When everyone disappeared, it wasn't the hotel clerk who waved them over.
Instead, a woman stepped out onto the balcony of the hotel above the ROOMS sign and lifted her hand like she was hailing a friend across a street she owned.
Her smile was the first thing that Sera noticed. Bright, easy, it was the kind you remembered from years when things made sense. Her skin smooth as porcelain, not a pore to be seen. Her hair was pinned back in a bun neatly, and her eyes reflected more light than they took in.
Sera liked her right away.
"Don't mind him," she called out, tipping her head toward where the sheriff had disappeared back into his office. "He's always like that."
Sera didn't move at first, just continued to watch the girl like she had found a previously undiscovered species. She didn't quite know what to do with her, but didn't want to look away just in case she disappeared.
