Really?” Amber raised her eyebrows. “Your grandmother was the head of the household before she died. Who inherited the Greensmith house after her?”
That was an interesting question. Rowen hadn’t given it a whole lot of thought until now. “One of my aunts, probably.” She wasn’t sure which one. It was likely Lydia. Rowen wasn’t completely sure, but she had a feeling that she was the oldest before Nadine by a year or two. They never really talked about it.
“Has one of your aunts taken over teaching you and your cousins?” Amber moved to the front of the room. There, she had laid out a mat horizontally.
