Bas returned three nights later.Not by car. But by appearing in Brianna’s kitchen at ten o’clock at night. The teakettle screamed like it had spotted death itself.
Brianna yelped and nearly flung her mug across the room. Tea splashed over her hand.
“Ow! Son of a?—”
“Sorry,” the woman in green said calmly. “You startled before I could announce myself.”
“You think?”
Bas stood near the refrigerator as though materializing inside strangers’ homes was perfectly normal etiquette. Her long white braid hung over one shoulder tonight, threaded with tiny gold charms that shimmered faintly whenever she moved. The heavy green cloak from before was gone, replaced by an elegant black coat over what looked suspiciously like green silk pajamas.
Of course supernatural witch recruiters wore silk pajamas. Brianna pressed a hand against her chest. “You can’t just appear in people’s kitchens!”
Bas tilted her head slightly. “Technically, I can.”
“That is not the point.”
The older witch glanced toward Esther’s bedroom door. “Your grandmother is asleep?”
“Yes. And if you wake her, she’ll hit you with a frying pan before asking questions.”
“Good instincts.”
Brianna narrowed her eyes. “You joke a lot for someone who offered me a job that sounds like supernatural human trafficking.”
That earned the faintest smile.
“Sit,” Bas said.
Oddly, Brianna did.
Not because of magic. At least she didn’t think so. There was simply something about Bas that filled a room with authority vibes.
Bas moved to the stove and shut off the screaming kettle herself. “You researched me,” she said.
Brianna folded her arms. “You expected me not to?”
“No. I hoped you would.”
“Well, congratulations. Freya and Devon are currently spiraling through Egyptian mythology websites because your name apparently belongs to a cat goddess.”
“Close enough.”
“So what are you really?” Brianna blurted.
Bas considered the question carefully. “Old.”
That was somehow worse, because she didn’t look old.
Brianna rubbed both hands over her face. “Okay. No cryptic ancient-being nonsense tonight. I need actual answers.”
“You opened a time fracture.”
“I know.”
“You altered history.”
Brianna swallowed. “We fixed it.”
