The Dirty Coven

by Lily Harper Hart

  “If the idea makes him happy, why not let him believe it?”

  “I don’t know.” Hannah dragged a frustrated hand through her hair. “I’m not really angry with him. I mean ... I am. I don’t understand why he never told me about you. You would think he would’ve mentioned you at some point.”

  “He probably didn’t want to disturb your mother’s memory.”

  “Probably,” Hannah agreed. “I just wish I would’ve had a chance to meet you before you died. I don’t think that’s too much to ask.”

  “You did meet me.”

  “Then I wish I could’ve met you and remembered it,” Hannah challenged, her eyes lighting with irritation. “I feel as if something was stolen from me. I know that’s not fair. It’s not your fault. It’s not my father’s fault. I still feel it.”

  “You don’t want to be angry with your mother,” Abigail deduced. “You think that’s a betrayal ... or a waste of time.”

  “Basically,” Hannah agreed. “When she was sick, we kept telling ourselves she would get better. That was at the start. Then, as she kept getting worse, my brother and I would hear our parents occasionally talking. They kept saying ‘what will come after’ and they were planning for ‘after.’ I didn’t realize that meant she was going to die.”

  Abigail made sympathetic noises as she floated closer to Hannah. “I’m sorry you had to deal with that. It must have been heartbreaking. I wish I’d been there. I would’ve given anything to see her before it happened.”

  “You didn’t see her at all?” For some reason, that bothered Hannah more than anything else. “How come? Didn’t you want to say goodbye?”

  “I didn’t know she was sick until the final day. She never called me. I should’ve called her and made up sooner. I’m sick that we wasted so much time.”

  “She called you the final day?” Hannah was taken aback. “When did she do that? I was with her for hours that day.”

  “Your father arranged it. She wanted to talk, although she was weak. I could hear in her voice that she was close to the end and it crushed me. I don’t think I’ll ever forget how I felt at the realization that she was slipping off the mortal coil and there was absolutely nothing I could do about it.”

  The next question she had to ask was one that made her uncomfortable. Hannah pushed forward anyway. “Could you have saved her? I mean ... I don’t know a lot about magic. Could you have used it to save her if you’d known?”

  Abigail slowly shook her head. “No. That’s not how magic works. You can’t stave off death. There are those who try. There are those who convince themselves it’s possible. In the end, though, fate always gets its way.”

  “I don’t know if that makes me feel better or worse.”

  “What happened was meant to happen.” Abigail sounded sure of herself. “I should’ve swallowed my pride and made up with her long before I found out she was dying. That was a lesson for me. I’m sure it was a lesson for her, too.”

  “If it was such a lesson, how come you didn’t seek me out? Why didn’t you try to get to know me? I’m your only granddaughter. I asked my brother and he says he can’t remember you either. Why didn’t you contact either of us … other than the few times you did it on the sly, I mean?”

  Abigail held out her hands and shrugged. “Part of it was shame. I didn’t want to admit that I was such a terrible mother, that I let things get so far out of hand. I also didn’t want to see the accusations in your eyes. I knew what you would think of me.”

  “We needed help. We needed someone to sit with us, share our grief. We had our father, but he would take off all the time because he didn’t want us to see him cry. That was actually worse.”

  “I’m sure it was.” Abigail wasn’t sure how to answer. “I just ... I made a mistake. Your mother made a mistake. We compounded those mistakes for years. Eventually it was too late to take them back. I’m not proud, but there it is.”

  “Yeah, well, I ... .” Whatever Hannah was about to say died on her lips. At that moment, lightning split the sky again. It was so loud that it rocked the building. The ground rumbled, almost as if an earthquake was about to hit.

  That was enough for Jinx. The dog hopped to his feet, his eyes wild, and scrambled straight for the door.

  “Wait!” Hannah threw herself in the dog’s path in an effort to stop him, but it was already too late. He bowled her over and raced out into the storm, yapping as he disappeared from sight. Hannah was floored when she realized what had happened. “Oh, no.” She wrinkled her nose as she regarded the rain. “I have to go after him.”

  “You can’t go after him.” Abigail was firm. “This is not the sort of storm you simply wander into. It won’t end well if you try.”

  “I don’t have a choice.” Hannah was resigned. “He’s my Jinx. I can’t leave him out there. I have to find him.”

  “Hannah, that’s not a smart move.”

  “When it comes to Jinx, I can’t be smart. I have to follow my heart. You just spent ten minutes telling me how important that was. You can’t change your mind now.”

  COOPER WOULD’VE PREFERRED AVOIDING the rain a second time, but he didn’t want to leave Hannah on her own for too long. As much as he fought the urge to spend time with her — and he most definitely wanted to nip that emotion in the bud — he also didn’t like the idea of leaving her to her own devices. That seemed wrong ... and cowardly. Cooper was many things, but cowardly wasn’t one of them.

  He gathered as much information as he could from Boone and then braved the torrential rains a second time to return to the saloon. He expected to find Hannah working on the computer, perhaps playing games or even surfing the net. Instead, he found the room empty and dark ... although the computer was still running.

  “Well, this is responsible,” he drawled as he crossed to the computer and glanced at the screen before shutting it. He recognized the accounting program and frowned. Hannah had been trying to teach herself in his absence. Apparently she wasn’t as absentminded as he initially thought.

  “Hannah?” He called out her name and lifted his eyes to the ceiling. She could’ve gone upstairs. Maybe she had to use the bathroom or wanted a snack. “Hannah, where are you?” He moved to the wall and hit the hidden light switch. The overhead lamps were supposed to look authentic to the time, as if they were candles, but the fixtures were still electric. Real candles simply weren’t cost effective. He frowned when he realized the light wasn’t engaging. “Hannah?”

  His heartbeat picked up a notch as he moved back to the swinging doors and poked his head over the opening. He looked left and right, hoping he would see a glimpse of her. Perhaps Jinx needed to go out and she had no choice but to take him. There was nothing, though. She was nowhere to be seen.

  “Hannah?” Worry rushed him from all sides. Something wasn’t right about this situation. He didn’t know Hannah well, but she didn’t strike him as the type who would leave an important laptop up and running and then abandon it. Something must’ve happened. “Hannah? Wherever you are, answer me now,” he demanded. “You’re starting to worry me.”

  He listened for an answer but there was no sound. It was silent, other than the storm, until a board creaked behind him. Instinctively, he swiveled and stared into the darkness. He sensed someone behind the bar before he finally caught a hint of movement. He knew within a split second that it wasn’t Hannah. He could feel malevolent energy pooling off the individual in question. It most definitely wasn’t the sunny blonde he was looking for.

  “Astra.” Cooper played a hunch. He wasn’t a hundred-percent certain it was her. He had a feeling, though. “What are you doing here?”

  He recognized her laugh and it chilled him to the bone. “I came to claim what’s mine.”

  “Casper Creek isn’t yours. It will never be yours.”

  “It should’ve been mine.”

  “Yeah, well, Abigail had other ideas.” Cooper clenched his hands into fists at his sides. “That’s not important right no
w, though. Where is Hannah?”

  “Are you trying to tell me that she’s important? I don’t happen to agree.”

  “Where is she?” Cooper gritted out. “What did you do to her?”

  “What makes you think I did anything to her?”

  “Because I know you. I’m not kidding around. If you don’t tell me where she is right now, I’m going to make you sorry.”

  Astra’s chuckle was full of evil delight. “Won’t that be a funny feat?”

  “I’m serious.”

  “Sadly, I know you’re serious. I’m serious, too.” She snapped her fingers and the lights returned to normal, causing Cooper to frown as he focused on the overhead fixture. “We need to have a talk, Cooper. I think it’s time we cleared the air.”

  “I don’t care about clearing the air with you. I care about finding Hannah. Where is she?”

  “I’ll tell you once we talk.”

  Cooper didn’t like being a victim of the woman’s whims, but he didn’t see where he had much choice. Hannah was out there somewhere, waiting, and she needed help. “Fine.” He shot Astra a dirty look as he flopped into one of the chairs at the table. “You have five minutes. Talk.”

  “Oh, such a gentleman.”

  “You’ll see how much I’m not a gentleman if I don’t have Hannah back in exactly five minutes. Say what you have to say, though. I’m dying to hear it.”

  19

  Nineteen

  Hannah was soaked through to the skin within seconds of hitting the street. She ignored it and cocked her head to the side, listening for the telltale sound of Jinx barking. After a moment, she was rewarded, and she hurried in that direction without a backwards glance.

  She knew Cooper would be agitated when he realized she’d taken off. He would stomp and complain that she hadn’t bothered to collect him before running headlong into a storm. She couldn’t help that now, though. She was out here. She had to find Jinx. He was the one thing from her old world that was absolutely necessary to the happiness in her new. She had to find him ... and fast.

  Hannah wasn’t yet completely familiar with the town, but she knew the order of the buildings. She was almost past the blacksmith shop when she heard Jinx again. This time she was certain he was behind the buildings.

  She ducked between the businesses and picked up her pace, almost skidding thanks to the mud when she reached the other side. The relief she felt when she found Jinx was palpable. He stood in the middle of the street, yapping like a madman, and she was ready to scold him ... until she realized he wasn’t alone.

  There, in the shadows of a storage shed she hadn’t paid much attention to until this exact moment, stood three women she was only mildly familiar with. That is to say she’d seen two of their faces before, the day at the creek. The third was a mystery, but she instinctively knew who it was.

  “What are you guys doing here?” Hannah’s heart sank. Apparently the spell that was cast earlier in the day had failed. Either that or they had another entrance no one knew about. That was always possible, too.

  “We’re looking for you.” The nearest witch boasted long, dull brown hair. It hung well past her shoulders and even though the rain had plastered it to her face, Hannah could tell she was a pretty woman. Well, other than the evil look on her face, that is.

  “You’re looking for me, huh?” Hannah didn’t think of herself as the panicking sort but her heartbeat sped up a notch. “You should leave. You’re not welcome here.”

  “Oh, we should leave,” the woman mocked, clearly enjoying herself. “What if we don’t want to leave?”

  That was a fair question. Hannah had no idea how to answer it. “Then I guess I’ll have to force you to leave.” She hoped she sounded braver than she felt. “This isn’t your property. It’s my property. I want you off of it.”

  “Oh, yeah?” The woman’s smile spread into something only a clown would be comfortable boasting. It was deranged and chilled Hannah to the bone. “Make us leave. We dare you.”

  “THE CLOCK IS TICKING, ASTRA. Why do you keep coming back here?” Cooper was frustrated as he stared at the woman he once thought he cared about. His temper was about to spew forth and the only thing he knew was that he had to control it.

  “Why do you think?”

  The question made Cooper uncomfortable. “To see me, I guess.”

  She let loose a laugh that was gay and hollow. “You have a mighty high opinion of yourself, don’t you?”

  “Why else would you come here?”

  “You know why.” Her eyes darkened. “Abigail made certain promises to me. She didn’t hold up her end of the bargain.”

  Cooper was suspicious. He’d always been concerned with the interest Astra showed in Casper Creek, but she seemed to have quadrupled her zest to own the property in the past few months. He didn’t understand it. He wasn’t even sure he wanted to. He had to find Hannah, though. He figured the only way to do that was to force Astra to open up.

  “Abigail never promised you this land.” He chose his words carefully. “She said that you had the ability to tap into the power of the land. There’s a difference. I never understood what she meant by that. I’m betting you do, though.”

  “Oh, I understand a great deal.”

  “Then tell me,” he prodded. “Tell me what’s so important about Casper Creek. Perhaps you and Hannah can work out a deal if it’s that important.”

  “There is no deal that can be worked out. I want all of it. I deserve all of it.”

  She was deluded. In his heart, Cooper had known that for a long time. “You don’t deserve anything. You betrayed Abigail. You messed with magic you shouldn’t have been messing with. She never promised you anything. You sound like an entitled brat.”

  “Yes, well, this entitled brat is about to get everything she ever hoped for.”

  The way she said the words made Cooper’s blood run cold. “Where is Hannah? What did you do to her?”

  Astra’s expression turned playful. “I thought I had five minutes. It hasn’t even been two yet.”

  Now he definitely knew something was wrong. She was trying to distract him. “Where is Hannah?” Slowly, he pushed himself to a standing position and scorched the woman on the other side of the room with all the anger he could muster. She didn’t appear frightened. She did, however, look annoyed that he was so fixated on another woman.

  “Tell me something, Cooper, do you care about her?”

  He brushed aside the question. “Where is she?”

  “Do you see yourself hopping into bed with her, charming her, maybe even convincing her to marry you? Then you would be master of this town and you could run it the way you always wanted. Abigail would never give you free rein. You hated that about her.”

  “No, I loved Abigail.” Cooper refused to be manipulated by empty words. “I loved her like she was a member of my own family.”

  “So ... that would make Hannah your sister, correct?”

  “Stop playing games!” He slammed his hands on the table. “Where is Hannah? I’m not joking. If you don’t turn her over right now, I’ll ... .” What? There wasn’t a threat he could make that Astra would believe. He wasn’t about to kill her. He didn’t have it in him. So, what could he threaten her with?

  “Stop worrying about your new girlfriend,” Astra shot back, annoyance lacing her words. “She’s perfectly fine. Nothing will happen to her.”

  “Where is she?”

  “She’s ... been detained.”

  “By whom?” He didn’t need to ask the question. He already knew the answer. “Your little trio of witch misfits have her, don’t they? What do you think is going to happen? She’s not going to sign over this town to you no matter what you do to her. That’s not who she is.”

  “I guess we’ll have to see.” Astra studied her fingernails, as if she were bored. “Something tells me she’ll do anything to save that mongrel of hers. He ran into the storm. She followed. He had a little help, of course. He’s leading her ri
ght into a trap ... and she’s not leaving the trap until I have what I want.”

  On a whim, Cooper strode toward her with purpose. Momentarily, her eyes went wide. When he simply grabbed her hands instead of shaking her, she let loose a laugh. “What’s this about?”

  “They’re both here,” Cooper muttered as he studied her fingernails. “Both the rhinestones are here.”

  Astra made a face. “Of course they are. You know how I feel when my look isn’t complete.”

  He dropped her hands and dragged a hand through his damp hair. “I need you to answer something for me. I need you to tell the truth.”

  “I always tell the truth.”

  “You never tell the truth.” His fury was so hot it scorched her from two feet away. “Astra, did you have something to do with Jordan’s and Kip’s murders?”

  She looked amused rather than annoyed that he would accuse her of anything of the sort. “No. Don’t be ridiculous. I’m not a murderer, whatever you may think.”

  Cooper thought a great many things about her — and none of them were flattering — but he believed her. “Well, one of your little witches did. Heck, maybe the other three banded together and carried it out. It’s possible.”

  “And why would they do that?”

  “I have no idea. I was hoping you could tell me.”

  “I’m confused why you think that would even benefit me,” Astra argued. “I mean ... it’s ludicrous. There’s no profit. I only do things for profit.”

  “You could scare away Hannah. You might believe that dead bodies are enough to make her run.”

  “I guess that’s possible, but dead bodies are also enough to draw cops ... and you know how I feel about cops.”

  That was also true. Astra wasn’t comfortable around law enforcement. She never said why — and Cooper didn’t ask — but he’d always been curious. He’d assumed Astra was behind the murders because she was the only one trying to make trouble. What if it was someone else?