Page 29 of Fool Me Twice

With that much openness about them both, he could see how they could have been influenced into doing something they didn’t really want to do. It checked out, for sure.

“And once you feel like you’re ready, I want you to open your eyes and look into the mirror,” Hart said finally, fully expecting them to see the curse floating around their heads.

What he got instead were two sets of confused eyes, staring into the mirror and frowning.

“I just see me,” Soph said, and Raph nodded.

“I see us both,” he said. “But nothing else.”

“Nothing?” Hart asked, and they both shook their heads in tandem, desperation clear on their faces.

“Does that mean we’re not cursed?” Soph asked, voice shaking.

“Did we do all of that on purpose?” Raph added.

Hart wished he had answers for them. They were both distraught and on the verge of tears again. He sat down in front of them and leaned his elbows on his knees.

“The only thing I can tell you right now is that you weren’t hit with a curse specific to what I do,” Hart said. “But I don’t feel right about the things you said earlier. There is something here, and I promise I will do everything I can to get to the bottom of it.”

“Cane is gonna throw us out,” Raph said. “We have nowhere to go.”

Hart shook his head.

“Cane will do no such thing,” he said, standing up and gathering his things. “He’s a hothead, but he’s not an idiot…most of the time. And I know it might not look like that, but he does care about you two. He wouldn’t be doing all of this if he didn’t. I’ll talk to him. You two just calm down, and try not to leave your apartment for a few days.”

He pulled his card out of his wallet and handed it to them.

“This is my number,” he said. “If you feel compelled to do something again, like before, see if it’ll allow you to contact me. Maybe if we catch it in action…”

They both nodded and Hart gave them an encouraging smile before stepping out of their small apartment.

He found Cane smoking against the opposite wall, acting as always like no rules applied to him. He shot Hart a sharp look the moment he realized he was there.

“Well?” he asked.

Hart took a deep breath, savoring the taste of smoke on his tongue for a second before he shook his head.

“They’re not cursed,” he said, and Cane’s entire body locked right back up. “Hear me out first. They’re not cursed with anything of mine, and I don’t think they’re cursed at the moment.”

“The fuck does that mean?” Cane asked.

“I don’t know yet,” he said. “But some things they said raised some suspicions.”

“What?”

“Like I said, I don’t know yet,” Hart said. “So I’m gonna take you back to your place and then meet with my team to consult on this. Something is going on. I just don’t understand what it is yet.”

“They—”

“They’re gonna stay inside and wait to hear from me,” Hart said. “You will text me their numbers and then leave them in peace until this is resolved, because you actually care about them.”

Cane wanted to argue, Hart could tell, but he opted for the smarter choice of throwing his hands in the air and then stalking down the stairs, leaving Hart to scramble after him.

“Patience is bitter, but its fruit is sweet,” Hart called after him, but something told him the words wouldn’t have the desired effect on Cane.

He took the stairs after him, a million questions forming in his head as he walked out of the building. Cane was already gone.

Chapter 7

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