Rosemary and Rue

Opening the bag, I found a pair of jeans, my running shoes, and a wine-red cotton blouse, which was probably a good choice, considering all the bleeding I’d been doing. A smaller bag held underclothes, athletic bandages, and another cell phone. I gave Devin a curious look.

He shrugged. “You’re creative and accident-prone. You’ll find a use for them.”

“I didn’t mean the bandages.”

“That’s the trouble with miniaturizing technology. It gets easier and easier to lose. Of course, losing it gets easier when you lose the entire car.”

“Where did all this come from, Devin?”

A pained expression crossed his face. “You were out for quite a while. I had plenty of time to send a few of the kids to your apartment for supplies. And no, they didn’t break anything the Doppelganger hadn’t already destroyed, although they did manage to convince the police to go away.” He smirked. “It seems someone called in a noise complaint on you.”

“Right,” I said. “I’ll go get dressed.”

“Pity.”

“Jerk.”

“Accurate.”

Grinning, feeling better than I had in months, I left the office and walked back to the bathroom.

Changing clothes in a public restroom is an acquired skill, one that becomes an art when the bathroom floor hasn’t been washed in a decade or more. I recognized some of those stains. Still, it wasn’t hard to shimmy out of the nightgown and into my jeans, and I felt much better once I was wearing real clothes. They weren’t much as armor goes, but they were all I had.

Shoving my hands into the pockets of my jeans to tug them into place, I paused, my fingers striking metal. I grabbed hold and pulled out the key I’d taken from the rose goblin, frowning in confusion. Hadn’t it been in my other jeans? The ones I’d ruined by almost bleeding out on them?

It glittered in my hand, briefly taking on a hint of its prior luminescence. Evening’s last memories told me it was the key to Goldengreen; it needed to be kept safe. A brief flicker of blood-memory rose up, whispering that “safe” meant “secret.” I shoved the key back into my pocket, checking to be sure it was hidden before stuffing my borrowed nightgown into the plastic bag. It was a magic key. Maybe there was still something I needed to unlock.

When I returned to the office, Manuel and Dare were there, waiting. Dare had managed to find a heavy denim jacket that clanked when she moved; considering how many knives she’d been able to conceal without the coat, I decided I didn’t want to ask. Between that, the miniskirt and high heels, and the midriff-baring shirt that read PORN STAR IN TRAINING, she wasn’t exactly in the running for Miss Subtle USA.

Manuel was more sedately dressed. He’d tossed a windbreaker over his jersey and sweatpants, letting it hang loosely enough to imply that there might be something beneath it without shouting “Hey, I’m armed.” It wasn’t much better than his sister, but you work with what you have.

I walked past them, dropping the bag on Devin’s desk. “Good job with the clothes.”

“Not a problem. Here.” He tossed me a set of keys.

I caught them automatically, and frowned. “What’s this?”

“Were you planning to walk to Goldengreen?”

“Oh, no,” I said, realization dawning. “My car’s back at the bridge.”

“No, your car has been towed, stolen, or both. You’re taking one of mine.”

“Devin, I can’t—”

“You’re paying for it, remember?” He winked. “Don’t worry. I’m always open to a fair trade.”

“Good.” Not caring if the kids saw, I leaned over to kiss him again before heading for the door. “Come on, guys. We’re taking the car.”

“If you haven’t called by nightfall, I’ll send help,” Devin said, behind me now.

“Good idea,” I said, and left the office. The kids followed.

I paused at the front door, saying, “Disguises up.” The air filled with our magic, the sharpness of my copper blurring into Dare’s apples and Manuel’s cinnamon. Soon enough, the spells were cast, and three normal-looking people stepped out into the late December afternoon.