A Kiss Before Doomsday by Laurence MacNaughton

Author:Laurence MacNaughton [MacNaughton, Laurence]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781633882683
Publisher: Prometheus Books
Published: 2017-05-23T04:00:00+00:00

19

WHO’S THAT LADY?

The next morning, Dru didn’t open up the Crystal Connection. She handwrote a sign that said “Closed for Makeover,” and then thought that might be a little too on the nose for her plans. So she made up another sign that said “Closed for Renovations,” which wasn’t exactly true either. She crumpled that one up too, and just left up the regular Closed sign. Then she went straight into the back room to prepare a miniature version of her Greyson-finding spell. She gathered penny-sized crystals and wove a tiny copper circle she could roll up to fit in her pocket.

After that, she headed over to Opal’s place.

Opal’s fashion collection—as she called it—took up almost the whole upstairs of her house. Over the years, every bedroom had been transformed into a giant walk-in closet, filled with racks upon racks of brightly colored clothing. The walls were stacked up to the ceiling with shoes.

Dru stared wide-eyed at the endless racks of clothing packed into every available space. Colorful swaths of fabric and beaded curtains draped the walls and doorways, creating a cozy sitting space around plush chairs shaped like giant high-heeled shoes. The music was already thumping when she arrived.

Opal made her sit down next to her in a shoe chair and leaned close. “I must’ve misunderstood something. When you said you needed help dressing up for a masquerade party, that’s one thing. I’m all about that. But are you actually planning on going undercover with Rane?”

Dru shrugged awkwardly. “I don’t know about ‘undercover,’ but—”

“To a sorcerers’ masquerade party. To try and find Greyson, so you can save the world. All stealthy and secret-like. And you’re planning to bring Rane?”

“Well, when you put it that way . . .”

Opal looked at her as if she’d lost her mind. “This is a bad idea. I know this for a fact. And there’s going to be alcohol involved?”

Dru winced. “Rane’s not always that bad.”

Opal sat back in the high-heeled shoe chair, her eyes wide. “You are kidding me. Every time I let you talk me into doing something with that girl, it always ends with—” Opal’s voice dropped an octave, “—‘Ma’am, you’re going to have to come with us quietly.’”

“This time it’s going to be different, I promise.” Dru spied a plastic bag of giant foil-wrapped breakfast burritos sitting on the mirrored coffee table. “Is she here?”

A muffled crash sounded behind one of the beaded curtains. “There’s no room in this stupid place!” Rane yelled. “And nothing fits!”

“It’s okay, honey,” Opal called back, wringing her hands. “You just keep looking!” To Dru, she said in a stage whisper, “This woman is a walking disaster zone. Lucky for you, I’ve got a lot to work with. I’ve been collecting fashion for a long time.”

Dru decided there was a fine line between collecting and hoarding, but she decided not to say anything. Instead, she unwrapped a breakfast burrito and bit into it, savoring the buttery taste of hot eggs and potatoes. She could’ve done

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