Chapter 15

 

Jared’s dark eyes crinkled at the edges as he laughed. His fingers slid across the prosthetic, stopping when he found a piece of metal, barely visible, that stuck out exactly where Machin said it would be. Jared tapped the switch toward him.

An electronic purr and the grinding of wheels resounded from inside the prosthetic. Jared’s eyes widened. His hands fell to his sides. Slowly, gently, as if a thought traveled from his brain, along his nerves, and attached to the muscles of a real leg, the prosthetic straightened and lowered to the ground.

“It works,” Tori squeaked, flinging herself toward him. “You have your leg—the one you’ve always wanted.”

Jared caught her in his arms. A flicker of pain passed his face, sending the muscles of his face twitching, before he set his jaw. He lifted Tori from the ground and turned, stiffly testing out the strength of his new leg. A long sigh followed. His lips settled into a quirked grin as he set her back down. “Nice costume, dear lollipop princess.”

Tori’s cheeks flamed. In the flurry of happenings since returning from trick-or-treating with Kimmy, she’d forgotten that she was still wearing her flouncy dress and a wig that looked less like hair and more like cotton candy. “Oh—I—this is my Halloween costume I wore to take Kimmy trick-or-treating.”

“I know. You look lovely both ways. I might even prefer the slippers to your hiking boots.”

“Wait. How did you know I was a lollipop princess?”

“You talked to yourself while getting ready,” he answered, amused by her horrified expression. Wincing, he added, “And also the night before in your sleep.”

Tori flushed, extra grateful she’d thought to cover the lantern with a quilt. “You heard me...”

“Yes.” His head leaned in until their noses touched.

Tori’s grandmother cleared her throat. Jared and Tori looked her way, both grimacing at the pallor of her skin.

“Are you okay, Grandma?” Dumb question. She must be as freaked out as I am by all this. Not to mention embarrassed.

“Yes—yes, I’m fine.” She took a moment to collect herself. Her cheeks regained their color as she held out a hand. “Pardon my manners earlier, Jared. My name is Alice. Welcome.”

“Thank you.” Jared accepted her hand in a warm shake. Before he could absorb what was happening, his arms were filled with half the contents of the tray of caramel apples.

“You must be starving, young man. Thirsty too! Come inside. I doubt we’ll be receiving any more visitors tonight.” She huffed quietly. “Thank goodness.”

Tori followed her grandmother and Jared inside the house, watching as he took in the cavernous home and its festive, spooky decorations.

“Follow me into the kitchen, young man. That will give Tori time to clean herself up before the hot chocolate’s ready.”

Tori gaped as if the old lady had sprouted butterfly wings. Instead of arguing, she took direction from her grandmother’s hands that were frantically shooing her away. Two steps at a time, she ran upstairs to change out of her costume and drag a brush through the sweaty, matted hair trapped beneath her wig.

 

While sipping hot chocolate, Tori stared at Jared as if worried he’d disappear if she looked away too long. She smoothed and unsmoothed the napkin that sat on her lap over her nicest pair of jeans. Inspired by Jared’s semiformal button-up shirt and pants, she’d also pulled on a sweater and a sparkly pair of earrings.

“We’ll need to settle this before your parents return home, which I expect will be soon,” said her grandmother, eyeing a mantle clock set over the fireplace. Turning to Jared, she added, “You’re a minor, so of course, we’ll have to sort out your documentation and schooling; but you’re welcome to stay. You need a home. I have plenty of room here and would be lying if I said I couldn’t use the extra help.” She shrugged. “I don’t know what I’m saving up for anyway.”

“You’re too kind, Mrs. Hale. I’d happily accept the position, especially if it means I’ll get to see Tori again.”

“Yes, well, to ensure that will be possible, it’s probably best if we were to leave out the part about you having been inside the lantern, along with the bending of the light or whatever you told me was happening out there. My visits with my grandchildren are infrequent enough as it is.” Her cheeks sagged as she frowned. “I end up traveling to my son’s home more than anyone comes here to visit me.”

Jared grinned at Tori. “When I introduce myself to your parents, I’ll speak the truth: that we met on Halloween night here at your grandmother’s house.”

“Yeah, but only officially.” She raised her palms. “That’s fine, though. I don’t want to bring up the subject of my nightly visits outside. But won’t you miss Havenbrim at all? Don’t you want to finish your apprenticeship with Machin?”

Jared and Tori’s grandmother shared a knowing glance. “While you were upstairs, I explained to Mrs. Hale that I never belonged to Havenbrim,” he said. “I never fit in there. Machin offered me something more than an apprenticeship. He gave me an extraordinary gift, and not just a leg. He gave me new friends. A new home. A whole new life. Thank you, Tori.”

“Thank me for what? I didn’t do anything except for stumble across you in the woods.”

“If you hadn’t found me, I might have missed my chance at this new life. You believed in me; you brought me to awareness. Before you, I was nothing but a memory trapped inside the light. You opened a passageway out of the darkness.”

Tori gazed at an empty mug as she let Jared’s words sink in. A tender smile played across her lips. “Well, if you put it that way—” She tilted her head up. “You’re welcome.”

Hordes of butterflies inside her stomach flittered wildly at the look Jared gave her in return.

A knock at the door dampened the moment.

“They’re here.” Tori’s grandmother shot up out of her seat. “Stay calm. We’ve discussed the matter. We have a plan. Everything will be wonderful.”

Wow, nervous much? Tori shook her head in disbelief. She’d never seen her grandmother so much on edge. Her heart softened, knowing how important it was for her grandmother to get to spend time with her and Kimmy.

“Tori?”

She looked up, straight into Jared’s deep brown eyes. “Yes?”

“What will they think of me?”

“They have no reason to distrust you, and I’m sure Grandma will give you a glowing review. Here they come now.”

“Carl, Megan, this is Jared—the young man I was telling you about that Tori met tonight. I invited him in from the cold. He’s looking for work; and since he’s a long way from home, I thought he could stay here for the night.”

Tori’s father sized up Jared with his eyes, and to Tori’s relief, gave him the same quirky grin that he’d give Adam or any other boy Tori knew from school. “Good to meet you, Jared.”

“Thank you, sir.”

“Nice manners, kid, but Carl’s fine by me.”

“Yes, nice to meet you, Jared.” Tori’s mother smiled. “How was trick-or-treating tonight, hon?”

“Great. Kimmy was awesome. We came back exhausted.”

“Speaking of exhausted—” Tori’s grandmother sat down, appearing as if all the life had been drained from her. “I’d like to hear how dinner went with the Thompsons before I fall asleep here in the kitchen. Tori, be a dear and show Jared the library, the computers, or whatever interests today’s youth.” Her eyes glittered. “You might like to watch a scary movie.”

Tori pecked her grandmother on the cheek, grateful for the escape.