“And what is this?” She held out her hand. Her tilted head read somewhere between confusion and skepticism.
“Thatisa hunk of sugar, but they are the best at holding the charge—I mean, they are great for helping when you get vertigo from your low blood sugar. That was what was going on again, you know? Plus, there was a huge wasp behind you that we must have let in, and I know you’re deathly allergic.”
I was totally gaslighting her, but that was miles better than trying to explain what had happened. Call it calculated luck, but I’d managed to keep Mrs. Finnegan in the dark about mydemon fighting. Judy (short for Judith) was old enough to be my grandmother. My stepdad, an old friend of hers, had initially hired her to keep an eye on me to make sure I was eating well.
Mrs. Finnegan gave me a look that was a combo ofwe’ll talk about this laterandyou aren’t fooling me.“I don’t think I’ve met you?” She offered her hand to Ranth, noting his shoes and the T-shirt, as if she were assessing my prom date. Everything about her was old-fashioned, and she had no idea that women were also on my menu. She’d be reporting Ranth back to my stepdad. Bud was pretty easy going, but he still treated me like I was twelve at times.
Ranth was holding the fore-bone behind his back. “Ranth of the Ahknim,” he replied, taking her hand. I swore gold glitter rose from their touching hands.
“Pleased to meet you, Ranth,” she replied, stooping over to pick up the scattered groceries.
“Uh, let me help you with that,” I said, picking up a broken tortilla chip.
“Is that a tattoo?” Mrs. Finnegan riveted on my arm.
I slapped my hand over the inked curse. “Yeah, it’s temporary,” I replied, exchanging glances with Ranth. Bud was also anti-skin ink. I was on the fence. So far, my skin had been inked only with henna and plant-based dyes for rituals—and now whatever this purple stuff was.
Whatever Ranth had done, Mrs. Finnegan seemed to accept that and everything else. She set pasta boxes and bean cans into cupboards, and I exchanged glances with Ranth. His lips curved into a wizard-ate-all-the-dates smile.
“Sorrel, have you been eating? You look a little pale.”
“All good, just staying out of the sun as usual. I hit the Farmer’s Market and got enough lettuce for the week. Oh, and I got you some.” I picked up the almond milk bottle and opened the fridge. “Here,” I said, offering her a bag of mixed greens.
“You are always so thoughtful.” She was eyeing Ranth again. The air was charged with brimstone-scented energy from the demons. I should have lit a candle.
“Actually, Ranth and I were going to get dinner out before that client appointment I mentioned last week. Hope it’s still okay to borrow your car tonight?”
She closed the cabinet door and turned to me, her attention locking on to Ranth’s unusual outfit. “Oh dear, no worries at all. I’ll just put these things away. I was going to cook you a mushroom lasagna, but I can come back tomorrow.”
Judy lived a couple of streets over and was a fabulous vegan cook, supplementing the salads and juices I existed on. “Thanks for being so flexible, Mrs. Finnegan. You’re the best.” I hugged her, and the hug meant even more since she hadn’t died on me five minutes ago. As soon as she was out the back door, those blood oranges were going down the garbage disposal. We didn’t use it often because I composted everything, but this was the perfect time.
“Need help to your car?” I asked her as I picked up the cauliflower that had rolled to the stove.
“No dear, I’ll be fine. Are you quite sure you don’t want me to stay and clean up a little?” She squinted at the dishes on the counter, the motion making little creases in her nose. I knew she wasn’t pleased, but she’d go with it.
“Tomorrow will be great, really, thank you.”
She looked me over again but nodded with a tight smile, like she totally knew something was going on but wasn’t going to call me out on it. She was really an awesome person. She’d grown up in Lake County in a laid-back family who were also hilarious in their dysfunctional lives. She often told me stories over tea that left us breathless from laughing. That common ground had bound us closer, and she respected my space.
“Let me help you to the car,” Ranth said, walking over and slipping his arm through hers. He slid the bone onto the counter and steered her toward the door.
Antimony tore in through the open door, and I breathed out relief that she was safe. “I’ll see you later, Mrs. Finnegan. Thanks so much for doing the shopping,” I called out as the door closed behind them. I slumped against the counter. Ranth seemed able to move farther away from me than before. This was a good thing, but now I was worried about him. I quashed an urge to watch them from the window.
The Essifer fore-bone he’d set on the counter was about the length of my forearm and rough and yellowish with a honeycomb structure, sort of like sponge coral. How it was here on this plane was a mystery that Ranth would have to clear up. The house wards had failed again. Then it dawned on me. It wasn’t that the demons were coming into the house for the second time, it was because we were being hunted. Ranth had been wrong about us getting a break. This could happen anywhere, which was even more reason to make the house safe.
Ranth had literally kicked butt again, and his knowledge of portals intrigued me. I was convinced Mom was still out there in demon land where the Sisters had taken her. She’d physically died, but if she’d been given a choice, her spirit would never leave me. If Ranth could teach me how to open a portal… I could get to Mom.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
The doorbell rang, and my phone vibrated. I whipped my cell out, walking into the dining room.
Ori:
How come the door is double-locked
The front door wasn’t bolted, but my ward was in place, which meant it was reset. No one could reset my wards but me…
I swung open the door, and Ori burst in. “What happened?” she asked.
