Heart in her throat, Pru ran, slamming the gate shut in her father’s face, her own on fire from the earlier hit. She turned to see if he was following her, only to watch him stand still behind the wrought iron and look at her with something she couldn’t decipher in his eyes.
That something haunted her till she reached town, the books getting progressively heavier. By the time she walked into Crow & Cat, Pru thought they had been cursed.
When she entered, her arms heavy and the painting clawing at her side, Victoria, Ceridwen, and Seren were on the first floor, arguing on speakerphone with Sheriff Redding.
“…clearly you have not paid any attention to me when I told you the woman is dangerous, Pete.”
Seren’s tone was exasperated. Next to her, Ceridwen was shooting daggers at the phone.
“Chief, I talked to this Lisa person as you asked weeks ago, instructed her to stay away from here, but she said she has never set foot inside. I can’t prove otherwise, and I have been keeping an eye out?—”
“Clearly not enough, since she was not only back out there this morning but also in here when she planted the bloody photograph! It’s breaking and entering, Pete, and it’s harassment.”
“Don’t quote the criminal statutes to me, Chief. I know them. I still can’t prove any of this, and yelling at Rhiannon in the Square is not a crime. I checked and Nox did fire her yesterday, so?—”
“It wasn’t Lisa.”
It was nearly comical to see the three heads turn simultaneously in her direction.
“I’ll get back you later, Pete. Something just came up.” Seren dropped the call, not waiting for a reply from the sputtering sheriff.
Lachlan bounded up from the basement carrying both Boleyn and Patches in his arms and skated to a halt by Christian, who poked his head out from the back room, wiping his hands a rag.
Her audience was almost complete.
“Prudence?” Victoria’s voice was tinged with concern.
She must look a sight, Pru thought, staggering on her feet, dropping the tomes on the counter where they landed in a heap, heavy as lead. Silence reigned. Victoria approached slowly, as if afraid of what she might see.
“This can’t be.” Her slim, arthritic fingers touched the leather reverently. “This cannot be.” The crow under her touch seemed to stand out more prominently against the dark cover.
“Who is it, Victoria?”
Rhiannon’s feet hit the last step on the stairs, and then Pru felt her breath being knocked out of her the second time. Rhiannon’s gaze was electric, shocking in its strength, in the connection between them. Pru felt her power surge, felt the entire building shake as Rhiannon was suddenly closer, holding her chin up, the fingertips warm and careful. By contrast, the mouth was a thin line of anger, of rage that Pru had never seen before, and when Rhiannon spoke, Pru couldn’t recognize the voice either.
“Who did this to you?”
The cheekbone sang with vicious pain, and Pru recoiled as Rhiannon held tighter, her words sharp as razors.
“Prudence, who did this?”
Behind pale lips, white teeth bared in a scowl, and Pru felt her heart simply turn over. What a cliché moment. She was in so deep, this love would leave her utterly devastated and ruined.
She opened her mouth,I love youtrembling on her lips, and…
Jedidiah Fowler kicked the front door open as all hell broke loose.
“Prudence Ophelia! How dare you! How dare any of you!”
Rhiannon was in his face in a blink of an eye.
“If you laid a hand on her, if you so much as breathed in her direction, if those marks are your handiwork?—”
“You will what? Smite me?”
His mouth was contorted in a particularly disgusted grimace as he stood completely motionless in front of Rhiannon.
“I’m not afraid of your brouhaha. I still wear the scars from the last time you lost control over it.”
