Prelude to a Witch, Amanda Lee [ebook reader web txt] 📗

the neighboring town we’d met several weeks before. She was just coming into her powers and her great-grandmother, an old acquaintance of Aunt Tillie’s, was in town to give her a helping hand.

“Do you think she would know about these murders?”

“It couldn’t hurt to ask.”

“I guess that means I’m heading to Shadow Hills.” I stood and grabbed my purse. “Do you want to come with me?”

“Are you kidding? I’m torturing Willa today. Nothing short of wild hell hounds or Shemar Moore and a box of candy could tear me away from that.”

“Okay, but be careful. You could get arrested in those leggings if you come across the wrong uniform.”

“Oh, I’m counting on it.” She winked at me. “I’ll make sure to drive Margaret and Willa insane before I let them nab me and call your mother.”

That’s when the final piece slid into place. “You’re going for all three of them today. It’s like the torture hat trick.”

“You’re smarter than you look.”

11

Eleven

It was hard for me to admit as I drove toward Shadow Hills, but I would’ve preferred Aunt Tillie had come with me. She was a badass witch. Sure, she spent most of her time using her powers to torture her enemies, but she was also good in a pinch when the battle got serious.

Seeing the ghosts in the window made me think the battle was going to get serious ... and fast.

The thing is, most people were starting to look at me as the badass witch of the family because of my growing necromancer powers. It wasn’t sitting well with Aunt Tillie, though she didn’t come right out and say it. I was slowly taking over as the magical center of the Winchester family, a fact that frightened me while also bolstering my ego.

That meant it was up to me to figure out what was going on. I appeared to be the only one seeing the ghosts. It had to be a byproduct of my necromancer powers. But how?

My phone rang as I parked in the lot of Two Broomsticks Gas & Grill. The quaint restaurant was a throwback to a time long forgotten. Charles Archer, the owner, had decided that modernizing wasn’t necessary. He relied on good food and an outlandish attitude to draw people in. The regulars were happy with what he had to offer and he did a brisk business.

I’d been to the restaurant once or twice, so I took a moment to scan it when I walked through the door. To my relief, Stormy was delivering food to one of the tables. She primarily worked morning shifts, so I was hopeful she was almost done. I wanted her with me when I talked to her great-grandmother.

“Hey.” A friendly male voice drew my attention to the right and I found Hunter Ryan, Stormy’s boyfriend and Chief Terry’s protégé, sitting at the counter nursing a mug of coffee.

“Hey.” I returned his smile and climbed onto a stool next to him. “Are you here for Stormy?”

He smiled and nodded, sheepish. “Always. What about you?”

“Actually, I was hoping she would take me to visit her great-grandmother.”

Confusion washed across Hunter’s features. He was tall — a good two inches taller than Landon — and lean. His hair was close-cropped and neat, and he was always friendly. I liked him a great deal even though I’d only recently started to spend time with him thanks to my association with Stormy.

“Why do you want to talk to her?” Hunter looked horrified at the thought. “You know she’s ... difficult.”

The way he said the word had me battling back laughter. “I’ve met her,” I reminded him. “She was at the inn a couple of days ago with Aunt Tillie. They spent the entire afternoon in the greenhouse with Aunt Tillie’s wine.”

Hunter’s expression darkened. “I remember. Stormy had to drive her home and basically carry her into her grandparents’ house. She’s a lot of work.”

“Yeah, until you’ve spent a week with Aunt Tillie when she’s on a revenge kick against Mrs. Little, you don’t know what real work is. Stormy’s great-grandmother is the Junior League compared to my great-aunt.”

“That’s probably true.” Hunter looked me up and down. “Does Landon know you’re here?”

I knew what he was asking and it grated. “Yes, but he’s not my keeper. I texted him before I drove over.”

“I heard you guys had a murder.” Hunter was a police officer in Shadow Hills. He hadn’t tackled nearly as many wacky cases as we had in Hemlock Cove, but he understood about magic and murder colliding. That was good as far as I was concerned. Another ally couldn’t possibly hurt.

“It was one of the girls,” I said.

Hunter’s expression was blank. “What girls?”

“The ones I told Stormy about. The ones who were stealing the magic fragments from Hollow Creek and using them against people. They faked a kidnapping in an attempt to get money to run away.”

“Ah.” He sipped his coffee and nodded. “Landon and Terry mentioned that. They were worried because you made the decision to alter memories.”

“I’m still wondering if that was a mistake.” I rubbed my cheek and forced a grin as Stormy slipped behind the counter. She was all smiles as she regarded me.

“This is a surprise,” she chirped, automatically reaching for the coffee pot. “Caffeine?”

I nodded. “Are you always so cheerful after working a morning shift?” I asked.

She nodded and Hunter made a face.

“She’s not cheerful in the morning,” he assured me. “She has decided to stay on the morning shift with her grandfather because it’s better for us when we want to spend time together. If she takes an afternoon or evening shift, it cuts short our quality time. But she’s not happy when her alarm goes off in the morning.”

I smiled at the way Stormy glared at Hunter. They were cute. They’d known each other from childhood, so their relationship differed from the one Landon and I shared. We fell in love as adults and had to learn to navigate