We both stared at it.
“I sure hope this works,” I whispered.
“Me too.”Owen checked his watch.His expression tightened.“We should go.”
“Right.Give me a minute to change.”I pressed the vial into his hand.“Guard that with your life.And do not let Tani anywhere near it.”
He nodded once, serious as a vow—and followed me anyway, up the stairs.
As we passed through the living room, Tani and Red were sitting side by side on the sofa watchingHow the Universe Works.
Willow was on the back of the sofa, her long orange body stretched out.Neither queen seemed to care she was there.
I halted.Stared.
Then blinked.
“At least they’re not throwing things at each other,” Owen murmured near my ear.
“Valid,” I said faintly.
They didn’t even look up.Or if they did, they refused to acknowledge us like two teenagers sneaking out past curfew.
Owen loitered in the hall while I changed out of my cute sundress into something more Crossroads/might-die-in-the-woods appropriate: faded jeans, my favoriteI’m Optimizing JoyT-shirt, and comfortable shoes.
I ran a brush through my hair, checked my pockets—phone, keys—and decided that was as ready as I was going to get.
Ready to face whatever waited at the Crossroads.
I opened the bedroom door and met Owen’s eyes.
“Here goes nothing,” I said.“I hope this works.”
“It will.”He sounded confident.
Together we headed for the stairs.
Ready or not, the Crossroads was waiting.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Wemadeaquickstop at Owen’s cottage so he could change out of his Sunday shirt into something else—a collarless three-button henley.
No matter what he wore, he looked good.And I was noticing it far too much.
Back in the truck, he drove us toward the Crossroads.I gripped the potion vial in one hand.The Sun Disk sat heavy in my lap.It was fully dark now and my stomach was in knots.
When he parked, he reached into the glove box and pulled out a flashlight.
“You’re prepared,” I said.
“Always,” he replied, a brief smile cutting through the tension.
I started to reach for the door handle, but he stopped me with a hand on my arm.
“Piper—if anything goes wrong—”
“Nothing will,” I said, too quickly.It couldn’t.I wouldn’t allow it.I needed this to work.
