Under the Moon (Goddesses Rising) - By Natalie J. Damschroder Page 0,61

work was pro bono or barter. “Marley is the same. She runs an inn and uses the crystals for so many different things. She can do only minor healing, but she’s got such a welcoming soul. She draws people to her and helps them find their path. She’s like a life coach.”

“Do you see her often?” Quinn poured them all a third round of tea. When she handed Sam’s to him, she smiled gratefully. He’d been a solid, reassuring support even though he hadn’t said a word.

“Not as often as we’d like, of course. She’s too many hours away, and the inn makes it hard for her to take a vacation or anything. We go up in the off-season, which is the same for both of us. Even Ned manages to get away then,” she added wryly, in obvious reference to his workaholism. She’d mentioned it twice.

“What’s she like?” Quinn asked. She held her breath, waiting for the answer. That was foolish, because of course Tess’s response would be biased. But she wanted Marley to be good, with an agenda that did not include overturned cars and hotel attacks. Or leeches.

Tess’s smile was proudly maternal. “She’s the sweetest thing most of the time, but so stubborn! When she was a little girl, she kept trying and trying to ‘get her goddess in her,’ as she phrased it. She collected everything, trying to find out what her power source was, which of course she couldn’t learn until she turned twenty-one. She nearly burned her room down when she tried fire. Flooded the kitchen hoping it was water. Piled rocks under her bed and crushed flowers all over her room. She even collected insects.” Tess rattled on, describing Marley’s affinity for horses and disappearing into a bedroom to retrieve the show ribbons Marley had earned in high school.

“She wanted to go away to college. Ohio State, in fact.” A cloud passed over Tess’s face, as if she’d thought of something she’d never considered before. “But…her father thought it best she go to Fairfield U for management—she always wanted to run a hotel.” Tess paused, her brows knitted.

It was the opening Quinn had been looking for. “Does she know about me?”

Tess refocused on her and looked worried. “Well…”

Quinn tried to hide her anger. She wasn’t here for a confrontation but for answers. “It’s okay if she doesn’t. I mean, I didn’t know about her.”

“We never told her. We thought it would be confusing and difficult…” She trailed off. Quinn guessed it would have been confusing and difficult for them, not Marley, and they hadn’t wanted their daughter to resent them for their secrets. Then, as time went on, it got harder and harder. She inferred it was the reason they hadn’t sought Quinn in her adult years, though she didn’t quite have the courage to ask. But she wondered if Marley had discovered it somehow. If she wanted to go to Ohio State to be near her big sister. What would be different now if she had, and they’d made contact in normal circumstances instead of suspicious ones?

Tess changed the subject, which drifted to her greenhouse and cosmetic work. “It’s mostly little things. I don’t advocate major changes. But sometimes the simplest adjustment can make life so much easier, especially for teenagers or people who make a living on their appearance. Like smoothing hair.” She smiled fondly at Quinn. “Not that I’d do anything for you now. You’re beautiful just as you are.”

Quinn didn’t care about stuff like that, but she flushed anyway. “Thank you.”

“How about me?” Sam spoke up for the first time. He fingered a small mole next to his mouth. “Can you get rid of this?”

Tess laughed. “As if you don’t know how much women love it. Don’t be silly. Those kinds of things add character and uniqueness to a person. We shouldn’t strive for some uniform concept of beauty. Here.” She rose and disappeared into the house, coming back a moment later with a photo album. “This is the kind of thing I mean.” She showed them a young woman with a major scar across her face. The before picture showed it puckered and reddened. In the after picture it was shorter and silvery, faint but still present.

“You couldn’t get rid of it completely?” Sam asked.

“I could have, yes, but we discussed it and she didn’t want to. I thought it was brave of her. A lot of people would have pushed for me to make it perfect. But