Page 73 of Impractical Magic

“Darling sister of mine, are you telling me that Mandy Patinkin was supposed to be coming here? To Oak Haven?”

“Obviously! Mama made a big effort to get the booking. They were going to stay in Litchfield somewhere? But she called Mandy and she said, ‘Look—’”

“Halt.” Scarlett raised her hand. “Mama knows Mandy Patinkin? That’s what you’re telling me. Kelly Melrose. Is friends. With Mandy Patinkin.”

“I mean . . . friends . . .” Delilah said slowly. “I guess . . . more like, friends with—”

“Don’t you say it! If you say benefits right now, I’m going to lose my fucking mind.”

Before Delilah could confirm or deny this gossip, voices drifted down from the second-floor landing. Maximillian jauntily descended the stairs, flanked by two top-hatted magicians, one on each side—a tall, portly fellow on the right and a short, thin fellow on the left. The big magician talked endlessly; the little one said nothing at all.

Scarlett gasped. It’s Max! Right in front of me. Here’s my big chance to get to the truth. “Hey, Maximillian—” she began.

But Delilah grabbed her arm and shushed her.

“No, Del, you don’t understand, I need to—”

“Shut up, don’t say a word.”

Scarlett glared at her sister, then realized that Del was looking as appalled as she was. Surely it couldn’t be for the same reason? Had her sister already figured everything out? It wouldn’t be the first time that Del got somewhere ahead of me. “We need to get the truth,” she whispered urgently.

“Not now,” Del said between gritted teeth.

The magicians reached the bottom of the stairs. Deep in conversation, they swept right out of the inn without a glance at the reservation desk.

“Why’d you stop me?!” Scarlett demanded. “You know they’re involved with the infestation somehow, right? I don’t know how exactly, but Violet made it quite clear to me today that they did something. We need to question Max.”

“Okay, calm down, Columbo. First of all, questioning him directly isn’t going to get you anywhere—Max is too smart for that. But that’s not why I stopped you.”

“Then why—”

“Because,” Del said ominously, “those two magicians with Max just now? Fat Man and Little Boy? They never entered this inn.”

Scarlett blinked a few times, hoping that would help her make sense of Del’s statement. “We just saw them coming from upstairs. Obviously, they entered the inn at some point, because they just now exited. I think you’ve been behind that desk too long, Del.”

“That’s my point, actually. I’ve been at this desk all day. All day, Scar, with no breaks. And yet, I’ve never seen those two. I’m telling you, they entered the Stargazer some other way.”

Scarlett glared at the staircase as if the answer was written on the steps. “But how could . . .” Slowly, she turned back to her sister. “You’re saying . . .”

“I’m saying . . . something is going on in Max’s room.”

Scarlett gasped. “You know what? I just remembered. When Nate and I checked for portals, Max wouldn’t let us inside. He was adamant we not see his room. But . . .” She leaned over the reservation desk—so far over, her forehead was nearly touching her sister’s. “There’s no one there now.”

Delilah jingled her ring of room keys. “Let’s do this.”

***

Delilah inserted the key into the lock, expecting the satisfying click of the tumblers falling into place. Instead, the key refused to turn. She tried again, jiggling the key with growing frustration, but it was useless.

“He must’ve changed it.”

“That’s some balls on him,” Scarlett marveled. “Changing the locks on your rented room!”

Delilah bit her lip, her mind obviously racing. “I could try a spell to open the lock, but . . . we both know that’s not the best idea.”

“Hold that thought.” Scarlett disappeared down the hallway, leaving Delilah to stare at the unyielding door.

Delilah jigged the lock again, just out of spite. “I wonder if Luna could do it . . .”