Page 132 of Castings & Curses

“He won’t hurt anyone again,” Priya said.

Deliberately turning her back on him, Amanda went to the jewelry box and stroked the smooth pink opal. She angled her head and pinned Priya with an intense stare.

“What do you need?”

Amanda continued running her finger over the stone.

“What about the necklace?”

She held Priya’s gaze as she slowly crossed to the cardboard box and touched the letters G-I-V-E-T-O-M-O-M.

“Yes, I’ll make sure your mom gets the locket. Is there …” Her voice cracked. Blinking back more tears, she started again. “Is there anything else you want me to tell her?”

Amanda cupped her hands again into a heart shape.

“Of course.” Priya swiped at her cheeks. “I’ll tell her how brave you are. How you stayed with Levi. How you helped us.”

As she spoke Amanda approached, stopping a hair's breadth away from Priya. It took everything Priya had not to wrap her arms around the child.

She gasped in surprise as Amanda lunged forward, enveloping Priya in a hug.

Energy, feather-light yet potent, swept through her, stealing her breath.

Amanda faded with a beatific smile on her round face.

Priya swayed. Miles was there in an instant, pressing a steadying hand against her back.

“What happened?”

“She’s gone,” Priya whispered.

“The ghost? Amanda?”

Exhaustion mugged her. “Yes.” She turned into him, resting her forehead on his chest.

He wrapped his arms around her. “That’s good, right?”

“It is. She’s moved on.” And even though she was pleased Amanda found peace, Priya’s heart ached.

She felt the barest of pressure against the top of her head. Had he just kissed her?

“That’s wonderful.” He released her and brushed his thumb over her cheek. “I was right. Rafi wasn’t thrilled I didn’t call him first. But he came through for me. Help is on the way.”

Alarm spiked through Priya. “Rafi is coming here?” She wasn’t sure she could handle the pressure of being around a Prime, let alone an angry one.

A siren wailed in the distance.

“How … how angry …” Her mouth went dry. She couldn’t seem to get enough air in her lungs. Priya latched onto Miles’s coat. Her short nails dug into the shredded fabric. “Is he?”

Miles cupped her face between his hands. “Priya, breathe. Rafi has far more pressing matters to attend to than coming down here. He’s sending a lawyer.”

“Oh!” The panic ebbed. The tightness in her chest eased, allowing her to draw in a full breath. She didn’t let go of his coat.

A second siren sounded, harmonizing with the first.

“A lawyer,” Priya managed to rasp out. “That’s good.”

“I imagine we’ll be tied up answering questions for quite some time.” Miles gave her a devastating smile. “How about for our second date I take you out for a cinnamon roll? Does tomorrow night work?”

“That sounds perfect.”

---