want you spending time with Davina anymore."
"It's not her fault."
"It's been nothing but trouble since she got here."
"Betty - "
"I don't trust her."
"Stop it." I leaned forward, keeping my voice down. "She ran right out in the thick of it, all his dark magic, gray smoke everywhere. She almost got herself killed trying to protect me."
"I don't care if she swallowed dynamite and shot rabbits out of her ass, you are not to spend any more time with her. I don't trust her."
"Well, I do. I even wanted to give her my magic, and she - "
"You what?" Betty's whisper was harsh. "Are you crazy? What if your magic is exactly what she wants?"
"She wasn't going to take it, take it. Just spit it out, like a snakebite."
Betty made a face. "Ew."
"It doesn't matter, anyway, she refused. Too dangerous." I put my hands to my pounding head. "Look, Betty, please. It's been a hell of a few days, and I need you to just trust me, okay?"
She watched me for a long moment, then slowly nodded, although her shoulders didn't seem to relax at all. "Fine. If you say she's all right, I believe you."
"Okay." I craned my neck from side to side, trying to get the kinks out. "So, have you found out where Cain is staying yet?"
Betty shook her head. "I went to all the B and B's, even though he doesn't seem the B-and-B type - "
"He's not," I said.
" - and no one's seen him. I canvassed all the motels within fifty miles, and even asked Happy Larry if he'd seen him around. No joy."
"How is that possible? Fresh meat doesn't stay hidden in this town, even cranky, scruffy meat. There are too many girls in this town who'd go crazy over something like that." I pressed my fingers to the bridge of my nose, then sighed and looked at her, pulling on the best smile I could muster. "Thanks for trying, Betty. Keep your ear to the ground."
"It's never anywhere else." She watched me and sighed. "Speaking of which, how is everything shaking out with Millie and Peach?"
I sighed. "It's not. Hey ... is it possible...? I mean, could she have overridden his will?" I lowered my voice to a whisper. "Is there such a thing as magical rape?"
Betty thought for a moment, then slowly shook her head. "Like I said, most people get innocuous powers. Change the color of a dress, make a pencil fly, that sort of thing. Messing with free will, that's dark stuff. If there are people who can do that kind of thing, I've never had contact with them."
"What about a conjurer? Might someone like that be able to make a potion, slip it in Nick's drink?"
"I don't know," Betty said, although she looked doubtful. "Maybe. I guess. But..."
She trailed off, and I prodded her. "What?"
She leaned forward, her elbows on the counter, her eyes compassionate and sad. "Have you ever heard of Occam's razor?"
"Yeah. The simplest explanation is usually the correct one, right?"
"Well, the simplest explanation here is human nature. Men - especially men who are about to get married - are known for this sort of thing. You don't need to slip anything into their drinks. You just have to be ... tempting. Millie tempted him, he was human, he messed up." She leaned back and wiped down the counter absently with her towel. "I'm seventy-three years old, Liv, and I've seen this happen a lot. Never once has there been any magic involved."
"Right." Still, I couldn't help but feel like there was something more here. But then, maybe that was just because I didn't want Peach to be suffering like this. I sighed and put my head in my hands. "I'm gonna go stand on the magic square and wish it all away."
She patted my hand. "You go do that, honey."
I pushed myself up from the counter and walked over to the square near Booth 9. I sighed and looked down at it, my feet just outside its edges. I wish - I thought, and then I heard my name. I looked up, and Andrew Garvey, the elementary school principal, was holding up an empty coffee mug, looking at me expectantly. I glanced down at my sweatpants and my Mason's Plumbing T-shirt that read, WE FIX ANY CRACK, and looked back at Andrew.
"You bet." I walked around the magic square, grabbed a carafe from the industrial coffeemaker, and caught Tobias's eye through the pass as he delivered