The scent of Harry's cologne lingered in the air, a bitter reminder of his presence. It was a mix of cheap aftershave and desperation that made my nose wrinkle in disgust.
"Did you actually just Karma him?" Carol asked, her curiosity piqued as she caught me staring at the dwindling figure of Deva's ex-husband.
"Yep." I smirked slightly. "Karma definitely has something in store for him." The thought of Harry receiving a taste of his own medicine brought a satisfaction that warmed me from head to toe.
"Good," Carol said, grinning like a Cheshire cat. "He deserves it."
Deva straightened up. "I need to get my mind off of Harry and focus on the repairs, or I won’t get them done on time."
"How can we help?"
"Keep investigating," Deva said, her expression determined. "Find out who put this curse on me and why. That's the most important thing." She took the notebook and pencil from Beth and scribbled names, pausing every now and then to consider each person carefully, then handed the notebook back to Beth. “Here's everyone I could think of.
“Thanks,” Beth said, looking down at the list.
“Good luck.” Deva’s face said it all.
We were gonna need it.
4
EMMA
The sun hunghigh in the sky, casting few shadows on the ground as we walked back to Private Psych after saying goodbye to Deva. My feet ached inside my shoes, and the combination of the previous night's events and the exhaustion that came with it weighed heavily on me. The fight with the old karma had drained me more than I'd like to admit, even days later.
"You okay?" Beth asked, her eyes filled with concern. She adjusted her sunglasses, which had slipped down her nose slightly.
I forced a smile, trying to reassure both my friends and myself. "Of course," I said. "I've just used a lot of my powers lately, that's all."
As we entered the main room, Python rested on Beth’s table, right on top of a stack of papers next to her laptop. The white mouse’s ears went back, and it stood on its back legs, looking scared and pitiful. My heart ached for him. Python was one of the many of Beth’s animals, but the shyest one of them all.
Suddenly, Marble, the cat, leapt on top of the desk, sending papers flying, and capturing the little mouse in her paw. “I’ve got you,” the cat said in a low, dangerous voice. “You’ll never be able to execute your little plan.”
Beth rushed forward. “No! Stop that right now!”
Marble tensed, and Python squeezed out of her paw, jumped down from the desk, and disappeared into a hole in the wall. The female tortoiseshell cat hissed low, and the hairs on her back stood on end as Beth frowned down at her.
“How many times have I told you to leave poor Python alone?”
The cat glared in the way only cats can. “Python is evil. Python is plotting against you all, and you’re too foolish to realize it.”
Beth groaned and looked back at me. “You know how cats are. Pure drama.”
Marble leapt down from the desk, pointing her butt at us as she headed upstairs. “It’s not cat drama, that mouse must die.”
When she was gone, I glanced at Beth. “Do we need to do something about that?”
Beth shook her head. “Marble is all bark and no bite. She likes the chase, but she’s never going to actually hurt another creature. She’s too sweet.”
I wasn’t so sure, but Beth was the person whose powers specialized in animals. If she said Python was safe with the cat, she was probably right. Still, I had to wonder if all cats and mice hated each other that much. I couldn’t hear any others, so I truly didn’t know.
Suddenly, I felt something falling on my head. Looking up, I gasped as tiny nuts hit my face. I shifted back, eyeing the rafters. There, I spotted Clark, the Clark’s nutcracker, making yet another cache of food. “What do you think of all of this?”
Clark froze in his movements. “I don’t involve myself in the business of rodents and predators.”
Fair enough.
I stretched my neck, ignoring the slight aches, then glanced at the others. "So, what about that list of possible candidates for who burned down the café? Any leads?"
