“It has nothing to do with you,” I insisted. “It’s me, and my inability-”
“More BS.” He looked up, his eyes dark and full of temper. “You have the ability to do anything you want. Look, let’s talk about something that’s helpful, like how to access some info-Well. Look at that…”
“What?”
“Did Gert ever e-mail you?”
“No, I doubt she even knew how.”
“Oh, she knew how.” He showed me the screen, which revealed e-mail files for Gert, Marilee and Axel. He opened Axel’s.
I stared at it for a moment as the ramifications fell into place. “But Axel said he didn’t know how to use a computer.”
“Read,” Kel suggested, and I turned the screen more fully toward me so I could.
To: Marilee
From: Axel
Subject: Trouble
Gert was right. Her niece e-mailed me from the Web site, and has called several times. She’s coming.
To: Axel
From: Marilee
Subject: Trouble
Be ready. And remember your part.
Kel pulled up the reply.
To: Marilee
From: Axel
Subject: Trouble
I know my part. Be the stoner. It’ll be fun, delving into my past.
A smiley-face emoticon came after this, animated and bouncing up and down.
To: Axel
From: Marilee
Subject: Trouble
It wasn’t so in your past.
To: Marilee
From: Axel
Subject: Trouble
Fair enough. Don’t worry, I won’t regress.
To: Axel
From: Marilee
Subject: Trouble
Let’s just do this. Show the place off, and then get her to go back to L.A. Then things can continue status quo. I like status quo, Axel.
To: Marilee
From: Axel
Subject: Trouble
Status quo, and all that it implies, works for me.
To: Axel
From: Marilee
Subject: Trouble
To: Marilee
From: Axel
Subject: Trouble
You know, the you-wanting-me thing.
To: Axel
From: Marilee
Subject: Trouble
Oh, delusional one. I do not want you.
To: Marilee
From: Axel
Subject: Trouble
You’re such a beautiful liar.
To: Axel
From: Marilee
Subject: Trouble
Stop e-mailing me.
And he must have, because there were no more e-mail messages in the file. Kel clicked on Gert’s file.
To: Marilee
From: Gert
Subject: This weekend’s guests
This weekend’s guests are Serena and William, regulars, as you know. Are we ready?
“What did Marilee reply?”
Kellan looked, but eventually shook his head. “I don’t think she did before Gert died.”
“They all talk about this swap thing like…like it’s normal,” I said unevenly. “And what the hell happened? How did we become the unwitting hosts? They can’t just do that.”
“But they did. Look at this one.”
To: Gert
From: Perry Dickenson at All Travels
Subject: 4 stars!
Once again your B &B has been nominated for Favorite Alt-Uni Mini-Vacation. It’s also been upgraded from a 3-star to a 4-star destination. Congrats, and keep up the good work!
I stared at it. “Alt-uni?”
“No idea,” Kellan said, then combed through some other files. “Huh. Look at this. It’s labeled Alt-Uni: Rules.”
Iron-clad rules, punishable by banishment:
• No swapping with unsuspectings.
• No stealing of abilities.
• No swapping for longer than three days.
• Pirates are to be shot on sight.
I gulped hard. “Pirates.”
Kellan scowled. “Unsuspectings.”
“Shot on sight. What the hell is that?”
Kellan slipped an arm around me and shook his head. “Really don’t know. And really don’t like not knowing.”
“It’s like we’re in some Harry Potter world. And I want out.”
“Where is everyone? Can you see?”
I focused, then felt my heart kick hard. “I don’t see anyone. Nothing moving at all.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, but why?” Panic filled me again. What was happening to the others? Were they okay? Damn, I was so darn tired of the fear. “Kel, maybe we should make a run for it.”
“Where to?”
Good point.
“We’re better off waiting for dawn,” he continued, running a hand up my arm, his eyes peering through the dark
