I ran into Owen at the subway station. He looked tense but excited. "Are you really up for this?" I asked him while we waited for a train.
"I think so. I know what to do, but I've never had the chance to try it."
"And you're really more—" I searched for a word I could use safely in public.
"—capable than he is?"
"Apparently so. People are gifted in a lot of areas. This happens to be mine." He shrugged. "Maybe it's genetic."
"Were your parents like that?"
"I don't know. I never knew them. They died when I was a baby. At least, I think they did. I don't even know who they were."
As usual, a train showed up just as things were getting interesting, and a crowded subway train wasn't the place to get into a conversation about someone's mysterious origins. If Owen was an orphan, that could explain some of his awkwardness around people.
He walked me home from the subway station, saying he didn't want to take any chances, then we said we'd see each other very soon. I went upstairs and laid out an outfit for the morning. I wasn't sure what one should wear to a magical battle—not even Gemma the fashion maven would have an answer to that—so I went with warm, comfortable clothes that were still businesslike—a black wool pantsuit with a gray sweater underneath and low-heeled short boots.
I knew I should go to bed early, but I was too wired to sleep. Instead, I baked cinnamon rolls. Cooking always relaxes me, and I had a feeling all of us could use some sugar in the morning. The rolls were rising when my roommates got home.
"What are you up to?" Marcia asked when she saw the flour-spattered kitchen.
"I have to go on a very early road trip for work in the morning."
"Ah, sucking up to the boss with some goodies, huh?"
"Or impressing the cute guy?" Gemma teased.
"Mostly just sorting out my thoughts," I said, although they were both partially right.
"I can switch beds with you for the night, Marcia, so I don't disturb you when I have to get up and go. It's going to be god-awful early."
"What kind of business trip is it?" Marcia asked.
"Just a meeting my boss is going to."
"And he's too cheap to spring for a hotel room. Typical. He is driving with you, though, isn't he? He's not putting himself up in luxury for the night?"
"No, he's driving with us. It was a last minute thing, so we couldn't get rooms."
"Is that cute guy, the one you were talking about, going to be on this trip?" Gemma asked. She has a one-track mind.
"Yeah. Actually, there will be two of them." I hadn't yet told them Ethan was working with my company, so I decided not to try to work that in right then. It would get too complicated to explain. Come to think of it, "complicated" was a very good word for my life.
I set Marcia's alarm for one, and when it woke me, I started the coffeepot while I dressed, then rilled a couple of thermoses. I had a feeling we'd need plenty of caffeine to keep us all going. I'd just made it to the sidewalk when a silver Mercedes pulled up. The passenger window rolled down and I saw Merlin's face. "Good morning, Katie," he said, looking perkier than any thousand-year-old man had a right to look at that time of the morning.
I climbed into the backseat, then Ethan took off. We turned off onto a narrow, tree-lined side street, where Owen waited on the sidewalk. He wore a black, double-breasted greatcoat over a dark suit, which was somewhat incongruous with the pillow he had tucked under one arm, like a child heading off on a family vacation.
I scooted over to make room for him in the backseat.
And then we were off. "I brought coffee," I said. "Does anyone want any?"
"Oh, bless you. You're an angel of mercy. Black, please," Ethan said. I poured some into a travel mug and passed it up to him. He turned to Merlin and said, "I can see why you hired her."
"Anyone else?"
"No, thank you," Merlin said. "I must confess I haven't developed a taste for this coffee you drink."
I turned to Owen, but he was already sound asleep, his head resting on the pillow he had wedged against the window. I didn't see how he could sleep at a time like this, but it was good that he could. We needed him at his best that morning.
An hour into the drive I was wishing I'd brought my own pillow. Not that I thought I could sleep, but there wasn't much else to do. In the front seat, Ethan and Merlin talked quietly. It sounded like Merlin was giving Ethan a Magic 101 lecture, answering all of Ethan's questions. I would have liked to listen in, but they spoke too softly and I didn't want to risk waking Owen by asking them to speak up so I could hear. It was too dark in the car to read, even if I had brought a book, and I couldn't see the scenery outside in the darkness.