Chapter 1Four weeks before Valentine’s Day, the town center had been transformed from gray wilderness into sparkling paradise. The air crackled with frost, and evening arrived before afternoon had finished. Romantic goods and magical ornaments flashed enticingly in shop windows. Shoppers busied and chatted, while the town lights stretched into a darkening sky.
Student Cindi Miller thoughtfully made her way through the crowds toward the activity center, where she worked as a cleaner. She was worried about her essay, due Monday, and whether or not she’d left Gran’s tablets on the peacock saucer by her bed.
“‘Course I did,” she said worriedly. “Didn’t I?”
It took seconds to text Gran. When the reply came, Cindi was so relieved she laughed out loud. “Thank goodness.”
She tapped out some ki
