“Give it to me,” she said again. Her eyes didn’t light on fire the way Greta’s had, but I recognized a spark of greed.
I grunted and struggled against my bonds again. I had to make the show good.“I can’t,” I moaned, then flipped onto my back. The motion would have really hurt my tied-up wrists, but the angel armor was still protecting me from pain, thank goodness. I pressed out my chest as far as I could. “Come get it yourself. I can’t exactly get it for you.”
“Eeew, no.” She sniffed in disgust and took a giant step back.
We both fell silent for the next couple minutes.
Neither of us moved until the sudden sound of a door banging open caused us both to jump in our skins.
“Last chance,” I mumbled, trying hard to hide my desperation. “Take my magic and go be part of the action. I mean, if you’re not there with him, how can you be sure your grandfather will even cut you in once he gets what he wants?”
Melony bit her lip again, then hurried over to my side.“I’ll untie you for just a second, and just one hand. Give me the magic vessel, don’t do anything funny, and I’ll make sure you live. It’s not like Grandpa and I have a use for you, anyway.”
“Deal.” I flashed her a relieved smile. Not because she was offering me a way out, but because she’d fallen so perfectly into my trap.
I gave myself a quick mental pep talk as Melony struggled to untie just one hand. Downstairs, I heard Fluffikins shout,“Who are you, and what have you done with Parker?”
A series of crashes and slams followed as Melony used a fresh length of rope to tie my left wrist to the bonds that held my ankles before she finally got to work on freeing my right hand.
I was patient with her, like a good hostage.
“Okay, give it to me,” she said when at last my hand was fully freed. I reached into my bra and found the decoy brooch Greta had entrusted to me.Huh.Who knew this thing would actually come in handy?
Melony accepted it greedily, wiping it off on the hem of her shirt before pulling it to her face for a closer inspection. She was too distracted by both the brooch and the action downstairs to immediately retie me, just as I had counted on.
While she studied the empty magic vessel, I brought my free hand back to my chest and pressed it against my heart, summoning the light within. It started small like a pinprick but then grew into a magnificent fruit-sized orb.
By the time Melony realized what I was doing, I had already thrust my hand toward Greta’s unconscious body and allowed the light to flow out of me and into her.
The angel’s eyes snapped open, full of white heat. I watched in awe as her wounds closed up and she regained full vitality.
Now that I no longer had her armor, I gasped as a sudden wave of pain crashed over me. The wrist that was still held captive behind my back had been twisted at an unnatural angle when I flipped myself onto my back. And when Melony had fastened it to my feet, that only made the break worse.
Yup, it was definitely broken.
Greta shouted beside me and ripped through the ropes that had held her.
“Go!” I urged in a hoarse whisper. “Take Melony out of here. Out of the… house.”
I didn’t see what happened next, because I passed out from the pain.
30
My head felt foggy. I heard hushed voices speaking around me but couldn’t make out any of the words.
Ugh. How long had I been out? What day was it?
I’d had the craziest dream filled with talking cats, evil grandpas, and some kind of flaming angel. Well, that was one for the sleep journal. My therapist would love hearing about the story my nocturnal brain had concocted this time.
I brought my hands up to wipe the winkies from the corners of my eyes, then opened them.
A sleek black cat with a cute white patch on his chest stared down at me with glowing golden eyes. Huh, that was weird. When had I adopted a cat? I’d only lived in this town for a couple weeks, tops. I hadn’t even unpacked all my boxes yet, but I’d gone out and adopted a pet?
Someone placed a warm hand on my forehead. Who was here with me? I was in my own room, not a hospital. Yet these people seemed to know me.
Fear sent my heart galloping full speed ahead as I turned and found a pale-haired woman wearing a simple pantsuit and a giant smile.“Oh, Tawny. I’m so glad you’re okay.”
I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, then opened them again. This time I spotted an incredibly handsome man with a salt-and-pepper beard and nicely toned arms standing behind the lady. His light gray eyes appeared curious—and also familiar somehow.
“May I have a moment with her?” he asked the others, who agreed and swiftly departed. Even the cat left. Wow, they really had him trained!
The handsome stranger sank down onto his knees and gripped my hand between his.“How do you feel?” he asked, concern reflecting in his pale eyes.
“Okay,” I answered cautiously. It didn’t seem like he wanted to hurt me, but what was he doing in my house while I slept? That was definitely kind of creepy. “Confused.”
He glanced back toward the door. It was still shut.
“What do you remember?” he pressed, turning my hand over in his as if he couldn’t quite believe it was real.
I tried so hard, but nothing came to mind. Just the weird dream and long, pleasant sleep. I knew my answer would disappoint him, but I also had no idea what to say in order to make him happy. Instead, I simply asked,“About what?”
He licked his lips and tried again.“What’s my name?”
“I don’t know. Is it Steve? You look like a Steve.” I smiled to soften the blow in case I got it wrong. Even though this man was a stranger to me,he clearly knewme.
The man hung his head and chuckled. When he looked back at me, I thought I caught the glimmer of a tear that refused to fall.
“Forgetting is the protocol,” he said, making me even more confused than before. “I mean, it’s theusual procedure.” He shrugged.
I furrowed my brow but said nothing. What could I say?Hey, crazy guy. I have no idea what you’re taking about. Get out of my bedroom!
He continued on, undeterred.“But, Tawny, there is nothing usual about you.”
“Who are you?” I asked. My throat felt dry. My head foggy. None of this was making any sense.
He waved his hand in a semi-circle, then flicked his index finger straight up, watching me the whole time.
“Who am I?” he prompted again. “Think, Tawny. You know this.”
And suddenly the fog lifted, revealing images from the past day and a half. Fluffikins sharing his memories with me as he purred on my lap, Greta propelling me through the air with strong and steady wings, that old guy in the suit whose beard reached down to his belt buckle, but more than anything… the man standing right before me.
I couldn’t stop the enormous smile that blossomed on my face. “You’re Parker.”
“And what do you last remember happening?”
A frightening vision filled my mind. We’d almost been defeated. A horrible pain. I passed out.
“Melony and her grandfather,” I said, trying to slow the swirl of images as I spoke. “They were in Mrs. Haberdash’s house. Said they had bigger fish to fry. That you were dead. Greta gave me her armor of light, but then I gave it back. Did she get Melony out of the house?” That had been the last thing I’d said before losing consciousness—to get Melony out of there—based on a sneaking suspicion I had that somehow the house amplified their family bond that much further. But had I been correct?
Parker raised my hand to his lips and gave it a lingering kiss.“Yes, you were right about everything. The moment Greta vaulted through the window with Melony in her grasp, the connection broke and the others were able to overpower her grandfather.”