Page 33 of Magic Blooms
I need us to keep going, I silently added.
“No,” he said. “We’re not giving up. And it wasn’t all for nothing, what we did tonight.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of scrap material. “I managed to snatch this.”
I took the material from him. It appeared to be a scrap from the figure’s cloak, thick and all black except for a peculiar symbol woven in gray. It seemed a poor choice of garment to wear amidst Elyria’s current heat wave.
“Have you ever seen this before?” I asked, tracing the upper arc of the symbol that gave way to a jagged spike at the bottom.
“No, but maybe Lorraine has. Or Jasmine. Someone’s got to recognize it. And maybe if we can find what this symbol represents, we’ll know why Karen was killed and what might be coming next.”
“So what now? We ask around?”
He placed a firm hand on my shoulder and offered me a sad smile. “The sun never truly sets in Peach Plains. Did you know that?”
“What?” This didn’t feel like an answer to the question I’d asked. All it did was confuse me.
“It’s something a friend of mine used to say. It’s not for real, but a metaphor. The day is never over. Our chance to accomplish something is never lost.”
“Okay,” I said with a nod, still not understanding why he’d chosen to say this now. I grabbed the door handle and turned back to glance at Joshua. “So we keep going. C’mon, we’ve been sitting out here long enough. Let’s go see how Lorraine’s doing.”
“No,” he said without making eye contact. “I’ll trace down our killer. You go be with Lorraine. It’s already too dangerous, and I’d never forgive myself if something happened to you.”
I sat back in my seat and crossed my arms over my chest, rooting to the spot, showing myself just as much as Joshua that I wasn’t going anywhere. “You’re wrong.”
“About what?” he asked softly.
“All of it, but especially me. I’m not leaving you to do this on your own, so stop trying to get rid of me.”
Joshua’s eyes found mine, and a small smile crept across his face. I smiled, too, unable to help myself.
“In it to the end?” he asked.
“To the very end,” I agreed.
fourteen
Surprisingly, Lorraine wasn’t at home when I arrived back with Joshua. I tried waiting in the kitchen for her return but soon found myself falling asleep at the table.
Deciding I’d need my sleep in order to keep up my strength through tomorrow, I finally gave up and went to bed for the night.
The next morning, I awoke to Lorraine sitting at the end of my bed. Unnerving to say the least.
“Good morning,” she sang. “Would you like some coffee?”
“No!” I practically shouted. No more drinks. I was sticking purely with water the rest of my stay here. Though I had to admit, I wouldn't mind the caffeine boost. Funny how the more urgent the situation became, the more tired my body grew. Despite a series of strange, unwelcome dreams and Lorraine’s untimely awakening, I’d slept more here than I ever did back home.
Lorraine chortled. “No coffee. Got it. How about tea? Fresh-squeezed juice? You liked the grits, right? I could make some more, or perhaps you’d like to try French toast. Or, you know what? How about all of it? I’ll just go?—”
“Wait,” I interrupted, pulling myself to my feet before she could rush out of the room to make me what sounded like a very complicated breakfast.
“Is everything okay?” I asked, studying her carefully as we stood facing each other.
I couldn’t imagine what was causing her to be so hectic when there weren’t actually any guests at the inn. As much as I’d have enjoyed eating my way through the day, there was too much that needed to be done. In fact, if everything went to plan, I could go home tomorrow night. But first Joshua and I had to finish our investigation and make sure things would be all right for Fox’s End once I left.
Lorraine laughed, then choked on a sob, and finally fell back onto my bed with a sigh. “Oh, everything’s fine. Just hunky-dory. I have an empty inn, but that of course doesn’t stop the bills from piling sky-high. Oh, then there’s the tiny little fact that Elyria’s magical council just called an impromptu meeting for later today. Say it’s to determine if they’re going to take my business license away. But that’s no big deal. Phffft. I’m totally fine. Just fine.”
I probably would have understood her desperate outburst a bit better if I hadn’t just woken up. The slang I could at least figure out from context, but that wasn’t the part of her revelation that had me concerned. “The magical council?”
“Oh, I keep forgetting that you’re not actually my niece like we tell everyone. Seems you’ve become very important to me in a very short stretch of time, but you’re little more than a stranger. Aren’t you?” She shook her head and laughed, unnerving me more and more with each sentence she spoke. Forget about my going home in time—if we didn’t solve this murder fast, I was afraid Lorraine might not last through the investigation.
