Page 4 of Snake

Romi cuts in with a wave of her fork, the piece of apple impaled on it in danger of flying off.“It’s adorable. So what they did, right, was they took some coal—”

“Because we always have a shit ton of that,” Magnus cuts in.

“—and they carved it into food.” Romi gestures. “Roast beef, potatoes, apple pie.” She holds her fork out to Magnus, who snatches the apple from it with his teeth.“They handed it out to the villagers and told them to put the coal carvings in their fireplaces. If you do it just right, the carvings leave behind little feasts made of ashes.”

“Feast of Ashes,” Magnus says happily.

“Every year, we celebrate with the dance and a week-long festival in town,” Romi says. “And a proper invitation to the dance is a piece of coal carved into something delicious. And I swear, Magnus, no invite, no dance. Don’t think you’re getting off easy because you’re a Wren.”Romi turns up her nose and glances over at me. “Now I came here to spend some time with my roomie, so you’d better get carving.”

Magnus groans, but he leaves us alone as soon as he’s extricated his long legs out from under the bench. Romi waits until he’s out of earshot before reaching over the table and grabbing my wrists, banging my hands on the table. “Did you hear that?” she squeals.

Squeals.

I think I accidentally woke up in a parallel universe this morning. “You’re not seriously considering—”

“God, of course I am, Nim. He’s a Wren!” Romi shimmies her shoulders, releasing me so she can rest her chin in her hands and stare off with dreamy eyes. “I’ve been waiting for this since I was a kid.”

“With Magnus, or…?”

Romi gives me a dismissive sniff. “I have other options, obviously.” Her stiff mouth dissolves into a smile. “But he was my first choice. I mean, come on. He’s a Wren!”

I roll my eyes and take another bite of my hot dog. “You’ve seriously been planning this since high school?”

“Please.” Romi rolls her eyes. “I started grooming him since elementary school.”

When my eyebrows jump to my hairline, she sniffs and stares moodily into her fruit bowl. “You wouldn’t understand. You don’t know what it’s like being a fucking Furino in this town.”

“I’m sorry, but yeah, I don’t understand.”

She glances sulkily at me. “I mean it.” She looks around and then leans in close. “How is it fair that I’m shunned because my daddy picked a fight with Knox’s father?”

“Oh my God, Romi.” I shake my head, an incredulous laugh bubbling out of my mouth. “I’ve been playing Nancy goddamn Drew all up and down this fucking town, and you didn’t think to tell me you knew Knox’s family?”

Romi sniffs again, her nose even twitching. “It’s not exactly the thing you go around telling every Tom, Dick and...” She hesitates. “Sally.”

I’m clutching at straws. But this straw could very well be the fucking needle in the haystack I was looking for.

After everything I’ve been through, it’s beyond stupid for me to still be digging around trying to figure out what happened out there in the woods that fateful day I arrived in Cinderhart…but the busybody wants what the busybody wants.

“What did they fight about?”

Romi looks introspective as she nibbles on a grape before sighing tossing its carcass back into the bowl. “Something stupid.”

“Like?”

“Daddy was against the whole donut thing.”

“Donut?” I grab Romi’s wrist. “Godammit, Furino, you’re not making any sense.” I sound like a local, going around using everyone’s last name and shit.

“Ugh, it’s that thing everyone was so worked up about,” she says, rolling her eyes. “Baiting bears with donuts? Daddy is totally against it, and Knox’s dad is all pro-donut. They were both petitioning the town council for new legislation a few years back. The First Five even got involved. That’s when it got really personal. It was still going on when you arrived. Luckily, Knox’s dad went off with one of his floozies, else my life would still be a living hell.”

“Wait, back up. Knox’s father is a hunter?” My heart gives a solid thump in my chest as I sit forward in a rush. “Does he—?”

“Everyone’s dad is a fucking hunter. It’s a rite of passage. You get a hound, a horse, and a rifle the moment you have seven zeros in your first offshore bank account.”

For fuck’s sake.

Romi glances around, totally missing my scowl as she points at a nearby student. “His dad’s a hunter. Hers.” She grabs hold of the table and twists to glance behind her. “His dad. His. Hey, where’s Mason?”

---