“How do you know about?” I lower my voice and crane my neck to look through the window and sure enough there’s Dina encouraging a man who seems to be giving it his all even with the panic I can clearly see on his face. Dina puts a hand on his shoulder and he turns to give her a warm smile, and oh, I see it. It’s not just any smile Clyde gives her, it’s a lovesick look. Thatman would flip a thousand pancakes for her in a hurricane, I can tell.
“How did you know about Clyde?”
Jaak taps his temple. “The husband, plus a few more of the other mages. They suspected there was a connection between the two,” he pauses and looks out the window with a nod, “yes, the other mages were business owners. All of them. I remember that. That’s right.”
“So Dina wasn’t lying about the business social club?”
“No, she wasn’t but I can’t remember more. Some of the mages were easier to read on their earlier visits and last night there were far too many minds that I absorbed in the blast. If I would have had more time then I may have been able to pick out who the head mage is. Though the more time passes and the more I see of Bitter Root, the more I remember.”
“So you’re saying our target is a small business owner?”
“Indeed.” He nods and takes a contemplative sip of his coffee. “Do you think we should visit their guild?”
I think for a second and then sit up straight. “Oh my gods, that’s genius. Like the chamber of commerce!” Sweet Tooth had one for appearances and for tax purposes. I didn’t pay much attention to it growing up because I didn’t have to but I’ve learned some now that I’m helping put the town back together. “There should be a list of all the businesses and owners. We can work our way through that list to find the head mage. This is great news!”
Jaak smiles. “My clever wife. I knew you would know what to do.”
I blush at his words. The easy way he praises me is still so foreign to me that I don’t know what to do with the kind words. “Well, I mean, what if they don’t have a chamber of commerce? They might not but in any case at least we know focusing on businesses is the way to go.” I look out the window and size upthe bustling street in front of me. There’s so many Outsiders here. No, I correct myself. Not Outsiders, tourists. Visitors, people on vacation sightseeing. When I worked in Sweet Tooth it was easy to pick them out in town and it’s the same here. They dress in bright colors with backpacks, and all have happy excited smiles and walk in groups with wide-brimmed hats and cameras in hand. Among the tourists, I see Bitter Root locals. They don’t have as flashy clothing as the tourists. They wear a lot of earth tones from the look of them and they walk quickly, not in the slow meandering pace the tourists move.
“We can work our way up the street and visit the businesses. If it’s like Sweet Tooth then the Bitter Root Chamber of Commerce should be near Town Hall. We can make our way there after breakfast.”
“A perfect idea, my darling wife.”
I turn from the window to Jaak. “Thank you.” I want to call him my husband but the word gets stuck in my mouth. I smile at him though and I hope he knows how much I want to say it. I just need…time. That has to be it. Even for a woman raised to be the perfect wife, it’s a lot to go from a single gal to a full-fledged demon wife in a night.
I just need time. Everything will be okay with time.
“All right, you two lovebirds. Here are your orders!” Dina appears like magic and startles me out of my thoughts. She sets the plates of stuffed waffles and bacon down in front of us. “Can I get you a top up?”
I shake my head. “I’m good, thank you.”
“Yes, but perhaps a larger mug would be of better use,” Jaak says, sliding his empty cup towards her. I raise my eyebrows in question to him. When did he have time to down an entire cup? I only looked away for a few seconds. He must have chugged it.
“You know what, we do have a few bigger mugs. Just one second, hon.”
Jaak gives her a winning smile that makes the other woman blush pink. “I am in your debt, Dina.”
I grin while she hurries back to the kitchen and I eat a piece of bacon. “You’re a charmer when you want.”
“I am terrifying,” Jaak corrects me. “Only you think me charming.”
I laugh. “Uh-huh.” I’m about to ask Jaak why he thinks only I’m prone to his charms when Dina comes back with his bigger mug.
“Here you are. Is there anything else I can get you?” she asks and looks between us with a warm smile. There’s something about Dina that doesn’t feel like she’s in a doomsday cult. You’d think from the years I spent in one that I could pick up on it but she doesn’t feel that way. Still, I’ve been wrong about a lot in life so I decide to start the first step of our investigation with Dina.
Time to see how deep this cult goes, Meadow.
“Say, do you know where the Chamber of Commerce is, Dina? We were hoping to visit.”
She nods and wipes her hands on her apron. “Sure, I do. Everyone in town knows. It’s just down that way,” she says, pointing out the window to the right of us. “You head right and just keep going until you hit the town square. It’ll be the red building, you can’t miss it.”
“Thank you so much. We appreciate it.”
“You two, ah, thinking about opening a business?” There’s a look that flashes over Dina’s face that looks a touch too close to worry for me to ignore it.
“We might,” I tell her and reach across the table to grab Jaak’s free hand. His other is occupied by his coffee. “We’re moving to town, isn’t that right, Jaak?”
He nods and gives my hand a reassuring squeeze. “Yes, we finalized with Craig, the seller of estates today. I think a businesswould be a good change of pace for us, especially in a place like Bitter Root.”
