“Rune, dear!” she says, holding up a copy ofBlood Heir.“Looking for this?”
How the heck does she know? “It’s like you’re psychic,” I mutter, taking it from her.
“Hardly, dear. Just a connoisseur of my patrons’ interests. This one came in and I held it specially for you. Although”—she drops me a wink behind her horn-rimmed glasses—“maybe you won’t be doing as much reading as usual, eh?”
“What do you mean?” I say, a sinking feeling in my stomach.
“Well, we saw you with Donovan at the Peach Tree.” She gives me a Cheshire Cat’s grin. “You two made quite the pair.”
Oh, sweet purple ponies on steroids. “Yes, I know you saw us,” I tell her. “I think all of Sapphire Springs knows. Hashtag fatedmates? Hashtag firstdatemagic? Really?”
“Just giving you a little help, dear. After all, who knows where things between the two of you might lead? I can see the headline in the Springs Sing now:Whipped Into Love: From Milkshakes to Marriage.Catchy, no?”
She’s grinning diabolically, and too late, I remember how eager she was for me to readBy a Thread.God, she’d probably submit a wedding announcement to the town’s free paper just for shits and giggles. “We’re not dating!” I say, much too loudly.
My exclamation brings Charlotte, Emma, and Sophie to the door of the bookmobile, just in time for Mrs. Fontaine’s next suggestion: “Or, oooh, I know!The Sweetest Proposal.Do you like that better?”
“No one is marrying anyone!” I shriek, loud enough that a bluebird roosting atop the bookmobile gives me a judgmental glare and takes flight.
“Methinks the lady doth protest too much,” Mrs. Fontaine says, wagging a finger at me. “But perhaps the Seer of Sapphire Springs can give you the answers you seek.”
“The—what?”
“Right over there,” she says, pointing. “A glimpse into your future.”
I follow her index finger to its natural conclusion and see a tent draped with tapestries, closed on three sides. At the front isa beaded curtain hung to look like a door and a sign that reads,Get Your Fortune Told! It’s For the Books!
Seeing more of the future is the verylastthing I need. Not to mention, if there’s a Seer of Sapphire Springs, she’s standing right in front of them, not ensconced inside that tent. “Thanks so much, but I’ll pass.”
But Sophie and Emma’s eyes have gone wide, and they start jumping up and down. “Please, Auntie Rune?” Sophie begs. “It’ll be so much fun!”
Charlotte joins in, the traitor. “Come on, Rune. Open-minded, remember?”
I want to say no. Christ on a bike, do I want to. But Sophie’s got her little hands clasped beneath her chin, and Emma’s already listing all the ways we can adjust our itinerary to make time for it, and so, with a sigh, I give in.
“All right, fine. Let’s see what the Seer of Sapphire Springs has to say.”
Chapter
Twenty-One
I cannot believeI’m doing this.
Sophie, Emma, and Charlotte tried to come in with me, but Mrs. Fontaine insisted I go alone. “The magic won’t work if you’re accompanied by others,” she said, with another wink.
As I walk across the lawn toward the seer’s tent, my only consolation is that at least whatever money I have to shell out for this crap will go toward the library, which is where I used to hang out after school to avoid the monster. Small wonder Mrs. Fontaine knows me so well; she practically raised me between the hours of 3:00 and 7:00 p.m.
I pause for a moment outside the beaded curtain, bracing myself for whatever absurdity lies within. Then I square my shoulders and walk through, straight into a cliché.
The tent is dimly lit, thanks to the tapestries draped over it, the air heavy with incense. Mood music is playing in the background. And behind a small table adorned with a crystal ball and a deck of tarot cards sits…Hot Yoga Grandma.
Fuck me running.
“Hello, Rune,” she says when she sees me, raising a perfectly drawn eyebrow. “We haven’t formally met, but I feel as if I know you.”
I just bet you do,I want to say.You and every other member of the Sinsters, with your sneaky little iPhones.But I restrain myself. I’ve already assaulted the woman. Adding rudeness to the mix isn’t going to help my cause. “Nice to meet you. I’m, um, here for a reading.”
“Welcome,” she says, offering me a serene smile. “I’m Ella Campbell, the Seer of Sapphire Springs. I expected I’d be seeing you sooner or later.”
