“So, what can I do for you?” His eyes were taking in his cat-bird and then me, as if I were hypnotizing the thing or something.
Could I really work for him? Was I desperate enough to have him eyeing me up all day long? It wasn’t as if he’d leave me be. He’d grill me from morning to night. He’d want to know everything I was doing. That’s the type he was. I remembered clearly how he’d questioned me the first time I came here, his stare thick with suspicion, and that was before everything that had happened.
Although he wasn’t grilling me yet.
And yes, I was that desperate.
“I was wondering if you could use some help around here? Or maybe a…” Couldn’t call Bassy a cat. That might be insulting. Not a good way to ask for a job. “A sitter?”
“No, I’m just a one-man show. Never had any help and don’t need it now,” he said as he continued staring at me as if I’d cast a spell on him.
“Well, if you change your mind, you can always send me a newsflash.”
He nodded, this one half as friendly as the last. Time to make my exit. Bassy was about to leap onto my shoulders if I didn’t get out of there soon.
The restaurant Hawk had brought me to was next. I knew they didn’t like me, but it was right here, and I was going to stop everywhere. I couldn’t be sure if they’d sneer until I tried.
One step inside and a roomful of sneers met me. I turned right around. Even if the owner would hire me, that might’ve been a little too hostile an environment to handle.
I crossed the street to the shop I’d bought Rabbit an outfit in on her last day in Xest, hoping there might be some goodwill.
The store owner nodded at me. “Can I help you? Are you looking for anything in particular?”
“I was wondering if you were looking for a sales clerk or had any positions open?”
Her lips parted as her eyes darted to the door before returning to me. I could see right where this was headed and was determined to turn this ship around. Was it because I was an outsider?
“Just so you know, I have a lot of experience in sales. I worked in a shop for years and was always on time and extremely responsible. I can provide a reference as well.”
She swallowed, then stared at the door again and back to me.
“That’s very nice,” she said, straightening things on the counter. “But I’m not hiring right now. Try back in a year or so. Maybe things will have changed by then.”
I took a step toward her, fed up with all the twitchy shop owners who never needed help even when they appeared completely understaffed. “Was it the wall? It’s clearly something.”
“No, not at all. I’m sorry. I just don’t need anyone,” she said. “I would’ve loved to hire you.”
I forced a smile and a wave as I left. Loved to? If she’d really loved to, she could’ve. She had piles along the wall that she clearly didn’t have time to get to.
Didn’t matter. There were plenty more places in Xest. Someone would hire me.
4
No one was going to hire me. There were no more places in Xest I could think to try. I’d been to every open business I could find that would let me in the door. Now the sun was setting and I was no better off than I had been this morning. Hawk did own this place, and he was doing a mighty good job of making it hard to stay.
I’d been wrong, so utterly wrong that if this had been a graded test, I wouldn’t have even gotten five percent correct. Still, I wasn’t giving up. It would take a lot more than this to make me quit.
The old, rusty mailbox was the final stop of the day. I’d drop off my letter to Rabbit, letting her know I’d ended up back in Xest, so she didn’t worry. I’d written it to her last night, so it read a little more optimistic than my current state of mind. If I’d had to write something now, it might’ve been closer to “see you in a few days.”
Heading back to Zab’s, I drew a mental map of Xest, wondering if I’d overlooked a place. There had to be other places hiring here. Zab would know. If he didn’t, Musso might. He might have a connection that would help me get a foot in the door. It wasn’t like I was aiming high. I’d take anything. Hand me a broom or a mop as long as it came with a paycheck. Scrubbing dishes, digging ditches, whatever it took.
A man came close enough to me that I jumped back before he accidentally hit me.
“Go away, Nowhere witch,” he said as he passed by.
Great. I’d moved beyond sneers to getting run off the street? It was the last slight of the day, and one too many.
“What did you say to me?” I didn’t realize how loud I was until a few people across the street stopped in their tracks to see what was going down.
He stopped and turned back toward me. “I said, go away, Nowhere witch.”
Whatever a Nowhere witch was, the way he said the words made it sound like it was the lowest of the low. Be nice to know what it meant so I knew how to respond. I’d have to take a leap and just run with it.
“I’m not going anywhere.”
“We’ll see about that,” he said. A few stragglers were gathered behind him, all sneering in my direction, as if they’d been waiting for a moment like this to gang up.
Great. Now he had a group. Still, I wasn’t backing down.
“Oh yes, we will see.” I still couldn’t defend myself worth a damn with magic, but if he pushed me too far, called my bluff, I wasn’t above punching him in the face. I might be on the small side, but I was strong and scrappy. Hopefully the rest of them wouldn’t jump me.
My offender was suddenly at a loss for words as he looked over my shoulder. With a last sneer in my direction, he walked away, his little group dispersing with him.
I should’ve been relieved I had backup too, but this wasn’t how I wanted to end my day. There was one person who could clear the street, and I’d already had enough humiliation. I didn’t need Hawk as an audience, saving the damsel who’d be better off in Salem.
“I didn’t need your help. I had it covered.” I spun and found a tall, dark-haired man standing there, but not Hawk. Oscar, who was still smiling in spite of my tone, appeared to be the man who’d come to my defense this time. I was just going to alienate everyone today, wasn’t I?
“Excuse me for helping out a friend,” Oscar replied, his soft hazel eyes gleaming.
I gave him a humbled half-smile. “I’m sorry. I thought you were…” I threw up my hands. I probably didn’t have to spell it out to one of Hawk’s friends.
“Understandable, given the situation,” he said, laughing.
Oscar had the kind of laugh that came often and easy. I could use a little of his levity right now, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t here to reinforce the troops.
“Are you going to try to run me out, too?”
“He’s my friend, but he’s also an asshole, and this is coming from someone who’s held that title enough to be a reigning champ. But no, I’m not taking sides in this fight.” He took a step away from me but waved a hand, motioning for me to follow. “Come on, you look like you’ve had a rough day. Let me buy you a drink.”
“I don’t know. I kind of just wanted to—”