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Her shoulders slump. I have no idea why it matters so much to her where the grimoire came from, but I feel bad when she’s visibly disappointed.
I feel bad—but it also gives me one hell of an idea.
Tapping my fingernails against the embossed cover as I continue to hold it, I tell her, “But, if you want to leave this behind with me, I can make a couple of calls, show it to some members of a group I belong to. Someone might recognize it, and if not, I can see if I have anything else like it in my inventory.”
“Um. Yeah. If it’ll help, that’s okay with me.”
“It won’t be long,” I promise. Just long enough for me to figure out why this book means something to me, and for me to get over it. “Maybe a week or two? Then I’ll have this right back to you.”
“Okay.”
Shannon’s gone from disappointed to distracted as she turns her head, looking behind her as though she expects to find someone else there. Weird since we’re the only two in the store, but after I suggest she check out some of the new romance books I put out earlier, she nods and wanders off.
She doesn’t stay long. A few moments where she meanders down the racks and rows and piles of books I have everywhere, I get the idea she’s searching for someoneand not a new book to read. I try to keep up the chitchat when she comes back to the counter empty-handed. Last thing I need is for her to change her mind and take her book back with her.
Thank the Lord, she doesn’t. Only half-listening as I mention that the book might have come from one of the estate sales I’d stopped by, she cuts me off with a ‘thanks’ before waving goodbye and heading for the front door.
I’ve never been so glad to see a customer leave without buying anything before in my life.
* * *
I have the book.
A giddy little giggle escapes me as I hug it to my chest. That went a lot smoother than I ever expected it to, and for one of the first times ever, I decided to go ahead and close the store down early.
I do wait about five minutes after Shannon left before I shut off the lights and lock up. Too eager to dive into the grimoire, I don’t bother counting down for the night. I can do that later, or just add it to the deposit tomorrow.
Tonight? I want to see what this book is all about.
My cozy apartment is directly above my shop. I make one exorbitant rent payment for both spaces, and while I’m just squeaking by at the end of the month, it’s worth it to have a bedroom, a bathroom, and a small kitchen within walking distance of my job. I don’t even have to leave Turn the Page to go home if I don’t want to. Behind a closed door in the backroom, there’s a flight of stairs that leads me right into my cramped living room.
Kicking off my heels once I get upstairs, I head right for my bedroom, lugging the heavy book with me. From the moment I accepted it from Shannon, I’ve been buzzing. The little hairs on the back of my neck are standing on end, goosebumps running up and down my arms.
Am I making too much of an old book? Probably. For all I know, I’ve got goosebumps because I left a window open in my bedroom and it gets chilly at night. It doesn’t matter. I can’t wait to crack this baby open.
Plopping down on the edge of my bed, I heft the book onto my lap. That’s when I finally notice there’s a receipt peeking out from the top of the book. It’s shoved in the middle, and it looks just like the type of bookmark Shannon would use.
Looking closer, I notice it’s a receipt from The Beanery.
Oh, yeah. Definitely Shannon’s bookmark.
Hmm. If something about this book has Shannon asking questions about it, the page she marked might be a good place to start, right?
Letting the book fall open, I almost choke when I see what kind of “spell” it lands on.
On the top of the thin, yellowed page there are two words printed in a heavy block typeface:VERUS AMOR. Right beneath the print, someone used a pen to write a translation in script:true love.
A true love spell. You have got to be kidding me.
Only… I think someone actually took it seriously. I don’t think it was Shannon, either; the handwriting looks old, the ink from the pen somewhat faded. But the translation isn’t the only addition to the page.
I don’t even know where to begin. There are drawings in the margins, sigils and another pentacle like the one on the cover of the book. Instructions, too, including one the says:
Before you cast the VERUS AMOR spell, it’s important to draw the protective sigil (illustrated below) in yellow chalk. That done, draw a circle in salt around the sigil.
Um. Okay. Might be nice if the author saidwhy. I mean, if this is a ‘true love’ spell, why would I need a protective circle? That doesn’t make any sense to me and, oh God, I can’t believe I’m actually buying into this.
Does that stop me from reading further?
