“Anything else?” I asked Rod.
“There’s the bookstore. Someone could hide in the Strand for hours—and he’s been known to do so.”
“Then let’s go.”
We ran to the nearest subway station to head downtown. I was so distracted by worry that we were halfway to our stop when I noticed that there were Spellworks ads in our car—new ones proclaiming the trustworthiness of the company since it didn’t keep secrets. I elbowed Rod and pointed it out. “They had to have planned that,” I said. “I wonder if Idris knew all along.”
“I wonder how he knew. I grew up with Owen, and I didn’t know anything.”
When we reached the bookstore, I wished we’d kept Sam with us. It would take someone with wings to do a quick search of this place. If you wanted to hide from someone, this was better than a maze. “Do we split up or stick together?” I asked Rod.
“Splitting up might be more efficient, but it’s probably best if we stick together since you’re the one who’ll be able to spot him even if he’s used an invisibility spell, and I can stop him from getting away.”
We worked our way gradually through the store, level by level, starting with the sections where we were most likely to find Owen and then spreading out. For perhaps the first time in my life, I spent at least an hour in a bookstore without being tempted by even one book. My feet were killing me and I was dizzy from hunger when we finally concluded that he wasn’t there.
“There’s a diner near here that he likes,” I said, unsure whether I suggested that because I was starving or because I thought Owen might go there.
He wasn’t at the diner, and the waitress, who remembered me from having been there with Owen, said she hadn’t seen him. We got burgers to go and ate while we scouted the neighborhood.
“He’s such a homebody that I can’t think of too many places where he might go,” Rod said. He took out his cell phone and made a call, then shook his head. “Still no answer at his place. Do you think he might have gone to your place?”
“It’s a thought. Gemma, Marcia, and Nita wouldn’t know or care what all the fuss is about, and he’d know I’d eventually go back there.”
We exchanged a glance, then both of us took off running as fast as we could go, weaving through the crowds on the sidewalk. I was out of breath by the time we reached my building, and it took me two tries to unlock the front door, my hands were shaking so badly. Rod ran ahead of me up the stairs, taking them two at a time, then he knocked on the door while I was still halfway up the last flight of stairs.
Marcia opened the door. “Hey, I wasn’t expecting you!” she said, giving him a quick kiss. “I thought this was a crazy day for you.”
“Crazy doesn’t begin to describe it,” he said. “You haven’t seen Owen, have you?”
By this time, I’d reached the top of the stairs, and Marcia gave me a funny look. “Why, what’s wrong?” she asked.
I was about to explain when Nita appeared behind her. “Oh, hi, Katie!” she said. “How’d your conference go?”
I forced myself to sound as breezy as I could. “It was great, just great, but now I need to find Owen. I think we got our wires crossed. In all the confusion after the conference, I’m not sure if we agreed to meet at his place or my place.”
“He hasn’t come here,” Marcia said. She looked really concerned now, but I couldn’t explain this situation in front of Nita.
Already turning to head down the stairs, Rod said, “Okay, then it must be his place. I’ll talk to you later.”
Marcia raised an eyebrow at me, and before I followed Rod I said, “Post-conference debriefing,” to which she nodded knowingly.
By the time we were back outside, Rod was completely panicked, his eyes wild and his body twitching, like he wanted to go in every direction at once. “I don’t know where else to look!” he said.
“Let’s try his place,” I suggested.
“But I’ve been calling there every five minutes, and there’s been no answer.”
“That doesn’t mean he isn’t there, and he’ll have to go home before long.”
“Why’s that?”
“You don’t think he’d leave his cat to starve, do you?”
Rod let out a long sigh of relief. “Of course not. So he’ll be home before it gets too late. Let’s go there. We can stake out the place and wait for him to get back. I’ve got a key, for when he needs me to check on Loony.”
