Magic pulsed through the room, the same river green that had lit fire through the protection wards. Only this time there were sparks of gold, like sunlight breaking through the cool surface, dancing through the house and sparking other fires, other rivers of magic.
She stared at the ceiling, the old wood there, the old plaster, as if she were reading a book or watching a show.
Her magic flowed through the house, that river flowing, and returned to her, channels and avenues searched, sand sifted, rocks tumbled to find the treasures hidden.
“Not that I can see,” she said. She was still looking at the ceiling, but I was certain she was seeing beyond it, through it, following the magic as it sorted through all the books, scrolls, tablets, and other magical snips and bits she had stored in this place.
“Why?” Ricky asked, gaze going to Lu. “Have you found one?”
Lu swung in between us, depositing plates of thick chocolate brownies in front of each of us.
“Maybe,” she said. “The Riggs have a little girl with them named Abbi.”
“A human child?” Ricky asked.
“Whatever Abbi is,” I said, “isn’t human.”
“I don’t know anything about an ‘Abbi,’” Ricky said. “But I can send out some feelers. I do know I’m going to devour this brownie. It smells amazing, Lu-lala.”
“It is amazing,” Lu said. “Enjoy. Because once you two finish those, I’m kicking you out so I can get dinner cooking.”
Lu leaned down by my shoulder, and the scent of her perfume mixed with the chocolate became something even more delicious, even more alluring.
She kissed my temple. “These brownies are going to flip your wig,” she whispered near my ear.
Ricky was already risking a molten bite, but I had a fork and put it to use, carving out a big chunk. I blew on it a couple times, steam curling upward in little wisps, then plonked the brownie in my mouth and chewed.
Food was still new to me. The power of it, the way it could touch my tongue and resonate with the rolling electric pleasure of texture, contrast, taste.
This brownie sang out in me like an entire orchestra. Hot, just this edge of too hot, sweet, heavy, rich. It was comfort, passion, and love.
I shuddered, unable to control my reaction, and savored it in my mouth for longer than I probably should have, chasing that wild sensation.
“Told you.” Lu’s voice again, warm and intimate near my ear. “Wait until you taste dinner tonight.”
Her words were a challenge, teasing, a joy I’d last heard nearly a century ago, when she took over her father’s bakery and began to grow it into a successful cafe.
She swayed off to the refrigerator absolutely in her element, and I took a breath, the smile on my face impossible to fight.
I tipped my head down and lost myself to the experience, enjoying every bite until I was picking up crumbs with my fork tine.
“…dick move,” Val was saying, had been saying for longer than I realized. “So it’d be nice if you told her not to banish me again, because it sucked.”
I drank tea and tuned back into my surroundings: Lu humming to the radio, the scents of baked cherries spiced with something more savory, like sage and walnuts.
Ricky picked up and put down little stones and sticks that acted as some sort of centerpiece on the table.
“Earlier,” I said, catching Ricky’s attention. “When we showed up. You knew there was a ghost with us.”
“Sure,” she said.
“He’d like you to not banish him again.”
Ricky’s eyebrow twitched. “How did he get past my wards?”
I looked over at Val who stood at the side door that led to what I thought might be a mud room.
“She’s a Crossroads. They have to accept seekers. And I’m seeking.”
