Page 108 of The Magic We Made

“I will, if you’d answer my question.”

“Well, Francesca, if you must know, I knew because Ash came to me some time ago and said he was buying a house for me in West Harbor. It was so out of the blue... I neither need nor want a house in West Harbor, not even as an investment. I do like your little town, but not enough to live here, even during the summer. I prefer Gstaad in the summer, and he knows that. So why was he so insistent? That’s when I did a little research of my own, and what do you think I discovered?”

“I don’t know.”

“Yes, you do. It’syou! Ash had to buy that house because it’s nearyou. And finding lost things is his gift.”

“Are you implying that I’m lost?” It’s fortunate for Gaia that I have a lot of experience dealing with opinionated old ladies like her (and my mother). Anyone else, I’m certain, would have tossed her out of the house. “Because I can assure you I’m not.”

“Oh, darling.” She leans over and—much like Hecate had done last night to Emma—cups my face with one of her warm, brown hands. “We all get lost occasionally. And yes, it’s very possible some other force brought you and Ash together. But does it matter? You’ve found one another now, and you’re both going to be very happy.”

I spring away, not because of her touch—which is strangely comforting—but because my mind is spinning.

“How can you claim you don’t interfere in the lives of us mortals when you absolutely do? Didn’t you cause the storm that came out of nowhere and ran Richard’s boat aground?”

“Me?” Her dark eyes, lined with black kohl, widen innocently. “Certainly not. Although I will say that I thought it was quite rude of him to ask that other girl and not you to accompany him on his journey. Not that you would have said yes if he’d asked, of course, but it simply wasn’t very gentlemanly on his—”

“Why?” I interrupt. This woman has clearly been spying on me for some time. Then again, she’s technically the owner of the house next door, which makes her my neighbor. Neighbors always know far too much about one another. But when that neighbor is also a goddess? I guess that could complicate things. “Don’t you have more important things to do? You know, Haley is an obvious psychopath, but she was right about a few things. The world really is burning in some places.”

“The world isalwaysburning somewhere, Francesca. I can’t stop that. I created this world as a gift to you humans. It’s up to you to work together to take care of it. I do try not to interfere, but like I said, every so often one of you needs a little push—”

“Like Ash’s dad?” I challenge her. “That bolt of lightning from out of nowhere on the golf course in Phoenix? Wasthatyou, pushing?”

She frowns prettily. “Imagine you asking me about that!”

“You said I could ask you anything.”

“The situation with Ash’s father... it was complicated.”

“Family usually is.”

“Yes, but this man... he really wassoterrible. My poor daughter was at her wit’s end. I don’t know if Ash has told you—”

I shake my head. “Ash has told me very little about his dad. I’ve mostly had to read between the lines.”

“Yes.” Gaia nods. “That makes sense. Ash has always been very forgiving. I don’t know where he gets it from... certainly not me. I gave his father a number of chances to change—more eventhan I gave your Richard—but he never took any of them. In fact, he became worse.”

“I understand Ash’s father had addiction issues,” I say. “But relapse is often part of recovery—”

“I know that, of course. But if a man doesn’twantto change—really, what does someone in your line of work do when a patient simplyrefusesto change his behavior, despite the fact that it’s harmful to themselves, or others?”

“Well,” I say. “There are many lines of recourse, but murder isn’t one I typically employ.”

“Yes, I suppose it’s different for therapists. You’re expected to behave within the confines of the law.” Gaia shrugs, still not looking a bit sorry. “But for those of us who don’t have such restrictions—”

“So you sent him where? The Underworld, for Hecate to deal with?”

She looks surprised. “Oh, no. The Underworld is only a way station, where souls go until their next destination is determined. I have no idea where Ash’s father ended up... but I doubt it’s anywhere good.”

“What about my father?” Tears are forming beneath my eyelashes, but I ignore them. “My dad never did anything to anyone except work hard and be a great husband and father. Why didhehave to die? And where did he end up?”

“Oh, darling! Is that what this is all about?” Gaia passes me a napkin. It isn’t a napkin I own. It’s cloth, and blue with white trim to match the tablescape. But I take it from her in order to dry my eyes. “Your father was a kind man who loved you and your mother and brother and sisters very much. Wherever he is now, I’m surehe’s happy and at peace. He died for exactly the reasons the physicians said. It wasn’t anything he did or didn’t do. Well, I suppose he should have gone to the doctor more often, and perhaps he oughtn’t to have eatenquiteas much fatty meat—”

“So you’re saying that free will exists?” I ask, choking back a sob. “Our future isn’t determined by destiny—oryou?Was thatyouwho parted that terrible fog last night while I was trying to swim to Ash?”

“Oh, my sweet Francesca.” She reaches out to stroke my hair, and this time, I don’t leap away. Her touch feels gentle and kind and, yes, even grandmotherly. Not at all the touch of a killer. “That wasn’t me. That was all you. All of us have a little magic inside, and sometimes when we’re very afraid, or when we want something very much—like you last night, when you wanted to help Ash—we’re able to access that magic. And when we do, extraordinary things can happen. That’s the real magic... that we all have the power to determine our own destiny. Like you’re about to do now.”

I shake my head, confused. “Now? What’s happening now?”