She nodded. “Winnie and Gert grabbed—”
“Not now, sweetie, we have to get you out of here.” I threaded my fingers around hers. “Follow me down the steps to the kitchen. We’re going to sneak out the back door. Once we’re in the yard, run for the grove of trees. Okay?”
“Okay,” she replied in a soft voice.
“And Tink, don’t let anything stop you. You keep going no matter what happens.”
Her mouth took on a stubborn line. “I’m not leaving you.”
I squeezed her fingers. “Yes. You will. A DEA agent is somewhere outside. You’ll find him and send him back if I don’t follow. Got it?”
“Got it,” she grudgingly said.
Together we crept down the stairs. At the bottom, I put a finger to my lips and slowly opened the door. Peering out, I checked the kitchen. All clear. I tugged on Tink’s hand. As we stood in the kitchen, I moved her in front of me and guided her toward the back porch.
A sudden yank on the back of my head almost pulled me off my feet.
“Run!” I screamed and turned to face my assailant.
Gert stood holding strands of my hair in her hand. She dropped them and came at me.
I shoved her away, and as I did, my hand caught her pendant, ripping it away from her neck. It flew across the room and clattered to the floor.
With a screech, her open palm flew to her throat. “My Eye of Horus! You took my Eye of Horus!” she cried, staring at the broken necklace. “I’ve lost my protection.”
“Shut up and grab her, you fool!” Winnie yelled from the kitchen doorway.
Gert lunged at me, but I dodged her. Spinning on my heel, I headed toward the door.
A hand clutched the hem of my T-shirt and tugged me backward. I jerked and struggled to keep moving. My shoes slid on the slick linoleum floor as my body was pulled away from the open door and freedom.
“Freeze! DEA! On the floor now!”
The hand released me, and I staggered to regain my balance.
I whirled around to see Ethan standing in the doorway with his gun drawn.
Winnie and Gert dropped to the floor like a couple of stones.
Thirty-Six
I couldn’t let go of Tink’s hand as Bill took her statement. I knew it embarrassed her, but I didn’t care. She’d get over it.
“They grabbed you at Abby’s mailbox?” Bill asked.
Tink nodded. “Gert stopped and called me over to her car. When I got there, Winnie jumped out and threw me in the backseat. Then they took off and brought me here.”
“Did they mistreat you?”
“No.” Tink rolled her eyes. “They pretended to be really nice.” She gave a small snort. “They didn’t fool me. They’re almost as crazy as Aunt Juliet.”
With that one sentence, Tink summed up the whole situation.
I found Ethan leaning up against the side of one of the patrol cars, his long legs stretched out before him.
“Bill said you’re leaving?” I asked, shoving my hands into my pockets.
“Yeah, just got the call,” he said, straightening.
“A new assignment?”
He gave me a cheeky grin. “Sorry, can’t say.”
I lowered my eyes. “Right…” Scuffing the ground with the toe of my shoe, I tried to think of the proper words to express my gratitude.
It was impossible. There weren’t enough words written or said to do that.
“Ethan,” I began, raising my eyes to his face. “I can’t tell you how much I appreciate—”
“Hey, it’s okay, Jensen. I told you I always pay my debts.”
“Well, this is a debt I can never repay you.”
He laid a hand on my shoulder. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll be around again. Maybe by then you’ll think of a way.” Dropping his hand, he opened the door to the patrol car and got in.
I cocked my head. “You’ll be back?”
“Sure,” he said, shutting the door and resting his arm on it. “Whenever my life gets boring, I’ll look you up.”
“Ha—you’re an undercover agent. Your life is a lot more exciting than mine.”
“I’m not too sure about that,” he said with a laugh. He glanced at the deputy behind the wheel and gave him a quick nod.
As the deputy turned the key in the ignition, I stepped away from the car.
Ethan raised his finger in a salute as they slowly backed away.
They were almost out of the driveway when Ethan leaned out the window. Cupping his hand to his mouth, he yelled, “Jensen, remember—don’t fall off your broom!”
I shot a look over my shoulder to see if anyone else had heard him. When I looked back, he was gone.
At the end of the week we were all gathered on the patio, enjoying the warm summer night. It would be our last get together before Aunt Dot left the next morning for home.
Watching Aunt Dot and Tink stroll around the backyard, I faced Abby. “Aunt Dot got her adventure, didn’t she?” I asked, sipping my ice tea.
Abby’s brows shot up. “She certainly did. Her stories will have the mountain talking for the next six months. I just hope Aunt Mary doesn’t decide to come to Iowa for an adventure now, too.”
I choked. “Aunt Mary?”
“Um-hm, she never did like Aunt Dot to get one up on her.”
“But—but—” I stuttered.
The idea of another aunt from the mountains of Appalachia visiting made me shudder.
Abby laughed. “Don’t worry, dear. Aunt Mary’s one hundredth birthday is fast approaching. We’ll be expected to visit her for that.”
“To Appalachia?”
“Yes, I’ve promised Tink a trip there.”
Aunt Dot had been a handful in Iowa. What would she be like on her own turf? “Gee, Abby, I don’t know.”
Abby said nothing—just gave my hand a quick pat as Aunt Dot made her way back to the patio.
Guess we’d be headed to Appalachia one day.
Aunt Dot took a seat next to Abby and smiled over at me. “It’s been an exciting visit, Ophelia.” Her eyes traveled to Tink playing with T.P. “Could have done without that awful Winnie. I hope they lock her away forever.”
“They will. It will be a long time before she gets out.”
“Did you ever learn the why of it, my dear?” Abby asked.
“She had a crazy idea she’d take Tink back to Juliet, and enlisted her cousin Gert to help.”
“But Juliet’s still confined.”
“I know. Doesn’t make sense, does it? Oh, and here’s a good one—the pendant Gert wore?”
“Yes, I remember. She said she’d bought it on the Internet.”
“Um-hm. When I ripped it off of her, she kept yelling ‘my Eye of Horus,’ so I looked it up. The Eye of Horus is an ancient Egyptian symbol of protection…” I paused. “…against witchcraft. I guess she was afraid of us.”
“Humph, she should’ve feared Winnie. Thanks to Winnie, Gert will be serving time right along with her,” Abby said, her voice full of disgust.
Tink’s laughter drew my attention. “Isn’t that a great sound?” I said in wonder.
“Yes, it is,” Abby replied, reaching out and clasping my hand. “And soon she’ll be a permanent member of the family.”
I nodded as I watched Tink run across the yard in the pale light of the moon.
As she ran, lightning bugs seem to follow her. They hovered above her, their bright glow shining in the night.
I pointed at Tink. “Would you look at those lightning bugs? I saw them out my office window the night before we found Tink. Have you ever seen any that big?”
From her chair, Aunt Dot cackled and turned to me with a wise expression on her face. “I told you the fairies liked her.”
About the Author
Take a life-long interest in the paranormal and mix it with a vivid imagination. Let the potion simmer in a small Iowa town, and the result is the Ophelia and Abby mystery series written by SHIRLEY DAMSGAARD.
; Shirley, author of numerous published short stories, resides with her family in small-town Iowa, where she has served as Postmaster for the last twenty years. An Agatha Award nominee for Witch Way to Murder, she is currently working on the next Ophelia and Abby mystery, which again touches delightfully on the paranormal.
Visit www.AuthorTracker.com for exclusive information on your favorite HarperCollins author.
The Ophelia and Abby Mysteries by Shirley Damsgaard
THE WITCH IS DEAD
WITCH HUNT
THE TROUBLE WITH WITCHES
CHARMED TO DEATH
WITCH WAY TO MURDER
Copyright
This book is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogue are drawn from the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
THE WITCH IS DEAD. Copyright © 2007 by Shirley Damsgaard. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
ePub edition July 2007 ISBN 9780061758584
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