“Really?”
“Only five wizards in the past thousand years have achieved a Black Ribbon.”
“I had one of the five in my bar, and I didn’t even know?”
He shook his head. “You spoke with two of the five today.”
“Two?” I gaped, my mouth falling open. “Do you have a Black Ribbon?”
He shook his head. “Not me.”
“But—”
“Someone very close to you.” Liam leaned in, his gaze scanning the room. “Someone skilled, intelligent, and accomplished. It just might be the person you know best on this island.”
I blinked. “My cousins aren’t witches and wizards. I pretty sure it’s not Hettie…”
“Think. Who is the person closest to you?”
I looked up. “No.”
Liam flashed a tight smile. “Yes.”
“Gus?”
“I’m not surprised he didn’t tell you,” Liam said. “He likes to keep it a secret.”
I stood up, my head spinning. “I...I have to get going. Thanks for everything.”
I left the coins on the table, bid Liam a distracted goodbye, and turned for the door. My mind whirred with thoughts of Gus, the person I trusted most outside of my family. I hadn’t expected him to tell me everything about his history, but something this huge seemed important enough to share.
My blood ran cold even as Liam called after me to wait up. I couldn’t help but think that, even after all this time, I really didn’t know Gus at all.
Chapter 12
Midge waved as I walked out the door, my mind in another dimension. I think I told her goodbye, but I might’ve thought it instead. As I stumbled down the curvy path from the B&B, I let my thoughts float in the clouds and my feelings go numb.
Gus hadn’t lied to me. I’d never asked where he’d gone to school or how he’d learned every herb and potion in such detail. I’d always assumed that he’d learned it training with previous Mixologists as an apprentice, and he’d let me continue to believe that.
My feet carried me away from Main Street. The families mingling about were beginning to thin out at this hour, but I didn’t feel like being around anyone at all. I didn’t want to go home either. That left me with nowhere to go. My cousins were busy, and even my aunts had plans. Hettie had a date too, even if it was only with her weekly program. I was alone.
Kicking sand up from the ground, I debated joining Hettie and Poppy. It’d be better than sitting at home alone, letting my mind dwell on all of the events of the day. The Elixir, the news about Gus, the cloaked strangers...Gus had been right. I wouldn’t be getting much sleep tonight.
I took a detour instead of heading straight to The Twist. I walked along the sandy beach up the northeastern side of The Isle, my gaze alternating between the glittering white sand sprinkled beneath my toes and the last, lingering fingers of sunlight on the horizon. Waves lapped at the shore, and a light spray misted against my ankles.
Slipping off my flip-flops, I carried my shoes in my hand and let the coolness of the ground soothe my aching feet. Working all day in the storeroom had gotten me in better shape than ever. I wouldn’t be running marathons anytime soon, but it was more movement than I’d gotten sitting in a cubicle and heating up Hot Pockets for lunch.
At the bungalow, I had an endless supply of fruits, eggs, toast, and all sorts of tasty, fresh food. Plus, I had the luxury of going to Hettie’s house at least once a week for a home-cooked meal. In the few weeks I’d been living on The Isle, my body was already adjusting. My skin darkened, my hair lightened, and my body slimmed down, while still building muscle. Island life was growing on me.
By the time I looked up, I had almost reached the northernmost point on the East side of The Isle. Just in front of me sat an all-glass building that jutted out over the lake. A sign sticking a bit crooked out of the ground read Sea Salt.
I stood still for a moment, trying to remember if I’d come here on purpose, or if it’d been my subconscious guiding the way. Even as I failed to convince myself that it’d all been one big accident, my gaze landed on the one man I desperately wanted to see.
High above the water sat Ranger X. He was perched in the loft-style restaurant at a table in the corner closest to me. From the looks of it, he was alone. I made my way over to the base of the building, never once taking my eyes off him. All four walls were clear glass while the floor was made of a frosted panel so that wandering eyes couldn’t peek under a lady’s skirt. I watched as Ranger X placed his order with a cute blond waitress.
His eyes didn’t follow the waitress as she bobbed away. Instead, his gaze turned toward the lake. Resting against the back of his chair, he simply sat still and watched as the waves jumped and leaped in the distance, both calming and excited all at once. I was used to people playing with their phones, sending texts, and scrolling Facebook during wait times, but not X. He just sat and watched as if waiting for something to appear on the horizon.