Page 57 of The Hearth Witch’s Guide to Spite & Spellwork

The young woman was not much shorter than Mercy Radu but resembled a baby deer in that she hadn’t quite grown into her long limbs yet. She was pale with ginger hair and probably just out of secondary school. She quickly checked an appointment book that she had been hugging against her. “No, ma’am.”

“We’re here on a case,” Avery explained. “My appointment request was for the coroner’s office.”

“We,” Mercy Radu echoed, looking from Avery to Saga, then pointedly to their interlocked fingers.

Avery responded to this scrutiny by only holding tighter to Saga’s hand. “Velouette, this is Saga Trygg. Saga, this is Mercy Velouette Radu, one of the court’s finest advocates.”

Saga extended her free hand. “I’m Avery’s partner.” Avery had used the term and its ambiguity first, and that seemed permission enough for Saga to use it now.

A lavender flush rose to the fey’s cheeks, and instead of taking Saga’s hand, she gestured awkwardly to the girl at her side. “Roxanne Egan, my assistant.”

“Pleasure to officially meet you, Roxanne.” Avery nodded politely. “Velouette speaks very highly of your work. I understand you just celebrated your birthday.”

Birthday. Karnaby House. The fey who had been led to the reserved back room. That was why Velouette looked familiar. She’d seen her at the restaurant.

“Oh.” Roxanne smiled shyly and tucked her chin-length hair behind her ear. She was dressed professionally but simply in a gray pencil skirt and long-sleeved black turtleneck. Two heart-shaped earrings matched the simple silver charm around her neck. “Thank you.” She crossed her arms over the appointment book, holding it to her chest once more. “Ma’am, we have five minutes until your meeting with Magistrate Castello.”

“Of course,” Velouette agreed. She stopped again, her eyes flickering from Avery to Saga to their hands and back to Avery. “Good day to you both.”

Avery stood very still as the Mercy and her assistant made their way toward the magistrate’s office before releasing Saga’s hand and walking very swiftly in the opposite direction.

She was not getting away that easily. “Um, what was that?” Saga asked, jogging to catch up.

Avery continued, pretending she didn’t hear the question.

“Excuse me, hello?” Saga inserted herself into Avery’s field of vision by stepping in front of her. “What the hell was that, please?”

Avery easily sidestepped around. “I do not know what you are referring to.”

“Yes, you fucking do.” Saga followed, undeterred. Did Avery honestly think that she had not noticed? Avery kept her around for noticing things. Furthermore, knowing she was going to notice, did Avery truly believe she wasn’t going to ask? “There was weirdness right there.”

“Where?”

Saga craned her neck up at her, moving deliberately so as to not be ignored no matter how hard Avery tried to look anywhere else. “Back there.” She pointed illustratively. “Between you and her. Who is she? Another woman with whom you have a history?” She believed that had been the way Avery had attempted to describe her relationship with Iona previously.

Avery stopped and sighed. “My relationship with Mercy Radu is and has always been professional.”

It wasn’t a lie. Avery had been famously terrible at directly lying to Saga so far, which meant… “Oh,” Saga dragged the word out knowingly as the interaction began to take on a new light.

“No,” Avery insisted. “Not another ‘oh.’ There is absolutely nothing for you to ‘oh’ about this time. I forbid you to ‘oh’!”

Saga nodded placatively. “She is attracted to you, and you turned her down.”

“I did not turn her down,” Avery muttered. She was getting indignant now.

But it still wasn’t a lie. The Mercy had been very clearly attracted to Avery, but there was a coldness, a distance, a… Saga gasped. “Because you didn’t even notice she had a thing for you.”

“What thing? Stop this.” Avery waved a dismissive hand.

Saga sucked air through her teeth sympathetically like one might when inspecting a child’s skinned knee. “You didn’t, did you? You could have told me I was wrong on all counts, you would have told me if I was wrong on all counts, but you only denied turning her down, which means for a woman that beautiful to look that put out, something worse than being rejected had to happen, and what’s worse than being told no?”

Avery lowered her voice, hoping Saga would follow her lead. “It was embarrassing at the time, but she and I have moved on.” She pushed open the heavy oak door to the medical examiner’s office, gesturing for Saga to step through. Music from inside began pouring out.

“Yes, the one thing that was clear above all else from that encounter was that you both have moved on,” Saga deadpanned.

Avery closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “Ignoring you.”

Saga followed the dulcet sounds of Caspian Starr’s melodic tenor voice.