Make A Witch

by Amanda M. Lee

  “I’ll make you eat dirt,” Thistle warned, her eyes flashing.

  “And there’s our good girl,” I teased, grinning as Landon tugged me closer. “I don’t see why karma hasn’t made you queen of the world yet.”

  “That makes two of us.”

  Landon kept his gaze on me as I lifted a benevolent smile in his direction. “I think I should be queen of the world. What do you think?”

  “You’re queen of my world.”

  “Cute.”

  “I also think that eye looks rough. We should get you back to the inn,” Landon added. “I don’t think you should be out in public until it heals.”

  That sounded positively dreadful. “That could take days.”

  “Yes, well, I’ll act as your serf if you spend the rest of the day in bed. How does that sound?”

  It sounded appealing in a very odd and kinky sort of way. Hmm. Why did my mind automatically go to such a filthy place? “Um … what were we talking about again?”

  “Where did your head just go?” Landon asked, his lips twitching.

  Thistle snorted. “I know where it went. It was dirty, and you were naked there.”

  “Oh, well … .” Landon’s frown turned in the other direction. “That’s exactly what I had in mind. See, you’re the good girl today.”

  “Oh, gross,” Thistle complained, rolling her eyes. “I thought we agreed we had to track down everyone who made wishes to con them into reversing them? Wasn’t that the plan an hour ago?”

  “Yes, but I’m not keen on Bay dealing with this stuff,” Landon argued, his voice firm. “She’s had a rough day already. She can go back to the guesthouse and take a nap. I’ll tackle our part of the list myself.”

  “No way,” I protested, vigorously shaking my head. “You don’t know these people. They’ll think you’re crazy if you show up at their door and demand they reverse their wishes.”

  “On top of that, most people are prone to panicking when ‘The Man’ shows up at their door,” Marcus interjected, adopting a pragmatic tone. “Even if they didn’t do anything wrong, they might have a bad reaction.”

  “He has a point,” I hedged. “Landon, it’s a black eye. I’m perfectly fine. No one will believe you hit me, so calm down. This isn’t the end of the world.”

  “Just tell everyone I hit her,” Thistle offered cheerfully. “They’ll believe that.”

  “Because you’re mean,” Clove muttered.

  “I’m honest,” Thistle corrected. “There’s a difference. I … .” She didn’t get a chance to finish, because something caught her attention over my left shoulder. When I shifted to see what she was looking at I found Chief Terry trudging our way. He didn’t look happy

  Landon picked up on his mood right away. “What happened?”

  Chief Terry lifted his head at the sound of Landon’s voice. He looked unnaturally grim. The expression faded momentarily when he locked gazes with me, and then his demeanor shifted to angry almost instantaneously. “Who hit you?”

  “I’m fine,” I replied, waving off his concern. “It was an accident. I’m sure I’ll look like crap for the next few days, but it’s fine.”

  Chief Terry refused to be placated. “Did you hit her?” His expression was murderous when he swiveled on Landon.

  “Of course not,” Landon barked, his cheeks reddening. “Do you really think I’d hit her?”

  “Oh, it looks like Landon was right,” Thistle noted. “Everyone naturally does assume it’s the boyfriend. That’s kind of a bummer, huh?”

  It was more than a bummer. The mere idea that Landon would hit me was laughable. The only time he physically went after me was when we got in a tickle war. “Chief Terry, Landon didn’t do this,” I insisted, resting my hand on his forearm to calm him as he stood toe-to-toe with Landon, his chest heaving. “This happened when Nelson’s harem got out of control at the wishing well this morning.”

  Chief Terry slowly relaxed his hands, stretching his fingers to get the blood flowing as he recovered. “Oh, well, sorry.”

  “Whatever.” Landon averted his gaze but kept me close at his side. “I figured this would happen the second she took that punch.”

  “I actually think it was an elbow, but it was hard to tell with all of the activity,” I countered, heaving a sigh. “I can’t believe you thought he would hit me. That’s not like you.”

  Chief Terry clearly didn’t like the admonishment. “Oh, well … I guess it’s my training. We’re always taught that when a woman shows up battered it’s her husband or significant other who did the damage ninety percent of the time.”

  Those figures sounded exaggerated, but I was in no mood to argue. “But Landon?”

  “I know.” Chief Terry looked legitimately sorry when he locked gazes with my boyfriend. “I’m sorry. I just … she’s my little sweetheart. When I saw her face like that, I snapped a bit.”

  “I don’t blame you.” Landon said the words grudgingly. “I was upset when I saw the black eye, too. I tackled that Nelson kid hard when I thought he was going to cast another wish, so I’m hardly some sort of hero.”

  “He was going to make another wish even knowing how the first turned out?” Chief Terry was flabbergasted. “Why?”

  “Because he made the first wish in an attempt to get Bay, although he worded it wrong,” Landon replied. “He decided to word the second one better, but we got to him in time. Unfortunately, his harem didn’t like the way he focused his attention on Bay, so things spiraled out of control pretty quickly.”

  “I just bet.” Chief Terry made a tsking sound as he shook his head. “This is getting out of control fast. There are more fires than we can put out. I went to Danielle Simmons' house today. She had that guy chained in her basement. I had to drag her back to the well to reverse the wish.”

  “That’s not our biggest problem,” Landon noted. “How are we supposed to explain things if that guy presses charges?”

  “Oh, he won’t do that,” Chief Terry answered, sounding sure of himself. “He couldn’t remember anything once the wish was reversed. He thought he ended up here after a bender. I let him think that on purpose.”

  “That was probably wise.”

  “Who was he?” Thistle asked, voicing the question buzzing at the front of my brain.

  Chief Terry held his hands palms up and shrugged. “I don’t know. They all look the same to me. He was Klingon number three or something. Does it really matter?”

  It clearly didn’t matter to him.

  “What are you guys doing out here?” Chief Terry asked, shifting gears.

  “Sam made a wish to be respected and we had to reverse it,” Landon answered. “Now we’re going to tackle more of the wish list, but I want Bay to go home and rest before we do that. She’s putting up a fight.”

  “Oh, well … .” Chief Terry jangled the key ring on his belt. “I think we might need her, so I’d like to hold off on that rest.”

  “Why?” I asked, instantly alert.

  “I came here to find you guys because I just got a call,” Chief Terry replied. “It seems we have a body behind the library. I’m guessing it has something to do with all of this. I’m not sure how to approach it, so … we might need her.”

  Landon let loose with a low growl. “And the hits just keep on coming.”

  WE SENT Clove, Thistle, Sam and Marcus on their way, trusting them with some of the little wishes, while we handled the big problem of the day. The body was out in the open behind the library, a burly man sprawled on the lawn, sightless eyes facing the sky.

  “That’s Doug Bateman,” I said, shuffling closer.

  Landon grabbed my arm to keep me from getting too close to the body. “How well do you know him?”

  “Not well,” I replied, my eyes roaming the man’s oversized body. “He’s a jerk.”

  “He is a jerk,” Chief Terry agreed, rubbing his chin as he stared at the body. “There’s not a mark on him. He looks as if he was just walking behind the library an
d keeled over dead.”

  “Who called it in?” Landon asked, hunkering down to get a closer look at the body. “There are no signs of violence. That doesn’t mean he didn’t die of a heart attack or something. It could be an accidental death.”

  “It’s not an accident.” Chief Terry looked resigned. “Deidre Bateman called it in. She said she wished he was dead and it happened.”

  I stilled, surprised. “She called in the murder of her husband?”

  “She made it sound like divine intervention,” Chief Terry clarified. “She said that he had it coming and God reached down from Heaven and made it happen. She sounded drunk on the phone. I sent one of my officers to collect her. He’s bringing her here.”

  “But … why would she tell you that?” Landon asked, dumbfounded. “I mean, even if she did go to the wishing well and wish him dead, why would she admit it?”

  “Doug has quite the reputation,” I answered, swallowing hard. “I’m almost afraid to tell you what that reputation is for, but you kind of need to know to understand why Chief Terry is a little leery of what’s about to come.”

  “I’m going to hate this, aren’t I?”

  I nodded. “He’s … um … .”

  “He’s a wife beater,” Chief Terry supplied, a muscle working in his jaw. “He’s been beating Deidre since they got married. Everyone in town knows it.”

  “Why haven’t you stopped it?” Landon’s tone was accusatory. “How could you let it go on?”

  “Because she denied that he ever touched her and never called the police on him,” Chief Terry replied. “She sports bruises and black eyes all of the time. If you ask what happened to her, she makes up stories about falling down the stairs or something on a high shelf falling on top of her. She refused to press charges, and without proof … well … there’s nothing I can do.”

  “Still, you should’ve taken her into the station and grilled her until she rolled over on him,” Landon pressed.

  “You want Chief Terry to emotionally abuse a physically abused woman?” I couldn’t help but be dubious. “Really?”

  “I know how it sounds, Bay, but how will Chief Terry feel if that woman shows up dead one day?”

  It was a solid point. It was also a moot one. “I don’t think that matters now.” I gestured toward the body on the ground. “What are we going to do about this? You can’t lock up Deidre for murder because she wished her husband dead. You’ll be laughed out of court.”

  “Yeah, that’s definitely a possibility.” Chief Terry rolled his neck, focusing his eyes on a police cruiser across the parking lot. I recognized Officer Reinke helping Deidre out of the car and gesturing in our direction. “If she reverses the wish, what happens?”

  That was a very good question. “I don’t know,” I admitted. “Death is supposed to be one of those things you can’t cheat, but this wasn’t a natural death so … .”

  “So you don’t know?”

  I shook my head.

  “We need to talk to her first,” Landon cautioned. “Convince her to take the wish back and then, if he comes back to life – geez, there’s a sentence I never thought I’d say – have her press charges so we can put him in jail.”

  “Do you think she’ll do that?” I wasn’t sure I believed that. The woman shuffling in my direction looked beaten down in more ways than one. “If she called Chief Terry to admit what she did she’s probably feeling guilty.”

  “We’ll have to play it by ear.” Landon rested a reassuring hand on my shoulder. “Let me do the talking.”

  “That’s exactly what Aunt Tillie said last night before you ended up tattling on her.”

  “I’m not Aunt Tillie.” Landon remained calm as Deidre scuffed her feet against the ground, trudging in our direction. Her eyes were glued on Doug, as if she didn’t believe he was really gone. She seemed confused, perhaps in shock, and her world was obviously spinning. “Mrs. Bateman, I’m Landon Michaels. I’m with the FBI.”

  “I know who you are,” Deidre murmured, her voice eerily calm. “You’re Bay Winchester’s boyfriend.”

  “Yes, I’m thinking of having business cards made up saying just that,” Landon deadpanned. He made sure to keep a safe distance so he didn’t accidentally jolt the woman. “I understand you called Chief Terry and admitted to killing your husband.”

  “I wished he was dead,” Deidre confirmed.

  “Did you wish for it at the wishing well?”

  Deidre nodded, raising her chin and letting her gaze bounce between faces. Finally she landed on me. “You know how it is.”

  “I knew this would happen,” Landon muttered, his temper coming out to play.

  I ignored his outburst and forced a smile for Deidre’s benefit. “Landon didn’t do this. A group of teenagers did this. Nelson Lyons made a wish in the well, too, and things got a little out of hand. We fixed it by having him reverse the wish.”

  Deidre appeared surprised by my matter-of-fact recitation. “Do you think I can reverse this?”

  “Do you want to?”

  Deidre shrugged. “I don’t want to be the cause of anyone’s death, but … I ain’t exactly going to miss him.”

  The faded bruises on her collarbone told me all I needed to know about that statement. “No, I guess not. You could reverse the wish and then give Chief Terry a statement. You could tell him what Doug has been doing to you – everyone knows about it, so it won’t come as a surprise – and when you’re done, Chief Terry and Landon will make sure that Doug is put in jail so he won’t do it again.”

  “Is that true?” Deidre looked almost hopeful. “Can I take it back and still send him away?”

  “That’s what we believe, but we can’t be sure until it actually happens,” Landon hedged. He didn’t want to promise her an outcome that might not come to pass in case Doug couldn’t be resurrected. “It’s worth a try, right?”

  Deidre studied Doug for a long time, finally heaving out a sigh. “I’ll try. Do you promise you won’t let him touch me? He’s going to be awfully mad when he wakes up and finds out what I did.”

  “He never has to know what you did,” Landon said, his voice gentle as he gestured in the direction of the wishing well. “Let’s see what we can do, shall we? This could be over in a matter of hours.”

  “That will be nice, huh?” Deidre brightened considerably. “He’s going to be mad.”

  “I can handle him,” Landon promised.

  “That’s good. If you want to punch him, you can say it’s from me.”

  Landon smiled, the expression lighting up his handsome features. “That sounds like a plan.”

  If you could wish for anything in this world, what would it be? Just a hint: If the answer isn’t me in a field of bacon, I’m going to pretend you never opened your mouth.

  – Landon asking Bay about her heart’s greatest desire

  Fourteen

  “That’s so sad.”

  Mom made me tell Deidre’s story four times before she understood every nuance.

  “It is sad,” I agreed, risking a glance at Aunt Tillie, who continued to toil in her recliner in the corner of the kitchen. She had the grace to stare at her book and avoid eye contact, which was the only reason I knew she felt guilty. “She was so … lost. Landon was good with her. He promised to sit with her while she filled out the report.”

  “How did Doug take his resurrection?” Marnie asked. I couldn’t blame her for being curious. I was transfixed with the transformation as it happened, too.

  “Oddly enough, he assumed he drank so much he passed out behind the library even though he couldn’t remember drinking this afternoon,” I replied. “He wanted to file a report with Chief Terry because he was determined that someone stole his Jack Daniels.”

  “Well, that figures,” Aunt Tillie muttered. “He always was a miserable drunk.”

  “Aren’t you supposed to be working?” Mom challenged, casting a dark look over her shoulder. “Have you made any progress since Bay returned?”
r />   “Ugh! She’s talking so loud that I can’t even think,” Aunt Tillie complained. “How am I supposed to work under these conditions?”

  “You worked well enough when you were drunk,” Mom pointed out.

  “That was completely different.”

  “Do your work or face my wrath.”

  I pressed my lips together to keep from laughing. Mom rarely got in snarly mode, preferring the passive-aggressive route on most occasions to browbeat us into submission. She wasn’t messing around with Aunt Tillie today, though. She meant business.

  “What does Terry say will happen to Deidre now?” Mom asked, focusing on me. “She won’t go to jail, will she?”

  “They can’t arrest her. There’s no judge who will believe that a woman wished her husband dead,” I pointed out. “Everyone wishes for something terrible to happen to another human being at one point or other.”

  “I haven’t,” Twila argued.

  For some reason I kind of believed her. She was too scattered to be mean. “It doesn’t matter,” I explained. “Doug is alive, so no one was murdered. Plus, well, we have no idea what the autopsy would’ve shown. For all we know he died of a heart attack or something.”

  “Or meanness.” Twila was distraught when she heard about Deidre’s state of mind. “Maybe we should invite her to stay at the inn for a few days. She might do better with other people around her. We have an open room on the second floor.”

  Mom tilted her head to the side, considering. “We could do that.”

  Even though my mother and aunts are persnickety when they want to be, they have good hearts. “She’s filling out paperwork with Landon. I can text him and ask if she’s interested in staying.”

  “I can do that.” Mom moved around the counter, pausing when she got close to me and pushing my hair away from my face. “That does look terrible. I can’t believe Terry thought Landon did that to you. That doesn’t sound like him at all.”

  “I don’t think he really believed it,” I offered. “I think he just reacted. If he’d given it a few seconds thought he wouldn’t have said it. That doesn’t make Landon feel better about the situation, though. I guess I never considered it from his point of view.”