Starlight Web (Moonshadow Bay #1) - Yasmine Galenorn Page 0,18

leaned back, waiting. A few minutes later, I readjusted myself, wondering if this was all a joke. But just as I was getting ready to leave, the door behind the desk opened and a young man—or he looked young to me—peeked out.

“Are you here about the job?” he asked.

I nodded. “Yes,” I said, standing. I towered over the guy, who couldn’t be more than five-four, and a sinking feeling told me I should probably just turn around and leave.

“I’m Tad Gelphart, and you are…?”

“January Jaxson.” I held out my hand and he took it, giving me a surprisingly strong squeeze. “Is the job still open?”

“Oh yes,” Tad said. “We’ve been looking for the right person for weeks. If you’ll follow me, please.” He led me behind the desk and through the door.

We entered in a large room that had a bank of computer towers against one wall. A balding, bulky man who looked to be around thirty-five was manning that. A woman in her twenties or thirties was hunched over a separate computer, frowning at the monitor screen in front of her. Both were in jeans and sweaters, and I was relieved that I didn’t feel overdressed.

“Guys, meet January Jaxson. She’s here to interview for the job,” Tad said. He pointed to a large metal desk in the corner. “Take a seat. Just grab a chair from over there.”

I did as he asked, sitting down in front of the totally functional, totally unattractive metal desk. It looked like they had gotten their equipment from a second-hand office supply store and it occurred to me that this might be a volunteer job.

“I have to ask, is this a paying gig? I don’t mean to sound snarky, but I can’t afford to volunteer right now.” Given the looks of the office, I had the feeling they were running on a shoestring. Oh, the computers looked like they had cost a fortune, but everything else had that air of “Can we get it for free?” about it.

“Oh, it pays, don’t worry about that,” Tad said. He smiled and it totally altered the way he looked, making him appear much more approachable. His glasses—a throwback to John Lennon’s round granny glasses—and the polo shirt and jeans gave him the look of a first-class geek, in a cute sort of way. His hair was tousled and blond, and he reminded me of a kid straight out of college.

“We pour most of our money into our payroll, our investigations, and our supplies and tech that we need, so the office is sparse, but it’s functional and that’s what matters. So, what do you know about Conjure Ink?” he asked.

I frowned. I had taken a quick look at the website on my laptop, but hadn’t had the chance to study it in depth. “I’m going to be honest with you. I just moved back to Moonshadow Bay after years of living in Seattle. Like, just moved back yesterday. My friend heard about this job and she seemed to think I’d be a good fit. Her name is Ari Wheeler.”

“Right, Ari. Well, I trust her instincts. So, writing’s your specialty?” Tad asked.

I nodded. “I majored in journalism in college, and I built the Seattle Monitor of Art & Literature from the ground up. I actually founded it, but my ex-husband gained custody during the divorce proceedings.” I scowled. “If you call him, however, he’ll insist he did all the work, but it’s not true.”

“Acrimonious parting, eh?” Tad asked.

I nodded. “I wouldn’t mention it, except that magazine was my baby. I put all the work into it for the first year or two, and then he joined in and managed to squeeze me out of it. I spent over a dozen years building the circulation and writing most of the articles. At least he can’t go back and change my bylines, unless he digitalizes everything.” I reached in my tote bag and pulled out the file folder. “Here are my resume and clips of some of my best articles.” I handed the folder to him.

He flipped through it, taking his time. After about ten minutes, he closed the folder and set it on the desk. “I believe you. You can really write. What are your connections to the paranormal?”

“I’m a Fam-Trad witch. My great-grandfather was one of the founders of Moonshadow Bay,” I said. “My own powers passed down matrilineally, from my great-grandmother. That’s why I returned here to live.”

He looked pleased. “Good. The fact that you’re both a