“If there was an alien in there, he’d be burned to a crisp,” I argued, wrinkling my nose at the sight of the charred hulk that might have been an aircraft of some sort at one time. “There’s clearly no alien in there. In fact ... .” I leaned forward so I could read the lettering on the side of the wreckage. “What does that say?”
“Aero something or other,” Landon replied. “I think it’s a farm drone.”
“That’s exactly what it is.” Gibson folded his arms over his chest as he watched our reactions. “It was an unmanned prototype. It was meant to disperse chemicals over fields, which would essentially cut down on the time growers have to spend fighting pests. It’s a new innovation ... and clearly they haven’t worked out the kinks.”
“But ... .” Disappointment washed over me. That was even more boring than a government drone training.
“Why all the fuss if it was simply a farm drone?” Landon challenged. “Why not just tell us from the start?”
“Believe it or not, the technology on this thing is classified,” Gibson replied. “It started out as a missile drone and was adapted for another purpose. If the technology were to get out, that would be bad.”
“Still, you made a big deal out of it,” I persisted. “If you’d simply explained that it was a farming drone, nobody would have cared.”
“No, you wouldn’t have cared,” Gibson corrected. “Competitors interested in farming drones would’ve descended on the area to steal the technology.”
“Yes, that would’ve been a terrifying two people,” I muttered. “Are there really competitors who would care enough to travel here?”
“Agriculture is a growing field and people are definitely interested in getting a leg up,” Gibson supplied. “The technology on this drone is not in the public domain. We had to make sure that we accounted for every piece of machinery that we could. We also needed to spray a chemical that rendered the pesticide on the drone inert. Most of the pesticide burned away, but it was still a concern.”
“That explains why you were conducting the grid search,” I said. “You were looking for tiny fragments.”
“As it stands, that field is clean. There is nothing there other than charred earth, which will be gone in a few weeks thanks to the time of year. Nature always reclaims what is torn asunder, and this will be no different.”
“Huh.” I rubbed my cheek, annoyed. “I don’t get it. What about the people who were acting differently?”
Gibson furrowed his brow. “What people are you referring to?”
“Mrs. Little, for starters. She and Doris were acting dippy this afternoon. I swear they were stalking me outside the newspaper.”
“Oh, that’s probably my fault,” Aunt Tillie interjected. “Did they say what they were looking for?”
“No. Why? What did you do to them?”
“I didn’t technically do anything to them,” Aunt Tillie replied. “They might believe that I was spying on them because I thought they were aliens. Oh, and also that I may have put a sparkly halter top on a certain fiberglass unicorn, although good luck proving that in court. That thing is an eyesore. It should be banned from town.”
“I knew you were the one who put that bra on the unicorn,” Chief Terry groused. “I was going to track you down and make you confess but I had other things to focus on. When Margaret came to the station I sent her to The Whistler, Bay. I was trying to distract her and said I thought Tillie was hanging around with you.”
I searched my memory of the incident. “But they were both acting so odd.”
“Invasion of the Body Snatchers odd?” Landon teased.
I refused to meet his gaze. “That doesn’t explain why Mrs. Little was acting so strangely the other day. She couldn’t even remember my name.”
“I talked to her about that,” Chief Terry said. “I only asked her because you seemed so worried. She had a dentist appointment the day after the crash. She needed bridgework done and it was painful … so they loaded her up on nitrous.”
No, that couldn’t be right. “She shouldn’t have been wandering around under those conditions.”
“Yes, well, you tell her that,” Chief Terry suggested. “She doesn’t like listening to me when I say anything of the sort.”
My frustration bubbled over. “So you’re saying that I allowed Aunt Tillie to work me into a frenzy about aliens even though it was basically a crop duster that went down in a field … and it was pesticide that burned that guy’s hands, not alien goo. Is that what you’re saying?”
Gibson shrugged. “Pretty much.”
“This sucks.”
Landon slid an arm around my shoulders and chuckled, the sound warm and throaty as he shook his head. “It definitely sucks. I feel like an idiot.”
“I don’t.” Chief Terry refused to back down. “If you’d told us from the start what was going on, Agent Gibson, we could have nipped this hysteria in the bud. You didn’t, so that’s on you.”
“I agree that it would’ve been better for everyone concerned to tell the truth from the start, but I was under strict orders,” Gibson argued. “It’s not my fault that this happened. Had you two followed orders and minded your own business, none of this would’ve happened tonight.”
“Oh, it still would’ve happened,” Landon argued. “It simply would’ve gone down a different way. You’re actually lucky I was with them. Things could’ve gotten out of control otherwise.”
“I would hate to think things could get worse,” Gibson said. “Still, it’s not the end of the world. Now you know.”
“Yeah, now we know,” I echoed, resting my head against Landon’s chest. “Aliens would’ve been a lot more fun.”
“I know.” Landon brushed his lips against my cheek as he pulled me in for a hug. “Still, nobody died, and Aunt Tillie never got a shot off. It could have been so much worse.”
He had a point.
“Speaking of Bessie, I want my gun back,” Aunt Tillie announced. “I’ve decided to rename her, by the way. I’m going to call her Gibson because she’s a real ass—.”
Chief Terry slapped his hand over Aunt Tillie’s mouth. “I think we’re done here. We’ll be on our way. You can just leave Tillie’s gun in my office when you head out. I’ll make sure it gets back where it’s supposed to be.”
Gibson nodded curtly. “Of course. Again, I’m sorry to disappoint you.”
“Somehow I think we’ll get over it.”
IT WAS ALMOST MIDNIGHT before Landon and I returned to the guesthouse. Once free of Gibson’s disdainful glare, Aunt Tillie turned into a ranting machine. Chief Terry had to take us out to Hollow Creek to reclaim Landon’s Explorer, so she had plenty of time to make her opinion known.
In the end, she decided that the crop duster story was cover and the government was trying to cover up the beginning stages of an alien invasion. I was so exhausted by the time she hopped out of the vehicle and headed toward the inn that I could barely keep my eyes open.
“Tonight didn’t go as I expected,” I said as Landon put the Explorer in park and killed the engine. “I thought for sure we were going to find something fantastical, maybe even otherworldly.”
“Aunt Tillie was with us,” Landon pointed out as I shoved open my door. “It doesn’t get much more otherworldly than that.”
“Ha, ha.” I looked up and stared at the sky as Landon joined me in front of the Explorer. “Do you think aliens exist?”
Landon followed my gaze. “I don’t know. Do you?”
“I think that the universe is too vast for us to be the only ones,” I replied. “I mean ... how sad would that be? All those planets ... and stars ... and space. How could we be the only ones?”
“I guess that’s basically how I feel, too,” Landon acknowledged. “That doesn’t mean I think aliens are landing in Hemlock Cove and looking for people to probe.”
“I hope they probe Mrs. Little when they land.” My gaze turned dark. “I’m serious. I thought there was something significantly wrong with her …
even more than normal. Turns out nitrous makes her likable. I didn’t see that coming.”
Landon snickered, genuinely amused. “I don’t think any of us saw that coming. Still, I’d rather blame nitrous than aliens. Do you know how much paperwork would be associated with aliens?”
“You’re a funny guy.”
“I try.”
I slipped into his embrace so he could help me ward off the cold. “I never believed it was aliens,” I said finally. “I only let Aunt Tillie think I believed because ... well ... she seemed to need it.”
“Uh-huh.” Landon clearly wasn’t convinced. “I’m glad you didn’t believe it was aliens. I would have to worry about you otherwise.”
“You don’t need to worry.” I felt foolish enough that I was convinced I wouldn’t bring up aliens again for years. “I’m just glad it’s over.”
“Me, too.” Landon swayed back and forth. “I know we talked about a bath, but how would you feel if we went straight to bed and saved the bath for tomorrow?”
“Sounds like a plan to me.” I pulled back and tipped up my chin. “I’m glad you didn’t get into too much trouble.”
“It would’ve been worth it regardless. I like it when we’re on the same team.”
“You and me both. I ... .” I trailed off as a low humming filled the air. The hair on the back of my neck stood on end. “What the ... ?”
Landon clutched me tighter as he swiveled quickly and stared in the direction of Potter’s Field. A bright light hovered over the field. I had no idea what was happening, no basis for comparison, but I knew the light wasn’t naturally occurring.
“I thought Gibson said they were done in the field,” I said, my eyes widening as the light drifted higher and a revolving circle of smaller lights started spinning unbelievably fast. It didn’t look like a vessel ... or a flying saucer. It definitely didn’t look like a crop duster. What it did look like, I couldn’t say. I had no frame of reference for it. “Do you think they went back for some reason?”
Landon swallowed hard. “I don’t know.” He put his hands over my head to shelter me as the light moved even higher before suddenly picking up speed and streaking across the sky, leaving a faint rainbow of glittering light behind. It was gone in a split-second, leaving Potter’s Field dark again. It happened so fast I almost wondered if I’d imagined it.
“Landon?” It took me a few moments to find my voice. I wasn’t sure he could hear me over the pounding of my heart.
“What, sweetie?”
“I think we should go to bed. We’re clearly both exhausted.”
“That’s exactly what I was thinking.” Landon gave me a little shove toward the guesthouse. “Don’t ever bring this up again, Bay. I don’t want to encourage Aunt Tillie.”
“Bring what up? I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Good girl.” Landon dug into the pocket of his shirt and came back with five pieces of candy, remnants of what Aunt Tillie threw at him earlier in the evening. He tossed it onto the yard before following me to the door. “It couldn’t hurt,” he said finally at my questioning stare.
“Right.” I pushed my key in the lock. “Do you think ... ?”
“I think it’s time for bed.” Landon was firm. “No more adventures tonight.”
“Okay, but I was only going to ask if aliens like bacon. If so, we should probably stop by the grocery store and stock up tomorrow. You know, in case there’s a shortage or something.”
“I like the way your mind works.”
“Right back at you.”
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About the Author
I want to thank everyone who takes the time to read my novels. I have a particular brand of humor that isn’t for everyone – and I know that.
If you liked the book, please take a few minutes and leave a review. An independent author does it all on their own, and the reviews are helpful. I understand that my characters aren’t for everyone, though. There’s a lot of snark and sarcasm in my world – and I know some people don’t like that.
Special thanks go out to Heidi Bitsoli and Phil VanHulle for correcting the (numerous) errors that creep into a work of fiction.
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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
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Books by Amanda M. Lee
An Avery Shaw Mystery
Who, What, Where, When, Die
If it Bleeds, it Leads
Buried Leads
Shot Off The Presses
The Preditorial Page
Misquoted & Demoted
Headlines & Deadlines
Misprints & Mistakes
Bylines & Skylines
Off the Record
Unwritten & Underwater
Extra! Extra! Dead All About It
A Wicked Witches of the Midwest Mystery
Any Witch Way You Can
Every Witch Way But Wicked
Witching You Were Here
Witching on a Star
Something to Witch About
Witch Me Luck
Life’s a Witch
Charms & Witchdemeanors
The Trouble With Witches
Murder Most Witchy
A Witch Before Dying
A Breath of Witchy Air
A Wicked Witches of the Midwest Short
Careful What You Witch For
Wicked Brew
On a Witch and a Prayer
You Only Witch Once
The Christmas Witch
Bewitched
A Solstice Celebration
Witchdependence Day
Happy Witchgiving
Merry Witchmas
Four-Leaf Clover
Thistle While You Work
Landon Calling
I Dream of Twila
How Aunt Tillie Stole Christmas
A Wicked Witches of the Midwest Fantasy
Witchy Tales
A Witch In Time
Make A Witch
A Witchmas Carol
All My Witches
An Aisling Grimlock Mystery
Grim Tidings
Grim Offerings
Grim Discovery
Grim Reunion
Grim Expectations
Grim Holiday
Grim Rising
Grim Tempest
Grimlock Family Shorts
Grim Like Me
Grim & The City
Now & Grim
Grim & Bear It
A Mystic Caravan Mystery
Freaky Days
Freaky Lies
Freaky Hearts
Freaky Games
Freaky Places
A Charlie Rhodes Cozy Mystery
The Bigfoot Blunder
The Chupacabra Catastrophe
The Werewolf Whoops
A Moonstone Bay Cozy Mystery
Witchin’ USA
Covenant College
Awakening
Whispering
Conjuring
Waxing & Waning
Graduating
Living Covenant Trilogy
Rising Covenant
Dark Covenant
Eternal Covenant
Dying Covenant Trilogy
Haunted Covenant
Desperate Covenant
Everlasting Covenant
Close Encounters of the Witchy Kind (A Wicked Witches of the Midwest Fantasy Book 6) Page 20