Witching for the Best

by Samantha Silver

  “I think we’re just fine right here,” he said, puffing out his chest. “Why are you here? What are you doing?” he demanded, his voice getting louder as he stepped forward. I stumbled back, nearly falling down the three little concrete steps. He suddenly pointed a finger directly at me.

  I gasped, feeling sick to my stomach. This was not going well at all.

  “You show up on my front step unannounced,” he said angrily, advancing on me slowly. “And you say you want talk. So talk. Why are you here? What’s your reason for showing up like this?”

  “Ryan, I-”

  “Spit it out!” he shouted, waving his finger at me, my eyes never leaving it. “Say it! We both know exactly what you’re thinking, so just say it!”

  If this came down to a duel, I was screwed. Even in school, I was never good at dueling. I lost my head, got nervous. Froze up. Fell apart. What in the name of the moon was I doing here? This had been such a bad idea.

  “Say it, you coward!” he bellowed.

  “I know what you did, Ryan. I know you killed Susanna Andhrimir. I know.” My voice trembled as I said it.

  “Oh, do you? And how’s that? You’re not a cop. You’re not a detective. You’re just some random girl who runs a bed and breakfast. You don’t know anything about me!” he shouted.

  “I know how you felt about your father’s relationship with Susanna,” I reasoned, steadily regaining my strength. “I know you didn’t like her. You hated her, actually, for taking your mother’s place.”

  “Shut your mouth!” he growled. “You know nothing. Nobody could ever take my mother’s place.”

  “I know that. And so do you. But that knowledge wasn’t enough to make you feel any better about it. You hated seeing them together, didn’t you?” I said. “You hated it so much you couldn’t stand it. And that’s why you killed her.”

  “Shut up!” Ryan cried, his face turning beet-red.

  “Admit it, Ryan! Just confess! The cops will go easier on you if you just come clean,” I told him passionately.

  “Shut up! Shut up, shut up, shut up!” he wailed, and with a flick of his finger he yelled, “Pelloroa!” and a gust of powerful wind knocked me backward, the air punched out of my lungs as I flew back several feet and landed on the ground, on my butt, with a painful thump.

  He was running toward me, tears in his eyes and rage on his face. He pointed at me again and shouted, “Corporis vorsoroa!”

  My heart skipped a beat in terror - that spell was one banned by the dueling leagues for being too cruel. It was a torturous spell, one that caused the opponent’s body to twist and writhe in intense agony. Luckily, my reflexes kicked in and I yelped, “Redigoa!” essentially deflecting the spell before it could land.

  A flash of something small and dark went soaring through the air and it took me a half-second to realize it was Luna! She leapt right up at Ryan, clawing her way up his clothing to swipe at his face with an enraged hiss.

  “Damn cat!” Ryan burst out, flailing to scrape her off of him.

  I took that moment of pause to jump to my feet and scream, “Torpescoroa!”

  Ryan was too distracted by Luna’s claws to deflect the spell and his body went rigid and stiff as a board. He fell over in a way that would have been almost comical if not for the serious danger of the moment. Luna leapt off of him and I dashed forward, catching her in my arms as I walked over and stood beside Ryan’s stiffened body. He was looking up at me with wide, frantic eyes, but there was nothing he could do. I had sufficiently subdued him, for now, but there was no telling how long the spell would be able to hold a big, tough, strong guy like him.

  I did the only thing I could think to do. I whipped out my cell phone and called Chief Forsetti. Xander picked up and before he could say a word I rambled, “Xander! Come! Now! Help! Please! I knocked him out but I don’t know how long it’ll last!”

  “Whoa, whoa, whoa. You did what to whom?” he asked.

  “Ryan Kolbeck! I’m at his house on Windy Street! He’s the one, Xander. He’s the one who killed Susanna Andhrimir. Hurry!” I all but shrieked into the phone.

  I stood over Ryan with my finger pointed directly at his face until Xander and a couple other cops showed up about ten minutes later. When they arrived, they quickly moved me out of the way and arrested Ryan, putting him in magically-binding handcuffs and leading him away on a broomstick. Xander rushed to me and grabbed me by both arms, turning me to face him. There was a look of pure terror on his face, his blue eyes wide and searching.

  “Are you alright?” he asked, shaking me slightly

  I nodded. “Yeah, I’m okay.”

  “Good,” he said, then before I could even react, he grabbed me into his arms and gave me a tight hug. It lasted only a few seconds, but was enough to render me speechless for a good while.

  “Do you realize how stupid that was? Charging up to a dangerous man accusing him of murder without backup? Heck, not even backup. You shouldn’t have been here in the first place. At all. You’re not a cop, Artemis! You could have gotten seriously injured - or killed!” he shouted, equally angry and concerned.

  “I know. I know. I’m sorry,” I managed to croak.

  “I mean, you did good. You got him. But geez, that’s not your job! You don’t have the training for this stuff!” he raged on, raking his fingers back through his hair in that way I was starting to really like.

  “Chief - Xander, I’m sorry,” I said again. “Seriously. I apologize. You’re right. I got ahead of myself on this one and I stepped out of line.”

  “Way out of line!” he agreed.

  “It was stupid,” I said.

  “So stupid!” he shouted.

  “And I won’t do it again,” I concluded.

  “Darn straight you won’t” he cried, finally heaving a sigh and calming down. He gazed at me for a little longer than was necessary, and I wondered what thoughts were going through his head. Finally, he just shook his head and said, “Okay. I’ll need to take a statement from you. But not right now. Tomorrow. Right now, I need you to go home. Call your mom. Call your sister or your father or whoever, and have them come over. Spend some time with your loved ones. Think about how broken-hearted any of them would be if something had happened to you here today. Okay? And stay out of trouble. Don’t make any other stops on the way. Can you do that for me?”

  I nodded. “Yes, sir.”

  “Good,” he said, turning to walk away. Then he stopped and looked back. “And don’t call me sir.”

  “Got it,” I said. As he walked off, Luna nudged my leg with her head. I looked down to see her giving me the most self-satisfied smirk of all time.

  “Ooh. Someone’s all worried about you,” she sneered.

  “Shut it, Luna,” I said, bending to scoop her up. “Let’s go home.”

  Chapter 20

  “Just let me get rid of the fish,” I insisted as I hovered around Mom and Diana, who were standing over a pile of what must have been sixty different shades of wall colors, holding up each one and giving it a rating on a scale of 1 to 10. A 1 meant “condemned hospital on the wrong side of town,” while 10 meant “5-star European hotel” quality. So far, the winner for the kitchen walls was a warm red that would make me have to buy a whole new set of kitchenware.

  And even with Di here, we both knew that Mom was the one calling the shots on the renovation. She had finally come around all the way and was actually getting excited about changing things up in the place.

  Of course, that meant her commanding personality was back in force.

  “Will that clash with the deck furniture you can see from the window?” Diana ventured, and I could tell by the look on her face she was just prodding along an idea Mom had already had.

  “Ooh, maybe,” mom said, one hand on her hip and one on her chin, like she was commanding an army. “But that old deck is due for a facelift too, no reason we can’t spruce up that old blue with something fresher.”

  “Adding it to the list,” Di said
, jotting it down on a large notebook she had at her side. “The list” was basically an ever-growing bill I’d have to handle for all the sprucing up Mom had in mind. I’d definitely opened the floodgates, so I couldn’t really blame anyone but myself for it, but even so, I didn’t mind too much.

  I especially didn’t mind since Lara Lancaster’s quiet endorsement meant I was getting money practically thrown at me by people coming from places I’d never dream of even visiting myself. I didn’t expect it to last, since I didn’t really see my little B&B becoming a celebrity hotspot no matter who endorsed it, but it was a nice windfall.

  And as Mom and Di took control of the renovations, I couldn’t help but feel a little like the natural order of things had been restored. It reminded me of being a teenager again trying to decorate my own room. I said one thing about wanting new curtains, and suddenly, Mom and Di - but mostly Mom - were in like a construction crew. It just felt right, and it took a lot of pressure off me.

  And now that everything was over with the case of Susanna’s Andhrimir’s murder, taking more pressure off was one thing that I was absolutely ready to welcome.

  I was starting to feel nervous, though, despite the fact that I’d personally watched Xander haul off Ryan to the station. There was no room for wiggling out of things for Ryan. Even if the evidence didn’t squarely point to him now, he was facing attempted murder charges against me, and my testimony was going to be the nail in his coffin.

  But a few minutes ago, I’d gotten a text from Xander letting me know that he was on his way over after having spoken with the Andhrimirs, and no matter what I told myself, that kind of cryptic message put my stomach in knots.

  At least Elisa and the family would have the closure she needed and deserved. The funeral service for Susanna was tomorrow, and I knew it meant the world to them that they’d be able to bury her knowing exactly what caused all this.

  Truth be told, the reality of my brush with death? That hadn’t really hit me yet. I was looking forward to having my “Oh my moon, I nearly died” breakdown in oh, about a week or so, but my subconscious was surprisingly good at bottling that kind of thing up until the worst possible time. Maybe the closure would help me, too, but as long as I didn’t break down and start crying halfway through making beef bourguignon for some Hollywood celebrity, I’d be okay with it.

  I was zoning out thinking about that scenario when the doorbell made me nearly jump out of my skin. Mom and Di looked up suddenly, surprised. “Expecting someone, Arti?” Mom asked.

  “Oh, I forgot to mention,” I said with a blush, brushing a lock of hair out of my face, “Xan- uh, Chief Forsetti said he was coming over to talk about the case.”

  “Oh!” Mom said, exchanging a look with Diana. “That’s not like you to forget, dear.”

  She was right, it wasn’t.

  “Sorry, it’s been a rough couple of days,” I said with a nervous laugh, hurrying to the door. “He’s fine though, I’m fine. We’re fine!” I ignored their perplexed stares as I opened the door to see Xander in the doorway, and for, I thought, the first time, I was glad to see him there - for more reasons than one.

  He had taken his police jacket off, leaving him in a tight-fitting white t-shirt that hugged, well, everything. The jacket was hanging over an arm as thick as a tree trunk, with his hand holding his hat. Now that I thought about it, I didn’t think I’d ever seen him in plain clothes, and I had a feeling this was as close as I was going to get for the time being.

  Not that I wanted to see him in plain clothes or anything.

  I did, however, have to remind myself that he had been military in the human world, not a lumberjack.

  “Hi!” I said a little too brightly.

  “Afternoon,” he said with his usual rough-around-the-edges smile accented by five o’clock shadow. “Everything good? I’ve been a bit worried, leaving you alone right after everything that happened.”

  “Oh! Um, thanks!” I stammered, smiling brightly. “But I’m not totally alone. I mean, here. In general.” My face was growing redder as I stumbled over the words and his eyebrow arched, so I just stood aside for him to come in and jabbed a thumb at Mom and Di, who were staring blatantly at this train wreck from the kitchen. “Family,” I said simply.

  “Hey, there,” he said with a polite wave to everyone inside as he stepped into the living room.

  “Can I get you anything?” I asked, closing the door behind him. “Coffee, whisky, steak?” He stared at me blankly. “I mean, I’m making steak for dinner.” I tried to recover, but I just shook my head and waved a hand. “Nevermind. How’s everything with the case?”

  “Well,” he said, crossing his arms, “I’m happy to say that Ryan confessed to everything as soon as we sat him down.”

  I breathed a sigh of relief, and I heard a similar one from the kitchen. Before long, the two of them stalked up to the entrance to the living room to listen in. Xander noticed, but he didn’t seem to mind.

  “The man’s got a lot of anger,” Xander explained, his face hard but sad. “We have him on record admitting that he killed Susanna Andhrimir because he was angry about his father moving on so soon after his mother passed, and he was convinced that Susanna was playing him somehow, either with some spell or, you know, feminine wiles,” he said, making air quotes with his fingers. “You know, old-fashioned misogyny.”

  I nodded, feeling my gut wrench at the whole situation. “And Gertrude?”

  “Ryan had no idea Elton and Gertrude were having an affair,” Xander said with a deeper frown. “We got Elton to admit that he’d been seeing her while seeing Susanna. If he hadn’t been playing his game of love around the Senior’s Center, Ryan might not have gone off the deep end, and Susanna might still be alive. He’s going to have to live with that. I’ll be surprised if he doesn’t move to another town, live out the rest of his time quietly. To say the Kolbeck name has gone through the mud would be an understatement, especially with the Andhrimirs.”

  “Are you afraid this could start a fight in town?” I asked, wringing my hands.

  “I doubt the Andhrimirs are willing to go that far, but I’m definitely going to be keeping an eye on things. And it’s what I’m using as encouragement to get Elton to either skip town or lay low. The way Ryan handled the murder, you’d think he was trying to start a feud. The Kolbeck coven has always had the sea as their symbol. Strangling Susanna with a boat rope and taking her out to sea was like the start of some old Viking saga. In hindsight, it should have tipped us off.”

  He shook his head sadly, running a hand over his face. Somehow, that kind of profound sadness written all over those hard features was, well, handsome.

  “This kind of thing doesn’t happen in this day and age,” he finally said. “Or at least, it shouldn’t.” He then gave me a surprising smile, a look of gratitude on his face. “And hopefully, with citizens like you unable to keep your noses out of it, people will be less likely to try. I appreciate your help, Arti. So, thanks.”

  It was an awkward thanks, but it was a thanks, and I felt my heart soar for more than just the way his eyes sparkled in the light. “Well, I’m always happy to be of service!” I said, rocking back and forth on my feet, and immediately, my face went red. Did I seriously just say that? I found myself asking that question a lot when I was around Xander.

  “Well,” he said, glancing up to the family and smiling politely, “I can see you’re in the middle of something, so I won’t hold you up,” he said, putting his hat back on and tipping it. “You take it easy, Miss Mani.”

  “You too, Chief,” I squeaked, and he flashed a smile before stepping back out the door and shutting it behind him.

  I found myself smiling after he was gone, proud of myself, but a sound behind me popped my ego like a balloon.

  “What was that?” mom said, as my head whipped around to glare at them. She was grinning ear to ear, and Di was very pointedly trying not to look my way, drinking coffee through a smile she was trying not to let grow.
r />   “What?” I asked, confused. “What was what? I told you he was coming over!”

  “Arti, hon,” mom said, nearly breaking down into a fit of laughter. “The police chief? Really?”

  “What?!” I demanded again, looking between the two of them like I was going senile or something. “Is there a gas leak? What are you two laughing about?”

  “You’re about as subtle as a fireworks display, Arti,” Di said.

  “No!” I protested, but Mom’s arms were crossed, and I watched my worst nightmare unfold in front of my eyes.

  “My little girl has a crush!” mom chimed in an almost singsong voice, and I felt the color in my face drain as I groaned, slumping against the door and letting the back of my head hit it.

  Well, maybe not everything was back to normal.

  Also by Samanatha Silver

  First of all, I wanted to thank you for reading my book. I well and truly hope you enjoyed reading this book as much as I loved writing it.

  If you did enjoy Witching for the Best I’d really appreciate it if you could take a moment and leave a review for the book on Amazon, to help other readers find the book as well.

  Want to be the first to find out about new releases? Sign up for my newsletter by clicking here now.

  Want more of Arti’s adventures? The third Moonlight Cove Mystery is set for release in February 2018.

  Moonlight Cove Mysteries

  Witching Aint’s Easy (Moonlight Cove Mystery #1)

  Witching for the Best (Moonlight Cove Mystery #2)

  Willow Bay Witches Mysteries:

  The Purr-fect Crime (Willow Bay Witches #1)

  Barking up the Wrong Tree (Willow Bay Witches #2)

  Just Horsing Around (Willow Bay Witches #3)

  Lipstick on a Pig (Willow Bay Witches #4)