Witching For Hope: Premonition Pointe, Book 2

by Chase, Deanna

  “Oh, what else did she say?” Hope felt herself tense. If Peggy Pitsman wasn’t going to let up on her attack, Hope would have no choice other than to go to war. It wasn’t a place she wanted to be, but she could not sit back and let Peggy destroy her reputation.

  “She tried to tell us that your last three events ended with most of the attendees getting food poisoning.”

  “What?” Hope nearly came out of her chair. “You can’t be serious? Nothing could be further from the truth.”

  “I know,” he said with conviction. “You don’t think I’d let just anyone plan our dog wedding, do you? I know how to check to make sure I’m working with the best.”

  Hope couldn’t help it. Tears stung the backs of her eyes. It felt too damned good to have someone see through the bullshit and stick with her despite the ugly rumors. “Thank you.”

  “No need to thank me,” he said, reaching across the table and briefly squeezing her fingers. “Because, honey, I’m probably going to be your most high-maintenance client ever. Don’t be surprised if I call you at all hours of the day. I just can’t help it when my brain gets going.”

  Hope groaned. “You really are gonna be a pain in my ass, aren’t you?”

  “Yep. But you’re gonna love me anyway because I’m loyal and fun, and I’ll cut a bitch if they deserve it.” He gave her a cheeky smile, making her laugh.

  “I think I can accept those terms. Now, let’s get to work. I brought notes.” She pulled a file out of her bag and put it on the table.

  “That’s good,” Skyler said, his green eyes flashing with mischief as he reached for something in a messenger bag she hadn’t noticed and produced a file twice as large as hers. “Cause so did I.”

  Hope dropped her head down to the table and laughed. When she popped back up, she cocked her head to the side and said, “You’re adorable, you know that?”

  “I’m glad you think so, because this is right about the time when most people start running.” His tone was light, but there was a hint of seriousness in the delivery, and she had no trouble believing that he was just a little too extra for some people.

  “No way. We’re besties now whether you like it or not. You and Pete took on my nemesis. There’s no better bonding ritual than that.”

  “Did I say I like you?” he asked.

  “Yes, you did. No getting out of it now.”

  “What I meant to say is that I love you.” He held his pinky finger out to her. “We need to pinky swear our loyalty.”

  Feeling lighter and better than she had in forty-eight hours, she wrapped her pinky finger around his and said, “Pinky swear.”

  He repeated her words and then opened his file. “Time to get to work. What do you think of these felted replicas? I was thinking they could be used in the center pieces.”

  Hope glanced at the picture of a mini felted dog that looked exactly like the real live dog sitting next to it. She frowned. “Really? They look like voodoo dogs.”

  Skyler glanced at the picture again and then grimaced. “You know what? You’re right.” He crumpled up the paper and tossed it over his shoulder. “I knew hiring you was a good call.”

  “I’ll have to remember to thank Gigi for the invite, because I love that you brought all this.” Hope waved to his folder. “We’re gonna have so much fun.”

  “Girl,” he said, his voice going up an octave. “You have no idea.”

  Chapter Twenty

  “It seems like we should have the blood of our ancestors for this ritual,” Joy said, eyeing the red wine as she swirled it in her glass. She was sitting cross-legged on the cliff, the fire they’d conjured flickering in her blue eyes.

  Hope had been studying her, trying to decide how she was doing. Joy had been scarce the last few days, and Hope had started to suspect that the reality of Paul leaving had finally come crashing down on her. But after that statement she had to force herself to not burst out laughing. “Uh, Joy, I know we’re witches, but do we really want to put in that much effort? Remember the last time we conjured blood from the dusty old bones of our relatives?”

  “From dusty old bones?” Gigi asked, looking a little green around the edges.

  “You know,” Grace said conversationally, “it probably would help bind us together better.”

  “I think wine is probably good enough,” Gigi said nervously as she wiped a hand on her cotton skirt. “I mean, we wouldn’t want to disturb the spirits if we don’t have to, right?”

  Joy let out a cackle and then quickly clasped her hand over her mouth. “Sorry. It’s just too funny.”

  Hope and Grace gave in to the humor and started laughing with her.

  “Oh, very funny,” Gigi said dryly. “It’s always fun to pick on the new girl, right?”

  “Yes,” the three of them said in unison.

  “You might as well get used to it,” Grace said mildly. “You’re joining our coven. The three of us are never going to let up.”

  “But the good news is that you’ll always have three sisters to count on for anything,” Joy added, squeezing her hand.

  Hope nodded thoughtfully, adding, “And we’ll be ready to avenge you, should some jackhole decide to try to ruin your reputation because she’s a jealous bitch who can’t seem to find success on her own even though she’s had every privilege bestowed on her, including a husband who bankrolls her operation.”

  “Oh, boy. That was specific,” Grace muttered.

  Hope let out a bark of humorless laughter. “Sorry. Excuse my rant. If you couldn’t tell, Peggy Pitsman has gotten on my very last nerve.” Hope had almost lost another client and had spent the better part of her day convincing her that no, she wasn’t using substandard caterers who’d been closed down by the health department three times.

  “We could curse Peggy,” Grace suggested. “I’m particularly good at STD curses if you remember correctly.”

  Hope and Joy burst out laughing, but Gigi seemed to shrink away from her.

  “Don’t worry,” Hope said. “Grace didn’t do it on purpose. It was a case of wishing a curse into existence without her even casting a spell. Strong emotions can make that happen every now and then, and Grace’s husband had just left her for the office assistant. Is it any wonder she wished they’d both get genital warts?”

  “Oh, my goodness.” Gigi started giggling and then laughed so hard she fell backward onto the earth and held her stomach until she finally got a hold of herself. “Grace. That’s too much. Dammit, now I’m disappointed you didn’t wish them on my ex.”

  “So am I to be honest,” Grace said, holding her wine glass up in a mock toast. “Next time?”

  “Next time,” Gigi agreed.

  Grace glanced at Joy. “What about you? Any special requests for Paul? Herpes? Warts? Boils?”

  “Boils? Oh. Em. Gee. He’d die.” Joy snickered at the thought but then shook her head. “As lovely as that sounds, I think it’s best to leave that alone. I don’t need any fuel added to the fire until after the divorce.”

  “Good call,” Gigi said, holding up her glass the way Grace had a few moments ago. “Keep it civil until the papers are signed. Then all bets are off.”

  Since Gigi was recently divorced, it was no surprise she related the most to what Joy was going through. Though Gigi had thrown her husband out. Joy hadn’t asked for hers to leave.

  “Fine. No boils.” Grace stood and swept her auburn hair behind her in a loose ponytail. “But we can wish for him to regrow his brain, right? Because anyone stupid enough to leave Joy obviously fried something in his head. Maybe it was all the number crunching.”

  “Or porn,” Hope mumbled.

  “I heard that,” Joy said, but there wasn’t any heat behind her words. “Honestly, I don’t care why he left anymore. If he doesn’t want me, then he can go. I deserve so much better.”

  “Hear, hear!” The other three witches chanted and raised their glasses in unison.

  Joy held hers up as well. “Looks like we’re ready
to officially add our fourth sister. Hope? You ready?”

  “Yep.” Hope scanned the four wine glasses they were all holding up and said, “Levitate.”

  All four of the glasses slipped from their hands and floated high in front of them, right over the glowing flames of the small fire they’d built.

  Hope held out her hands to her coven mates. “Time to form the physical circle.”

  They followed suit until all four of them were connected as one unit.

  “One of four, four of one, tonight we celebrate the sister we’ve won.” Hope grinned at Gigi. “She walked into our lives during a tumultuous time in her personal life, but even in those early days when her future seemed unclear, all three of us knew her future belonged right here… with us.”

  “That’s right,” Grace said.

  “Wouldn’t want it any other way,” Joy added.

  “So tonight, we raise our glasses to the sky, ask that the wine within be blessed by our higher power, and then drink to lifelong sisterhood where we will always stand for one another, hold one another, and lift one another up with everything we have.”

  The wine in the glasses turned a bright, blood red and then quickly turned back to its original red wine color. One glass floated to each of the witches, and without the help of their hands, the glasses tilted, making their offerings to the union. They each opened their mouths, took the dram of wine, and swallowed.

  The fire suddenly shot up higher and turned a brilliant white. The wood crackled, sending off four sparks that quickly turned into four interconnected rings that hung right in the middle of the four witches.

  They stood staring at the rings until finally, Hope snapped her fingers and the white fire rings floated back down to the fire and disappeared in the flames.

  All three of them studied Gigi, who just stood there looking stunned.

  “Well, do you feel different?” Grace asked.

  Gigi blinked at them. “Did you really just say I’m going to be stuck with you three for eternity?” Her expression turned to one of pure horror.

  “Um, yeah. That’s what happens when you join a coven. I thought—” Hope started, but she was cut off by Gigi’s laughter.

  “I’m just kidding. You did say you’re going to needle me for the foreseeable future, didn’t you? I just wanted to test it out.”

  Grace and Joy laughed.

  “One thing’s for sure,” Hope said, chuckling. “You fit right in.”

  “And thank the gods for that,” Gigi said, holding her arms out wide. “Now give your newest sister a hug.”

  They all moved in, wrapping their arms around each other. It felt good. Peaceful. And just right. It always did when she was with her coven.

  Just as Hope was pulling away, her phone buzzed.

  “Really, Hope?” Grace admonished. “What if that thing had gone off during the ritual?”

  “Sorry!” Hope exclaimed, feeling like an idiot. They had a strict policy. No phones allowed during coven meetings. She went to just turn it off, but then she caught Lex’s name on the screen. The ringing stopped and a text came through immediately. Call me. It’s urgent.

  Hope didn’t hesitate. She hit Lex’s number. “What happened?”

  “It’s Peggy Pitsman’s daughter. She overdosed tonight.”

  Chapter Twenty-One

  “Lex?” Grace called as she strode out the back door of her cottage with Hope on her heels. Joy and Gigi were in the house making coffee and giving them time to talk to Lex before they all converged on her. When Lex had called, she’d been really shaken up over the night’s events.

  “Over here,” Jackson said from where he sat with Lex on the outdoor loveseat. She had her knees drawn up and her arms wrapped around them.

  Grace hurried over to her niece and kneeled in front of her. “Are you all right?”

  Lex nodded, but Jackson, who had his arm wrapped around her shoulders and her head tucked against his chest, shook his head.

  “What happened?”

  Hope grabbed a couple of the deck chairs and pulled them over so she and Grace could sit near Lex. Once they were both seated, Hope reached over and took one of Lex’s hands. They didn’t have any details other than she and Jackson had been at the Beachside Beer Garden when Peggy’s daughter went into a seizure from an apparent overdose.

  “I had the night off, so I called Jackson to see if he wanted to get together, and we ended up at the Beachside Beer Garden,” Lex said.

  “Bronwyn is out of town helping her college roommate plan a wedding,” Jackson explained.

  Lex glanced up at him. “You know that’s not the only reason I called.”

  “Of course not,” he said soothingly. “Besties for life.”

  She gave him a shaky smile and turned her attention back to Grace. “Anyway, we were sitting out on the patio when Whitley walked in with a couple of her friends. We waved, but that’s it. They were sitting a few tables away from us, laughing too loudly and being somewhat obnoxious, the way people do when they’ve had a few too many.”

  “Lex and I were actually counting the times Whitley and her friends yelled party,” Jackson said. “When the count got over a dozen, we lost interest. I went in to settle our tab, and that’s when all hell broke loose.”

  “I’ve never seen anything like that before,” Lex said as she shuddered. She closed her eyes for a moment and then continued. “Right about the time Jackson went inside, Whitley’s friends got up and ran down the beach. They were yelling something about finding mermen. Whitley got up to follow them, but she stumbled and started to shake violently as she crashed to the patio.”

  “That sounds terrifying,” Grace said gently.

  Lex wiped at her eyes. “I was the nearest person to her, so I ran to her side and tried to make sure she didn’t hurt herself on any of the chairs or tables. The paramedics showed up a few minutes later. I heard them say something about an overdose. I’d been thinking epilepsy or something, but they administered some drug to counteract the effects of whatever she took and then carried her away.”

  “I heard them say she was exhibiting all the signs of an ashe overdose,” Jackson said.

  “Ashe?” Hope asked, frowning. “What’s that?”

  “The new drug circulating through town that’s causing all the overdoses,” Jackson said. “It comes in a compressed block that people burn like incense in a glass pipe, and they inhale the smoke.”

  “And it’s enough to cause an overdose? What the heck is it made out of?” Hope asked, feeling like she was a hundred years old. Compressed blocks? She’d never heard of a drug like that.

  “It must be,” Lex said, sitting up and wiping at her eyes. “That’s not something I ever want to see again.”

  “I can imagine.” Grace leaned over and gave her a hug.

  “Does anyone know how Whitley’s doing? Or if anyone called her mother?” Hope asked. Peggy Pitsman wasn’t her favorite person, but the woman needed to know her daughter had been taken to the hospital.

  “Lex tried to call the hospital, but they wouldn’t give her any information,” Jackson said. “We didn’t think to call her mom. I guess I assumed the hospital would do that.”

  Hope pulled her phone out of her pocket and dialed the woman’s number. It rang four times and then went to voicemail. “Peggy, this is Hope Anderson. You’ve probably already been called, but I just wanted to make sure you were aware that Whitley was taken to the hospital this evening after an apparent overdose. We don’t have any information other than that. We all hope she’s okay. Take care.”

  “You’re a good person, Hope,” Grace said.

  “Not that good. But sometimes, you just have to do what you have to do,” she said stoically. She was still over-the-top pissed at Peggy’s antics, but Whitley deserved to have her mother there when she woke up.

  “Truth,” Jackson said, standing to let Grace sit next to Lex.

  Grace tucked herself beside her niece and pulled her into a reassuring hug.
r />   “Hope, can I talk to you for a second?” Jackson asked.

  “Sure.” Hope rose and followed Jackson into the house.

  Gigi and Joy were sitting at Grace’s table with mugs in front of them.

  “Hey,” Joy said, jumping up and running to the coffee pot. “We peeked out the window and saw that Lex is pretty upset, so we wanted to give her some space.”

  “She is.” Jackson pulled one of the chairs out and sat heavily. “It was pretty brutal. After the seizure, Whitley was so pale, I was afraid for a moment that she…” He swallowed hard. “I was afraid we’d lost her.”

  “I’m so sorry, Jackson,” Gigi said leaning forward to pat his hand. “She must be a good friend of yours.”

  He shook his head. “No. Not at all. We were in the same class, but she and Lex didn’t really get along that well, so we steered clear of each other. I’m just shaken up because that’s the third person I’ve watched overdose on ashe, and it’s terrifying. You’d think after four people were hospitalized that most would stay away from it, but it doesn’t look like that’s been a deterrent.”

  “Oh, no. That’s terrible,” Gigi said, covering her mouth and leaning back in her chair. “I’m so sorry you both had to witness that tonight. Is Whitley all right?”

  “I don’t know,” he said as he accepted a cup of coffee from Joy.

  She leaned down, wrapped her arm around his shoulders, and gave him a hug. “If you need anything, let me know, okay?”

  Jackson had spent many afternoons in Joy’s home as a kid. He and his mother had moved in next door to Joy and her family when he was just five years old. He and Kyle, her youngest son, had been friends ever since.

  He covered one of her hands with one of his own. “Thanks Mrs. Lansing.”

  “It’s Joy. You know that.”

  He smiled up at her and nodded. “Thanks, Joy.”

  Holding her own mug of coffee, Hope sat across from Jackson. “You said you wanted to talk to me? Is this okay, or do you want to go somewhere more private?”