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A girl was dead, Gabi was home, and Paulina…
It had started with a weight on Joy’s chest, like an elephant crushing her ribs, and before she’d realised it was even sneaking up on her, Joy couldn’t breathe. She’d been on the phone to Salma for a full half hour before she could draw a breath, and think straight, and function again. Even with her wand gripped so tight in her fist, she was terrified to lose it again, to have ittaken.
It was a different kind of feeling now, but the gut-deep sense of being out of control and powerless was the same.
When the road stayed dark, Joy turned to head inside, to rally her coven and go out looking for Gabi. But a glint of light drew her eye, and her heart skipped when headlights swung down the road at the top. The crunch of tires on sandy tarmac had never sounded so good.
Holding her breath, Joy prayed the car kept coming—and when it did, when it stopped outside Joy’s house and Gabi stepped out, Joy couldn’t stop her feet from racing down the gravel driveway.
She threw her arms around Gabi before she knew what was happening, stumbling until Gabi’s arms came around her instantly, solid across her back. Joy’s shakiness paused, even if only for a moment.
“Hey,” Gabi murmured, trying to pull back, but Joy’s arms were thoroughly locked. “What’s wrong?”
“You’re late.” Joy put all her effort into getting her arms to release Gabi.Not your girlfriend, not yours, not anymore.But the clamour of heartbeats in her chest and the swoop in her gut, not to mention the urge to hug Gabi again and never let go … those were damning. JoywantedGabi to be hers again.
But it was never going to happen. No matter what Gabi said about havingcertain feelingsfor Joy—those were remnants and echoes. Joy had shattered any chance at a relationship between them years ago.
She swallowed and made herself step back, muttering, “Sorry. I shouldn’t have…”
“Joy.” Gabi caught her arm before she could put more than a foot between them, her brown eyes gentle with concern. “You’re allowed to hug me.”
Joy shook her head, flinging pink strands into her face. She shouldn’t be allowed, not after the way she’d hurt Gabi.
“Let’s go inside. Everyone’s probably wondering where I went.”
“Or Maisie’s keeping an eye on you from that bush there and Victoriya’s watching you from the window.” There was a smile in Gabi’s voice that made Joy’s heart beat hard. But Gabi was right about her friends—two eyes glowed from a yarrow shrub and above, Victoriya’s scarecrow figure loomed in the window.
“Get out of there,” Joy huffed to Maisie, shaking her head. “If you inhale enough of that, you’ll put a love spell on yourself.”
Maisie chuffed but slunk out of the flowers. Joy watched her closely for wobbly walking and dazed eyes—yarrow was a powerful ingredient of any love spell, strong enough that sitting in it for prolonged minutes could put you into a trance-like state—but Maisie trotted into the house like all was well.
Joy paused on the threshold, not looking directly at Gabi but speaking to her. “Are you alright?”
“I’m fine, Joy.” Gabi rubbed the back of her dark head, and adjusted her automatic response to, “I’m just tired.”
Joy felt suddenly bad for dragging her to a coven meeting. “We won’t be long. Just tell us what we can do to help, and we’ll do it.”
“I know.” Gabi touched Joy’s elbow, and awareness of that heat and contact, even through layers of clothes, made Joy’s skin erupt into buzzing.
She couldn’t help meeting Gabi’s eyes and found them fixed intently on her. Under the porch light, Gabi looked tired but determined.
“Are you sleeping?” Joy asked before she could stop herself. She was so used to fussing over her coven that it came naturally.
Gabi squeezed Joy’s elbow before letting go, a smile in the corner of her mouth. “You don’t have to worry about me.”
Joy went exceptionally still when Gabi’s thumb traced beneath her eye, the calloused pad scraping delicate skin. She couldn’t explain why, but this felt like the first time Gabi had ever touched her. She didn’t dare move and was terrified to shatter the moment. “How areyousleeping? Did you sleep last night?”
They’d stayed up talking, and Gabi had done something utterly miraculous: she made Joy forget about Paulina and Freya and the cell for a little while. She made Joy feelsafe.
“Four hours,” Joy replied. “I think that’s good.”
Gabi again brushed Joy’s cheekbone with her thumb but then dropped her hand, her eyes flickering as the moment passed. Like Gabi just remembered they were broken up the way Joy kept doing.
Her whole body in turmoil, Joy headed inside, trying to hide how she felt.
The scent of old houses and musk and the valerian tonic she’d made last night greeted them as they stepped into the hallway, wiping their shoes on the door mat. Victoriya had given the mat to Joy last Christmas; it had a black cat at the side of bold black words declaringpussy is a sexist insult.
Joy saw Gabi notice the doormat, her mouth curling with a deeper smile.
