The Selkie Read Online Free Page A

Before Matthew, there had been another failed engagement to a man who had seemed promising at the time. Sure, at first, Bobby had been all wine and roses, or more like beer and carnations. Still, he’d been kind and sweet.
    But it had turned out the salesman had a woman in every port. Her first cheater. What a milestone.
    After that experience, Maggie had figured she could spot a liar at a hundred yards. So why had her cheater radar failed so spectacularly with Matthew? Perhaps she just hadn’t been willing to see it. Maybe it had just been easier to pretend.
    She was now determined to swear off men altogether.
    And she couldn’t even run into the welcoming bosom of her family anymore. Mom,
    Dad, Gran, they were all gone, and she was reeling from the pain.
    She needed ibuprofen. She needed to get her life back in shape. It was all she wanted now. Some semblance of normalcy. A good job. And given her current hatred of the male species, she was seriously contemplating a lesbian love affair.
    Her head pounding, Maggie trudged upstairs and threw herself on Nora’s bed. “ Just a short nap, ” she said to herself, knowing she needed rest before tomorrow’s funeral. “ Then Liz and Phyllis can fuss over me again. ”
    Nora’s pillow felt unfamiliar and she couldn’t get comfortable. She sat up and grabbed the pillow, meaning to give it a good fluffing, but somehow knew sleep wouldn’t come.
    It was then that she remembered the cookie jar. Gran had never forgotten her love of sugary cookies, and had had a significant sweet tooth herself. Nothing had given the old lady more pleasure than to sneak cookies to Maggie when she was a little girl. To aid her in this quest, she’d kept her biscuits in a cracked jar on her kitchen counter. Maggie now wondered if she might find a stash in that same jar. Perhaps coming down from a sugar rush might help her sleep.
    She padded down to the kitchen, which still appeared well stocked for a nuclear attack, and looked around. The old, red jar was still there. Grinning in spite of herself, Maggie lifted off the cover. There were indeed cookies in there, her favorite kind with the bits of sugar on one side, but there was also a piece of paper wedged at the back. Curious, Maggie stared at the paper while she inserted most of a cookie into her mouth. And then she reached for it.
    When she saw it was a note from her Gran, she almost spit out what was left of the cookie. And when she saw what it said, she almost tossed all her cookies.
    Maggie, my love. I knew you’d want a wee sweetie, and I thought this was the safest place to leave you a note.
    There is a special part of your inheritance that I have had to hide. I dare not even mention the hiding place here. It isn’t safe. I shall have to trust you to find it. Just look in the places that meant the most to me.
    It is the skin of a selkie. Once you find it, and find it you must, you are not to give it away until you’re done with it. Keep it hidden. Maggie, trust no one with it. There are those who would go to great lengths to steal such a prize. When I discovered it on the beach, I wanted it for you, and you alone. It can bring you great pleasure, something you haven’t had in a long time.
    It belongs to my friend Calan Kirk, but he mustn’t have it back until you’re done with it. I explained that to him. I know he needs it, and he’ll try to get it back. When he realized I didn’t want it for myself, he said it had to be returned to him. I suggested we settle the matter in a friendly game of poker.
    Thank the Lord your granddad taught me all those poker tricks!
    I won it from Calan fair and square. Don’t get me wrong. Calan is a good man, but even he cannot be trusted with the selkie skin. Do not put it in his hands until you no longer have need of its powers.
    You must find it. I won’t rest unless you do.
    I love you, my wee one. Stay safe.
    Maggie breathed in. “ Hidden sealskins? Yuck. ”
    Surely these were the ramblings