by K. J. Emrick
“All right, Lucian, I get what you’re saying but,” she argued, “if we wait until she’s leaving it might be too late. I think doing it here would be the best course of action.”
He stared at her, his expression going blank again. “If we do… what?”
“Arrest her, Lucian, like we were just talking about. She’s right there, and we need to arrest her.”
“Addie, I’m not following you. Why would I arrest her?”
“Because you had an arrest warrant issued for her, like we talked about the last time she meddled with things… Lucian, you did get an arrest warrant for her, right?”
“Listen, Addie, I don’t know what you’re talking about. I know she’s done some things, and I believe everything you’ve told me about her, but the laws of our state don’t govern the use of magic.” He made sure to lower his voice even more, leaning in close so she could hear him. “There’s no law against being a witch. Even a bad one.”
Addie didn’t understand. There was no way he wouldn’t have done this. They had talked about getting the police on Belladonna’s trail with an arrest warrant. They’d worked the whole thing out. They would charge her for her trespassing at Stonecrest, even though the trespass had been by way of her face in the Kilorian sisters’ Scrying Circle. They’d had to change some of those details when they did the paperwork for the warrant, but it would have been enough to get her put in jail and hopefully out of their hair for a long time.
He knew how much this meant to Addie and to Kiera and to Willow. Not to mention, how much it would mean to everyone living anywhere near Shadow Lake, because it would keep them safe from Belladonna Nightshade. Lucian wouldn’t have just forgotten about it.
So why was he acting this way?
“Oh, look,” he said, dropping her hand and pushing his half-eaten dessert aside. “The awards ceremony is starting. Let’s talk about this more when it’s done, okay?’
CHAPTER 3
A ddie applauded along with everyone else when the host stepped up to the podium at the front of the room and gave the opening speech of the ceremony. Her mind was not on what he said, however. She was still puzzling over what Lucian had said. It was definitely not okay with her that he hadn’t gotten the arrest warrant for Belladonna like he’d promised he would. She wanted to drag him out in the hallway and yell at him until he understood how much he had let her down, but at the moment that would have to wait. The first awards were being handed out.
This was Lucian’s night, but that did not mean Belladonna got a pass. Arrest warrant or no, that woman was going down. Addie glared across the room at her mortal enemy, who draped an arm over the back of her chair with an unconcerned smirk. It was like she knew Addie couldn’t touch her.
For the moment, that was all too true. Addie did her best to ignore the hateful woman across the room and instead just clenched her jaw through the majority of the awards being presented. Mrs. Nguyen hugged her plaque for her restaurant to her chest and lifted the five-hundred-dollar check that came with it in the air as everyone laughed and applauded. Steve Cantrell gave a short speech on the importance of pulling together as a community when he got his award. Addie didn’t quite catch what that one was for, but she clapped when everyone else did.
By the time Lucian was called up to receive his award Addie had settled down enough to enjoy the moment. Belladonna obviously had no plans of leaving, and she wasn’t starting trouble… at least, not yet. Just her being here was a mar on an otherwise enjoyable evening but Addie could let that pass. For Lucian’s sake.
At least for now.
He looked so perfect up there at the podium, accepting his plaque. As it turned out he did remember to thank her in his quick acceptance speech. She came right after how honored he was to work for the Birch Hollow Police Department, and how important it was to not only recognize the good times of last year but also to look forward to better times with the ones you loved in the year to come.
It was a thinly veiled reference to the mysteries he and Addie had solved together, the times their lives had been put in danger, and the bad people they had put away in prison. Hopefully, he was saying, there would be less of that next year and more time for them just to spend together.
At her seat, Belladonna sat very still while the rest of the room applauded Lucian. Her smile was pasted on her face. Obviously, she had very different feelings about the way this year had treated everyone.
Addie watched her periodically, splitting her attention between the ceremony’s host, and wondering what Belladonna’s ploy was this time. She wasn’t here for the food. Good as it had been, Addie had eaten better meals at her own diner, the Hot Cauldron Café. Belladonna wasn’t here to watch the awards. She’d hardly responded to any of the presentations. She wasn’t the sort to enjoy the historical value of museum exhibits.
There must be some reason why she was here, tonight, on the same night that Lucian and Addie were here. It couldn’t be coincidence. Addie’s brain was starting to hurt thinking about it, and her thoughts were going in circles.
On his way back from the podium a few people from the audience stood up to shake Lucian’s hand, including Alex Candor. Well, at least someone from the police department was here to see this. The other officers and detectives would congratulate him at work tomorrow, no doubt. Monday morning was going to come early. Maybe she could convince him to take the day off.
After she convinced him that he really had promised her to get an arrest warrant for Belladonna Nightshade. How could he have forgotten about that?
He came back to the table and took his seat, nodding to the others sitting with them as they told him “good job” and that sort of thing. Leaning over to Addie he gave her a big hug. He was so happy, and she was happy for him. For a moment she almost forgot there was an evil witch sitting here in the room with them.
Almost.
“Come with me,” she whispered into his ear. “Just out in the hallway.”
Holding the plaque tight in his hand he stood up with her. The ceremony was almost over anyway. His had been the last award to be given out and now it was just the standard wrap-up, with the host talking about upcoming events and giving out the thankyous for tonight’s ceremony. She only needed Lucian’s attention for a few minutes and then they could come back to say their goodbyes and maybe even stay for the museum tour that was supposed to take place later. It was after hours and the place would only be open to them. It would be nice to see the exhibits and be able to take their time doing it.
After someone put handcuffs on Belladonna, of course.
For now, she took him by the hand and led him all the way down the hall, back to the entrance doors. No one was around. The people who had checked everyone in for tonight’s ceremony had packed up and probably left. Everyone else was in the dining room. It was just the two of them.
Lucian leaned in to kiss her when they stopped, his hand up on her face, a tender look in his eyes. At the touch of his lips on hers she melted into him. It wasn’t a long embrace, but it was intense, and it took her breath away.
“What was that for?” she asked him after they had separated, and she had a chance to catch her breath.
“Because I love you, that’s why. Um. Wasn’t that why you wanted us to come out here?”
“No, actually… I mean, that was nice. That was very, very nice, but if I was going to do a clandestine hookup with my boyfriend at a museum, it would be behind one of the exhibits where we could really let go.”
“Mmm. Now, you’re talking.”
He tugged on her hand, hoping to pull her across the foyer and down one of the hallways that branched further into the museum. She stopped him, holding him right where they were. “Lucian, I want to talk to you about Belladonna.”
“Why? Listen, I know I was staring at her in there, but I couldn’t help it. That really is quite a dress. Don’t worry,” he added quickly. “I’ve only got eyes for you. Promise.”
She searched those pretty blue eye
s of his, looking for the punchline, but he wasn’t kidding. He honestly had no idea what she was saying.
“What happened to you?” she asked. “Lucian, two weeks back you called me from your office and said that you were getting an arrest warrant for Belladonna. That was right after we wrapped up the murder of that woman on her honeymoon. You have to remember that?”
“I remember the murder case, sure. It was one of our trickiest mysteries yet.”
“The arrest warrant,” Addie pressed. “What about the arrest warrant for Belladonna Nightshade?”
He blinked, and his mouth worked to make sounds that wouldn’t come. She saw the way his brow furrowed, and his eyebrows drew down. He was trying to remember. “I… I was in my office. At the police station. I was on the phone with you. Or was that after…? There was… a knock on my door.”
“Hmm,” a very feminine voice purred. “This sounds like an interesting story. Tell me more.”
Belladonna had appeared behind them. Her stiletto heels had made no sound whatsoever coming down the hall. One moment, they were alone, and the next, she was just there.
Addie definitely did not like that.
She brought up magic power within her hands, fueled by her Life Essence and her rage and her fear. Belladonna had already proven herself to be a very, very powerful witch. One who would stop at nothing to get what she wanted. If they started slinging magic at each other there was no telling what the outcome would be.
“Oh, calm down, Addie. I’m not going to get into some sort of Wild West shootout with you. Not yet, anyway.” Belladonna stepped right up close to them, standing with one hand on her hip, the fabric of her dress tight and revealing. “I’m just here to support our local police officers. They deserve all of our thanks. Tell me, Lucian, how can I thank you?”
He cleared his throat, suddenly tongue tied, and Addie swore she saw him blush. “Uh. Just a simple thank-you would be fine. I appreciate it. Did you see my plaque?”
Addie’s glare would have melted ice, if Lucian had bothered to tear his eyes away from Belladonna’s dress.
“Oh, detective. You’re so modest.” Belladonna’s laugh was darkly musical. “There’s much more to you than meets the eye. Why, I’m sure there’s a backstory just rolling around in that—mmm—strapping chest of yours that would put the best Hollywood movies to shame.”
He shrugged, suddenly unsure what to do with his feet. He pushed his hair back from his forehead like a schoolboy with a crush. “Nah. I’m just who I am.”
“Oh, you are so scrumptious I could just eat you up.”
“I’m not sure that would be appropriate…”
“What, you’ve never done anything… inappropriate?”
“Only when I was in the mood.”
This time Addie’s glare could have melted rocks.
Curse her Irish eyes, this could not be happening!
Brazenly, Belladonna reached out a hand toward Lucian’s face.
His eyes were transfixed on the blood red polish on her nails. His lips parted ever so slightly. He did not move to stop her.
Addie did.
With a flick of one finger she sent a shockwave of energy at Belladonna’s hand. With a silent thud, a solid edge of air slapped her arm away.
“You don’t want to do that,” Addie told her, in a tone of voice that said there would be something worse than a slap on the wrist if it happened again.
“Oooh,” the evil witch cooed. “Protective of what’s ours, aren’t we? Don’t worry, dear little girl, I have no designs on your Typic.”
Addie flinched to hear Lucian described as a “Typic.” It was a derogatory term, short for ‘typical,’ meant as an insult against people who had no magical abilities. All things considered, however, that had been the least offensive thing about any of this.
“I know what you’re up to,” Addie said, magic still dancing along her fingertips with an electric buzz. She didn’t care anymore if she provoked a fight right here in the middle of the museum. “You’re trying to ruin my family, so you can get at the Well of Essence under our home. We’re on to you, and it won’t work.”
Once more, that musical laugh sent icy fingers up Addie’s spine. “Oh, little girl. I doubt you have any idea about anything, let alone what I’m up to with your family.”
She leaned in from her waist, close enough that Addie could see the vein throbbing at the woman’s temple. “Just you wait,” she said. Then she crooked her fingers next to her cheek and waved. “See ya.”
And then she was simply gone.
The scent of magic hung in the air around them. A transportation spell, Addie realized. In spite of how angry she was, she couldn’t help but be a little impressed. To be standing here one second and then somewhere else entirely the next took an enormous amount of power. Addie had only done it a handful of times before herself, and only over short distances, and each time it had left her so spent that it took two days for her to fully recover. It wasn’t something she did without a real, urgent need. Knowing that Belladonna could do it on a whim both intrigued Addie and terrified her.
Maybe using that much Essence would send her home for the night… wherever home was for her. Maybe she needed to recover just like Addie had whenever she’d used that spell. It would be a small blessing to know that would be the last they saw of Belladonna tonight.
Not that she was really that hopeful. The Irish didn’t believe in small blessings. In luck, as in all things, it was go big or go home.
Lucian coughed, and cleared his throat again, as if he’d just woken up from a nap. “Well, that was certainly weird. Did you see that dress? Wow. Now where were we?”
He turned to kiss Addie again, but she put her hand up on his chest and held him back. “You can’t be serious. Are you really going to just go back to kissing me after what you just pulled with Belladonna, right here in this room?”
“What do you mean?”
Did he just seriously…? Her blood pressure skyrocketed. “That was Belladonna Nightshade. She’s the evil witch who is trying to ruin my family!”
“Sure, Addie. I remember who she is.”
“No, I don’t think you do!” Her volume was rising but she couldn’t help it. The best she could do was throw some of her magic into an igloo of air around them to make it thick and cotton like so that her voice wouldn’t travel through it more than a foot or so. “I’m beginning to wonder if you remember anything about her at all. You were supposed to get an arrest warrant for her, and you didn’t. You’re supposed to know how much she hates our family. Now here she is, standing so close to you that you could count her teeth, and not only did you not arrest her you… you were flirting with her!”
“I was not,” he argued. “Addie, you’re imagining things.”
“Oh, really? Then why did you tell her you get inappropriate when you’re in the mood? Huh? Is that a normal conversation for you? Is this something you say to all the evil witches you run into? Do you always drool over every woman in a dress that looks like it was painted on?”
He started to deny it again but then he blinked at her, his brow furrowed as he thought back over the conversation that had just taken place. “Wow. Uh, I guess you’re right. Addie, I don’t know what to say.”
“Gee, thanks. Curse my Irish eyes, Lucian, what were you doing? Why would you flirt with her like that?”
He put a hand to his forehead, rubbing at the deep creases as he tried to think. “I don’t know, Addie. No, really, that’s the honest truth. I don’t know what came over me. Look, there’s no other woman for me in the world. You have to know that after everything we’ve meant to each other in the last three months. But just now, with Belladonna… I swear to you it felt like she and I were old friends. It felt natural, somehow.”
If that was trying to make her feel better, he was failing miserably. She stepped closer and jabbed a finger into his chest. “You’re lucky I trust you Lucian Knight, because so help me, if you ever do anything like that again,
whether it’s with a witch of the dark arts or a total stranger or anyone at all in this whole entire world, I will walk out of your life in a heartbeat. Do you understand me?”
He was nodding adamantly before she was even done speaking. “Yes, I understand, and I agree and… wow, I really thought you were going to say something about castrating me.”
“Not the time for jokes, mister. That option isn’t off the table yet.”
“Addie, you have to believe me. I didn’t want to flirt with her. I mean, that wasn’t my intention. Look, I still don’t know what you’re talking about with this arrest warrant business but the next time I see Belladonna I promise I won’t even talk to her.”
“No, you’ll arrest her. The next time you see her you’re going to arrest her, right?”
“Well, no.”
Magic swelled in her hands, a destructive force responding to her emotions. She forced it back down. “Lucian!”
“Look, I have to have something to arrest her for, first. I can’t arrest her for being a witch. I just can’t.”
“You were going to arrest her for trespassing in Stonecrest,” he reminded him.
“I was? When did she do that?”
“Lucian!”
“Look, I’m sorry, I just don’t remember any of that. I know I blew it just now with the way I acted but I’m telling you,” he said, throwing his hands up helplessly, “it felt like it was okay for her to do that. It felt almost… magical.”
Addie’s jaw dropped. Not just because that was the last thing any girl wanted to hear her boyfriend say about another woman, but because of the word he chose. Magical. As in, involving magic. The way he was acting, and the fact that he’d forgotten something he was supposed to be doing to help her and her sisters… it all started her thinking and wondering.