by Erin R Flynn
“Which is why we’re involved in the case as well,” the officer explained. “It might have happened there, but you’re one of ours, and Larson is a snake in tight with the mayor so the sheriff said they let us in or we call the FBI.”
“Aww, I woves the sheriff too,” she cooed.
The officer chuckled. “I don’t know the full story, but he says it was a miracle you were able to restore and fix that trunk of his grandpa’s that got damaged. He loved that thing and was horrified he couldn’t pass it down to his kids.”
“That was a long job for sure,” she agreed.
More like a job for magic, I would guess. It was sweet she would use it in such a way.
I didn’t know much about witches besides my family’s insane teachings and ramblings. And even if I’d not believed it all, she was so, so different from any witch I would have imagined.
She gave a sad look at the shop. “I had such a good crop this year that I was going to sell some tables and extras at the county fair this summer. Everyone is so happy when I do instead of just my pricier art that I thought it would be nice.” She shook her head. “All the wood gone. All those pieces and orders just gone. Fuck. I’m going to have some really pissed off clients.”
“Hopefully some will understand,” he comforted. “If you need some help getting more trees down, I can wrangle some guys for sure.”
“Yeah, I might, thanks. Depends on how long it takes for me to get another shop and tools going. A lot of my rigs were custom.”
“Will the insurance cover the wood?” he asked, his tone worried for her and gentle at the same time.
She shrugged. “I don’t know. I would think so, since I have crop insurance on them. Just because they were cut down and in the shed to be used shouldn’t change that. I mean, silos are covered.”
“Makes sense. Let us know if they give you trouble and the sheriff will set ’em straight.”
“Thanks.” She shot him the best grin she could muster. “If he could add some of his wife’s cobbler, it would help me through the pain of having to reorder everything.”
“Oh, I’m sure she could swing that, given how much you let everyone take from your greenhouses.”
She sighed. “I don’t need the money to sell it, and honestly, that would be too much of a pain. I don’t do well with large groups. I’m an acquired taste that only a few at a time can handle.”
“Yeah, yeah, you’re such a pain in the ass,” he chuckled, shaking his head. “Says the woman who added loofa plants just so the church you don’t go to could have them for their crafting days.”
She shrugged. “They were damn good soap loofas. They can have as many as they want if I get more of those winter sinus clear ones. I’m planning on that keeping any colds away this year.”
He laughed at her antics, and they kept chatting about everything while the investigators continued. Then he reminded her she should take photos of her own for the insurance, and the lighter mood darkened again. It hung around her like a rain cloud above a cartoon character almost. It hurt to see.
They finished up and promised they got everything they needed, suggesting she not start cleaning up until the insurance adjustor came out as well. Damn, this was going to be a long project for sure.
“I’m going to have to have so much fucking sex to fix all of this,” she grumbled once the others were gone. “Shit, that’s a lot of trips to Salt Lake I don’t have time for.”
“I’m sorry?” I asked, sure I misheard her.
She gave me an amused look like she was trying not to laugh. “You have no idea how an LLL witch practices, do you?” She gave me a moment to answer, but I didn’t know how to. “Do you see any familiars around here?”
“No, we’re glad you don’t have slaves,” I sneered.
Her eyes flashed shock, and then power. I mean like power that let me know that even if she was kind, I was standing before a deadly predator for sure. She stormed over to me and got in my face—as much as she could from her five-seven height—which was seriously hot.
“Do not speak on what you do not know, child,” she seethed. “Do not open your mouth about what you think you know when you’re running from the ones who taught all of it, and you’ve already learned lots you didn’t.”
“Fine, but what are familiars, if not a witch’s slave?” Levi cut in.
She didn’t answer, still staring at me. “You want an answer? Fine, you will enter a one-month familiar contract with me. You wanted to help? Help and learn what your family has lied to you about.”
“How does it work?” I whispered, wondering about my sanity to even consider it for a month.
“Glad you asked.” She smirked at me and grabbed my belt, dragging me over to the edge of burnt ground off to the side, where it must have spread along grass or maybe wood piles.
My eyes went wide when she undid my belt and then my fly. I was too shocked to react, and I watched as she pulled out my cock.
Which was embarrassingly hard for her, and her being aggressive with me even. That smirk grew into a sexy, mischievous grin as she stroked me. Then she shifted to my side, moving her right hand faster so she was out of the path for the spunk that would come.
“Think of your last lay and how good it felt, how nice it was,” she guided, expertly touching me.
“It sucked,” I moaned. “It wasn’t—sex has to be better than that.”
“Oh, you poor thing, no good sex?”
“No,” we both said together. We were sheltered before the military, and random drunk hookups we should have thought more about wasn’t anything to think back fondly on.
“Agree and we’ll change that,” she purred.
I wasn’t sure what she meant, but my dick was in, twitching in her hand. She muttered something under her breath, and I caught only a few words saying it was an offering.
I wasn’t sure but I felt a tingle different from an orgasm I gave myself, finishing with a deep grunt as I wrapped my arm around her, hugging her to me even through our bulky jackets.
“Good boy,” she praised as I finished. “Now see what we did.”
I blinked down and saw the ground was healing. I let out a yelp and moved us away, since her hand was still on my dick and I didn’t want it pulled in that sort of way.
“Holy fuck,” Levi whispered and I nodded. That seemed the right reaction.
She let go of my cock and moved so we could both see her.
“I won’t ever take a permanent familiar because they own us. They own the witch they bond to. It’s the balance of nature. They have to be willing for anything done, but they are in charge when a witch summons a spirit, their conscience the only thing stopping what could happen. You understand how that can go bad for a witch fast.”
“I’ll do it for a month,” I blurted, still recovering from my orgasm. Fuck, if a hand job from her was better than any sex or oral I’d ever had, shit yeah, sign me up.
“Good.” She glanced at Levi.
“That awesome?” he asked me.
“Yes, shit, yes,” I promised.
“Fine, a month, but I need more conditions set,” Levi whispered.
She nodded. “I have a standard contract I use. Just for the record, when you leave here, you will forget it all. It’s part of my protection. I can adjust to what you can keep, like information to keep you safe, but won’t endanger me if you get caught.”
I nodded; that was fair. “Like the spell on your property erases, but knowing hunters steal totems we keep.”
“Exactly. I make the final determination at the end depending how it ends.”
“Wow, you’ve been burnt,” Levi muttered, sounding worried and upset for her.
She nodded. “Yes, several times and deeply.”
I quickly tucked my still hard dick away as she headed back to the ATV. We climbed on without saying anything and instead, took in what she was showing us. We started at the nursery greenhouse.
“This is mostly for show,” she explaine
d. “I have a lot of land but still, people would ask questions if I didn’t have the normal infrastructure of a real tree farm. I do, however, sell them if I know they’re going someplace good. A lot of my trees aren’t just common oak or firs, but a range from all over. That’s part of why he was talking about the price of the wood.”
“Do different woods produce different totems?” I asked, wondering why she would go through all the trouble.
“Very good,” she said as we got back on the ATV. I figured she normally walked it all, but I saw her limp a few times from her injuries. “Yes and no. Magic can make regular oak into whatever is needed. You can make any apples into pie, but it’s better and easier if you use the right ones. That’s the magic of totems. Using the right woods for the right types uses less magic for working with nature.”
“I never thought about them or that they varied,” Levi admitted as we arrived at the other greenhouse.
She nodded as she slid out. “The stage of the wood helps as well. I would say ‘age’ but my magic ages them rapidly. A totem for a young witch and their first time practicing to gather magic comes from young trees, like in the nursery. They also are used for summoning unknown spirits, as there’s protection in them. There’s also layers to my totems.”
“You won’t let them be used for blood magic, will you?” Levi guessed, and I thought that was pretty cool.
“Blood magic, yes, as long as it’s the witch’s. I’m not judging anyone who spills their own blood for magic. Animal blood is up to them too. No other blood will work. Nothing evil and there is a very different intent when magic comes from murder and human death instead of slaughtering Bessie for the blood and then eating her. There’s also protections from others being able to use the magic.
“I don’t allow that. I can’t protect every witch from ever having totems stolen, but no one else will be able to use them. And a witch knows how to track her magic and totems, so that gives her the chance to recover them and punish the one who stole it. I have pricier totems for young or inexperienced witches that protect them in their summoning circle. I have a lot of options, as I’ve learned is needed.”
“How do you do all of this?” I whispered, looking around the commercial greenhouse in awe. There were tons of plants and produce ready to be picked. I couldn’t even imagine all the work that went into it.
“A lot of volunteers who work for food,” she answered, rubbing her forehead. “Though I do have a part-time manager, Gary, who handles all the nutrients and whatnot. He tracks everything from programs on his phone. Today is Friday, so there will be a group that comes from the Methodist church, so that gives them time to cook for the luncheon they have after Sunday mass.”
“And you just let them do it for free?” I asked, shocked she was so generous.
She gave me a glance like I was dense. “I clearly don’t need the money. This is good for the environment, and I like fresh everything to counter all my frozen food eating. They normally bring me a casserole or something, but they do the work. They can take what they want, as long as it’s not greedy.”
“And that’s it?” Levi pushed, both of us having problems wrapping our minds around it.
Our families were nothing like that. The Army was all about what we could give them and our country, treating us as completely disposable.
She shrugged. “I’m sure it pleases the powers that be, and she blesses the farm because I put in the effort to grow what she gives and then give it to others, but that’s it.”
“Why does Larson want this land so much?” I asked while settling with that.
She smiled at me and it was actually a happy one. “I’ll show you.”
3
Levi
Briony drove us in the ATV for several minutes before coming to an inclined trail. She slowed down then and warned us to strap in, the ATV having double belts, like a plan for safety.
The thing was cool, and I didn’t know much about ATVs but it had to be at least the cost of a nice truck or more, for as fast as it went and how pleasant the ride was.
She drove us up the path with practiced precision, and after a while longer she leveled out on top of a massive plateau. She stopped the ATV and nodded out at the view.
“That’s why he wants my land. I own six hundred thousand acres. He wants to make this the next Summit Park outside Salt Lake, with lavish resorts and everything. This is where he plans to make the shining glory resort and vacation condos, building ski slopes and spas, and everything that screams ‘luxury’ without a major city feel and peace.”
I stared out at the view, fully understanding why he would pick there. The view was breathtaking, awe-inspiring, and honestly, indescribable to do it justice.
Every which way there was just gorgeous and nature and beauty. It was one of the best things I’d ever seen, even after traveling with the Army, and I felt the peace she mentioned.
“I bought this land from the native tribe long before the French or others really made their way here. I paid a lot to get it, and part of the deal was I always protected it. They protected me when I was young, scared, and on the run, and in turn, I would pay off the land by helping them. I’m the only reason that tribe wasn’t slaughtered like others were.
“I’ve fought hard to keep this land I earned and paid for with blood, sweat, tears, and more. I’m not letting a snake like David Larson turn it into some ritzy place for entitled assholes who take and take and don’t give enough back. Every part of his plan I loathed, from the fact he had a full model built before even discussing it with me, like the land was already his, to using my own wood to build it.”
“I’m sorry,” I muttered, not sure what else to say.
She shrugged. “Such is life.”
“How old are you?” Theo asked.
She glanced back at him and winked. “Just over two hundred. I age well, don’t I?”
I shared a look at him, another lie we were told stabbing me in the gut. “We’re taught that only BDE witches are immortal.”
She burst out laughing, shaking her head as she started up the ATV again.
“So that’s the new line, huh? No, all witches are immortal if they practice. If they choose not to, they’ll eventually die, as their magic and tie to nature dies off and they become human. BDE witches can live forever, but everything in magic comes with a cost, and that cost for murdering and spreading evil normally has a high price.”
“Like?” I asked, thinking that was a bit vague to get a grasp on the truth.
She sighed, looking tired as she turned to meet my gaze, her bright cobalt eyes making my heart race when focused on me. Damn, she was so pretty.
“There’s no hard and fast rule. It’s not like the movies, where everything you do comes back at you in threes. But evil warps people, and power is addictive. It’s an addiction like any other, and just as alcohol or drugs can kill, so can power, rotting our minds and magic with sludge and stain. A BDE witch attacked me once, demanding my totems to hold the power.
“Her mind was shredded, power and blood all she could think of. I found her with hundreds of filled totems. It wasn’t about the magic anymore, but the rush of power. She went mad when she couldn’t get more. She was clawing at her own face when I put her down. It was the price she paid for all that power.”
“Did you use the magic?” I didn’t want her upset with me but I needed to know for some reason.
“Yes,” she whispered after a few moments, staring out at the view again. “I released it into an offering to Gaia to help the families of her victims. I don’t regret doing it, as some good should come from all that evil, but it took me months to get that stain off of me from touching that magic. It was like a horrible detox, and I’m not sure I could ever do it again on my own and keep who I am.”
“You’re kind of awesome,” I murmured, unable to look away from her. “I knew witches weren’t what our families said, but I never thought one would be like you.”
She smirked as she threw
the ATV in gear. “I’m an acquired taste for sure.” She took off, not waiting for my reply, which was good because I had no idea what I would have said.
Just as we arrived back, some vehicles pulled in front of the house and I jumped out, worried about her, but then I saw she was at ease.
“Briony Rose, are you supposed to be on your feet?” an older woman lectured as she got out with several others. “You’re wearing a sling and driving that thing?”
“I’m fine, Dottie, I promise,” she chuckled, gesturing to us with her good arm. “I thought it only fair to show the guys who saved me what this whole mess was over.”
The dozen women came and thanked us for helping Briony, introducing themselves so fast I barely caught names. They were the women’s group from the Methodist church she’d mentioned.
They brought a bunch of food for her and she let them inside, sitting at the counter with another mug of coffee and smiling as they fussed over her.
“What can we really do to help?” Dottie asked before they headed to the greenhouses.
She sighed. “I’m still trying to figure out what comes next and next. I’m supposed to go for my normal monthly supply run Monday, but I’m not sure I should be driving the truck all the way to Salt Lake with one arm in winter.”
“Of course not,” Dottie agreed, glancing at us. “You have two strapping men here that are going to be staying with you. They can grab supplies from town whenever you need. The fact you drive all the way to Salt Lake to refill your vast freezers of frozen food is crazy enough. You’re not doing it injured in winter.”
“Yes, ma’am,” she chuckled, looking amused, as there was clearly more to those trips than they knew. Right, she’d said she needed to have a lot of sex to fix everything?
How exactly did that work?
They went to the greenhouse and next the insurance adjustor showed up. He inspected the site with Theo while she went to her office and printed up the inventory of her shop. She looked exhausted by then.