Page 57 of The Most Wanted Witch

“Yeah, I’ve got some stuff to finish up as well,” Zab said.

“Oh, I’ve got dough I need to get in the oven,” Bertha said, and then Musso followed her out.

“Shit. I forgot to run over to Zark’s and give him something. I’ll be back,” Oscar said, then hurried out the door.

One by one, they all remembered something else they had to do. The only one left standing in the room was Hawk.

“What did you do to them?” I asked.

“Gave them gentle reminders they needed to be somewhere else. They’ll probably realize it by tomorrow and be angry.” He sat across from me then leaned back, his stare fixed on me. “Now that we’re alone, whataren’tyou saying? How bad is it?”

I weighed my options as I stared back.

Even if I didn’t want him to be the person I confided in, I wasn’t sure anyone else could handle what I was about to say. The weight of it might crush a weaker soul. Hawk had a lot of flaws, but no one would dare call him weak. I had to face it: whether I liked it or not, he was still my strongest ally right now in this war, even if he did play dirty. Or maybe because of that. Jury was still out.

“They’re both trying to get me to agree to be indebted to them, like they know something about me, or at least suspect something. There’s something beyond Xest at play here. They want something from me, and I don’t know why.”

I leaned forward, feeling a smidge better for getting it off my chest. I wrapped my hands around my teacup, steady enough to not splash myself as I waited for him to say something. When he didn’t, I looked up.

Hawk’s eyes had hardened, the lines of his body tense and coiled.

“It doesn’t matter. They’re not getting you,” he said, with an eerie calmness.

If he wasn’t an ally, I might’ve run from the room right then, new resolutions of not running be damned.

24

I lifted my head back, sniffing the air. It wasn’t that it was easy to smell grouslies, but once in a while, when I took a deep breath, it was as if I could feel their presence nearby. The only smell on the air tonight was the stink of Mertie’s weird tobacco blend. Sure enough, a cigarette glowed in a nearby alley.

She poked her head out, glanced around, and then waved me closer.

This time there was no hesitation joining her. I’d never thought I’d count Mertie in my list of assets, but that was exactly what she was becoming. She grabbed my jacket, yanking me farther into the shadows with her.

“If I get caught talking to you people, my reputation will be in shreds. It’s bad enough you’ve got the whole rainbow on display, but could you try to be a little less conspicuous?”

“So nice to see you too, Mertie. It’s always such a pleasure.” I tucked somerainbowbehind my ears.

It wasn’t worth arguing with her. Both Hawk and I were known to attract attention no matter what precautions we took. What she was asking for was nearly impossible. Although if she’d given me some warning, I would’ve put on a hat.

“Did you get me information on that person?” I asked. “I’m assuming you’re hiding in the shadows for a reason and not a lingering habit from your previous occupation.”

She was looking out of the alley, unfazed by my return jabs. The fact that she could take it as well as she dished it out was redeeming, even for a past demon.

“Some, but I want to go over our agreement again. If things get ugly, I get to move into the broker building, right?”

“Yes, that is the deal.” The way Mertie kept looking for guarantees was making the long shot of her actually moving in seem more and more likely. I was lucky Hawk wanted me alive but wasn’t sure how well the rest of my roommates would take it. Gillian would clash with Mertie being there on day one, and my coin would be on Mertie winning.

“What? Why are you smiling at me like that?” Mertie asked.

“Just glad to see you.”

“You’re so odd.” She dragged out the sentence as she tilted her head. It wasn’t the unkindest thing I’d heard from her.

“I’ve been told. What do you have?”

She stuck her head out of the alley again before she spoke. “I went through the records. Your personwasa worker at the factory, like you suspected. Middle-of-the-road Whimsy, nothing special, maybe a little more staying power than some but less than others. Only thing that was of any interest was that she could jump puddles, which is unusual. A lot of Middlings can’t. Other than that, nothing surprising.”

My mother could jump puddles? She was a Whimsy and she could puddle-jump and yet I couldn’t? How was that possible? Why couldn’t anything ever be neat and tidy?

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