Heartwishes (Edilean 5)

“It’s okay,” Gemma said. “I’ve done enough research with my boys to know about the right time of the month. This isn’t it.”

“All right,” Tris said, then was silent for a moment. “Tell me about your research.”

“Mostly, I’ve been trying to add to Joce’s genealogy. She’s a friend of—” She cut herself off. “I’m forgetting where I am. You must know Jocelyn.”

“I helped deliver her twins.”

“Then you know a great deal more about her than I ever want to,” Gemma said, and Tris laughed. “I haven’t done as much work as I’d like to.”

“The Fraziers driving you crazy?”

She didn’t think she needed to say more about her and Colin. She’d said too much already. “The family does visit rather often.”

“With or without their clothes?” Tris asked.

“It’s too early to laugh about it,” Gemma said, but she did smile.

“You want more chocolate?”

“No, that was enough. I better get back to work—if Rachel’s had time to remove Colin, that is.”

“Sure,” Tris said, but he had his head down and he made no motion to move.

Gemma looked at him. “Is there something you want to tell me? Or ask me?”

“Heartwishes,” he said. “Have you found out anything more about that?”

“No, and I’ve been searching. Did Colin tell you about it?”

“Yes.” He looked at her. “Mind if I tell you a story?”

“I would love to hear anything that takes my mind off my own problems.”

“Colin and I had breakfast the day he left for the fire and he told me about the Heartwishes Stone. We laughed about it. That night I told my sister and niece. I meant it as entertainment, but Nell believed every word I said, and she got quite upset. She said that she’s part Frazier and the wish from her heart was that her father would come home and that they’d get to stay in Edilean. She had Addy and me stand up, and repeat her wish three times. She said she wanted to make sure the Heartwishes Stone heard us.”

When he was silent, Gemma waited. He seemed to have more to say.

“Last night Addy got a call that her husband had been shot in Iraq and—”

“Oh!”

“No, it’s okay. He’s all right, or will be. He’s been flown to a hospital in Miami. My parents live in Sarasota, and they drove down there immediately. Jake will be fine, but his injury is bad enough that he’ll be discharged from the army. He’ll be home for good in about a month.”

“That’s wonderful,” Gemma said.

“There’s more. Before Jake signed up, he was a top car mechanic, and he had a good job in Detroit. The owner of the garage where he worked said that when Jake returned, the job would be waiting for him.” Tris looked at Gemma. “The morning after Nell made her wish, we heard that the place where Jake was supposed to go back to work blew up. It was at night and no one was hurt, but now Jake has no job to return to.”

Gemma leaned back in her chair and looked at him. “What else?”

“On the same day we heard about the explosion in Detroit, Mr. Frazier’s head mechanic at his service center just outside of Edilean gave notice that in four months he’s moving to California to be near his wife’s relatives. Mr. Frazier called me to say that Jake had the job if he wanted it. That was a few days ago, then last night the call about Jake’s injury came in. It’s as though Nell’s wish came true, in less than a week, and all of it happened after she made her wish.”

“You do know that it’s all coincidence, don’t you?” Gemma said.

“I’m sure it is, but then today . . .” He looked hard at her.

“You mean me?”

Tris nodded. “Yes. Rachel told me—”