“Someone carved these amazing statues of the mayor and city council, but they didn’t finish putting sealant on them. I just know they’re going to get damaged in the rain, and all that work will be lost, along with whatever taxpayer money went into the project.”
"What the hell? I don’t know anything about any statues.” Smitty walked over to one of the councilmen.
“We need to get them into the lobby of City Hall. Johnny, give me your phone. We have to call some more people.”
Johnny handed me his iPhone in the purple leopard-print holder. My gaze flicked to Mercutio to see if he approved of the color, but he’d gone up a tree and didn’t seem to be paying attention.
I called Georgia and Kenny and told them it was an emergency. They didn’t ask questions; they just drove straight over to help. And they didn’t even complain about lugging the two-ton town leaders around the building, though Georgia talked non-stop and did ask me if there was any truth at all to the rumor about me running over Jenna Reitgarten and burying her in a shallow grave in the Macon Hill woods.
“Of course not.”
“Hon, maybe you don’t want to ask Tammy questions in front of the law here,” Kenny whispered.
“Oh, it’s just Smitty. Tammy Jo stood up in his wedding!”
I frowned. That hadn’t stopped Smitty from arresting me plenty over the past couple of weeks.
We couldn’t get the last one inside before the drizzle started so I’m sorry to say that Councilwoman Faber’s designer suit lapels, plus her fingernails and kneecaps, kind of melted off.
We all sat down to catch our breath except Smitty, whose walkie-talkie crackled.
"Deputy Smith, what’s your location?” Sheriff Hobbs asked.
“Moving those statues in out of the rain.”
“The what?”
“Time for us to head out,” I said, hopping up and hurrying to the door with Johnny, Georgia, and Kenny. We pretended not to hear Smitty when he told us to “Hold up a minute.”
As soon as I walked out of the building though, I stopped dead. Boyd and Lucy were walking to the parking lot where about half a dozen other people, including Sue Carfax were gathered.
“Hey, Tammy Jo, the sheriff doesn’t know anything about these here salt sculptures.”
The group started toward us, their umbrellas bobbing angrily.
“Well me either, but someone had to get them out of the rain. You saw how they were going to melt out here. Merc, c’mon!”
The mob was between me and my car, but I thought we might’ve been able to make it to Johnny’s BMW if we ran for it.
I was ready to dash when Smitty’s beefy hand caught my arm. “Now just hold on there, girl. The sheriff needs to talk to you.”
“You go get in the car, Georgia Sue,” Kenny said, handing her the keys.
"Why? What are you gonna do?” she asked.
"What’s going on here?” Sue asked.
Nobody answered.
“She was coming out of there,” Sue said, hurrying past us along with her crew. They went into the City Hall lobby.
"C’mon, Smitty. I’ll walk over to the station with you guys,” Kenny said, clearly sensing trouble was about to erupt.
Sure enough, the lobby door swung open and Sue came out red-faced and shouting.
“Pillars of salt! She turned them into pillars of salt!”
From behind her a chorus of “The Lord is my shepherd” started up.
"All right now, y’all need to quiet down and tell me what you’re talking about,” Smitty said.
They didn’t stop. They kept shouting as they rushed toward us. I suppose I could’ve pulled my gun, but they weren’t armed, so that wouldn’t look good in Smitty’s report. Plus, it wasn’t my gun, and I didn’t have a permit to carry it concealed.
So I did the next best thing. I jerked my arm, pulling it from Smitty’s grasp. In his defense, Smitty was probably distracted by the six people running toward us from City Hall and Boyd and Lucy coming from the station.
I took off toward the parking lot, figuring that getting past two people would be easier than getting past six. And I would’ve gotten to my car, if Mindy Glusky hadn’t driven up in her truck, jumping the curb to block my way. Apparently, she wanted back in the group.
I looked over my shoulder. Kenny was body-blocking people in a way that was a real testimony to his days on the high school defensive line. Sue toppled over while Smitty got a hand on the shirt of a middle-aged man, but it only slowed them down. I darted down the path between the station and City Hall. I thought about doubling back to my car, but that seemed risky. Merc must’ve thought so too because he headed to a fence that led to a residential neighborhood.
I’d seen Zach practically fly over fences when we were growing up, so I did what I’d seen him do. I ran as fast as I could and when I was a few feet away I jumped as high as I could. I grabbed the fence links with my fingers and swung my legs up and over. Except I didn’t quite clear the top, so the crossed metal ripped through the leg of my jeans and the leg in my jeans.
The other thing I didn’t time right was letting go, so I almost dislocated my fingers when the momentum flung me toward the ground. I landed with a bone-jarring thud. At first I thought I must’ve popped both my lungs because I could not breathe.
Mercutio’s face swam above me. I hadn’t hit my head, but there were tears stinging my eyes, so he was blurry. I blinked them away and sucked in air.
"Zach . . . Zach makes that look easier than it is.” I rolled onto my hands and knees. “Good thing I drink a lot of milk or every one of my bones would be broken to bits right now.” My finger joints throbbed, but it was the burning along the side of my right leg that was really painful.
Mercutio nudged me toward the street as the drizzle started again.
“Keep your spots on, Merc. I need a minute.” I rested my forehead against the fence links for a second before looking down at my shredded seam. I pulled the fabric wider to see the wound. It didn’t look so bad . . . until I moved. The skin gaped open, and I could see inside a quarter inch to bright red flesh that I’m pretty sure is supposed to always stay covered.
“Yep,” I said. “I need a minute.” Then I crumpled to my knees, retching. Mercutio hopped back and forth on his paws like a prizefighter circling the ring, then he nipped my arm.
“Mercutio!” I snapped as sweat beaded at my temples.
Merc yowled and bumped my jaw. I looked up and saw cars rounding the corner at nonresidential speeds. There were also a couple of women running toward the fence, and they seemed to be pointing shotguns at us.
I jerked myself up, the pain in my leg one long burning scream. There was no way I could outrun the cars or make an effective escape. I yanked my gun out.
“It’s times like these, Merc, when the Alamo really comes to mind.”
Mercutio licked my leg, which stung like crazy. “Cut that out,” I said, limping across the street. Just then a white Ferrari zoomed toward us from the other direction.
It screeched to a stop with the passenger door a few feet from me. I kept the gun firmly in my right hand and opened the door with my left.
Seeing the Winterhawk behind the wheel, I froze. I glanced at the cars bearing down on me. The devil you know? Or the devil you don’t know too well, but are pretty afraid of anyway?
Chapter 31
“Do you enjoy bleeding in the rain?” she asked dryly.
I dropped into the passenger seat. Merc hissed.
“You don’t have to come. You can run back to the house,” I said, starting to pull the door closed. Merc leapt in, landing on my lap.
I shut the door, and Mrs. Thornton pulled away from the curb. Then she gunned it and drove through the neighborhood in a way that made my hair want to turn as white as hers.
I clamped my lips closed and held on. Oblivious to breakneck speed, Mercutio licked his damp fur. I could have killed him, if I’d had a free hand.
Once we reached the woods of th
e tor, she pulled over.
"Who taught you to drive? James Bond?” I asked.
She smiled and inclined her head at the acknowledgment of her skills. Unfortunately, her nod was the beginning and the end of the pleasantries. “You moved our salt bodies.”
“You have to turn those people back into people.”
“Have to?” she asked, then shook her head curtly.
“Well, you should. Isn’t there some WAM law against turning innocent bystanders into spices and condiments? If not, there should be! Definitely.”
“We’re willing to negotiate. President Barrett said you stole something from him.”
I opened my mouth to protest, but closed it again and glared at her. “If I took anything, it’s because I wanted to return it to its rightful owners.”
Her thin silver brows rose. “What rightful owner? What are you talking about?”
So she didn’t know the truth about the brooch. What would she think of John Barrett if she did? Mrs. Thornton was a strong woman in her own right, and she’d been loyal to WAM long before John Barrett had taken over.
“What I’d like to know is how Mr. Barrett got the brooch of a murder victim anyway,” I said, carefully watching her expression. She continued to look surprised.
“A murder victim,” she echoed, weighing my words.
“Yes. A young woman was killed, and her brooch was never recovered. Until now.”
“You’re certain?”
“Absolutely certain. Someone else got blamed for the crime, but I have to wonder how the president of the World Association of Magic got it. Maybe it was just found and someone sold it to him. On the other hand, maybe he had something to do with her death. Maybe the brooch was his trophy of the murder he arranged.”
"Who was this murdered woman? What was his supposed connection to her?”
“I haven’t figured that out, but I bet you could, being an operative and all.” If we could get the Winterhawk on our side that would be a huge advantage. She was probably pretty loyal to John Barrett, but she had come and picked me up to save me from the townspeople, so she didn’t seem totally set against me. Plus, Lennox admired her and she’d said she wanted to help Bryn get out of trouble when she’d first arrived. Maybe we had a chance to win her over.
“Tell me how you identified the brooch as belonging to the murder victim.”
I decided to go for broke. If she stayed on Barrett’s side and told him everything I knew, what difference would it make? Bryn and I were already Barrett’s targets. I explained about seeing the visions and later seeing pictures of Cassandra Lyons.
"And someone mailed you the brooch? Who?”
“I don’t know.”
Her lips pursed, making her look a little like Meryl Streep in The Devil Wears Prada. “You don’t know much, do you?”
“I know John Barrett had the brooch of a murdered woman, which is more than you knew.”
She laughed softly and tapped a slender finger against the steering wheel. “Touché. We may claim you as one of us yet.”
I was more pleased by her praise than I should’ve been. I guess I kind of admired her, even if she wasn’t playing for the home team.
“Do you have the brooch with you?”
“Nope.”
“If I do investigate this, you’ll swear in court to the fact that you took the brooch from John Barrett’s room?”
“So long as I don’t get in trouble for stealing it.”
She shook her head. “If he’s a killer, you won’t. Even if he isn’t, if the brooch belonged to a witch, it should’ve gone to the family. The circumstances of how he got it must be uncovered, along with the truth, the entire truth, about the night of her murder.” She ran her fingers over the wheel again. “You’ll get the brooch for me, and I’ll crack the spell that’s holding her. Then we’ll hear from her what happened. That testimony, no one will be able to dispute.”
I shifted. “Those spells are hard to undo, aren’t they? Will her soul be at risk?”
“No more at risk than she is now, trapped eternally by malevolent magic.”
“Well, I won’t just hand it over. I’ll have to be with you when you try the spell.”
“I have no objection to that.” Mrs. Thornton started the car. "Are you staying at his mansion?”
“For the moment.”
She drove the half dozen blocks to Bryn’s street. “I know your grandmother.”
I stared at Mrs. Thornton, leaning forward. I wanted to hear about my grandma. I was sure there was a good reason that Momma wasn’t on speaking terms with her; at least I hoped there was, but whatever happened between them had happened a long time ago. Maybe if I tried, if I got them together, I could fix our family. “You know her?”
“Don’t look surprised. I’ve been around forever. I know everyone.”
"What’s she like?”
“Josephine’s talented. Like you. She’s also exceptionally well educated. Unlike you. We’ll have to see about remedying that.” She stopped the car at the gates to Bryn’s house. “Go inside and get the brooch.”
“Um, yeah, I’ll have to bring it to you later.” After I cleared it with Bryn. “Mrs. Thornton, one more thing.”
“Yes?”
“About my town? I’d like you to turn those people back to people and to leave the town alone.”
“You and Bryn Lyons have yourselves to thank for the salt. You told the mayor and the city council to get in the way of our property acquisition.”
“That’s because you’ve got no right to scare people into selling their homes! This isn’t your town!” I snapped.
“It is if we buy it. We’ll be happy to return the mayor and his people to their rightful form once we’re finished convincing your neighbors to leave.”
I glared at her, opening the door. Merc hopped out and I followed him. I bent forward to look inside at her. “We’re not going to let that happen.”
She smiled. “Then pick a spice. Do you like curry? Or perhaps you’d do better as a pile of hot pepper flakes.”
I gasped and slammed the door, then hurried over to the gate and buzzed Steve. “Let me in,” I said, flicking off the gun’s safety. She wasn’t turning me into a pepper pile, and she wasn’t following me onto Bryn’s property either.
Mrs. Thornton didn’t even wait for the gates to open. She just smiled, inclined her head, and drove off, cool as winter.
I was still shaking my head when Mercutio and I walked into Bryn’s house. I called out, but didn’t hear them. The security phone on the kitchen wall rang, and I picked it up.
“They’re in the yard,” Steve said. He’d obviously seen me on the security cameras, looking around and calling out. Turns out when I’m not nearly naked or sneaking into a room I’m not supposed to be in, the security cameras can actually come in handy.
“Okey dokey. Thanks,” I said, waving Merc over to the back door. We walked outside, but I only got a few feet from the house before I stopped. Most of the time I can’t see or feel magic, and except for chocolate sculptures and cake decorating, not too much stops me in my tracks with wonder, but Bryn and Andre’s work did. There was an area of about a thousand square feet dotted with white lanterns and strung with cascades of tiny white and blue lights. Crystals hung from tree branches, sparkling like diamonds, and the smell of sandalwood and roses wafted through the silky air. A haunting melody played softly and male voices murmured in German and English, intermixed with low chuckles.
I glanced down to see what Merc thought of this modern wizard’s garden party, but he’d left my side and was racing around the lit square, leaping and pawing the lights and basically doing some kind of kitty jig.
“Wow,” I said, limping over to where Bryn and Andre were securing a huge chunk of rock crystal so that it hung from a tree limb in the center of things.
Andre smiled. “Nice, yes?”
I nodded.
He hooked my arm through his and took me on a tour of the stars and galaxies as
they’d been laid out on the ground. Meanwhile Bryn had climbed a ladder and was flinging something on the swags of white netting that hung over the area.
"What’s he doing?” I asked.
“Scattering dirt and herbs. This is to represent the Earth. We have reversed things. Earth above. Stars below. To use both kinds of magic. Celestial and elemental for each of you.”
“Well, even if it doesn’t work, it’s sure pretty.” I walked to the ladder and waited for Bryn to come down.
"What happened to your leg?” he asked when he was standing in front of me.
“Got into a tangle with a fence. I was trying to fly over it, but didn’t quite make it.”
“Gravity, she is a tough mistress,” Andre said. “Nine-point-eight meters per seconds squared. It does not sound like much, but how it pulls.” He rambled in German for a few seconds.
“We’ve got a problem. The Conclave’s turned some people to salt. I think before we do anything else, we’d better turn them back to human.”
“Organic matter into inorganic matter?” Andre said. I could tell by his tone he was skeptical.
"Turned them to salt?” Bryn echoed. “That can’t be.”
“I saw it.”
“If they really have been altered in that way, undoing it will take the kind of power that is nearly immeasurable. To build that kind of power . . .” He blew out a breath. “Let’s hope that the prophecy allows you to trust me because we will certainly need to be magically bonded to attempt a spell that changes one form of matter into another. The bond will need to be strong and permanent.”
I took a step back, licking my lips. My stomach and muscles tightened. My body was saying yes, even though my mind was saying: hold on, not until we know what the prophecy says.
“Well,” I said, clasping my hands together. “They did it somehow without a magical marriage. We should be able to do it, too. I shrunk Jenna to mini-Barbie size. My power should be enough right? You can draw it off like you do and cast a counterspell.”
Halfway Hexed Page 23
