Phoenix in My Fortune (A Monster Haven Story Book 6) by R.L. Naquin Read Free Book Online Page A

your permission.”
    “They should.” I dropped onto the cushion next to her. “Anything else? Anything relevant?”
    Riley’s voice—along with the sound of fridge rummaging—came from the kitchen. “I think a
Saved by the Bell
remake is relevant.”
    I ignored him and peered at Sara’s screen. “You’re on Facebook. How is that research?”
    “It’s not. I have to harvest my crops on Farmville.” She clicked on the link, and a large plot of cartoon land loaded.
    I glanced around the room. It had been funny at first, but I was losing my sense of humor. “Seriously, guys. Shadow Man is here. Isn’t anybody alarmed by that fact? Nobody’s doing anything.” Exasperated, I folded my arms and glared at the entire room.
    Sara chuckled and patted my leg. “Chill. Your mom’s got the TV on a local station. If anything new comes up, we’ll find out. I’ve already checked all the local websites for anything that might be Shadow Man related and came up empty. Yesterday was his first move. In the meantime, I’ve set up alerts for anything new.” She clicked on a cow, and her little Sara icon hustled over to milk it. “What did
you
find out?”
    Riley wandered in chewing a cookie. “The pastor of the church has mood swings and a face full of bumblebees.”
    I frowned, wondering where my cookie was. Riley grinned and handed me one.
    I took a bite, letting the buttery goodness melt in my mouth before speaking. “We found out the cultists went back to the church and found safe haven there. We can’t touch them for their past crimes—I agreed to that—and he assures me they’re no longer associated with Shadow Man.”
    Mom turned down the TV. “Do you believe him?”
    “I’m not sure. I didn’t feel any deception from him. Mostly he felt afraid. But I think it would be a good idea if we knew more about the church than we do. Can you check the books in the cottage tonight and see what you can find?”
    I’d spent months scouring the books at the cottage for clues, but the books belonged to Mom. She and Aggie had always been better at finding useful information than I had. Mom had tried to help me before, but maybe it was time for her to take a look without my inept hands getting in the way.
    On a previous visit, I’d managed to snag the diary of Marjorie Willenstock, a late 1800s Aegis girl who didn’t want the title. It was the only book I refused to return to the library. Marjorie hadn’t shared anything helpful about our present dilemma, but she felt like a friend to me now, despite being long dead. Her diary followed her journey from reluctant trainee to seasoned elder. I wished she were still alive so I could ask her what she thought about this whole mess. She’d lived nearly a hundred years. She probably would have had some fantastic advice.
    She might have been able to find the perfect book to give us answers, too. But since she was long gone, maybe Mom could find something I’d missed.
    “Good idea.” Mom stretched her arms and arched her back. “Beats the hell out of watching local television all night.”
    For a moment, I thought she was going to head out right then, but she rearranged herself and settled deeper into her chair. Even though the path from my house to her cottage was protected by an enormous fairy ring, I wasn’t about to let Mom walk off into the woods on her own and stay by herself at the cottage. Especially with Shadow Man lurking around. Besides, Darius would flay me alive if he came back and I’d let her leave.
    Plus, it would have been a blatant violation of one of the three rules we’d agreed to follow.
    So. We’d split into three groups to gather information. Riley and I came back with a whole lot of unsubstantiated suspicions, and everyone at home found a big old pile of nothing. I hoped Kam and Darius were more successful in their search of the crime scene.
    * * *
    By the time Kam and Darius blew into the house, it was after two in the morning. We were all trying