In my experience, sudden bursts of unknown magic were almost never good, so I immediately stepped off the path and plunged into the shadows of the gardens. I stopped a moment to look and listen, but I didn’t hear any footsteps hurrying my way. No leaves rustling, no branches snapping, nothing that would indicate that someone was headed in my direction. Well, if they weren’t going to come to me, I’d just have to sneak up on them, broken ribs and all.

I tiptoed through the gardens, careful not to rustle the honeysuckle vines that seemed to wind over, through, and around everything, along with the briars. It wasn’t hard, given how slowly I was moving, but I gritted my teeth, pushed the pain away, and kept going. Finally, I reached a spot in the garden where I could see the side entrance. I crouched down, even though it caused my ribs to ache even more, and peered around a cluster of bonsai trees.

A middle-aged dwarf sat on the top step at the side entrance, her back as tall and straight as if she were a queen perching on a throne. She wore a very nice suit jacket in a soft, cotton-candy pink, and her matching skirt stopped just past her knees. Her legs were bare, and dainty white sandals encased her feet, although I could see the shimmer of hot-pink polish on her toes through the slits in the shoes. A string of pearls hung around her neck. The moonlight made the stones gleam the same color as her white-blond hair.

Even sitting outside a crime scene, Jolene “Jo-Jo” Deveraux managed to look every inch the elegant southern lady she was. My worry vanished, and I sighed with relief—especially since Jo-Jo had Phillip with her.

He was lying flat on the stone step. Eva was there too, holding his hand and sitting on the other side of him. Jo-Jo murmured something to Eva that I couldn’t hear, then reached for her power. Once again, the feel of her Air magic danced along the night breeze, pricking my skin like hundreds of tiny, invisible needles. The sensation made me wince, but I kept quiet and stayed where I was, not wanting to break the dwarf’s concentration.