“I don’t think you’ll have that problem again.”
“You don’t think they will come back with a bigger army?”
“No,” Briella shook her head. “I think they are passing on the news of the fierce scarecrow they encountered in this cornfield and warning other birds to stay away from here, if they value their lives. You have just become a legend. I think they will venture somewhere else for their dining needs. A place that is not guarded by a scarecrow. Birds, like any other creature, are interested in the easiest way to secure their food. You were so brave.”
“I was doing what you created me to do.”
“That was above and beyond the scope of your job, don’t you think?”
“No, I do not. You wanted me to keep the birds away from the corn, and that is what I did.”
“Thank you, Mr Scarecrow. I appreciate your service.”
“You are welcome. I think I had better get some help for these birds. They appear to have broken wings.”
“I’ll get help. You stay here and watch over them.”
Chapter Seventeen
Briella found Force, who dropped everything, returned quickly, and healed the injured birds. After hearing of the battle between the scarecrow and the birds, he wished Briella had not sent him away. “I would have liked to have seen that,” he stated.
“Yes, but if you had been here, you might have helped, and it wouldn’t have been as spectacular.”
“True that,” Force replied. “Pity you didn’t capture it on camera.”
“How would I do that?”
“With a mobile phone. They have fantastic cameras in them these days.”
“April is going to get me one soon. You’ll have to teach me how to use it.”
“That would be my pleasure. ‘Though, wouldn’t it be easier for you to learn from April?”
“I’ve never seen her take pictures. I’ve only seen her use it to talk to people.”
Force looked at the scarecrow who had taken to watching the sky again. Briella saw that he was going to say something and stopped him. “If you are going to tell him to relax, don’t bother. It seems that this one is better than any guard dog I’ve ever come across. He takes his job seriously and refuses to stand down.”
“What is he going to do when it gets dark?”
“I guess he will guard the corn against the fruit bats.”
“But they don’t eat corn.”
“We know that. He will be inanimate come sunrise.”
“I know,” Force said. “Until then, what do we do with him?”
“Leave him to it, I guess. He is the most boring person, ever. He won’t make eye contact when he talks and only has half his mind on the conversation. The other half is persistently looking for birds.”
“You sound disappointed.”
“I am,” she laughed. “I was so scared of him when he was a figment of my imagination. When we created him for real, I was still a little afraid of him. Now I am miffed that I cannot hold his attention. He brushes me aside as though I am not important. I don’t like feeling insignificant.”
“You will never be insignificant, Briella. You are instrumental in keeping the humans safe from creatures that would do them harm. You will always be important.”
“Thanks, Force. Do you know what it was that April had to return?”
“No, I don’t know,” he lied. He had seen the package when she had retrieved it from the drawer and tried to sneak it into her bag. He was pretty sure she had bought some pretty underwear when she had been under the influence of the energy transfer. Since their energy had returned to normal, she probably felt uncomfortable with the fact she had wanted him to kiss her, and decided to return the items. Force wasn’t concerned. She looked beautiful even when she wasn’t wearing pretty underwear that increased her confidence.
“What do you want to do now?”
“I don’t know. Do you want to watch ‘How Do I Look?’ on the television?”
He didn’t, but caught the hint that she wanted some company. As April was still in town and Scout was off doing her own thing, he said, “That would be great. Do we need to pick up some snacks?”
“No, that won’t be necessary. Do you think we could make a second scarecrow?”
“You want another one?”
“Not for me. For him,” she pointed in his direction. “Don’t you think it would be nice to have a female scarecrow to keep him company in the garden?”
“He won’t be conscious to realise he has a partner.”
“I know. But I’ll know there is a friend out there for him, and it will make me feel better.”
Force hadn’t realised how deep Briella’s heart ran. “That is a beautiful thing,” he admitted, thinking how lonely it would be out here day after day. “Are you going to give them an opportunity to get to know one another before sunrise?”
“Nah. That would complicate things for Mr Scarecrow. Look how happy he is standing guard. I couldn’t take that away from him.”
“Are you going to bring him back to life for the party?”
“I don’t know. What would be the point?”
“There wouldn’t be one, I guess.” Force began walking back to the pub, Briella flying beside him.
“Goodbye, Mr Scarecrow,” she called over her shoulder.
“Goodbye, Fairy,” he replied with a salute. “I shall continue to guard the corn with my life.”
Briella felt sad. “I wish I had never let the girls talk me into making him.”
“You were so scared of scarecrows, Briella, that it was affecting you in your sleep. They had to do something to keep you healthy.”
“Yeah, but I feel so bad for him.”
“Why? Even when he loses the magic that keeps him alive, he will be hanging on the poles, doing what he loves. A lot of people go through life, Briella, feeling as though they don’t have a purpose. He is one of the luckier ones. He knows why he has been put on this Earth, and he loves what he does. You shouldn’t waste your sorrow on him.”
“I never thought about it that way, Force. We have a purpose in life, and it is a good one.”
“It sure is,” he grinned. “Speaking of purposes, there is another that I wish to push to the forefront.”
“What is it?” Briella asked intrigued.
“How would you feel about me pursuing a relationship with April?”
Briella grinned, “I think that would be wonderful, but you might want to check with Scout.”
“Doesn’t she like April?”
“She loves April. You have worked with Scout for a very long time and you have become very close. You might want to get her blessing before you begin your quest to conquer April’s heart.”
“Conquer April’s heart? Have you been reading some of those romance books?”
“No, I’m just a sucker for a guy who has a difficult job ahead of him.”
“So, April doesn’t feel anything for me?”
“On the contrary, Force. April likes you more than she wants to admit. She is scared of messing up your friendship.”
“I see. Well, I’ll just have to allay those fears, won’t I? I think I’ll begin while we’re creating a girlfriend for your scarecrow.”
“As long as you talk to Scout first,” Briella reminded him.
They’d reached the pub and smiled as April came around the corner. She had a perplexed look on her face. “Everything all right, April?” Force inquired.
Force’s words rushed through her head, although she managed to keep her face blank. She wanted to tell him he should keep his thoughts protected from mind-link, but said nothing. If he had been unguarded, she wouldn’t have known he still wanted to pursue a relationship with her. She wasn’t ready for that.
She knew she wouldn’t be able to protect her heart from getting hurt. She already liked him more than she should. He was a colleague, and it should remain that way. April had to get away. She knew that if he kissed her, it would be all over. There would
be no coming back from that.
So she said the only thing she could think of, “I’ve got to get back to the coast. There is a problem with one of the units that I need to take care of.”
“I’ll come with you,” he said.
“No,” she replied a little too quickly. “There’s no need. It should only take a couple of days. I’ll be back in time for settlement on the property.”
Liam forced a fake smile, “Okay then. See you in a couple of days.”
He walked inside, allowing the door to close behind him. His emotions were in too much of a turmoil to think of behaving like a gentleman. He felt like he had been kicked in the guts. As much as he tried, he couldn’t shake the feeling that April was trying to distance herself from him. No amount of self-talk could shake him out of his funk. It wasn’t as though she knew of his plans, and when you were a property owner, things were going to go wrong from time to time. It wasn’t her fault that it happened to fall at the wrong time.
He went to his room and closed the door. April wasn’t to blame, but he was still mad at her. At least he would be over these feelings by the time she returned, and he would have a new plan to break down the walls she had erected against him.
Force walked to the bedside table and opened the drawer. He grabbed a small jewellery case he’d hidden beneath some junk he kept in there. Opening the lid, his gaze fell upon a silver chain with a sapphire secured in the middle of a heart-shaped pendant. He closed his eyes and pictured the necklace nestled against April’s skin.
With a smile on his face, he lowered himself until he was sitting on top of the mattress. Opening his eyes, he closed the lid and hid the case once more. Feeling a lot calmer, he walked to the window and stared into the distance.
His brain sent him an image of carrying April over the threshold of their new home. The same idea the fairies had come up with, popped into his mind. He would play the part of Wade, while Callum would be relegated to the role of playing Liam. A grin slowly spread across his face. It was time he had a talk with Scout.
About the Author
MARNIE IS AN AUSTRALIAN author who lives in South-East Queensland with her husband and two children. When she is not dreaming up new adventures for her characters; Marnie enjoys writing, reading paranormal romance novels, and spending time with her family and friends. Not necessarily in that order.
Visit her website at: www.marnieatwell.com for more books, pictures, and downloads.
The next book in the Halloween Madness series is:
The Curious Kitten
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Also by Marnie Atwell
Halloween Madness
The Pumpkin Patch
The House of Horrors
The Spirited Scarecrow
Starlight Investigations
Jealousy Monsters
Vampire
The Spirited Scarecrow Page 7
