Two blue eyes were staring back at me. His sleek reddish brown fur covering the muscular canine form was beautiful in a lethal-I’ll-eat-you-for-lunch kind of way. This was not the type of cat I’d been expecting.
I scurried out of the bed until I had my back pressed against the door.
“What the hell kind of cat are you, and what are you doing in my bed?”
“This is my bed, and I’m a puma,” the cat answered.
“I’m still dreaming, right? Cat’s don’t talk.”
“Yours does, and if you’re about to run down the stairs screaming, be a doll and turn off the light and shut the door when you leave.”
My mouth hung open as his long paws clawed at the cover and he closed his eyes and began to purr.
I don’t know how long I stood there staring at the cat, but his eyes finally opened. He sighed, and with a twist of magic in the air, he changed into a normal sized house cat with the same colored fur and blue eyes, the kind I’d thought Friday to be. “Is this better?”
“You’re a magical talking, shapeshifting cat?”
He licked his paws. “Technically, I’m a magical man trapped inside a cat, but I guess it’s semantics. Now could you please stop staring at me and get into bed. I like to cuddle.”
“I’m not sleeping with you.”
He stretched and arched his back before sauntering down to the end of the bed. “Is this better?”
I climbed into the bed and pulled the covers up to my chin. “You’re going to stay there, right?”
I could have sworn the cat grinned when he purred and settled into the blanket at my feet.
I grabbed my phone and shot a text off to Ryder.
Magical man trapped inside a cat? Is that normal?
He was quick to answer. Called a familiar. The man probably did something to piss off one your ancestors, and they trapped him. Should be harmless, especially since you’re wearing the pendant.
This magic stuff is for the birds.
I’m sure there are a few of those too. Get some rest, Tess.
Night.
Chapter 6
The puma-man, now in cat form, followed me down the stairs the next morning after fighting to watch me take a shower. He lost, of course, when I threatened to hex him worse. The fact that I didn’t know how to do that didn’t stop me from letting him believe that I could. After searching the cupboard for coffee and coming up short, I decided to make some tea, only I wouldn’t drink mine hot like the locals probably did. I would drink it cold, and poured over ice, the only way to drink it in the south.
I unlocked the door and pulled it open. My shoulders sagged when I didn’t find a note. Maybe King had been right. No note since I wasn’t Mildred, and that might be a good thing. I settled lengthwise on the bench swing with my feet propped up.
A gentle breeze stirred the air as I stared at the Greek statues. I had this unnerving feeling, as if I were being watched. I glanced around the yard. Kids were playing street hockey down the road. A woman jogging with her dog passed by the house, and birds chirped in the trees nearby. This town was extremely normal if you didn’t count Grandmother Mildred’s statues.
I opened the ancient black reservation book, thumbing through until I found the current date.
I picked up the tea and sipped. A metallic taste filled my mouth seconds before I spit it out across the porch. “Holy Mother.”
I dropped my feet to the floor, lifted the glass to my nose, and sniffed. “Nothing.”
“It can’t be that bad.” The cat purred from his perch on the railing. “Mildred drank that stuff all the time.”
“It’s laced with magic or something that could specifically harm me,” I announced, dipping my finger inside and holding it to Friday’s mouth. His whiskers twitched. “That’s laced with more than magic, little witch. That’s belladonna mixed with cyanide.”
“You’re sure?” I asked, wiping my finger on my shorts.
“I knew Mildred was too wicked to die from something like a heart attack. She was drinking that tea when she keeled over.”
My eyes widened in surprise. “The attorney didn’t tell me how she died.”
“They probably didn’t even check considering her age. The woman was pushing early eighties.”
I jogged down the porch and glanced back. “Stay here.”
“I have nowhere else to go, darling, unless you release me.”
I started across the road, surprised to find King headed in my direction. We met in the middle of the road. His gaze caressed my face as his blue eyes sparkled in the morning sun. “Any note?”
“I didn’t find any note, but I found this.” I lifted the cup for him to see.
“Is that your way of inviting me over for tea?”
“I wouldn’t let you drink this. It’s poisoned.”
He took the cup and lifted it to his nose. “I don’t smell anything.”
“You never did tell me how Mildred died.” I rested my hand on my hip until he ushered me to my side of the road and out of the street.
“We didn’t perform an autopsy on her.”
“Why not?” I barked.
“It was no secret she had a bad ticker,” he said, glancing back up at the inn. “But we did find her reading the black book with a cup of spilled tea near her body.”
“I don’t want to tell you how to do your job or anything, but I think you’ve got two murders on your hands.”
“I’m going to need to exhume her body. Show me where you got this.”
I led him over to the house and straight into the kitchen, where I pointed to the tins containing tea. “I made it this morning using those.”
“It wasn’t premade?”
I rolled my eyes. “I don’t drink my tea hot. I’m from the south. We drink it cold, and I would have had coffee if I could have found some.”
He yanked open all of the cupboard doors and left them open, staring at the items on the shelves. “Don’t eat or drink any of this. I’m going to have it all tested.”
“Peachy. Any idea who would want to kill Mildred?” I sighed.
“Everyone. She was the most hated and feared person in town.”
“Well, that narrows it down,” I said, glancing at all of the food that was about to go to waste. “Any idea where I can buy a coffee maker and new groceries?”
“On Fourth and Main. There’s a coffee shop and a store next door.”
My day had just gotten a lot longer as I mentally calculated how many walking trips I was going to have to do in a single day just to have snacks and stuff to drink. “I don’t suppose Mildred had a car?”
“She did, but it sat idle for over a decade. I can send the mechanic to look at it and check for bombs.”
“Lovely.” I tossed my hands up in the air. No food, no drinks, no car. My day was getting better by the minute.
King had his phone out calling for a forensic team to come to the house as I headed for the door. He cupped the phone speaker. “Where are you going?”
“Fourth and Main. I can’t function without caffeine.”
“You’re going to walk?” he asked.
“Unless you’ve got a better idea,” I said.
Kind held up a finger, silencing me. “Yeah, Mildred’s house,” he said into the phone before he disconnected. He headed out the front door, and I followed. I didn’t know what I expected, maybe for him to let me borrow his car or call me a taxi if this little town had one, but nope, he sure didn’t. Instead, he led me into a garage.
Dust covered every available space, including the cover that was laying over Mildred’s car. Boxes were stacked neatly against the wall. The smell of grass from the push lawn mower in the corner mixed with the dust. I couldn’t even imagine my old grandmother using that thing. Rusted tools lay on the ground near broken flower pots. Unlike the clean kitchen, this place hadn’t been kept up.
King pulled out a black bike with pink stripes with a basket attached to the handlebars and pushed it out the doo
rs. “Use this. Mildred has an account at every store in town, so just charge it. You can settle up later.”
I would have thanked him right then, but I wasn’t sure I would make it to Main Street without cursing his name from all my falling and future scraps on my knees. The last time I’d been on a bike I was ten. So, instead, I waved as I straddled the thing.
“Go out of the yard and make a left.”
I pedaled, and the bike bobbed and weaved until I got to the sidewalk and turned. He called out after me, “Your other left.”
I waved my hand, and the bike started to wobble more, so I grabbed both handlebars again. “Thanks.”
Chapter 7
A few parked cars lined Main Street. Striped awning covers flapped in the wind as I passed storefronts. It was a quaint little town. Smells of fresh-brewed coffee and the sweet, succulent scents from the bakery drifted on the breeze.
“You’re not a very good bike rider,” Livvy announced.
I recognized the little voice as her pink bike pulled up alongside mine.
“I haven’t ridden one since I was your age.”
“I thought witches rode brooms.”
I shrugged and immediately struggled to steady the bike again.
“I thought little girls went to school. Guess we were both wrong.”
“It’s Saturday, and besides, it’s my mandatory play time.”
“Mandatory? I thought all kids liked to play.”
“I don’t. Kids don’t like me.”
“That because you’re smarter than them.”
“I know.” She smiled. “It’s why I liked talking to Mildred. Nobody liked her either, but she was just misunderstood like me.”
“I think you two were probably polar opposites.” I chuckled and tried to avoid falling over while stopping in front of the coffee shop. I slid off my bike, and my new little tagalong followed me.
“Why did you come here?”
“For coffee. I thought it was obvious.”
“It is,” she said, struggling with the door, so I helped. I didn’t know how she packed all that genius inside such a tiny body.
“I just don’t know why you need it when Mildred has a stock of it in the basement next to the coffee maker.”
“Who in their right mind doesn’t store coffee in the kitchen or pantry?”
“Franklin drinks it,” Livvy said, taking my hand as we stood in the doorway. All of the joy seemed to suck out of her seven-year-old little body like someone had stuck a pin into her balloon. I turned my gaze to the patrons to figure out which person was making her uneasy.
The entire coffee shop was quiet, and everyone was staring at us. Tension, thick and unyielding, suffocated the air, pressing against us. Someone in this place didn’t like me being here. I patted against my chest to realize I’d forgotten to put Ryder’s pendant on and headed for the counter, only to be stopped by Livvy’s unmoving feet.
She shook her head.
I bent down to eye level with her. “It’s me they don’t trust, so I’m going to do what I always do.”
“What’s that?”
“Kill them with kindness.”
A smile lit her face. “You sound like Uncle King, although he’d tell me if that didn’t work to hit them with my right hook.”
“I’ll remember that.” I grinned and rose to my full height, and lifting my chin, I headed to the counter, passing out sugar-sweet smiles as I went.
I glanced around the quiet crowd before I let out a sigh, released Livvy’s hand, and jumped up onto one of the chairs. “I’m not Mildred, just her granddaughter. She didn’t raise me, I’m not mean, and I think the figurines in her yard are a bit much, but I can’t remove them. I already asked. I’m just here for coffee, people, and to buy my only friend a cake pop. You can resume your business.”
I hopped down and pulled a twenty out of my pocket and rested it on the counter.
The barista smiled. “Sorry about that. They’re wary of newcomers.”
“I’m sure it doesn’t help that I’m related to Mildred.”
She chuckled. “Nope, not at all, but I like the way you handled it. Serves them right for being so nosy.”
I read her name tag then. She and I would get along just fine. “Myra, I’d like a white chocolate mocha with an extra shot of the good stuff, one large milk, and two cake pops please.”
“Coming right up. You two can take a seat anywhere, and I’ll bring them over.”
“That’s probably wise. I’m not sure she’s capable of riding the bike with no hands and holding her coffee,” Livvy said.
“Smart kid,” Myra announced.
“You have no idea,” I whispered beneath my breath, leading Livvy to an empty table near the window.
The atmosphere in the room had seemed to ease, but I could still feel the eyes of the other patrons watching us. I let Livvy sit with her back to them to feel more comfortable, but it was mainly so I could watch to make sure no one was approaching with a knife.
“So, Livvy, what do you like to do for fun?”
“Learn and read books and hack into companies to show where they have vulnerabilities. I’m really good at it.”
My brows dipped. “Did you say – hack?”
She nodded. “I’ve been writing computer code since I was four. I took my first computer apart at the age of six and fixed it for Uncle King. He takes care of me when my mom works. I felt like we owed him for the way he tries to take care of us and tries to be a good role model.”
“That’s very mature of you.”
“He didn’t have a choice when Dad died.” Livvy’s whole demeanor changed before my eyes. She missed her father like crazy. I didn’t have to be a mind reader to know.
“I’m sorry,” I offered just as Myra brought our order over.
She sat a coffee cup in front of each of us and the cake pops. “One order of milk and a white mocha for you.”
“Thanks.”
“Are you sure mine isn’t coffee? My mother won’t let me drink coffee. She thinks it will stunt my growth, although I’ve read all of the studies, and I disagree. I’ve tasted it and couldn’t sleep for days. I honestly don’t know how you adults drink the stuff. It tastes worse than Brussels sprouts.”
I smiled like she was wiser than Buddha himself. She was probably close. “We drink it for the caffeine.”
“She’s so precious,” Myra said with a smile. “Has she always been like this?”
“Oh, she isn’t mine.” I took a sip and moaned at the heavenly bliss in my mouth. “She’s my neighbor.”
“I’m her only friend in town, well, besides my uncle. I think he likes her too.”
Myra disappeared back behind the counter when the bell above the door rang again.
“He tolerates me,” I said, holding up my coffee cup in a toast. “To new friends and new places; may we each find where we fit in.”
Livvy was quick to lean across the table and hit her cup against mine, and her arm brushed the cake pops sending them tumbling toward the ground.
Like a knee-jerk reaction, I conjured a protective bubble and caught them mid-air and moved them back onto the table. Thankfully none of the other patrons even noticed, but it was a really good reminder when that I shouldn’t leave home without the pendant. The last thing I needed was to do something unexplainable in a town that was already wary of me.
“Wow.” Livvy gaped and leaned closer with her cake pop in hand, her milk forgotten. “I knew you were witch. Mildred told me. So are your sisters.”
“I just learned that nifty trick, but shh, that’s our little secret.” I held my finger to my smiling lips and winked.
“Can you do more tricks?”
I shrugged. I probably could, but I wasn’t about to test the waters.
A woman in her forties looked hesitant as she approached the table clutching her purse with both hands in front of her. “So is it true?”
My welcoming smile faltered and my brows dipped. “Yes, I’m Mildr
ed’s granddaughter.”
“No.” She shook her head. “I mean yes, that too, but is it true that they found Johnny in your well?”
“I’m sorry, who are you?” I asked.
Her face blushed as tears formed in her eyes. She covered her mouth with her hand and ran out of the shop.
“All I did was ask her name,” I said, turning my gaze to Livvy.
“That was Rene Smalls. She and John Tidwell used to meet in Mildred’s rose garden at night when they thought no one was watching.”
“Why, Livvy, I wouldn’t have pegged you for a Peeping Tom.”
She shrugged a shoulder. “Did you forget that I live next door? My room is on the second floor. My mom thinks that it will keep me from being kidnapped if anyone tries to break in and steal me.”
“Kinda smart.”
“Not really. There’s an old oak tree outside my window. I climb outside and sit on it at night when I can’t sleep. Kidnappers can use it to still reach me.”
“Sounds dangerous, like your uncle should cut it down.”
Livvy gasped. “No, it’s my favorite place in the yard; my dad planted that tree the day I was born. I feel closest to him there. Please don’t tell him.”
“Tell me what?” King asked as he neared the table. The room around us went quiet again to eavesdrop in on our conversation.
“That I bought her a cake pop and she’s drinking milk from a coffee cup.”
“Are you trying to make her look more grown up? Because that would be countering my efforts to help her remember her age,” he grumbled, picking up the cup and holding it to his nose. He sniffed before he sipped. Satisfied, he put the cup back down.
“What are you doing here?” I asked, glancing around the café. “I thought you were overseeing my special project.”
“I’m here for you two. I need to take Livvy home, and I need you to go with me into the office.”
“Why?” I asked.
“Do you really want to discuss it here?” He raised a brow with a cocky smile.
“Nope.” I slowly shook my head and rose, grabbing my cake pop. I took a bite and offered him one. He took the cake and shoved the entire thing into his mouth, handing me back the empty stick.
Witchy Trouble Page 3