‘‘Dorcas, did you say something?’’ Annie stood and grasped Jeremy under one arm.
‘‘Just a little prayer,’’ Dorcas said. ‘‘A prayer of thanksgiving that Jeremy didn’t drown. Okay, on the count of three, we’ll lift him.’’
‘‘This is silly,’’ Jeremy said. ‘‘I can stand up just fine.’’
‘‘We’ll see about that. You’ve had quite a shock to your system.’’ She was dying to find out what Annie knew, but that would have to wait. ‘‘Here we go, now. One, two, three.’’
She and Annie got Jeremy upright, but he was wobbly. Without both of them supporting him, he never would have made it up to the house. When they staggered awkwardly into the kitchen, Isadora, Jenkins and Ambrose were singing drinking songs.
‘‘Dunstan needs a drink!’’ Jenkins said.
‘‘No.’’ Annie helped Dorcas lower Jeremy into a chair. ‘‘One thing he definitely doesn’t need is a drink.’’
‘‘Hell, everybody needs a drink!’’ Jenkins lifted his glass. ‘‘Isabel and Ambrose make one damned fine martini, let me tell you.’’
‘‘I’m sure they do.’’ Dorcas sent them each a look of gratitude for a job well done. ‘‘But some of us could use a cup of hot tea. I’ll make it.’’ She walked over to the sink and ran water into the teapot.
Annie came over and stood beside her as Jenkins started singing again. Annie leaned over and spoke in a whisper. ‘‘The lake monster saved Jeremy.’’
Dorcas nodded. ‘‘I thought as much.’’ She glanced at Annie. ‘‘And by the way, her name is Dee-Dee.’’
Chapter 26
An hour later, Annie sat alone at the Lowells’ kitchen table, sipping tea and waiting for them to come back from taking Jenkins down to his truck. Isabel had gone for a walk by the lake, and Jeremy, wearing some old clothes belonging to Ambrose, was asleep on the purple sofa in the parlor. Sabrina was curled up at his feet.
Every time Annie had gone in to check on him, Sabrina had been purring to beat the band. Dorcas had said the vibrations would help Jeremy regain his strength so he’d be right as rain tomorrow.
Annie wondered what right as rain would be for Jeremy. If Ambrose had given him the ability to do magic, what other alterations had the Lowells done to Jeremy’s personality in the name of matchmaking? She intended to ask them once things quieted down.
After Jenkins had passed out, Dorcas and Ambrose had hauled him outside and used a wheelbarrow to get him down to his truck. They planned to let him sleep it off in the cab. They’d assured Annie that when he woke up, he’d simply think he’d had too many beers and had decided to go out for a moonlit boat ride. All memory of the lake monster would be gone.
Annie no longer questioned anything they said or did. Whatever their powers, they were way beyond anything she’d ever experienced. Her view of reality had undergone a major shift in the past two hours. And she really wanted to know what sort of transformation they’d created in Jeremy.
What he’d said about his magic made sense now. Ambrose had somehow transferred those powers temporarily to Jeremy so he could impress her. They might have put some sort of confidence spell on him, too. The Jeremy she’d fallen for might not even exist.
The kitchen door opened and Isabel came in. ‘‘Had yourself quite a night, didn’t you?’’ She took a mug out of the cupboard as if she owned the place and helped herself to some tea from the pot sitting on the table. She didn’t sit down.
‘‘Quite a night.’’ Annie studied Isabel and decided the resemblance to Isadora Mather was probably not a coincidence, especially because Isabel seemed to have a relationship with Dorcas and Ambrose, so she was probably Wiccan, too.
Isabel leaned against the counter and drank her tea. ‘‘I’m quite proud of my girl, Dee-Dee. She just told me her version of what happened. She was so scared that Jenkins would shoot her, but she couldn’t let Jeremy drown, so she took a chance. That’s guts.’’
Openmouthed, Annie stared at Isabel. ‘‘You talked to the lake monster?’’
‘‘Sure. She leads a boring life, so normally she’s not the greatest conversationalist, but tonight’s story was riveting. Without Dee-Dee, our boy in there would be sleeping with the fishes. She heard him thrashing around and sure enough, he was drowning, so she picked him up and brought him to shore, ignoring her personal safety.’’
‘‘Okay, Isabel, who the hell are you?’’
Isabel gazed at her over the rim of her mug. ‘‘I’m not sure you need to know that. You being a reporter and all. It’s bad enough that you know about Dee-Dee. I suppose the reward for her gallantry will be that she becomes part of a freak show for the tourists.’’
Annie cringed. She didn’t want to be responsible for that, but Dee-Dee’s days of seclusion would be over sooner or later. ‘‘If I don’t break this story, I’m just delaying the inevitable. Someone else will get a glimpse of her and might handle it way worse than I will.’’
‘‘Ah, but what if no one else ever sees her?’’
‘‘I don’t see how you can guarantee that. She’s been popping up pretty regularly this past week.’’
Isabel nodded. ‘‘That’s true, but there were extenuating circumstances. For one thing, there was the whole matchmaking gig with you and Jeremy, and for another, she’s lonesome as hell, which makes her more prone to put in an appearance.’’
‘‘Lonesome?’’
‘‘Yeah. She needs a boyfriend.’’ Isabel drained her mug and crossed to the window. ‘‘Don’t we all. I—oh, here comes Dorcas with an empty wheelbarrow. I tried to talk her into dumping Jenkins in the lake, but she wouldn’t go for it. Knowing Dee-Dee, she would have saved him, anyway, even though he tried to kill her. That lake monster has the softest heart in the world.’’
Dorcas came through the kitchen door looking weary. ‘‘That’s settled. Ambrose is bringing your car up and putting it in our driveway, Annie, so whenever you feel ready to go home, it’s right there.’’
‘‘Thank you.’’ She wondered if that was a subtle hint for her to leave. She wasn’t going anywhere until she had some answers.
‘‘But before you go,’’ Dorcas said, ‘‘we need to talk about Dee-Dee.’’
‘‘Don’t bother.’’ Isabel waved a hand in Annie’s direction. ‘‘She’s convinced that it’s only a matter of time before Dee-Dee’s discovered, anyway, so it might as well be her getting the glory.’’
Annie bristled. ‘‘That’s a crummy way of saying it.’’
‘‘But accurate.’’ Isabel’s glance challenged her. ‘‘Aren’t you after the glory?’’
Annie couldn’t deny it. ‘‘I also want to protect Dee-Dee as much as possible.’’
Dorcas pulled out a chair and sat down. ‘‘That’s just it. If we can come up with a way to transport a male lake monster to Deep Lake without arousing suspicion, then I’m convinced Dee-Dee will be content to stay out of sight, at least for another hundred years or so. We won’t have to worry about protecting her, at least not for a while.’’
Annie’s brain was on overload. She could barely comprehend that she was sitting on a story about a lake monster who was older than any living creature on Earth, a Loch Nessian animal who could talk, reason and feel compassion. On top of that, Dee-Dee was lonely and wanted a boyfriend to make her feel complete, which meant there were other creatures out there like her. Any journalist who published that news would be famous forever.
Isabel pointed at Annie. ‘‘Look at her face. She’s writing the lead to that story in her head right now. You’re not going to keep her from reporting on this unless you give her a memory potion, and my guess is that she won’t drink anything other than tea in this house ever again.’’
Dorcas shrugged. ‘‘Then I guess Annie will do what she has to do.’’ She turned to Isabel. ‘‘Our main concern right now is finding a way to airlift a male lake monster the size of a Goodyear blimp without traumatizing the entire population of Big Knob.’’
Isabel blew out a breath. ‘‘I have an idea, but I’m not comfortable talking about it in front of the press.’’
‘‘Oh, for heaven’s sake,’’ Annie said. ‘‘I’m not the press.’’
‘‘You’re not?’’ Isabel lifted her eyebrows. ‘‘If you’re not the press, then who are you?’’
Annie met her gaze and realized she had no answer. Breaking news was what she did, what she was good at, her pathway to the career she’d chosen. But was that who she was? She’d like to think there was more to her, but if so, she was having a tough time putting her finger on it.
And if she didn’t know for sure who she was, Jeremy was an even bigger question mark. ‘‘Putting my identity crisis aside for the moment, I’d like to ask you a question, Dorcas.’’
‘‘All right.’’ Dorcas looked as if she’d been expecting it.
‘‘I take it Ambrose gave Jeremy some magic powers.’’
Dorcas nodded. ‘‘He couldn’t have taught him enough technique in the short time we had, so he placed a magical spell on him.’’
‘‘For how long?’’
‘‘It’s expired now.’’
Annie wondered how Jeremy would feel about that. She’d written a story proclaiming him the Internet Café Magician, and now he wouldn’t be able to perform those tricks. ‘‘Was there anything else? He seemed more confident than I remembered.’’
‘‘We gave him a potion to boost his confidence,’’ Dorcas said. ‘‘He only had a few days to win you over, so we wanted him to have his best shot, but it wouldn’t have worked if he hadn’t—’’
‘‘So everything was a lie.’’ Annie felt sick to her stomach. If she could have chosen, she would rather have the lake monster be fake and Jeremy’s personality real.
‘‘Not a lie,’’ Dorcas said gently. ‘‘An enhancement. You see—’’
‘‘I don’t really know anything about him,’’ Annie said. ‘‘How can I make decisions based on some magical enhancement?’’
‘‘You know more than you think you do,’’ Dorcas said.
Isabel yawned. ‘‘Frankly, I’m bored with the whole subject.’’
Annie heard Ambrose come through the front door. That was her cue. She pushed back her chair and stood. ‘‘You know what? It’s been a long day. A long week, come to think of it. I need to go home and get some sleep.’’
‘‘If you insist.’’ Dorcas looked relieved.
‘‘I do. If you think Jeremy’s recovered enough, I can take him back to his place, too.’’
‘‘I’m sure he’s fine. That’s a good idea.’’
Dorcas probably hoped Annie would spend the night with Jeremy. Annie hated to disappoint her, but she no longer knew who Jeremy was, really. She wasn’t so sure who she was, either, and she needed to figure that out, pronto. Sex would only cloud the issue.
Dorcas stood with Ambrose at the front door and watched Annie help Jeremy into her car. ‘‘I hope she comes to the right decision,’’ she said.
‘‘About Dee-Dee or Jeremy?’’
‘‘Both. I have to admit I’m worried. She’s thinking with her head instead of her heart, and that’s bad.’’
‘‘All the more reason to get a boyfriend for Dee-Dee so she’ll be tough to find if Annie chooses to go public with this and the news crews show up.’’
‘‘You’re right. Isadora says she has an idea.’’
‘‘I do,’’ Isadora called from the kitchen. ‘‘Get your butts back here so we can discuss it. I have a hot poker game waiting for me in the Whispering Forest. By the way, thanks for the stake, Dorcas.’’
Ambrose turned to his wife. ‘‘Is that what you bribed her with?’’
‘‘I had to come up with something.’’
Ambrose lowered his voice. ‘‘You know perfectly well that Isadora is not a good influence on George. She could undo weeks of progress with one late-night poker game. Plus every time they play, the raccoons steal another chunk of George’s treasure, which won’t sit well with the council. At this rate we’ll never get back to Sedona.’’
Dorcas smiled at him. ‘‘About that. Have you noticed that the boredom factor has all but disappeared around here?’’
‘‘Guys, I’m waiting,’’ Isadora called out again.
Ambrose nodded. ‘‘I can’t say I’m bored. And your point is?’’
‘‘No point. Just mentioning.’’ She gave him a light pinch on his tight derriere as they walked back into the kitchen. Their sex life had improved since moving to Big Knob, too. She wondered if that had anything to do with the large granite phallic symbol northeast of town. Probably.
Jeremy tried to convince Annie to stay with him in his apartment, but she refused, saying they were both exhausted and they’d talk in the morning. She made sure Megabyte went out to pee, and then she announced that she’d come back at first light and take him to the lake so he could retrieve his car. He was in no shape to seduce her into changing her mind, so he let her go back to her mother’s house.
Sure enough, the sky was barely growing light when someone pounded on the back door of Click-or-Treat. Rousing herself, Megabyte started down the stairs. Jeremy threw on jeans and a Click-or-Treat logo T-shirt, gargled some mouthwash, put on his glasses, and followed Meg down. On the way he ran a hand over his jaw and winced. He must look like a homeless person.
Annie, however, looked terrific. She stood at his back door wearing a long-sleeved knit top the color of lime sherbet and a pair of snug jeans. She would probably complain that they were too tight, but he thought they were perfect.
Annie gave Meg a head rub as the dog walked past on her way to the yard. Turned out Meg got a friendlier greeting than Jeremy did.
Annie didn’t offer to kiss him, didn’t touch him at all, in fact. ‘‘Let’s go get your car.’’ She said it gently, which was sort of comforting, but otherwise she was all business.
‘‘I need to feed Meg first.’’
‘‘That’s fine.’’
‘‘Want to come in?’’
She shook her head. ‘‘I’ll wait out here.’’
He didn’t like the distance she was putting between them, didn’t like it one bit. Last night she’d seemed to care a lot. She’d even been crying. Today—not so much.
He took Meg back upstairs, poured out her ration of kibble and waited the ten seconds it usually took her to gulp it down. When he came back downstairs, she followed him.
He opened the door and gestured to his dog. ‘‘Can she come?’’
‘‘Sure, why not?’’
He felt better having Meg along, riding in the backseat and sticking her head between the front bucket seats. Meg loved him unconditionally, whether he knew magic or got drunk or almost drowned himself. Annie probably didn’t love him at all, conditional or un. If she did, she wouldn’t be acting so standoffish today.
Having her drive him was a new experience that gave him a chance to study her, and he could tell from the set of her jaw that she was tense. But even tense, she was gorgeous.
He loved looking at her hair, which was a million shades of blond, especially when it caught the light. He wasn’t sure if she had on makeup or not because she was good with that kind of thing. She could be wearing it and he wouldn’t know it.
Whether she was wearing makeup or not, she’d spent time on her appearance before coming to pick him up. Normally that would be a good sign, but judging from her expression, she wasn’t feeling soft and cuddly. ‘‘You said we’d talk today,’’ he said. ‘‘Maybe we should do that.’’
She let out a breath. ‘‘Maybe we should. I found out a few things from Dorcas last night while you were asleep on the Lowells’ sofa.’’
‘‘And?’’
‘‘I don’t know if you realized it, but they gave you some herbs and stuff that . . . well, they’re sort of a mood enhancer. They wanted you to feel more confident in approaching me.’’
Jeremy didn’t want to hear that. He’d suspected as much, but he hadn’t
asked for fear he’d discover the truth—he’d been operating under some sort of mind-altering substance. All that personal power he’d felt had been fake.
Still, he had a morbid fascination with the topic. ‘‘Did you ask about the magic?’’
‘‘I did. They helped make all that happen, too.’’
‘‘I don’t see how. They weren’t always around when I tried magic tricks.’’ Vaguely he remembered struggling to conjure up the lake monster last night with his magic word, but most of the evening was very unclear.
‘‘I’m not sure how they did it. They have some very developed abilities.’’ Annie approached the turn to the lake road and made a left.
‘‘And you all still think there’s a lake monster out there?’’
‘‘Probably.’’ She drove slowly down the narrow road to the lake. ‘‘I hope you’re convinced by now that the Lowells didn’t make it up so they could cash in on the tourist business. They do some unorthodox things, but not because they want to get rich.’’
Jeremy had to admit that scenario didn’t fit very well anymore. ‘‘Yeah, I’m convinced.’’ As they neared the parking lot, he saw the crazy way his Suzuki was parked and groaned. ‘‘I must have been really sloshed last night.’’
‘‘You were, which is mostly my fault.’’
‘‘That’s not true.’’
‘‘Yes, it is.’’ She pulled her rental up next to Jeremy’s car and gazed out through the front windshield toward the lake. ‘‘Except now I know that Dorcas and Ambrose deliberately tried to make me fall for you, so I don’t feel quite as guilty.’’
‘‘You shouldn’t feel guilty at all. I was the one with ulterior motives.’’ Jeremy was not encouraged about how this was going. He unfastened his seat belt, but she didn’t. She didn’t shut off the motor, either. Bad sign.
She turned her head to look at him. That was the first time he realized she had tears in her eyes.
‘‘Oh, Annie, don’t.’’ He started to reach for her.
She waved him away and sniffed. ‘‘I’m too vulnerable right now.’’
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