Chasing the Witch (Boston Witches)

by Jessica Gibson

  “I can’t. Every time I think I can, I picture you with her and I want to be sick. There is nothing left for us anymore. I get that this is hard; it’s hard for me too. I loved you more than anything, but it’s time for me to get on with my life without you. I have a life in Boston with Jill now; I’ve moved on already. You need to do the same. Please just sign the papers and let me go.” He looked at her as she stood up.

  “Don’t go, Caroline. I need you. Let’s talk about this some more.”

  “There’s nothing left to talk about, Jack, please sign the papers. I’ll call you in a few days and hopefully you’ll have signed them by then.” With that, she turned and left. She thought she would have cried, but she did not feel anything, anymore. She was over him and over their sham of a marriage.

  Caroline was just getting out of the shower when her phone rang; she quickly wrapped herself in a towel and ran out into the bedroom. “Hello?”

  “Hey, Car, how did it go with Jack today?”

  “Ugh, it was terrible, Jill. I hate that I have to practically beg him to sign the papers. He still doesn’t understand why I want out.”

  “I’m sorry, that’s really frustrating. What else are you doing while you’re there?”

  “I went over to Alli’s today, and we’re going out tonight with the girls. I’m so ready to cut loose for a while; I’ve been so stressed out. I’ll call you tomorrow, I need to get ready.”

  “Ok. Have fun, and be safe. Talk to you tomorrow.”

  Caroline hung up and started getting ready. She picked out a sleek black mini-dress and matching heels. Forty-five minutes later, she was out the door and hailing a cab. She gave the driver Alli’s address and they were off. They pulled up to the building five minutes later; she paid the driver and pressed the door buzzer.

  “Yeah?”

  “Al, it’s me.” She heard the click and pushed the door open. Caroline pressed the button for the elevator and soon she was walking through Alli’s door.

  “Give me a second; I need to find my shoes. Make yourself comfortable while I look.” Caroline sat down on the couch and put her feet up.

  “So, who’s coming tonight?”

  “Um, Charlie, Lexie, Claire and Josie; plus some new friend of Charlie’s, I don’t know her name, though. It should be a good time, all the girls are excited to see you.”

  “I know. It’s been too long since we’ve all been out together. Where are we going, anyway?”

  “I think we’re going to make a stop at the Rose Bar and then hit up Marquee. Do you see my gold heels in there anywhere?” Caroline got up, looked around the floor, and finally spotted them half under the kitchen table.

  “I found them; they’re in the dining room under the table.” Alli emerged from her room dressed in a tight one-shouldered gold and black mini-dress. “Wow, Al, I love that dress. You look hot tonight.” Alli winked at her, grabbed her shoes and her keys and they were out the door.

  “I told Lex that we’d just meet them there. I didn’t really feel like cramming in a cab with everyone.” They finally managed to hail a cab after standing outside for ten minutes and Alli gave the driver directions.

  They pulled up outside of the Gramercy Park Hotel and paid the driver. Caroline spotted Josie and Claire standing outside. Josie and Claire Andrews were sisters; Caroline had known them for almost as long as she had known Alli. Josie was short and petite with a chin length chestnut bob and dazzling green eyes, while Claire was tall and thin with a platinum pixie cut that matched her spunky personality. They always joked that the only thing they had in common was their eyes.

  “It’s good to see you guys, I’m so ready for a night of fun after the day I’ve had.” She squeezed them into a tight hug.

  “Alli told us you were meeting Jack; I take it that it went bad?” Josie asked.

  “It was just draining; I don’t want to talk about it tonight. I just want to have fun and not think about him for the rest of the night.”

  Claire smiled at her. “I think that can be arranged. The rest of the girls are inside already, let’s join them and raise some hell.” She linked her arm with Caroline’s and they walked through the hotel and into the bar. They found the other girls in the back at a table in the corner. Charlie jumped up and hugged Caroline tightly. Caroline had been friends with Charlotte Miller and Alexandra Griffin for a few years. Charlie was tall and curvy with bright red wavy hair and brown eyes. Lexie was tall and athletic with straight brown hair and blue eyes. After they all finished their greetings, they sat down and ordered drinks.

  “My friend is going to meet us at Marquee. You guys are going to love her, she’s so much fun,” Charlie said as she waved the server over with the check. Twenty minutes later they all piled into two cabs and headed to Marquee.

  The line was around the block when they arrived. However, since Alli had done some work for the owner a few years back, they always got right in. Charlie went off to find her friend and the rest of the girls grabbed a table down by the dance floor and ordered a few more drinks. Caroline was looking around the club at everyone when her heart stopped. She felt faint when she saw who Charlie’s friend was. She stood up quickly as they approached.

  “Caroline, how lovely to see you again, cherie,” Sabine said, her accent thick in Caroline’s ears. She nodded, her eyes wide in shock, but quickly plastered on a smile so the others wouldn’t be alarmed.

  “Yeah, it’s nice to see you, too. Please, join us.” She gestured for her to sit down. Charlie sat down next to Sabine.

  “So, how do you guys know each other?” Charlie asked

  “Sabine is an old friend of my sister’s fiancé; we met a few months back in Boston. How did you guys meet?”

  “Oh, Sabine accidentally bumped into me while she was looking for her apartment building. She’s new here and she had gotten lost. I showed her the way and we’ve gotten together a few times since then.” Caroline narrowed her eyes at Sabine.

  “How lucky for you that you bumped into Charlie,” Caroline said, her voice sugary sweet. “If you ladies will excuse me, I need to use the restroom.” She stood up quickly and walked away before anyone could join her. Once inside the safety of the ladies room, she dug the phone out of her bag and punched in Jilly’s number.

  “Hello?”

  “Jill, Sabine is here in New York!” she yelled into the phone, her terror finally coming out.

  “What?” Jilly all but screamed.

  “Yeah, I think she was trying to get to me through Charlie. She told her sister everything that had happened so far. “What should I do?” She paced in the bathroom stall, nervous energy getting the best of her.

  “Hang on a second, let me grab Will.”

  “Caroline?” William’s voice was concerned. “Jilly says Sabine is in New York with you?”

  “Yeah, she showed up at a club with one of my friends. What should I do?” Her voice was bordering on hysterical

  “First, you need to calm down. Don’t do anything, just act normal. You don’t want to alarm your friends. In an hour, make an excuse and get out of there and away from Sabine. Jilly and I will be on the next flight to New York. We’ll see you in about four hours. Be careful.” He hung up.

  Caroline stood with her back against the door trying to calm herself down. A minute later, she walked back to the table. Everyone was laughing at something Lexie had said. She jumped into the conversation quickly. Sabine sat across from her, eyeing her speculatively. She tipped her glass in salute and drank deeply, never taking her eyes off Caroline.

  The next hour flew by in a blur. She told them she had a headache and that she needed to go back to the hotel. She said her goodbye’s and quickly walked out to hail a cab, too preoccupied to notice Sabine as she came up behind her. Sabine grabbed her arm as she was getting in.

  “Running away so soon? Don’t worry; I’m sure we’ll see each other again before you leave.”

  “I’m here by myself. Jilly and William are in Boston.”

&n
bsp; Sabine laughed. “Caroline, my pet, it’s you that I want.”

  With that she let go and walked off into the night. Caroline slammed the door shut and gave the driver the name of her hotel. Once they arrived, Caroline walked up to her room in a daze and bolted the door behind her.

  William and Jilly knocked on Caroline’s door four and a half hours later and a bleary-eyed Caroline let them in.

  “Hey, how was your flight?”

  “It was fine. How did the rest of the evening go, any problems?” William asked as he hugged Caroline tightly. He wandered round the room looking in the closet, the bathroom, and even under the bed.

  “She told me she’d see me again before I leave, but nothing bad happened. What are you looking for by the way?”

  William shrugged and smiled. “Nothing really, it just made me feel better to do it.”

  “Where are you guys staying?”

  “We got a three room suite; I figured it would be safer if we were all together. You should check out of your room in the morning and move your stuff up to our room; but I want you to sleep up there tonight.” William went over, hugged her tightly again and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Jill and I have been so worried; I’m very glad that you’re safe.” Jilly walked over and hugged her, too.

  “Do you think she’ll go after your friends?” she asked

  “No, she didn’t seem interested in them; I think they were just a convenient way to get to me. Why me, though? Why not just come straight for you or Jilly?”

  William paced back and forth in front of the couch. “It’s never easy or straightforward with Sabine; she never does the expected thing. I don’t know what her motives are in this or if she’s alone, this time. We need to all be on our guard while we’re here. We should probably get some sleep, it’s late. Caroline, why don’t you grab what you’ll need for the morning and come up with us, now?”

  She nodded and Jilly went with her to get her pajamas and toiletries.

  “Ok, spill it. Are you really ok?” Jilly asked the second they were alone.

  “Yeah, yeah, I’m fine. It just scared me that she could so easily infiltrate my life like that. I’ll call Alli tomorrow and tell her to stay away from Sabine. I know she’ll pass it along to the others. I just need to sleep, I’m completely drained. This has been such a long day. Can you grab my toiletries bag out of the bathroom while I get my pajamas?” Jilly went into the bathroom and came out with the bag. “Ok, let’s go.” They went out and joined William. He led the way out to the elevator and pushed the up button. The doors slid open smoothly and they all stepped in while William pushed the floor button. Six floors later, they exited and walked to the room. It was decorated the same as Caroline’s room, but it was three times the size. They all said their good nights and collapsed into bed.

  William was the first one up the next morning. The girls found him seated at the dining room table with his laptop in front of him and a plate of untouched food next to him.

  “I ordered breakfast. Have a seat and the butler will bring it in for you.” All of the bigger suites came with personal butler service and the girls marveled at how fancy they felt being served breakfast in a formal dining room.

  “So what’s the plan, now? Are we going to look for her or wait for her to come to us?” Jilly asked between bites.

  “I would assume she knows that we’re here now, so it’s only a matter of time before she finds us. I need to go out for a while; I want you two to stay in the hotel until I get back.” William stood up and left the room before they could answer.

  “Do you know where he’s off to in such a hurry?” Caroline asked her sister.

  “He didn’t say anything to me about going anywhere, but I’m sure he’ll tell us when he gets back. We should get you checked out of your room after we finish eating. Do you want me to come and help you pack up?”

  “Yeah, it will probably go faster if we do it together; plus there’s always safety in numbers.” The girls finished eating and headed down to Caroline’s room.

  William walked briskly down Park Avenue. He glanced at his watch and picked up his pace. He arrived at a small coffee shop, went straight into the back room, walked through another door and down a flight of stairs. He finally came to a heavy metal door that was locked and he knocked four times. There was a loud scraping noise and the door swung open, revealing a large bald man with a jagged scar across his left cheek.

  “Can I help you?” he asked in a thick Russian accent.

  “I’m here for Nikolai. He sent for me this morning.” The man looked him over and finally reached for the phone that was hanging on the wall and punched in a number. He spoke something in harsh Russian and then turned to him

  “What is your name?”

  “Tell him it’s William; he’ll want to see me.” The man spoke again into the phone, and then turned to face him when he hung up.

  “Ok, you follow me, now.” William nodded and trailed him down a long hallway and then down another flight of stairs. They stopped at another metal door and the bald man pressed the intercom button, spoke into it and waved at the camera. There was a loud buzzing noise followed by a three clicks and the door swung open only to reveal another hallway. They walked to the end of it and the man knocked at the last door on the left. He opened the door when he heard a response from inside and shoved William through before closing the door behind him and walking back to his post. William found Nikolai seated at his desk. His blond hair stood on end and he wore an expression of extreme weariness.

  “Good lord Nik, this is some set up you have.”

  “One can never be too careful, Will. You know that better than anyone. Please, sit.” Stifling a yawn, he gestured to the chair opposite the one he was sitting in. “I’m just going to get right to it; we don’t have a lot of time. Sabine has Katya. She took her sometime last night; but I’m not sure when. I was working late and Katya was supposed to be home, but something happened. Sabine killed all of my men at the house.” His voice was frantic, his eyes wild.

  William leaned forward and scrubbed his hands over his face. “I’m so sorry, Nik. What are your plans? Do you have any yet?”

  “I’ve got some men in the city looking, but I’m not holding my breath. If Sabine doesn’t want to be found, we won’t find her.” Nikolai was desperately trying to reign in his rage.

  “Caroline saw her last night; Sabine wants her for something, too. I’ve got her and Jilly on lockdown in the hotel for now. No one goes anywhere by themselves. We’ll find Katya, Nik, I promise you we will. I want you to come with me to the hotel; we need to talk with Jill and Caroline about this.”

  “I agree. We should all discuss the situation and our plan of attack.” They both stood up. Nikolai punched a number into his phone and barked out some instructions in Russian. “Ok, we can go now. We’ll take my car. I don’t want to walk out in the open.” Nikolai led William through a series of hallways. They finally emerged in a garage and got into a black SUV. Nikolai told his driver where they were going and they were off.

  Jilly was on the phone when William and Nikolai came in. She smiled at them, her eyes widening in surprise when she saw Nikoali. She held up a finger and continued her conversation for a few more minutes.

  It had been months since Jilly had seen Nikolai and his wife, Katya. They had come to Boston to fight alongside Jilly, William and Caroline when Mary made her power play. They had bonded quickly; training for battle had a way of doing that.

  “Sorry, I had to check in with the shop. I left them a bit short-handed and I wanted to see if they got everything squared away.” Caroline wandered out from her room when she heard the door and they all congregated in the sitting room. Jilly went over and hugged Nikolai. “Nik, it’s good to see you.” Caroline hugged him as well and both girls sat down. William filled them in on the situation. Jilly’s brows furrowed with worry as she listened to William speak.

  “So now we have two problems: finding Katya and figuring out what Sab
ine wants with Caroline. I think you should be seen out; she’ll probably try to make a move if she sees you out of the hotel, Caroline. Do you feel comfortable with being the bait?” William asked.

  “I guess so. I won’t have to be alone, will I?” Caroline’s face betrayed her concern.

  “No, we can be close to you but not directly with you. I don’t want to tip her off,” William said. Caroline paced around the room for a few minutes before making her decision.

  “Ok, I’ll do it. When are we going to go?”

  “I think we’ll wait until tomorrow. We’ll need to plan everything out,” William replied. Caroline’s phone started ringing in the other room and she ran to get it.

  “Do you think this is really a good idea?” Jilly asked as soon as her sister was out of earshot.

  “It’s really our only idea; so it’s going to have to work,” William said with a shrug. Jilly was left feeling more than a little apprehensive.

  Caroline sat on the bed talking to Jack on the phone.“So, have you made your decision, then?” she asked curtly, not wanting to give him an inch.

  “I want to talk again. Can you meet me for dinner?”

  “I don’t know, Jack, what is talking again really going to do? It’s just going to make it worse for both of us.”

  “Please, Caroline, just one more time. I just want to talk, nothing else.”

  “Let me call you back. I need to think about it,” Caroline said apprehensively.

  “Ok, call me anytime. I’ll have my phone with me all day.”

  After Jack hung up, Caroline thought about the situation with Sabine and wondered if Jack could fit into their plans. She called for Jilly, who appeared a few seconds later.

  “What’s up?” Jilly asked.