As she swerved onto the lane leading to Issy’s home in the hills surrounding the lake, her memories turned nostalgic. Her mom had always been a sucker for Christmas, and her warm, caring spirit always made the holidays sparkle. Of course, that was before DeeDee had discovered just how awful her dad treated her mom.
Even now, five years on from her mother’s death, it still made her blood boil.
Near her heart rested the pendant her mother had given her that last day. It was a mustard seed, encased in a tiny glass bubble. The seed, her mom told her, had the power to make someone change their mind or “plant a seed of an idea.” She’d given it to DeeDee to help her avoid the same situation she’d ended up in—a loveless marriage.
Except there was no way DeeDee could escape the arrangement her father had made. Not without dire consequences for her younger sister. Nia was also the reason DeeDee had to go through with this marriage, no matter how she felt about her yet-to-be-revealed fiancé.
Because if DeeDee didn’t marry this guy, chances were good their father would force Nia to do it.
She couldn’t allow that to happen to her beloved sister.
So she’d go through with it. She would.
Now, if only her dad would get back from his honeymoon with his new—and much younger—wife so DeeDee could get the dumb ceremony over with, she’d be all set.
At the base of the foothills leading up into the mountains, she decided to veer off onto one of her favorite woodland paths, and before long, she came to the Promising Tree—a gnarled old pine tree, its trunk scarred from the claws of werewolves who’d come to promise their true love. Despite being an evergreen, the poor thing had precious few pine needles on it. Legend said when true love was promised, new leaves would flourish.
Will I ever stand here and pledge my true love?
Given she was marrying a stranger to seal a pack treaty, chances weren’t good. Sighing, DeeDee turned away and spotted two sets of snowshoe prints through the moonlight. It was time to hit Issy’s house. She sprinted the rest of the short distance to her friend’s house then up the steps to the front door, knocking twice while she caught her breath.
Issy answered with a warm smile. “Hey, DeeDee. How are you? Come on in.”
The Quinns were friendly, smart, hardworking—and a pretty talented bunch of witches to boot. She stepped inside Issy’s house, and the place looked like a page out of a holiday magazine. White lights twinkled in every window, and a plain wreath with a red bow decorated the door.
“I didn’t hear your car,” Issy said as she closed the door behind DeeDee.
“Oh, I didn’t drive.” She gestured toward her running gear. “Needed to burn off some energy.”
“Well, come sit by the fire then and warm up.” Issy led her into the living room. The place smelled like pine and apple pie. Cheery carols played on the stereo. A cozy fire crackled in the fireplace, and a gorgeously decorated tree stood before the picture window looking out over the lake, and snow-capped mountains rose in the distance.
It all looked like something off a postcard.
From the large wraparound leather sofa, the three other Quinn cousins waved and greeted her—Raine, Ember, and Gray. Dex sat in an armchair across from them, a glass of eggnog in his hand. He gave DeeDee a brief wave.
Issy offered her some eggnog too, which DeeDee accepted, then she moved to take a seat next to Gray on the sofa. Before she could reach him, though, another sneezing jag happened. Sniffling, DeeDee looked up through watering eyes to see a sprig of mistletoe dangling from the entrance to the living room. Jeez, the offending stuff was everywhere these days.
Gray held out a box of tissues and patted the seat beside him. “Cold?”
“Allergies.” She took a few tissues from the box then settled in.
“I might have some mistletoe varieties that wouldn’t set off your sneezing,” Raine offered. She ran the local greenhouse and was a specialist when it came to plants. “If you’re interested.”
“I’m not,” DeeDee said, smiling. “But thanks anyway.”
“So what brings you out tonight?” Issy asked, handing DeeDee her eggnog then taking a seat on the arm of Dex’s chair. He slid his arm around her waist, and for a moment DeeDee felt a twinge of yearning. She’d love to have such easy affection with someone someday.
“Oh, like I told Issy, I was jogging and thought I’d stop by and say hello.” She took a sip of her eggnog and found it heavy on the rum. Very tasty, but best to swig cautiously. No wonder Dex was over there grinning widely. He was probably feeling no pain at that point.
“And here I thought you’d come by to see if we knew anything about Tucker Rockwood,” Ember said, winking. Ember ran the local chocolate shop, Divine Cravings. DeeDee was a frequent customer of the establishment. They had the best caramel pecan turtles ever.
“Well, now that you bring it up.” DeeDee laughed along with the group, wishing her own family got along as well as the Quinns. “Did Dex fill you guys in on what happened?”
“Yep,” Issy said. “Too bad we don’t really know anything more than you do at this point. We’ll keep our eyes out, though, and let you know if we see anything.”
“Thanks.”
“I told them about Stan’s new obsession with Ursula too,” Dex said.
DeeDee rolled her eyes. No need to contain it here, amongst friends. “Yeah. The only good thing is he’s leaving me alone now.”
“That is good,” Issy said, chuckling. “He seemed to have the hots for you for a while.”
She didn’t miss the flicker of pity across Issy’s face. The Quinn cousins knew all about her impending arranged marriage into the MacPherson pack and why it was so important she go through with it.
“I felt bad for Ursula, though,” Dex said. “So much so that I volunteered to go back there tomorrow to get the final reports instead of Stan. And you know how badly that place creeps me out.”
“You’re a good man, buddy.” DeeDee meant it too. Dex Nolan was the best, for a human. If only she could find a werewolf guy like him. Too bad her husband had been selected for her already. No sense mooning over that now, though. It was a done deal. “So you guys haven’t seen or heard anything about possible paranormal involvement in the murder? I thought maybe since Brimstone showed up at the crime scene earlier, you guys had sent him.”
“Nope,” Raine said.
“Nothing here either,” Ember agreed.
Gray just shook his head, unusually somber. He ran the local hair salon, Sheer Magic, and had all the women of Silver Hollow fawning at his feet. At six-foot-plus, his handsome, pirate-y good looks and sinful smile were the stuff of female dreams. He was always the charming life of the party too. So for her good friend to be so quiet and reserved took DeeDee aback.
“Well, that’s good,” she said, keeping her eye on Gray. “It means Owen can investigate to his heart’s content and I don’t have to worry about covering anyone’s paranormal tracks for him or Stan.”
They chatted for a while about the upcoming holidays, and Raine launched into a whole spiel about the pagan origins of the traditional Christmas tree. As interesting as it was, DeeDee couldn’t help worrying about her friend, though.
“You okay?” she asked Gray quietly, nudging him with her shoulder. After all his help performing that full-moon ceremony to boost her attractiveness, DeeDee owed Gray big time. If he needed a friend, she was more than happy to return the favor. “Anything I can help with?”
“Nah.” He seemed to give himself a mental shake and flashed her his dazzling smile. “Thanks, but I’m okay.”
“Well, the offer stands. If you ever need anything, even just to talk, you let me know.”
“Will do.”
With that, DeeDee finished her eggnog then pushed to her feet. “Well, Quinns, it’s been super nice, but I have an early day tomorrow, so I’m going to head home.”
“Want me to give you a ride?” Raine asked.
“Nope. The run will do me goo
d.” DeeDee waved on her way back to the door. “I’ll let myself out. Everyone have a great rest of your evening.”
CHAPTER 7
A n hour later, DeeDee was back at home, freshly showered and snuggled in her flannel PJ’s, ready to relax and settle in with her favorite hobby—embroidery. She’d started doing it when she was a kid, making smaller pieces like handkerchief borders and napkin monograms then moving into bigger, more ambitious projects as the years went by.
Her latest endeavor was a large, intricate design of an appaloosa horse. The only real problem she had was once she started working on it, she lost all track of time. She’d look up and it would be eight p.m. Then the next time she checked the clock, four hours had somehow passed without her noticing. It had always been that way, unfortunately. Like when she was twelve and her mom had asked DeeDee to go to the corner store to get milk and—
“Ouch!” Distracted, she’d stuck herself in the finger with her needle. She frowned and stuck the tip of her index finger in her mouth. She’d been distracted the night of her mom’s request too. Distracted by the embroidery project she’d been working on, the one she didn’t want to take a break from to run to the store. So she’d talked Paige into going for her instead. Her cousin had been more than happy to get out of the house. She was always so energetic, so fun, so full of energy and life.
Until she’d been killed by a drunk driver on her way back from the grocery.
And it was all DeeDee’s fault.
Sure, no one had come out and said they blamed her for the accident, but deep down, she knew the truth. Her distraction had caused Paige’s death.
That kind of guilt took more than a lifetime to wash away.
To make matters even worse, the drunk who’d killed Paige had gotten off on a technicality because the police department had improperly handled the evidence in the case. That was the other reason DeeDee was so dedicated to her job now, why she worked so hard and so diligently to guarantee all the evidence was collected properly and recorded per regulations. She might not be able to bring her cousin back from the grave, but she sure as heck could make sure no one else got off on a technicality. Not on her watch, anyway.
She grabbed a tissue from the box on the end table and dabbed a small dot of blood off the end of her index finger. She’d just finished when her cell phone rang, and she answered without checking the caller ID. “Hello?”
“Hey, sis. It’s Nia.”
“Hey, girl. What’s up?” DeeDee set her embroidery aside and curled her legs beneath her. Talking to her sister always helped to chase away the ghosts of her past. “How was your day?”
“Good. How about yours?”
“Okay. Working on a new murder case,” DeeDee said. “So that’s keeping me busy and out of trouble.”
“Glad to hear it,” Nia joked. They called each other at least three times a week to talk and were as close as any two siblings could be. “You’re going to be a married woman soon,” her sister said. “You better put your troubled days behind you.”
“Yeah.” DeeDee frowned and picked at a piece of nonexistent lint on the front of her shirt. “Have you talked to Dad lately?”
“No. Not since he left for his honeymoon,” Nia said. “Why?”
“I don’t know.” She sighed and rested her head back against the chair, eyes closed. “I’m just eager to get this whole arranged marriage out of the way. And I haven’t even met my future husband yet. I’ve tried calling Dad to find out specifics about the guy, but he’s not answering his phone.”
“Dad’s on his honeymoon, sis.” Nia snorted. “Can you blame him?”
“No, I guess not.” DeeDee shook her head. “Plus, he’s in the middle of nowhere, so I’m sure the cell reception isn’t great either. Too bad none of that helps unravel the nervous knots in my stomach.”
“Aw, don’t be nervous, sis. I’m sure everything will work out just fine.”
“That makes one of us then.” She exhaled slowly. “It’s just that I don’t know squat about this guy I’m supposed to marry, Nia. The only info I have is he’s the oldest son of the current alpha of the MacPherson pack and we’re getting married to combine our territories.”
“Okay,” Nia said. “Well, if he’s the oldest son, then that means he’ll be alpha one day too, right? Which will make you the most powerful female in the new combined pack. Doesn’t sound too bad to me.”
“Yeah, but what if he’s an idiot or he’s mean or he’s hideous looking? Or what if he thinks I’m those things?”
Her younger sister’s laughter brightened DeeDee’s somber mood. She knew she was probably overreacting, but sometimes just voicing her fears out loud helped dissipate some of her stress.
“I think it’s almost worse not knowing,” DeeDee continued. “I mean, by now I should’ve at least gotten an introduction to the guy, don’t you think? Man, I wish Mom were here. She always knew the right thing to say to make me feel better.”
“I know.” Nia’s voice turned wistful. “I miss her too. Dad’s new wife is closer to our age than his, and she’s trying to be more of a friend than a parental figure. I’m glad she’s not trying to replace Mom, but it’s just a different vibe.”
“Yeah,” DeeDee said. “Listen, I’m sorry, sis. I didn’t mean to dump all my anxiety on you.”
“Don’t be silly. That’s what sisters are for. Besides, you know you don’t have to submit to this arranged marriage. There are ways out of it. The last thing I’d ever wish for you is a loveless marriage like Mom and Dad’s.”
“I can’t refuse, Nia.” Though it was a nice thought. “I’d be ostracized from the pack.”
“Not necessarily.”
“Seriously? Think about it, sis.” DeeDee straightened in her seat. “It’s true. If I so much as mentioned I had second thoughts about this whole thing, Dad would have a conniption fit, and you know the pack rules. If I outright refused, the pack could cut me out forever.” DeeDee’s heart twisted at the thought of never talking to her cousins, her pack friends, her father, and especially her sister again. That would be a fate worse than death. Worse than marrying a mean, hideous werewolf even.
“There’s always the mustard-seed locket Mom gave you.”
DeeDee clutched her necklace, wishing it were true but knowing in her heart it was probably just an old wolves’ tale. And, honestly, even if there was some truth to the old legend, there was no guarantee it would work for her situation anyway. Years had passed since her mother had given her the locket, and even more time had gone by since the tiny reddish-brown seed had been sealed inside its glass bubble. For all DeeDee knew, the thing’s idea-planting power had vanished long ago. Even if she planted the idea, it could backfire in so many ways. Then there was the fact she’d need the help of a super-powerful witch to unlock the whole spell anyway. And yes, she knew several of those, but that didn’t mean any of the Quinns would even agree to help her.
“You still there, sis?” Nia asked.
“Yep. Sorry. Just thinking.”
“About Mom?” her sister asked.
DeeDee squeezed her eyes shut as more painful memories rushed back. Her beloved mother’s shrunken body, decimated by cancer. Her mom’s clawlike hand reaching out, shaking, handing her the locket. That had been the day before she’d lapsed into the coma that finally took her life.
Against her palm, the mustard seed pendant warmed.
Perhaps there might be some magical juice left in it after all.
“Look,” Nia said. “I’m not saying you should rush to any decisions. All I’m saying is you have the pendant for a backup plan, if you need it. You could smash the pendant and have a witch cast the spell to change Dad’s mind about forcing the marriage. If the pack thinks it’s his idea, then you won’t face any adverse consequences.”
“Maybe. I don’t know.” The only problem with Nia’s plan was if DeeDee somehow got out of the arrangement, chances were good their father would simply move on to Nia and she’d get forced into the sam
e marriage contract.
The only other person with the authority to call off the marriage was the MacPherson pack alpha. But again, even if by some small miracle that occurred, it would only free DeeDee from the prospect of an arranged marriage. Nia would still be prime pickings to unite their packs and forge a blood treaty to keep both their territories safe and secure.
Love never factored into these situations. It was all about politics.
Paige had died because DeeDee shirked her responsibilities, and she wasn’t about to risk her little sister’s life and happiness that way. Nia was younger and more sheltered, so she might not realize the ramifications of what she’d suggested.
Nope. She’d go through with the marriage because it was her duty, as her father’s daughter and a member of the Clawson pack. No more discussion or wishing otherwise.
DeeDee forced a smile and changed the subject to Nia’s favorite—shopping. “Find any bargains lately?”
“Heck yeah. Drove into Burlington yesterday and went on a massive splurge spree.” As Nia chattered on about her new shoes and handbags, the world slowly returned to normal, and by the time the call ended, she and Nia were back on familiar, happier footing.
“I need to go, sis,” DeeDee said. “Pulling an early shift in the department tomorrow.”
“No problem. Go catch us some killers,” Nia said, her warm smile evident in her voice. “Love you, sis.”
“Love you too.”
After switching off her phone, DeeDee tried to get back into her embroidery again, but her heart just wasn’t in it tonight. So she stowed her stuff back in the basket by the chair then got out her laptop to check her emails instead. Once those were sorted, she entered the embroidery chat room she liked to frequent, happy to see her favorite poster—Threads99—was also online. They’d begun an online friendship a few weeks earlier, bonding over their shared love of needlework and difficult projects. Plus, Threads99 was usually the only person in the chat room when DeeDee got in there—either late at night or early in the morning, when she couldn’t sleep or woke up at four a.m. as she had several times this week.
Cry Wolf (Silver Hollow Paranormal Cozy Mystery Series Book 4) Page 4
