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Ronnie set her knuckles on the desk, leaning toward them. “My apologies. You stole something first, and then you retrieved the other items.”

Dewey poked a finger at her. “Right.”

Paige swallowed hard, squeezing her eyes shut.

“And during which time you stole a car, caused three accidents on the highway out of town, used a magical item.” Ronnie waved a hand at the Seepy Sap’s golden container. “Stole something from a fellow library, endangered the lives of two other librarians, who, by the way, you may like to know were found unharmed.”

Paige blew out a sigh of relief, recalling the less-than-fortunate fate of their guide.

Ronnie continued, “And then you used another magical item to escape from a Scottish castle, damaging your rental car to the tune of–“ She swiped a paper from her desk and adjusted her glasses, scanning the number at the bottom. “Twelve thousand dollars.”

Paige swallowed hard again, slowly raising her eyes to the director’s face. “Uh-huh.”

Ronnie arched an eyebrow at them.

Dewey waved his paw in the air. “Look, Ronnie, we had a lot going on here. Paige has the mark of the beast, we had to get that talisman to protect her, and we had the whole world-ending thing if the wolves got the mirror. We didn’t have time to waste. We were–“

Ronnie held up her hand, her eyes sliding closed. “Enough. I’ve heard enough. There’s only one thing left to say.”

Paige pursed her lips, wrapping her fingers around her tote’s straps and tugging her ID from inside. Her first mission at the library would be her last. At least she’d been successful, and it’d been a wild ride, but she’d proven herself irresponsible. She wrapped her fingers around the plastic badge, tears welling in her eyes.

She nodded as she blinked them away, flicking her gaze up to Ronnie. The woman stood with her arms crossed, staring down her nose at them.

Paige tensed her muscles as she waited for the two words announcing the end of her illustrious career as a librarian.

Ronnie leaned forward, stretching her arms out and gripping the edge of the desk. A smile cracked the woman’s grim expression. “Job well done, you two.”

Paige’s jaw dropped open, and she snapped her gaze to Dewey before she refocused on Ronnie. “What?”

Ronnie leaned back, crossing her arms, still grinning. “Great job, you two.”

“Are-are you saying I’m not fired?”

Ronnie crinkled her brow. “Fired? No. Why would I fire you?”

Paige wrinkled her nose. “I took Dewey out. I stole from another library. I…”

Ronnie waved her hands in the air. “And you retrieved a dangerous magical item in less than a week, kept almost everyone alive, including Dewey, and only wrecked one car while fighting the werewolves! Well, technically two, but one we’re not paying for. The werewolves can handle that claim themselves.”

Paige stared at the blue and gold area rug under her feet. “I-I don’t know what to say. I thought you’d be furious.”

“Mad? I’m thrilled! Way to work a problem, Paige, and use all your resources. Dewey’s been trapped in this library for over ten years. His skills are wasted here. You finally saw his potential and figured out a way to use it.”

A smile finally crossed her face. She reached over to grab Dewey’s paw and squeeze it.

He grinned at her. “We’re a good team!”

“Damn right you are. And we’re proud to have you.”

Paige and Dewey shared a smile.

“And don’t worry about the Moscow theft. I’ll handle that. You two need to concentrate on curing Paige’s beast mark. Now get down to the archives and get on it!”

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