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Mara stopped studying the street. She hadnotbeen looking for him. Had she?
"I was only seeing what the weather was doing. I'm going out. I need some air," she said decisively.
By the time Mara had fetched her keys, Athanasius had fallen asleep. She was pulling her coat from the rack when she spotted the gold and red scarf tangled around a hook.
Mara ran her fingers down the soft, silky fabric, the tingle in her fingertips telling her precisely who the scarf belonged to. Augustus had been upset and in a hurry to leave and must've left it behind.
Mara stuffed the scarf into her coat pocket before Athanasius saw it, stepped out into the street, and locked the red door behind her.
That day, the teashop had set itself up in Little Collins Street, and Mara let the streams of shoppers, students, and suits move around her as she walked past Princess Theatre and into the Parliament Gardens.
The scarf burned in her pocket like a secret. She needed to get rid of it. Mara found a metal rubbish bin overflowing with takeout containers and pulled the scarf out, ready to throw it away.
She hesitated, fingers tightening around it, unable to let the beautiful fabric drop. She put it back into her pocket, brought a coffee from a tiny park vendor, and then realized she was standing on Albert Street.
"What is going on…" she whispered to herself.
Did the scarf have a return spell on it? She wouldn't put it past him. The three occasions that she'd seen him had been enough to tell her that Augustus loved scarves.
Mara crossed into Fitzroy Gardens and thought about what to do. He hadn't returned to the shop for it, which meant he'd forgotten it and her the way he was meant to.
She could just put it in his mailbox. Even if he happened to see her through a window, it wasn't like he would know—
"Mara?"
She jolted with surprise. Augustus stood on the path in front of her, and she had been seconds from colliding with him.
"Oh, hello."
"This is a surprise. What are you doing on this side of town?" he asked.
Mara held the scarf out to him. "You left this in the shop. I was going to return it to you because I thought you might've forgotten where you left it." Then she realized that he'd recognized her and hadn't, in fact, forgotten her at all. He had been avoiding her.
"Thank you, I have been missing it. I felt like an idiot leaving it behind," Augustus said, taking it from her and wrapping it around his neck. "It's my favorite. My sister gave it to me."
"Why didn't you come and get it then?" she asked.
"I seem to upset you every time I come through your door. I thought it best to stay away."
"Then the miracle didn't work." Mara was now feeling doubly mortified.
Augustus finished adjusting his scarf and gave her an awkward smile. "I wouldn't say that. I remember you, but that doesn't mean I'm not feeling better. You are the real deal, my dear. It scared the holy Hell out of me."
"Why? I told you what would happen."
"Because I thought you were a fraud, and I was going to prove it. Then I realized too late that you were legitimate, and I ended up telling you one of the most regrettable and cowardly stories of my life." Augustus looked around and then gestured toward the peach and cream-painted conservatory. "We should talk about this somewhere quieter. It's about to rain too."
"I don't think it is…" Mara said just as water began to fall.
"Sorcerers always know," Augustus said with a wink before heading off. "Are you coming?"
Mara heard the entire Corvo bloodline wail in despair as the glass door closed behind her.
It was warmer inside of the building, the air heavy with the scent of flowers and growing things. Color was exploding everywhere she looked as Augustus led her deeper into the cosy greenhouse and to a stone bench.
"I can't believe you thought I was a fraud," Mara admitted.
"It's my job. I wanted to make sure that you weren't taking advantage of gullible, normal humans."
