Witch Reborn Box Set: Books 1-3: Includes Gemstone Coven Holiday Shorts 1 & 2

by Belinda White

  He grunted. “Somehow I’m guessing you know why. Most likely for the same reason you went to see him yourself. I want to know if he’s messed up in all of this. He was in Archie’s office. He could have been the one to take that blasted spell journal.”

  “You’re looking into Archie’s case too, dear?” Sapphire asked. “How nice.” Then she looked around her at the mounds of paperwork and heaps of files. “But perhaps your time would be best spent just keeping things running here. Let us handle the thing with Archie.”

  Merlin shook his head. “Archie might be your husband, Sapphire, but he was my brother first. If Opal was in trouble, would you stand by and let others handle it?”

  “I would not.”

  “And neither will I.”

  “So, bottom line, there are a lot of people working to clear Archie’s name,” Patricia said, speaking for the first time. “It might help if we communicated a little better though. Save us time in the long run. I’m going to guess you knew Jack went to examine the mark on Goldman’s body?”

  Merlin hesitated, then nodded.

  That got a grunt from me. “I most certainly would have appreciated knowing that a lot earlier. Would have saved me a sight I won’t soon forget.” A smell, too, for that matter.

  He looked at us. “You saw the mark too? How?” Then his face cleared. “Sheriff Taylor. I should have known.” Merlin glanced at his desk clock rather pointedly. “I’ll agree to update you ladies if you agree to do the same with me. I had no idea you were working on this, either, you know. But for now, you three need to leave. I don’t want Daniel to see you, and he strikes me as one who will show up early.”

  Part of me wanted to stay. Hide out in a neighboring office and listen in to the whole conversation. But the risk was too high. If the boy did see us, the jig would be up. It was far better to work the double angles with him.

  We left.

  I WAS STILL ITCHING to go and see Jack. The problem was, I didn’t want tag alongs when I did. I wanted to face him one on one. I thought it would be much more likely I’d get the answers I wanted that way. But that would not happen this afternoon.

  Besides, Sapphire was strung tighter than a violin string. I didn’t want her to go breaking on me. She needed a little downtime.

  “I vote we go back to the farmhouse and regroup. Maybe pick up a pizza on the way for lunch. What do you girls say?”

  “Why the farmhouse? My place is quicker,” Sapphire said.

  Yeah, but her place didn’t have my secret relaxation weapon. Baby Pearl. But I had another excuse to throw out there too. “I promised to make magician capes for the kids. And while I know within reason you have a sewing machine, Sapphire, the material I want to use is back home.”

  Patricia looked at me. “You sew?”

  “You don’t?”

  Her mouth opened and closed, but no words came out. At least, not at first. The second try, she did better. “No. I don’t, actually.”

  “Might be something you want to take up then. Comes in handy sometimes.”

  “I’ll keep that in mind.”

  By the time we picked up the pizzas and made it home, I was half-starved. First things first, we ate. I noticed that when Archie’s well-being was at stake, my sister’s new rule of no business talk at meal times flew out the window.

  “So, what’s our next step?” she asked.

  I looked at Patricia, who shrugged. “We pick another name on the list and hit them up tomorrow. Then we just keep working our way down the list until we can prove Archie is innocent of all wrong-doing.”

  “You mean until we find out who took the gosh darn spell journal,” I said.

  “One and the same thing, isn’t it?” Patricia took another bite, looking thoughtful. “At this point, though, the main thing is just convincing the council. Once Crystal digs her heels in, that could take some doing. Just proving the journal was stolen might not be enough. We will need rock-solid evidence that whoever stole the book used that knowledge to frame Archie. That might not be so easy to do.”

  “True. But finding the thief is the first hurdle.”

  “Granted.”

  I must have put too much emphasis on the word ‘thief’ for Sapphire’s liking. “For the last time, Opal, it isn’t Jack. I don’t know what you have against that man, but you heard Shaman Crowe and Merlin, right? Jack is helping Archie. He didn’t take that journal.”

  Yeah, I still wasn’t convinced of that. Sorry. But arguments with Sapphire rarely ended well. I’d learned that at a very young age. It was better to just go quiet and let her think she’d won. Changing the subject was always a good idea too.

  Come to find out, company worked well as a distraction too. I found that little tidbit out when we all heard Orville’s car coming up the drive.

  I met him at the door. As he wasn’t in too big of a hurry walking up to the porch, I took it that the news wasn’t all that dire.

  “You smell that Carney’s pizza all the way from town, did you?”

  He grinned at me. Another good sign that all was well. Or, well, as well as could be expected. “I’m good, but not that good.” He looked past me to the boxes on the coffee table. We’d foregone the whole kitchen thing for once. “But if you happen to have a slice or two to spare, I wouldn’t say no.”

  “I’ll grab you a plate.” The trip to the kitchen didn’t take long, even with the stop to pull a cold bottle of pop out of the fridge. “Help yourself. There’s more in the fridge too. I stocked up for the kids.”

  “Bless you. I didn’t have time for lunch today.”

  “Busy time for the law in Wind’s Crossing?”

  He shook his head. “No, and don’t jinx me either. I’m counting on it staying that way for a few days.” He bit into the pizza and let out a little groan. Yeah, Carney’s could do that to you.

  His words struck up my curiosity, but I wasn’t about to give him the satisfaction of begging for it. He’d tell me in due time, anyway. Not that he wouldn’t make me suffer a little for the not begging thing.

  He turned to the other women and nodded. “Ladies.” Then his eyes focused on Patricia. “That was pretty impressive this morning, I have to say. You really are the real deal, aren’t you?”

  She nodded. “About as real as they come, sheriff.”

  “You ever think about getting back on that saddle?”

  Patricia shrugged. “It didn’t work out so well last time. Why try it again?”

  He looked at me but didn’t say anything. Something else to ratchet up my curiosity. I had a funny feeling that there was something else he wanted to say to her. I also had a funny feeling that my being in the room was keeping him from saying it.

  What was up with that? I didn’t like the thought of my man keeping things from me. Especially things he’d be willing to share with Patricia.

  Whether he saw my concerned gaze for what it was or not, he doubled back to the earlier conversation. “I was too busy for lunch because I was wrapping up some loose ends on my desk. I’m taking the rest of the week off. You gals have another partner to help in this investigation. In fact, I’d be perfectly happy to take the whole darn thing off your hands.”

  Well, off me and Sapphire’s hands. I was pretty sure he might want Patricia’s help. Which kind of rankled me.

  “We’d be happy for the help, Sheriff, but we’re in this too deep to stop now.” Sapphire spoke for me on that one. It was probably better that way. I might have said something I shouldn’t have.

  I tended to do that when I got rankled.

  Orville nodded slowly. “I kind of figured you’d all feel that way.” He looked at each of us in turn. “But you know, we could double our efforts if we split into two teams.”

  I raised an eyebrow at him. I really hoped he wasn’t about to go where I was afraid he was about to go.

  He wasn’t. Thank the Goddess.

  “Opal and I could concentrate on the in-person interviews, and the two of you could man the command cen
tral. We will need that. There’s a lot of research to be done on something like this. It would save time splitting our resources.”

  Sapphire didn’t look happy, but she finally gave a nod. “As long as that isn’t just your way of trying to push me out, Orville. I have to be doing something, or I’ll go crazy.”

  He laid a hand on her shoulder. “I know. And for what it’s worth, the research is important. I have an estimated time of death for Goldman now, and we know that barn fire started just before midnight. The two of you could start looking at where everybody was when those events happened and piecing things together. Plus, background checks and all that would come in handy too.”

  “I think we can handle that.” Patricia looked over at Sapphire. “You’re pretty good on that phone of yours. I’m guessing you and technology get along?”

  Sapphire looked at me and swallowed. She knew better than to actually say it. She aced at computer stuff and kitchen work. Me? I was better behind a sewing machine and in the garden. We each had our strengths.

  Keen of Orville to play to them.

  Not that sewing or gardening strengths helped one whit in an investigation. Which kind of made me the weak link in all this.

  And that thought rankled me more than anything.

  Chapter 18

  The kids and Kimberly made it home shortly after that. We limited the kids to one slice of pizza each so they wouldn’t spoil their suppers. When Kimberly and Sapphire started making plans on what to fix for dinner, Patricia looked at me.

  “Don’t suppose you’d care to give me a lift back to my place? Guess I should have driven myself over here this morning. My brain doesn’t seem to be functioning all that well today.”

  “Well, none of us got all that much sleep last night, so don’t be too hard on your brain. And I was planning on making a trip to Oak Hill, anyway.” I threw a glance into the kitchen. “But I’m kind of hoping that Sapphire will agree to stay here. I don’t think she’s going to approve of where I’m going, and I don’t want her alone right now.”

  “I agree, she shouldn’t be alone.” Patricia hesitated. “I’d stay with her, but there’s an angle I kind of want to check into myself, before I start in on the computer.”

  Orville’s ears perked up. “Oh?”

  “Sorry, sheriff. Kind of a need to know kind of thing. I just want to take a look around the area where they found Goldman’s body. I know the police went over it thoroughly, but I’d still like to see if I can sniff out a clue or two from it. Might catch something they missed.”

  I felt my eyes go big. Oh, indeed. Why had I not thought to ask Patricia to use that wolfy nose of hers? Now, I was kind of itching to go with her myself. I’d only gotten to see the wolf side to the woman once, and it hadn't lasted near long enough to satisfy my curiosity.

  Of course, it wouldn’t be that easy to ditch my new partner. Especially when he offered to drive us.

  We dropped her off at her little house, and as we pulled out of her drive, Orville glanced over at me. “You said Oak Hill, right?”

  I nodded. “Yes.”

  He turned to the left, and we rode for a minute in silence. Funny, but before a week ago, the silences between me and Orville had never really bothered me. Now they did. Too many things up in the air right now for it to be a comfortable one.

  I was just opening my mouth to break it when he beat me to it.

  “About tomorrow’s date night,” he said. I tensed. How could I not? “I’m thinking maybe we should reschedule until the weekend. You’ve got enough on your plate without that hovering over your head. Sound fair enough?”

  It would still be hovering over my head, but the extension was a welcome boon all the same. “Thank you, Orville. That would be much appreciated.”

  He gave a grunt. “Figured it might. Guess a few more days waiting for an answer will not kill me.” He gave me a crooked grin. “Even if it feels like it might sometimes. You aren’t the only one with stress over this, just so you know.”

  I looked out the window. “I know.”

  Another brief silence. “So, who are we on our way to see?”

  “A friend of Merlin’s by the name of Jack.” I considered how much to share, but in the end, he needed to know. “Jack is a thief, plain and simple. Kind of a little too proud of that fact, too, if you ask me. He and Merlin have been buddies for a long, long time. Him and Archie not so much.”

  “And because he’s a thief, you think he might be the one that took that journal?”

  “I do.”

  “And what do Sapphire and Merlin think?”

  “They don’t.”

  “I see. I’m guessing this visit will just stay between the two of us, then?”

  “That would be appreciated, yes. But Sapphire knows how I feel. She’s going to realize I would pay Jack a visit sooner rather than later.”

  The silence was a little easier to bear after that. The air seemed a little easier to breathe too.

  We pulled up outside Jack’s not too humble abode, and Orville gave a low whistle. “The thieving business is good for this Jack.”

  “It is.” I’d been by Jack’s before but never been inside the place. As such, I really didn’t have any notion of what to expect. Good thing, too, because I’m thinking I’d have been sorely wrong. Jack, as it turns out, was a complicated man.

  He answered the door, and the perfectly groomed gentleman that I’d come to know was gone. His clothes were wrinkled, his hair was standing on end, and there was more than a faint trace of magic clinging to him.

  We’d obviously caught him in the middle of a spell.

  Jack blinked at us. Finally, he found his voice. “Opal. I certainly didn’t expect to see you on my doorstep.”

  “And yet here I am. May we come in?”

  He glanced at Orville, who just so happened to still be in his sheriff’s uniform. If that made the man uncomfortable, he wasn’t showing it. He seemed more bothered by my presence than that of an actual lawman. Funny, that.

  Jack gave a couple more blinks before finally stepping out of the doorway to let us pass. “Please forgive the mess. I’ve been rather... preoccupied lately.”

  My eyes were drawn to a small black cauldron sitting on his long kitchen counter. It was surrounded by magical ingredients. “Sorry if we’ve interrupted a spell. Anything I can help with?”

  He swallowed and shook his head. “I wish I could say yes, but I’ve tried everything under the sun, and nothing is working.”

  Color me curious. “What is it you’re trying to do?”

  “A find spell.”

  Even more curious. Those were actually pretty simple spells. I usually kept a few all mixed up and at hand, just in case. In fact, I had one in my bag. Kind of concerned me if a master of stealth spells couldn’t even do a simple find.

  “I’m fairly decent at those,” I said, going for modesty. “In fact, if you’ll tell me what it is you’re trying to find, I might just be able to help.”

  Jack took a deep breath, then glanced up at Orville. “I will gather this man can be trusted? I don’t know him, you know. That uniform means nothing to me.”

  “I’m sorry,” Orville said, holding out his hand. “I’m Orville Taylor, and I’m on vacation at the moment. Pay no attention to the clothes.”

  Jack arched an eyebrow at him. “I generally don’t, unless the clothes come with a warrant. I take it that’s not the case today, though.”

  Orville chuckled. “Nope. No warrant today. And as long as you keep your... business out of my county, you’re out of my jurisdiction, anyway.”

  “Good.” Then Jack’s eyes turned back to me. With a very calculating look. “Are you Ravenswinds as good as people say you are?”

  I just looked at him. “That would depend on what people say, wouldn’t it? But you can trust that we know our way around a spell.”

  He nodded. “Then, as much as I hate to admit it, I might be able to use your help with this after all.”

 
Jack led me over to the counter, then pointed down to a rather fancy, and most likely expensive, fountain pen and a small amulet. “Those are both Archie’s. The pen is from his desk—and yes, Merlin knows I have it—and the amulet is a safety spell Archie did as a pocket token for me.” He shook his head. “I know Archie and I have our differences.” Jack glanced at Orville. “But I highly respect him. He’s a good man and a good friend, and he doesn’t deserve what the council is doing to him.”

  “I agree.” Then I looked pointedly at the items on the counter. “But he’s not exactly missing, you know. I saw him just this morning.”

  “It isn’t him I’m looking for.” Jack brushed a strand of hair out of his eyes. He really did look like he’d been at this for a while. Finally, his eyes met mine. “I’m looking for that bloody spell journal. If I can find it...”

  Okay, now he had my interest. “Then we would know who is behind all of this.”

  “Exactly. Only, I’m not having much luck. I’ve tried just about everything I can think of too.”

  My early hope dashed on the rocks. “It’s hard to find a magical item. You’d pretty much have to search out Archie’s signature.”

  Jack nodded sadly. “Yes. And I’m afraid our dear friend Archimedes has been casting spells all over Oak Hill and the surrounding area. There just isn’t a way to pinpoint the book. At least not one that I can come up with, obviously. And believe me, it’s not for lack of trying.”

  I looked the man deep in his eyes. And I believed him. He really was trying to help. Jack the thief wasn’t our man.

  “Do you have any ideas?”

  I shook my head. “None that come to mind. That book will hide in plain sight with as much magic as Archie throws around.”

  Jack took a deep breath and sank onto a stool at the counter, his head in his hands. “Then I’m fresh out of ways to help. They’re always there for me. And I can’t even return the favor when they need help the most.”

  “Getting the shaman’s friend in to see that spell mark was a whole lot of help, if you ask me.” I saw Orville’s eyebrow go up. I’d have to explain that one later. “And just being there for moral support to Merlin in all this helps too. We’ll get this straightened out. I promise.”