They all nodded. Uncle Brian cleared his throat.
“Is there a time frame?” he asked, his voice gritty as muscovado sugar.
“Whenever the good Lord calls me home. But I’d say sooner rather than later.”
Everyone was crying. Jake was squeezing her thigh under the table so hard Sadie was sure it would leave a bruise, but she couldn’t bear to push him away. Instead, she grabbed onto his hand like an anchor and squeezed back. Tava’s tears came out turquoise. Anne was trying to be stoic, but her shoulders were shaking. Raquel’s face was buried in Seth’s shoulder, and he ran a soothing hand over her back, his own tears refusing to fall.
And then, in the silence, the television turned on of its own accord and John Wayne’s voice filtered through to the kitchen.
“Courage is being scared to death but saddling up anyway,” he said in that trademark twang.
“I’ve always hated that damn picture,” Gigi said with a scowl.
There was silence around the table as True Grit played on in the living room, and then Tava laughed. Anne joined in a moment later, and then they were all laughing through their tears. The air was still heavy as they ate Gigi’s cherry cheese pie, and their hearts were still breaking, but they were breaking together, and that was its own kind of beauty.
As the people around the table dispersed to do dishes or head for the living room, Jake grabbed Sadie’s hand and gave it a gentle pull, nodding to the back-patio door.
She swallowed hard but followed.
“So, Gigi, huh?” he asked once they were in the garden.
“Yeah,” Sadie croaked, reminding herself that it was Gigi she should be concerned with. Not the small space between them that begged her to close it. Gigi. Not the way Jake’s skin looked in the moonlight or the way he ran a distracted hand through his hair.
Her chest tightened. All the change, the family, the looming threat of death, the life debt, gave her heart palpitations. She was losing control. And fast. Constantly feeling like she was about to choke. But being near Jake—somehow he diffused it. She wondered if that was what love was. The subtle easing in her chest. The lending of strength when you needed it most.
“I know this is a bad time,” he said, his hand on the back of his neck now, “but there really is something I need to talk to you about. It can’t wait any longer.”
The palpitations started again.
The ground grew warm beneath her feet. Seeped into her soles and wound through her body until it became so hot that Jake took a confused step back.
One more day, she reminded herself. I have almost everything I need now. The herbs. The knot of Isis. I can do this. Just keep him at bay awhile longer.
The nearby foxgloves, a flower symbolizing healing, began to droop in unison. Jake was talking, but she wasn’t listening. The pale pink of the foxgloves reminded her of the Mount Diablo buckwheat that grew on Wild Rose Hill outside of town. It was the one flower she could never get to grow in her garden. Blooming only once a year and thought to be extinct by most botanists, it was a powerful symbol of love. More than that, it was said to be the flower that had given Evanora Revelare, her ancestor, her magic. Why hadn’t she thought of it until now?
“Sadie,” Jake said.
She had to get that flower.
“Are you listening to me?”
It would be the thing that put her spell for Gigi over the top. She had to find Raquel. Make her go with her. Because there was no way she was going alone to Wild Rose Hill at night.
“Sorry.” She threw the word over her shoulder as she headed back to the house. “We’ll talk later!”
Cherry Cheese Pie
The easiest, foolproof, no-bake dessert around. Seth would beg me for this dumb ol’ pie for every special occasion he could think of, but Sadie never could stand it. That girl just has something against being peaceful, I think. A slice or two of this pie will help to ensure peace when an argument is sure to happen. Perfect for family gatherings.
Ingredients
1 （8-oz.） package cream cheese
1 （14-oz.） can sweetened condensed milk
? c. lemon juice
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 （9-inch） prepared graham cracker crust
1 （21-oz.） can cherry pie filling
Directions
1.?In a large bowl, beat cream cheese until fluffy. Beat in milk until smooth. Stir in lemon juice and vanilla, then pour mixture into graham cracker crust.
2.?Cover and refrigerate for three hours or until set. Top with cherry pie filling.
??9??
SADIE RUSHED THROUGH THE house and found Raquel on the front-porch swing, Seth leaning against the railing as they talked.