“That’s terrible,” Lauren murmured, sitting on the arm of the couch. “I hope you catch him. Sorry we can’t help.”
I called my magic, weaving purple energy into my voice before I spoke again. “I think you can help me, Lauren, Gabrielle. I think you can tell me who this is.”
Neither girl was in any shape to fight the hypnotic enchantment, simple as it was.
Lauren’s eyelids fluttered. “Scales. He calls himself Scales. He…I saw him in a coffee shop.”
“You were his victims, weren’t you?” I pressed, pushing more magic into my voice. “How did you know it was him?”
“Heard him talking at the coffee shop.” Gabrielle ran a hand over her face, bringing some color into her cheeks. “Recognized his voice. Such a…loser.”
“Sexy though,” Lauren said, sounding as if she were falling asleep. “Nice abs.”
“Don’t say that,” Gabrielle insisted, propping her chin on her arm where it lay on the side of the couch. “He’s…trash.”
“You heard his voice?” I asked. “When?”
“He called. Said he was…sorryabout us losing our jobs.” Lauren closed her hand into a fist. “He wasnotsorry. He laughed.”
“You both seem to be a little under the weather,” I said. “Are you all right?”
“We’re fine.”
“She said we’d feel a little tired,” Gabrielle added, her eyelids drifting closed. “Nothing to worry about.”
“She?” I repeated.
“The…witch.”
Peasblossom shot out of my collar, and I held my breath until I realized she’d made herself invisible so the girls wouldn’t see her.
She scrabbled over my shoulder to my neck so she could speak directly into my ear.
“They saidwitch!”
I pressed my lips together, resisting the urge to rub my ear as the reverberations of the pixie’s voice made my eardrum buzz.
“What did the witch do for you?” I asked.
Lauren smiled as she closed her eyes. “Revenge. She said she’d make Scales pay for what he did to us.”
Gabrielle frowned. “She was supposed…supposed to send us a video.” She forced her eyes open and looked at Lauren. “She didn’t send us a video.”
“Maybe it’s not ready,” Lauren mumbled.
“What did she ask in return?” I pressed.
Lauren sighed. “Just some energy. It’s okay, it’ll…come back. Just need some rest.”
“Lots of rest,” Gabrielle added. “And time. Just rest and time.”
“Energy?” I stepped up to the couch and knelt so I was facing Gabrielle. “What kind of energy?”
“Don’t know. She had…some kind of dirt. It felt…sticky. Like it was mixed with glue.”
I rose to my feet, one hand going to my waist pouch.
“What are you doing?” Peasblossom asked.
