Adam reached out and grabbed my hand. He pulled me toward him with another heavy sigh and I settled into his lap. “I know you mean well, gorgeous. But you have to see things from Nick’s point of view. Think back to right after you got banished here to Beechwood Harbor. Remember what you were like? You stayed in your room all the time, barely wanted to eat dinner with the rest of us, and you definitely didn’t want to talk about your move. Would you have wanted someone pounding on your bedroom door every few hours, asking you how you were doing?”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “If I remember correctly, someone was doing all those things!”
Adam grinned. “I was flirting. That’s different.”
“All right, all right. You’ve made your point. I’ll try to back off.”
“Good. There are only a few more days until the full moon anyway. He might open up once he’s gone through his first change.”
I nibbled the corner of my lower lip. “Maybe.”
“In the meantime, I’m starving. Let’s go get something for dinner.”
“Looks like you just ate,” I said, pointing my chin at the evidence piled at the edge of the large farmhouse sink. It had to have been from him because Evangeline, our witch roommate, didn’t like to, and Lacy, our vampire roommate, didn’t need to. One crystal goblet a night for her faux-blood cocktail was the only dish she ever used.
Adam ignored the pile of dishes and shrugged. “Meh. That was just an appetizer.”
I rolled my eyes but climbed out of his lap. “McNally’s, I assume?”
He kissed me. “You think you’ve got me all figured out, huh?”
I cocked my head. “I’d say 98 percent.”
Adam laughed. “Well, tonight must be a two-percenter then, because I was actually thinking we could use your fancy little portal and go into the Seattle Haven.”
My jaw dropped. “Really?”
Adam wasn’t a fan of the haven system. He’d left years ago and as far as I knew, had set foot inside of one only a handful of times since. The Seattle Haven, one of a network of supernatural communities veiled by strong, ancient magic and charms, lay just under the surface of Seattle proper; with supernaturals coming and going without humans noticing. I wasn’t entirely sure on all of Adam’s objections to the haven system. His parents both worked in government positions in the Boston Haven.
My best assumption was that he’d grown up under the tight confines and wanted some breathing room. Adam wasn’t a cookie-cutter kind of man and did better on his own terms, which made it all the more puzzling when he volunteered to go into the haven for something like dinner. He’d never offered before.
Granted, up until a month or so ago, going to the Seattle Haven required a three-hour drive to Seattle and a trek through downtown to the Magic Beans coffee shop to get to a portal. After my recent involvement with the Supernatural Protection Agency (SPA), I’d been gifted continued use of the local portal, which had originally been intended only for government employees. It worked out well, as my potion business required me to go to the haven on a regular basis for supplies and to restock my distributors. I’d also brokered a few deals with high-end apothecaries who carried the herbs I grew in my greenhouse. But Adam typically stayed home when I went.
“You’ve never wanted to go to the haven before,” I said. “What’s up?”
Adam shrugged. “Just thought we might branch out. See something new.”
“All right.” I said, playfully narrowing my eyes at him. “Who are you and what have you done with my boyfriend?”
“Hey, if you’d rather play twenty-questions, I’ll go wander down to McNally’s and grab a burger.”
I lunged for his arm as he started from the room. “Wait!”
He laughed. “That’s what I thought.”
I held my pointer finger up. “I’m going to go wash up and change into something nice. Promise you won’t change your mind?”
“Promise.”
I sprinted to my room, just in case.
“Holly? Holly, wake up.”
The hissed whisper pulled me from my sleep and I stirred, rolling away from the voice.
“Holly, Nick’s here.”
I peeled one eye open and the fuzzy edges faded from around my sleepy mind. “Posy?” I mumbled, rubbing at my eyes.
“Sorry to wake you, dear, but he says it’s important.”
Posy, Beechwood Manor’s ghostly landlord, hovered near the door. Her silvery silhouette became clearer as my eyes adjusted to the darkness. The only light came in from the row of windows along the opposite wall.
“Nick’s here?” I asked, my voice still thick and groggy. “What time is it?”
“Three forty-five,” she answered in a matter-of-fact tone.
What in the Otherworld would Nick want at this time of night? I reached across the bed and felt around until my fingers found the edge of my thick terry-cloth robe. I tugged at it but it didn’t budge. A pair of amber eyes glowed up at me in the darkness and I sighed. “Boots, scoot over. I need my robe.”
My orange tabby, and part-time familiar, closed his eyes again.
I tugged harder.
Not one ounce of his twenty pounds budged.
“Fine!” I huffed. I threw my legs over the side of the bed, danced my toes along the cold hardwood floors until they found my slippers, and then toddled toward the door. If Nick was willing to wake me up at three AM, he was going to have to deal with my flannel nightgown. And he was going to have to make it quick—the house was freezing!
Nick stood in the living room, bundled into a thick coat.
“What’s going on?” I asked, wrapping my arms around myself. “Are you all right?”
A flicker of fear laced my questions. Nick’s infection hadn’t happened under the usual circumstances. The werewolf that scratched Nick, a guy named Ben who had worked at Evangeline’s day spa as a masseuse, had been under the control of a powerful sorceress. It hadn’t been a full moon the night of Nick’s curse and somewhere in the back of my mind, I’d been worried ever since that he’d be walking down the aisle at the grocery store or driving through the car wash, and suddenly change. Of course, I’d never voiced that concern to him before, but finding him in my living room at such an odd hour had me searching every detail of his appearance for any sign of distress.
His dark hair was tucked under a ski cap and his cheeks were pink from the frosty night air, not a bead of sweat to be seen. He had his hands shoved into his deep pockets and I didn’t see any sign of claws desperate to escape the thick fabric.
So far, so good.
Then why is he here?
“Holly, I’m really sorry to bother you. I—uh—ugh, this whole thing is still so weird.” He started to pace. “I mean, I came over here and a vampire opened the door. A vampire.”
His eyes shifted toward the kitchen door and it flew open. Lacey, in full make-up and a long, clingy black dress, strutted out of the kitchen holding two crystal goblets in her hands. She spotted me and couldn’t—or didn’t bother trying to—conceal a snarl. “Oh, good. You’re awake.”
“What’s going on? Nick, what happened?”
Lacey joined him and pressed one of the goblets into his hand. Hers was filled with her synthetic blood mixture, whereas Nick’s looked like it contained sparkling water. “I was simply welcoming our guest,” Lacey said, flashing her sharp canines. Her fangs were safely tucked away, and with Nick a newly cursed werewolf, I could rest assured that they would stay that way. Modern vampires didn’t tend to drink live, but even the most well-behaved vamp could be tempted to slip if the circumstances were just so. However, with Nick no longer fully human, I didn’t have to worry about my roommate turning him into a midnight snack.
Small mercies.
“Yes, I see that. Thank you, Lacey.”
Nick took a long drink from the water and she looked satisfied.
“Are you feeling all right?” I asked Nick, still watching him closely.
He nodded. “
I’m fine, Holly, but I do need your help.”
“Of course. Anything.”
“I saw something tonight. Something that I can’t explain.”
Lacey and I exchanged a dark glance.
“Oh, okay.”
He reached up and rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand. “I know we haven’t really finished my … uh, supernatural training, or orientation, or however you want to put it, but are elves a real thing? I mean, like Santa-and-his-sleigh kind of elves. Not the tall, pretty ones from Lord of the Rings.”
I stifled a laugh. “Technically, yes. But they wouldn’t be here in Beechwood.”
“Are you sure about that?”
I started to nod but tilted my head to one side. “Why? What did you see?”
He sighed. “You know what I told you about the garden gnomes.”
“Yeah?”
Lacey arched a perfectly manicured brow but didn’t say anything as Nick continued. “I couldn’t sleep, so I thought I’d drive through the neighborhood that’s having the problems. I wasn’t really expecting to find anything. I figured I’d put up some surveillance cameras before the weekend and see if I could catch the perp on tape.”
“Perp?” I interjected. “I’m not sure if rearranging old ladies lawn gnomes really earns someone that label. Seems a little harsh.”
Nick frowned. “Anyway, I was ready to circle back and leave when I spotted some movement outside Mrs. Grady’s house. She has a few gnomes, and—”
“A few? The woman could invade a small country with that many gnomes!” Every time I passed her house, the sheer number of the weird little ornaments freaked me out.
Lacey rolled her eyes. “As fascinating as this is, I’m late for a party.”
Nick thanked her for the drink and watched her go back to the kitchen. When he returned his gaze to me, he furrowed his brow. “Are you going to listen to me or just make jokes?”
“Hey, you’re the one who dragged me out of bed at four in the morning. You’re going to have to allow some commentary.” He didn’t look amused. I sighed. “Fine, fine. All right, so you’re hunting gnome nappers and you find an elf? Is that the gist of this story?”
“About sums it up. I didn’t want to sneak up on it and end up…”
“Gift wrapped?”
“Holly!”
“Okay, okay. Sorry. That was the last one, I promise.”
For some reason, the story disappointed me. It was almost like some part of me had been waiting for Nick to have a meltdown over his new life, and when it didn’t happen, I was left deflated. Which was messed up on a whole bunch of levels and something I’d have to unpack on my own at a later date. As it was, I’d offered my help and he was asking for it. It was hardly the first time I’d accompanied him on a stakeout.
“Let me get my coat.”
Minutes later, we were in Nick’s car, cruising through Mrs. Grady’s neighborhood. I rubbed my hands together in front of one of the vents as my eyes tracked up and down the sidewalk, looking for any sign of the short, chubby creature dressed in head-to-toe green that Nick had last seen carting off a garden gnome.
“It was right there,” Nick said, pointing out his driver’s side window. “But I don’t see it anymore. The gnome is gone too.”
“A kleptomaniac elf,” I said, shaking my head. “It doesn’t make sense. First of all, the SPA would be all over any elf that ventured this far south. Secondly, they’re givers by nature. Shuffling garden gnomes isn’t really something I can picture them doing.”
Nick leaned back in his seat and squeezed his eyes closed.
“You okay?”
“We’re sitting in my car, freezing our butts off, talking about elves.”
“And?”
“It’s weird! Holly, everything about this is weird!”
I reached over and grabbed his hand. “Nick, look at me.”
He pried one eye open. I frowned and he opened the other.
“I know this all feels a little bananas right now, but it’s going to get easier. It’ll just take time. At least you have me and Evangeline and Adam.”
“And Lacey,” he added.
I ground my teeth. “And Lacey.”
His gaze drifted away. “There are days where I want to know everything. Days where I tear through the books you gave me to study like I can’t read fast enough. But other days, I want to throw them into the ocean and go to sleep for a hundred years and pretend that none of this is really happening.”
I squeezed his hand. “I can only imagine. I had the advantage of being born into magic. I don’t know what it’s like to not have magic in my life.” I rested my head back. “Adam made a good point earlier tonight, or yesterday, I guess. He reminded me of how overwhelmed I felt when I was forced to leave the haven and live in the human world.
I was still surrounded by other supernaturals, but it was a sliver of what you’re going through. All new customs, a new job, being on my own, and having to figure it all out. Back at the beginning I would use my powers for simple things, like opening doors and windows or to dry my hair after a shower. Silly things really, just to remind myself that I was still a witch.”
“I don’t know what I am anymore,” Nick said, barely above a whisper.
“You’re Nick Rivers. Kick-butt PI, caffeine hound, loyal friend. I know there’s a whole list of other qualities, but you’ll have to excuse me. It’s three in the morning and I’m not working with a full cauldron.”
He laughed at that and a pressure valve released somewhere inside me. It was a small glimmer, but it gave me hope that the old Nick was going to make it through the change unscathed.
Something caught his eye and he jerked his head around to look out his window. “There!” he hissed, keeping his voice soft. He jabbed a thumb at the glass.
I peered past him and then burst out laughing.
“What?” Nick said, snapping around to look at me. “What is that thing?”
“It’s a leprechaun!”
He squinted. “You’re kidding, right?”
I shook my head and dabbed at my eyes. “Have fun explaining that to the bunko brigade.”
Chapter 3
“Tell me you’re kidding.”
“Sorry. Can’t. You’ve got yourself a rogue leprechaun.”
The short-statured man was indeed decked out in all green and carting a lumpy bag on his back, but there was no mistaking him for an elf. He was broad and burly, where elves were nimble and quick. He also had a full red beard, a pair of squared spectacles, and a smoking pipe sticking out one side of his mouth. Elves would never be caught smoking. After all, what would the children think?
“What the heck am I supposed to do with him? It?” Nick asked, unable to take his unblinking eyes off the creature. “Do they speak English?”
I curled in my lips and bit down to keep from bursting out laughing again.
“Holly! You’re not helping.”
A giggle bubbled out. “I’m sorry.”
“What do you think he wants with the garden gnomes? Is that a leprechaun thing?”
I looked past Nick to where the leprechaun stopped. He pulled a garden gnome from the oddly-shaped bag and shuffled it into place under Mrs. Grady’s front window. “I don’t know. Maybe they use them as mannequins in miniature department stores.”
“Holly…”
I suppressed a grin. “So, the Lucky Ladies brigade thinks that someone is rearranging the gnomes? Not stealing or vandalizing, just … moving them around?”
Nick nodded. “That’s what they told me.”
“Hmm. I wonder why.”
“Can we go and ask him?”
I frowned, unsure. “We can try. I’ve never actually talked to a leprechaun before. They don’t live in the havens. They have their own communities, hidden to outsiders.”
Nick reached for the handle of his door. “I’m going. Maybe a few stern words can end all of this. I’ll come up with something to tell the ladies later.”
Nick sighed and pushed open the driver’s side door. He leaned back in and looked at me. “You coming or not?”
I scrambled to remove my seat belt and got out of the car. Nick might be a brand new werewolf, but I was still the one with the magic touch. If things went sideways, I’d be better equipped to reign it back in.
The leprechaun was rifling through his own pockets as we crossed the street, muttering to himself. He didn’t look up from his search until we stepped up onto the curb. A panicked look crossed his small face and in a whoosh, he was gone.
“What the—”
I whirled around and pointed. “There!”
What leprechauns lack in the magic department, they make up for with sheer speed. The gold buckles on his polished shoes gleamed as he raced around the corner and zipped through the pool of light given off by a street lamp.
“Go!” I hissed, pushing Nick in the back. “We’ll lose him!”
We barreled after the leprechaun, who had started gleefully giggling—to the point that I wondered if the zany laughter wasn’t some kind of supercharge boost that powered his little feet. When we hit the straightaway, I raised a hand, conjured a stunning spell, and let it fly with a loud, “Stop!”
The spell hit dead center on my target and the leprechaun toppled over. I winced as he hit the sidewalk. “Oops. Should have waited till he was on the grass,” I panted, skidding to a stop beside Nick. The leprechaun started screaming and I whipped out my hand to slap a magic gag over his tiny mouth. Fast and loud. Great combo. I looked around, checking for lights turning on in any of the nearby houses. Things appeared quiet so I knelt down beside the leprechaun. “I’m going to remove the gag, but you have to promise not to scream. We’re not going to hurt you. We just have a few questions.”
The creature’s eyes narrowed but after a moment, he nodded.
I reversed the spell, then stood and deferred to Nick.
He crept forward. “Erm, excuse me, uh, sir? I have a few questions to ask you, if you don’t mind.”
“Stars.” I rolled my eyes. “What’s the deal with the lawn gnomes?” I asked the leprechaun, crossing my arms as I hovered above him.
Lucky Witch: A Beechwood Harbor Magic Mystery (Beechwood Harbor Magic Mysteries Book 5) Page 2