[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
.He was a good-looking young man, Maggie thought as she forced a shy smile to her face when everyone at the table turned and looked up at her.“Look who I found,” Tom announced.“William, you remember my friend, Maggie Devon?”“Yes, of course.It’s nice to see you again,” William said as he stood and gave Maggie a hearty hug as if they, too, were old friends.“And you.Here, I brought this for you.Tom said you liked red wine.This is one of our favorites,” Maggie gushed as she extended the bottle out for William to see.“Our?” William inquired cautiously.Maggie froze.She had not meant to bring up any aspect of Brigit.She had not thought about the possibility of it until now.“Mine,” she quickly corrected.“It looks lovely.I can’t wait to try it,” William replied with a smile as he scanned the label.“Thank you.”“You remember Sola DuLach, right?” Tom cut in, giving Maggie’s arm a gentle squeeze.Maggie looked to her right to see Sola looking up at her.Her auburn-red hair had been pulled back into a tight French braid and she was wearing a bright colored sun-dress for the occasion.A gentle smile beamed under concerned, brown eyes.“Hello, Maggie,” Sola greeted.“Have a seat.I was beginning to think I would be the only anatomically real girl here.”“Now, now,” Tom chided his best friend.The exchange drew a few sniggers from the rest of the table.“I think I’ll get some food and a drink first.Save me a spot?”“Sure,” Sola agreed with another gentle smile.“I have to make my rounds,” Tom sang out as he turned away from the table.“Help yourself to anything you want.I’ll be right back, I promise,” he assured Maggie.She nodded silently.As she stepped to approach the buffet table, the sound of a dog’s barking began to punctuate the music that filled the garden.Shazam! was alarmed, Maggie thought, and not in a happy way.Sola turned at the sound of Shazam!’s sudden alarm, as did everyone else.Tom was hurrying toward the front door of his apartment, intent to discover what had caused his little Welsh Corgi such distress.Slowly, she let her eyes fall on Maggie Devon.The woman had no clue she had not come to the party alone despite the look of discomfort that played in her eyes.Sola knew it was because Maggie had fallen out of the practice of socializing – especially by herself.Sola had smiled politely when they had been re-introduced.She had hoped Maggie would see the concern in her eyes.A phantom had followed Maggie into the garden.The image of the gaunt red-haired ghost bothered her; but she noted that he remained a few paces back.Something in his emerald green eyes foretold danger – especially when they were trained on Maggie.Sola had also noticed that this ghost had not noticed her own awareness of him.She only hoped she would be able to find a moment to warn Maggie without causing too much alarm…“It’s a beautiful day, isn’t it?”Sola’s attention was torn away from the menacing phantom that seemed to be scanning the crowd.She looked up to find Maggie looking down at her.“It is,” Sola agreed, forcing her thoughts to rejoin the current moment.“I was just telling the boys here that this summer might be one of the best we’ve had.It’s supposed to stay like this for quite some time.”“That would be nice,” Maggie commented as she slid into the empty chair next to Sola.“Sola says she has secret sources in regard to the weather,” William piped up from across the table.“I wouldn’t be surprised,” Maggie smiled politely.“Most females have some secret talent, you know,” she joked before taking a bite from a deviled egg overburdened with paprika and pickled relish.“Do they? What’s your secret talent, Maggie?” William asked with a laugh.Maggie finished chewing the bite of deviled egg before she smiled and said:“It’s a secret.”Before she could be pressed further, Sola quickly raised her wine glass.“I’d like to welcome William with open heart to our little odd-ball family,” she announced.William flashed her a smile as everyone at the small table joined in the welcoming salute.“May you know all our secrets in time.”Seamus looked around at the faces that filled the garden he had followed Maggie to.His stomach churned as he fixed his gaze on each man’s face.They were abominations, all of them.He could smell their wickedness and his hand ached to reach out and touch them one by one.It would have given him a thrill to watch them fall to their knees, unaware of how death had suddenly come upon them.Yet, he kept his hand ironclad to his side.There would be time enough to carry out this particular quest, time when he was not under the watchful eye of John Blackwick.For now, Seamus decided, he would merely watch.He would make his own list of assignments to complete later, when the voice wasn’t speaking to him.The abominable could live a little while longer [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]