The Angel of Elydria (The Dawn Mirror Chronicles Book 1) Read Online Free

pressed her face against the glass. The street was deserted. She backed away, befuddled.
    “Two magicians came by earlier doing tricks and left some flyers. Was that who you saw? I think they’re just promoting their show,” Paulina continued in a tone that tried to comfort.
    Penny exhaled and hung her head. It was the second time that day she’d come off as deranged. She kept her face as straight as she could, but she was beginning to feel sick, panicked, and vexed all at once. “Sorry. I could’ve sworn…it’s just that he…never mind,” she mumbled as she leaned against the counter.
    Her mother gave her a reassuring smile and waved it off. “No big deal. You can never be too careful, eh?” Paulina handed Penny an apron, which she fastened with shivering hands. Her mother removed her own apron and bustled into the backroom through a sparkling, beaded-curtain.
    “You seem better. That migraine’s all gone?” Penny inquired, her heartbeat returning to normal.
    “It is, actually. Seems to have cleared up completely,” Paulina called back. Penny leaned up against the wall of the shop and inhaled. The fragrant air in the shop always had a calming effect.
    The walls of Willow Street Wonders were piled high with herbal oils, scented candles, and dried sage wound into bundles. A huge trough of what Penny assumed was every type of incense known to mankind stood by the door. Bottled rosewater and glass containers of wild herbs lined the walls, glittering in the gloom. Paulina always kept the lights turned low in their shop, saying that it created a mystical ambience. Penny suspected she did this so the customers couldn’t see what a sorry state most of the books were in.
    Over their eight years of business, Penny had become a bit fed up by her mother’s blind devotion to supernatural nonsense, but she had to admit there was a certain romance surrounding a life spent in the dusty, dreamlike world her mother had built for them, brick by crumbling brick. After a few moments of noisy rummaging in the back, Paulina returned holding her handbag and several books underneath her arm. She took an exhausted breath and displayed her most confident smile for Penny.
    “Might as well get to the airport early, just in case,” she said.
    “Isn’t it a bit too early, though?” Penny couldn’t keep the anxiety out of her voice, wondering if the magician might come poking around again.
    Her mother nodded, as spirited as ever, then turned serious. “Now, you know the drill. I sent the tarot readers home early, so don’t worry about them. And please do not forget to lock up properly.”
    Penny nodded, trying hard to keep from rolling her eyes. Her paranoia would never allow her to forget such things.
    Paulina grinned wryly and put her hand on her hip. “Got a message for Grandma?”
    Penny scoffed. “Oh, I’ve got a message for her all right, but I don’t think she wants to hear it.” Her mother gave her a reprimanding look. Penny scowled right back at her. “The woman hates me, why would I have a message for her?”
    “She doesn’t hate you,” Paulina admonished with a frown. “She just―”
    “I think you’ve forgotten how she refers to me as ‘the shame of the family.’ The reason ‘your life is in shambles’ was how she put it.” Penny put on a shrill voice and wagged her finger, “ Where does that girl get the nerve to exist? Honestly! In my day we never dared to be born if―”
    “That’s enough.” Paulina’s voice held a hint of danger, but Penny bore a defiant smile. “There’s food for you in the fridge, and please will you get to bed at a reasonable hour? Also, you might want to take one of the aquamarines with you before you go if you think that creep is still out there; they’ll protect your aura from negative energy. Oh, and if you’re feeling particularly troubled, go ahead and borrow one of the silver rune pendants we got in last week―those’ll keep you safe for sure,” Paulina