Page 78

Penny

“DOTH MINE EYES DECEIVE ME, OR IS ALONSO DE LUCA WEARING GARDENING gloves in my front yard?” Penny’s mom asks. “And Corey Barrion is here! Wow. And Ron was wasting time telling me about our profit-and-loss statement.”

“Those numbers are important, okay?” Ron says from the driver’s seat. “Anyway, I’m as curious as you are! Those boys are standing next to each other, so why don’t they look angry?”

“No idea,” Penny says, but she’s smiling so big that her face hurts. She rushes to get out of the car, waving to Alonso and Corey.

“I’ll grab your mom’s bag,” Corey says.

Alonso’s smile disappears. “Hey, no, I’ll get it.”

“I’m literally carrying it already,” Corey says as he hefts a duffel bag onto his shoulder.

“Gentlemen, please!” Anita says. “Don’t have a smackdown.”

“Mom!” Penny says, and Ron snorts.

As Corey heads into the house, Alonso shifts his focus to Penny. They lock eyes, and the unsaid words between them could fill a book. He takes off his gardening gloves and runs a hand self-consciously through his hair. His arms glisten with sweat, and Penny clears her throat and looks away.

“Welcome home, Mrs. Emberly,” Alonso says.

“Why thank you,” Penny’s mom says, her tone teasing. “I guess you were the one keeping my garden alive?”

“Penny mentioned that you’d be sad if you came home and realized they didn’t take care of it.”

“I watered,” Penny says weakly.

“We have a lot in common, don’t we?” her mom says, smiling at Alonso. “We both have green thumbs, a fondness for my daughter—”

“Mom.”

“Come on, everyone,” Ron says. “We can drag each other over glasses of lemonade in air-conditioning.”

“That sounds perfect,” Anita says, but her smile wavers. When Corey comes back outside, she says, “I thought your aunt might be coming? She’s welcome to join us.”

Corey’s face falls. “She couldn’t make it.”

Penny’s mom nods, smiles, makes some joke. The whole time, the heartbreak is visible. It makes her eyes go unfocused, like she’s not really seeing what’s in front of her.

Ron must see it, too, because he wraps an arm around Anita’s shoulders and says, “C’mon, ma’am. The lemonade is screaming your name.”

“I’ll bring extra chairs from the garage,” Penny says.

“We’ll help,” Corey says.

Once Anita and Ron are inside, Corey, Alonso, and Penny stand together on the driveway. This is the first moment they’ve had alone since Penny’s mom woke up. There’s so much that Penny wants to say, but now that she has her chance, the words won’t come.

Alonso breaks the silence. “Your mom looks like she’s back to normal.”

“She is! Physically, anyway.” Penny looks at Corey. “I thought the Council said my mom would be okay even if your aunt wanted to spend time with her?”

Corey shakes his head. “I think this whole thing has scarred her. She doesn’t want to see your mom until the curse is gone forever.”

“You mean the bargain,” Alonso says.

“Right.” Corey crosses his arms, as if he’s armoring himself against whatever he’s about to hear. “How is a bargain different from a curse?”

“You make a big sacrifice and get something in exchange,” Alonso says. “Think Faust.”

“So how do we know when it started?” Corey says. “We used to tie it to the falling-out between my grandpa and Giovanni.”

“That is when it started,” Penny says quietly.

Alonso’s face darkens. Corey looks between them. “What do you mean?”

“Think about it,” Alonso says. “When was there a seismic change in your family? When did your company start making a ton of money?”

“Money? That’s not what this is about.”

Alonso sighs, but for once, it’s not condescending. “Nine times out of ten, when mortals make bargains, it’s for success. That can look different for everyone, but for your family, you’ve got Barrion Heating and Cooling.”

Corey’s breath catches. “That… no. There’s no way.”

How do you say the words that’ll change someone’s life forever? How do you not feel culpable for whatever comes next?

“I saw your grandfather do it, Corey,” Penny says.

And she tells them everything the Shadow showed her, from the fight between Ellie and Giovanni at Elkie Lake, to the day Charles blackmailed Giovanni, and finally, the murder in the old pharmacy.

When Penny gets to the story about Giovanni’s murder, Alonso sinks into a crouch, threading his fingers into his hair. Penny waits for Corey to break down, to tell her she’s a liar. But his expression is unreadable, and his eyes are distant. It’s as if his body isn’t big enough to hold whatever he’s feeling so he’s resorted to feeling nothing at all.

“I’m sorry,” Penny says, and then she hates herself for it. She wants to say something that makes it all better, but there’s nothing she can say. That familiar feeling of helplessness creeps up her limbs to her throat, choking off whatever other words she might say out loud.

“My grandpa—” Corey trails off, as if he’s trying to wrangle his thoughts. “He’s always been condescending. He knows how to hit people where it hurts. And the company is more important to him than anything, but this…”

“He’s a piece of shit,” Alonso says. He’s still in a crouch, and anger radiates from him like heat waves.

Penny half expects Corey to jump in and defend his grandfather. He’s barely had a chance to process the truth, and Alonso is already slinging insults. But a small, twisted smile appears on Corey’s face instead.

“I should’ve known,” he says. “The curse never touched his kids or his grandkids. Just the people who joined our family. The people he saw as outsiders.” He scoffs. “He’s always been a racist.”

Penny’s nails dig into her palms. There’s a detachment in Corey’s voice; he almost sounds like a different person. A bitter, jaded version of himself.

Corey continues. “I tried to ignore it. It was easier to pretend he wasn’t, I guess, since I was around him all the time, and you’re supposed to love your family no matter what, right? But so many of the people who died…” He squeezes his eyes shut. “They weren’t white. And I guess that was fine with him.”

Penny sucks in a breath. Corey is right, of course. She once again has the absurd urge to apologize, but that would make this moment about Penny and what she’s feeling. And this isn’t about her. It’s about Corey, and his family, and their collective grief. It’s about Charles Barrion. It’s about the pain he’s caused, and the injustice he’s wrought.

Somewhere down the street, a sprinkler turns on. It’s a normal moment that feels wrong.

“Can we stop it?” Corey asks, his voice distant.

“We have to cancel it out,” Penny says. “With another bargain.”

Corey nods. “Fine. I’ll do it today.”

“I don’t think it’s that simple,” Penny says.

“Do you have the book, Penny?” Alonso says. “The grimoire?”

Penny reaches into her backpack and hands it over to Alonso. “I’ve been carrying it around with me. I’m scared to leave it alone.”

Alonso flips through the book once, twice, three times. “It should be right here… Wait.” He opens the book wider, and along the gutter are the remnants of four or five pages.

Understanding dawns on Penny. “The pages were torn out.”

“Someone took the chapter on bargains?” Corey says.

“Wonder who,” Alonso mutters.

Corey’s expression darkens. “I guess we know where to look.”

If Corey is this quick to believe his grandfather would hurt his family, what does that mean about how Charles Barrion has treated all of them? What else has Corey had to endure, growing up in that man’s shadow?

And, because of this bargain, Corey’s pain will get worse before it gets better. Penny steels herself for what she has to say next.

“There’s one more thing, Corey,” Penny says. “You have to make an equivalent sacrifice.”

“An equivalent sacrifice,” Corey repeats. “Are you saying I have to… to kill someone?”

“I don’t know, Corey. It’s what your grandmother told me.”

They look at each other. The dark circles under Corey’s eyes are prominent, and Alonso grits his teeth. Even after everything they’ve gone through, this isn’t over. Not by a long shot. But underneath their exhaustion and anger, there’s determination. It makes Penny stand taller.

“We’ll fix this,” Penny says. “Right?”

“No,” Corey says. “This is on me now. You two shouldn’t be involved.”

Alonso sighs and grabs Corey’s shoulder. “Respectfully, that’s stupid.”

Corey watches him with uncertainty. “How could you possibly want to help me after everything my family has put you through?”

“Because I’m a superpowerful witch and an altruist. Plus, the record store cut my hours when they hired me again, so I have a lot of free time.”

Corey frowns, but some of the tension disappears. “Can we talk about this in a few days? I need… I don’t know. To think, I guess.”

“Yeah, of course,” Penny says. “We should go drink lemonade anyway.”

Corey’s eyes linger on Penny, and her face heats up. There’s a look in his eyes that wasn’t there before—hesitation mixed with something else. Something warm.

Then it’s over, and Corey looks away. “Actually, I have to go. Football practice.”

“Oh,” Penny says, but Corey has already turned away from them. Penny and Alonso watch him walk to his car, all broad shoulders and words unsaid.

“Stoic fuck,” Alonso says as Corey drives away.

“That almost sounded affectionate.”

Alonso’s face softens. “I respect him, you know. For everything.”

“Me too,” Penny says.

She glances up at Alonso only to find that he’s already watching her. The energy shifts, and Penny steps closer to Alonso. It’s almost involuntary, and she can’t even tell who closes the gap between them.

“Are you—” Penny begins, but before she can finish her sentence, Alonso presses his mouth to hers.

There’s so much in this kiss—desire and fear and tenderness. Penny wraps her arms around his neck, and he deepens the kiss, coaxing her lips open with his tongue. All at once, the questions and hesitations disappear, and all that’s left is Alonso.

By the time they part, Penny is gasping for breath. She glances at her house. “I really hope my mom didn’t see that.”

Alonso laughs, kissing her one more time. “Do you think she’ll like me?”

“You did chores. She already likes you.”

Alonso pulls Penny close, resting his chin on her head. Penny closes her eyes and breathes in the scent of him—amber mixed with fresh soil. Somehow, they fit together. Everything makes more sense with him around. She’s about to tell him as much when he speaks.

“Would you be mad at me if I leave, too?”

Penny’s smile falls. “Why?”

“There’s something I need to do for my family. And the news about my grandpa…”

Of course. Penny feels selfish for even expecting him to stay. She puts a hand on his cheek, running her thumb along the sharp angle of his chin, feeling the stubble under her fingers. “I get it. You need to rest.”

Alonso watches her with bright gray eyes. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. Whenever you’re ready, maybe you can come over for dinner?”

“My mom wanted me to ask you the same thing.”

Penny is suddenly lightheaded. “So we’re doing this.”

Alonso puts a hand on her waist. “I want to,” he whispers. “More than anything.”

Penny flashes back to Corey’s Fourth of July party. The last thing she wanted was for summer to end, because that meant senior year and college applications and everyone becoming obsessed with whatever comes next.

After this summer, Penny understands that change is always on the horizon. And for once, she doesn’t mind. She actually wants to know what’s next.

As Alonso heads to his car, Penny’s phone buzzes with a text, and she checks it. It’s from Milton:

Keep an eye on Alonso. I’m worried about him.

Penny reads and rereads the text. Just before Alonso gets into the driver’s seat, she calls, “You’re okay, right?”

Alonso leans his arm on top of the Shelby. Despite everything Penny shared about his family history, there’s an ease to his posture. And there’s something else, too—a bone-deep self-assurance.

“I’ve never been better,” Alonso says.