“And how do you fit in?” Landon asked Davis, remaining immobile.
“I was ahead of Rhonda in school,” Davis replied. “We dated for a year before I graduated. We happened to run into each other at a function about a year ago. One thing led to another and we rekindled our romance … and started talking.”
“He jumped at the chance to take over the operation with me,” Rhonda interjected. “I knew that he would. He never cared about being a police officer. He merely cared about the accolades.”
“Uh-huh.” Landon ran his tongue over his teeth. “You’re not fooling anyone in the state police. They all say the same thing about you. You want the glory and don’t want to expend the energy to earn it. By working with Rhonda you managed to arrest your competition, climb the ranks and rake in a bundle on the side. You were never going to climb as high as you wanted, but no one realized you shifted your expectations at a certain point. That was the best part of your cover. It’s quite ingenious.”
“Thank you.” Davis was blasé. “What the heck is that thing?” He inclined his chin toward the purple ghost. “Did you bring a light show with you? By the way, how did you find us?”
“That’s not important,” Landon said evasively. “As for the ghosts … um … yes. It’s a light show for The Overlook. We needed something to illuminate the area.”
Chief Terry narrowed his eyes as he stared at the purple ghost leaning over his hunched form. “This one seems familiar.”
“It’s Bay,” Aunt Tillie answered, speaking for the first time. She’d been so quiet I’d almost forgotten she was with us. “The fake her likes you as much as the real one does.”
“That might make me feel better if the real one wasn’t in the middle of this witch storm,” Chief Terry shot back. “Get her out of here.”
“She’s fine.” Aunt Tillie wrinkled her nose as she looked over Rhonda’s shoulder and into the darkness. “Aren’t we missing a bad guy?”
“Doug,” I confirmed, bobbing my head. “Where is he?”
“He fled after killing Becky,” Rhonda replied. “He’s the real bad guy here.”
She was still hedging her bets. I could read that without hesitation. “No, Davis killed Becky,” I said, things slipping into place. “He killed Doug, too. He just didn’t leave Doug’s body at the guesthouse. He killed Becky to serve as a distraction and then moved Doug’s body so he’d make a convenient culprit if things fell apart.
“You said it yourself, Rhonda,” I continued. “Doug and Becky weren’t as smart as you and Trooper Davis here. You were the real team. Everyone else was expendable. You knew Landon was investigating the ring, and you knew long before we shared that uncomfortable interaction at the corn maze – a meeting I’m sure Becky and Doug got very chatty about.
“You hid all of the money and drugs before the raids – or at least as much as you could get your hands on,” I continued. “Landon said the arresting officers didn’t find nearly as much meth as they should have. That’s because you guys took it.
“You grabbed it because Davis got wind of the arrests the night before, and you hid it out here,” I said, glancing around. “I mean … what better place, right? You could bury it out here and be fairly certain it would be safe until at least the first week in November.
“You lured Doug and Becky to my house,” I said, licking my lips. “They still didn’t know about Rhonda’s part in all of this – which is exactly what she wanted. They thought they were going to kill me to send Landon a message. Davis knew that wouldn’t work out well for him, though.
“He let Doug attack me so it would be Doug’s prints on me should anything be lifted. Once I was out of it – and you made sure of that by drugging me and then faking the subsequent drug test. Then you killed Becky and Doug.”
“That’s pretty good.” Davis said the words but his expression related anything but joy at me having figured it out.
“You took Doug’s body with you when you left because you wanted to make sure you could always blame this on him,” I said. “You also took my hoodie. No, I don’t want it back. It’s covered in skank cooties now. You didn’t realize how many holes there’d be in your frame job, did you, Trooper Davis?”
“There were no holes,” Davis protested.
“There were plenty of holes,” Landon countered. “Bay was injured and you couldn’t find anyone to agree with you that she was the guilty party. You wanted to arrest her that first day, but your boss said no because he didn’t think your scenario made sense. Do you want to know how I know that? I called your boss and he told me. He wanted to give you a chance to figure things out on your own because he believed you were a good cop.”
“Yes, well, that hardly matters now, does it?” Davis snapped. “We have quite the predicament here, ladies and gentleman. You know the truth, and we can’t let you leave alive. You have to realize that.”
“I understand that you think you can take us, but that doesn’t explain why you went after Chief Terry,” I pressed. “What does kidnapping him get you?”
“Time,” Davis replied. “I knew Agent Michaels here would figure things out eventually. He’s too devoted to you to let it go. When Davenport decided to invite us out for drinks, I knew something was up. I slipped a little something special in his drink when he wasn’t looking, suggested to Agent Glenn that he was probably acting as a decoy because you all were up to something and then led the chief out to my car.”
“The plan was to question him about what you knew, but the stories he told under the drug were so … fantastical … as to be ridiculous,” Rhonda supplied. “You wouldn’t believe the things he said. We definitely got the dosage wrong on that batch.”
I risked a glance at Chief Terry and found him looking sheepish. “I can imagine what he said. Let me guess … we’re witches.”
“How did you know that?” I thought Rhonda was about to burst out laughing. “I think he’s starting to believe all of that Hemlock Cove hoopla.”
“Yes, that’s always a bad idea,” I murmured. “What were you going to do to him once you got him out here?”
“Frame him with the drugs and run.” Rhonda was blasé, which infuriated me. “We didn’t need anyone to believe it for the long haul, but we did need them to believe it until we got across the border. I was going to leave your hoodie with him to focus the cops on you even harder while we escaped.”
“Yes, well, that’s no longer an option,” Landon said. “You’re going into custody with me.”
“Hardly,” Rhonda countered, snorting. “What makes you think we’d give ourselves over to you?”
“Yeah, we have two weapons to your one,” Davis added.
Rhonda pulled a handgun from the waistband of her pants. “You might have three people, but we have two weapons and there’s nothing you can do to beat us.”
“That’s assuming we came alone,” I said, drawing Rhonda’s steady gaze to me. “Do you think that’s the case?”
Rhonda stared at me for a long time before nodding. “I do. I think you somehow figured out that we brought the chief here and you’re determined to save him. You were with your boyfriend for obvious reasons, though I have no idea why you take your great-aunt out with you on date night.”
“It’s because I’m a joy to be around,” Aunt Tillie said. “Bay isn’t wrong about us not being alone. Of course, even if it was just the three of us we still have more power than you.”
“Oh, really?” Rhonda cocked an eyebrow, amused. “How do you figure, old lady?”
“Well, for starters, the Winchesters travel as a tribe,” Aunt Tillie said. “Everyone who loves Terry, who loves Bay, for that matter, is here with us.”
“Where are they?” Rhonda glanced around the desolate area. “They don’t appear to be running to your defense.”
“No,” Aunt Tillie agreed. “We needed them to cut off your avenue of escape when you run. We’re ending this tonight.”
Rhonda and Davis exchanged a brief look, something uns
aid passing between them. I could practically read the exchange. They didn’t believe Aunt Tillie, yet they couldn’t help being a bit nervous. Our sudden appearance in the corn maze couldn’t be explained, and while colorful and seemingly harmless, the floating ghosts lent an eerie quality to the environment.
“You think we’re going to run from you?” Rhonda asked finally. “Why would we do that?”
“Because you’ve underestimated us from the beginning and it’s to your detriment,” Aunt Tillie replied, gripping the handle of the shovel. I realized she was lifting it at the same moment Davis’ movement registered in the corner of my eye. He was pointing his gun at Landon, preparing to fire.
“Landon!” I threw myself at him, knocking him to the side.
Davis’ gun went off simultaneously, but things had shifted and it was as if we were stuck in a slow-motion movie moment. Aunt Tillie flung the shovel toward Rhonda and Davis as Chief Terry instinctively ducked. Landon covered my head to the best of his ability as he looked wildly about to see what was happening. That’s when Aunt Tillie took control and screamed.
“Fortitudo!”
The ghosts, which had been mindlessly flittering about only seconds before, jerked to attention and swiveled in Davis and Rhonda’s direction. Rhonda raised her eyes when she realized the ghosts were more than a mere light show.
“What the … ?”
The shovel had disappeared in the night, never landing. It hovered over Rhonda and Davis’ heads as the ghosts closed in, and the blade glinted in their light.
“Fortitudo!” Aunt Tillie bellowed a second time.
The shovel started spinning at the command, an unearthly wail keening as light sparked from both ends of the tool.
“What’s going on?” Landon asked, blindly covering my head. “What is she doing?”
“Close your eyes,” I ordered, burying my face in his neck. “The ghosts are about to handle the rest.”
“But … they’re not real.”
“It doesn’t matter,” I said. “Aunt Tillie’s strength is real. That’s what she’s yelling … in Latin, no less. Whatever she planned for that shovel was big, and now Davis and Rhonda are going to pay the price. Cover your eyes.”
Instead of doing that, Landon tipped back my chin and pinned me with his gaze, the light blowing up to the point where it felt as if we were about to witness a nuclear detonation.
“I love you, Bay.”
I smiled. “We’re not going to die. I simply don’t want you seeing stars when this is over. We’ll have a lot of explaining to do.”
“I still love you.”
“I love you, too.”
“Great. Everyone loves everyone,” Aunt Tillie barked. “Now everyone needs to bow down to me. Oh, and cover your heads because a few things might start flying. Fortitudo!”
The light was blinding, the sound deafening. I lost sight of Chief Terry in the melee, but knew he was safe because I felt it in my heart. I pressed my eyes shut and rested my cheek on Landon’s chest as he clung to me.
Then the world exploded, a hundred glowing ghosts attacking a screaming Davis and Rhonda. They never even got the chance to run.
Finally, it was done.
Thirty-One
Cleanup wasn’t easy – to say the least. Landon piled everyone into Sam’s vehicle the second the ghosts dissipated, giving me a swift kiss as I shifted with Aunt Tillie on my lap and uttering a brief goodbye before pounding his hand on top of the vehicle to gather Sam’s attention before sending us on our way.
“What did he say?”
“You weren’t here and if anyone asks, you were all at The Overlook the entire night. Do you understand?”
I nodded, confused, but Sam was already driving away before I could utter another question.
I paced the dining room until well after midnight. After I related what happened to those who missed the show in the middle of the maze, everyone said their goodnights and left me to continue my restless activity. They didn’t seem worried about anything – least of all Aunt Tillie, who refused to own up to what she originally had planned for the shovel – and I could do nothing but panic as I waited for Landon to return.
Eventually I passed out on the couch in the family living quarters, my sleep uneasy. At some point I felt a body slide next to mine, an arm snake around my waist, and knew Landon had returned. I didn’t rouse, though, instead falling deeper into slumber. I felt safe in the knowledge that he needed sleep and we were together. That was enough … for now.
I woke in the same position the next morning, Landon snoring softly in my ear, and found Aunt Tillie staring at us.
“What?” I asked, keeping my voice low in an attempt to keep from disturbing Landon.
“You’re in my spot.”
“Yes, well, Landon is sleeping.”
Aunt Tillie looked positively apoplectic. “You’re in my spot and I need to make fun of the morning newscasters. That’s what I always do at this time, and I don’t like breaking my routine.”
“Yes, but Landon is sleeping.”
“Not anymore,” Landon muttered, shifting so he could look over my shoulder. I couldn’t see his expression, but I had a feeling I knew what I would glimpse there if I could. “You couldn’t go one morning without making fun of the newscasters?”
“Apparently not,” Aunt Tillie replied, shoving Landon’s feet off the end of the couch so she could settle in. “Don’t you have somewhere else to be?”
“You’re so mean,” I growled.
“That’s rich coming from you after I saved the world as we know it last night,” Aunt Tillie argued. “Speaking of that, what’s going on with Davis and Rhonda? Are they getting the death penalty?”
“Michigan doesn’t have the death penalty,” Landon answered, rolling to a sitting position and bringing me along with him. “As for what they’re saying … when they regained consciousness – which took a long time, by the way – they had quite a bit to say. Davis’ commander at the state police post arrived. Because they spouted a story that sounded like nonsense he didn’t give it a lot of credence.”
“If they keep telling the same story, though, will we get in trouble?”
“Not unless someone can prove you guys were out there,” Landon replied. “Davis’ commander couldn’t stop laughing at the story. Steve and Noah showed up, too. For what it’s worth, I had to do a little bit of creative storytelling to explain how I found Chief Terry at the corn maze. You might have to lie to cover that story, Bay.”
If he thought I’d be upset about that, he was sadly mistaken. “What’s the story?”
“We need to add Terry to that phone tracking app on your phone,” Landon explained. “You know that one you use to track Aunt Tillie sometimes? I said you used that and I agreed to look for Terry myself because I thought you were overreacting.”
“I can do that right now.” I grabbed my phone from the coffee table and ignored the holes I felt Aunt Tillie’s eyes burning into the side of my head.
“You track my phone?”
“Of course not,” I lied. “Don’t be ridiculous.”
“Oh, whatever,” Aunt Tillie muttered. “You’re on my list.”
Landon didn’t bother hiding his grin as he slung an arm around my shoulders. “Rhonda and Davis are too busy pointing fingers at one another for anyone to call my story into question. Chief Terry backed me up. Steve isn’t likely to believe an exploding shovel and fake ghosts saved the day.”
“But … what if he does believe it?”
“Then we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it, sweetie.” Landon pressed a kiss to my cheek. “It’s going to be okay. Everyone is focused on Rhonda and Davis. No one is focused on you … mostly because you’ve been officially cleared. In fact, Steve is insisting that Noah come to apologize in person now that you’re not longer a person of interest in Becky Patterson’s murder.”
“That’s really not necessary.”
“That’s what I said, but I think Steve wa
nts to teach Noah a lesson in humility,” Landon explained. “I kind of want to see how he’ll handle it. He’s supposed to be at the guesthouse around ten, so we can eat breakfast here before heading home.”
“So … that’s it?”
Landon nodded. “That’s it.”
“It feels somehow anti-climactic,” I admitted.
“Sweetie, we saved Terry’s life last night with an exploding shovel and a bunch of fake ghosts. How can that be anti-climactic?”
That was a good question. “Two people are dead and no one cares. I don’t care. They were horrible people.”
“I still don’t see the problem.”
“The problem is that I have my life back and I have no idea what to do with it,” I said. “I think part of me believed nothing would ever truly be okay again. Now, suddenly, everything is okay. What are we supposed to do?”
Landon’s smile was sly. “I have a suggestion, if you’re interested, of course.”
“Even you can’t do only that for the entire day.”
Landon snorted. “Don’t sell me short, but that’s not what I was talking about. I have something else in mind.”
“What?”
“I thought we could talk about moving in together.”
His statement was so simple I was almost positive I didn’t hear him correctly. “Right now?”
“Right now,” Landon confirmed. “I don’t want to wait any longer. I know what I want.”
I swallowed hard. This was happening fast. “And you want me to move to Traverse City with you?”
Landon’s headshake in the negative was like a dagger to the heart.
“Oh, you don’t want to live with me.”
“That’s not what I said.” Landon gathered my hand and stared at our interlocking fingers. “I want to move here with you.”
My heart warmed at the admission – and the vulnerable expression on his face – and then I crashed back to reality. “You can’t. You have to live in Traverse City.”
“Not if I earned that promotion I told you about.” Landon licked his lips. “I confirmed it with Steve last night … although I guess it was technically more like early this morning. He gave me the promotion, which basically means I’m doing the same job for a little more money and special dispensation for our living arrangements.”
[A Wicked Witches of the Midwest 10.0] Murder Most Witchy Page 30
