Seventh Seal - Jacquelyn Faye Page 0,13
store opened. Shaking my head in confusion, I pointed at the screen.
Jason smiled as he lifted his head from the paperwork in front of him. "Want to know something funny?" He grinned at me nervously.
"Jason, I love you, but if you tell me you put a spell on the bookstore to bring in customers, I'm going to kill you."
He shook his head. "No. That's what's so funny. I almost did. Could you imagine what this place would have been like?"
"You're sure that nobody else did?"
He laughed. "I thought that, too. Ran my fingers over every inch of this place to make sure. There isn't one spell on this place other than your shields. I can't explain it and your guess is as good as mine."
That wasn't good enough for me. Considering the financial situation of the entire region, something had to be dragging the townsfolk into the store. Leaning against the wall and closing my eyes, I let my magic flow into the wall behind me and spread out through the building.
The only spell on the place was my barrier ward. The one that kept out ghosts and people intent on harming anyone or anything in the store. First Moon Books was probably the safest place in Upstate New York. I needed to up the defenses on my house to match it. I whistled in appreciation at the fortress it had become, but there was nothing amiss. No spells that filled my pockets while emptying those of the customers. It didn't make any sense, but I guessed it would remain a mystery. Pulling my magic back into myself, I finally felt it.
I had searched every inch of the place, but not the store as a whole. Leaving my magic where it was, I took in the big picture and smiled as I realized what it was.
The bookstore wasn't alive, but it was close. When objects were filled with enough love, hate, or any other emotion, they tended to take on the traits of those emotions. Humans did it every day with their cars. Call it a broken-down piece of shit every day and scream at it, the odds of it starting every morning were slim to none. Tell your car it is the bestest, most beautifulest car in the whole world, and that puppy would gladly take a freight train for you. It was a constant shock to me that humans didn't realize it.
The bookstore was loved. I loved it. Jason loved it. Candace and Josie loved it. Everybody that worked there loved it. But most importantly, the people of Cedar Falls loved it. They saw it as a change in the luck of the town. Five years ago, a store like this would have gone out of business in a week. It had become a bastion of hope. So, they lined up outside the doors to spend a little time in its warmth, grab a cup of coffee, read a few magazines or the paper and bask in that glow. It made them feel alive. Like the town had gotten a heart transplant. It made me smile and it made me cry.
"You okay?"
I nodded at Jason. "Hope."
"What?"
It was hard, but I managed to express everything that I had realized and when I finished, Jason's grin was bigger than mine.
"That's fucking amazing," he answered.
"Don't look at me. Most of this was you, buddy."
I wasn't the only one crying and he kept wiping at the corners of his eyes so I wouldn't notice. I kissed his head and left the office to give him a moment of privacy. We'd all come a long way. Some of us more than others. But none of us as far as Jason.
Sipping my coffee, I wandered around the bookstore just to breathe in the smell. A few minutes later, Jason unlocked the front door and the crowd rushed inside. Half of them went for coffee, the other half for the books. Smiling, I realized they were more than likely going to switch places shortly.
Shea and Dar waved as they walked through the door, smiling at each other as Shea headed for the register and Dar toward me. "Good morning, Master. For what momentous occasion do we owe such a smile this early in the morning?"
Grinning like a fool, I held out my hand for him, just to feel the warmth of his hand against mine and to recharge his battery a bit. Since he practically spent every night at Shea's house, I'd noticed he touched