Page 50 of (Mostly) Human Resources

Fury coursed through her veins. “I hate you.”

There was enough venom in her words to make Nic look completely taken aback. “I beg your pardon?”

“Ihateyou,” Alexys said again, carefully enunciating each word. “I hate that you found Tom, and I hate that your trip was sofuckingeasy.” She slammed the cabinet shut and stalked toward him. “I have spent the entire day looking for Elliot, lost in the woods, getting chased by evil Haints! I’m fairly certain I’ve met the devil himself, and I’ve been told no less thantwicethat I am going to die in a spectacularly horrible way.”

Nic scrambled from his seat and began backing away from her, his hands raised in a placating gesture. “Now, now, no reason to be aggressive, Keane.”

“No reason?” She barked a humorless laugh. “I haveeveryreason to be aggressive, Dyre.”

“The cheek! You’re the one who leftme!I was going tohelpyou!”

“Oh, is that what you were doing when you spoke to Elliot behind my back? When you crashed my evaluation and hijackedmyWarden’s case?”

“That’s enough.” The sharp bark of Opal’s voice caught them both by surprise. “Sit down,” she demanded. “Thebothof you.”

The pair obeyed and, with no other choice, sat next to each other at the cramped kitchen table. Alexys glared at Nic, and he avoided looking at her. She was all too aware of how childish they looked, but she didn’t have the energy to care.

“Good to see you survived, child.” Opal grimaced, and Alexys knew it was her appearance. “I’ve brought dinner.” Opal dropped a takeout bag on the table. “Since I’ve now gotthreemouths to feed.”

“I’m so sorry, Opal,” Alexys said. “I would never want to impose—”

“Opal, sincere apologies for the inconvenience, we certainly will look to get out of your hair as soon as possible,” Nic interjected.

“I was in the woods all day,” Alexys added. She felt foolish for it the second she said it.

Opal’s gaze was withering. “And thank the Good Lord for that.” Alexys pressed her lips together to keep from saying anything else and scowled at the witch.

“Quit looking at me like you sucked on a lemon and eat your food.” Opal hobbled past her to pull out a pitcher of sweet tea from the fridge, delivering a firm smack to the back of Alexys’s head as she passed.

Alexys was starving. She did as she was told, albeit rubbing the back of her head and grumbling in the process.

CHAPTER 29

“Of myself. For myself. I fear what this might mean for us.”

The Fairchild Grimoire,1594 Entry by Mercy Fairchild

They ate quietly until there was nothing left but crumbs. Alexys did her best to ignore Nic’s existence despite the distinct lack of elbow room. She made a mental note to never sit on his left side again. The left-handed menace knocked into her arm every time she tried to take a bite.

When Opal was satisfied with the amount they’d eaten, she sat back in her seat and waved a hand at Alexys. “Go on, then,” she said. “Tell us how you survived.”

Alexys hesitated, but Opal’s pointed gaze told her she wasn’t going to budge.

So, Alexys told them everything. Tracking with the compass app (of course Nic chided her for not using a proper compass), stumbling upon Waylan, the horrible journey to his forgotten house and the way his eyes changed as he chased her through the woods. When she got to the part where Silas saved her, she hesitated once more.

Mistaking her silence for the end of the story, Opal leaned back in her chair and said, “Well, I have to hand it to you, I’m impressed you made it back. Few do.” She levelled Alexys with an apathetic stare. “Your Warden, for example.” Alexys frowned. She didn’t need the reminder that she’d effectively failed in her mission, been sidetracked by a seemingly innocent child, and ran like hell the first chance she had.

Nic cleared his throat beside her. He looked at Alexys with a mix of disbelief and, she suspected, frustration. He suspected she was leaving something out. She hadn’t found her way back to Opal’s all on her own, and he knew it. Not with a ghost chasing her, no proper equipment and no sense of direction. Nic didn’t know her very well, but he certainly knew her better than that.

Alexys waited for Nic to call her bluff, but he didn’t. Instead, he asked, “You went into those woods with nothing but your cell phone and a few Entity basics? You didn’t think, oh, I don’t know, to arm yourself with something you could use to defend yourself?”

“What’s it to you?” she snapped. “I didn’t have any other choice! I had to get out there and search for Elliot.”

“You did have a choice, but youchoseto leave me behind.”

His words stung. Opal gave her a look, and heat bloomed across her cheeks.

“It’s hard to believe you managed without any help.” Nic sounded so doubtful it actually hurt her feelings. It would’ve been nice if he’d had at least alittlefaith in her. “And how on earth did you outrun a vengeful spirit in its own haunting grounds?”