by M. J. Caan
Copyright © 2021 by M.J. Caan
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Created with Vellum
As always, thank you to Himself, for the love and dedication that makes everything I do possible.
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
About the Author
Also by M.J. Caan
1
Torie sat cross-legged on the floor, staring at the fireplace. Then she looked over at the pieces of wood she had brought in, which were stacked next to an old newspaper.
“How the hell do you even make a fire?” she wondered to herself. In her previous life as a married woman, she made fire by pressing a button, and watching the gas ignite the crystals in her modern style fireplace. But how do people actually do it with sticks and paper?
Just a week ago, she would have issued a mental command that would have caused the wood to ignite, filling the living room with warmth and light. But that was before.
Before she sacrificed her powers to save the newborn baby of her ex-husband’s fae mistress.
Now, she was forced with the seemingly impossible task of replicating the first thing early man created in order to survive: fire.
She sighed, reached for the newspaper and crumpled it, creating a bed in the fireplace. Now, do you light it and then put the wood on top, or put the wood on, then light it? It made more sense to do the former in her mind, but that didn’t mean it would work. She only had one newspaper, and therefore, only one shot.
In the end, she decided to stack the pieces of wood on top first and weave more crumbled pieces of paper between the logs.
Satisfied with what she saw, she reached for the starter lying on the mantle and lit the paper. Slowly, the fire she created made its way between the logs, lighting them as it went.
Pleased with herself, Torie smiled and made her way to her feet. Her knees had progressed from creaking to giving slight pops that were echoed by the sharp exhales of breath as she stood. The floor was now her enemy; along with the ottoman, the couch in the spare room upstairs that was way too deep.
She made a mental note to check out the only gym in town later in the week. With the coming cooler air, her joints were already starting to protest, beginning when she swung her legs out of bed in the mornings and not letting up until she made her way back into said bed that night.
Why hadn’t she tried to magically fix that when she still had her powers?
“You know why, Torie. Because you had no reason to think you’d ever lose your magic.”
She made her way to the kitchen and poured herself a shot of whiskey to sip. She could have waited until Elric had come by and asked him to make her a fire, but wasn’t that something, along with bathing and feeding herself, that she should be able to do on her own? Besides, she liked having a fire. The crackle was soothing in the ever-present silence of the house.
Had it always been so quiet? She tried not to think about her mother. That path would take her someplace dark, and that was the last thing she needed. No, she needed to put on her happy face. Her friends would be coming by later to check in on her, and she had to convince them she was alright.
Food.
That was what she needed to focus on now. Put out a spread so they would see she was in a good place.
Except that she wasn’t. The thought of taking out pans, prepping food, baking and sautéing…all things that she truly loved, was exhausting. Instead, she went to the pantry, retrieved some mixed nuts and tossed them into a large service bowl. Then she took out a few different cheeses, cut them into small blocks and arranged them on a platter with some thin sliced cold cuts.
Instant charcuterie.
The spread was sad compared to what she would normally present, but given her current state of being, she was pleased with the outcome. Wine and a few bits of chocolate that she placed around the living room would have to be enough, she decided. She looked at the wine; two bottles of red. She went back to the liquor cabinet for a third.
That would be for her, she knew.
Everything was ready, and that left her plenty of time to get herself together. Making her way to the master, she poured over the simple dress collection she had acquired since moving to Singing Falls.
Her wardrobe was far simpler than what she had possessed when she lived in New York. But unlike before, her clothes now matched how she felt. Breezy, colorful, lightweight sundresses. Jeans that didn’t threaten to cut off the circulation to her thighs, and comfortable shoes sans heels made up the majority of her daily wear now. Even though she didn’t feel very bright, she chose a vibrant blue dress that she would wear over black leggings. Silver dangling earrings and a sapphire necklace completed the outfit.
Yes. It would work. She summoned a smile and looked herself over in the mirror. This would fool all of them; except perhaps Elric. While she missed the rapport her magic had allowed them to share, she was also grateful that the wolf could not get into her mind. At least not until she had a chance to do some major housekeeping in there.
She was convinced that if she faked something long enough, it would become truth.
Before she could second-guess anything, the doorbell rang. Walking through the house, she could make out voices and knew that it was Fionna and Glen. They were always early because Fionna was terrified of ever showing up late to an event and making a bad impression on someone.
“Hello, ladies,” Torie said with a smile as she swung open the door.
“Hello yourself,” said Fionna. She held up a bottle of wine, offering it to Torie.
“Fionna, I told you not to worry about bringing anything.”
“We aren’t up north,” said Fionna. “No way we’re showing up empty-handed.”
Torie took the wine and stepped aside, letting her guests file in. Glen gave her a quick peck on the cheek and a squeeze on her upper arm as she passed.
“So, are you okay?” asked Fionna, spinning to face her friend.
“Yeah, I am. It’s a beautiful day out. I’m glad the weather is finally turning.”
“Oh not that,” said Fionna. “I mean how are you doing with the loss of your magic?” Glen gave her a light elbow and a knowing look. “What? We’re here to support her. But no one cares about the weather.”
Torie chuckled good-heartedly. “Well, I care about the weather. But as for the other thing…I’m doing okay. I’m adjusting.”
“I’m sorry,” said Glen. “We certainly don’t need to talk about this.” She gave her wife another side eye glance.
“It’s okay,” said Torie. “I’m just trying to decide what to call myself. I’m not a witch anymore; but not sure I fe
el like a normal human either.” She shrugged as she ushered them into the kitchen. “I didn’t have a lot of time today to get much together, but please help yourself.”
She took the bottle of wine Fionna had given her and added it to the collection on the island.
“There’s already a bottle open, so feel free to help yourself,” she said.
“Where’s Jasmin?” asked Fionna. “I was sure she’d be here already.”
“She texted. She’s on her way.”
“Any word from her sister?” Fionna asked.
Torie shook her head. She didn’t want to think about the possibility that Jasmin’s sister could help her regain her powers. The chance of failure would be too devastating.
“So are the guys coming over tonight?” Fionna asked.
“Not tonight,” said Torie. “I thought it might be good to just have a girls’ night for once.” She noticed the look Glen gave her but refused to meet her eyes.
“Fine by me,” added Fionna. “One on one they are fine. But the two of them together have a lot of testosterone.”
Glen laughed. “That’s because you haven’t spent a lot of time around men. It’s just how they interact when they are together.”
Fionna frowned. “Whatever. But honestly, the whole who is the- more- butch gets old fast.”
Glen walked over to the island and started munching on some cheese. “So, have you seen much of Elric lately?” she asked, not looking up.
Torie started to answer, but a knock at the door interrupted her.
“And that would be Jasmin,” she said, thankful for the distraction.
She opened the door, happy to see her friend and mentor. Just like Fionna, Jasmin came bearing a casserole dish and a paper bag.
“I brought some chicken buffalo dip and toasted pita chips,” she said, leaning in to kiss Torie on the cheek. “I made it extra fattening…cos why the hell not.”
“You didn’t have to,” said Torie, even though the smell of the dish made her stomach rumble.
“Oh I know. I wanted to.” She breezed in, blowing past Torie with a smile. Walking into the kitchen, she exchanged greetings with Glen and Fionna and plopped her dish onto the island. “Oh good, plenty of wine. You know us so well.”
“I have an idea,” said Torie. “Why don’t we sit out on the patio? It’s a gorgeous day, and I could do with a little air.”
They gathered the platters and headed out to the patio that overlooked a serene backyard that led to a line of old growth trees. Fionna made a second trip inside to get the glasses and wine before everyone settled on the teak furniture admiring the beauty of the fall colors that were just beginning to settle over the forestry.
“I love it back here,” said Torie. Her voice was low and her eyes took in the scenery without seeming to focus on any one aspect.
“How does it feel?” asked Jasmin.
Torie knew what she meant. Being able to sense her surroundings on a deeper level than just her normal five senses was something she had not even realized she possessed until it was gone.
“It’s different. I’m not going to lie. Actually, it’s almost scary at night.”
“How’s so?” asked Fionna.
“I can’t explain it. I come out here and I feel like there are eyes on me. I never felt like that before.”
“You’re going to have to readjust to how you perceive nature,” said Jasmin. “Your human senses are very different from the way your magic let you experience the world around you.”
“Well, maybe she doesn’t have to get accustomed to that,’ added Fionna. “Has your sister gotten back to you yet?”
Jasmin didn’t say anything, just looked sadly at the glass of wine she held.
“I’m sorry, Torie. Nothing yet. But she’s always been a little flaky. Dropping out of touch and then springing back up unexpectedly. She’ll get back to me. I’m sure of it.”
Torie offered a smile. “It’s really okay, Jasmin. I mean, I knew what I was doing. I still say it was worth it.”
Even Fionna didn’t argue that point. Torie’s selfless act had probably saved them all.
“You know, even if my sister doesn’t get back to me, I haven’t given up. I’m still researching everything I can find about restoring a witch’s powers. Plus, I’m calling in some favors with other witches in the area. Together, we’ll find something.”
Torie smiled and reached out, giving her friend’s arm a light squeeze. “Thank you, Jasmin, I know you’re doing everything you can. So no more talk about lost magic, okay?” said Torie. “I want to know what’s going on with you guys?” She arched an eyebrow at them when no one spoke. “Well don’t everyone talk at once.”
“Well, we have news,” said Glen, glancing over at Fionna. “I’m taking a new job.”
“Oh yeah, doing what?” asked Jasmin.
“I’m starting a private first-responder business. One that focuses on the supernatural community. I spent so much time patching you guys up that I realized there was a market for it in town. I’ve been working with Max to potentially team up with the police division to deal with calls that most humans wouldn’t understand.”
“Wow,” said Torie. “That’s a great idea.”
“Well, I figured that as long as you three are together, I probably won’t have any shortage of business. Plus, at least this way I’ll feel like I’m more of a help to you. Not just another non-supernatural who gets in the way.”
She caught herself and gave a Torie a sharp, pained look.
“I am so sorry. I didn’t mean that the way it sounded.”
The fact that she made her friends uncomfortable made Torie feel awful.
“No, I didn’t take it any way that wasn’t intended. Besides, you have never not been helpful to us. I’ve always been thankful you were around with your trusty bag of medicines.”
“It’s been really well received,” said Fionna. “We spent yesterday dropping her card off at some of the supernatural congregating spots around town. Just kind of getting the word out.”
Just then, Glen’s phone chirped, making everyone jump. She pulled it out of her pocket, frowning at the number that came up. Swiping at the screen, she held it to her ear.
“Hello?” She paused, nodding to herself. “I’ll be right there.” She slid it back into her pocket and looked at the others, excitement spreading over her face.
“Who was that?” asked Fionna.
“Talk about timing,” Glen replied. “That was the owner of Jim’s Bakery. He said a fight just broke out and there are a couple of supernaturals with injuries that need attention.”
“A fight?” said Jasmin. “At…the coffee shop? This I gotta see.”
Torie was on her feet and heading back into the house. She grabbed her keys from the console and headed for the door. “Well, what are we waiting for? I’ll drive.”
2
They pulled up to the bakery in Torie’s old Subaru and saw about a half-dozen people milling about on the sidewalk outside the shop. Before they could get out of the car, Jim, the owner, was racing towards them.
“Thank goodness you’re here,” he said to Glen. “I didn’t know who to call. I mean, I love Sheriff Max and all, but I don’t want my patrons being carted off to jail, and I sure don’t want any unnecessary eyes prying into my business.”
“What happened?” asked Jasmin.
He motioned for them to follow him. “Come on in and see for yourself.”
They made their way into the bakery that Torie had come to think of as her home away from home. She had spent many mornings there, sitting in the comfortable leather chairs opposite the large, stone fireplace chatting away with Fionna and Jasmin. But for the first time since she had moved to Singing Falls, she felt ill at ease walking into the space.
Something was clawing at the back of her mind; and it made her skin crawl.
The place was in shambles. Coffee tables were upended, chairs had been tossed haphazardly about. The display counter that
contained assorted homemade sweets and breads had been shattered, and one of the girls that worked behind the counter was sitting on the floor, back propped against the wall with a towel stained with blood held against her head.
Glen moved over to her first, bending down next to her and starting her examination.
“Jim, what happened here?” asked Jasmin, trying to take in the scene.
“I have no idea. One minute everything was fine; typical crowd. The next, chairs are flying and people were at each other’s throats.”
Torie looked around, taking mental snapshots of the crowd milling outside the large picture window and the ones still inside the shop. From the looks of things, it had been a busy evening. Nothing unusual about that. Torie could see where many of the patrons had been enjoying a cup of coffee with the delicious pastries the bakery was known for.
“Do you know who started it?” queried Jasmin.
Jim shrugged. “It all happened so fast. But I will say that the first blows were thrown by Jake Pressin and Mikey Belvin.”
Jasmin gave him a surprised look.
“Those two are pretty much just kids. Good ones too. I can’t see them throwing punches at anyone.”
“You would think,” said Jim. “But I’m telling you what I saw. There was nothing sweet about them. They had this crazed look in their eyes. Like they were just focused on one thing; hurting the other.”
Jasmin wandered over to where Torie was looking around.
“Maybe those two were fighting over a girl. One of them said something to the other that was unflattering and…bam. Fight.”
Jasmin shook her head. “Not those two. Jake is a rabbit shifter and Mikey is an empath. It isn’t in either of their natures to come to physical blows. It’s just not who they are.”