Page 133 of Trick or Stalk

The footsteps were probably the building settling.

The book fell because the shelves shifted. The wooden floor in the old building isn’t exactly level.

And the shadow I thought I saw outside the window?

It was just someone walking past the store.

All perfectly reasonable explanations.

I shrug out of my coat and hang it beside the door. Penny’s nails click on the floor as she wanders into the living room.

“Did you have fun?”

Her tail wags.

I follow her.

“Did Gracie give you treats?”

More wagging.

“Thought so.” I narrow my eyes. “How many?”

She drops onto the rug in front of the fireplace.

I sigh. “That’s answer enough. I’m gonna have a talk with Miss Gracie.”

Penny sighs.

I turn on a lamp, then start a fire.

Within a few minutes, flames crackle behind the grate. The familiar scent of woodsmoke fills the room. I breathe it in.

It smells like home.

And safety.

My mind immediately goes to Hades.

The way the storage-room door finally opened to reveal him standing on the other side.

The second I saw him, everything inside me broke.

I didn't think.

Didn't ask what he was doing there.

Didn't even say hello.

I just threw myself at him.

My face heats. “God. How embarrassing.”

Penny looks at me.

“I practically tackled him.”

She stretches.