Beauty and the Beastmaster - Linda Winstead Jones Page 0,11

took Mia back, holding the kid close.

Mia was perfectly happy now. So was Judge. The co-conspirators had gotten their way.

“Her first words, other than mama and no, and they’re a very clear ‘my doggie.’ I don’t want something else to take care of. I mean, Judge seems to be a sweet dog and all, but I have a one year old, and a business, and I can barely handle…” Gabi stopped speaking and looked both ways. As usual no cars were coming down Main Street. She crossed the street in front of the police station.

Silas knew he should get while the getting was good, but he stuck with her. He didn’t stay because he had a job to do. He hadn’t decided to play Jenna’s game, but he hadn’t decided not to, either. He wasn’t normally so indecisive, but this was no normal choice. It wouldn’t affect only him, it was critical to the future of the entire town.

At the moment he was focused not on the decisions to be made, but on the kid. Something was off. He didn’t see into other people’s minds the way he did animals. A couple of times he’d been around Springer babies and gotten what might’ve been a hint of communication, a brief glimpse into what they were feeling in that moment, but babies had no words, and the human brain was more complicated than that of an animal. But he’d very clearly caught that mine from Mia.

A new thought almost stopped him in his tracks. Mia wasn’t a Springer, was she? Gabi had displayed no indication of having Springer ancestry. If she had, whatever abilities she’d inherited would’ve come to life when she’d arrived in Mystic Springs. Gradually, most likely, but she’d been here a year so if it was going to happen it would’ve happened by now. What about the kid’s father? Gabi never mentioned him. She didn’t wear a wedding ring, didn’t talk about any past relationships. Not that he would know. She hadn’t said a dozen words on their date, and nothing she’d said had been personal. He had a feeling if he started asking personal questions she’d shut him down. He had to know, but he also needed to tread lightly.

Maybe he could ask Cindy. Then again, women seemed to stick together, like a tribe of some kind. He probably wouldn’t get anywhere with Cindy, or any of Gabi’s other friends.

At the corner, he stopped. “I’ll head home and get that dog food…”

Gabi spun on him. She looked a little bit maniacal. “No. Not yet. Maybe I can get Mia settled in her own bed, and dig out some of her favorite toys, and while I distract her you and Judge can sneak out. She’s a baby. She’ll forget all about this weird… whatever.”

He didn’t think so. “We can try.”

“That’s not at all encouraging,” she said, her voice tight as she forced a smile at Mia.

Her house was the second one past Mike Benedict’s place. The house in between was vacant, like so many homes in town. He was just old enough to remember when this had been a healthy and decently populated place to live. The houses on this street, and others, had been filled with families. Downtown Mystic Springs had been a busy place with few, if any, empty storefronts. Still a small town, but not like his. Too many Springers had moved on. The magic had begun to fade. Did that mean it was time to embrace the isolation so many had avoided to this point? Would that move save what was left of Mystic Springs?

Gabi and Mia lived in a red-brick single story house. Azalea bushes which had budded but not yet bloomed had been planted on either side of the front steps. The porch was too small for a rocking chair, was really not much more than a square of painted wood as a floor and a moderate overhang that might protect someone from the rain if it wasn’t coming in at an angle.

“I can come back,” he said.

Gabi tossed a sharp glance his way. “Don’t you dare.”

The rest of that thought was unfinished. Don’t you dare leave me alone with these two.

“If I can get her to sleep,” Gabi said, “you and Judge can sneak away. Mia doesn’t always sleep this late in the afternoon, but Cindy said she didn’t nap after lunch so it’s possible she’ll go down.”

Mia in her arms, Gabi walked toward the bedrooms. Judge followed. “No, no,” she