Book Four: Chapter 42

“I should have been there.” The kitsune’s eyes glowed for a moment, and then she let out an exasperated sigh. “It really doesn’t matter, though. He finds trouble no matter what he’s doing.”

“He’s like a magnet for it.” Beth set down her cup. “Are we ready?”

“I think so. Come.” Ratu set her cup down as well, and led the group back up to the room with the magical hourglass. Once inside, she had Beth wait by the device, then spoke in low tones with the others.

Beth craned her neck, trying to catch any additional info, but all she caught was bits of magical jargon she didn’t understand, and a level of seriousness from all three of them that made her nervous. She pulled Jenny out of her sling and held her tight against her chest.

“You wouldn’t let anything happen to me, would you?”

The doll’s head rotated a hundred and eighty degrees to look Beth in the face, then winked.

“Okay, remember the ‘do fewer creepy things’ talk? This is a creepy thing.”