An Imperfect Witch by Debora Geary Read Free Book Online
Authors: Debora Geary
trails as it curled around itself and then bloomed in another direction. Full of surprises, just like the man who had imagined it. And found her sense of humor. “Thanks—it’ll go great with my princess costume.”
The sound of his laughter resonated deep within her.
She slid the bracelet over her wrist. And knew it would live there long past Halloween.
Chapter 5
This was a decidedly weird day at Berkeley Realty.
On the surface, the spontaneous celebration of last month’s results wasn’t all that strange. Lauren was a generous boss who noticed details. And in the last two years and four months, she’d been Lizard’s biggest cheerleader, cajoler, and parole officer. Whatever it took.
But today, something wasn’t quite right.
Lizard squinted at the cheerful woman on the other side of the table, trying to figure it out.
“What?” Lauren drained her coffee cup and reached for a refill. “You don’t like chocolate cake all of a sudden?”
This had nothing to do with chocolate cake. Lizard stabbed her fork in the general direction of her plate, buying a little time. And then kicked herself for not noticing either. Lauren’s outer mind was full of the expected—congratulations and cake and general bossiness on a sugar high. And behind that—a blank wall.
Mind barriers on complete lockdown. Something was definitely up. Lizard raised an eyebrow and waited.
Lauren sighed and set down her fork. “Your mindreading skills are a lot better than they used to be.”
Duh. “Somebody makes me practice all the damn time.” More than one somebody. Witch Central was big on people knowing how to use their magic. And no one had tighter mind skills when she wanted to than the woman on the other side of the desk. “What’s going on?”
“Hocus-pocus.” Lauren waved her fork. “Eat—trust me, you’ll need it.”
That was ominous. Lizard scooped up a therapy-sized bite of chocolate.
“You know my crystal ball?”
Everyone knew. Ancient orb chooses modern witch to be its next keeper. Which was at least as funny as Berkeley Realty plucking its first assistant out of the ranks of former juvenile delinquents. Maybe it was a good thing something made Lauren squirm. “It’s acting up again, huh?”
Lauren scowled. “Darn thing hasn’t said anything for months. Then it started pitching a fit a couple of days ago.”
It was hard to imagine a round ball of glass doing anything all that crazy. “Stick it in a box?”
“Can’t. Moira says I’m supposed to show it some respect.” Lauren stabbed at her cake. “It makes Fuzzball hiss.”
For a cat, Fuzzball seemed like a pretty smart dude. “Deep-six it in the ocean?” No, wait. Respect. Lizard’s eyes narrowed. “You went to see Moira about this?” That was the big leagues.
“Yeah.” Lauren put down her fork and sighed. “The orb showed me this image of you. Here—I think it’s easier if you just see it.”
Lizard felt the incoming mental link. And stared, befuddled, at the visual that came down the pipe. “Uh, does your paperweight know that it’s Halloween in three days?” It was hard to take anything seriously when you were looking at yourself skulking in a cartoon graveyard.
“I have no clue—it’s not exactly conversational.”
Something about this still wasn’t reading right. “The hocus-pocus is bothering you. Why? I’ll stay out of graveyards, if it will make you feel better.”
Her boss pushed chocolate crumbs around her plate. “Wiser heads than mine think maybe it’s not that literal. Take another look at what I sent you.”
Lizard pulled up the image in her mind one more time. The guy in the shadows looked vaguely familiar. “What, some creep from my past, maybe?” Which wasn’t comforting, but it wasn’t exactly time to hit the nuclear bunkers, either. She took another bite of chocolate cake. A big
The sound of his laughter resonated deep within her.
She slid the bracelet over her wrist. And knew it would live there long past Halloween.
Chapter 5
This was a decidedly weird day at Berkeley Realty.
On the surface, the spontaneous celebration of last month’s results wasn’t all that strange. Lauren was a generous boss who noticed details. And in the last two years and four months, she’d been Lizard’s biggest cheerleader, cajoler, and parole officer. Whatever it took.
But today, something wasn’t quite right.
Lizard squinted at the cheerful woman on the other side of the table, trying to figure it out.
“What?” Lauren drained her coffee cup and reached for a refill. “You don’t like chocolate cake all of a sudden?”
This had nothing to do with chocolate cake. Lizard stabbed her fork in the general direction of her plate, buying a little time. And then kicked herself for not noticing either. Lauren’s outer mind was full of the expected—congratulations and cake and general bossiness on a sugar high. And behind that—a blank wall.
Mind barriers on complete lockdown. Something was definitely up. Lizard raised an eyebrow and waited.
Lauren sighed and set down her fork. “Your mindreading skills are a lot better than they used to be.”
Duh. “Somebody makes me practice all the damn time.” More than one somebody. Witch Central was big on people knowing how to use their magic. And no one had tighter mind skills when she wanted to than the woman on the other side of the desk. “What’s going on?”
“Hocus-pocus.” Lauren waved her fork. “Eat—trust me, you’ll need it.”
That was ominous. Lizard scooped up a therapy-sized bite of chocolate.
“You know my crystal ball?”
Everyone knew. Ancient orb chooses modern witch to be its next keeper. Which was at least as funny as Berkeley Realty plucking its first assistant out of the ranks of former juvenile delinquents. Maybe it was a good thing something made Lauren squirm. “It’s acting up again, huh?”
Lauren scowled. “Darn thing hasn’t said anything for months. Then it started pitching a fit a couple of days ago.”
It was hard to imagine a round ball of glass doing anything all that crazy. “Stick it in a box?”
“Can’t. Moira says I’m supposed to show it some respect.” Lauren stabbed at her cake. “It makes Fuzzball hiss.”
For a cat, Fuzzball seemed like a pretty smart dude. “Deep-six it in the ocean?” No, wait. Respect. Lizard’s eyes narrowed. “You went to see Moira about this?” That was the big leagues.
“Yeah.” Lauren put down her fork and sighed. “The orb showed me this image of you. Here—I think it’s easier if you just see it.”
Lizard felt the incoming mental link. And stared, befuddled, at the visual that came down the pipe. “Uh, does your paperweight know that it’s Halloween in three days?” It was hard to take anything seriously when you were looking at yourself skulking in a cartoon graveyard.
“I have no clue—it’s not exactly conversational.”
Something about this still wasn’t reading right. “The hocus-pocus is bothering you. Why? I’ll stay out of graveyards, if it will make you feel better.”
Her boss pushed chocolate crumbs around her plate. “Wiser heads than mine think maybe it’s not that literal. Take another look at what I sent you.”
Lizard pulled up the image in her mind one more time. The guy in the shadows looked vaguely familiar. “What, some creep from my past, maybe?” Which wasn’t comforting, but it wasn’t exactly time to hit the nuclear bunkers, either. She took another bite of chocolate cake. A big