by Zoe Arden
Suddenly, Anastasia began to shout. "Oooooheeeeyyyy!" Her head rolled around on her neck. Her eyes fluttered shut. " Oooheey! Oooheey! Oooheey!" she cried. The table began to shake.
"What's happening?" I asked, rising from my seat.
Polly gripped my arm tightly. She was stronger than I would have thought. "Sit down," she growled at me.
I sat.
Slater was watching the entire process wide-eyed. I knew that there were exceptions to the rule about humans and wizards interacting, but couldn't help wondering what the Witch's Council would think of Slater's presence here. What would Colt Hudson think?
Finally, Anastasia's eyes opened. When they did, they were glowing. She looked directly into her crystal ball and began to speak.
"I see danger," she said.
I already knew that. I hoped Anastasia had more answers for me than 'danger.'
"A man with dark hair. His face is out of focus. He means you harm. He is a killer."
"So you mean I didn't do it?" I asked. "I didn't kill anyone?"
"No," Anastasia said. A wave of relief washed over me.
"Thank the witching world," I muttered to myself.
"At least, not yet."
"Not yet," I shrieked. "What does that mean?"
But I wasn't sure Anastasia heard me. "There is someone else. A girl. She is not what she appears to be. She—"
Anastasia moved closer to the crystal ball. I could see it's reflection in her eyes, but I couldn't see whatever vision she was looking at. I wished I could.
"What is it?" I breathed. "What girl? Is it me?"
Anastasia's eyes widened. Her head moved from me to Polly to Slater.
"Damon Tellinger!" Anastasia finally said.
"What about him?" I asked.
"He is the one. He seeks vengeance for his father's death."
Oh, my wizards. That means William Carney was right. My father had killed Damon's.
So why didn't Damon just kill me then? Why kill humans? Why kill his friends? This reading was creating more questions than answers.
"Is he the one who left the chocolate cake for me?" I asked, breathless.
"Yes."
"Do you know where my wand is? What about the girl?"
"Your wand is gone. The girl is no one. It is Damon you are after... for he is the one after you!"
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CHAPTER
TWENTY-FIVE
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“From now on, we've got your back."…
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Note to self: get a phone.
I begged my brain not to forget that as I left The Alchemic Stone and headed for The Mystic Cupcake. If I had a phone right now, I'd be able to call my aunts and warn them. Or call Lucy and tell her what I'd just learned. If ever I needed a friend, it was now.
I rounded the corner onto Bell Street and bumped into someone. Literally. I bounced off him and landed on my butt.
"Ow," I said, rubbing my now tenderized backside.
"Ava." I looked up to see Damon staring down at me.
"Damon," I breathed. "Wh-what are you doing here?" I tried to keep my voice from trembling.
"I've been waiting for you. I need to talk to you. Alone."
"Alone?" I gulped. The blood ran from my head. I could feel my heart pounding. I gripped the heriotza pendant tightly in my hand.
"What's that?" Damon asked.
"Nothing," I lied, and tucked the pendant back under my shirt. It began to sting, but not burn. Danger was approaching, but it wasn't here yet.
"Listen, Ava, I have to tell you something. I've been thinking about it ever since that day in the bakery... when you saved my life."
My heart skipped a beat. The Mystic Cupcake was just two doors down. If I could get inside, I'd be safe. Even though the bakery was closed, my aunts had told me they would be there today taking inventory.
"The first time I saw you... it wasn't what you think."
"What do you mean?" I asked. "The first time I met you I was going through your boat looking for..." I stopped and crossed my arms, uncertain how much I should admit.
"Your wand?" Damon asked. "I know."
I don't know why his words surprised me. I guess it wasn't his words, it was his admission. He'd known from day one that I was a witch.
He was standing so close I could smell honey on his breath. His sapphire eyes looked past me. Into me. Like he had X-ray vision. How could I still be attracted to a man who wanted me dead?
"You know?" I asked.
His face was inches from mine. The single kiss we'd shared came back to me. Dr. Dunne said he had no memory of that day, but I wondered if deep inside him somewhere he knew.
"I saw you come in that day on the ferry. I was sitting in my boat with—"
"David Buyers," I said. It all came back to me. The first day I arrived. Stepping off that pier and into the ocean. Making a fool out of myself. The two men in the boat laughing... then...
"I saw you arguing with him. The next day he turned up dead." I started backing away from him, but he refused to let me go.
"Ava, listen to me. Let me explain. You don't have to be afraid of me." Yet even as he said it, his grip on my hands tightened.
"I know you're a witch. I've known all along. That day... when I saw you dry yourself off... it shook me up. I'd never seen anything like it before."
"Even when you were dating Polly?" I asked.
"Polly?" he said, confused. "What about her?"
"I'm supposed to believe you were scared of me doing a simple drying spell but you weren't scared of all the stuff Polly can do? She knows fifty times more spells than me, for rose's sake! And not just the usual stuff," I said, thinking of the gems and crystals she dealt in.
Damon's eyes opened wide.
"You know about Polly?"
"Of course I know," I told him. "I may be a newbie but I'm not an idiot. Polly's a terrific witch."
"Did I hear my name?" a cheery voice suddenly asked behind me. I turned to see Polly walking with Slater. His face tightened when he saw Damon.
"What's up, cuz?" Slater asked.
"Nothing you need to worry about," Damon said through gritted teeth.
Whoa. What’s with the tension?
Polly looked from one man to the other, and I had the idea I knew where the tension was coming from. She was obviously still into Damon. Who could blame her? Though both he and Slater had dark hair and blue eyes, Damon had a little something extra. A little more... attitude? Danger? Whatever it was, it gave him the edge on Slater. I was sure Slater must have hated that.
I wondered how much Damon was still into Polly.
"I've gotta go," Damon said suddenly, giving me one last look. "We'll talk later." He took off without so much as a goodbye to anyone else.
I breathed a sigh of relief. Despite my attraction to him, I was pretty sure he was a killer.
"Thanks," I said. "You guys showed up just in time. What are you doing here?"
"Following you, of course," Polly said, coming up on my left. She locked elbows with me, steering me toward the bakery. Slater stepped up on my right.
"You ran out of Polly's store so fast we didn't have a chance to talk to you," he said. I could tell he was shaken up. I supposed Damon had a way of doing that.
"Look, what you and Anastasia said about Damon... His father was killed years ago. He's never gotten over it. But I never dreamed he'd try to hurt anyone. If I'd known..."
"It's not your fault," I told him.
"Polly, I'm sorry to ask you this, but... why did you and Damon break up?"
"I thought I could trust him. But after I told him I was a witch, he broke up with me. He just couldn't handle it." She smiled sadly for a minute.
"I thought you weren't supposed to tell humans about witches?"
"You're not," Polly said. "But I got special permission from the Witches Council when I told them I was in love with—"<
br />
She paused, realizing what she was about to say. Slater's cheeks were burning.
"None of that matters now anyway," Polly continued quickly. “Because I've got the best boyfriend ever." She reached around my back and squeezed Slater's elbow. He didn't look like he was buying it.
"The point is," said Slater, "that from now on, we've got your back. I don't care if Damon is my cousin. We're not going to let him kill you or anyone else. Even if it means we have to kill him first."
* * *
CHAPTER
TWENTY-SIX
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He was lying. …
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"So you expect me to believe that a human male is going around killing other humans?" Detective Hudson asked snidely. I was already regretting my decision to come down here.
Detective Hudson was sitting on Sheriff Knoxx's desk. I wasn't pretty sure the sheriff would not approve but didn't see him anywhere around to rat Hudson out.
"Yes," I replied.
"And one warlock?"
"Yes."
"And on your word, you want me to release your father and lock up Damon Tellinger?"
"That's right," I said, meeting his stare. I had hoped this would go better.
"And your proof of this is..."
"I already told you. Damon's father killed my mother."
"Right. And a psychic told you that he wanted to kill you now, too. Is that right?"
Detective Hudson made no effort to hide the fact he was rolling his eyes at me.
"I'd be more likely to believe that Sheriff Knoxx killed Brendan than Damon Tellinger."
"Actually," I said, remembering how quickly Sheriff Knoxx had arrived on the scene. "That's a good point. Sheriff Knoxx arrived at the coffee shop almost immediately after Brendan's death. How is that possible? How did he know? For that matter... how did you know? You got there just after he did."
"Do you even know how long you were unconscious?" Hudson asked angrily. He'd risen from his desk and his six-foot frame towered over me.
"No, but look. My father—"
"No, you look. Someone phoned in a disturbance from Coffee Cove. Sheriff Knoxx took off like a bat out of Hades. I followed him. That's how we got there so fast. Got it?" His face was so red I thought he might start blowing smoke. "Your father is wanted on charges of murdering four people. I suggest you—"
"Four people?" My head snapped up. I thought I'd misheard him. "Only three people have been killed, though." My head spun for a second. "Unless there's been another murder."
Detective Hudson sighed. "Your father never faced the inquisition for killing Jon Pratt. As far as we are concerned, that case remains open. Until such a time as he can answer for his crime, he will be charged with murder."
"Jon Pratt?" I asked, confused. "Not Tellinger?"
Detective Hudson shook his head. "This is why you shouldn't be running around conducting your own investigation. You don't even know all the facts. So let me enlighten you."
"Detective—"
"Fact one. Damon Tellinger is not the killer."
I fumed silently in my seat and folded my arms across my chest.
"Fact two. Even if Damon had something to do with the deaths that occurred, what about his own near-death experience? Why would he have poisoned himself with love potion cake? Or have you forgotten about that?"
Oops.
I'd gotten so worked up from Anastasia's reading that it had never occurred to me that Damon had almost died himself.
"Maybe Damon ate the cake to throw suspicion off himself," I said, though I didn't really believe that. He'd gotten lucky that day. If I hadn't been there, he'd have died for sure.
Detective Hudson ignored me and continued talking.
"Fact three. You have been a witch for all of five minutes and have no idea how anything works on Heavenly Haven. Fact four. You are still a suspect in these crimes. The main suspect as far as I'm concerned."
He clasped his hands together and settled back onto the desk, an arrogant grin on his face.
"Where's Sheriff Knoxx?" I suddenly asked. "Maybe he'll listen to me if you won't." I rose from my chair.
"Sheriff Knoxx is no longer assigned to this case," Detective Hudson said. He smiled at me with perfect teeth that reminded me of the Big Bad Wolf. "I am the senior officer at this station, and I am the only one with the authority to release your father."
"Do you like being such a toad bottom?" I asked.
Detective Hudson's smile flattened out.
"Even if I were to let your father out of the three most recent charges, he would still have to face an inquisition regarding Jon Pratt. If he truly killed Mr. Pratt in self-defense, then there should be no problem. However," he paused, letting the word hang in the air, "accessory to murder is also a serious crime. So is obstruction."
"What are you talking about?" I asked.
"Ava, let me level with you. I don't think your father killed anyone. Except, of course, Mr. Pratt. And in all honesty, that probably was self-defense, given the history between them. It's obvious your father is covering up for someone now, though. The real killer. Who do you think that might be, Ava? Any ideas?"
My face grew hot under the detective's stare. He was looking at me like I was Norman Bates. I'd made a horrible mistake by coming to see him. He still thought I was guilty.
"I have to go," I said. "Thank you for your time."
"See you again soon, Ava," he called after me.
I was walking so fast I smacked right into Sheriff Knoxx. He caught me before I could fall. He held a small brown cake box in one hand and had just managed not to drop it.
"Oh! Sheriff," I cried. "I'm sorry. I didn't even see you. I didn't think you were here. Detective Hudson said—"
"Detective Hudson is a toad bottom," Sheriff Knoxx declared. I had to laugh. For once, the sheriff and I were on the same page.
"Sheriff Knoxx, can I see my father? Just for a minute? I need to ask him something."
What I needed to ask was more questions about Damon. Like why his last name was Tellinger if his father's was Pratt. Then again, until recently, I'd thought my own father's name was Stone. Maybe Damon's mother had simply changed their name after she moved them off the island. That would make perfect sense.
Sheriff Knoxx sighed. "I'm sorry, Ava. It's out of my hands. For the moment." His gaze fell on the door to his office, where Detective Hudson was nestled behind his desk. "But I'll get him back," the sheriff murmured.
I had the feeling the sheriff was talking more to himself than to me. I looked again at the cake box the sheriff was holding.
"Did you buy something from my aunts?" I asked him, hoping to hear Eleanor and Trixie had reopened the store.
"What?" he asked, then saw where I was looking. "Oh. No. Mystic Cupcake was still closed the last time I went by. Though if you ask your Aunt Eleanor to open it for me, I would be much obliged. No other bakery in town sells peanut butter dream bars like your Aunt Eleanor bakes."
"Thanks. I'll tell her."
Deputy Otis Winken walked past just then. He had a Barney Fife-ish quality that made him stand out. He tried to squeeze between the sheriff and a desk and knocked the cake box right out of Sheriff Knoxx's hand. If fell to the floor with a loud splat!
"Your cake!" I cried, bending down to pick it up.
"Sorry, Sheriff," Otis said, then scurried off before he could do more damage.
"Thanks, Ava. I've got it," the sheriff said, yanking the box away from me. But not before I saw what was inside.
"Is that the cake my secret admirer sent?" I asked, perplexed why the sheriff would have it. "I thought you sent it to get tested."
"I did," he said, but he was looking everywhere except at me. "This is a different cake."
I looked at it again. "But it's missing exactly one piece. And it's cut into squares. Just like I cut it."
"Oh," he looked down at the cake. "Yes
, well, what I meant is... it's the same cake. But I already had it tested. Dr. Dunne confirmed it was free of poisons. If you'll excuse me now, I have to..."
He took off running before I could ask any more questions.
That’s strange.
Sheriff Knoxx was lying.
* * *
CHAPTER
TWENTY-SEVEN
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This is not possible. …
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Lucy's eyes widened when I told her what Anastasia said during my reading with her.
"Do you really think Damon is the killer?" she asked.
A dark strand of hair fell across her forehead and she pushed it away. The rich smell of coffee filled the air, energizing me. It was quiet inside Coffee Cove. Not just because of the silencing charms they had around each table, but because customers today were scarce. Since Brendan's death, Coffee Cove seemed to be suffering from the same fate as Mystic Cupcake.
"Yes," I told Lucy. I could feel my brow scrunching tightly together as my next words formed. "Although... I have to admit Detective Hudson made a good point. Why would Damon have poisoned himself? If he was the killer, I mean?"
"It's like you said. To throw suspicion off himself."
"Yeah... maybe." Even though I was certain Damon was the killer, something didn't fit.
"He probably ran down to the beach after you dropped your wand and took it for himself."
Lucy was talking very animatedly now. She rose from her chair and started pacing the floor. Megan stood behind the counter, watching her. Since Brendan's death, she had adopted a grim, pale look that would have been more appropriate on a vampire. I think she felt guilty for blowing Brendan off while he was alive.