Chapter 15
My heart went from overdrive to skidding to a stop. I stepped out of the car, and the warning of goosebumps rose on my arms. "What are you doing here, and why are you wearing that shirt?"
Andrew tugged the material away from his body. "What's wrong with my shirt?"
"Start with what you're doing here."
He dangled one of my earrings in front of me. "I was looking for you, so I used your earring to find you."
I snatched it from his hand. "You're following me?"
"Someone needs to." He threw his arm over my shoulder, guiding me toward the row of townhouses. "Janice found a spell in one of the other council member’s books on how we can break our connection. She asked us to meet her here. Why are you here? Did she call you too?”
I stopped walking and pulled Andrew to the side of the building, away from prying eyes and ears. "I sent a basket this morning, and I followed the driver here. He went into Janice's townhouse.”
Andrew crossed his arms over his chest and raised an eyebrow. "That could've turned out dangerous."
"Process of elimination. Start with what we know so we can mark people off the list. Looks like we hit gold."
"So you think they're working together? Do you think this is some devious plan to lure us both here and then do what, kill us in broad daylight?”
He had a point. That wasn't a very good plan, and it was the middle of the day. Did they actually think they could get away with something like that with so many potential onlookers? I highly doubted she had the strength to dump the previous bodies, but with a young guy at her disposal to do all the heavy lifting, they could be working together."
"Instead of speculating, why don't we just go check? She has a spell. She called us, so we have a reason to be here."
Andrew grabbed my hand and slid his finger through mine, and I tried to pull my fingers back out, but he gave me the look. "I'm sure it's gotten around town by now that we’re sleeping together."
I nudged his side with my elbow. "But we're not."
"For the security of our alibi, you should just go with it."
Andrew knocked on the door, and while we waited for someone to answer, I did the smart thing and sent a text to my sisters. He's wearing the shirt in the painting, and we're at the coven.
I knew where this was going to take us. It was going to take us to the woods near the hanging tree in my painting. I just didn't know how it was all going to play out. Janice wasn't the man with the book in the picture staring at us and the delivery driver wizard didn’t much resemble him either. Could she have another accomplice we don’t know about? Possibly.
Janice opened the door and greeted us with a smile. The delivery driver from earlier lowered his head as he laughed. "I'll make sure the items get delivered."
“I hope we’re not interrupting.” I smiled, satisfied that now she knew I could place them together. It took everything I had not to ask him what items he’d be taking care of. Maybe I had underestimated the skater boy.
“Of course not.”
“Excuse me.” Skater Boy said as he stepped out onto the sidewalk.
"Sorry about that. I was just wrapping up some business. Won’t you guys please come in?"
"Was that witch council business?” I asked.
A smile twisted at the corner of her lips, "As a matter fact, it was. We’re using that company to send out thank-you baskets for the coven’s hospitality. All of the coven members should be getting one, including you two.”
I wondered if ours would contain elements to kill us. "When Andrew said that you called, I was surprised. We spoke to another council member, Maya Phillips, and she wouldn’t use a spell. I’d thought with Manny dead and you being his assistant you would have left town by now.”
Andrew turned his attention in my direction as if finally realizing and catching on that we might have walked into a trap.
I glanced at Andrew and lowered my walls so that he could hear me. I held his gaze as I answered him in my head. "I think she's in on it.”
Andrew glanced around the townhouse and moved in a separate direction from me. I understood what he was doing, only because my father had taught me so well. She wouldn’t be able to take down both of us. It was just a matter of which one she went for.
"Right, well. You guys came for the spell. So let me get that for you.” She crossed the room to the table pressed up against a wall and pulled a drawer open. Taking out a folded piece of paper, she handed it to Andrew.
Andrew glanced at what was written on it before folding it again and shoving the paper into his pocket. "I thought that spell was only in Manny’s book. Where did you find this copy?"
Janice headed for the door and had her hand on the knob before she turned around to answer us. She pulled the door open. “I found a similar spell in Conrad McCaffrey’s grimoire. When Maya returned from the bar, she mentioned she ran into you two and that you were still looking for the spell, among other things.”
“Does he know you took it?”
Her lips twitched. “Of course he does.”
“Lucky us that McCaffrey had one that would work,” I said, trying to figure out the connection in my head. I wasn’t ready to leave, and judging by the way she was ushering us out, I knew we were on to something. If this woman was in on it, there had to be proof. "Do you mind if I use your restroom before we leave?"
Janice's eyes narrowed as she slowly shut the door. "Sure, it's up the stairs at the end of the hall."
I gave her a thankful smile. "Maybe now would be a good time for you to tell Andrew anything that Manny might have thought needed to change for the Witch Wars. I’m sure he had you keeping a list for him."
Chapter 16
I slowly climbed to the top of the stairs and waited until I heard their voices below discussing the Witch Wars. I didn’t know what I expected to find, if anything, but my gut was telling me that somehow Janice was involved.
I ignored the bathroom door and headed straight for the bedroom. The sheets were rumpled. Both sides of the beds had been slept on, reminding me about Janice’s alibi and her sleeping with McCaffrey, the other council member.
I hurried around the room, checking each drawer for anything that resembled Manny’s book. As I pulled the closet door open, the hinge squeaked, making me cringe and freeze on the spot. I cursed beneath my breath and tried to listen for footsteps on the stairs. Satisfied none were coming, I stepped inside the closet, and that was when I spotted the leather-bound book poking out from Janice’s suitcase.
I slipped it free and flipped it open to the front page. Manny’s name was scrolled in ink, and right below it was the witch council’s seal.
I quietly inched the closet door closed, trying to limit the noise, before hurrying to the window. I tossed the lock and raised the window before whispering a spell to hide the book from anyone else’s view.
I tossed the book out the window, and my eyes settled on the forest behind the townhouses. I now understood what was going to drive me into that tree line. Without changing my mind, I lowered the window and hurried down the stairs.
Janice was just informing Andrew that the entrances to the Witch Wars needed to be better guarded. I made so much noise coming down the stairs that they were both looking at me by the time I reached the bottom step. I hurried over to Andrew and held out my hand to him. “Thank you for the spell and be sure to email us your concerns so that we can take care of things. I hate to rush this, but I’m really not feeling well,” I said, resting my hand on my stomach. “We really must be going now.”
Andrew rose from his spot, and I heard his thought in my mind. "You found something?"
“Yes, and we need to hurry before it disappears.”
Andrew held out his hand to shake Janice’s before we made our way to the door. Once we were outside and the door was shut behind us, I grabbed his hand and started jogging toward where I had thrown the book glancing back over my shoulder every few steps.
We ro
unded the corner, and I stuck close to the building as I reached the spot. I whispered the reveal spell and scooped up the book without a second thought. Andrew grabbed my hand and started jogging for the forest and to our impending doom.
I yanked at his hand. “We can’t go into the forest.”
“Yes we can. We’ll cut back around the cars. This way the trees can keep us out of sight.” He tugged harder on my hand and I had no choice but to follow him.
"Is that what I think it is?"
"Yes. We need to get out of these trees and get this book to Ryder. If Janice is involved, she has the backing of one of the council members. There will be no stopping her if she's already been into these spells."
My heart sank as I stared at the book. It could contain a spell to find my father's journals. I swallowed around the lump in my throat. I didn't want to give it up. I wasn't ready.
"You may not be ready to give it up, but that's exactly what we're doing. If we don’t tell the authorities, and they find out, they’ll think we were in on it,” Andrew said.
"Get out of my head already. I was going to do the right thing. "
My phone vibrated in my pocket, and I shoved the book into Andrew’s arms so that I could answer. Tess’s name was on the screen.
I answered. "Tess, right now is not a good time to talk. We found Manny's book, and we're deciding what to do with it. Let me call you back after they arrest Janice."
"Margo, wait. That's why I am calling you. They determined that some of the insulin vials were actually filled with water. They know that she's involved. The police are on their way out there."
Chapter 17
“We’re in the woods,” I whispered.
“Get out now.” Tess’s voice rose an octave.
“That was the plan, but I’m afraid her or the delivery minion will see us. We’ll have to use the tree to get back to the antique store. Meet us there.”
“You aren’t going anywhere near that tree with Andrew wearing that shirt. Find somewhere else to hide. We’ll come get you."
I hadn’t forgotten about the masterpiece that I’d created that night. I purposefully left Tess’s pendant at home and Andrew wasn’t wearing any handcuffs. Still, the woods and that tree left a shiver down my spine. Tess was right. “Fine, we won't go into the woods.”
"Yes, you will," Janice said, stepping out from behind a tree. She held a revolver tight in her grasp, pointed in our direction.
“Margo, what’s going on?” I heard Tess ask just as Janice took the phone from my hand. She ended the call and tossed my phone into the brush.
Aiming the barrel at Andrew, she held out her hand. “Give me your phone and the book.”
Andrew took out his phone and tossed it near where mine had landed before handing her the book.
She gestured with the barrel for us to walk farther into the woods. I knew exactly where this was going to take us. The tree. The tree from my painting. The only question was where would she get the rope to hang us from it.
"Start moving."
Andrew slipped his fingers through mine and squeezed my hand, just as Janice’s phone rang.
"Yeah, I've got it, and I caught them. Meet me by the tree and bring the rope."
Well, now she would have all the things she needed to take our lives, not that Andrew or I would be going without a fight. Whoever her accomplice was had better be a big dude.
"You want to wager that a council member is helping her?” Andrew asked.
"She won't live long enough to pay you." Janice’s voice remained ice cold, as if this wasn’t her first abduction.
I lowered the barrier in my mind so that he could hear my thoughts. “The tree she’s going to hang us from is a gateway to the magical tunnels running beneath the city. When we get to it, if I can concentrate on the antique shop, we might be able to use the tunnels to get out."
“You’ll risk exposing the magic if she has an accomplice.”
“It’s either that or die. You’ll have to trust me.”
I knew I was asking lot from him. No one in this town trusted me, including my sisters. And I had no one to blame but myself.
Even though there was no trail for joggers, I knew exactly where the tree was located. Auntie B had been right, I gravitated toward the magic without need of a compass or being prodded. I spoke in my mind. "Do you have any bright ideas?"
Andrew slowly shook his head and glanced over his shoulder back at Janice.
"What about some spells?"
"I'm a little rusty. I haven't been practicing magic for years, but you already know that from when we dated.”
It was true. I did remember that from when we dated. I remember thinking that he was just a nice normal guy from my father's hometown. I had no idea what I was walking into. None of my family warned me that he was also a wizard.
Looks could be so deceiving.
He might not have had the answers that we needed, but I had a few spells up my sleeve. As I was sifting through them to figure out which would work best, Janice shot the gun at a falling branch nearby. I cringed at the flying shards of wood.
“What the hell was that for?” I asked.
“Because I wanted to. Do you have any idea how many times I wanted to kill Manny?”
"So you tried to stage it like the voodoo killer was the culprit to throw suspicion off of you? You didn’t succeed."
“What makes you think the voodoo killer didn't do it?"
“The paint on the walls."
She cocked the trigger and gestured for us to walk again.
I flinched at the hard feel of metal at my back. “Do you think the shoe polish was anything more than just a matter of convenience?”
The tree appeared in the distance. I didn’t know her motive in pick that tree. I just knew that she would.
"You’re not the voodoo killer. If you were, then Manny's death would have been much more gruesome. And on top of that, you don't have the strength to leave the bodies in some of the positions in which they were found. Why are you lying?" Andrew asked.
The last thing we needed to do was upset the crazy woman with the gun. I shook my head. "Why are you trying to piss her off?"
I was met with a wall. For the first time ever, Andrew threw up a wall blocking me out of his mind.
Had I known he could do that all along, our relationship might have lasted. I stopped in front of the tree, itching to grab Andrew's hand and rest my fingers on the bark. All it would take was one quick thought and we would be away from here, but if this killer knew about the tunnels and the magical currents, the entire continent could be her playground. She could move from one place to another without being traced.
"I didn't tell you to stop." Janice pointed the barrel at Andrew's leg. She pulled the trigger.
Andrew fell to the ground, holding his wound, and I dropped to my knees beside him. "Why in the hell did you do that?"
"To keep either of you from running."
She was smarter than I was giving her credit for. Not that I had intended to run. Maybe escape through the tree, but not run. She tossed handcuffs at me and gestured for me to put them on Andrew’s wrists. I knew in that minute that we wouldn’t be able to use magic to get out of this mess. The emblem on the cuffs would block Andrew and I from accessing the magical currents.
"I'm not putting these on."
“He has more plans for you. The cuffs are for Andrew. Put them on him now."
When I wasn't quick enough, she lifted the barrel of the gun at Andrew’s head. “If you want him to keep breathing for another ten minutes, then you’ll follow instructions."
I picked up the cuffs and ran my fingers over the magical blocking emblem. It was the same emblem as on Tess’s pendant. The same emblem that was only used by the witches' council and the trackers. I slid one of the bracelets around Andrew’s wrist while watching the regret flicker in his eyes.
“So we were right? McCaffrey is your partner? It makes sense he’s strong enough to leave the vic
tims on display. He would've had access to strong spells to prevent the other witches and wizards from attacking. It makes perfect sense now,” Andrew said as the color slowly drained from his face.
“Actually it doesn’t,” I corrected and lifted my gaze to Janice. “The voodoo killer is targeting people my father knows.” I’d started to rise from my spot when she tisked and gestured with the gun again to stay put. “He didn’t know Manny,” I lied.
"You're so stupid if you think that McCaffrey wasn’t just my alibi. Every time that I have killed, I spelled and drugged him so he wouldn't even notice I was gone. I was only using him for information and his grimoire, but even his wasn’t nearly as powerful as Manny’s. Manny rebuffed my advances when he was trying to get back together with his ex-wife."
“The dead ex-wife?” I asked. Maybe she was the killer. The voodoo killer had been credited with that death too, so maybe that crime scene needed another once-over. Maybe it was Janice all along. Could she really be that clever? I shared a confused look with Andrew. Half of what we had determined was inaccurate. We had no idea who else was coming for us.
The wind rustled the blood-stained leaves. It was only a matter of time before Andrew would bleed out. “Don’t give up.”
Andrew fought to keep his eyes open. It was only then that I realized we would not end up like the painting I had created. Something had changed from the day I painted it until now. My painting didn’t show Andrew with a bullet hole, and I wasn’t wearing Tess’s pendant.
Anger scorched through my body. It was my fault we were in this predicament. I should have just called the authorities when I saw the book. She wouldn't have come after us then. "What is so important about Manny's book? What did Manny have access to that McCaffrey didn’t?"
A sly smile slid onto Janice's face. "Manny was close to figuring out who the killer was. He was keeping notes in his grimoire. But it wasn't just that. Manny had found a spell that would have allowed him to track the killer and stop him once and for all. I couldn't let that happen.”
“So it was all about what was in the book. Why are you pinning his death on the voodoo killer even if you are part of his team? That would lead to more heat from the council to find and stop you?”
Witch Hunt Page 8