Her booth was crazy-busy again as the shoppers settled in to the last-day-of-the-festival frenzy. Baxter and Tuffy may have had something to do with the bottleneck since they sat right in front of Diana’s sign wagging at anyone who walked by. They were such an odd couple that no one could pass by without stopping to pet one of them. Diana set Seth loose to explore the fair while the rest of us served the continuous stream of customers. Seth returned with a small metal dragon statue—an unusual choice, but apparently his Harry Potter roots ran deep. He shoved it in his pocket when Diana and Skye approached. Diana sent us home for dinner as long as we promised to return for the closing ceremony. She knew we had yet to tell my family that Seth was in town.
Seth, the dogs, and I headed back to Crystal Haven in silence. I was running all the rumors through my head. He was plugged in to his iPod. I thought maybe he would volunteer his reasons for being back in Crystal Haven—I had read somewhere that teenagers liked to talk in cars. Apparently, not all of them.
We pulled into my parents’ driveway and I shut off the Jeep. “Are you ready?”
Seth nodded. “It’s not going to get any better. Maybe Tuffy will distract them.”
“Yeah, let’s go with that.” I got out and opened the back door for the dogs.
Baxter planted himself at the front door and gave two deep woofs. Like Mac, he had a signature knock. Aunt Vi swung the door open in greeting and stopped midsmile. “Tuffy? Where did you . . .” She looked up and saw Seth standing on the bottom step. She stepped back in the house and said, “Rose, I knew it! Seth is here!”
“Who’s here?” Mom appeared, wiping her hands on a dish towel. She saw Seth and came forward with her arms out for a hug. “What are you doing here? We missed you so much!” She turned to me, hands on hips. “Clyde, how long have you been planning this?”
Seth allowed the fawning to continue. I think he secretly liked it. His blond bangs fell into his eyes as he bent to hug the ladies in turn. The truth was, things hadn’t been the same since he left to go back home at the end of the summer. I’d gotten used to having him around. I guess the rest of the family felt the same.
“And Tuffy’s here, too!” Vi crouched down and gave the dog the same hero’s welcome as Seth. I was starting to get jealous.
Dad came to the door. Just slightly taller than me and with a shock of white hair that stood straight off his forehead, he looked perpetually surprised. “What’s going on out here? Oh, hi, Clyde. Wait till you see my new police scanner. I can even pick up the Grand Rapids channels.” Dad was slowly easing out of his dental practice and pursuing other interests, like spying on the police.
“Frank, Seth is here with Tuffy,” Mom said.
“Oh, Seth. You should come see it, too.” Dad stopped and looked at the melee of dogs and people on his porch. “Did I know you were coming to visit?” He looked at Seth.
“No, it’s a surprise.” Seth grinned.
“Thank goodness. I thought I was slipping.” Dad scratched his head, and swung his other arm toward the door. “Well, are you coming in or what? Dinner’s on the table.”
We trooped inside and settled around the table in our usual spots. Mom bustled, making a production of setting an extra place for Seth. Vi sat with Tuffy on her lap, a distant look on her face.
“Tuffy doesn’t like planes, and he also doesn’t like your duffel bag,” Vi said to Seth.
Seth just nodded.
“He wants to know how long he gets to stay before you have to travel again.”
I cocked an eyebrow at Vi. “Tuffy wants to know, or you do?”
“It is a good question,” Vi said.
“Seth just got here, Vi. Let’s not rush him out the door.” Mom came in from the kitchen with lasagna in her hands. Mom always had enough food to feed any swarm of locusts that showed up—even Seth. “I hope you’re all hungry.”
The dining room fell silent after the food was dished up. Mom had made her own sauce and the cheesy meaty combination was one of my favorites. Seth was on his second helping before the inquiry began.
We had decided to give the same explanation to the family as we had been giving everyone else. Seth wanted to catch the end of the festival since he’d been working on it for most of the summer. I still didn’t know why he’d arrived on my doorstep, and something told me I didn’t want to know. But I would need to confront him soon.
The story seemed to satisfy everyone and we moved on to other topics, namely Rafe’s death. Seth had been filled in on the particulars and listened avidly to the conversation.
“I just knew something would happen that night. I felt it. The woods were so dark and there was this . . . foreboding,” Vi said.
I looked at the ceiling. I remembered her asking five hundred questions and chattering through the whole thing. She didn’t seem to be worried at the time.
“I, for one, am glad I wasn’t there. I’ve never been happy about the whole dark-woods-and-cauldrons combination.” Mom began collecting the dishes.
“I heard the 10-52 go out on the scanner. I have to say I was relieved when I heard the victim was male.” Dad glanced at me. His police scanner habit meant he talked in code much of the time and I was the designated translator.
Seth, Mom, and Vi looked at me and waited.
“10-52 is ‘ambulance needed,’” I said. They all nodded understanding and went back to their food, except Vi.