In which Remus's furry little secret is revealed, and Emma delivers bad news.
***
Granny didn't seem to realize what a bombshell she had dropped on her granddaughter, for she went right back to humming absently as she looked through her books. "What do you mean you haven't seen him in a few days?" Ruby finally sputtered, her eyes wide and worried.
Granny shrugged. "Like I said, he hasn't been in here in a few days."
Ruby huffed. Maybe if she hadn't quit her job at the diner, she would have realized she hadn't heard from or seen Remus in a few days. Ruby's eyes narrowed, and she quickly checked the clock on the wall. Afternoon had bled into evening . . . and Remus hadn't been seen for two days? "I can't work now, but I can work tomorrow night," she said, her mind whirling with ideas. "I have to go see what's going on."
Granny shrugged, waving her away. "Go ahead," she said. "Just remember to eat."
Ruby, without so much as a glance at Granny or the customers in the diner, immediately grabbed her jacket and purse with the intent of marching out the door and finding Emma before she left the sheriff's station. Before she reached the door, however, she ran smack into Victor's chest. "Whoa!" Victor blinked, quickly reaching out to steady Ruby when she wobbled. "You're quick to try and leave again."
"Have you seen Remus the last couple days?" she blurted, her voice frantic as she looked at him with desperation.
Victor opened his mouth to reply, then he shut it and reconsidered. "Now that I think about it, no," he replied slowly, shaking his head with a frown. "Not since he asked Emma if you could stay with them."
Ruby swallowed hard, her hands starting to shake as she gripped Victor's hands. "Granny hasn't seen him, either," she muttered, a wild look in her eyes as she met Victor's gaze. "Where could he be?"
"Hey," Victor reached up and cupped her cheek, making sure she looked at him. "Take a deep breath, OK? We can ask around. It can't be too hard to find the others, right? Emma should be at the station, and Queenie is likely still setting up her bakery. One of them may know."
"Yeah," Ruby nodded and took a deep breath. "OK. Good idea."
"I have them from time to time," Victor smirked, chuckling when Ruby weakly smacked him in the shoulder. "Come on. We pass by the bakery on the way to the sheriff's station."
Ruby could only nod, and Victor caught Granny's grateful eye as he held open the door for the waitress. As soon as he stepped out after her, Ruby threaded her arm through his and tucked close against his side, her green eyes darting to and fro as if hoping Remus would magically appear from some alley. Then again, Victor mused as he gently tugged Ruby closer, their knees now brushing as they walked, he's a wizard. That could actually happen.
Queenie's bakery wasn't too far away, but Ruby gasped and pulled Victor to a stop before they could reach the door. "What?" Victor asked, frowning in concern.
"Look!" Ruby hissed, pointing through the window.
Victor blinked then focused on where Ruby indicated. Harry, Draco, and Hermione were at one of the tables, the entire surface covered in books. Queenie was bustling behind the counter, but Narcissa walked behind the children, perfectly-manicured nails tapping against her arm. When Hermione's head finally raised from where she had been reading, Narcissa immediately stopped behind her and leaned down to listen to her question. "Narcissa is tutoring them tonight?" Victor asked in surprise.
"That's what Remus has been doing for Harry," Ruby whispered, looking at Victor with wide eyes. "Victor, if he isn't here . . . "
"OK," Victor backed away. "Forget Emma. Didn't you say earlier that Newt was supposed to help her with the Kathryn Nolan case?"
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Operation Cobra (Book Two of The Savior Fables)
Fanfiction"It was the kind of small-town with nothing to look at - unless you knew where to look. After all, it's a town no-one knows exists." In which it's time for the small, sleepy town in Nowhere, Maine to wake from its twenty-eight-year nap. When Emma Sw...
