Grim Magic (Book 4 of the Ink Series)

The welcome mat sucks

The ride home was long and silent. We all were quiet for various reasons I was sure. Dad slept the majority of the ride home. Missing out on the rest stops and the poor gas station coffee Slade inhaled every chance he got to stay awake.

I didn't ask him why he didn't cast some spell to keep himself awake. To me it would have been a lot easier and less toxic on his insides.

With Jersey behind us and California in our sights I was mixed with a bit of fear and happiness to be back. I wanted to smell the salty aquatic smell that slipped past my nose when I was on the boardwalk.

And the seagulls, they were from another world. No matter what time of day, they were always in distress even when they were gracefully gliding through the air.

I looked over at Slade. "You look sexy when you drive." I grabbed his hand holding on to it for dear life. We had been through the ringer and to feel him and see him sitting next to me was a relief.

I took in the clouds, the different shades of grey hardly gave me what I wanted which was the sunshine on my skin when my feet hit the ground. But I settled for the dreary homecoming because my mind was just as clouded and dark.

I was down because I knew what was about to happen. Nona would want answers the minute she saw us. And I couldn't imagine what Elliot and Easton would say the second they were able to unleash their teenage mood on us. Part of me didn't blame them if they were mad because a week was a long time to be away.

They weren't babies anymore but they still needed Dad around just like I did when I was heading into sweet sixteen territory.

When Dad opened his eyes and sat up in the backseat I was filled with questions I knew only he could answer. So I asked.

"What are we going to tell them?" Maybe getting the boys to let things go would be easy but we both knew Nona was a totally different story and she would never settle for a simple answer.

"I've been thinking about that," Dad said. "And I think the best thing to do is be as vague as possible."

Slade and I looked at each other. Slade didn't offer any suggestions he just turned back to the road and kept right on driving.

"I can't see that working," I told him. "Nona is going to want answers."

Dad sighed. "I'm a grown man. I don't have to give my mother answers. I don't have to tell her anything if I don't want to. But I will tell her something."

I tossed every ridiculous idea around in my head, until it finally hit me. "You and I went to visit Griffin."

Dad shook his head. "Your mother would be the first place she called if we went missing." Dad took in the ocean as we neared our street. "We'll tell her I was having a hard time and needed to get away."

Slade came to a stop in front of our house. He turned the car off and undid his seatbelt. "I think your dad is right. She'll believe that."

I crossed my arms. I wasn't so sure. "And where were we all this time?"

Slade tilted his head thinking about it. "I took you to meet my family. She'll eat that shit up." He slapped a hand down on my thigh and hopped out of the car.

I wished he would let me meet his family. So I could get a closer look at what created someone like him. While I was busy worrying about Nona he walked around like life hadn't changed drastically, like we hadn't went up against death and survived. But maybe it was normal for him—he had been there a few times before.