We all turned to look at him.
“It seems like you’re all just picking on her because she looks different. She might be a very nice person.”
“Are you accusing me of . . . of prejudice?” Vi sputtered.
“I don’t think so.” Seth tilted his head. “Maybe. You said she looks creepy—like Lady Gaga—but she’s just trying to make a living and express herself. There’s nothing wrong with that.” Seth shrugged.
“It’s not just how she looks, Seth,” I said. “She sells evil spell kits, and I found her mucking around in Rafe’s house, and . . . she’s creepy.”
“Well, you were at Rafe’s house, too,” he said. “And you’re psychic. Some people think that’s creepy.”
I wondered where all of this protection of Morgan came from. I didn’t think he’d ever even met the woman.
“We need more evidence,” Vi said.
“Yes, that would be helpful.” Mom nodded.
Dad put his head in his hands.
“We aren’t going to follow Morgan now, are we?” Seth said. “That hasn’t worked out so great in the past.”
I decided I needed to talk to Seth alone. He seemed very invested in his life in Crystal Haven and I knew it was time to confront him on his decision to leave New York.
“I have some things to take care of at home,” I said.
I thanked Mom for the breakfast and Seth got his things.
“We’ll work on a plan,” Vi said as we herded the dogs out to the car. “Let’s talk this afternoon.”
Amazed that I had escaped without talking about Mac, I turned the Jeep toward home. But, about a block away from my parents’ house, I pulled over and shut off the engine. The dogs looked at me curiously.
“What are we doing here?” Seth peeked out the window.
“Seth, we need to talk.” I knew this was the wrong way to approach a teenager, but I didn’t have time for subtle.
“Sure, okay.”
“Why did you come back to Crystal Haven?”
His phone buzzed and he pulled it out of his pocket with relief. I put my hand over it and waited until he looked at me.
His shoulders slumped.
“I can’t live there anymore,” he said.
“Where? In New York?”
He nodded. “Ever since this summer when I . . . heard Baxter. I’ve felt like I should be here. For one thing, there are a lot of animals in New York City and most of them aren’t very happy. It drags me down.”
I nodded. I hadn’t thought of this, but if he really could sense what the animals were thinking it was probably similar to the way I felt about my own premonitions—assaulted with no way to fight back.
“I thought that there must be other people dealing with this and it’s more likely I’ll find them here than in New York. Plus, my parents are always gone. There’s something going on at work and they’re stressed out.”
“But, don’t you miss them? Don’t you miss your sister?” Sophie was seven years younger than Seth, and my own status as a little sibling had me worried about her reaction to his vanishing act.
He nodded. “I do, but I miss them whether I’m here or there. I’ve heard from them more this past week than the whole time I was home. I guess they want to check in with me because I’m out of town. I do miss Sophie. . . .”
“I’m sorry, Seth. I didn’t know things were so stressful for your parents. Your mom doesn’t tell me very much about her work.”
He nodded. “She doesn’t talk about it much at all. But it’s been worse these past few months.”
I got an uncomfortable tingling feeling in my scalp and I rubbed my head to get rid of it. Grace was in trouble and I didn’t know how to help her.
“So, what’s your plan?”
He shrugged. “Dunno. I like it here. I’m keeping up with my schoolwork and I don’t have to deal with . . . actually going to school.”
There was no way Grace and Paul would agree to this. But, Seth clearly wanted to stay here. It would be an uncomfortable conversation—Hi, sis, your kid wants to come live in the place you’ve been running from all your life. I got a queasy feeling just thinking about it.
Seth looked at me with the same sad expression Baxter used when he wanted more dinner.
“Okay, I’m going to have to think about this. It’s really going to be up to your parents.”
He nodded, and I caught a fleeting smile as he turned his head away.
*
My chest is bursting as I run up the steps. They are twisting around each other and go on and on. I can barely take a breath because the panic fills my lungs.
I have one thought: Seth.
Light bursts through ahead of me and I realize I am almost at the top. Wind nearly knocks me back down the stairs and rain lashes at my face when I force myself out onto the open tower. My head spins and I have to grip the rough stone wall to keep my balance. I hear the laughing again.