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Now thatwasa good reason.
He blew a weary sigh. “I know she’s a swan. Can Dusty and I come in?”
“You named the swan Dusty?”
“Like you’re one to talk,” Nana Pratt interrupted. “You name all the inanimate possessions on your property. I heard you refer to the blender as Deckard, which seems an odd choice.”
Not if you’ve seenBlade Runner.
“I didn’t name her,” Gunther said, oblivious to the ghost. “If it had been up to me, her name would’ve been Magnus. Maggie for short.” He squeezed past me, prompting a dismayed honk from the swan. “Sadly, my parents had other plans.”
My eyebrows inched up. “This swan is your sister?”
“Yes. Can’t you see the resemblance? Same long, elegant neck.” He set the bird on the floor and removed his coat with a flourish, revealing a grey and burgundy plaid suit underneath. He scanned the foyer. “You still don’t have a coat rack?”
I took his outer layer and hung it on the corner of the open front door. “Ta-da.”
“Where are your decorations outside? Kids will be swarming the yard in a few hours.”
“If they do, they’ll be disappointed.”
Gun’s eyes widened. “You don’t have any candy?”
“Can we get back to the part where your sister is a swan? That seems more important.”
He held up a hand. “We’ll get to that. First, I’d like to know why you’re denying local children their rite of passage.”
“I have a collection of travel floss,” I said. “Should I give those out?”
Gunther recoiled in horror. “I don’t think I want to know you anymore.”
“I’m surprised Halloween is such a big deal in Fairhaven. I would expect supernaturals to roll their eyes at the whole event.”
“You have to remember, most people who live here don’t know about the supernatural world or choose not to. For them, Halloween is a fun excuse to dress like us and gorge themselves on sweets.”
“Nobody’s dressing like you. They can’t afford it.”
Gun smiled. “So true.” He pulled his phone from his suit pocket and tapped the screen.
“What are you doing?” I asked.
“Calling Cam for emergency supplies. She always has candy.”
“I am perfectly capable of purchasing my own candy.”
He glanced around us. “I beg to differ.”
“Can we talk about the swan-shaped elephant in the room now?”
“I’ll let her speak for herself.” He produced a card from his pocket. Gunther was a member of La Fortuna, an ancient society of mages that used tarot cards to channel their magic. It was a practice I’d been unfamiliar with until I met Gun.
“Which is the Dr. Doolittle card? Is it the Magician?” I strained to see the face.
Gunther turned the card away so I couldn’t see it. “There’s no such thing. The magic of the card is personal to its master.” He touched the swan’s head with the edge and said, “Loqui.”
“About time,” the swan sputtered. “I could feel a massive scream building at the back of my throat. Seriously unpleasant.”
“You haven’t been able to talk until now?” I asked. I looked at Gun accusingly. “Why didn’t you use magic sooner?”
