That was easy.
Two minutes later, he came back around with Betty in tow. "She appeared in a poof of smoke inside my car."
"You really have to stop doing that," Kelly said.
"You really have to tell me how to do that," I whispered to Betty when Kelly looked away.
"No can do. It's against the Magicians International Code of Doom," the kid said.
"Hey, who wants a snack?" Kelly announced, and we all ran inside. It was a good distraction. Even though we'd just eaten, my troop never turned down a snack.
After a quick shower that did not remove any of the green from my hair, I searched through Aunt June's clothes. My clothes were back at camp. Fortunately, I found some clothes that appeared to be close to my size, right down to the bra and undies. Which was interesting because Aunt June seemed a bit plumper and shorter from the pictures I'd seen.
"Where did you get those?" Ava asked between gulps from her juice box. She seemed to be fully recovered from the earlier excitement.
"I found them. I'm guessing they may have belonged to a friend who stayed here now and then? Or she rented the place out?"
Kelly gave me a once-over. "Maybe one of her boyfriends?"
"I don't know," I said.
I didn't think Pete, Dr. Morgan and Virgil were this size. And that reminded me.
"I still have to go see the tooth and meet the postmaster."
"Maybe he'll recognize the clothes." Kelly winked.
"If he stayed here, why were his clothes in Aunt June's bedroom?" Betty tapped her chin.
Kelly and I looked at each other before she answered. "I'm sure he used one of the guest rooms. Maybe she had more room in her closet."
"Let's go see if we can find more clues!" Lauren suggested.
"On the second floor only, please!" I shouted as they ran up the stairs like a herd of elephants.
"Keeping those girls busy is exhausting." Kelly sat down on a kitchen chair.
"There's so many things here that are dangerous." I ran my fingers through my green, wet curls. "The bluffs, the river, the bugs upstairs…"
Kelly's eyes flashed with amusement. "You know, Ava has decided to submit you for a Nobel Peace Prize for rescuing her."
"I'd never qualify." It was irritating how the haircut worked so well—and maintained the vivid greenness. "Do they even know what that is?"
"Betty told them it was created by the guy who invented dynamite. Which is surprisingly true."
I pulled out my cell and opened the Amazon app.
"What are you doing?"
"Seeing what else these little river monsters have bought that we don't know about."
Ten minutes later, I'd cancelled orders for an inflatable raft with motor, two thousand salamander eggs, and a portable flamethrower.
"Who knew you could get these things online?" Kelly wondered.
"Who knew they'd deliver in one day. That would've been good to know in Chechnya when we were out of toilet paper or in Colombia when hand sanitizer ran low."
Kelly smiled. "You know, I should be horrified. But for some reason I can't explain, I'm not."
"You're getting numb to them. Your outrage filter is dulled," I said.
"I'm sure that's true," Kelly said. "I am impressed with Betty's newfound interest in magic."
I stared at her. "I know, right? I mean, most kids start out small with a coin or a deck of cards. This kid goes right to disappearing acts." I thought of Betty vanishing in a puff of smoke. "Where's she getting the smoke bombs? There weren't any ordered on my account."
"A magician," Betty said from the doorway, "never reveals her tricks."
"No poof of smoke?" I asked.
"No sense in wasting it on you two." She shook her head and walked away, saying, "Unbelievers. Yeesh."
She didn't have to work too hard to impress me. I was sold.
"Let's let them search a bit longer." Kelly yawned. "And then head back. They want to make cast iron skillet pies, and that's going to take a while."
"Okay. But first we stop at the convenience store." I pulled on a curl and let it spring back. "It's time to see if I can do something about this."
Another hour and a half of searching was all Kelly would allow. The girls came up empty and were starting to ask to get back to camp to make dinner. I texted Rex to say we would meet him back at camp.
"Hey, guys!" Hal came out from behind the counter. "Cobra, Asp, Rattler, Blackadder, and Viper," he called the girls by their camp names. Then he looked at us. "Hardy One and Two."
"How did you know about that?" I don't really know why I asked.
He shrugged. "Small town. Now what can I help you with? It isn't food. You bought enough to eat for a week, and I've noticed you've been going to Nancy's for most meals."
The girls were vanishing down various aisles. I checked my wallet to make sure I had all of my money and cards. I did.
"You don't sell guns or knives or blowtorches, do you?" I asked.
Hal seemed confused. "No. You need those things?"
"No." I waved him off. "I just wanted to make sure. Our snakes can be more deadly than just their bites."
"Are you looking for anything in particular?" he asked.
Yes. Information.
"Yes, actually." I pointed to my hair. "Your brother did a great job on the haircut. And, I don't want this to leave this room, but do you have any hair bleaching supplies and hair dye?"
Hal laughed. "I'm so sorry about that. Basil probably told you he could work miracles, right? He tells half the women in town that. They love him and don't seem to mind that their heads resemble Easter eggs."
I smiled sweetly. "This just isn't my thing. I don't like standing out."
And I didn't. It took me years to perfect my look for blending in. Dirty blonde hair, average height, not too skinny, and not overweight. It was an important thing in my former line of work. But green and white hair, while it might look
