Gretchen popped her head through the wall then, glaring after Linden’s retreating back. She said, “Is all this boy drama going to interfere with getting me out of ghost prison?”
Briar could feel a headache coming on. Whether because of stress or his curse, he couldn’t tell. “Please, Gretchen, not now.”
She stormed out again in a huff.
That evening, tourists stood outside the Swan and Cygnet, steaming drinks in hand, their chatter and merriment oddly conspiratorial in nature. Upon entering, Briar saw why. A corner of the pub was cordoned off with velvet curtains—not a usual part of the decor. They’d been conjured there. Aisling confirmed Briar’s suspicions: Linden had paid to reserve a private space for drinks and conversation.
“Bit excessive, don’t you think?” Vatii said.
Itwasa lot of effort for a drink and a chat.
Before seeing Linden, Briar pulled from his pocket a small potion bottle, a thimbleful of milky liquid swirling inside with ribbons of red. It hadn’t been easy to brew, requiring three days of steeping in cranberries and cinnamon sticks to ensure its potency. Heartbreak tonics were time consuming and expensive to buy, but he felt responsible for worsening Aisling’s grief. The ring he’d sold her ex-fiancé had been enchanted to heighten emotions post engagement.
He handed her the bottle. She recognized its distinctive color immediately.
“A heartbreak tonic? For me?”
It might have been presumptuous of him—they didn’t know each other well. “If you want it. Maebh told me about Kenneth, so I thought…”
She rolled the bottle in her palm. “I don’t have enough money.”
“It’s a gift.”
“Briar.” She closed her fist around it, and after a contemplative moment, tucked it into her apron, her eyes glazed. “I don’t know what to say. Thank you.”
He couldn’t delay any longer. Aisling led him through the kitchens, where a conjured portal hovered between the refrigerator and the oven. It seemed a lot of effort to make his entrance discreet, but he went through. On the other side, noise from the pub patrons muffled to a distant hum. The curtains concealed the corner from view, but it seemed an anti-eaves-dropping charm had been added, too.
Linden sat in a booth with his back to Briar, phone to his ear. In a tense voice, he said, “I’m telling you, the formula is impossible.”
Briar froze. He could guess this wasn’t a conversation he was meant to overhear. He thought about going back through the portal, but then Linden snapped.
“The main ingredient is nowhere to be found. Do you doubt my credibility? Perhaps you’d like to come and confirm it for yourselves.”
A buzz of noise from the phone implied the response wasn’t favorable. Linden spoke over it, voice lowered to an exasperated hiss. “The risk that my research will result in nothing is mine to bear. I’d appreciate it if you ceased stooping to criticize whatever leisure I find or who with. It does not affect you.”
Briar stiffened. Did Linden mean him? Linden claimed he didn’t share his company often, so who else?
Linden finished the conversation with a curt, “That’s enough. I have an engagement now. We’ll speak more later. Goodbye.”
Briar hadn’t meant to eavesdrop, but the ferocity in Linden’s voice pinned him to the spot. Though he’d come on invitation, it felt like a terrible time. He waited a few breaths. Linden gripped his hair, staring at his phone on the table.
Briar cleared his throat. “Are you all right?”
Linden shot up. “Briar. Ah, how much did you hear?”
“Only the end.”
Linden’s normally calm veneer wavered. “It’s my potion work. Apparently, my progress is insufficient.” He rolled his eyes. “My parents, they expect no less than miracles.”
Briar took a seat across the table. “I remember you performing miracles once upon a time.” At Linden’s curious expression, he continued. “I witnessed one of them a long time ago. Your miracle tour.”
His eyes widened. “Which city?”
“A little town called Port Haven. I grew up there.” He didn’t mention that he’d brought his mother for curing, only to find she wasn’t yet ill. It was a dark topic Briar would rather avoid.
“Lovely place,” Linden said. “It had a wonderful seafood restaurant, if I recall. Yes, that would have been one of the last times I could—” He cut himself short. “Well. It doesn’t do to dwell on what we’ve lost.”
“You’ve never felt any sign of your healing gifts coming back to you?”
