Page 98 of Starry with a Chance of Nightshade

I simply stared at her, at a loss for words.

Elis sighed. “You didn’t drive here, did you, Marcy?”

“I did,” she said, smiling wide. “And I only hit one mailbox and one lawn gnome. In my defense, the gnome had it coming. Oh, no. It was the yard jockey that had it coming. I owe the gnome an apology.”

She seemed harmless enough, but I wasn’t entirely sure she should be left unsupervised.

Elis managed to get her loose from me. “Marcy, focus.”

She looked at him once more. “Yes?”

“Where did you leave the car?” he asked.

A frown touched her lips. “I don’t remember. I was only really thinking about Cadee and the bad thing that was trying to get to her, and then I was thinking of Phil Collins because this month is his month, and then Burgess was at me to play Linda Ronstadt instead because he likes ‘You’re No Good,’ but I had to explain that her day is Labor Day, and we can’t go breaking too many rules at once. We were already breaking the no-driving one.”

There was so much to unpack there that I didn’t know where to start.

Austin handled it for me. He shot forward. “What bad thing was trying to get Cadee?”

Marcy turned her head in his direction, all smiles. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”

“Yes,” he said, sounding annoyed. “Idowant to know. Who in the hell wanted to hurt her?”

Marcy ignored him, focusing on me instead. “Welcome home. Grimm Cove is so happy that you’re here now. You were born here, you know.”

“No. I wasn’t,” I protested.

She grinned. “Yes. You were.”

I stopped arguing with her. It was evident her elevator didn’t make a stop on all floors. I wasn’t even sure its door could open and close, she was that odd.

Cadee eased closer to me.

Marcy noticed the action and smiled more. “It’s good that you trust her, Cadee. And good that you found her when you did. Astria can help keep you safe from the bad things. That’s handy when you want to keep your brains about you—or in your head. They’re always better in your head. Don’t you think?”

Elis eyed me suspiciously and paid extra attention to the broom handle, then my markings.

I bit my lower lip. “If you all have this under control, I’ll get back to what I was doing. You’ll see to it Cadee gets home safely?”

Elis nodded to the broom handle. “And what was it that you were doing?”

Austin waved his hand in Marcy’s face. “I was talking to you.”

“I know,” she said. “How does it feel?”

“How does what feel?” he asked.

Burgess gave him a stern look, and I wasn’t sure what to make of it all. I’d never really seen a squirrel with attitude before, but it had a ton.

Marcy lifted a brow. “Being ignored. Having someone hardly register your presence?”

I thought about how Austin had been yesterday in the parking lot of Gobbs. He’d barely paid Cadee any mind. Was Marcy teaching him a lesson? If so, how had she known? Had Cadee told her what had happened?

Austin’s gaze snapped to Cadee, and he flinched but nodded at Marcy all the same, as if to say he got her drift.

She appeared to be pleased. “Astria, so how was it?”

“How was what?” I asked.

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