“You wouldn’t understand,” I said.
“Look, we all have invisible scars, right?” Sassy grabbed my left leg and repositioned it slightly. “That’s just part of the human existence. Yoga is the kind of activity that can help ease the pain.”
“Is that why you go to church?” I asked.
She snapped back into position as though I’d struck her. “How do you know about that?”
“Someone mentioned it recently,” I said. “They also said you were with Father Kevin at Magic Beans on Friday morning.”
Sassy pursed her lips. “Is there something wrong with meeting a priest for coffee?”
I shrugged. “Depends on the reason, I guess.”
“It’s not like it was a date.” She plucked an invisible thread on her yoga mat. “He’s a good listener. I like talking to him.”
“I didn’t even realize you were Catholic.”
She refused to meet my steady gaze. “I’m not.”
“You’re not Catholic, but you’ve been attending Sunday mass?”
“I go to confession too. Well, not anymore. Not with Father Kevin leaving.” Sassy frowned. “It’s a real bummer. It’s hard to build that kind of trust with someone, especially a man.”
“Does Father Kevin know you’re not Catholic?”
She smiled. “I guess we both have our secrets.”
Multiple questions rattled around in my brain, but I plucked the most obvious one from the bunch. “Why would you lie about being Catholic?”
Sassy placed her palms flat against each other and inhaled deeply. Once she released the breath, she said, “Because I overheard two ladies in the grocery store one day talking about how much they liked Father Kevin. That they felt uplifted every Sunday and it carried them through the week. I decided that I wanted to feel that way too.” She snapped her fingers at me. “Do some breathing. Your shoulders look like they’re ready to pull you into the air.”
I put my hands together and drew a deep breath.
“Not like that,” she scolded. “You sound like you’re trapped in a box at the bottom of the ocean. Take your time and focus.”
I made another attempt, making sure to slow my breathing.
“Better,” she said. “Now do it again.”
I’d forgotten how bossy Sassy could be. The head cheerleader was strong in this one. I took another breath and felt more relaxed this time.
“Why did you go to confession?” I asked. Did Sassy have sordid secrets to get off her chest?
She played with the tip of her ponytail. “It’s sort of freeing to talk openly to someone who’s duty-bound not to share. I mean, he has to answer to God if he mouths off. That’s a real incentive to keep it under wraps.”
“Did you tell him how you ‘helped’ Tanner cheat on me?”
She narrowed her eyes. “It’s ancient history, Eden. I thought you’d moved past it.”
I wiggled my butt to get more comfortable. “I’m not holding a torch, that’s for sure.”
“Good, you shouldn’t. It’s unhealthy to cling to negative emotions.”
“A therapist would have the same duty, you know,” I said.
“Yes, but a priest doesn’t cost me anything,” she said. “My insurance doesn’t cover mental health services.”
“What’s been your impression of Father Kevin, up until he announced his departure?”
Sassy uncrossed her legs and stretched them straight out in front of her. “He’s been wonderful. I’ve so looked forward to Sunday mornings. Listening to his powerful messages about redemption and loving thy neighbor. So overwhelmingly positive.”
“Has Tanner ever gone with you?”
She snorted. “No way. He doesn’t even know about it.”
“Where does he think you go?”
“Yoga,” she said. “Which I do, but not until afterward.”
For someone with such uplifting messages, Father Kevin really seemed to have experienced an abrupt shift in outlook.
“Were you surprised by Father Kevin’s announcement?” I asked.
“Of course. Who wasn’t? It seemed to come completely out of the blue.”
“He didn’t mention anything at Magic Beans either?” I asked.
“Definitely not,” she said. “He was his usual upbeat self. Gave me good advice and a positive quote to think about.” She made a noise at the back of her throat. “Two are better than one…for if they fall, one will lift up the other.” She flashed a proud smile. “That’s from Ecclesiastes.”
“He sounds like a wise man.”
“Loosen your knees and bend forward at the waist,” Sassy ordered.
I tried to do as instructed, but my muscles refused to cooperate.
“Why do you care if Father Kevin lost his faith?” she asked. “It’s not like you’re Catholic.”
“I’m just interested. It’s interesting.”
Sassy studied me. “Okaaaay.”
“What did you and Father Kevin talk about at Magic Beans?” I asked.
She hesitated. “What do you think?”
“Tanner?”
She nodded. “He’s been a willing ear for me. Kind of like…” She trailed off.
“Like what?” I prodded.
She shifted to her hands and knees. “Like having a really good dad.”
“I’m sorry,” I said.
“You don’t need to be sorry. Father Kevin’s been a great father figure. Always full of good advice and never judged me.”
“No, he saves all the judgment for his boss,” I said.
Sassy made a face. “I told him how I was starting to second-guess my relationship with Tanner. That maybe I didn’t really want to marry him after all.”
“And what did Father Kevin say?”
“To follow the path that was calling to me, but not to give up on love.”
“A flowery way of saying trust your gut.”
“Pretty much.” She offered a rueful smile. “I want kids. I want a messy house with signs of a chaotic but happy life. I want to step on Legos in the dark.”
“You really don’t,” I said. “Olivia has left them on the floor at my mom’s house and they hurt like you wouldn’t believe.” I copied her next pose and felt a twinge in my lower back. “You don’t think you can have that life with Tanner?”
“I didn’t have that life growing up and neither did he,” she said. “I’m not sure that we’d be able to create something together that neither one of us has experience with. No role models.”
I sensed there was more to it than that. “Do you worry that Tanner would leave once you have kids in the mix?”
She switched to her knees. “Not necessarily that he’d leave because of children—just that he would leave someday and we’d repeat the cycle.”
“Do you love him?”
“I do, but I’m starting to wonder if I love him enough. If we love each other enough. If we did, I think we’d be engaged by now.”
“Do you worry that he’ll cheat?” I asked. What possessed me to have this conversation with Sassy Persimmons of all people, I’d never know. High School Me was giving Adult Me a healthy dose of side eye.
Sassy pressed her forehead against the mat. “I worry about that all the time, given how we started.” She rolled onto her side. “He travels for work so often. He meets sexy nurses all the time.”
“They’re not Halloween costumes,” I said. “These are actual nurses.”
“I know.” Sassy returned to a seated position. “But if he did it to you, why not to me?”
“You just said it was ancient history.” Not to mention ironic. It took two to cheat. Sassy hadn’t cheated on anyone, but she’d certainly been a willing participant.
“I guess the bottom line is that I don’t trust him and I’m not sure I ever will,” Sassy said. “Is that someone I want to build a life with? Have children with?”
The answer to that question seemed pretty clear to me. I knew I’d dodged a bullet with Tanner, though the pa
in had been pretty fierce at the time.
“You’re the only one who can answer that, Sassy.”
“That’s what Father Kevin said.” She blew a strand of hair out of her eye. “Man, I’m really going to miss that guy.”
I parked on the street in front of Mrs. Huntington’s ranch-style house and walked along the brick path that delivered me to the front door via a small garden. The gnome clearly spent a lot of time cultivating her outdoor space. Everywhere I looked, flowers were blooming and plants were thriving.
The front door was open, leaving only a screen door between us. Before I could call her name, two cats came charging at the door, meowing loudly.
“What is it, Hermione?” Mrs. Huntington appeared in the living room wearing a fuzzy pink bathrobe. She was short and sturdy with a mop of gray hair. “Ron, stop begging for food.” She smiled when she spotted me. “Oh, hello. I didn’t realize I had company.”
“Hello, Mrs. Huntington,” I said. “I’m Agent Eden Fury. I’m here on behalf of the supernatural council.”
She peered at me through the screen. “They sent an agent? Is it that serious?” A third cat trotted over to investigate the scene and began weaving through the gnome’s legs. “Stop that, Harry.”
“I work for the Federal Bureau of Magic,” I said. “I serve on the council as a volunteer. I offered to handle your garden issue.” I glanced over my shoulder. “To be fair, though, your gardens are amazing. I know plenty of keen gardeners, but yours is truly impressive.”
I thought the compliment might win her over. Instead, I seemed to agitate her.
“Not the side garden,” she snapped. “I don’t suppose you had a look there.”
“No, ma’am. I didn’t want to trespass.”
The gnome opened the door and shooed the cats back into the house. “You three stay put. I’m not fast enough to catch you when you decide to do a runner.” She hobbled down the steps and brushed past me. “Come on then, I’ll show you.”
We rounded the corner and she stopped in her tracks. It only took a moment to spot the problem—a patch of anemic flowers that looked like they’d been deprived of water and sunlight.
Mrs. Huntington jabbed a finger at the offending area. “See what I mean? Werewolf piss is the only thing that will do that to my garden.”
I highly doubted that. “Are you sure your cats haven’t been sneaking outside?”
The gnome drew back, plainly offended by the accusation. “My cats are perfect angels. They would never be so vindictive as to ruin my garden. They know how important it is to me.” She’d clearly never met Candy. My grandmother’s cat would pee in the bathtub if you looked at her the wrong way.
“Have you actually seen any werewolves in the vicinity?” I asked. Her lot was somewhat off the beaten track but not completely isolated.
“I heard one howling the other night,” she said. “My bedroom window was open and it sounded very close to the house. The cats went nuts so I shut the window and got out their thunder jackets.”
“Thunder jackets?”
“The ones they wear during a thunderstorm to keep them from feeling anxious,” the gnome explained. “Hermione is always trying to bite hers off, but the other two wear them quite happily.”
“Are you sure it wasn’t an owl or some other creature?”
She cemented her hands to her hips. “Do I seem deaf to you? I know the difference between a hoot and a howl.”
“Of course you do. I didn’t mean to imply otherwise.” As much as I hated to do it, I crouched beside the dead flowers and sniffed. There was an acrid smell that could definitely be attributable to werewolves.
“See? It’s werewolf, isn’t it?” She almost sounded pleased.
“I’m not one hundred percent sure, but I haven’t ruled it out.” I resumed a standing position. “Was it only the one night that you heard the howling?”
“No, two nights in a row,” she said. “I looked outside from the upstairs window, but I couldn’t see anything. I didn’t want to actually go outside.”
“Why do you think they’d be drawn to your garden?” I asked.
“They probably like the sweet scent of these flowers,” she said. “I opened the window and yelled the other night, trying to scare them off, but I have no idea whether it worked because I couldn’t see anything.”
“I’m sorry you’re dealing with this,” I said. “If it’s any consolation, no one can see this part of your garden unless they’re standing right in front of it.”
“I can see it,” she said firmly. “I don’t give a toss about what anybody else can see. I work hard on my garden. I don’t want some interloper to destroy my handiwork.”
“Totally understandable.”
She crossed her arms. “And what are you going to do about it, Agent?”
“I’m going to do a little digging in the werewolf community and see what I can find out.”
Her expression became skeptical. “You really believe me?”
“I believe that you heard howling and that a werewolf may have trespassed on your property,” I said. “And I’ll do my best to figure it out.” I paused. “If it turns out a werewolf is responsible, what do you intend to do about it?”
“Make them pay compensation for my garden,” she said. “I need to buy new flowers and replant them.”
Well, that seemed reasonable. “You won’t call the police, will you? Because that would make the issue more difficult to deal with.”
Mrs. Huntington licked her lips, debating. “As much as I’d like a moment or two alone with that ruggedly handsome chief, I see your point.”
Same, girl. Same. “I promise to get back to you as soon as I know anything.”
The gnome looked me up and down. “Fury, did you say?”
“That’s right.”
“Beatrice and Stanley’s daughter?”
Oh boy. “Yes, that’s me.”
“My husband used to have a crush on your mother,” she said. “After she and Stanley divorced, he suggested we invite her over for cards to cheer her up.” She tossed her head back and laughed. “What a moron. I mean, I miss him now that he’s dead, but seriously.” She shook her head. “Did he think I was stupid?”
I wasn’t sure what to do with that information. I wanted to tell her that my mother would never stoop to dating a gnome, but that seemed like the wrong way to handle it.
“Men can be obtuse sometimes,” I said vaguely.
“Well, you’re much prettier than your mother.”
I straightened. “Really? You think so?” No one ever said that. My mother was always being praised for her youthful beauty.
“Definitely. And you don’t have that look that says you’re going to hump any man that crosses your path.”
“Um, thanks.”
She continued to scrutinize me. “Your cousin is married to that werewolf, isn’t he?” She harrumphed. “And you serve on the council with that Phelps fellow.”
“Both are correct, but I have no qualms about putting a werewolf in his or her place for committing a misdemeanor. My job is to protect members of this community and that includes your garden from…werewolf pee.”
“Glad to hear it.” She finally seemed satisfied. “Would you like to come in for a glass of sweet tea? I’m sure the cats won’t bite you.” She hesitated. “Well, Hermione might, but she’ll lick you first.”
“As tempting as that offer is, I need to get going. There’s a family dinner tonight and I have to change before my mother sees me.”
She gave me a sympathetic nod. “Been there.” She gestured to my head. “Maybe run a brush through that tangled mess, too. It looks like they got caught on tree branches on the way here.”
Inwardly I sighed. Apparently everyone was a critic when it came to my appearance, even a gnome in a powder pink bathrobe.
Chapter Ten
I managed to sneak up to the attic and change before anyone spotted me. I brushed my hair as per Mrs. Huntington’s suggestion an
d even checked my teeth in the mirror.
“Why not wear a dress?” Alice asked, materializing. “You have such nice legs. You may as well show them off.”
“Show them off to whom?” I asked. “It’s a family dinner.”
“Perhaps Chief Fox might happen by later,” she said slyly.
I aimed the hairbrush at her. “You don’t know anything, Alice.”
She smiled demurely. “What’s the problem, dear? It’s not as though I can tell anyone.”
I studied the ghost. “How do you know?”
“It’s obvious when you’re together that there’s something between you. You’re like two planets colliding.”
“When did you see us together?” I didn’t bother to hide the note of suspicion in my voice.
Alice turned to look behind her, as though someone had called her name. “What’s that? Yes, I’ll be right there!”
“Nice try,” I said. “Have you been following me around town?”
Alice’s ghostly form sank onto my mattress. “I’ve been trying to find more ways to amuse myself. There’s only so much television I can watch before my head hurts.”
“Same,” I said. “You can visit other ghosts. Complain about the state of the world together and how terrible fashion is these days.”
“I do on occasion.” Her expression grew dreamy. “I thought it would be nice to pretend to be alive again, so I decided to follow you and see how you spent a typical day.” She paused. “That reminds me—you really should stick to one donut, dear.”
Heat warmed my cheeks. “Please don’t cloak and dagger me. It’s unsettling.”
A smile played upon her lips. “He is so very handsome. I think you’ve made an excellent choice.”
“Okay, but nobody can know. If he knows about my family…Even worse, if they know about him…” I shuddered at the thought. “Disaster.”
“Aunt Eden?” My niece’s voice jolted me and I whipped toward the top of the staircase.
“Hey, Olivia.”
“Mom-mom says not to ruin dinner by coming down late.” She cocked her head. “She also said to make sure you look presentable. Do you?”
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