Page 61 of Sweetwater and the Witch

Diners Amused While Management Panics.

A band of dust bunnies struck the Famous All-You-Can-Eat Buffet at the Golden Amber last night. They hit the line shortly after midnight. Diners laughed when the critters arrived and, apparently having seen the All-You-Can-Eat ads, proceeded to chow down in style. Eyewitnesses report the dessert section was the hardest hit.

There was a full-color photograph of a ravaged buffet. Five furry diners could be seen. The one with a half-eaten slice of indigo berry pie in her paws looked all too familiar.

“That’s you, Harriet,” Ravenna said. “Don’t try to deny it.”

Harriet chortled.

“I knew something bad happened last night,” Ravenna muttered. She turned to Ethan, who was admiring the photo. “We need to get out of the Shadow Zone before someone recognizes Harriet.”

Ethan looked at Harriet. “Hear that, pal? You’re a wanted dust bunny.”

Harriet chortled again, wriggled out from the crook of Ravenna’s elbow, and hopped up onto Ethan’s shoulder.

Ravenna started walking briskly, heading for the abandoned warehouse and the hole-in-the-wall that led to the sled.

“I need to take a more balanced attitude toward my dating life,” she said. “I should practice serenity and gratitude. Open myself to new experiences. Meditate twice a day.”

Ethan caught up with her. “Where’s that coming from?”

“As I recall, that advice was given to me by date number twenty-three. Or maybe it was twenty-four. I’ll have to check my little black book when I get home. His name was Derek, I think. He operates a couple of wellness spas here in town.”

“You’ve got a little black book?” Ethan demanded.

“After the first half dozen dates, I realized I had to start making notes because I was losing track. I didn’t want to take the risk of putting that sort of personal information online, so I bought the notebook. It happens to have a black cover.”

“Thoughtful of you,” Ethan said. His voice was very even now. “I take it the date with Derek was yet another failure.”

“Turns out I’m not very good at changing my approach to dating. I was unable to open up to the possibilities he had in mind.”

“Was sex involved?”

“Derek is convinced that sex between two well-matched individuals is a potentially transcendent experience that can clarify the emotions andestablish a psychic bond. After a very nice dinner he suggested we go back to his place and test his theory.”

“Anything to his theory?”

“Beats me,” Ravenna said. “I declined to run the experiment and called a cab.”

“Just answer one question for me,” Ethan said. “Am I in your little black book?”

“Of course not. You’re a client.”

•••

She did not notice the pen Harriet had managed to acquire until they were in the sled and headed back through the tunnels.

“Where did you get that?” she asked. Harriet gave her the pen. She read the words stamped on the barrel. “ ‘Rendezvous Inn. Where Dreams Come True.’ ”

“Great,” Ethan said. “A souvenir.”

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Ravenna walked into the offices of Ottoway Matchmakers at exactly two minutes to nine. She was so busy congratulating herself on having managed to save her job for at least another day that she did not immediately notice the subdued atmosphere.

It wasn’t until she paused at the open door of Sarah Mulhouse’s office that she realized something was terribly amiss.

“Good morning, Sarah,” she said.

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