I chuckled, and Ceri came in from the back. Her borrowed coat was over her arm and the shoes that Keasley bought her were in her grip. I wasn’t going to tell her to put them on. She could walk in the snow barefoot as far as I was concerned. Ivy, though, gave her a pointed look.

“You going to be all right for a while?” Ivy asked as Ceri dropped her shoes to the floor and snugged her feet into them.

“Good God,” I muttered, twisting the chair back and forth. “I’ll be fine.”

“Stay on holy ground,” she added as she gestured for Ceri to head out. “Don’t tap a line. Eat your cookies.”

“Not going to happen, Ivy,” I said. Pasta. I wanted pasta in alfredo sauce. That’s what Nick had cooked up for me the last time Ivy was bent on shoving these things down my throat. I couldn’t believe she’d been slipping me Brimstone. Yes, I could.

“I’ll call you in about an hour to make sure you’re all right.”

“I won’t answer,” I said, irritated. “I’m going to take a nap.” I stood and stretched until my sweater and halter top rose to show my belly button. It would have gotten a wolf whistle from Jenks, and the silence in the rafters was depressing.

Ceri came forward with her cushion to give me a hug good-bye. It startled me, and I hesitantly returned it. “Rachel can take care of herself,” she said proudly. “She’s been holding enough ever-after to blow a hole in the roof for the last five minutes and has forgotten about it.”

“Holy crap!” I exclaimed, feeling my face warm. “I am, aren’t I!”

Ivy sighed as she strode to the church’s front door. “Don’t wait up for me,” she called over her shoulder. “I’m having dinner with my folks and won’t be home until after sunup.”

“You should let it go,” Ceri said as she edged after Ivy. “At least when the sun is down. Someone else might summon him, and if they don’t banish him properly, he’ll come looking for you. He might try to knock you out by adding to what you’re holding now.” She shrugged in a very modern gesture. “But if you stay on holy ground, you should be all right.”

“I’ll let it go,” I said absently, my thoughts whirling.

Ceri smiled shyly. “Thank you, Rachel,” she said softly. “It’s good to feel needed.”

I jerked my attention back to her. “You’re welcome.”

The scent of cold snow filtered in. I looked up seeing Ivy standing impatiently in the threshold of the open door, the fading light making her a threatening silhouette in tight leather. “ ’By-y-y-y-ye, Rachel,” she prompted mockingly, and Ceri sighed.