Enchantment Emporium

“Let him get used to it, Alysha. He’ll come back. It’s not like he ever had a steady job and he can still act as a consultant with the local police. It’ll work out. It always does.”

“So, Graham’s going to keep the paper going.” She was a little surprised at how matter-of-fact she managed to sound. “Kalynchuk—Jonathon Samuel—had everything set up legitimately, so he figures he might as well. Katie’s talking about going to work for him, and Rayne and Lucy are moving west with Lyla. Roland’s thrilled.” Roland wasn’t quite as tied as David, but he was still the only second circle male in the city and he wouldn’t ever be moving far. “He’ll be taking over Graham’s condo and there’s room there for the girls, for a while at least. Graham says Jonathon Samuel had this enormous house out in Upper Mount Royal, so Roland’s going to have a look at the paperwork. I expect we’ll be able to fill it easily enough. There’s a number of cousins thinking of joining us.”

Dark brows drew in. “Why?”

“Besides the aunties encouraging your entire list to move west?” Allie shrugged. “Things are happening here. Jack’s going to stay with me and Graham in the apartment.”

“Wedding?”

“It’s not really necessary. But whatever we do, it won’t be until you can…” She nodded toward David’s rack and he smiled.

“Good. Want to see that.”

“Auntie Gwen stayed.”

“I know.”

David would know where all this new branch of the family were. It was part of what he was. “She’ll take care of Gran’s sideline in potions and charms. She’s set up housekeeping in the loft with Joe. He offered to age up a bit—first I knew he could do that—but she wouldn’t let him.”

“Bragging.”

“Definitely. They’re saying an asteroid broke up over the park. The lights were visible even through the storm. The place will probably be crawling with people looking for pieces. Be careful.”

“Protected.”

“Be careful anyway.”

She kept her hand over his heart until he stepped beyond her reach, then she kept reaching, brushing tears off her cheeks with the other palm. “David, I’m sorry. You didn’t want this. Even once you can leave the park, you can’t ever leave the city!” He had become the family’s tie to this new place. The living symbol of their claim.

To her surprise, he smiled again.

“Never asked what I wanted, Allie.” His brows went up and just for a moment, he was her big brother, nothing more. Then he snorted, and the snort wasn’t entirely Human. He only just got out of the jeans in time, one rear hoof tearing the denim.

She watched him race across the summit, heard the surprised and delighted yell of a couple of kids on BMX bikes, felt his joy in the movement, in the wind, in the sun on his back, and wished with all her heart there had been another way.

The mirror showed her reflection doing yoyo tricks. Allie didn’t know what they were called, but the one that spun the hunk of enameled wood around over her head looked dangerous. As soon as things stopped whizzing about, she thrust her arm in past the surface of the glass, caught the end of the yoyo, and yanked. Hard.

Second circle made connections.

Still holding the yoyo, she stepped back as an elderly woman spilled out of the mirror into the hall, the string looped over one finger, multilayered skirt swirling, half a dozen strands of beads swinging around her neck, and a lime-green shawl slipping off one arm.

Allie released her, waited until she got her balance, then pinned her with a word.

“Gran.”

Dark eyes gleamed as Catherine Gale tried to move and found herself held. “Those old fools always worried about David,” she snorted, tossing a long gray braid back behind her shoulder, setting hoop earrings swaying. “They worried he had all the power that should’ve gone to half a dozen Gale girls. It didn’t go to David, though, did it? It all went to you just like it was supposed to. You just had to find it. And speaking of finding things, how did you…?” She waved the hand with the string attached.

“There were thirteen crows in the mirror and twelve aunties upstairs.”

“Clever girl.”

“You saw this, didn’t you?”

“Saw what, Allie-cat? That you would rise to the challenge?”