Page 2 of Jane's Story
Mom stood in the entry with her dark blonde curls pulled into a claw clip at the nape of her neck. Her anxiety seeped into me. “It’s a good thing you two arrived. Kitty and Lydia are insisting on decorating the cake, and we haven’t even set the table yet.”
As the eldest daughter, soothing my mother’s nerves had become ingrained in my soul. “I bet they’ll do a great job with hiscake. How’s Dad?”
Over the past several months, his health had declined because of Moonrot. Though the baffling disease was somehow related to magic, no one, fae or otherwise, was closer to finding a cure.
“He’s resting his eyes for a minute. I’ll wake him up when everything is ready.” Mom shrugged as if it was normal for Dad to be sleeping at six o’clock on a Tuesday evening.
“We’ll get the table set.” Lizzy beelined past Mom to the dining table, which was connected to the family room in one big open area.
Mom scowled.
They weren't on the greatest terms lately. As usual, I found myself trying to keep our family from self-implosion.
“Don’t worry. It's going to be a lovely evening. Dad’s going to enjoy his birthday. We prepared a special surprise for him.” I kissed Mom’s forehead and hugged her. Her shoulders relaxed. "You smell like roses and vanilla. Lovely."
"Oh, my Jane. What would we ever do without you?" She patted my cheek.
I smiled and shrugged, but didn't answer. Then, I followed after Lizzy, who was already in the dining room.
After we finished setting the table, Lizzy plopped down on the sofa and pulled a notebook from her bag to work on some article or another. Somehow, she tuned out the commotion in the rest of the house.
Mom, Lydia, and Kitty bickered in the kitchen. I started toward them, but stopped, fighting the instinct to rush in, help everyone relax, and solve all their problems. My goal was to stop “fixing” everything so they could learn to get along on their own. Otherwise, I’d need to stay in Austen Heights forever.
So instead, I stayed in the living room, pacing back and forth, wringing my hands.
“Jane, you’re making me dizzy. It's okay to take a break every now and then, you know.” Lizzy looked up from her notebook and pulled out her phone to text someone. “They’re fine. I promise. You should go to New York.”
Something clattered to the kitchen floor, and I flinched.
“But wouldn't it be selfish of me to go away for a few days? Dad's so sick, I…” If I did go, it couldn’t be for too long. Next week, Mom would need help to prepare the Thanksgiving pies we sold at Cupid's Confections, and after that, families would start coming into the photography studio for Christmas photos. But if I could just get away for this week while the bakery was slow, I might survive the insanity of the upcoming holidays.
Being half fae and half witch meant I could blame part of my need to escape on my "gift." Empathy. Extreme and accurate empathy. And as an empath, I knew how everyone felt all the time. Whether they were eager, peaceful, stressed, sad, or afraid, I picked up on their feelings. Not just that, Ifelttheir feelings. My parents’ lives were up in the air with Dad’s illness. My sisters had their own stuff to figure out. Moving away to chase my dreams would place a burden on everyone.
Of course, that also meant I knew how Charles felt around me, peaceful, happy, eager, and yes, romantic. But that didn't mean he didn't feel that way around other women, or that hewantedan actual relationship.
Lizzy finished texting. “Yes, go to New York. Aunt Penny always loves it when you visit.”
“We’ll see if it’s even worth my time—freelance jobs are so hit and miss.” I dropped onto the sofa next to my sister and pulled out my phone to see if the city had any short-term work. There was a photography website that posted jobs. I started my search withNew York City, photography/photographer,events.
There weren’t as many as I’d hoped.
“I found one,” Lizzy said, and her enthusiasm increased my heart rate. She showed me her phone screen. “Haven Corporation needs a temporary photographer for its technology convention at the Grand Lakes Hotel in New York City. It’s this week, so they’d need you right away.”
I looked over the job description. It was just for a day or two, photos of some social events and launch presentations. Easy enough.
“It pays a lot.” I looked up the specifics of the job on my phone. But something else came up in the search results. A newspaper headline.
Haven Corporation’s event photographer killed in accident. Foul play suspected.
A chill ran down my spine.
“That’s ominous,” I muttered as I read over the details. I wasn’t sure what Haven Corporation was, but I’d heard the name before. “You probably didn’t see this when you read the job listing. The previous photographer was murdered.” I handed my phone to Lizzy.
“Wow. Does it say what happened?”
I scanned the details. “Not much to say… it happened… yesterday. Kind of scary. Wait, she wasn’t even at work whenit happened. They suspect an ex-boyfriend. There are risks in any city, I suppose. Would you apply?”
“Yes. If her death wasn’t related to her job, I would.” Of course she would. My sister wasn’t reckless really, maybe just brave orhighlydetermined.
