“But Virtue, like everywhere, has a responsibility to the future of the world as much as to itself and the shifters here,” Sarah said passionately. “We need more rail lines and easily accessible mass transit. Which would you rather have, hundreds of cars driving into Virtue for the holiday market, or peoplebeing able to take the train and not have to worry about parking or pollution? Because they come for the market, and the fair, and for a dozen other things over the year anyway, whether Arthur Lowell and his ilk like it or not. There’s a town council meeting next week to discuss the rail line, and I don’t know which way the vote is going to go.”
“That must be what your father wants your support on,” Vicki said to Zane. “He wants you to help him shut down the rail line development.”
“Mnnngh.” Sarah wobbled her hand. “Maybe. Arthur—oh.” She sagged as understanding seemed to wash over her, and then nodded. “Yeah, okay, look, um, I’ll explain all the details later, but the super short version is that last year Matthew and I found Virtue’s original town charter, and ended up with the responsibility of protecting the town and its shifters, all right?”
Zane opened his mouth, considered, and closed it again. “Okay. That sounds fascinating and Iamgoing to want the details later, but I’m going to assume you’re going somewhere with choosing now to tell us this, so let’s go there.”
“Right. Thank you. I’m not a shifter, and Matthew is new to Virtue. We’re not exactly the blue blood your father thinks should be in charge of anything here, much less protecting the town in general. I mean, the man wants to build a wall around Virtue. Not quite literally, although I think he would if he could. He wants to throw everybody who isn’t a shifter out, which frankly goes to show the dangers of inbreeding already, so how does he think that’ll work out in the long run.”
Zane tried not to laugh, and said, “A lot of the old families are pretty closely linked through marriage now,” to Vicki, who made a delicate face, and to Sarah, said, “So…?”
“So the rail line is a controversial point already,” Sarah said. “The town’s divided over it. I’m guessing that your dad thinks he can use this ‘Council of Elders’ thing to sway people against it,but even more, I bet he’s hoping he can get that council to agree Matthew and I aren’t the right sorts to be Virtue’s protectors.”
“Is that something he can do?” Vicki asked.
“I’m not sure,” Matthew admitted. “The passing of the torch from the last protector to us, it was—I’d say it was binding. Magical, even. But I also don’t know that it can’t be taken from us. It was willingly given, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be taken by force.” He shrugged and offered a crooked smile. “I have no idea. I don’t know anything about magic.”
Vicki and Sarah both burst out laughing. “No,” Sarah said to Vicki, “he justismagic.”
“Exactly!” Vicki agreed. “But okay, let’s take that at face value. You don’t know anything about magic. Does anybody else?”
Sarah and Matthew exchanged glances. “Wallace, obviously,” Matthew said.
“Never mindWallace,” Sarah said. “Helen.”
“You really think she’ll show up again?”
“No.” Sarah laughed, glanced at Zane and Vicki’s expressions, and laughed again. “Sorry. I mentioned her a few minutes ago, the old,oldNative woman who lives in the woods. Except I legitimately think you can only find her if she wants you to. Wallace is more…normal.”
“Wallace Evans has been a weird old man for my entire life,” Zane said disbelievingly. “I don’t see how you can call him normal.”
Sarah gave a high laugh. “No, but he’s closer than Helen is. Tell you what, I’ll see if I can scare him up and see what he knows about the Council of Elders, and whether theycantake the charter from us, and…stuff.”
Matthew’s eyebrows furled in thought. “They probably can. Helen said she’d stolen it from people who wanted to use it to their own ends.”
“But that wasn’t thecharter-charter,” Sarah pointed out, and for a moment or two they mumbled at each other, nearly speaking a language of their own while Zane and Vicki blinked curiously at them. “Never mind,” Sarah said after a minute, firmly. “We’d have to go out for a drink for me to explain all the details, and three of us have to be at work in the morning.”
“I have to be at work,” Zane protested. “But—shouldn’t I go talk to Old Man Evans, if somebody needs to? I’m technically a Lowell, at least.” He made a face. “Technically.”
Sarah made a noise that suggested she was afraid she might give offense, but she went ahead and said, “You’re technically a Lowell, but you haven’t been part of the Virtue community for the past twenty years or so, Zee. Right now you’re kind of more of an outsider than either MattheworI am, and we already have a rapport with him.”
Matthew snorted. “I think ‘rapport’ is a dramatic overstatement. I’m not sure anybody can have a rapport with Mr. Evans.”
“All right, fine, but it’s more than Zane’s got,” Sarah pointed out. “Besides, you have a dress to make, Zee. How’s it going?”
“It’s going to bebeautiful,” Vicki said happily. “And that’s all I’m going to tell you. You’ll have to wait and see.”
“Hmph. What good is it being the designer’s best friend twenty years ago if I can’t get sneak peeks now?”
“Absolutely none,” Zane told her, and Sarah laughed.
“Yeah, that’s fair. All right, you crazy kids, it’s time for you to get out of here. I want to finish locking up and go home.” She stood to offer both Vicki and Zane hugs, while Matthew shook Zane’s hand and smiled at Vicki. A few minutes later Zane and Vicki were out of the library and walking toward the town square, both thoughtfully quiet until they both started talking at once.
“Go ahead,” Zane said, more curious about her thoughts than sharing his own.
“I’m beginning to feel more like I belong in this town,” Vicki said as if it surprised her. “Or at least, to understand why I felt like I didn’t. I’ve been doing long-term substitute teaching since I got my teaching certificate, so I’m always on the move, and I know that’s not a great way to put down roots, but I haven’t been looking to. That said, there’s usually a broader sense of community that I fit into. And I’ve found some of that at the school, of course. Connie, and the other teachers. They’re great. But beyond that…I know peoples’ names, and we’re friendly, but it feels really on-the-surface. It makes more sense now.”
“May I ask you something?”
