On the other hand, she had selected a spot right underneath a sprawling chestnut tree.
Please let this work.
I gave her my widest grin yet, one that threatened to split my face in two, and concentrated. Silently, I recited the spell.
"Ouch!" She clutched her head.
Three chestnuts had bounced off it.
"Oh, Linda. Are you hurt?" I asked.
"No, I'm fine." She glared at the tree. "I'll have to talk to someone about this."
"What do you mean?"
"What if this had happened to one of our dear little children?"
"It's the season. Chestnuts fall, other stuff comes down. It's nature."
She glared at the tree again.
I had to check in with Cosmo if there was some kind of protection spell for the tree. As much as I’d enjoyed seeing her wince for once instead of just me feeling the pain, I wouldn’t put it past her to whip out a chainsaw and take her revenge.
Note to self: next time, think about consequences.
I should have added another note. Because a haughty spirit comes before a fall.
Literally.
Linda turned around so abruptly that I stumbled as I stepped aside and had to catch myself against the wall. In the process, I banged my knee.
Luckily, Linda had already turned her back to me and wasn’t watching my pathetic performance.
A young man was, though.
"Are you okay?" He reached for my arm to steady me, his dark eyes glancing at me in concern. With his longish hair and broad shoulders, he was the local high school heartthrob.
He would also have been my main suspect—if it hadn’t been for Pamela and Jimmy..
The boy who’d come to my rescue was Kyle, the infamous joyrider and grandson of Doc Hansen.
Chapter twenty-eight
"Thanks," I said.
"No worries." He bent over to stroke Cosmo. "Hey, buddy. Good to see you out and about again."
He raised his head. "I'm really sorry about your aunt. She was cool."
"She was," I said.
"I'm going to miss dropping in to see her at the library."
I hadn’t picked him as a reader, but then again, she always knew exactly what reading material people needed in their lives.
"Willowmere certainly feels different now," I said.
He grimaced. "I heard that you're open for business again."
