“Which sister?”
“Sage. Because she talks to plants, right?”
I nod, with a pathetic little voice in my head wondering ifhereally believes our gifts or not. “Right.”
“Listen to the water in the tree, Teal.” And then he begins to count.
One-two-three-four, in. And one to eight, out. I close my eyes as his rough voice smooths over me. I try to do what he said, focus on the water in the tree. And you know what? For a splitsecond, I think I can hear it. Feel it. It’s like I’m inside a waterfall. Like the water that makes up my body connects to the water in the circulatory system of the tree. But then it’s over so quickly, I’m left wondering if I imagined it.
I open my eyes, and the sun shines thick. Not a single dark cloud in the sky. Not a single cloud at all.
Carter turns to me, his eyes as light as sunlight reflecting off a ground cherry. “Now, what do you need?”
I need to listen to my New Year’s resolution list. I need to stop being selfish.
But I can’t. Not right now, not when what Leilani’s done still feels so fresh, it’s like the weapon she used to hurt me is still lodged in my body. So I say, “I need revenge.”
Carter smiles at me instantly, so genuine and warm that it takes my breath away. “All right.”
And then he takes my hand and we’re approaching a table. Sitting behind a display of handmade jewelry is Nora Jacoby. She’s basically the Cranberry Queen of Gossip.
“Hey, Nora,” Carter says.
“Carter Velasquez,” Nora stands, grasping her heart. “I haven’t seen you here in a dog’s age.”
“Yeah.” He smiles sheepishly. “I’ve been busy.”
“Well, I can see that.” Her eyes are on his and my clasped hands, and even though I only know it’s going to make her wonder more, I carefully pull my arm away. “Bless your heart, dear. I heard about your grandfather.”
Carter clears his throat. “Yeah. That was hard.”
Nora makes a pouty face I’m sure she thinks looks like sympathy. “Well, he was a great man.”
Carter mumbles something affirmative, then looks at me, thenback to Nora. “Say, Nora, if you see Leilani Rodriguez around, could you be a little extra kind to her? She ate way too many jalapeños for breakfast, if you know what I mean.”
Nora’s eyes are wide and she nearly folds over as she leans toward us. “No, I don’t, honey, what do you mean?”
Carter leans in and lowers his voice. “I mean, it was a big mess. She ran out of toilet paper. We had to run and get her some baby wipes.”
I snort so loud, it’s almost impossible to turn it into a cough, but I manage.
“Ohhhh.” Nora looks delighted. “I will besureto be extra kind to her. In fact, I’m going to go ahead and give her some extra Pepto Bismol pills I keep on hand.” She starts rummaging through her purse. “Do you think she could use Tums, too?”
At this point, my hands are over my mouth to keep the laugh in.
Carter sighs. “She needs anything you’ve got, Nora. And if anyone else has stuff to help her, that would be great. To be honest, she might need new clothes, if you catch my drift.”
“Oh, bless her heart. Well, you know me. I’ll spread the word. I’m going to text her mother to see if she can bring her a change of clothes, too.”
When Carter and I turn away, I burst. I can’t help it. I laugh so hard, tears fall down my cheeks. I double over. When I finally calm down, I look up, and Carter’s so pleased, it makes my heart feel strange.
“Seriously? Telling the whole town Leilani shit her clothes? What are we, in middle school?”
Carter shrugs. “You saying you need more revenge?”
I shake my head. “This feels good for now.”
Carter walks me back to my table, where Leilani issurrounded by concerned Southern elder women. One of them is actually holding a package of women’s underwear. I bury my face in Carter’s chest to keep from laughing too loudly.
