I took a deep breath. A voice came out of me that reminded me of my mother. “Roman, no. I’m perfectly capable of doing this by myself.” His eyes softened and his lips turned down into a frown. His shoulders even sagged. Oh my. Had I hurt his feelings? “No, really Roman. It’s okay. Please save your vacation time. I was hoping for a nice honeymoon sometime before our first year’s anniversary and want to take advantage of all the vacation time you’ve acquired.”
Slowly, his hurt dissipated, but he still looked disappointed. “Okay. But be careful. Call me when you get there.”
“Of course,” I assured him. “And when I get back tonight, maybe you can help me unload the shipment?”
“You bet.”
I finished my Magic Charms and dumped the colored milk down the drain. It looked like I had multiple problems to deal with at the moment. Not only was someone still sabotaging Ettie’s Enchanted Effects, and the shelves were bare, but Roman was definitely being a bit clingy. I needed to do something about that before it got out of hand—like what happened with Ettie’s inventory.
Magic Express had my shipment waiting for me at one of their loading docks out back. I backed my car in for the hatchback to be easily accessible for loading, and while I waited for help, my phone rang.
“Hi Gabby, what’s up?”
“I have the official list of who rents a storage unit down by the docks.”
“And let me guess. Natalia and Brittany are both on the list.”
“Yes, but you’ll never guess who else is.”
“Mayor Raab?”
“No…” Officer Gates drew out her word, waiting for me to guess again.
Who else would be on the list that would mean something to me? “Officer Duncan.” I don’t know why I threw out Gabby’s partner’s name.
Gabby laughed. “No.”
“Penelope?” I was now grasping at all the names I knew.
“Close…”
“Come on. Just tell me already!”
“Two people. One is Joe Sun. Didn’t you suspect him early on?”
My heart pounded. Joe had a storage unit by the docks? And it was under his ridiculous alias of a last name to keep his identity separate from Roman and me? I had thought he was on my side, but perhaps he was really behind this all after all. “I did. Can you get a warrant to search the units? If my suspicions are right, there should be a shipment from Spell Solutions hidden inside…or perhaps an entire hamster breeding facility.” My stomach twisted. Joe did seem to know exactly how to eliminate my hamster problem. He played the magical flute that led them out of the store’s walls and into cages.
“Ettie, you still there?”
“Yes. You bet.”
“There’s one more interesting person who has a storage unit.” She took a deep breath. “Are you ready for it?”
“Yes! Spill.”
“It’s Roman Sunward.”
If I was in shock with finding out about Joe, knowing about Roman was more of a shock. “Roman? How? Why?” He had never mentioned a storage unit. And why would he need one? His house was big enough, with an attic, basement, and garage to store things in. Why would he possibly need a storage unit on top of that?
And when he went down to investigate, why didn’t he say anything about the storage unit? I thanked Gabby and ended the call.
I leaned against my car, tapping my foot against the crumbling asphalt. Where were the employees here? Why hadn’t anyone come to help me yet?
I needed to get going. I needed to get back to Watersedge ASAP so I could ask Roman about the storage unit.
And Joe, too.
Maybe they were in cahoots with each other?
My mind was going wild.
“Anyone here?” I yelled into the building, but only the echo of my voice returned. I stepped inside, easily finding my pile of boxes, all labeled as “Ettie’s Enchanted Effects.” Well, the merchandise was already paid for. I snapped my fingers, using my magic to lift the heavy boxes and have them march into the back of my hatchback. One by one, they loaded, but I was left with one that didn’t fit. I leaned into the vehicle and started adjusting the boxes to be packed closer and tighter to fit the last one in.
When I stretched to the far front of the trunk, I twisted around and my ankle rolled.
My whole body clenched, righting myself so I didn’t tumble onto the ground.
Way to go, Ettie.
I quickly picked myself up and looked around. Phew. Nobody saw my clumsiness.
As I reached into the trunk again, I noticed the tightness of my back muscles. Ouch. I stood up and stretched through the soreness, and despite the bit of pain, shuffled the boxes in my trunk and gritted my teeth to close the hatchback.
Still nobody was around.
Well, I couldn’t wait here forever. I had a husband and father-in-law to deal with. Both of whom were keeping a secret.
Chapter Eight
I finished my audiobook on the four-and-a-half-hour drive back to Watersedge, but my mind was deep in thought and I missed much of what was said. I’d have to go back and re-listen when my head was clear.
Roman was waiting for me at Ettie’s Enchanted Effects, and I wished he wasn’t. My knuckles had been white with all the thoughts going through my head. I needed to unload my car and reign in my emotions before I attacked Roman like a rabid dog.
First off, I knew Roman wasn’t sabotaging Ettie’s Enchanted Effects. It was our store, and we both had too much riding on it.
But he had a storage unit.
And he didn’t tell me about it.
Why?
Was it full of things he didn’t want me to know about? Did he have some dark secrets? Bad habits? A spending problem?
Sure, we had been together almost eight months already, but we were still getting to know each other. Since I was a mail-order bride, we jumped right into marriage. Most couples dated for as long as we had been married before tying the knot.
Maybe Roman had a storage unit for the same reason Joe had one. Whatever that was.
Or, perhaps Roman’s father was the one sabotaging Ettie’s? I had so easily dismissed him as innocent, not wanting to blame family—especially when he told us about having Witches’ Wandering disease—but was that just his way of getting sympathy from us and throwing us off his trail?
And since when has family ever been there for me?
Even my own mother hadn’t visited yet. At least Joe came to see us.
As I pulled into the closest parking spot to Ettie’s front door, movement on the church’s steps caught my eye. Outside was Brittany’s son, Matt. I hadn’t talked to him since the tail epidemic. If I was in a better frame of mind, I’d see how he was doing. He seemed fine, playing with something in a small cage. I narrowed my eyes, and my stomach turned. Did he have a hamster?
Was it from my shop’s infestation or from somewhere else?
My white knuckles grew as pale as a sheet of paper. Perhaps the hamster was one of their collection? Maybe Brittany was behind this whole enormous plot?
Before I could form an action plan, Roman greeted me at the driver’s door. I cut the engine and as I swung the car door open and leaned to get out, a sharp pain shot up my back and made my fingers tingle. Everything I had just been obsessing over was instantly forgotten. “Oh my!”
I twisted my legs out of the car, the pain causing a throbbing in my head. When I tweaked my back loading the items for my shop, I must have really done a number on myself.
Roman was right there beside me, taking my arm and guiding me out of the car. “What’s wrong?” he asked.
“I did something to my back loading the boxes.” My temper was short due to the pain, and if the pain hadn’t been so distracting, I would have snapped about the storage unit right then and there.
Instead, it was Roman’s next comment that set me off.
“You should have let me come along.”
I narrowed my eyes at him and magic from the world around me flooded my senses,
overloading them. “Can’t I do anything by myself?” My tenseness made me flinch.
“Obviously not,” Roman laughed as he attempted to help me inside, but I pulled away.
“Obviously not?”
“Come on, Ettie. I was just joking. I didn’t mean that.” I stiffly walked myself into Ettie’s and slowly lowered myself onto the stool behind the cash register counter. Roman headed outside and snapped his fingers, causing the boxes of inventory to float inside and line themselves up with the appropriate areas of the shop where they needed to be put away. When he joined me at the counter, he held his hand out, palm facing me. “Let me see where you hurt.”
I wanted to keep my independence, but the pain was so strong that I turned my back to him. “The left side. Lower back.”
Roman placed his warm hand against my blouse, and I felt the tingle of magic, but when he pulled away, my back still hurt. “I’m not strong enough for this injury. Let me get Dad.”
“Yes. Joe. I have something to discuss with both of you.”
The steps creaked as Roman climbed up them, and soon, I heard the pitter-patter of both sets of feet as Joe followed my husband back downstairs.
There was no sense in beating around the witch’s bush. As Roman brought Joe to heal my back, I didn’t give him the opportunity. First, I needed to clear the air.
“I learned something interesting today from Officer Gates.” When both men stared at me blankly, I continued, “You know how I’ve been having issues with my shipment and one shipment even got delivered down to the storage units by the docks.”
The men nodded.
“Well, I discovered today that both of you rent storage units in that complex…and neither of you told me.”
Joe shook his head. “I don’t know why it should matter. I have things from a lifetime of living stored there. I didn’t have room for my things since moving to Watersedge.”
I raised my eyebrow, and Joe raised his hands. “I swear. All it is, is my old junk.”
Roman shook his head. “And I don’t have a storage unit.”
“Officer Gates says something else.”
“Really, Ettie. I have no reason to lie to you. I really don’t have a storage unit.”
I cocked my chin and narrowed my eyes at him. Sure, he appeared innocent, but was he just a good liar? I mean, he kept that secret from me for nearly eight months.
“Well, I have an idea,” Joe said. “Let’s head on down to Dockside Storage, and I can show you my unit. Then Roman can figure out if they really have him listed as a renter.”
Roman ran his hand through his hair. “Ettie, there is something you should know.”
My stomach twisted, waiting for him to finally spill the truth. How hurt would I be if my husband had been hiding things from me and my father-in-law had been sabotaging my place? It felt like my world was ending and suddenly, the pain in my back was the least of my worries.
Roman took a deep breath. “Ettie, you’re not the only girl in my life.”
I felt like I was going to vomit. “I’m not?” Was Roman having an affair? That hadn’t even crossed my mind. He had spent every free moment with me…and here I was, trying to chase him away.
Roman held his palms out to me, shaking his hands. “No, Ettie, love. Not like that. You’re the only girl in my life right now, but that wasn’t always the case. Years before I married you, I had dated someone else for almost five years. We never pulled the trigger and got married—we were never quite compatible, I guess. She overpowered me. You’re a strong woman, but she was completely independent. She wanted to do everything apart from me. It was like we lived separate lives. When I asked her to leave my house, she didn’t have a place to go with her things. I helped her get a storage unit down at Dockside. I never thought she’d still have her stuff there, and that it was still under my name.”
I tilted my chin. Did I believe him?
Last time I was skeptical of Roman, it almost cost our marriage and it was just me being a bit paranoid. Before I jumped to conclusions again, I’d better give him the benefit of the doubt this time.
And if I gave him the opportunity to save his skin, I should give it to Joe, as well.
“Okay.” I painfully slid off the stool and stood. “Take me there. If there are any doubts that I have, let’s put an end to them now, before they fester like old wounds. Then, with everything being out in the open between us, maybe I can focus on who is really behind sabotaging Ettie’s.”
“I have to do something first,” Joe shuffled around me.
“Oh, no. You don’t get a chance to zap yourself there and magically dispose of whatever’s inside.”
Joe looked at me and laughed. “You don’t trust anyone, do you?”
“I do. It’s just that I've been skeptical of everyone for months now, and it’s starting to change me. I’m tired of it.”
Joe stepped towards me and placed his hand on my back. Magic zipped through my body, and my spasming muscle relaxed. “I just wanted to make this trip more comfortable for you,” Joe said mildly with a lopsided smile that reminded me so much of his son.
I took a deep breath, almost going to say he didn’t have to prove anything to me. That I believed him. But that was a bigger, more trustful person than I currently was. I needed proof to set my mind at ease.
Chapter Nine
Even though the sun was setting, lighting the sky in pinks and oranges, I also had something to quickly take care of before Joe zapped the three of us down to Dockside Storage. I focused on my movements so that I didn’t scare Matt off the church’s front step, forcing a smile and relaxing my shoulders.
“Hey, remember me?” I asked.
Matt nodded. “My mom says not to talk to you.”
“Yeah, I imagine she does.” I leaned against the wrought-iron railing, trying to appear as non-threatening as I could. Sure, on the outside I might look like a house cat, but on the inside, I felt like a hungry lion at the moment. “I’ll let you alone, but I just wanted to know where you got the adorable hamster.” Yes, it was a hamster in his cage…very clear with its stub for a tail and cheeks filled with seeds just like my three fur-babies did.
“Mom gave it to me.”
I nodded. “Did she catch it in the church?” With how many hamsters ran rampant in my shop last month, I wouldn’t doubt the church had one or two that dashed down the aisles or crawled on the pews.
Matt shook his head. “No. She got it from Auntie Natalia.”
I only knew one person named Natalia. “Is your aunt Natalia Young?”
Matt nodded.
OMG.
Brittany and Natalia were sisters?
I didn’t see any resemblance. We had the sweet church-going woman wearing her dainty dresses, then the woman with the too-thick glasses and fiery red hair. I had to repeat myself. “Your mom is Natalia Young’s sister?”
He shook his head. “No. She’s my dad’s sister.”
I guess the relationship didn’t matter. “Why did she give you a hamster?” I asked.
“She used to put them in shows. She had extra.”
Natalia was a hamster expert? If she showed hamsters, I bet she bred them, too. I looked at the little guy in the cage. Short hair. Hmm. I had been told that the genetics of Natalia’s pet hamster and the ones in my shop were different because hers were long-haired. Something wasn’t adding up.
“Thanks, Matt. Take good care of your little guy. I have a few at home, and I love them so much.”
Matt smiled, and I slipped away before Brittany found me talking to her precious son. So…did this mean that Natalia had been behind sabotaging my shop all along? She had motivation. She had opportunity. Was she the guilty party?
And it really wasn’t Joe?
“Ready to go?” Joe held up his magic-snapping fingers. Did Joe even need to prove his innocence to me? The contents of his storage unit didn’t matter, and I didn’t even care about Roman’s storage unit, but I had to follow through.
&nbs
p; “Hold on.” I sent a quick text to Officer Gates about this new bit of information. Once the text went through, I nodded. “Okay. Let’s go.”
Once Roman and I were gathered close enough to Joe right outside Ettie’s front window, and nobody was watching us, Joe gave his fingers a snap, transporting us outside Dockside Storage’s main entrance rather than inside the main building’s lobby. Appearing right in front of a mortal was rude, as it always nearly gave them a heart attack from the surprise, plus, Joe was “in the closet” about being a warlock.
Joe led Roman and I down a long aisle towards a unit near the water with a backdrop of two maples with blazing orange leaves. When Joe slid the overhead door up, everything he told us was true. The small room was overflowing with furniture, including a love seat, some enchanted wardrobes, and even a few extra mattresses and bed frames. There were lamps, wall decorations, and piles of boxes. Joe opened a few boxes to show me his book collection, old sporting equipment (turns out Joe used to rollerblade—who knew?) and a box of baby clothing and toys.
“What’s this?” Roman picked up the tiniest pair of white foot coverings.
“Your first pair of shoes.” Joe smiled. “And this is the outfit you were brought home from the hospital wearing.” He dug further down in the box, pulling out a framed photo. “And this is the first photo we had of you.”
Roman took the photo of a much younger looking Joe and a woman who was much shorter than him, but had Roman’s same regal nose and double dimples on her right cheek, both holding a burrito-wrapped baby. “You kept all this stuff after Mom died?”
Joe rocked on his heels. “Why wouldn’t I? You are my only son.” He took a deep breath. “Roman, I was a stubborn, foolish man. My own pride kept me away. I had made a decision to cut you out of my life due to your decision to be open about your magical abilities, and I held on to that decision for way too long. Seeing you and Ettie these last few months has made me realize how ridiculous that was. I still don’t support being out of the broom closet, but Penelope knows that I’m a warlock…and Officer Gates…and nobody has attacked me, yet. I’m not ready to be completely out, but a few people in my life can know my secret. I’m still not trusting everyone, just look at what’s happening at Ettie’s shop.”
Magic Underground: The Complete Collection (Magic Underground Anthologies Book 4) Page 224
