Carve My Pumpkin (The Night Realm: Halloween Marked #3)

Chapter 2

TWO

COLETTE

"Find a soulmate. Find a soulmate? How does that even happen?” I pulled up just outside Ellsworth Library, the only library on the Island but the best library ever. I sucked in a deep breath and climbed out of my car.

Part of me felt elated at the prospect of getting the raise, but the other part of me wondered how the hell I was going to keep this new position. I wanted it so damn much that I would do anything to keep it. Anything , in this case, meant finding a lost soulmate. I had no idea about soulmates. I didn’t want one, nor did I ever think I’d get one. I barely fit in on the Island. It was one of the reasons why I wanted to travel so badly. This job was supposed to give me that, and now I was stuck playing matchmaker.

I sucked in a deep breath and blew it out as I walked up the steps of the library. The outside of the library was lovely, with archways running across the entire front of it. The building itself was a light sandstone that matched the vibe of the rest of the Island. The roof was made of a darker red stone. The archways were separated by columns, and every time I was here, it always gave me a sense of relief, a sense of comfort.

I pushed through the double doors in the front of the building, and the moment I entered, I was surrounded in warmth. There was a quiet stillness about the library that I couldn’t quite describe, but it appealed to that same quiet within myself. Dark wooden shelves were lined up in all different directions. Above me, the ceiling had a large, dome, stained-glass mural. The last rays of sunlight shined through the panes and cast light colors over the stacks. Stained-glass windows lined the walls in between the shelves. Books floated from one shelf to the other as though they were organizing themselves.

At the center of the library was a circular desk with a golden countertop. Sylvie stood behind the desk with reading glasses perched at the end of her nose. She was an older mage with silver hair cut short to her head to flatter her face. When she spotted me, she smiled, and the wrinkles around her eyes made them look like perfect little half-moons.

Sylvie was all sass and sophistication. “There you are.”

I tried for calm but the meeting with Mateo had really thrown me. I sucked in a deep breath. The perfect job, my perfect job, relied on me being able to manage my boss’s personal life. “Sorry. I’m running just a little bit late.”

“Oh, hush,” came a voice from in between two stacks. Gertie emerged and smiled at me.

A trail of books floated behind her like it was a conga line and she was the leader. She hummed to herself and danced slightly as she walked. Though they were sisters, there was something more whimsical about Gertie. She was a touch shorter than Sylvie with silvery, shoulder-length, wavy blonde hair and fringe bangs. Her eyes were a touch wider and a bright blue. Thin lines fanned around her eyes and the corners of her mouth.

She spun in a little circle. “You’re right on time.”

I stopped just in front of the desk and rested my elbows on it. A heavy sigh escaped my lips. “Do you guys have any books here about soulmates?”

They both froze and stared at me. Sylvie stopped what she was doing and turned to face me fully. “Why do you . . . What I mean to say is . . . have you met?—”

“Oh God no.” I shook my head. “Just something for work.”

Gertie swayed as she walked up beside me. “Are you playing matchmaker?”

I rolled my eyes “Kind of.”

“Do tell . . .” Sylvie mirrored my pose and rested her arms on the countertop.

I shook my head. “I’m just going to have to rehash it all when we get to my mom’s house, so let’s just do it all then.”

Talking about the situation twice would just make it sound that much more awful. The perfect job was just a hair away, and I was actually thrown into trying to be the most efficient matchmaker ever. It wasn’t the two week trial period I expected.

Gertie pulled her wand from her pocket and gave it a little flick. Magic shot from the tip and wrapped around a few books. They hovered over her head and then dropped down in front of me. “That should be what you need.”

I gathered them into my arms and held them close to my chest. The scent of the pages wafted up toward my nose and I found comfort in that smell. It was like coming home. “Thank you.”

“Shall we go?” Gertie motioned toward the door, and I gave her a nod.

Sylvie moved out from behind the desk and held up her wand. She flicked her wrist and the lights in the library started to go out one by one as Gertie made sure all the books flew back into place. I turned toward the door, and once everything was dark, they followed me out to my car, and we all slid inside. Usually, the conversation flowed freely, but I had so much on my mind that the words just wouldn’t come out of my mouth. The Island flashed by and the two of them chatted, but in my mind I was a whirl of nerves.

Before I knew it, we were out of the main part of town and driving deeper into the woods. The path to my mother’s home was winding and the tree line seemed to close in on both sides. The branches hung low, and for a moment it felt like I was driving in a tunnel. My headlights lit the way, but if I didn’t know where I was going, I would’ve easily gotten lost up here or ran off the road. My mom’s home was a tiny cottage much like my own. Unlike mine, she had no electricity, no technology, and not a single bit of interruption. When I reached the end of the road, I sighed with relief. As much as I loved technology, coming home always gave me a chance to unplug.

The outside of the home blended in perfectly with the surrounding forest. The exterior was made of dark, planked wood and a sloping roof. Stained-glass windows were spread around the entire home, and the front steps were made of old, dark brick. Vines of ivy wound up the sides of the home and across the roof. Mom left a few small pumpkins on the front steps, but the squirrels had already gotten to them. A murder of crows liked to hang out around the exterior trees, and whenever people arrived, they’d caw a warning. Plumes of smoke drifted up from the chimney and warm firelight flickered from behind the windows. The smell of burning wood filled the air, and I sucked in a deep breath as I exited my car.

I closed the door and looked up at the place I grew up. My friends teased me for not having the modern amenities of today, but there was something to be said for the quiet simplicity of this life. Instead of being stuck to my screen, I ran through the forest, made friends with the animals, and read as many books as I could. I appreciated the quiet, I appreciated even more the ability to binge-watch my TV shows.

“Is Merryweather coming?” I climbed out and closed my door behind me.

“But of course.” Sylvie walked toward my mother’s house. “And when that happens, you can spill what is going on in your head.”

“Yes, darling, it is kind of obvious.” Gertie hummed and swayed as she headed toward the stairs. “I could’ve been playing with a brass band in the backseat and you wouldn’t have heard any of it.”

“I’m sorry, guys. It’s just been a weird day.”

“What’s been a weird day?” Susan, one of my mother’s oldest friends, staggered from between two trees while pulling a sweater over her head. She was a member of the wolf pack on the Island and one of the sassiest people I’d ever met. She had dark curly hair streaked with gray, and when she looked at me, I knew those chestnut eyes saw everything. She was sharper than anyone else I knew.

I trudged up the stairs to the front door and sighed. “This day.”

I pushed the door open and walked into my mom’s living room, which was more like a living room, dining room, and kitchen combo. The walls were a warm beige color that reflected the light from the fireplace. The furniture was older and worn in. Knitted blankets covered most of it, giving it that warm, homey feel.

My mother walked from the kitchen with a tray of cookies. She placed them down on the table and smiled up at us. “There are my girls.”

“Hi, Mom.” I breathed and as soon as she put the cookies down, I pulled her in for a tight hug.

Though she was nine hundred years old, she didn’t look a day over thirty. It was difficult when your mom looked like your sister, but on the Island everyone was used to it. Her hair was a warm chestnut color that was cut to frame her face. Her bangs fell across her forehead in light strands. Her eyes were a deep blue, and when she smiled, the apples of her cheeks were a warm pink color.

“Hi, honey.” She pressed a light kiss to my cheek. “Why do you look so . . . worn?”

“I thought it was nervous ,” Susan chimed in as she took a cookie and sat down on the couch.

Sylvie tilted her head to the side and pursed her lips. “No, more like stressed out.”

“Funny, I thought she just needed a good night with a handsome guy.” Gertie smirked as she dropped down into the armchair closest to the fireplace.

My jaw dropped. “Gertie!”

“What?” She wagged her eyebrows. “It’s been long enough.”

I shook my head and chuckled. “That is not the problem.”

“Don’t say that in front of Merryweather. That’ll go over about as well as a fart in an auditorium.” Gertie grabbed a cookie.

“I’ll do my best.” I took my jacket off and tossed it over the arm of the couch. I started pacing back and forth in front of them. I felt the words bubbling in my stomach. They were going to fly out of my mouth like word-vomit that couldn’t be stopped.

“Uh oh. She’s about to blow,” Gertie muttered.

“These are my favorite.” Susan leaned back in her chair and tossed her curly salt and pepper hair over her shoulder.

“I must admit the truth literally falls out of her mouth in a splendid way when she gets like this.” Sylvie sat back like the others, like I was about to put on a show.

If they wanted a show, then I would give them one. I had to get it all out. “I got a promotion at work. The one that I have been working toward. You know . . . to work with the Vaunteros in their ambassador department.”

“Oh, honey, that’s wonderful.” My mom clapped her hands together.

I held my finger up. “Just wait for it.”

Susan smirked, then wagged her eyebrows at me. “I can’t wait for this.”

“So I’ll be Mateo Vauntero’s assistant, which I thought was great. He’s done so many wonderful things for the supernaturals, and I was so excited.” I wrung my hands together as I moved around the room.

“Oh, he’s so cute.” Gertie sighed

“Yeah, he’s a real Prince Charming searching for his Cinderella,” I muttered. They all froze and raised their eyebrows at me. I waved their looks away. “Well, he’s not leaving the Island until he finds his soulmate. Or until I find her. That’s my only task.”

Sylvie raised her hand. “Wait, what do you mean find her?”

I sighed. “His soulmate mark appeared last year while he was in that coma so he doesn’t know who it is. And hasn’t been able to find her. So now my job is to find her.”

My mother raised her eyebrows. “ Pardon me?”

“You heard that right. I was informed upon my promotion that we won’t be traveling or doing any of his normal duties that I would’ve helped with, the kind of work I have been dying to do this whole time. And it’s only a two-week trial period, and the one job he wants me to do is to find his missing soulmate, which he hasn’t been able to do in nearly a year, and I’m now supposed to come up with some amazing plan to make it happen.”

“What a gross misuse of power.” Constantine’s deep grumbling voice came from the back of the house.

“Merryweather! You came.” My mother jumped to her feet and grabbed the tray of cookies. “I made your favorite.”

“Of course I came. I have yet to miss book club.” He took a cookie. “This is my time.”

The Island knew Constantine as a surly, gruff vampire, but for as long as I could remember, he and my mother had been friends and he had visited with us. I didn’t have the normal fear everyone else felt for him. Perhaps it was a lack of self-preservation, but I genuinely liked him. He walked farther into the room and took the other armchair. He pulled a bright-orange, knitted blanket across his legs. He was so large he made the chair look small. His dark hair flowed down to his shoulders, and his well-trimmed beard covered half his face and surrounded his full lips. My mother handed him a steaming cup of coffee.

“Thank you, Fauna.” He took a deep sip, then turned back toward me. “So, my brother is abusing his power. We frown upon that in our family. I could easily handle him.”

“No, please don’t.” I dropped down on the couch next to Gertie, and she placed her hand on my knee. I let my shoulders slump. “I have to do this. Because once it’s done, I will have the job I’ve always wanted, and I refuse to do anything to screw that up.”

“Very well. I will leave you to your endeavors.” He took a sip of his coffee. “But I will intervene at any moment should you request it of me. All you have to do is ask and it would be my pleasure to put my baby brother in his place.”

“Thank you, Constantine. I’ll let you know if he gives me any real trouble.” I ran my hand over my hair. “I’ve done everything else at Prescott Tech. We can just add finder of soulmates onto my resume.”

“Well, I’m slightly appalled, but that’s neither here nor there. Men have always been inept at these things in my eyes.” Sylvie gave a humorless chuckle. “Have you at least got a plan?”

I shrugged. “The only thing I can think of is that there are so many events coming up on the Island that she’s bound to be at one of them.”

Gertie gave my knee another squeeze. “That’s a good idea. It’s awfully romantic, don’t you think?”

“Don’t be absurd,” Sylvie chided her.

“Prince searches for his one true love.” Gertie sighed. She had a faraway look in her eyes. “It’s like a fairytale.”

I didn’t find anything about this romantic. He was outsourcing his search because he couldn’t do it himself. Nothing about that screamed romance to me. “I vote we read a murder mystery next.”

“Agreed,” my girls said at the same time.

Constantine smirked. “Perhaps a true crime will have the proper edge to it?”