Read Witch Ball - BK 3 for Free Online Page A

about? And don't tell me nothing, because
I read enough mysteries to know when people are
hiding secrets."
    I shrugged. "It was nothing."
    "I'm not a baby, Sabine. You can tell me
anything."
    "There's nothing to tell. Just dull carnival
business."
    "Then show me the notebook."
    "No." I held it securely behind my back.
    "Why not if it's dull?" She grabbed for the notebook, but I lifted it over my head and spun away
from her.
    "Oh, there's Nona!" I announced, waving at the
car pulling into the parking lot. "Come on Amy."

    "You are so not playing fair," she grumbled. But
I ignored her and hurried over to Nonas car.
    Nona gave a joyful exclamation when she saw
Amy, and invited her to sit up in the front seat.
Amy hadn't visited since I moved in, so Nona
was full of questions about school, modeling, and
music lessons. I slid into the back, glad to be alone
with my thoughts-and Manny's notebook. Flipping it open, I traced my finger over Jill's flowing
cursive signature. Her double Us looped identically
and the dot over her "i" was perfectly centered.
Super-achiever, even when it came to her penmanship. How would she react to a less-than-perfect
prediction?
    It would be simple enough to call Jill and find
out what Manny told her. But would she tell me
over the phone? She'd want to know why I didn't
just ask Manny. That would lead to more awkward
questions I didn't want to answer.
    Besides, Jill hadn't seemed upset today. In the
midst of carnival chaos, she maintained a calm,
confident attitude. We'd talked several times and
she'd never once mentioned a prediction. If Manny
had gone into a zombie trance and foretold her
death, I would have heard about it-if not from Jill then from someone else. Whatever Manny had told
her, it couldn't have been bad news-maybe even
good.

    Jack and K.C.-whoever they were-probably
received good fortunes, too, and I was stressing
over nothing. Although, if I was the only one with
a bad prediction, that meant the witch ball had a
grudge against me.
    Was it because I was the new owner of the ball?
    Or was it more personal ... more dangerous?
    When we arrived home, I lugged a folding bed
upstairs and set it up in my room for Amy. I was
amused to discover her backpack had more books
than anything. If it had been Ashley, she would
have brought half of her closet plus an arsenal of
makeup. How could twins who shared the exact
genes be so different?
    Of course I shared some of those genes, and
look how I turned out. I wasn't fashionable like
Mom, multi-talented like my sisters, or a shrewd negotiator like Dad. In a way I was the "black sheep"
of the family. I even had the black stripe in my
blond hair to prove it; the hereditary mark of a seer.
Nona had one, too, until her blond hair turned
silver-gray.

    While Nona took Amy on a get-reacquainted
tour of the farm, I offered to start dinner. I peeled
carrots, sliced chicken, and then simmered them
with noodles and mushroom soup for a casserole.
Savory smells filled the stove-warmed kitchen.
Everything was ready when Amy and Nona returned
from outside; their cheeks flushed and a piece of hay
poking out from Amy's long, dark hair.
    Dinner was a festive occasion. Amy and I talked
about the carnival, sharing funny stories about the
people who came to our booth, like the elderly man
who was so excited to score a hit, his dentures fell
out. Nona told about her more unusual clients from
Soul Mate Matches; the little boy who hired her to
find the perfect mate for his father and ended up
with his teacher for a stepmother; and the man who
discovered his perfect match was his ex-wife. I loved
seeing Nona relaxed and acting like her usual self
with zero signs of illness.
    After dinner, Nona cleared off the table, Amy
rinsed dishes, and I put them in the dishwasher.
We gathered in the living room and munched buttery popcorn while watching a movie.
    Then Nona had work to do in her office, so
Amy and I headed