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to her…
    “ Any other demands and you’ll find me gone .”
    She nodded , understanding the insinuation I made , without any noticeable flinch . “ Let’s work at avoiding that ,” s he replied, not appearing to be the least bit concerned .
    Realizing I’d had enough of this conversation , I stood and left the kitchen without bothering with another word .
    “ We’re glad you agreed , Mags, ” Felix called out gleefully .
    That last word made me stumble and for a second the kitchen doorframe came threateningly close to my forehead .
    He’d used a shortened version of my name – a nickname. I’d never had a nickname before. Although my full name was Magdalene no one ever called me by it . In fact, no one cal led me anything but Maggie and that was just fine with me . Nicknames meant people were getting close to you, becoming friends. I’d avoided friends for the same reason I’d avoided roommates. The closer they came to me , the more potential there was for them to be dragged into the problems I caused.
    I went upstairs to sho wer as the name he’d used swam through my head. In about fifteen minutes I’d decided that I liked it and that I would even respond if he used it again. This was a big breakthrough for me – the one who kept everyone at arm’s length.
    When I stuck my head through the kitchen’s back door to say goodbye, Felix beamed at me and said it again . “See you there, Mags.”
    I flinched at the name, still unfamiliar with it, but quickly recovered. “Where?” I asked.
    “ Jackson Square , ” he replied, chuckling at me.
    I blinked, stunned. “How did you know where I was going?”
    “We know what you do for a living. We saw you on the psychic circuit, remember?” He winked at me.
    “Oh…” Noticing Ezra was no longer in the kitchen, I added, “Will Ezra be there?”
    Felix rolled his eyes, threw the dish towel he’d been using over his shoulder, and leaned down to me, whispering, “ She won’t. And you’ll learn pretty quickly that she’s not here to imprison you. She’s here to protect you.”
    “ Hmmm. Sounds like a fine line to me … , ” I mumbled.
    Felix found that humorous and squealed as he playfully snapped his dish towel at me. “Get going! And save us a spot!”
    I quickly ducked out the door before the towel could reach me and went to unlock the shed. As I pulled out my bike, I was amazed at how the morning had turned out so different than expected. New roommates. New school. My mind drifted to the night before. New handsome stranger…
    I dwelled on the memory of the stranger’s bottomless, sultry, blue-green eyes, as I rode to work. I was in such deep thought that I didn’t recognize right away that I was stopped at the same intersection where I’d seen the blue F o rd Mustang the evening before. Then I recalled how the guy in the driver’s seat had stared at me. I shudder ed slightly . In fury, was the only way I could describe it. I’d have bet that it took everything in him not to step on the gas pedal and plow me down right there. My mind was so saturated with the image of that irate stare, the person behind me honked loud and long before I kicked my bike into first gear and moved on.
    I reached The Square without any sight of the blue Ford Mustang or any sign of the guy who’d been driving it. Maybe it was a fluke and the guy was just a cra zy tourist now on his way home. I c onsidered this , but something inside told me that wasn’t the case . I then shove d the thought aside and hurried to set up .
    I parked my bike against the fence and set up two chairs bought at the local drugstore . Then , I hung up the sign I carried in my backpack advertising : “Send a Messa ge to Departed Loved Ones , ” and in smaller letters below , “Proof will be provided or free of charge.” I had just paid the guards their money when Felix and Rufus arrived.
    Felix drove a lime green Camero with a pink , furry steering wheel and giant dice hanging from the