Page 16 of Herbs & Hex-breaking

I was not blessed with a poker face, and so I immediately turned away from Circe and went to go snag the watering can to continue watering the plants.

“You two didn’t argue or anything after I left, did you?” she asked next.

Her question had me bobbling the watering can, and water splashed onto the hardwood. “Crap,” I muttered and went to the tiny bathroom at the rear of the store to snag some paper towels. By the time I returned to blot up the spill, Circe was back in her own shop.

Dex will show up any moment, I told myself as I finished watering. Of course he will.

Taylor came in at noon to work with me, and Toni arrived for her shift at Circe’s at the same time.

After they both were settled, Lorna asked Circe and I to come over to the bookshop. It didn’t take a genius to figure out what she wanted to talk about. So we left Taylor and Toni manning the stores, and together my cousin and I walked over to New Moon Books.

It was a stunning bookshop, with hardwood floors, wooden bookshelves, and an old-world atmosphere. Globe lights hung dangling from a dark blue painted ceiling scattered with golden stars. The lights cast a warm and magickal glow over the store, adding to the charm. Lorna’s building was as narrow as mine, but hers boasted a curving wooden staircase that led up to the second floor.

Circe and I approached her checkout counter and saw Lorna speaking to a man. He was tall, blonde, built well and wore jeans with a casual polo shirt.

“Oooh,” Circe whispered to me. “Who’s the hot guy at the counter?”

“I’ve never seen him before,” I answered.

“He’d have to be missing for twenty-four hours to be declared a missing person,” the blonde man told Lorna.

“This isn’t like him,” Lorna insisted as we joined them. “Something has happened.”

“Have you tried calling his cell phone?” the man asked patiently.

Lorna hissed—actually hissed—in annoyance. “What am I, stupid? Of course I called his phone, and I checked his apartment. The door was hanging open, and his phone was left behind, and his car is still here. But more importantly his backpack and some of his clothes are missing.”

“Lorna,” Circe said, inserting herself right into the conversation. “Introduce us to your friend.”

Lorna focused on Circe and I for a moment. “This is Nash Ellington. He’s a private investigator.”

“Private investigator?” I repeated as my stomach dropped.

“We’ve worked together before,” Lorna said. “I called him and asked him to start looking for Dex. Nash, this is Kate Weaver, and Circe Papadias. They own the other two stores in our building.”

“Ladies.” Nash Ellington inclined his head politely to us and then shifted his attention back to Lorna. “You said Dex had a problem with substance abuse in the past. Is it possible he has fallen off the wagon?”

His blunt question had my jaw dropping.

“No,” Lorna instantly snapped back at the private investigator. “Dex has been happy and clean for almost two years.”

“We were all together, last night,” Circe told the man. “We went to Kate’s for pizza.”

“And what time did you leave?” he asked her.

Circe shrugged. “I dunno. After 8:30?”

“You all left together?” he asked next.

Circe looked to me. “Dex was helping Kate clean up as we left.”

“He left a bit later,” I said, and felt like a criminal for not being completely honest.

Before anything else was said, Taylor called my name from the doorway. “Sorry to interrupt,” she said, “but we could use extra sets of hands over here.”

“Excuse me,” I said, stepping back from the group.

“Here’s my card.” Nash handed me and then Circe one. “Call me if you think of, or remember anything else.”