by K. M. Waller
Amira interrupted what could have been a repeat of the same story. “Did you wish your bad luck on Dara?”
Lex’s eyebrows shot straight up. “Not very subtle.”
“We’re running out of time,” Amira said.
Barbara shook her pink high heel at them. Her eyes welled up and two large tears slipped down her cheeks. “Yes. It was me. I did it.”
The sobbing began and it was as if Barbara couldn’t catch her breath.
Lex took the shoe from her hand and placed it on the floor. “What did you do exactly?”
“I…I…I wish…wish…wish…ed Dara a b…b…b…ad marriage.”
Amira leaned forward and grabbed her by the upper arm. They were so close to a confession. “How? How did you make that happen?”
“On…on…on… my birthday caaaaaakkkke.”
Amira placed her face in her hands. She heard Lex ask if she meant when she’d blown out the birthday cake candles. The young woman blubbered an affirmation.
Lex tapped Amira on the shoulder. “We’re wasting our time here.”
They moved to a couple of empty chairs at a far wall where they could talk without being overheard, and surveyed the rest of the waiting area.
“I don’t know how you do this.” The possibilities and theories of what happened bordered on endless. She pulled the seating chart from her purse and searched through the names again.
“It’s a legacy thing.” His voice was tight. “I don’t have a choice.”
She leaned toward him, catching his gaze and holding it. “Why?”
“My grandfather formed Lost Souls ParaAgency in the fifties. The Council had been around for many years, but they handled situations like this with a shoot first, ask questions later mentality. Gramps saw the need for something different.”
“Is this the same grandfather who abandoned you to boarding schools?”
“When he formed the LSP, he’d been married to a witch. She died unexpectedly and he married again, but that new family was always treated as second-best. His first and only love was the witch.”
She curled her hand around his forearm. “That’s why you don’t like witches, huh?”
“I know one witch I’ve changed my mind about.”
“Change isn’t always bad.” She bumped her knee against his. Maybe they could end this mission as friends. “Why do you have to be a part of the LSP? Can’t you say no? You seem to do remarkably well in the real estate business.”
He ran the back of his hand under his chin. “Gramps expects me to take over his position on the board someday, and I have no doubt he’ll do whatever it takes to make that happen.”
Lex’s phone buzzed and he thumbed through a few text messages. His expression shifted to one of concern.
Her sense of dread returned. “What’s wrong?”
“Jordie has something to show us.” He guided her to the elevator with his hand on the small of her back.
The sense of dread increased tenfold. Why did she feel like whatever Jordie had to show them she wasn’t going to like?
Chapter Ten
Lex parked his rental behind Jordie’s van outside of Ris’s duplex. His assistant hadn’t been excited about the clandestine errand, but deep in Lex’s gut, he couldn’t shake the fact that all roads led back to Amira’s youngest sister. Amira had tensed as they neared her sister’s street. He prepared for her anger, but he couldn’t let his developing feelings for her interfere with completing the assignment.
Amira unbuckled her seatbelt. “Why are we at Ris’s house? Is she here? Is she okay?”
He stared straight ahead at the back of the van, careful to keep his tone even and calm. “I know you think your sister is innocent—”
“She is innocent.” Amira opened her door and slid out.
Lex gripped the steering wheel, steeling his mindset for the upcoming confrontation. He wanted the evidence to point in another direction almost as much as she did, but the facts didn’t lie. Jordie’s text confirmed that Ris was involved in something magical. Added to the pictures with their aunts, the clues kept pointing the finger at the youngest Walker sister. The Council’s assignment wouldn’t put him spot-on in their midst if he wasn’t on the right track.
He exited and joined her on the sidewalk near the front steps. “Let’s see what Jordie found first.”
Amira took the clip out of her bun and shook her blonde hair free. He imagined she was tired of fighting the wind and stray wisps that constantly fell in her face. “Was searching Ris’s house the errand you sent Jordie on?”
“Yes.”
Fire and distrust ignited in her eyes. “You promised me I had until nightfall.”
“When I spoke with Dara, she confirmed Ris is the only person in town who has a bone to pick. The love spelling, the deflections, the missing books.” He pointed to the front door. “And now what we’ve found inside her house.”
“It doesn’t matter what Jordie found. I won’t believe Ris had anything to do with Dara’s incident until the confession comes out of her mouth.”
A woman walking a bow-laden, hairy dog cast them an odd look.
“We need to take this inside.” When he placed his hand on the small of her back she jerked away—their symbiotic working relationship sinking with each passing minute.
“I need to know if she’s in there before we go in.”
“She’s not. Jordie doesn’t know where she is, but hiding isn’t a sign of innocence.”
“People hide when they’re scared or threatened. And not being home doesn’t mean she’s hiding.”
Jordie opened the door, his expression darker and more serious than Lex could recall. “Y’all are getting way too intense in front of the nosy neighbors.”
Lex gestured for Amira to lead the way. As much as he wanted to remove Amira from the investigation at this point, he needed to see it through. Amira was right about one thing. It would take her seeing the hard evidence of her sister’s witchcraft for her to believe the truth.
So be it.
Then he’d send her back to the tea shop while he finished doing his job.
Now that he’d been in all three of the Walker sisters’ houses, he could see how each place reflected the difference in their personalities. Ally—practical and neat. Amira—warm and inviting. Ris—a complete slob.
“Did you have to destroy her home when you searched it?” Amira stood with her hands placed on her hips, staring down Jordie, who squirmed in front of her.
Jordie spread his arms wide. “I didn’t do this. I literally had to clean up to search the place. Pinkie-pie needs to learn some house cleaning skills.”
Lex toed a pizza box out of his way. Something may have moved inside. “Show us what you found.”
Jordie motioned them forward. “It’s in the bedroom closet.”
Amira’s lips formed a hard, straight line. “When all this is over, I think I’m going to unleash Ris on you for going through her stuff.”
Lex cringed inwardly at her anger, but he wouldn’t show it on the outside. “When all this is over, an invasion of privacy will be the least of her worries.”
Ris’s bedroom had a large walk-in closet. The clothes rack had been removed and the walls painted a deep shade of purple. A short-legged table sat in the middle, with a decorative pillow beside it. The closet may have been the cleanest part of the entire one-bedroom house.
Amira bent down and touched the drips of candle wax on the table top. She glanced back at him. “Candle wax doesn’t prove anything. Maybe she doubled up on the deflection spell we perform.”
Jordie took two shoe boxes from the top shelf and opened them. Inside were small vials and bags with what appeared to be herbs and spices.
Amira shrugged. “We don’t know what those are.”
Lex sighed, his patience long gone. “Show her the books.”
Jordie walked over to Ris’s bed and lifted the mattress. Between the top mattress and bedsprings sat two spell books.
&nbs
p; Lex picked up a book and rifled through the pages of handwritten spells. “No further evidence is needed. Ris was caught taking items for a spell from your aunts yesterday, and she has been practicing magic. Why else would she run and hide after Dara’s incident?”
“All this proves is that she practices magic. It doesn’t mean that she tried to hurt Dara.” Her voice trembled, and although her eyes watered, she didn’t let a tear loose. “I need to talk to her.”
Nothing would convince her. The Council would be ten times harder on her if he didn’t quell her involvement now. “I can’t have you interfere any further with this investigation. You need to return home or to the Tea Haven until this is resolved.”
Amira reached for the books but he grabbed her forearm. She tried to pull away, but he didn’t let go. “I can’t let you take the books. I’m sorry.”
“They belong to my family.”
He couldn’t trust she wouldn’t try to deter him from apprehending her sister. Even though he believed she didn’t practice magic on a regular basis, she had planned to spell him before she’d known the truth about why he was in Burberry.
With his hand over the amulet, he recited the words that he knew would at some point come back to haunt him. Any cohesion they’d built as a team would wither away, but he had to keep her safe and out of his way. “Amira Walker, witch of Burberry, by the authority of the Council, I temporarily bind your powers.”
The amulet pulsed in his hand and warmth zinged from his hand to Amira’s arm. She gasped.
Jordie’s mouth dropped open, but Lex didn’t give him time to side with Amira. “Take her home. Now.”
Amira rubbed her arm. “What did you just do?”
“I can’t worry about you going rogue and trying to use magic to solve this. I’ll unbind you when we have Ris.” He’d wasted enough time chasing down the wrong leads. Ris Walker would be apprehended and this case closed by nightfall.
Amira dipped her head and walked to the front door. Over her shoulder she called out, “You’re not the man I thought you were.”
He waited for the usual trite comment from Jordie, but his assistant walked out behind Amira without a second glance.
He might not be the man she thought he was but he’d definitely become the man his grandfather wanted him to be.
∞∞∞
Amira asked Jordie to drop her off in front of the Tea Haven. His van idled out front and when she reached for the door handle, he hit the mechanical locks.
“I’m not happy with you either.” She flipped up the lock.
Jordie flipped them down again. “He’s wrong, but Lex is the smartest dude I know. He’ll make this right in the end.”
“I don’t understand how your group can justify messing with people’s lives like this. We’re witches, but we’re people too.” Her voice came out strained, pushing against the hurt. She’d fooled herself into believing she knew Lex after only a few days.
“Three years ago, a troupe of vampires came into the group foster home where I lived. They took me back with them for a snack. The LSP showed up at their den and saved me. Then Lex gave me a home and job when he didn’t have to. Makes me go to college when I don’t want to. The LSP saves lives, and someday when Lex’s grandfather retires, Lex’ll be one of those in a top position to keep saving lives.”
She tossed up a hand. “So, what are you saying?”
Jordie sighed and leaned back against the headrest. “Don’t give up on him. The good guy is there.”
“This is my sister we’re talking about. Good guy or not, he can’t take her away.”
Jordie thumped the steering wheel. “Find her, and I’ll make sure Lex listens to her side of the story before we leave Burberry.”
Amira nodded and exited the van, doubting Jordie had any real pull with Lex at this point. She’d called Ally four times on the way over, but each time the call went straight to voicemail.
She wrinkled her nose at the mess she’d left behind in the main dining area. At least she had busy work until someone contacted her, which would hopefully be sooner rather than later. She sat down in a chair and stacked dirty plates. Helplessness tightened her throat, the restriction starting a path of stress to her shoulders and neck. What a mess.
A sharp tap tap at the window snatched her from her thoughts.
Samuel Chase waved to her from the other side of the glass. She didn’t see the bus with his oversized face in the parking lot or his entourage lurking behind him, but that didn’t mean they wouldn’t come running with a snap of his fingers. The man was persistent if nothing else.
Amira flipped the deadbolt and pushed open the door. “I haven’t changed my story, and I won’t. You’re wasting your time stalking me.”
He spread his arms wide and dropped the fake smile. “I’m here for an off-the-record conversation. And maybe a cup of tea?”
She could use a distraction. As long as she didn’t give Samuel any information to use against her, she didn’t see the harm in serving him a cup of tea. If she kept him busy here, he couldn’t cause trouble elsewhere. Perhaps she could get a signed picture of him to hang in the back of the tea shop. Customers loved to eat where celebrities visited. Potential buyers might appreciate that.
She pushed the door open wide. “Let’s go to the kitchen. I’ll put on the kettle.”
“Just don’t give me any of the tea Dara had.” He winked twice.
“How did you know about Dara’s seizure?” She held up a hand when his fake grin reappeared. “And don’t feed me that social media tip baloney.”
He tapped the tip of his nose and pointed at her. “You’re a clever lady. Cards on the table, my producer got a tip two days ago that this town was crawling with real spell-casting witches, and if we came down we’d get a paranormal spectacle that would launch our ratings past all those stupid talent shows.”
Amira scoffed. “I can’t believe you’d come all the way down here on a vague tip like that. I’m sure your producer gets hundreds of those.”
“True. He did ask for unedited video proof, and the night before last we got one.” He pulled his cell phone out of his back pocket and swiped the screen. He handed it to her.
Amira backed up against the sink and held up the phone. The video was taken on a cell phone and it focused in and out until it captured three figures sitting at a table. Her heart accelerated as the video zoomed in on the three figures.
Mother of witchcraft!
The person had taken the video from an angle, but it clearly picked up on Amira and her sisters holding hands at their deflection ritual. Her mouth went dry with fear. “Who sent you this?”
“Our sources are confidential.”
She gripped the phone tighter to stop her hands from shaking. “I don’t know what you think this is—”
“Wait for it,” he interrupted.
When the three of them closed their eyes and she said the deflection spell, a sparkly glow lifted out of the candle’s flame and swirled around them, creating a barrier. Just as quickly as it swirled, it disappeared. Since they shut their eyes every time they said the spell, she’d had no idea about the light show. So stupid.
The air around her warmed and a light sweat popped up on her brow. With jerky movements, she placed the phone on the center island. “That’s great special effects your source created. I can do that on SnapChat too.”
“I knew you’d say something like that. But our source also made a video of what happened in the tea shop today. There’s no denying the paranormal activity associated with this shop and your sisters.”
Dara had been affected so suddenly, the “source” had to have known it would happen in order to film it. Which meant there had been another witch in the room. Other than herself and Ris, though… who else could it be? She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “What do you want from us?”
“A reality show with the three of you creating magical chaos, just like today.”
“My sisters and I didn’t create the
chaos today.”
“Of course, I know that. The source confirmed she’d given a spell a try, but it hadn’t turned out exactly as she’d planned.”
Amira chewed the inside of her cheek. By not naming the source, he’d still confirmed that Ris wasn’t involved. She needed to get this information to Lex, but would he even believe her?
“That spell could’ve killed Dara.” Amira didn’t care to try to keep up the ruse about the seizure. Samuel had more than enough evidence to shut down that theory.
“That’s why I need you and your sisters. Just think of the money we’ll rake in with this concept. ‘Ghost Getters and the Three Witches of Burberry’.”
“The Walker sisters aren’t some circus act for you to exploit. Plus, we don’t regularly practice magic spells. It would be a very boring show.”
He sighed and narrowed his dark eyes, the friendly-guy demeanor completely gone. “I’ll give you two options, but understand that I’m going to win either way. Either you work with me on this very, very lucrative reality show or I can expose you in an episode where I take the two videos and combine them with clips of you running around town all day acting suspicious.”
“You’re really going to blackmail me?”
“You gave me the idea back at the hospital.”
Mother of trees, what a jerk. “What about your source?”
“She’ll get a finder’s fee, but she’s proven she can’t be the main attraction. You and your sisters are the money.”
She needed a name. “And you still won’t tell me who the source is?”
“Nope. Legal stuff.”
She focused on presenting a reasonable version of herself. With a low, steady voice, she said, “I need to discuss this with my sisters. I can’t make a decision without them.”
He stood and rotated his shoulders, his predatory smile gleaming in the florescent lights. His entire demeanor took on an air of someone who’d won a fight. “Get them on board. I’ll give you until eight tonight and we’ll meet back here. And don’t try any spells on me. My producer knows if anything wonky happens to me to release everything we have online.”