“Well. I’ll take that as my cue to give you girls some alone time.” Grandma takes her coffee and leaves the room.
“How did you know?” Miri wipes her lips and then the table, cleaning up the mess with a napkin.
“Just a feeling, really. Maybe it’s a witch thing. Or maybe it’s a sister thing. But I had a gut feeling, and now you’ve confirmed it.” I fold my hands and rest my chin on them.
“Phillip and I kind of want to keep it on the down low until after the wedding.” Miri crumples the dirty napkin. “You can do that, right? Keep it a secret.”
“Um…” My head sways gently to the left. “I may have let something slip in front of Mom.”
“Seriously?” Miri groans. “She is the last one I want to know about the baby right now. I don’t need any more grief from her.”
“I’ll keep her under control. I may have a lead on what her problem is, and it’s magical in nature. A possible mind-control or curse set upon her by Caleb.” I push my upper body upright.
“Why doesn’t that surprise me?” She rises from the table, tosses her dirty napkin in the trash, and washes out her glass, sets in beside the sink. “I’ve been given a lot of thought to the events of two years ago. I suspect Caleb had a deeper influence on her far earlier than we realized.” She turns and leans against the counter. Locks her gaze on me. “The man is dark, and he had designs to tap into our magick. Syphon what is ours for his own personal gain.”
“Yeah. Too bad we didn’t see it sooner. But we were younger and clueless. What could we have done?” My stomach sounds with a gurgly growl, and I gnaw on a cracker.
“Maybe Mike…” Miri says.
“Michael did try,” I interrupt. “Since the first day Caleb walked into our lives. But Mom wouldn’t listen to him. Mom wouldn’t listen to any of us.” I take a sip of the Gatorade-water mixture. It’s almost too sweet for my stomach to allow. I cringe. Swallow and breathe deep.
“Are you alright?” Miri steps forward. “Need me to get the bowl.”
I shake my head and wave the notion away. “The bathroom is right there.” I point to the bathroom door.
“Yes, but even that might be too far, depending on your condition,” she reasons.
“I’ll be fine. Everything is going to be fine.” My last statement is more of a message to myself, a promise, really, than an evaluation of the current, certain truth.
“And how do we make sure that it will be?” She returns to the table.
“I don’t know.” I wave my hand at my side. “I’m still working on that. Can we talk about something else now? Like, the baby, maybe?”
She gazes downward and rubs her belly. “Little Nara.”
“So, it’s a girl?” Miri nods. “How do you know?”
“Moms just know these things sometimes.” She beams at her belly, as if she can see the developing fetus curled up within her.
“And Phillip?” I ask and collect another cracker from my small pile.
“Completely thrilled.” She settles her arms on the table and blooms a warm smile. “I’m glad I don’t have to keep this from you any longer. Holding the secret to myself was driving me crazy.”
“You shouldn’t have tried to keep it from me,” I blurt. “We’re sisters. We should be open with one another.”
“You’re right.” She drops her head.
“Is the baby the reason you’re getting married?” I lean into the table.
“What? No.” Miri’s head snaps up. “I love Phillip and want to spend the rest of my days with him. I don’t want to wait for that part of my life to begin.” She presses her hand to her chest. “I’m hurt that you would even think that.”
“I just wanted to be sure.” I shrug. “So, Phillip and Grandma know. What about Michael?”
Miri shakes a solid no. “Not yet.”
“You should tell him.” I grab another cracker. Although the thought of food makes me feel nauseated, my belly remains in constant need of filling.
“I’ll have to, now that you know. Leaving him as the odd man out will just piss him off.” She half laughs. A quick glance at the clock, and she is pushing to a stand. “I need to go get ready for class, or I’ll be late.”
“School? Today?” I blink, glance at the clock. Eight. My school already started. Unlike Miri and her college schedule, I don’t have the luxury of picking my class times. I’m so late.
“It is Monday,” she says. “Thankfully, my first class isn’t until ten thirty today.” She glances at me and catches my wild expression. “You don’t have to go to school today.” She jabs a finger in my direction. “That is the one and only upside to being ill.” She turns and heads toward the stairs.
Monday. Monday my coven meets. And it’s the last meeting before the full moon. “My bike?” I push away from the table.
Miri spins back on me. “I brought it in last night. It’s safe in the back.” She cuts a sharp finger through the air between us. “But you are not to try and ride that thing home. Not today. You hear me? I’m going to call Phillip and have him drive you home, later. After you’ve gotten some more rest.”
“But. My coven.” My muscles slack, and I feel as if my face is melting toward the ground.
Miri jabs her fists into her hips and cracks a grin. “So, it’s about your coven and not school. I should have known.” She shakes her head. “You are in no shape for magick today. Trust me. What Grandma did for you last night took a toll on both of you.”
I jerk straight. What Grandma did? The confused memory of her shoving something in my mouth rushes to the forefront of my mind. “What… what did she do?”
Chapter Eight
Miri’s gaze flickers to the clock and back to me. I
