Page 135 of Dream Weaver

Fresh start,I told myself over and over.Tomorrow.

You could hear a pin drop — or a warlock eavesdropping — when Cooper and I hugged at the top of the stairs.

“Thank you,” I said. “For everything. See you in the morning?”

He cupped my cheeks and kissed me softly. “See you soon.”

Chapter Thirty-One

COOPER

Most nights, I slept like a log. But that night, as I lay in Abby’s big queen bed, I could only stare at the ceiling, listening. Wishing. Yearning.

Abby whispered to Claire, and their sheets rustled. Roscoe paced back and forth in the hallway, unsure of the strange new sleeping arrangements. Finally, he turned in place three times and lay down outside Claire’s open doorway. No sound came from downstairs, just Mike’s vigilant silence — until, a long time later, heavy breathing signaled he’d finally fallen asleep.

The atmosphere on the ranch was similar — tense, then quiet as everyone succumbed to exhaustion. But even then, I couldn’t sleep.

Finally, I caught the soft pad of Abby’s bare feet. A floorboard squeaked, followed by more silence when she hesitated. Then the footsteps resumed, coming closer.

Without a word, I lifted the sheet and blanket. She slid in, nestling along my body. When I wove an arm over the notch of her waist, she grasped my hand and held it at her heart.

I inhaled her floral scent — once…twice…

Then I slept, not just like a log, but a whole forest of them.

* * *

I really, really wanted to take things slow for a few days. Weeks, even. But first, we had to rush around and deal with the aftermath of all that had transpired.

Step one: driving to the metal shop the next morning to explain the damage of the previous night. On Ingo’s advice, Abby and I kept our story simple. Jay had come — alone — to threaten Abby, pushing around equipment and firing a few rounds from his gun. A few harmless rounds, thank goodness.

Walt was furious — at Jay, not Abby. In fact, at great risk to his own health and safety, he caught her in a huge hug of relief.

“Just glad you’re okay, kiddo. You, Claire, and Cooper.”

Abby, Claire, and Cooper.It had a ring to it, I decided.

Destiny,my bear reminded me in anI told you sogrumble.

Destiny, indeed.

Abby stood stiffly, enduring Walt’s hug. Maybe even patting his back a little. When he eventually released her, he insisted that Abby take a few days off.

She accepted, but only after disassembling the brazier, banging the pieces into lumps, and throwing them into separate scrap bins.

If Walt and the others wondered why, they didn’t ask, and I didn’t tell. It was better that way.

Step two was a trip to the fire crew I’d quit the previous evening. Luckily, Rich welcomed me back with a level, “We all make mistakes, son.”

True, but I hoped that would be my last big one.

Step three was reporting to Captain Edwards for grilling — er, questioning. Luckily, enough incriminating evidence had emerged on Harlon, Lisa, and their recently acquired Edelweiss Corporation that the ADMSA was less interested in us than them.

“Fucking Harlon. It was him all along,” Abby muttered.

“Well, you won’t need to worry about him again,” Captain Edwards growled.

Apparently, tapping into magic that wasn’t your own was risky business. During the fight at the ranch, Harlon had dug so deep into the magic he’d “borrowed” from Sedona’s vortexes that he’d burned himself out permanently. No more casting spells of any kind for him, ever.

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