The bolt groans and recedes.
I press against the wall, tighten my grip on the chair, and watch as the door opens wide and Axel crosses the limestone floor to my bed.
He calls out my name. Gently shakes the lump he’s mistaken for me. Having no idea that I’ve repurposed my robe along with the stack of clean towels he left for my bath to resemble the sleeping version of me, until it collapses under his touch.
He turns, lavender gaze widening in confusion when he finds me lurking behind with the chair angled high.
“Daire?”
It’s the last thing he says before I center the chair and heave it down hard on his head. Already racing toward freedom when he crumples into an unconscious heap at my feet, I spare one last look at his unmoving form, mouth a silent apology, and bolt the door firmly behind me.
seven
Xotichl
After countless laps around the club, Lita returns to our table, plunks her purse on an empty stool, claims the seat across from Auden and me, and says, “No sign of Cade. And believe me, I looked everywhere I could. Including Leandro’s office, which was awkward to say the least, mostly because he was in there. I even checked the bathroom. I wouldn’t put it past Cade to peek under the stalls. But nope, nada, niente.”
“And Phyre?” I lean toward her, straining to hear over the music.
“Phyre’s just … Phyre. I mean, I get that she’s gorgeous and all, but she’s also completely weird and totally untrustworthy. Which is why I can’t understand why everyone’s so enamored with her.”
“I’m not sure everyone sees her as weird and untrustworthy,” I say, as Auden taps his thumb nervously against mine. A sure sign that he’s more anxious about his meeting with the record exec than he lets on. “I think that’s just us.”
“Well, it wasn’t all that long ago when Daire was new and no one liked her,” Lita says. And before I can chime in with the reason, she adds, “Then again, that was mostly my fault since I pretty much turned everyone against her. Anyway, it sure would be nice if we could get some new boys in this town. You guys must be so tired of my third-wheel self always hanging around.”
Auden and I both start to refute it, but Lita’s quick to shush us.
“Oh, please. Don’t even try to deny it. Believe me, I feel the same way. And I’d be more than willing to change it, but unfortunately this is Enchantment. Which means there’s not one single datable boy in this town.” She breathes a wistful sigh. “You know what this is?” She pauses, but it’s not so we can guess, it’s meant for dramatic effect. “This is my karma.” She bumps her palm against the table for emphasis.
“Your karma for what?” I move closer to Auden and rest my head on his shoulder. Trying to temper his nerves with a nice wave of calm.
“For being a mega-bitch. For pegging everyone I didn’t approve of as an uncool loser.”
“You thought I was uncool?” Auden feigns dismay at her words.
“Well, being the lead singer in the only decent band in this town did give you a certain edge … but anyway, let’s face it, I was a witch.”
“You were, indeed,” I say, seeing no point in denying what we already know.
“And I’m pretty sure I’m paying for all of that nastiness now.”
“You’re serious?” I laugh. I can’t help it. While I definitely believe in karma, that’s not really the best example of it.
“What’s so funny?” Lita’s energy flares, her tone is more than a little defensive. “It’s true, what goes around comes around.”
“So, what you’re saying is that there are no new boys in Enchantment because you used to be really mean to everyone you deemed unworthy of you. It has nothing to do with Enchantment being a totally undesirable place to live, with falling house prices, no good job opportunities, and an evil family of Coyotes at the helm of it all.”
Lita groans. “Well, when you put it like that, it sounds a lot less like karma, and a lot more like narcissism. Like I think the world revolves around me.”
“Not the world,” Auden says. “Just Enchantment.”
“Well, it used to revolve around me, or at least that’s what I thought. It wasn’t that long ago when I branded Dace as a giant dork, I was hating on Daire, and Cade Richter rocked my world. And now that I’ve awakened, I can’t help but feel like I missed out all those years by not giving people like you, Auden, and Dace a chance. I was so caught up in my image, and being popular, and all…” Her voice fades as she shifts in her seat. “And yeah, as much as I hate to admit it, I was so totally and completely caught up in maintaining my relationship with Cade, I couldn’t conceive of anything else. It’s like I was possessed. And it’s so weird how like, one minute I was totally obsessed, and then the next, just like that, I was completely and totally over him.”
I sit with her words, wondering how to respond. Taking a chance on the truth when I say, “Actually, it’s not as strange as you think…” Auden stiffens beside me, urging me to proceed with caution when he presses his thumb hard against mine. Daire was always intent on protecting Lita from the truth, and she wanted me to protect her too. But Daire’s no longer here, and without her, we’re left to fend for ourselves. Which means the more people who know the truth about this town, and the Richters who run it, the better.
Lita slides her elbows toward me. I can tell by the shift in her energy, the creak of her seat. “Well, don’t stop now,” she says. “You’ve got my full attention.”
“Okay. But listen, instead of getting ready to order another soda, what do you say we get out of here?”