“I don’t believe anyone could be prepared enough to meet up with something so vile,” Knox muttered, stopping in the middle of the cobblestone drive. We were around twenty feet from the others. He was definitely learning the limitations of our abilities. “I didn’t mean to overstep last night.”
“What?” I asked, his apology catching me off guard. “Knox, you didn’t overstep at all. It was a group effort, and I’m honestly not sure what the Ashtons would have done had you not given them that advice.”
“You don’t believe in forgiveness?”
Knox’s question practically stole my breath away. It was one thing to have this intimate conversation with Pearl, where I didn’t necessarily have to say the words aloud. Telling the truth would definitely have Knox seeing me in a different light, but his inference that he could forgive easily had changed mine of his.
“And you can?” I asked, tossing the question back his way.
From the lift at the corner of his mouth, he recognized the defensive tactic.
“Serving in the military taught me a lot, but to answer your question…I’m not sure. Forgiving a person—or soul, in this case—is different. People are fallible. Everyone makes mistakes. Ammeline? I’m not so sure she has a soul, and that changes everything for me.”
“We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”
“That we will,” Knox murmured in agreement, seeming to want to say more but turning back toward the others. “Just out of curiosity, how serious is Orwin about this crazy UFO business?”
“I guess you’ll find out soon enough,” I replied with a light laugh, advancing forward toward Piper, Pearl, and Orwin. The familiar had materialized inside the open driver’s side door and was currently sitting on the middle console of the Jeep. “We’ll meet the two of you back at camp.”
A laugh, dear hexed one? Hmmm. I think we might have just found out what lightens the burden on your shoulders.
“Our detour shouldn’t take but an hour.” Orwin pushed up his glasses as he quickly made his way around Knox’s Land Rover. His nose was practically glued to the screen of his cell phone, no doubt reading up on the Lake Superior claim. “Knox, are you ready?”
Knox had taken the time to store my bag in the back of the Jeep. He’d already closed the back hatch and was palming the keys to his vehicle. He sighed in resignation, probably not able to ascertain how he’d come to be the chauffeur of our resident conspiracy theorist.
He could join the club, because I’d never thought we’d be something akin to supernatural ghostbusters, either. Right now, we needed to get as much information from our own ancestors about Ammeline’s power as we could. That meant using a medium who could harness enough energy to draw forth the leaders of the covens from the past. That wasn’t an easy feat, by any means.
“We’ll reach out to Cassandra Saruman tomorrow,” I said, ignoring Pearl’s attempt at making more out of my relationship with Knox than friendship. We were bonded by our curses, nothing else. “It’s time to meet this medium in person.”
You couldn’t allow one minute of lightheartedness, Miss Lilura? You realize what I must do, right?
“Please don’t,” I muttered, settling inside the driver’s seat of the Jeep and plugging the nearest coffee place into the GPS. “Not enough caffeine.”
“Just go with it,” Piper suggested, knowing her familiar better than anyone. “Pearl might have complained about the app on my phone this entire case, but she certainly wasn’t complaining when I pulled up a site that contained a bunch of new knock-knock jokes.”
The dangers of technology are no laughing matter, my sweet Piper. But one must learn to adapt, which is what I shall try to do in the future.
“Traitor,” I quipped back to Piper, wondering just how many knock-knock jokes a familiar could learn in the span of a few minutes.
Knock-knock.
“It’s best to get this over with,” Piper advised with a big smile.
I had a sneaking suspicion she enjoyed watching Pearl irritate me, so I finally caved and asked the question.
“Who’s there?” I inquired reluctantly, shifting the gear into reverse.
Abbott.
“Abbott who?”
Abbott time we solved this mystery, dear hexed one.
I didn’t want to smile. I really didn’t, but Piper’s laugh was infectious. Having these lighthearted moments wasn’t so bad, especially when we didn’t know what awaited us down the road.
Maybe, just maybe, the cure to my hex was at the end of this road trip.
~ The End ~
Thank you so much for joining Lou and the gang as they continue to solve the murder mysteries that she sees in her visions! The next tale involves bats, fangs, and vampires in The Curse that Bites…this is one you won’t want to miss!
Click HERE
A cloud of bats is whipping up an exciting whodunit in the latest installment in the Hex on Me Mysteries by USA Today Bestselling Author Kennedy Layne…
Lou and the gang become stranded when their brand-new RV breaks down in the middle of Podunk, USA. They soon realize that their arrival in this tiny town might not be by happenstance. Their situation becomes exceptionally dire when Lou has another premonition of murder…this time, the victim is one of their very own group!
A garlic necklace might be an appropriate accessory to bring along for this evening’s entertainment, as this tale promises to be as wickedly sharp as the tip on the end of a wooden stake!
Books by Kennedy Layne
Hex on Me Mysteries
If the Curse Fits
Cursing up the Wrong Tree
The Squeaky Ghost Gets the Curse
The Curse that Bites
Paramour Bay Mysteries
Magical Blend
Bewitching Blend
Enchanting Blend
Haunting Blend
Charming Blend
Spellbinding Blend
Cryptic Blend
Broomstick Blend
Office Roulette Series
Means (Office Roulette, Book One)
Motive (Office Roulette, Book Two)
Opportunity (Office Roulette, Book Three)
Keys to Love Series
Unlocking Fear (Keys to Love, Book One)
Unlocking Secrets (Keys to Love, Book Two)
Unlocking Lies (Keys to Love, Book Three)
Unlocking Shadows (Keys to Love, Book Four)
Unlocking Darkness (Keys to Love, Book Five)
Surviving Ashes Series
Essential Beginnings (Surviving Ashes, Book One)
Hidden Ashes (Surviving Ashes, Book Two)
Buried Flames (Surviving Ashes, Book Three)
Endless Flames (Surviving Ashes, Book Four)
Rising Flames (Surviving Ashes, Book Five)
CSA Case Files Series
Captured Innocence (CSA Case Files 1)
Sinful Resurrection (CSA Case Files 2)
Renewed Faith (CSA Case Files 3)
Campaign of Desire (CSA Case Files 4)
Internal Temptation (CSA Case Files 5)
Radiant Surrender (CSA Case Files 6)
Redeem My Heart (CSA Case Files 7)
A Mission of Love (CSA Case Files 8)
Red Starr Series
Starr’s Awakening(Red Starr, Book One)
Hearths of Fire (Red Starr, Book Two)
Targets Entangled (Red Starr, Book Three)
Igniting Passion (Red Starr, Book Four)
Untold Devotion (Red Starr, Book Five)
Fulfilling Promises (Red Starr, Book Six)
Fated Identity (Red Starr, Book Seven)
Red’s Salvation (Red Starr, Book Eight)
The Safeguard Series
Brutal Obsession (The Safeguard Series, Book One)
Faithful Addiction (The Safeguard Series, Book Two)
Distant Illusions (The Safeguard Series, Book Three)
Casual Impressions (The Safeguard Series, Book Four)
Hone
st Intentions (The Safeguard Series, Book Five)
Deadly Premonitions (The Safeguard Series, Book Six)
About the Author
First and foremost, I love life. I love that I’m a wife, mother, daughter, sister… and a writer.
I am one of the lucky women in this world who gets to do what makes them happy. As long as I have a cup of coffee (maybe two or three) and my laptop, the stories evolve themselves and I try to do them justice. I draw my inspiration from a retired Marine Master Sergeant that swept me off of my feet and has drawn me into a world that fulfills all of my deepest and darkest desires. Erotic romance, military men, intrigue, with a little bit of kinky chili pepper (his recipe), fill my head and there is nothing more satisfying than making the hero and heroine fulfill their destinies.
Thank you for having joined me on their journeys…
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www.kennedylayne.com
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The Squeaky Ghost Gets the Curse Page 14