by Tena Stetler
“Excellent idea. Will next Monday late afternoon be soon enough? I’ve got a full schedule this week.”
“Perfect.” She shook his hand, said goodbye to Pam, and started toward the door.
A large well-dressed man approached her. “Did I hear you say, McKay?”
“I’m Ms. McKay,” she said cautiously glancing back to the reception desk.
“You don’t happen to know Colleen Denton, do you?”
Pepper narrowed her eyes. “And you are?” She didn’t like the vibes she was getting from him. The hair on the back of her neck was standing on end.
“Oh, sorry. My name is Tom Green. I own the market down the street. Ms. Denton and I had mutual interests, and we’d enjoyed a couple outings together. However, I understand she’s left town. Could you put me in touch with her?”
“Mr. Green. Mr. Fairbanks Sr., will see you now,” Pam said.
He scowled at the receptionist and said, “Just a minute.”
Pepper took several steps toward the door while Mr. Green was distracted, then said, “I’m late for an appointment, so I’ll tell Colleen to get in touch.” She disappeared, and the door swished shut behind her, Relief flooded through her as she climbed into the truck, locked the doors, and checked her watch. Plenty of time to make it home by noon and call Colleen.
****
The black dog jumped off the back porch and bolted into the trees when Pepper turned the truck up the driveway. She smiled to herself, pleased with the dog’s progress. Inside the house, she walked into the room that would be her office, put the receipts in a filing cabinet, pulled out the estate records she’d filed last night, and dialed Colleen’s cell number. Waiting for the phone to ring, she found a piece of paper and pen stashed in the front of the cabinet.
She picked up on the second ring. “Pepper, I hoped to hear from you. Is everything all right at the cabin?”
“Better than all right. It’s fantastic. I’m sorry, I didn’t keep in touch with you over the years as I should have. Seems my life was split in a dozen different directions most of the time.”
“Honey, there’s very little that goes on with the McKay’s that old cabin doesn’t know. You need to tap in. It’s a wealth of information and protection.”
“That’s how you knew to build an aviary? I was so tired when we arrived; it was so nice to have a place for Kaylee. She settled right in.”
“Of course she did, knew it was for her. Pepper, I hope you don’t mind my saying, but you’ve spent most of your life hiding what you are rather than embracing your magic. It’s time to change. The cabin and property can help you, as Kaylee can. She is your familiar. The townspeople will assume that you are a McKay witch. Don’t hide, live it. There’s been a McKay in Lobster Cove for centuries.”
“You must be mistaken, Kaylee arrived at the clinic nearly dead. The vet saved her life.”
“No. The spirits knew what you needed and provided it in the form of an osprey chick at death’s door. Ashling set you on life’s path, but her time was short to mentor you. Gwen took over, not a witch but a talented healer. Under her tutelage, you honed abilities as a healer, and your confidence grew. It was the final test in Salem when I knew you were ready for the cabin. You did well.”
Her arm went up in the air in frustration. “Sure I did. Lost everything, nearly caused Gwen to lose the sanctuary. Just great,” she said sarcastically.
“Wrong again. You saved the sanctuary with your magic, no small feat. Gwen couldn’t do that. Without you, she’d have lost the sanctuary and the lives of the creatures there. It was time for you to move on to Lobster Cove, start your own wildlife rescue and rehab, be proud of your heritage. Ashling is very proud of you.”
“Is…Ashling is? How do you know, she’s…” Pepper chewed on her bottom lip.
“Her spirit never left the property. She felt it necessary to watch over me and now you.”
“But how?” Pepper rolled the pen from finger to finger and back again.
“You’ll see. Open your mind, accept magic as part of you. Now, there was a reason you called?”
“Uh…mmm. Do you know Tom Green, owns a market in Bar Harbor?”
“Thought so. Yes, he is a difficult man. I believe dark magic follows him, but he doesn’t know it. He’s also drawn to McKay magic. Stay clear of him.”
“He indicated the two of you were friendly. It was a lie, but…he wanted to get in touch with you. I felt the dark magic signature, but it doesn’t belong to him.”
“Oh, I bet he does. Spurned his advances for the last couple of years. Not my type.” She gave a half laugh. “What he wanted was Ashling’s magic that surrounded me after she passed. He couldn’t figure it out, knew I wasn’t a McKay witch, but…still drawn to the magic.”
“He’s not going to leave me alone, is he?”
“Probably not. Brandon Fairbanks started coming out to the property to work out details, because I refused to come to the office anymore, due to Mr. Green. Unfortunately, Tom was a client of Fairbanks Sr., Brandon’s dad, for years before Ashling discovered Brandon. She trusted him completely. He was the only one that could handle her affairs.”
Pepper heard a vehicle, then footsteps on the porch and a knock on the door. “Colleen, I have to go. The people are here to hook up the Internet and SAT TV. Talk to you soon.”
“Of course. If you need anything, call. Bye, dear. Be careful.”
“Bye.” Pepper disconnected the call as the hairs on the back of her neck stood. She flung open the door and there stood Mr. Green. “What are you doing here?”
“Stopped by to finish our conversation.”
“It was finished. Colleen isn’t able to stay in touch,” Pepper said firmly.
His brow furrowed and eyes narrowed, he asked, “Is she ill?”
“No, busy. Now if you’ll excuse me…” She tried to close the door, but he shoved his foot in the way.
“Ms. McKay, I just want to be neighborly. Maybe we can get together for a cup of coffee or a bite to eat sometime.”
She shook her head. “I’m sorry, too much to do.” She stared down at his foot. “Please remove your foot,” she said in a firm tone, narrowing her eyes as she brought her gaze up to meet his.
A wave of dark magic blindsided her. The searing pain in her head and nausea made it difficult to stay on her feet. Beneath it all, she could feel his frustration and anger that had something to do with the McKay magic. Knuckles white from gripping the door, she heard the beat of wings, and Kaylee’s shrill whistle echoed through the room as the bird swooped in, talons forward, claws extended. Pepper let the door sag open. On Kaylee’s first pass, her claws ripped open Mr. Green’s face, just below his eyes and across his nose, tearing a gash in his upper lip. He screamed and stumbled backward.
She circled the room tried to dive straight for his neck, swerving just as Pepper slammed the door and pressed her back against it. The pain in her head subsided as she slumped to the floor, blinking rapidly. Receding footfalls and the subsequent roar of an engine told Pepper Mr. Green was gone. Next to her, Kaylee landed softly, tilting her head from side to side, never taking her eyes off Pepper.
Pepper reached out and touched the bird’s wing. “Nice flying. I’m fine. Give me a minute.”
Gravel crunched in the driveway as another vehicle stopped in front of the cabin. A door slammed, and heavy footsteps pounded up the porch steps. Getting to her feet, her heart thundered inside her chest as she crept to the window and peered out. A van with SAT TV and INTERNET emblazoned in dark blue across the side panel parked in the driveway, and she blew out a breath.
Pepper combed her fingers through her hair and hoped she looked presentable. This time she opened her mind’s third eye and saw a stocky man standing on the porch with the van’s matching logo on his shirt, studying a clipboard held in his hands. She cracked the door and asked for ID. The soft beat of wings and Kaylee’s whistle told Pepper the bird had returned to the aviary.
The man hand
ed her his ID and offered his hand. “Welcome to Lobster Cove, Ms. McKay. I’m Doug Henderson. Talked to Lathen about your needs. I believe they are all listed on the work order. If there is anything else, let me know.” He looked around the room. “TV?”
Stationed near the door, she pointed where the TV and sound system would be situated as she looked over his paperwork and the additional connections requested by Lathen for the security system and monitors. It took Doug three hours to install the required wiring and connections and test the Wi-Fi and Internet service. Pepper signed off on the paperwork and stood in the doorway as Doug climbed in his van and left her driveway. Once the vehicle was out of sight, she closed the door.
The laptop was still on and connected to the Internet from Doug’s tests. She did a search on Thomas Green of Bar Harbor. It appeared he had done well in the family’s grocery business, inherited quite a bit of money from an uncle, and had no connections whatsoever to the magic community. He’d won a local golf tourney with Benjamin Bonchard, of Lobster Cove, for four years in a row. Mr. Green and his wife had grown up in the area and were quite active in social circles until his wife’s death two years ago. In the background information she assembled, there was no explanation for his behavior. Baffled, she wondered if dark magic had followed her from Salem. Highly unlikely. Had everything from the past month caught up with her and caused a meltdown?
****
Pepper’s cell phone chirped. She checked the ID and touched the screen. “Hi, Lathen.”
“Did Doug get there and set up the Internet and TV?”
“Yes, Doug was here about three hours. Then checked to make sure the Internet and wi-fi were working. He showed me how to hook up the TV that should be delivered tomorrow along with my new furniture.” She sighed.
“Everything all right? Your voice came across a bit shaky.”
“It’s been a day, but I’m fine.”
“Tell you what. I’m almost done here. I’ll pick up a couple meals to go and be there within the hour.”
“That sounds good. See you then.”
She plopped down on a folding chair brought from Salem and opened a cardboard box marked “special things.” She pulled out a huge fan lovingly created out of colorful molted wing and tail feathers from birds she’d rescued, rehabbed, and released, or which became a permanent resident of Gwen’s sanctuary. The fan was warm in her hand, gave her a sense of security as she spread it out and hung it on the living room wall. The fan covered almost a three-foot-square area of the wall and centered over her new couch. It would be nice to have a comfortable place to relax.
A couple raps on the door, and Lathen pushed it open holding a big bag and a bottle of wine. “You should keep this door locked. You don’t know who might come wandering in.” His warm, soothing laugh filled the room.
“I locked it after Doug left. I’m positive.”
The skin around Lathen’s eyes crinkled when he laughed. “Okay, then the door unlocked itself to let me in. Your knight without shining armor and minus the white horse.” Nodding his head toward the wine, he said, “You sounded like a good bottle of wine was in order.”
Pepper followed him to the kitchen and watched as he put a bag and a Styrofoam container on the table and the wine on the counter. She got out plates, glass tumblers, and wine glasses.
He took out bread bowls from the bag, put them on the plates, cut the tops off, and poured soup into the bowls. “Give up already on the dog outside? Noticed the food bowl is empty, and he was slinking around the back of the house when I drove in. Didn’t even run for the hills.”
“Oh God, I forgot. Poor thing.” She grabbed two clean bowls, filled one with kibble, the other with fresh water, and sprinted out the back door. When she returned dirty bowls in hand, she dumped them into the sink with a couple squirts of dish soap and ran hot water. “I put the kibble and water on the back porch. Maybe he’s willing to come closer tonight.”
“Could be,” Lathen said easily, sliding the remaining food from the containers to the plates. “Must have been one hell of a day, for you to forget about your furry friend.” Lathen’s eyes softened as he peered at her.
“It was.” She spooned up clam chowder from her bread bowl and nibbled at the top cut from the bowl. In between bites the events of her day tumbled out. Surprised, she had to blink back tears at one point. That confirmed she was running on empty. Nothing a good night’s sleep wouldn’t fix. In the telling, she left out the dark magic and just let Lathen assume Kaylee flew out because Green refused to leave.
He ate and listened without comment though his eyebrow winged up a couple of times. When she finished explaining, her eyes met his, and he shook his head. “Why did you open the door without first checking to see who was on the other side?”
“I assumed it was the Internet installer.” Her cheeks warmed.
“Both of you could have been seriously hurt.”
Pepper tried to ignore his scrutinizing stare as Colleen’s words floated through her mind. Don’t hide, live it. She wanted to but wasn’t quite ready to allow him that kind of trust. With trust came the power to hurt her, and she didn’t want to go through that again. Feeling pressure on her shoulder, she turned, but no one was there.
“There’s something you’re not telling me.” He reached across the table and covered her delicate hand with his work-roughened one.
She liked the sense of security, well-being, and warmth he radiated, not to mention the tingly feeling she got at his touch. “Kate was right. I am a McKay witch.”
He blinked once and stared at her. “Yeah, so tell me something I don’t know.” The corner of his mouth kicked up in an irresistible boyish grin.
“It’s Green. There’s something dark about him. I can’t put my finger on it. He doesn’t wield magic, but he seems to be a conduit for dark magic, or I am. Sounds crazy, huh?”
“No, not at all. But I’m no expert. Have you talked to Colleen?”
“Yes, the minute I got home. She said he’s evil and attracted to the McKay magic. He’s the reason Brandon Fairbanks started making house calls out here. If she went to see Brandon, Green would always appear at the law firm. Since he is a client there, there wasn’t a lot she could do until Brandon offered to come to her.”
“Smart man.”
“According to Colleen, Aunt Ashling trusted Brandon without reservation.”
“Let’s revisit you and the property. I’d like to install a security system inside and around the perimeter of your property. Your third eye as a witch should keep you safe, but as a backup and reminder, the system would warn you when someone approaches from any direction. It makes good business sense for the wildlife rehab center as well. Insurance will probably require it. Not everyone working with you will have magical abilities.”
“But you do, I can feel it. As long as we are baring souls here. Want to explain your ability?”
Lathen cleared his throat as a chuckle rumbled from his chest. “I’m a wolf shifter, or was. After a mission with my SEAL team went way south, there were only three survivors. My physical injuries negated my ability to shift, even after they healed. Still retain the preternatural senses, though.”
“I see. Uhhh…are you sure it’s not emotional and psychological as well? Those types of injuries take much longer to heal than physical, at least in my experience with the rehab of creatures.”
The smile faded from his lips. “I don’t need to be psychoanalyzed, been through plenty of that.”
“Bet you didn’t tell them of your abilities. That would make a difference.”
“Yeah, they’d put me in a padded room and throw away the key. Now drop it.”
She raised her hands, palms up in surrender, leaving the touchy subject alone…for now. “Can we make the security system as invisible as possible?”
“Can do.” He gave her two thumbs up. “Oh, by the way. I talked to a couple of the town council members today. There’s a meeting a week from Friday. I put you on the schedule. A
ll the necessary paperwork to bring the matter before the council is in my truck.” He pushed up from the table. “I’ll go get it. Those I talked to seemed quite taken with the idea of a wildlife rescue and rehab on your property.”
“That’s great news. Brandon is looking over the drawings and working on the nonprofit paperwork and state and federal permits. We meet here Monday between four and five. Can you join us?”
“I’ll be here. Let’s take the wine and sit in front of the fireplace. Can’t be any harder than these chairs.” He picked up the wine glasses and the bottle and carried them into the living room.
Pepper disappeared down the hall. She returned with four huge floor pillows in red, bright green, turquoise, orange. “I kept these from Salem, used them when I was up all night with a sick creature. Nice snuggleability. Always washed them after each use and packed them in bags with dried lavender so they’d be ready next time.”
Lathen arranged the pillows on the floor and reached for Pepper’s hand. When he pulled, she lost her footing and fell into his lap.
“Well, isn’t this convenient,” he said as a deep rich laugh floated from his throat and his mesmerizing aquamarine eyes gazed at her.
She squirmed, but he gently held her in place, his arms wrapping around her like velvet chains. A wonderfully warm, cozy feeling enveloped her, cradled in his arms. This intimate awareness seemed foreign to her, but before she could analyze it further, he lowered his head and brushed his lips over hers in an almost questioning manner. The touch of his lips was a delicious sensation. When she deepened the kiss, his tongue traced the soft fullness of her lips and slipped inside touching, caressing, and tasting her flavor. He captured her sigh and gentled the kiss. When his head lifted, she ran the tip of her tongue around her lips still warm and moist from his kiss. She felt as if he’d transported her to another plane of existence and relaxed into him.
