As soon as the home and garden centers figured out where they were going. She felt slightly guilty, but only slightly. The day that they brought home a backhoe, she would worry. And possibly run screaming into the darkness. Until then, as long as they stayed reasonable, she would let them engage in petty theft.They were gnomes after all. It was in their makeup to take what they needed, she had designed them that way.She should follow their example. She stood at the window, watching her creatures and thinking about their future. Abby could only hope it was a calmer one than their first week of life. Something caught her attention. There was a sound in her vicinity and it was insistent.A metallic gong sound was emanating from the box on her dining table. Hmm. To open it or not to open it, that was the question. A frisson of anticipation crept up her spine and a burst of magic with it. What the hell.The wrapper was plain and brown, no postmark and only her name and address on the top of the parcel.
