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But the scene playing out in front of me wasfarfrom comforting.
Tension hung thick in the air as everyone in the coffee shop was focused on a group of teenage girls...the same ones who’d tripped over me and Jack during our brief visit only moments ago.
They were huddled together, talking animatedly and using wild hand gestures as they gave information to a couple of police officers. One of the officers kept looking up from her notepad, her brow furrowing with disbelief, while the male officer took the report like it was just another day in Southern California.
Suddenly, one of the girls looked right at me and yelped.
“That’s her!”
The high-pitched squawking that followed was instantaneous. I was so used to being recognized anytime I went out in public that I just rolled my eyes and headed straight for the door.
The male officer stopped me.
“Excuse me, miss. It seems there may have been an assault,” he said, eyeing me suspiciously. “These young ladies claim they were attacked by someone who matches your description.”
“Attacked?” I scoffed before shooting them a withering glare. “I didn’t attack them! Those dumbasses tripped over me!”
“No we didn’t! You assaulted us!” one of the girls yelled.
“Yeah, you and that other freak you were with!” cried another girl.
“Jack?” I murmured under my breath. “Listen, we didn’t attack or assault anyone. You tripped over us because you weren’t watching where you were going.”
“Our eyes work just fine! You jumped out and pushed us!” the first girl insisted.
“Look at my knee!” one of them wailed, pointing to a barely visible scrape. “I’m on the track team, and now you’ve torn my ACL and ruined my career! It’s all your fault!”
“She should at least pay for lifetime Starbucks for all of us.”
“Oh, I’mdefinitelysuing her ass!”
“Yeah! That crazy bitch came out of fucking nowhere and jumped in front of us!”
“No, we didn’t! I argued. I was starting to lose my patience with these morons. “We poked our heads through the looking glass and you tripped on us!”
“Looking glass?” the male officer raised an eyebrow, clicking the end of his pen as he studied my face. “When you say looking glass, what exactly do you mean?”
I hooked my thumb over my shoulder. “I’m talking about the giant mirror behind me that leads to Wonderland. Duh.”
The most vocal of the girls, probably the leader of the she-wolf pack, folded her arms and gave me a holier-than-though look.
“Wonderland? Okay, bestie,” she mocked, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “Tell the nice officers all about the giant mirror behind you that leads to another world.”
I narrowed my eyes, shooting daggers at her. Those metaphorical daggers might as well have hit a metaphorical forcefield shield surrounding her, because they weren’t getting through.
High school girls were the worst. I knew because I’d been one.
“Iwilltell them, bitch. Watch me.”
I spun on my heel and started walking back between the two tables from where I’d emerged, expecting to find myself in the icy courtyard where Jack and Amari were probably still arguing.
Nothing happened.
All I saw were the giant picture windows that lined the Starbucks building, and the wonky little trees that grew between the glass and the parking lot.
I walked back and forth, frowning in confusion. Finally, I walked around the tables and chairs. Then I reached out into the open air, taking slow, cautious steps until my fingers pawed at the windows.
Still, nothing happened.
