Jen asked me.
I took a deep breath, slinging my bag over my shoulder. “First, I need to tell Casimir that he can call off the coven. Second, I need to talk to Sinclair before I confront Emmy. I can’t leave him out of this. He needs to decide where he stands.”
“Do you want me to go with you?” Jen offered. “Because I’ll be there if you do.”
“I know.” I gave her a quick hug. “You’re the best. This, I think I can handle. But I couldn’t have gotten through this morning without you. Don’t tell anyone how badly I freaked out, okay?”
She returned my hug, then did the lock-the-lips-and-throw-away-the-key gesture. “I’ll take it to the grave, Hel’s liaison.”
It was the first time Jen had ever called me by my title, and I have to admit it felt a little weird. Not bad, just . . . weird.
“Thanks,” I said. “Consider yourself the first member of my own personal Scooby Gang.”
Like most everyone else our age in Pemkowet, Jen and I had grown up watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer. “That would be a lot cooler if I wasn’t totally the Xander.” She smiled wryly. “No skills to offer but loyalty and a smart mouth.”
“Yeah, and life would be a lot easier if I had Slayer super strength,” I said. “But we make do with what we’ve got.”
“True,” Jen agreed. “And it could be worse. We could be stuck with Stacey Brooks as our unlikely mean girl ally Cordelia.”
I shuddered. “Perish the thought.”
Seventeen
As soon as Jen left, I hustled back to the Sisters of Selene to update Casimir. Beneath his heavy makeup, he flushed with anger. He squeezed his eyes tightly shut for the space of a few breaths, his long, crimson-lacquered nails digging into the counter.
“Daisy, I am so sorry,” he said when he’d collected himself. “I jumped to a conclusion when I should have taken the time to do the research.”
“It’s okay,” I said. “I lost my temper and it made me careless. I should never have left my bag unattended, not with dauda-dagr in it. And you warned me that you didn’t know a lot about obeah.”
“That’s no excuse.” His face was grim beneath his bouffant wig. “But it may mean she’s not as powerful as we thought. I’ll tell you, the law of threefold return’s going to bite her in the ass, and I wouldn’t mind helping it along. Shall I start working on a counterspell, darling? Something nice and vengeful?”
“What?” I blinked. “No! Jesus, Cas! You’re the one who’s always warning me not to be tempted by the dark side—which, by the way, just makes me think about it when I wasn’t. Anyway, I need to handle this myself.”
Pursing his lips, he considered me. “I suppose you do. All right, hold on a moment.” He went over to unlock a glass display case and rummage inside it, coming up with a small silver medallion etched with a Star of David inside concentric circles and various squiggly markings, along with a loop so it could be worn as a pendant. “Here. This is your basic Seal of Solomon. It’s the same seal I used in the working earlier. It should give you a measure of protection from hostile spells.”
“I’m a little short on cash,” I admitted. I was always short on cash.
Casimir reached for my hand and plunked the medallion into it. “Don’t worry, it’s not the most expensive amulet I carry, honey. And they’re more effective when they’re given as a gift. Take it with my blessing and wear it in good health.”
“Okay, okay!” I undid the clasp on my necklace and threaded the Seal of Solomon onto the chain. When I was done, it nestled beside the Oak King’s talisman, clinking companionably against it in my cleavage. “Thanks. I’ll, um, record the favor in my ledger.”
He eyed me. “You keep a ledger?”
“I do.” I stated it with a tone of authority, or at least I tried to. “In the interest of maintaining Hel’s order, of course.”
“Good for you.” It must have worked, because there was a note of respect in the Fabulous Casimir’s voice.
I really needed to get started on that database. Too bad I knew nothing about creating databases. For now, I’d just have to settle for making mental notes, because I had more pressing matters to attend to.
After leaving Casimir’s shop, I went back to my apartment to take a quick shower and change my clothes. Since there was no point in trying to