The Ex Hex

The next day, Vivi helps Gwyn at Something Wicked, the store she co-owns with Elaine. They discuss her run-in with Rhys the night before, but Vivi does not admit to Gwyn that “her heart had knocked solidly against her ribs” when she saw Rhys again (53). Jane, the mayor, comes in to ask if they have seen Rhys. He is supposed to make a speech soon, but no one can find him. Vivi agrees to help the search. As she walks, she reflects on how the Founder’s Day celebrations shifted over time from a somber remembrance of Gryffud Penhallow’s death to a commercialized kick-off to the Halloween season. She finds Rhys outside a coffee shop. As she ushers him to the welcome booth, Rhys invites her to accompany him later as he charges the ley lines. Vivi accepts.

Immediately after Rhys finishes his speech and steps down from the stage, the head of the Gryffud Penhallow statue behind him falls off, narrowly missing him. Rhys visits Something Wicked, as he is suspicious his bad luck is turning worse and has a nagging instinct that Vivi is somehow connected to it. Rhys asks Gwyn if they have a scrying mirror in the shop, but she refuses to help “any and all exes of Vivi’s,” especially him.