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“How did you end up here?”
“Your dad asked for my help. That’s why I was on the boat. When you made him promise not to come straight home, he called me. Thank God Teague still thought I was on her side.”
I couldn’t stop looking at the place she’d been standing when she disappeared. “He was right to send you. I’ll have to tell him she’s dead.”
“Don’t think about it now.”
“I’ll think about it every day for the rest of my life.” I nodded at the blowtorch. “Ready?”
He fired it up. It looked like the kind chefs used to burn the sugar on crème brulees.
“Hold the pendant and use it to lift the chain. It’s going to get hot.”
I shuddered when Poe slipped a finger between the necklace and my skin.
“And Hallie, I didn’t mean anything I said. You know that, yeah?”
“I do.”
“I’m glad you two found each other, jealous even, except for the circumstances. Your grandchildren will never tire of the stories.”
The hiss of the blowtorch kept me from any commentary. The chain was unbearably hot, and the second I felt it give, I jerked it off my neck. “Thank you.”
“Least I could do.” Poe gave me a quick kiss on top of the head and disappeared into the cabin.
“What are you going to do with it?” Dune slid his phone back in his pocket and leaned against the railing.
“Get rid of it.” It was about an inch and a half long, with flower detailing, and an empty setting meant for a stone. Morning sunlight shone off the metal and I caught a hint of shadow. “It’s two pieces. Should I open it?”
“If you want to.” He nodded and took a step closer. “Just be careful.”
I twisted the top of the cylinder. It gave a little, so I applied more force. The lid came off. “There’s something inside.”
Shaking, I emptied the contents into my palm. An hourglass, no bigger than a safety pin. It hummed against my skin.
Dune stared at it for a long moment before meeting my eyes.
“Mom implied I needed this to transfer abilities. I believe you’re looking at the result of your quest,” I whispered.
“No.” He shook his head. “My quest led me to you.”
I slid the hourglass back into its secret home and replaced the lid.
“You sure you don’t want it?” I dangled the pendant from the chain, studying his face.
“I already have everything I want.”
I kissed him, long and hard. Together we walked to the boat railing.
I balled the chain and pendant up, made a wish, and threw them both into the Mississippi.
Dune, March
I met her in front of Saint Louis Cathedral. “Hurry!” Hallie dragged me across Jackson Square. “They’ve been waiting for twenty minutes already.”
“I told you I forgot my wallet and had to go back to the apartment. This is way different from the first time you saw them.”
“Heck, yeah! We’re planning a trip to Hawaii.” She tugged on my hand a little harder. “I’m excited, and you’re as slow as molasses.”
