“What?” I yelled.
“Come join me.”
“Excuse me?”
“There’s an extra stick, the one Wessel uses, propped against the house. I’ll teach you the first form. It’ll be good for you to get a little exercise.”
“Christoph!” I walked to where he motioned the stick would be, left my mug on a step, and strolled over to my grandfather. “You trying to use guilt on me?”
“Not at all, Calli-lass. But regular exercise will help your magic.” He stopped midstrike and pointed his stick at me. “Stop rolling your eyes!”
Many moves and gentle whacks across my back and arms later, I had to agree. Feet gliding, then landing, firm and planted, made me feel more in tune with my environment. Even the simplest movements with the stick, repeated over and over again, had my muscles burning and ready for a break. I stuck the end of the pole in the ground and declared myself done. “But you’re right. I feel great,” I said.
“We do a different sequence that attunes us to the energy available at the end of the day, Calli.”
“I might be pinned into a dress tonight,” I said.
“All the more reason to practice. I’ll bring it up with Maritza. You need more battle prep.”
“In heels and a little black dress?” I asked.
“Precisely,” he answered. “None of us know exactly what Odilon is capable of. I for one will let you go more easily knowing you have practiced for as much as we can possibly cram into these hours.”
I opened my bedroom door a crack. Tanner had slipped into the house while Christoph was putting me through my paces. The druid was seated on my floor, meditating. I snuck into the room and around him, picked underwear and a bra that were close enough in color to call them a match, and tiptoed out. Tanner might have purred as I shut the door.
I caught myself smiling again as I collected all the used towels from both bathrooms and started a load of wash. Tanner was finished with Ni’eve and—as he’d explained last night—Jessamyne should no longer be a problem.
When I questioned the should, he explained all of the remaining Keepers—no matter their status—were going through a rigorous retraining, and Idunn had threatened to strip the rebellious Apple Witch of her abilities if she did not complete the course to the Goddess’s satisfaction. Not having to worry about Jessamyne making further attempts to win Tanner back was a relief. Compared to Odilon though, I almost preferred her over him.
Almost.
A whiff of what I might be able to pull off sent shivers skating over my arms and up the back of my neck. I was used to investigations of the agricultural kind, where dressing for work meant pants and boots that could withstand mucking about in mud. I’d be mucking about in a different kind of mud, looking for other kinds of clues, when I stepped onto the yacht.
Truth be told, I was excited to wear an article of clothing designed to become a weapon, should the need arise, and I was antsy for Maritza and Malvyn to arrive. I kept myself busy with housework.
Rattling water pipes sounded from the downstairs shower. I finished stripping the beds and opened every window to air out the accumulated smells of boys and pizza and stinky feet. The family meeting was going to include sections on personal hygiene and delegating chores.
“Calli?”
Tanner’s voice echoed through the downstairs.
“Up here,” I said, moving to the landing with the handles of the wicker laundry basket in either hand. Tanner took the stairs two at a time and relieved me of the load.
“Have you seen my truck?” he asked. “And do you want this to go in now or—”
“There’s already a load in the washing machine.” I went up on tiptoes to plant a kiss on his cheek once we weren’t in danger of taking a spill. He turned his head and snaked an arm around my waist as his lips caught mine.
The mint I associated with Tanner from the first time we met was missing. I tasted my toothpaste on his tongue, smelled my soap on his skin as well as the scent of an unfamiliar laundry soap at the neckline of his T-shirt. Underneath all that lay a wilder, wolfier air.
The kiss ended. My curiosity did not. “The girls took your truck. And why do you smell like a wolf and—” I took another deep inhale through my nose, letting his scent skim my tongue, as well “—spruce trees?”
“I might have crossed above the tree line outside of Chamonix and chased a few marmots for sport.” He grinned and shifted. “Point me to the laundry room?”
“It’s more of a laundry closet and why were you chasing those adorable little guys?”
Tanner dropped the basket and opened the louvered door to the narrow room. “Wolf wanted one last run before we left.”
I slid my arms around his waist from behind. The washing machine was in its final cycle. “How is Wolf?”
“Wolf is healed,” he said, spinning to face me and drawing me tight against his front. “Completely, one hundred percent healed.” He cupped my shoulders and pressed me away. “Fill me in on the kids and cars and schedules.”
I was about to when a vehicle horn sounded from the driveway. “I think that’s Maritza,” I said. “Time to make another dress.”
Tanner’s offer to take over laundry duty was muffled by the back and forth chatter between Maritza and Bas. The witch had left most of her supplies at my house but had taken her needle and thread case home. Her sunglasses dangled from one hand, her case grasped in the other, and Bas had his knuckles raised to the door frame.
“You’re here,” I said, trying not
