Brynne threw a piece of samosa at her forehead.
Then, right in front of them, the corners of the businesscard folded down all on their own. The card twisted and creased and tore itself until it resembled an origami clock with an actual moving hand. The clock ticked down.
Aru frowned. “Now what?”
“Now,” said Brynne, “we wait for an answer.”
For the next few minutes, Brynne went Full Brynne. She sent back three dishes. One because the coconut wasn’t toasted enough. The second because it was toosalty. The third because it wasn’t salty enough.
Aru was glad she’d had enough to eat by then. There wasno wayshe was going to chance ordering anything else from this kitchen. Half the staff would probably spit into it, thanks to Brynne.
“That’s it,” said Brynne, starting to get up. “I’m going back there—”
“No,” said Aiden calmly as he pulled her into her seat. “When you’re angry, say thenumbers one through ten.”
“One through ten. Now can I go?”
“You should be on a cooking show where you just yell at people. Like Gordon Ramsay,” said Aru, trying to distract her. The last thing they needed was to get thrown out of the restaurant before they had their answer from S. Durvasa.
Brynne emitted a happy sigh. “That’s my dream.”
“Where’d you learn all this stuff about cooking, anyway?”asked Aru.
Brynneflicked the paper timer around the table, not looking up at them.
“My uncles taught me,” she said. “I moved in with them when I was four, after Anila left.”
“Anila?”
Brynne’s jaw looked tight. “My mom.”
“Oh,” said Aru, embarrassed.
“My uncles said that she had me too young and wasn’t ready to be a mom,” said Brynne. She started tearing her dosa into smaller and smallerpieces. “She still isn’t. But, I dunno, maybe she’ll change her mind someday.”
Aru thought about the photo album that Brynne kept in her backpack, and all those trophy bracelets on her wrist. Now Aru got it. Brynne carried them not as proof to herself that she was awesome, but as proof for someone else … someone like a mom who didn’t stay.
“I like cooking, because you know what’s going to happen,”said Brynne quietly. “You have a good idea of how things will react and taste, and if you don’t like how it comes out, you can start over.”
“Brynne makes really good lasagna,” added Aiden.
“Thebestlasagna,” she corrected him with a smile.
In the middle of the table, the little origami clock began to spin. A thin trail of smoke curled out of it and snaked through the restaurant and out thedoor. Aru looked around, but none of the other customers seemed to have noticed. In her pocket, Vajra hummed.
A little voice whispered from the folded paper, “Sage Durvasa has accepted your request for an appointment.”
“Sage!” said Aiden. “I knew it!”
A sage is a very wise person. Aru’s mom had told her that some have special powers, because of their religious focus. Once there was a sage soformidable he put a curse on the gods themselves—he caused them to lose their immortality. Aru didnotwant to run into someone like that.
Before their eyes, the trail of smoke began to glow. The card spoke again.
“Please proceed to the highlighted route. Then your route guidance will begin.”
