Keeper(36)

The small storefront looked like a rainbow had thrown up on it, especially compared with the sensible, clean look of the dry cleaner’s and dental office that neighbored it.

Several clay gnomes and garden fairies lined the windows, and a large mask of unknown provenance hung from the ceiling like a pi?ata. There were also hundreds of crystal stars and moons that had been suspended from various strands of patterned ribbon. Stacks of books were arranged in an ornate pattern, and old posters heralding the benefits of reading plastered the windows. Above the bright blue door was a sign that read, “Too Good to Be Threw: Secondhand Books.” Underneath that, a small hand-painted sign read, “Madam Serena: Spiritual Advisor.”

I stopped walking. Maggie bumped into me from behind.

“Walk much, Styles?” Maggie said, then she noticed the look on my face. “What? What’s wrong?”

“My uncle’s here.” I pointed to the rusty red Ford parked in front of the store.

“Maybe you should—” Maggie started.

“No. I’m not ready to talk to him about what’s going on. He can’t know why we’re here. Not yet.” Ducking low, I crept toward the window and peeked into the shop. The front of the store looked empty. There weren’t any customers milling about, and there was no sign of either Serena or Gareth. “We’ll just sneak in and wait until he’s gone.”

Maggie shook her head at me but didn’t argue.

“I think they’re in the back or something,” I said, motioning for Ty and Maggie to join me in my crouch. I put my finger to my lips and eased the door of the shop open, careful not to jingle the bells attached to the door. I poked my head inside and, still seeing the coast was clear, waved Ty and Maggie inside. We dashed behind a tall row of bookcases.

“Does anyone else hear the Mission Impossible theme song right now? Or is it just me?” Maggie whispered, a grin spreading across her face.

“Shhh,” I said. “I don’t want them to hear us.”

We moved around the bookcases slowly, inching toward the back of the store. The muffled undertones of a heated conversation drifted toward us.

“They’re in the office,” I said, leaning around the bookshelf to listen more closely. The words floated clearly through the air, chilling the blood in my veins. “Oh my God.”

“What is it?” Maggie hissed.

“My name. I heard my name. They’re arguing about me.”

Inching farther around the bookcase, I could just make out Gareth and Serena through the open door of a small office. Serena had her hands on her hips, her face flushed, and Gareth had his arms crossed, his posture rigid.

“You don’t understand, Gareth. You have to tell her. Events are in motion, things are already happening. I’ve seen it. Haven’t you felt the pulses? She’s getting stronger.”

“Of course I have. That’s why I’m here,” Gareth said, rubbing his forehead with his fingers. “But your sight is subjective, Serena. You know that. You told me when she was twelve that she’d be killed by a bounty hunter, and that never happened. There’s no reason to think that she’s in immediate danger now. If someone were coming for her, we’d know it.” He began pacing. “We stick to the plan. Keep cloaking her as long as possible.”

“But she is in danger. I can sense it. Even with all the wards we’ve placed around her, we can’t hide her forever. You need to bring her to me. If I could just do a proper reading, I might be able—”

“No,” Gareth argued. “There’s still time. I know I need to tell her, but . . . we still have time.”

“Gareth,” Serena pleaded, “if he finds out about Lainey, who she is, what she is, he will hunt her down just like he did her mother. You know it’s true. You always said you were going to tell her, that you were going to protect her. Why can’t you see that time is now?”

“Don’t talk to me like every single thing I’ve ever done hasn’t been to protect her,” Gareth practically growled. “I swore to her mother that I would take care of her, and I’ve kept my oath. I won’t let anything happen to her now.”

Serena exhaled slowly. “I know that, Gareth. But you cannot protect her from her destiny. She deserves to know the truth—and to hear it from you.”

“She’s still so young. How can I possibly burden her with that?” Gareth’s forehead creased and the lines made him look a hundred years old.

“You tell me all the time that she’s strong. That she’s got her mother’s spirit. She can handle it.”

“She’s not ready.”

“She’s not ready? Or you’re not ready?”

“Serena, how can I look her in the face and tell her that everything she knows is . . . is a lie?” Gareth’s voice cracked.

“It will break her heart,” Serena whispered, her eyes sparkling with unshed tears. “But you must help her understand. We’re running out of time.”

“Her seventeenth birthday is still a few weeks away.”

Serena clasped her hands together in frustration. “Gareth, please. I know it’s hard, but you have to do right by her. The pulses I’ve felt? They’re unlike anything I’ve felt in a long time. She’s her mother’s daughter, and she is capable of far more than we can possibly imagine. If I’ve sensed the power, and you have sensed it, then it won’t be long before others come searching for the source.”