“Let it rest, Spence,” Tanner says, nudging him.
“No fucking way.” He swings a finger back and forth between Archie and me. “You haven’t said a word to each other on this hike. Are you guys having a fight?”
Tyler frowns. “Spence, let it go. Sorry, Mom.”
“Gwyn and Archie are being cordial,” Skye says. “Plus, we’re on an important mission today. They’re focused on that.”
Archie interjects. “Not that it’s anyone’s concern, but we’ve been taking a slight break. All couples need their individual space at one time or another.”
Spence snickers. “Yup. They’re fighting.”
I scowl at him. “Can we concentrate on why we’re here?”
“Yeah,” Zoe says. “Dr. Hughes gave us this assignment, and I don’t want to screw it up.”
We arrive at the bog, and our footsteps slow. A stream of fog drifts across the warmed pond, a reaction of the recent warm temperatures to the frigid air. The lily pads have turned yellow, and the water is a murky brown dotted with sludge. But the gnats and mosquitos have fled—one point for Old Man Winter’s early visit.
“Gwyn, when did you sense magic on the trail?” Tanner asks, rubbing his arms through his jacket.
“The first time, I didn’t recognize what was happening. I thought it was gas.” They laugh with me, and I continue. “I swore I saw movement in the woods on the other side of the water. The next, well…I told you at the Fellowship meeting what happened. At the bend in the trail, a magnetic pull overwhelmed me, dragging my body toward the bog.”
“That’s when you ran into Courtney Erickson.” Skye gestures to the curve ahead. “About there?”
I nod. “Yeah. I ran and left Ronnie behind. By the time she caught up with me, the magnetism had dissipated. A hazy mist hung over the bog, but I saw nothing else.”
“It’s not much to go on,” Archie says, rubbing his goatee. “Perhaps we should split up.”
“On it!” Spence shouts. “Tanner and I will take the left side of the woods behind the bog. Skye, why don’t you go with Tyler and Zoe—check out the right?” He peers at Archie and me. “You guys can stay here and…” He swirls his index finger in a circle. “Figure this out.”
My jaw drops, and the young witches head into the woods, snickering. Tyler glances back at me and grins. I amble to the edge of the bog and squat, raising my hand to summon my magic. After a few minutes, I lower it. Archie squats next to me.
“You sense nothing?” he asks, facing his palm toward the water.
“No. Not even a twinge. Unless I figure out what the next step in the cat sith’s focus training is, I don’t think I will.”
An amber glow radiates from his hand as he examines the water in the bog, lowering it soon after. He stands and offers to help me up. When I stand, he cups my cheek and warms my cold, pink skin.
“I said it already, but I’ll say it again. I’m sorry, Gwyn. You don’t have to tell me everything you do, and you certainly do not need my permission. But I wish you would tell me. When you don’t include me, I feel alone as a moon that’s lost its earth. And I realize that’s my shortcoming. Is this pushback because I want you to move in with me?”
Sometimes, he knows me better than I know myself. “Maybe? I’m not saying I’ll never consider it. I need to decide on my own terms when.”
“Fair enough.” He rubs his chilly nose against mine. “I’m selfish. It’s not something I’m proud of. I want you with me always. But I’ll take whatever time you spend with me and not complain again.”
“Like tonight? Dinner and…dessert?” I caress his chest through his wool coat and inhale his woodsy cologne.
“You could twist my arm,” he says in a thicker Scottish brogue.
When I push up on my toes to kiss him, whistles and hoots reverberate from the woods. The young witches trickle out of the thicket, laughing. Spence pats himself on the back.
“Aww. Unconditional love. It’s the best.”
“I agree,” Archie says, stepping back from me. “What did you all find?”
Tanner starts. “Spence and I plodded through as far as we could until we hit a muddy area. Didn’t find evidence of magic or anyone having been there.”
“We’re basically confirming what the police found,” Tyler says. “No signs of people camping out.”
Zoe scrapes her sneaker on the gravel. “We hit mud, too. Literally. If the kidnappers were hiding in here, it wasn’t near the water.”
“The stretch of fog across the bog is probably due to the weather,” Skye says, eyeing the haze. “You guys check out anything besides yourselves?”
The young witches chuckle, and I scowl at her. “Very. Funny. We tested the water but found nothing out of the ordinary. My intuition must have been tracking the residue of someone roaming through here. If there is a rogue witch operating with the Baby Nabbers, the evil person may have visited here. I could have stumbled upon the stream like in the Pumpkin House.” A sigh escapes my mouth, creating a cloud of misty white.
“We’ve done all we can here,” Archie says. “I suggest we hike back and get out of this cold. Gwyn and I will report to Trinity and Dr. Hughes.”
Back at the trailhead, the young witches get in their cars and head home. Archie walks me to my car.
“Meet you back at the house,” he says, winking.
“What about dinner?” I ask. “Do you want to stop and pick up takeout?”
“Nah. I’ll whip up something.” He kisses me. “A wee taste to hold you until later.”
“Mmm. See you in a few minutes, then.”
I rush to the small porch of Archie’s cottage home. My hand shakes as I turn the lock. Archie runs after me, and we enter the foyer. While he shuts and locks the door, I stuff my gloves in my puffer jacket and hang it on a hall tree hook.
