She shrugged, “That’s the important parts. I also know he’s somewhere around Atlanta right now, and that Karina along with her son is being held in a suburb south west of Kissimmee state park.”
Ed frowned, “They’re apart?”
“Yes. He’s recruiting behind his scouts. He keeps her guarded by eight shifters at all times, and they keep going back and forth to deliver updated magic. Really, outside of killing him and his second, I think it would help if we went to rescue that witch. If we can free her and her son, even if the assassins fail to take out Jake, we can sort of neutralize him by removing the source of his spells.”
He looked thoughtful as he plated the omelets and joined her at the table.
“Maybe. He’d probably be stuck without a witch to recharge his magic, but he’d still have enough juice to take out another coven, maybe two if he has backup pieces. Sounds easy enough.”
She snorted a laugh, “Absolutely, piece of cake, just assassinate two rogue shifters with a pack of fifty, and rescue a witch and her kidnapped son. Get on that would you?”
He smirked, “Point, maybe not easy, but the second part shouldn’t be as hard.”
She nodded and blew out a breath. The eggs were fluffy when she took a bite, and the onions, cheese, peppers, and bacon tasted amazing.
He added, “I’ll update the council this morning and see what they say, of course I’ll leave off my source.”
She smiled, “Thanks for breakfast, I knew I kept you around for a reason.”
He shook his head in faux despair, but the sides of his mouth quirked up in a smile as they ate.
It was close to the middle of the morning, right after ten, and she was in the back working on some salves and potions. She was deep in thought about spirit magic. Her great grandmother had suggested she learn it, on the other hand she hadn’t offered to teach her. She wasn’t really sure what she could accomplish with it anyway.
She knew it was the reason she could see and speak to elementals unaided by ritual magic, but other than that she wasn’t sure what she could do with it outside of some vague ideas. Shifters could tell when someone was lying because their minds and bodies weren’t in accord. They could literally sense it because she had the senses to detect the betrayal of the person’s body through scent and hearing.
She imagined spirit magic worked on much the same concept for that. Instead of mind and body though, it would be the mind and spirit. The soul would be out of sync with the mind if they uttered an untruth. Yet, she hardly saw the point of pursuing that since she already had that covered. So what else could it really do?
Astral travel was a possibility. That was more controlling her own spirit or soul than working with another. Cilla had suggested that much to her, yet she wasn’t sure what the benefit was, and she was quite sure there were risks involved with leaving her body behind as an empty shell. Was it worth it? It was hard to gauge the payoff when she didn’t know the risks or benefits.
Considering the risks for dealing with elementals was the possible destruction of her soul, she’d be foolish not to be cautious. It probably wouldn’t hurt to meditate on it however.
She heard the door open and close out front, and Berny’s voice speak.
“Can I help you?”
She didn’t recognize the answering voice which sounded officious, “Yes, is Celia Winters here?”
She looked down at the mortar, the ingredients were ground pretty thoroughly, and it was a good place to pause, or at least it wouldn’t hurt anything or affect the finished product.
“Just a minute,” she said loudly enough to be heard, by humans, and went over to the sink and washed her hands.
Her smile faltered as she walked out and took in the visitor. She looked to be in her mid-thirties, doe eyes, dark brown hair, and a serious look on her face. The petite woman radiated authority of some kind, but her scent gave her away as human. She was wearing gray slacks, a blue blouse and covering jacket. She could also scent the gun she had on under the jacket, the cleaning oils gave it away.
“Can I help you?” she trailed off.
The woman seemed to take a short moment to take her measure and then said, “Agent Dina Rodriguez, FBI. I have a few questions for you.”
Oh, crap.
“What is this about?” she asked as her mind groped for the answer.
Dina looked around, as if assuring herself of something, and then said, “What can you tell me about the altercation that happened two days ago on the side of the road?”
“What altercation?” she asked inanely.
She was a really bad liar ever since the change. That had both positive and negative aspects to it. Right now was one of the negative ones, she felt like a little girl with her hand in the cookie jar asking what cookie.
Dina curled her generous lips into a scowl, “Has there been more than one? Or do you have a case of amnesia?”
She wasn’t sure what to say. Ed had told her yesterday he would take care of it, obviously something had fallen through the cracks, though she couldn’t imagine what. It wasn’t as if they were new at cover ups. How the hell did the feds get involved anyway, in a roadside incident?
Dina frowned, “What the hell is going on in this town? Just so you know, my partner is in his vehicle outside, and this conversation is being recorded.”
Celia realized then that the agent was nervous, but why wasn’t her partner inside the building with her, that made no sense. Wasn’t that like a rule or something, she considered maybe that was just on television. Probably not though. She looked into the store behind the woman and saw a man about ten years older, he had a trench coat on, gray pants and black shoes. His hair was very short, cut high and tight. She bet that he was her partner, but for some reason they were being deceptive about it.
“I’m not sure what you mean. I stopped on the side of the road because I saw my friend’s car pulled off the road and I was worried they needed help. It turned out to be nothing and we all left. What is this about exactly?”
Dina shook her head, “Those five men were from Florida, we were called in because of a connection to a different case. Curiously, when we got here early this morning, the detectives that contacted us had no idea what we were doing here. Strangely enough, the evidence they’d sent us seemed to no longer exist in their system. So what is going on here exactly, something stinks in this town, and you’re in the middle of it.”
Double crap.
“I’ve no idea, I’m a shop owner, shouldn’t you be asking the police these questions?” she said, but of course it came out more like a question. She was a little freaked out, she’d had her share of cover ups, but mostly just with normal people, the police were a new thing for her the last few months, and now she had the damned F.B.I. in her store. Where the hell was her new equanimity now?
Dina shook her head, “I know you’re lying, are you in trouble, being coerced? What happened to those five men? It’s almost like they simply dropped off the planet. I can help you if you let me.”
She scented the lie in that, the agent just wanted her to incriminate herself. Curiously enough though, the first part was true. Human, yet Dina could tell truth from lie.
She shrugged, “I’m not sure what you’re looking for. I’ve never seen those men before two days ago, and I haven’t seen them since.”
Mostly because they were dead, and buried. She left that part out though.
Agent Rodriguez looked frustrated, scared, and positive that they were involved in some way. She wondered for a moment if the agent had any idea of the truth that it involved the supernatural, or was the woman thinking it was some kind of conspiracy of organized crime? Probably the latter, she didn’t look like the type to scream witch when things didn’t add up.
Dina turned to Berny, “How about you, anything to add to Miss Winters’ account?”
Berny shook her head, “No. I’m just as confused as she is.”
Dina raised an eyebrow, “Confused?”
&nbs
p; Berny nodded her head, “All we did was pull over and check on some friends, it hardly seems worthy of F.B.I. involvement. Were we in danger do you think?”
Berny looked a little frightened, and only a little ditzy. It was impressive, and a much better act than she was managing at the moment.
Dina narrowed her eyes, “I don’t know what the hell is going on, but I’m sure as hell going to find out.”
The agent gave them both one more look, before she turned around and left the store. The man followed almost directly behind her.
Berny cursed, “Shit.”
She laughed, “Yup, that about sums it up.”
Berny asked after a moment, “Going to call Ed?”
She shook her head and cast a glamour to hide what was said, “We’re probably under surveillance, I wouldn’t trust my phone right now, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they were listening to us right now somehow. Is that paranoid?”
Berny shook her head, “Maybe a little, but that doesn’t mean you’re wrong either.”
She blew out a breath, “All of this comes down to the local cops thinking I’m some kind of psychopathic killer. Of course, I’m seriously considering killing our favorite detectives right now.”
Berny snorted, “Right.”
She blushed at the irony, “Okay, maybe not really, but it’s a nice fantasy. I’ll call Ed, ask if he can have lunch, and tell him then.”
Berny nodded, “Never a dull moment with you Celia.”
She smiled and tried to joke, “I try my best,” but it fell flat. She wasn’t too worried yet but she knew things could get bad.
Still, a part of her was very nervous. Cilla had said they were in danger of exposure. But what if Jake and his pack’s actions merely brought the governments eyes on her, and their town. She was sure the traffic cam had caught all of them. She was connected to her store which served a lot of witches and covens, Berny and Mia who lived with the local coven, Kelly with the local bear shifter family, and of course Tina and Sarah with the local wolf pack.
Somehow that one incident not only brought heat from the F.B.I., but was also tied to every supernatural group in Rock Hill. That couldn’t be good. She wouldn’t be surprised if the agent went to talk to one of them next. There would be some unhappy witches and shifters to deal with soon.
Chapter 6
The candles flared to life with barely a thought as she walked into her sanctuary. She took a moment and looked at them dance and spit rather than calming down, a reflection of her own inner thoughts and feelings.
Life was complicated. She knew she shouldn’t feel guilty, nothing going on was her fault and life was just messy. On the other hand, why would her grandmother warn her if she didn’t have it within her to truly make a difference in the coming days. Even so, did that make it her responsibility?
Clearly not, intellectually speaking, but it felt like it did, and she couldn’t easily ignore that feeling.
She knelt, her senses aware of her elementals joining near her, watching her, watching over her. She felt full of energy and restless, but wasn’t sure where to put it all, what direction to head in. She couldn’t help second guessing herself, knowledge of possible futures could be paralyzing. She brought up her magic and practiced for the next twenty minutes, and went over spells in her mind. Silva was being quiet and watchful in the back of her mind.
The fear was there, she felt it from her shifter side, but there was also fascination, and curiosity. A new development since Silva channeled their magic. She felt the fear grow, but that didn’t upset her, she was channeling at least half her potential in that moment. It had only been a couple of months since Silva was freed, and they started their modified flooding technique, if anything she was extremely proud of Silva.
She smirked acknowledging the crazy, knowing she was really proud of herself.
She took some time to meditate on the spirit magic idea. The problem was she was too ignorant. She considered for a moment the idea of asking her air elemental to locate and share knowledge on spirit magic, but it felt like too big a risk. She didn’t know enough about it to really ask an intelligent question. To use the air elemental safely to gather knowledge she needed at least an idea of how it would turn out, how to couch the question with the least amount of risk.
She also was doing better with her new nature, a lot better than in the beginning, but being a witch and shifter were enough to be going on with at the moment, she didn’t really need to throw in a third power at the moment, she was hesitant to rush into anything new with all that was going on. If she decided to learn spirit magic in the future it needed to be slow, deliberate, and planned. Not reactionary.
When she stood, she put the candles out and felt a little more centered, although still full of energy as she made her way back downstairs. It was close to lunchtime.
“Feel better?” Berny asked with a ghost of a smile.
“Mostly, thanks,” she replied, “I needed a break.”
Ed and her walked up to the deli a few doors down from her shop for lunch. They kept their conversation to small talk until they had their sandwiches and drinks, and had dropped a glamour around their table so they could speak freely. Ed looked a little surprised when she did so.
Ed raised an eyebrow, “What happened?”
She sighed, “FBI dropped by, apparently those shifters we took out were being watched, and that led to us. Even worse, the FBI asked the local cops about it, who of course knew nothing at all, and all records were expunged. They were extremely suspicious. I’m surprised they didn’t take me in.”
Ed frowned, “They have no evidence at all you did anything, probably hoping leaving you free will cause you to give them some. I’ll take care of it.”
She smiled, she’d had the same thought of course, but that wasn’t good enough, they needed to act soon. Her meditation and practice hadn’t revealed the best path or anything, but she knew they couldn’t be frozen either, they had to do something. Of course, she would have to be convincing to get anyone to go along with it.
She was about to make an effort in that direction when the door opened and Paul walked in, and then stalked over to their table and joined them. Ed looked annoyed, she wasn’t sure if that meant he wasn’t quite as okay as he pretended to be with his partner, or if it was just his usual sour look when his partner was around. She half smiled at the thought.
Of course, what Paul’s scent did to her libido wasn’t very comfortable at the moment either.
She asked a little sharply, “Paul, what brings you here?”
Paul frowned, “I stopped by the store, Berny said you had some info about the FBI?”
She nodded, and laid out what happened again for his benefit.
Then she blurted, “We need to go to Florida, and rescue the witch Karina and her son.”
Ed frowned, “Our job is watching and protecting Charlotte and the surrounding area, the situation down there is serious, but all we should be doing is looking out for refugees and making sure they don’t start trouble.”
He was right of course, it was their job to keep their territory safe, that was hard enough. But she knew it wasn’t that simple.
Ed scowled when Paul asked, “Why do you think we should do that?”
She shrugged, “Because we are already involved, can we get the councils together again this afternoon?”
Then she explained her reasoning.
Ed and Paul got on the phone, to each respective council, and just like that they were having a second joint council meeting in two days, which was definitely a new record. She really hoped the councils would agree with her thoughts, or she would feel very foolish calling them together like she had.
Paul left them to finish their lunch. The atmosphere was a little awkward as she and Ed sat in silence. She didn’t detect any lies from Ed when he said he was okay with things last night, but then this was the first time they’d all really sat together as a team again, just the three of them. Or maybe it was all her,
maybe she wasn’t comfortable with her attraction to Paul, it was a really awkward feeling when Ed, her lover, was sitting right next to her.
She pushed it all down, she was sure of her decision, but that didn’t make the problem go away either…
Chapter 7
She felt a little nervous and drew strength from her shifter side. She hoped she looked more confident than she felt when she entered the conference room at the holiday in. She was a lot braver, perhaps even brash, than before her shifter side was released from her mother’s binding spell, but facing and convincing both councils to take action was completely out of her comfort zone.
She didn’t hesitate this time, taking the seat at the end of the table, sitting between the two sides. It helped that she didn’t have any true enemies on the councils since Sally’s death, of course, she wasn’t exactly loved either.
Silva sat calmly in the back of her mind, sitting regally with her head held high, and she felt a calm amusement descend on her. Who said being crazy was a bad thing?
Bria started the meeting with crisp words, “We came up with a plan yesterday to deal with what was going on in the south. I am told you think we should rescue the witch, and get directly involved? Explain.”
She took a moment to order her thoughts.
“I assume everyone has heard about the FBI nosing around?” she asked.
They all nodded, some looked confused as to where she was going with it.
“We have two problems besides the obvious fallout and refugees that were addressed yesterday. One of course is we are, or will be soon, a primary enemy and target to Jake and his pack. This will possibly lead us both to war, and to exposure. I believe the only way to slow things down is to remove his magical resource.”
Joe shook his head, “How did you come to that conclusion?”
She said calmly, “One, we took out one of his teams. That not only makes the witches in this area his enemy, but it makes the shifters traitors in his eyes. Second, I’m here, the abomination, a symbol of his worst fears and hatred in the flesh. That makes us high on his target list.”
Shifter's Moon: A Celia Winters Novel Book 3 Page 5