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

Thistle pointed to was empty, but when I shaded my eyes there was indeed a figure standing in the window watching the scene on the street ... and it was a familiar one.

“Amelia,” I said, more in resignation than disbelief.

“Where?” Landon looked toward the window. He was grim when he saw the girl. “Maybe we should go up there and question her.”

I grabbed his wrist before he could take off. “That’s a terrible idea.”

“Why?”

“Because.”

He waited for me to expand. When I didn’t, he swore under his breath. “I’m going to need more than that, Bay.”

“She’s clearly here for a reason.” I rubbed my palms over my knees, frowning at the pain. I snatched my hand back to stare at the palm and found an ugly scrape from when I’d hit the ground. “Ow.”

“Let me see.” Landon gently caught my wrist and stared at my palm. “That is ugly.” He kissed the mark and then flicked his eyes to Chief Terry. “I need your first aid kit to clean this out.”

“Sure.” Chief Terry said. “Get rid of the ice on my building and I’ll get your first aid kit.”

“Oh, will you stop being such a kvetch?” Aunt Tillie demanded, glancing over her shoulder when someone let loose a shrill scream. She grinned at the sight of Aunt Willa at the corner of the building, trapped by two skunks and shielding her face. “That’s just terrible,” she intoned, the smile never leaving her face. “An absolute travesty.”

It would’ve been funny if we didn’t have bigger things to worry about. “My hand is fine. I can clean it at Hypnotic.” I grunted as I tried to stand. “Okay, somebody help me up. I feel like an old woman. My joints ache a bit.”

“Did you hear that?” Thistle challenged Aunt Tillie. “She feels like you. Help her up.”

“Keep it up, mouth,” Aunt Tillie shot back. “There’s a spot open on my list.”

“You have bigger skunks to skin,” Thistle shot back.

“Like what?”

“Um ... Clove.”

“Oh, right.” Aunt Tillie looked at me. “It feels as if that should be your problem,” she said. “I handled the shades.”

“I think we handled the shades together,” I corrected.

“The only thing you did was interrupt my first spell. I was going to drown those bitches, but you turned the water to ice.”

Chief Terry’s eyes were dark when they locked with mine. “You did this?”

“She was going to flood your building. The ice is better.”

“How?”

“A flood would’ve forced you to tear that building down to the studs to get it operational again. As it stands, all you have to do is wait for the ice to melt.”

“I don’t like either option.” Chief Terry glanced back at the window Amelia had been standing in moments before. “She’s gone.”

“She probably didn’t get what she wanted,” Landon noted as he moved behind me and hooked his hands under my arms to help me stand.

“We don’t know that she has anything to do with the shades,” I argued.

Landon was incredulous. “Are you kidding me? What more proof do you need?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know.” That was the truth. “She shouldn’t be able to control shades, not with magic stolen from Hollow Creek.”

“That’s your magic,” Landon said. “You can control ghosts. She’s an evil kid. No, don’t bother arguing.” He held up his hand to stop me from saying something. “I don’t think we can get around the fact that she’s evil. This is twice now, Bay. It’s not some youthful indiscretion.”

“He’s right, Bay.” Chief Terry said. “This is deliberate. Paisley Gilmore is dead.”

“But ... why?” I asked. “Why kill her friend? I can see her wanting revenge on us. If the memory spell didn’t last and what we did came rushing back to her, I understand she’d want to make us pay. But Paisley was on her side.”

“Maybe Paisley didn’t want to go another round with you,” Landon suggested. “Maybe Paisley wanted to step back and do the right thing. You’ve seen those girls. Sophie and Emma are more malleable. They do as they’re ordered.

“During the first case, they followed Paisley because Amelia was hidden away,” he continued. “Now, with Amelia back, they seem to be following her. Maybe there was room for only one leader.”

What he said made sense, but I was loath to admit it. “That doesn’t explain her working with the shades. She doesn’t have the magic to harness them.”

“I think remnants of your magic are floating around Hollow Creek,” Landon said. “It’s possible she can control the shades with your magic because she has a dark soul, just like the shades do. Even if she can’t, she’s definitely involved.”

There was no other explanation for what had happened.

He massaged my shoulders. “The shades are getting more aggressive and violent. We can’t wage war against them on Main Street. Even if the tourists think it’s a game.”

I rolled my neck and blew out a sigh. “So we have to figure out who’s controlling who.”

“I’m not following you,” Chief Terry said. “Who else would be controlling the situation?”

“There are two possibilities. Either Amelia is controlling the shades or vice-versa. It’s possible the shades tapped into something dark in Amelia and are controlling her.”

“How would they do that?” Hannah asked. “I’m far from an expert, but it seems that would take a great deal of magic.”

I stared at her, gesturing to the street. “Did you miss what went on down here? I mean ... come on. The amount of magic that was thrown around on Main Street five minutes ago is unfathomable. We’re lucky we got off unscathed.”

“We’re lucky we have a magic baby,” Landon said. “I told you that kid was going to be born in swirling lights.”

I let my eyes drift to Hypnotic. I couldn’t see Clove, but I could feel her, even from so far away. Her emotions were a rollercoaster these days, and Thistle and I were often swept along for the ride because we were closest to her.

“We have a magic baby,” I admitted, rubbing my forehead. “She’s a lot more