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Both my heart and my blackmail material remain yours,

Nicholas Jedediah Fraser IV

“Did he make us accessories to a crime?” Mrs. Matthews asked with annoyance.

“I don’t think he would intentionally make us felons, no matter how bad his other decisions were in this matter,” Miriam said, “and if he had, I definitely think Elijah would have said so.”Oh, Cole. What the hell was he doing, and how was she going to live without him for six months?

“I almost wish he’d taken your dad down, so we’d never have to worry about him again,” Mr. Matthews huffed. “I hate that son of a bitch.”

“We could always do it,” Noelle reminded them. “We hold all the cards now.”

“As long as these receipts are legal for us to possess, we’re going to hold them as close to our chests as possible,” Miriam said. “And we’re going to buy Elijah and Jason the world’s nicest belated Christmas gift for having to deal with all of this.”

They all nodded. Eventually, inevitably, Richard Blum would again make himself a problem they would have to deal with. In the meantime, they had a team and ammunition and had bought themselves some time.

Miriam was miserable and whiny without daily access to Cole. For days, Miriam pulled out her phone reflexively, checked the text message notifications, and sighed.

When Hannah got sick of watching, she finally said, “Give me your phone.”

“You can’t put me on a phone moratorium,” Miriam warned. “The Bloomers will riot, which no one wants. They are legion.”

“I’m not taking your phone away, although it’s honestly a good idea,” Hannah assured her. “I’m making a call.”

Miriam handed over her phone, skeptically. “If anyone knows where Cole is, and how he’s doing, who would it be?” Hannah asked Miriam.

“Me?!” Miriam answered.

Hannah rolled her eyes and dialed.

It rang once and picked up.

“Miriam,” Tara started over speaker. “This is a bad—”

“It’s Hannah.”

“Oh.” Tara’s voice thawed considerably. “Are you looking for Cole?”

Miriam threw her hands up in the air, exasperated. Hannah gave her a teacher look that said,shut up.

“Do you know where he is?” she asked Tara.

“Obviously,” Tara said. “He is safe and doing remarkably well.”

“Thank you. I would ask you to tell him he’s making his best friend sad, but Miriam’s feelings aren’t your responsibility.”

“They sure aren’t,” Tara said. “I know you have me on speaker but tell that ex of mine to come get her shit out of my garage.” The phone clicked as Tara hung up.

“Well, fuck,” Miriam said, and then added, “I didn’t leave my stuff there on purpose—she wouldn’t let anyone come get it!”

She wanted to sulk all over again that Tara and Cole had a whole secret life no one had ever bothered to tell her about, until she remembered that she’d never told Cole about most of her own life. So she went to bed early, the better to argue with Cole in her head. She felt Noelle join her, spooning her whole body into a cherished, protected ball, and she finally fell asleep.

“I have to go back to Charleston,” she said the next morning, as they were lying in bed, staring at each other. “I have to figure out what to do with all my workshop stuff before Tara sells it on eBay. And I want to say goodbye to the city, and my synagogue. I kind of ghosted my rabbi.”

“How long is this trip?” Noelle asked skeptically.

“I’m not running,” Miriam assured her, trailing a finger over Noelle’s arm. “Carrigan’s has a way of making you be honest with yourself, and feel all your feelings, for better or worse. It’s magic, but it’s dangerous for a girl trying to stay safe from her feelings. I’m not that girl anymore. I’m solidly Team Feelings, these days.”

Noelle laughed at this description. “I blame Kringle, for the magic.” Kringle meowed from somewhere, clearly accepting this as his due. “And I know you’re not running.”