Page 57 of Premonition of Peace

That was good.

I turned away, not wanting to bring attention to it. Sasha continued tapping at her phone and not for the first time, I wondered what she was doing and who she could have been talking to.

When the drinks were ready, I grabbed the coffees, turning to Not-Sasha with forced warmth.

“Here we go,” I said, handing her drink over. “So, what did you want to catch up on?” We grabbed a table, our choices freeing up more and more as the shop was practically empty by now.

“You know. Life. What happened while I was gone. What you’re working on now.”

I shifted in my seat, a sinking feeling settling in my stomach. Whatever she was fishing for, I didn’t know yet. I had to keep my answers as vague as possible.

“While you were gone, we just kept looking for you. That was our focus. Of course, Sienna was distraught, so we had to make sure she was okay.”

She nodded along, but any real warmth was lacking. She didn’t care how Sienna reacted. “Well, I’m back now. So everything is fine. We can just get back to work.”

I took a sip of my latte and tried not to cringe. It was so damn sweet. “Have you seen the Señora so she can check youover?” I knew she hadn’t. Morgan Le Fay would want to stay as far as possible from a witch with that much power. She had been careful to avoid her at all costs. “I know she said she’d call you.”

“No need.” She waved me off, changing the subject and not even bothering to transition.

My phone rang in my pocket. I pulled it out and set it to vibrate it without looking at the caller ID. Vibrations, back-to-back, continued moving the table.

“Not going to check that?” Not-Sasha finally asked, her tone light.

“Oh, the city always needs something. The calls can wait.” I forced a smile, attempting to dismiss the significance of my ignored phone. “I’m with you right now,” I replied casually, hoping to deflect her attention.

“With how much you’ve been avoiding me, I’m surprised to hear you say so. Almost seems insincere,” she deadpanned and the hairs on my arm stood on end.

“I’ve been so busy,” I began, but she didn’t let me finish.

“So busy you couldn’t be with a friend you dumped in the void? You and Marcel fucked up and left me to die in there. It’s the least you could do.” I felt the sting from her lashing, but that was because I felt guilty over Real-Sasha still being stuck there. This was an imposter trying to hurt me, and I couldn’t let it work.

I pressed my lips together. “You’re right, Sasha. I can do better.”

She traced a claw along the rim of her cup, a smirk curling up one side. “Yes, you most certainly can.”

“So, what’s your plan?” I said, ignoring her slight.

Not-Sasha hummed, taking a sip of her coffee. “Regarding?”

“Well, now that you’re back. I know you don’t want to talk about it, but I’m sure the veil has changed you in many ways.” I sniffled, taking a pretend sip of my drink. Of course I knewshe would never come out and admit anything, but I hoped for a nugget of information that would let me know where her thoughts were. “That’s a lot to go through, I mean. Were you wanting to resume your work with Piper, or were you thinking of another direction?”

“Oh, Nat, I’m done with New Chicago,” she said, a smirk pulling at her lips. “But I think you knew that already.”

I schooled my features, trying to figure out her angle. “Oh, I didn’t realize you wanted more than what our city has to offer.”

“I just want what every woman wants.” Her eyes darkened, and the intensity of it made my skin crawl.

I swallowed thickly, feeling a new buzz in the air that hadn’t been there before. “And that is?”

“Power.”

My breath caught in my throat as she spoke, her voice now laced with an unsettling familiarity as she dropped the façade.

“I’d like to say it’s nice to see you, Morgan, but we both know that’s a lie,” I said smoothly. All pre-tenses were gone. The jig was up. I sighed, almost as relieved as I was terrified. I leaned back in my chair, trying to come up with an escape plan. Some way to fight her if she tried to take me over.

“You’re good, Nathalie,” Not-Sasha said, her voice low and taunting. “Better than the sister, but you made a crucial mistake today.”

“What gave me away?” I asked, raising a brow.

---