My mind flashes to a memory of Mom, telling me how she just wanted to help her friend Miranda fly. I shake it away. “Then what did you do?”
“She went and asked them about it, of course, because God knows that Tawny can’t mind her own business,” Carl says.
Tawny sticks her tongue out at him. “I did it because it was phenomenal, and you’d think so too if you pulled your head out of your ass, man.” Then her eyes light up and she whirls around to face me. “The ASS man. I remember him. Is that who brought you here?”
I nod.
“Ooh, is he still here? He was cute.”
“He is, and he’ll need to talk to both of you, I’m sure. Right now he’s trying to chase down Penley.”
“Penley? Why? He’s supposed to be here already,” Carl supplies.
“Well, we sort of spooked him, and he took off.” I turn back to Tawny, still trying to figure out how she got here. “But when you talked to the kids, what did they say?”
She sighs, like I’m interrupting her fun. “They told me they were from somewhere exotic, and then they explained this place.”
“And you believed them?” I ask. If a bunch of kids had talked to me about interdimensional time travel, I probably would have laughed in their faces. Not Tawny, though.
“No,” Carl says, shaking his head. “She challenged them to prove it. Crazy woman.”
I look from him to Tawny, wondering why they were even dating, if they disliked each other so much. The aversion between them was palpable in the small room. I didn’t ask, though. “And they said they would?”
“Nope.” Tawny shook her head. “They disappeared. Literally. Right there on the beach. Then they reappeared. It was nuts.”
“Wow.” I tried to imagine Penley and some of the other Colony kids showing off on the mainland, drawing a crowd, and cringed. “Was one of the kids a girl? With black hair, kind of Goth?”
“Yeah - she was bitching about her iPod.” Tawny cocks her head. “You guys have those here?”
“Sometimes. Was her name Rain?”
“Ooh, that’s a pretty name. But no - she said her name was Sabrina, and that she was a teenaged witch. I thought that was hilarious. Not true, but hilarious.”
That sounds a lot like something Rain would do, especially if she was giddy about being on her own for the first time and showing off all the skills she’s been building.
“But then they charged us a grand for the ride,” Carl says. “Well, the old guy did.”
I blink at him. “They charged you money? To bring you here?”
He doesn’t bother answering, but Tawny does, her red curls bouncing around her shoulders. She’s wearing it longer than when I knew her before. “And it would have been worth it, except that we never get to leave this house.”
“So you’ve been here more than once, but why? I mean, if they keep you here, why keep paying them?”
At this, Tawny gets really quiet for a few moments, then says, “I just keep hoping we’ll get to see the sights. If you want the real reason, ask Carl.”
Carl hesitates, then shrugs. “I come for the pot.”
I open my mouth, not sure I heard him correctly. “The...pot?”
“Great stuff. Super potent. I don’t know where they get it, but I know it comes from here.”
“Oh...” I really need to ask Angelo about this. I hope he gets back here soon. “That’s...that’s a steep price, just to get high.”
He shrugs.
I turn back to Tawny. “And they won’t let you out at all?”
“No.” She crosses her arms and pouts. “I’ve asked a million times, but they just sit here and smoke with Carl. I get bored.”
“You don’t, uh, smoke?”
She shakes her head. “No way. That stuff stinks.”
“Does the girl - Sabrina?” I’m holding my breath. “Does she smoke, too?”
Tawny shakes her head. “No, or at least she doesn’t when they come here, but she might be the mastermind behind the whole thing.”
“Why would you say that?”
“What is this, the third degree?”
“Sorry. She’s a friend of mine, and she’s been missing for a while. I just want to know if she’s OK.” I feel bad that Tawny thinks I’m ignoring her to ask about Rain, but I need to know.
“She knows a lot - I mean a whole lot - about herbs and how to grow them and make them more powerful. And you should see her, Trinket. Her eyes just light up when she talks about that stuff. And about her magic. It’s like she’s so excited, like it’s her calling or something.”
“It is,” I say quietly, not sure whether to be proud of Rain, or just relieved that she isn’t smoking pot with her new friends. Or maybe I should be mad that she’s charging admission to Jagged Grove.
But how is that even possible?
I know Tawny is tired of my questions, so I just have to hope that Angelo will get some information out of Penley. I put my arms around Tawny and give her a hard hug. “And you want to see the sights, huh?”
She nods. “Let’s go,” I say, and grin at how her mouth drops open. “Just one thing - you have to promise that you’ll stay close to me. Never, ever leave my sight.”
Her eyes go round, and her eyebrows come up, stretching the freckles on top of her nose. “Cause of the witches?” she whispers.
I shake my head. “No, none of the witches around here will mess with you.” I lean in close and smile. “It’s because of the werewolves.”
She sucks in her breath so hard that she gets choked, and I have to pound on her back before we can leave. I make sure she’s Ok, but then, as we’re going out the door, I realize that Carl isn’t with us. I turn to look at him.
“Go on. I’m not going,” he says, turning to look out the window again. “I just want my delivery.”
I glance at Tawny, who shrugs.
Should I just leave him here? What if something happens to him? I get the feeling that he doesn’t really believe any of this stuff. “Just...please stay right here, OK? This end of the island isn’t the nicest...neighborhood.”
He waves a hand toward us. “I’m fine.”
We’ve been dismissed.
I’m not sure it’s a good idea to let Tawny see everything either, but I’m so happy she’s here that I can’t really resist. Besides, it tickles me to show off our new home a little, even if having her here is surreal in a way.
She trails her hand along the wall all the way down the stairs, pausing here and there to look at some bit of beautifully carved architecture or a leftover piece of statuary that no one wants. We’re walking through the main living area to the front door when she asks, “Who lives here, anyway?”
“No one. It’s been empty for well over a year now.”
“Well, who owns it? Why wouldn’t they live here?”
“Uh...I do?”
She stops walking. “You own this place?”
“Yeah, basically. It belonged to my father, and he left it to me when he...”
I didn’t finish the sentence, but she filled in the blanks. “Oh, I’m sorry.”
Compassion filled her eyes and she reached to squeeze my hand. It was one of the things I always loved about Tawny - she could be incredibly off the wall, but when it mattered, she had a heart as big as the world.
“It’s OK.” I squeezed back and opened the front door. Gesturing toward the street, I grinned and said, “Your adventure awaits.”
She giggled and walked out onto the island, with me following close behind her.
Chapter 12
So from what I’d gathered so far, Guthrie and the kids who hung out with him had been charging these two a lot of money to come and sit in a strange room, and then...what? Getting Carl hooked on drugs so that he would keep paying them to come back? But then what about after he died? Had Penley seen the opportunity and just taken over?
Apparently. I hope Angelo is having some luck catching him.
“So what do you want to see?�
� I ask.
“Everything.” Tawny is practically quivering with excitement, craning her neck to look at everything around us. The Colony is still quiet - only a few people out on the streets, most of them with kids and headed for the park. “Does the water look weird to you?”
I laugh. “Yes. The rain is odd here, and it colors the water strangely. You get used to it.”
To get to the park, we have to walk back through Posy’s neighborhood. It isn’t as deserted as it was this morning - in fact, just as we turn the corner onto her street, an argument breaks out between two men. They are standing on the sidewalk in front of their houses, yelling about something. One of them is wearing a white tank top in spite of the cold, and the other is dressed in a pair of coveralls. He points to the street between their houses and yells something about his parking space.
I take Tawny’s hand and tug her across to the other side of the street, because I know that tone of voice, and it isn’t safe. “Keep walking,” I say quietly, getting between her and the men.
She glances at me, but does as I ask. The guy in the tank top drops first, and then they both stiffen and start to drool. I want to look away, because I know what’s coming next but I can’t. I’ve only seen this happen twice, and Angelo was with me both times. It’s just my luck that Tawny gets to see it her first time here.
The two men are snarling as their bodies morph and change, arms and legs lengthening to unnatural proportions. Even before the transformation is complete, they’re lunging toward one another, like legless creatures who only want to kill something.
I take Tawny’s hand and hurry her along, glancing to see if she’s terrified.
She isn’t. Her face is burning bright with astonishment, and her gaze is riveted on the two men. I pull her forward, and she comes, but not willingly. “This might get dangerous,” I say, remembering how things turned out the last time I saw this. That time, it had been at the Salty Hog, and neither Flux nor Angelo had been able to break up the fight. Those two men had ripped at each other for what felt like a long time, destroying tables and parts of each other in the brawl. By the end, there was blood everywhere and one man was dead. Portia had closed up the bar and sent everyone home, so that Angelo could deal with what had become a crime scene. I’ve never felt so shaken in my life, and I’d rather this not be Tawny’s introduction to Jagged Grove.
As it turned out, that fight had been over the final installment of a book series they’d both been reading.
One of the men lets out a sharp yelp just as we turn the corner and I see the park down the street. I was right that people were taking their kids there to let them play, but none of those people seem too worried about what’s going on behind us. Maybe they can’t hear, or maybe it’s a common occurrence.
Tawny jerks her hand out of my grasp. “What was that?” she asks, her voice sharp. Her face is as white as the snow on the ground. “What did I just see?”
“Shifters,” I say.
She blinks.
“Werewolves. Fighting.”
“Oh, my gosh.” She looks back again, but we’re out of sight. “Does that happen a lot?”
“Not on my end of the island. This end is a little bit...wild west.” I shrug. “I don’t come here much.”
“How are you so calm?” Her blue eyes are intense when she focuses on me. “You just walked right past that.”
“It happens. I promise, the rest of the island is much nicer.”
“So we’re basically in the ‘hood.”
“Exactly.”
We reach the park, and most of the people there are helping their kids build snow forts or watching them make snow angels. Most of them pay no attention to us at all, and I’m glad. I lead Tawny through a couple of swing sets to the path that will take us into Jagged Grove.
It isn’t until we’re a little ways in, walking under trees drooping with the weight of the snow, that she makes a noise. When I look back to check on her, I realize that she isn’t dressed for this. Her sneakers are soaked through, and the legs of her jeans are black with moisture. “Oh, I’m sorry,” I start to say, but she just laughs.
“Are you crazy? This is exciting - I don’t care about my clothes!”
I look at her for a second, grin, and keep going.
It takes a while to get to the other end, even though I try to keep to the tracks that Angelo and I made earlier, and I’m glad when I see the oddly shaped outcropping of rocks that let me know we’re almost to the other end. To my surprise, I see a figure moving up ahead.
After a moment, he looks up and sees us, too. He waves and I wave back and speed up. From the way unmentionable parts of me are tingling, I know it’s Angelo.
“Did you catch him?” I ask.
“No.” Angelo isn’t looking at me, though. Tawny has stopped just behind me, but now she steps out to my left. “It’s the ASS man!” she says, laughing.
Angelo groans. “What are you doing?” he asks me.
“I think I know what’s been going on, Angelo. Partly, at least. But Tawny wanted to see Jagged Grove, and I wanted to show it to her.”
“Is that a good idea?” he asks quietly, leaning in close to my ear.
“I’m standing right here,” Tawny says.
“I also think she has some real information for us. Give her a break.”
He sighs and looks from me to her. “Fine. Let’s go.”
He leads us out of the trees and through the park. In the distance, I can see people still working on the docks, even though the snow has stopped falling. “Are the storms over?” I ask Angelo.
“I think so. I hope so,” he answers. “We can’t take much more snow. As it is, we’re going to have flooding down along the coasts. Where were you two going?”
“I was going to take her to our house first, to find her some dry clothes. Then I figured I could show her around and take her to the Crystal Cup.”
“What’s that?” Tawny pipes up. She’s been looking around, only barely paying attention.
Except for when her gaze lands on Angelo. Then her smile grows a little bit sly and my jealousy ramps up.
It’s irrational, so I keep hiding it. No one else seems to notice.
Now she gets that look again, checking out Angelo as she asks the question. “What’s the Crystal Cup?”
“The nicest restaurant on the island. You’ll like it,” I answer. She nods, but she’s still looking at him.
On impulse, I say “Let’s go,” then I reach up and give him a kiss on the cheek.
He looks at me, surprised, but doesn’t comment on it. Instead he says, “I’m going over to Hex. Find me when you’re done. We’ve got a lot to talk about.”
I didn’t know if he meant Penley or the kiss, and I didn’t ask. I just nodded and led Tawny away.
I walk toward home quietly and let her take in the sights - not that there are that many sights right now. Everyone is mostly inside where it’s warm, so there isn’t a lot of excitement like there was back in the Colony. I point out the docks and explain how the sea portal works, more or less, and then explain how the town is laid out. When we get there, I show her my office.
“It’s cute,” she says, looking around the waiting room before turning back to me. There was a hint of hurt in her eyes. “But Trinket, how come you never told me you had magical powers?”
“I didn’t tell anyone, really, except for Darrell. He only knew because I used my ability to decorate his nightclub and he caught me.”
She huffs and crosses her arms. “Darrell knew, and he didn’t tell me?”
“I asked him to keep it a secret.”
“Well, you could have told me. I’d have kept it a secret, too.”
I can’t help it - I laugh. Tawny has never kept a secret in her life. After a moment of glaring, she joins me. “Let’s go,” I say, holding the door.
When we get back out onto the street she surprises me by asking, “Are you and Angelo a thing?”
I sigh. So she had seen my
little pinpricks of jealousy. “Sort of, but not exactly.”
“It looked like you were a thing back there,” she says, “And I caught that you said our house instead of my house.”
“It’s...kind of complicated. Can I explain later?”
“Sure,” she answers, her eyes twinkling. “But can I ask one thing?”
“What?”
“Is he free?”
Anger flares in me, but I tamp it back down. I want to growl at her and say, No - he’s mine. But that isn’t right, especially since I’m the one who’s pushing to break our bond. “I’m not sure,” I answer. “You should just ask him.”
This answer seems to make her happy. “OK,” she says, “I will.”
We head for my house while I try to sort out my senseless feelings.
Chapter 13
“Ooh, wow,” Tawny says, turning in a slow circle to take in the living room while I snap my fingers to start a fire. Her face lights up, delighted. “This is amazing.”
“Thanks. It belonged to my sister.”
“I didn’t know you even had a sister!” she says.
“I didn’t either, so don’t feel too bad,” I mutter, kicking off my shoes by the door.
“Well, what happened to her?”
“Another long story. Let’s get you out of those clothes.”
We head for my bedroom, Tawny squishing along behind me and staring at everything she can. When she kicks off her jeans and tries on mine, they’re way too long. “Here, I say. “Just put on my robe and we’ll throw these in the dryer.”
She frowns at me. “Can’t you just...I don’t know...snap them dry or something, like you started the fire?”
I open my mouth, then close it again, unsure. “I’ve never tried that,” I say finally.
She looks amazed. “Well, why not? If I had magical powers, I’d use them for everything.”
I shake my head. “Not me. Magic can be sort of unpredictable. I don’t feel that comfortable with it yet.”
Addicted Witch: A Jagged Grove Mystery Page 9
