“What are you?” The handsome warlock demands.
“I’m a phantasm, if you want the technical term,” I say, rubbing my nose. “Ow, by the way.”
“You’re haunting Agatha!” he accuses, finger pointing at me, eyes narrowed.
“Listen, Warlock, she brought my mirror home. I just go where it goes. I’ve never hurt the girl, and I don’t intend to, as proved by spell number one.” I cross my arms and hope I don’t look too sulky. It’s not even that I want to hurt Agatha, not anymore. It’s just... what I do.
“I’m sorry about this. She’s been coming in looking really tired and foggy for the past three days, and she mentioned she thought she had a ghost. We had to check it out.”
“You had to check it out? What are you, magical law enforcement?”
Warlock glares. “You’re in Pine Ridge, Mirror Man. Three ley lines intersect here. Warlocks and peaceful paranormal creatures are on high alert all the time since we live on the equivalent of a magical energy buffet that attracts goodandevil creatures. Can you leave that mirror?”
“Not unless specifically invited,” I inform him through grit teeth. I try to disappear, but his spell is strong and I stay stuck.
“Okay. Okay, then. Look, I like Agatha. She works for Alain and me, and she’s the best paralegal I’ve ever had. More than a professional interest, she’s super sweet and incredibly talented. She seems happy here, and I get the feeling she wasn’t happy before. Don’t. Mess. With. Her.”
The little beast. He dares to come up and tap on my glass!
I could break through, drag him in, and snap his neck.
But I don’t. Because he employs Agatha, and Agatha is happy, and he must be part of that. “Don’t you mess with her, either. If I hear her come home crying, so help me, wand-waver, I will find a way to visit your establishment and you will wish I hadn’t.”
To my surprise, the warlock smiles and nods. His smile slips into a smirk, and he rubs his chin. “Oh. So it’s like that, is it? She didn’t just buy your mirror, she owns your heart, huh?”
“What? That’s nonsense. I’m merely a resident benevolent spirit,” I fib.
“I could whammy up a little truth spell...”
“I hate you sorcerous types. Always throwing magic around. One of your kind imprisoned me in here for making love to the maidenhedeflowered and discarded!”
At least the human has the good grace to look ashamed. “You want out? We can work on it. We have some pretty powerful people in Pine Ridge.”
“Out? Freedom?” I hesitate. “That would mean leaving Agatha.”
“Not necessarily.”
“I would die. I have to return to my mirror. I know this.”
“You have to return to your mirror—or whatever other object you’re attached to. Hey, does Agatha know that you’re—”
My frantic head shaking stops his words. “Please don’t tell her,” I plead. “I mean her no harm, and I cannot bear to think of her throwing me away or shattering the mirror. Please.”
“Take it easy.” He holds up both palms, a sympathetic smile on his face. “The boy has it bad, huh?”
“I am old enough to have sired ten generations of your ancestors,boy.”
“I won’t tell her if you promise me that you will gradually, gently make her aware of the truth of your existence. She’s not closed-minded. I think you might have an easier time than you imagine.”
Lucius was silent. The human didn’t know he had tentacles and a cruel streak cultivated by a millennium alone. “I’ll do my best—and if you’ll keep your mouth shut about my existence, I’ll keep mine closed about your visit.”
“We wanted to look out for her without telling her we thought her house was haunted. This seemed like a good plan—earlier. This is Pine Ridge, after all. There are all kinds of bad things trying to slip in.”
Yes. I just hope this isn't one of them. “Will you please leave now?” I say, studying my nails, voice imperious.
“We’re gone—but we’ll be back if you give Aggie any trouble.”
THEIR WORDS HAUNT MEall day. When Agatha comes home, I expect her to lunge at the mirror and examine it, but she doesn’t. She throws her laundry in a basket and heads down to do it, then comes back and cracks open the big book she’s been reading all weekend.
