“No. Never mind.”
I wanted badly to pry, but I knew from past experience that she would only clam up further. Maybe Thad would know something and could fill me in. Even if I was only a part-time mom, I cared what happened to her and wanted her to be okay.
As we reached the intersection and headed in the direction of the bridal shop, Amber glanced at me. “I’ll probably have more time to practice sword stuff this winter.”
“Oh?”
She’d informed me numerous times that she had a ton of homework this year.
“I’m thinking of quitting swim team.”
I halted ten feet from the door of the bridal shop. “What? Why? I thought you loved it. And you’re really good. Those long levers are good for butterflying, too, right?”
That earned me the much-anticipated eye roll. “Butterfly, Val.”
My phone buzzed. I checked the caller, intending to ignore it unless it might be an emergency, but it was Thad.
“Ugh.” Amber saw his name on the screen. “Don’t answer that.”
“You’re not in trouble, are you?”
“No.” That no came out surly.
“Did you have another fight? About Nin?” I’d thought Amber was getting along better with Nin now that they’d thrown magical grenades together in another realm.
“No. He just doesn’t know I’m here.”
Not wanting him to worry, I answered before it could drop to voice mail. “Hey, Tha—”
“Do you know where Amber is?” he asked tensely.
“Yeah, with me.”
Amber sighed and slumped against the building.
“What?” Thad didn’t sound any less tense. “Why?”
“Because I’m a joy to be around.”
“Did she tell you she’s grounded? She’s not supposed to be anywhere except school, the pool, and her room. And she’s definitely not supposed to run off somewhere without telling me where she went.”
“She’s practicing being a rebellious teenager.” I raised my eyebrows toward Amber. “Why are you grounded?”
“It’s not my fault,” she said at the same time as Thad said, “She got in a fight at school.”
Amber rolled her eyes again. I wondered if it was medically possible for them to get stuck in that position. I seemed to remember being Amber’s age and having my mother threaten me that such things could happen.
“She punched a boy,” Thad added.
“Oh, good,” I said before thinking better of it. Thad sounded distressed about the situation.
“Good? He has a black eye. The principal called me and said she would be suspended, if not expelled if it happened again. The only reason she’s not in more hot water is because she gets good grades and usually never gets in trouble.”
“Do you want me to talk to her about it?”
“No. You’ll encourage fighting.”
“Well, I’d want to know why she punched the boy. Maybe she had a good reason.”
Amber nodded firmly.
“Whatever the reason, that doesn’t mean she can punch people. Val, I don’t think you should do the sword stuff anymore. Not if she’s going to use what she learns to hurt normal people.”
“I’m teaching her to stab people, not punch them. She probably learned the punching from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle reruns.”
“You’re not funny, Val. She’s grounded. Please tell her to come home.”
Amber slumped lower against the wall. Maybe she had inherited some better-than-average elven hearing.
“She’s taking me dress shopping. Don’t you think that’s more torturous than sitting in her room with her Xbox and her computer?”
“I do, but that’s not the point.”
“Thanks for the agreement there. I’ll give her a ride home, okay?”
“Good.” He hung up.
“Someone’s in a grumpy mood,” I muttered.
“Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Val? Really?” There was the scathing/pitying look again. She’d mastered it.
“They were popular when I was a kid.”
“The eighties were epically weird.”
“You’ve seen the hair, I trust.”
“I heard kids used to brush their bangs against the wall and hairspray them so they would be big and poofy and flat in the front.”
“That’s possibly true. I didn’t have bangs, so I couldn’t be that trendy. Why’d you punch the kid?”
“None of your business.” Amber hustled toward the front door of the bridal shop.
“Does it have anything to do with why you want to quit swim team?”
“That’s none of your business either.” She opened the door and jerked her head for me to follow.
“I said I’d drive you home.”
“You didn’t say when.” She strode inside, trusting I would follow.
Maybe I should have been less cheeky with Thad. Raising a teenager had to be at least as trying as battling invisible monsters in a haunted artifacts room.
5
As I stood in a strapless bra and slip with my arms raised, the bridal-shop seamstress taking my measurements, Zav’s familiar aura pinged my senses.
Greetings, my mate. Are you ready to go to the dwarven home world?
Uhm, not at this particular moment, but soon. I have to put on my clothes, give Amber a ride home, and pick up my supplies from the house. I also didn’t know if I should leave before hearing back from Willard about the spy camera, the finger bone, and if her team had located the thief lurking in a nearby van.
You are naked? Leave it to Zav to focus on only one part of that sentence.
Not entirely. I’m wearing… I looked down at the strapless bra, having been told that my current underwear wouldn’t work under a wedding dress and that all the measurements had to be taken with the right undergarments on. This experience was already more tedious than I’d imagined. Things, I finished.
When I am in my human form, I enjoy seeing you in things. And also out of things.
I’m glad to hear it. I need a few hours before I’m ready to go.
I must inform you that I scouted Dun Kroth after informing my clan about the wedding. I hoped that I could find an appropriate dwarven master for you to question about your sword and that your trip would be simple and painless.
That’s thoughtful of you.
Yes. Unfortunately, it was the same as the last time I visited their world. No dwarves were about, and the entrances to their underground cities were sealed. It may be challenging to find someone, even with me as your guide.
Any chance they’ll be more likely to come out if you’re not my guide?
What do you mean?
Didn’t you say before that they’re hiding from dragons because of the strife between your clan and the Silverclaws? Maybe if I show up without a dragon, they’ll stroll out to greet me.
The seamstress laid a couple of rectangles of fabric over my bare shoulders and hmmed as she studied them against my skin. She was in her sixties, her black-dyed hair swept back into a bun with two chopsticks and a pencil sticking out of it. It was possible there were other accoutrements in there—earlier she’d appeared to produce a measuring tape out of thin air. I trusted she’d done this a few thousand times, so I didn’t question anything, but I did look to Amber, wondering if she had an opinion on the fabric swatches.