Strange Magic (The Witches of Cleopatra Hill Book 9)

by Christine Pope

  “Except your Uncle Jack.”

  “Well, he was sort of necessary, especially since he needs to be around to help keep things contained as much as possible. Anyway, he’s a cop. He knows not to go spreading stories.”

  Probably not. Jack struck Evan as a no-nonsense kind of guy, definitely not the sort of person you’d ever suspect was actually a warlock. “He seems cool.”

  Zoe’s face lit up, erasing some of the strain that had lent too taut an edge to her features. “He is. He’s my favorite uncle. Even though he’s a cop, he doesn’t take things too seriously, you know? It’s kind of a relief when so many other people want to act like the fate of the world is resting on my shoulders or something.”

  Maybe not the weight of the whole world, but definitely that of her clan. Luz Trujillo was a vibrant woman in the prime of her life, but accidents could happen. He thought of Angela’s mother dying in that motorcycle accident, leaving his own clan without a prima-in-waiting for years until Great-Aunt Ruby declared that Angela would be the one. But if something had taken Ruby away from them before Angela’s status was determined…well, he really didn’t want to think about that. A clan without its prima was vulnerable to outside attack. Such things hadn’t happened for years, but they had in the distant past, back before the McAllister clan had even settled in America. So he could see why Zoe felt as if she carried far too heavy a burden.

  He also thought that Jack Sandoval seemed serious enough, but Zoe was his niece; she knew him far better than Evan did. Also, it was distinctly possible that Jack had put on his no-nonsense cop face around Evan because he wanted to make it abundantly clear that he didn’t have much patience for McAllister interlopers messing with his clan’s future prima.

  “I’m glad he’s on your side,” Evan said, hoping that sounded neutral enough.

  If Zoe detected any subtext to the comment, she didn’t show it. She only nodded and sipped at her sangria.

  And then the waitress was there with their food, and Evan was able to fall into a companionable silence while he and Zoe dug in, sending their overtaxed bodies the fuel they so desperately needed. After a few minutes had passed, though, she slowed down and wiped her fingers — greasy from the tacos — on her napkin and looked across the table at him, expression earnest.

  “Thank you,” she said. He lifted an eyebrow, and she went on, “For everything. For sticking with this. For not freaking out when I freaked out. For…not thinking I’m a complete loser.”

  “I don’t think you’re a loser,” he said. It felt so hard to hold her gaze, but he knew he couldn’t look away, that any evasion might be far more telling than looking at her directly now. “I think you’re doing the best you can in a very difficult situation.”

  A small flush colored the warm olive skin of her face. “Even though I caused that situation in the first place?”

  There was a thornier question. He dug a tortilla chip into the elote — corn dip with spicy mayo and crumbly Mexican cheese — and took a bite so he could sort out his thoughts before he replied. “Do I think it was the best idea in the world? No.” Her mouth tightened, and he quickly added, “Do I get why you did it? Yeah. I do. When you feel like you’re backed into a corner, you don’t always make the right choices.”

  “Were you backed into a corner with her?” Zoe asked.

  For a few seconds, Evan couldn’t understand what she was talking about. Then he realized she must be asking about Kelly. He’d avoided the subject ever since Zoe’s one abortive attempt to bring it up, but he could tell she was curious.

  What the hell. He wouldn’t lie. Zoe had been more than honest with him, and so he thought she deserved to have the favor returned.

  “No,” he said, wishing right then that he’d ordered some sangria for himself. Since at least it would help with his suddenly dry throat, he swigged some water. “I walked right into that of my own accord. I fell for my ex, even though I knew that relationships with civilians could be tough. You have to be so, so sure of them, you know? Because it’s not just your relationship at stake, but the safety of your clan.”

  “Because if things go south, then they could tell everyone what they know.”

  “Right. Well, things did go south — Kelly’s from Phoenix, and she didn’t like living in the Verde Valley. Oh, at first she was enthusiastic about how different everything was, but when she realized she couldn’t go to what she referred to as a ‘real mall,’ or drive down to Phoenix whenever she felt like it to hang out, then she started to get resentful. She started trying to convince me to move, which of course was impossible. None of us are free to go wherever we want, whenever we want.”

  Zoe gave a sympathetic nod. “Don’t I know it.”

  “Right. So when she realized she couldn’t get me to move out of Cottonwood — and I’d done that for her, bought a house there and everything because my flat in Jerome was way too small — she started just taking off for Phoenix whenever she could. Said that maybe I was stuck in the Verde Valley, but that didn’t mean she had to follow those same rules.” He drained the water in his glass and hoped the waitress would be back around soon for a refill. His throat was parched. “Turns out she was seeing a divorce lawyer down in Phoenix. And sleeping with him.”

  Eyes wide, Zoe said, “Oh, God, Evan. I’m so sorry.”

  He shrugged. The pain now felt far away and mostly scabbed over. “In the end, I think she did me a favor. At least she bailed out early before we’d started a family. But it cost the clan a lot to make sure she wouldn’t talk about us, and that’s the part that really sucks.”

  For a long moment, Zoe didn’t reply, only sat there in sympathetic silence. Then she said, “My grandfather cheated on my grandmother. A lot.”

  It was Evan’s turn for his eyes to widen. “On Maya?” Maybe that was a stupid question, but his brain couldn’t quite grasp the notion of a consort cheating on his prima. That sort of thing wasn’t supposed to happen, was it? What about their soul-bond?

  Zoe nodded. “Yes. They tried to hide it as best they could, of course. Divorce was out of the question. Primas don’t get divorced. So my abuelo had I don’t know how many girlfriends, almost right up to the point when he died of a heart attack. He didn’t even live with my grandmother — he moved into his own house as soon as my Aunt Luz made her match with Uncle David, which was way before I was born, obviously.” She picked up a chip and scooped up some elote, but just held the tortilla chip between her fingers, as if she wasn’t sure what she’d meant to do with it. Her shoulders lifted, and she added, “So I guess what I’m trying to say is that all our clans have had some weird relationship stuff go on. I don’t think Grandfather ever said anything about being a warlock to any of his girlfriends, though. He was indiscreet, but not that indiscreet.”

  Evan wondered if anyone in his own clan knew about Maya’s history. He doubted it, though, because it certainly wasn’t the sort of information the former prima of the de la Pazes would have wanted to get out in the world. From what he’d heard, she was one tough woman, and admitting that she was married to a serial philanderer would have seemed like a sign of weakness.

  “I’m sorry, Zoe,” he said.

  “It was a long time ago. It didn’t really affect me that much. Just sort of the way things were, you know?” Finally she did eat the chip and elote, chewing contemplatively. “Aunt Luz and her husband — they’re happy. My parents are happy. So I know it was just one of those things that happen. But….” She trailed off, mouth pursing as if an unpleasant thought had just occurred to her.

  “But?”

  Those dark eyes of hers were so deep that he wondered if he might drown in them. “But I can’t help thinking that might have had something to do with what I did. That in the back of my mind, I knew this custom of matching a prima and her consort wasn’t infallible, and that’s just another reason why I decided to take matters into my own hands.”

  Not sure what he should say, Evan only offered a grim nod. Because when she put it
that way, who could really blame Zoe for what she had done?

  14

  Well, maybe it hadn’t been quite the romantic meal she had hoped for, but Zoe felt a thousand times better as she climbed into Evan’s car so he could drive her home. Her sense of well-being didn’t just come from a full stomach, but from a feeling that they’d done a lot to clear the air between them. He’d told her the truth about his ex-wife — and what a wench she sounded like — and Zoe had spilled a few secrets of her own.

  And even with all that, he was still here, hadn’t shown any sign that he planned to take off for Jerome and leave her to sort out her own mess. No, it was clear to her that he would stick by her until they sent the creature away for good.

  During the meal at Sofrita, she’d been half expecting her phone to ring again, to have her uncle call and tell her that there had been another sighting and that she and Evan had to drop everything and come take care of it. She’d also worried that Aunt Luz might call to find out where she was, but that hadn’t happened, either. No, they’d been left blessedly alone to enjoy their meal. Maybe her aunt was still busy dealing with the aftermath of the creature’s appearance in downtown Scottsdale and didn’t have time to be checking on Zoe every damn minute.

  Evan pulled into what she now thought of as his usual place in front of the house. She noticed how he never drove up into the driveway, even when he must know there wasn’t anyone at home for him to be blocking with his car.

  “Well,” he said, and paused.

  “Well,” she echoed. This was awkward. Should she invite him in? No, she knew he wouldn’t come inside, not when it would be just the two of them alone in the house. It was one thing to be off together in fairly public places, but…. “Thanks for the margarita.”

  He grinned, hazel eyes lighting up. She liked to see him like that, because a lot of the time he looked too damn serious, as if he was the future prima with the weight of the world on his shoulders, not her. “Thanks for lunch.”

  Because she’d insisted on paying, since it was her idea to go to that particular restaurant. The only reason she’d let him pay for the margarita at the bar in Scottsdale was because she’d left her purse shoved under the passenger seat in his car. “No problem. So you’re going back to the hotel?”

  A nod. “If that’s okay. Your aunt made it seem as if my reservation there was kind of open-ended….”

  “Oh, that’s for sure. She wanted to make sure you’d have someplace to stay until this was all settled. So I guess…call me if you get a twinge, and I’ll do the same.” Back at the restaurant, they’d made sure to get each other’s numbers safely stored in their phones. And he also had the number for the land line at her house, just in case.

  “Sounds like a plan.”

  Since she knew it would only feel weirder if she lingered, she smiled, said, “’Bye,” and shut the car door behind her. She’d expected to hear him drive away immediately, but instead he idled there, watching to make sure she got inside the house okay. Only then did the sleek black car move away from the curb and head back down the hill.

  Zoe watched until he was gone, and then she locked the front door behind her. Her footsteps echoed on the tiled floors, the house silent around her. So, as she’d thought, her parents were still down at her father’s office. When they got home, they’d probably get more takeout, maybe pizza this time. Her mother never felt like cooking after a marathon with the contractors.

  And Evan would go back to the hotel, and…what? Watch TV? He didn’t seem like a television kind of guy. Hang out by the pool? The weather was definitely warm enough for that, but she kind of doubted he’d packed any swim trunks for his trip down here. Even so, she couldn’t help imagining what he might look like with his shirt off. His chest and stomach must be just as well-muscled as those arms of his. A delicious little thrill went through her at the thought, and she sighed.

  “Hey!”

  Adrenaline shot through her and she whirled, only to see her brother Zander leaning up against the opening off the main hallway that led into the kitchen. “Goddamn it, Zander!” she snapped. “Do you always lurk around like that so you can sneak up on people?”

  “I wasn’t sneaking,” he said, grinning, clearly pleased that he’d gotten the jump on her. “You were staring off into space, all moony-eyed.”

  She wanted to tell him he didn’t know what he was talking about, but she had a sinking feeling that she’d probably looked exactly the way he’d described her. Moony-eyed, and thinking of Evan.

  So because she didn’t have a proper rejoinder, she just said, “Whatever,” and pushed past him into the kitchen so she could get a glass of water. Maybe Zander would decide she wasn’t worth baiting and would head up to his room, or at least to the family room so he could turn on the TV.

  Unfortunately, he didn’t do either of those things. Instead, he followed her into the kitchen and leaned up against the counter, watching her. Leaning. He did a lot of that, like he didn’t have the energy to stand up under his own power. For all she knew, he didn’t. He’d shot up something like five inches in the last six months, and that had to be exhausting.

  “Who was in that car?”

  “What car?” she asked, playing dumb.

  He raised an eyebrow. She hated that now he was a lot taller than she. In the past, she’d been able to intimidate him with the big-sister thing because she was so much older and could look down at him or at least meet him eye to eye, but no more. “The car that just dropped you off, pendeja.”

  “Mom’ll kill you if she hears you talking like that.”

  “Maybe.” He shrugged. “But she’s not here right now. So what’s with the car? I don’t know anyone in the clan who has a car like that.”

  He would know, because if there was anything Zander was more obsessed with than video games, it was cars. Since she knew it would come out eventually, she said, “It’s not anyone from our clan. The car belongs to Evan McAllister.”

  “McAllister, huh?” Zander crossed his arms and gave her an inquiring glance. “What’s he doing here?”

  “Helping,” she said shortly, then went to the cupboard and got down a glass.

  “Helping with what?”

  “Clan business.” She shoved the glass under the water dispenser in the refrigerator door, then pushed the button so water would begin to flow.

  “What kind of clan business?”

  “The kind of business that isn’t any of your business.”

  “Says who?”

  “Says me,” she retorted. God, she hated how almost all of her conversations with Zander seemed to devolve into her acting like a fourteen-year-old as well. Talk about bringing people down to your own level. “And since I’m the prima-in-waiting, that means you need to leave it alone.”

  “Huh,” Zander said. “Big deal. A prima without a consort.”

  She turned away from the refrigerator so she could glare at him properly. “Shut. The. Fuck. Up.”

  Then she stalked past him, glass in hand. He was giving her his best icy stare of death as well, but since she was used to that, she ignored him and headed up the stairs so she could lock herself in her room and get herself some privacy. Thank God Evan hadn’t been around to hear that particular exchange — he’d be counting himself extra lucky that he didn’t have a chance of getting involved with someone so immature.

  She slammed the door and touched her hand to the knob, willing it to lock itself in place until she was ready to release the spell. Her parents hadn’t been too pleased with that particular trick, especially since neither of them was a powerful enough user of magic to break through the minor enchantment.

  A quick glance at the clock on the wall told her it wasn’t quite five. So her parents probably wouldn’t be back for at least an hour. She could open up her laptop, surf around, see if Amber was on Facebook so they could chat or something. Yes, she could have done all that on her phone, but it was so much easier with a bigger screen.

  But the idea of pa
ssing the time with such mundane activities wasn’t very appealing. She felt like she should be doing something. Anything. Unfortunately, she really didn’t have an idea as to what that “anything” should be, since the creature had disappeared back there in Scottsdale, and she hadn’t gotten a single twinge as to its whereabouts since.

  Okay, but where was it written that she had to wait for it to appear again? She’d brought the thing here — surely there had to be some way she could reach out to it on her own.

  No, that was dangerous. She didn’t have any idea what would happen if she attempted that kind of spell. With her luck, she wouldn’t even draw the creature to her, but instead would bring a whole other monster to this particular plane of existence.

  That idea made her shudder. No, they definitely had their hands full enough already. Hard as it was, it seemed as if waiting was her only option.

  She just wished she could be waiting with Evan.

  Her phone chimed, a new text message coming in, and she pounced, hoping against hope that it was Evan reaching out to her to let her know he was just as bored as she was.

  Of course not. The text was from her Aunt Luz. Zoe frowned a little at that, because in general, her aunt was the type of person to call, not text. When she read the message, though, Zoe’s frown only deepened.

  So sorry — with everything going on, forgot that I’d set up your cousin Carlos to meet you and see if he would work out. He just called to say he was almost to the house. I’m on my way, too — I’m trying to get there before he does. Hang tight.

  “‘Hang tight’?” Zoe repeated out loud in disbelieving tones. “Why didn’t you just tell him to turn around and go home, that I was sick or something?”

  Her words hung in the empty air, because of course no one else was there to hear them. She started to text back angrily that she wasn’t going to see anyone, least of all this Carlos person, but then stopped herself. Getting into an argument with Luz via text message wouldn’t change anything. Besides, if he was almost to the house, there wasn’t that much they could do except let matters run their course.