“Okay.”
“I mean it,” I repeat, feeling like I didn’t get through to him. “Don’t go looking for trouble.”
Jared nods and looks down at the sage. “If my dad finds this, you’ll have to tell him it’s not pot.”
“That doesn’t even look like pot. But yes, I’ll vouch for you. Though I get the feeling your dad would rather you get caught with pot than sage you burn to banish ghosts.”
Jared lets out a snort of laughter. “You’re not wrong.”
“Come on. It’s late and we both need sleep.” I motion for Jared to follow me. Avoiding the living room, we go into the dining room, through the butler’s pantry and into the kitchen. I put on my shoes and grab my keys, and we leave through the back door.
“Who was that guy?” Jared asks once we’re both seated.
“My boyfriend.”
“No, the other one? I saw you with your boyfriend at my parents’ party.”
I’m not ashamed of my relationship with all four of my gargoyles. I own my sexuality like a motherfucking queen. But telling a teenage boy about it isn’t something I want to tackle right now.
“A friend.”
“And he knows about ghosts?”
“A bit.”
Jared shifts in his seat. “Sorry if I, uh, interrupted anything.”
Oh, right. Jacques was shirtless when he answered the door. “We already finished.”
“Gross.”
I roll my eyes and press on the gas. By car, it doesn’t take long to get to Jared’s house. I pull over but not into his driveway, not wanting to shine the lights at his house and risk either waking up his parents or causing one of the annoyingly involved neighbors to become suspicious.
“Where is your window?” I ask Jared as he unbuckles.
“Second story on the left.”
“Go in, check on your parents, and then go into your room. Turn your light on and off three times so I know you’re up there and things are good.”
“And if they’re not?”
“I’m giving you two minutes. I’ll come in if I don’t see the signal.”
“This is so cool,” he says to himself.
“It’s not. Promise me, kid, that you won’t do anything stupid.”
“I promise.” He gets out of the car and runs through the driveway, hopping onto the porch and entering a code to unlock the front door. I look at the clock and then back at the house. A light above the stairs comes on and a good thirty seconds pass by before I see anything else. That light turns off and another comes on upstairs. Come on, kid…make it to your room and turn on the damn lights.
I start counting in my head, drumming my fingers on the steering wheel. One…two…three…four…five… The light in his room goes on and off. On and off. On and off. It stays off for a few seconds and then goes on. I can see Jared’s shadow moving around behind the drawn sheer curtains.
Letting out a breath of relief, I turn my car around and speed down the road. My eyes are starting to burn and I know I need to sleep. If I’m going to do a big, complicated spell on my own, I need to catch up on my sleep and be prepared. No matter what, this isn’t going to be easy.
