The Shifter Romances The Writer

“Oh, no, Kaley, this isn’t your fault at all. You did exactly what I asked you to. You did great.” Roxy made herself smile. “It’s just that…” She looked at Pandora. “If I have all these supernatural bloodlines, it means my parents had them too. Where else would I have gotten them?”

“Right. Did you ever suspect your parents were…something else?”

“That never even occurred to me. Definitely not my dad, but my mother…” Roxy took another breath before giving voice to the one thing that had haunted her all her life. “My mother was institutionalized when I was very young. She heard voices. Saw things. Knew things.” Roxy shook her head. “Do you think…”

Pandora kneeled down beside the chair and put her hands on Roxy’s knees. “Oh, honey. Yes, I do think these bloodlines were the reason for all those things. I’m so sorry.”

Roxy rubbed her hand over her mouth. “So my mother wasn’t really crazy.”

“Probably not.” Pandora sighed. “But sometimes, having all these little bits of different kinds of supernatural inside you can make a person feel that way. It definitely happens.”

“I’ve always feared I might have inherited my mother’s mental health issues.” Roxy sniffed. “But she might not have been schizophrenic at all.” The relief she felt for herself made her feel sadder for her mother. Maybe she hadn’t known she had witch blood, like Roxy hadn’t until now. Maybe she died in that institution thinking she really was crazy. Or maybe she did know, but no one believed her. No matter what had happened, knowing what Roxy knew now put an entirely different spin on her mother’s illness. She wondered if she’d ever find out the truth of what happened back then. Or even if her father had had some inkling. “I guess being part supernatural is why the water didn’t work on me either.”

“The town water? No, that wouldn’t work on someone with this many strands of supernatural in them.”

Roxy stared at her hands, imagining this strange new blood flowing through her veins. “Why can’t I do anything magical? Or turn into anything? Shouldn’t I have some kind of powers?”

Pandora shrugged. “We don’t know that you don’t. It could be that you’ve just never tapped into what’s there. Or it could be that you don’t have enough of any one kind to be able to manifest it. This is new ground for me. But you know, I’ve read your books. I wouldn’t say you’re without gifts.”

“That’s very kind of you, but I wish I could know more.”

“I might be able to help. Run some test. Can you spare a few strands of hair?”

“Sure.” Roxy grabbed the scissors off Agnes’ desk and handed them to Pandora as she turned and lifted her curls. “Just don’t leave a hole.”

Pandora snipped. “You won’t even notice it.”

Roxy turned around to see the witch pocketing a thin hank of curls. “That wasn’t much at all.”

“Nope.”

“You sure you’re not upset with me?” Kaley asked softly. She was biting her lip and staring at her feet.

“Not at all, Kaley. I promise.” Roxy’s heart went out to the kid. “I’m actually really excited to find out that I’m not entirely human.”

Kaley’s head came up. “For real?”

Roxy smiled. “For real. I really am. I want you both to do me a favor, though, okay? Let me be the one to tell Deputy Cruz, all right?” She looked at Pandora. “I want to figure out what this means for me and the spell we talked about, first. If you need to talk to someone else about it who might be able to help, I’m fine with that. But I don’t want to give him any kind of hope when there might not be.”

Pandora stood. “You got it. I’ll let you know what I find out as soon as possible.”

A knock on the door interrupted them, and Agnes stuck her head in. “It’s almost show time. You ready?”

Roxy got up and smiled. The possibility that she might be more than what she’d thought she was filled her head, making no room for nerves. Besides, that crowd was here for her. These were her people. She could do this, and do it well. “I can’t wait.”

Alex found a spot against the far wall where he could see Roxy and the front door. He couldn’t see the rear of the store, but Jenna was positioned in the storage area at that door, and with the alarm on, he doubted that would be the entrance the stalker chose.

Jenna’s sister had been given a name badge and was playing the part of an employee, which was more than Alex had expected her to be up for, but apparently Tessa felt strongly about someone threatening an author. And her librarian job made her a natural as a bookstore employee.

Pandora and Kaley had been given two reserved seats in the small front lounge. No one could enter the shop without going by Kaley, who was showing the kind of earnest effort that made Alex think the kid had a future in law enforcement if she wanted it.

Every time the door opened, the noise outside from the parade—and the crowd filling the streets of Nocturne Falls because of it –filtered in, adding to the already significant hum in the building. Alex tuned out the noise, though, and tried to keep his focus on two things: the door and the crowd in the shop.

It was hard not to watch Roxy, however. She’d had a big smile on her face from the start, and not a hint of nerves. She gave time to every reader who stood in front of her table, talking to them and asking them questions, standing for hugs and pictures, accepting the gifts they brought. She greeted everyone with the same enthusiasm, never showing the slightest trace of exhaustion. She was amazing. A rock star.