by LL Muir
“Mama. He didn’t even get anything to eat. Nathan took him away and he was hungry. If you knew how he’d been looking forward to some home cooking…”
Her mother gasped, her hand flying to her chest. “And his mama gone all these years! You need to go and get him!”
Her father took off his hat. “Now, Becky—”
“Don’t even.” She glared at her husband. “Hurry, Allison, I’ll fix you both a plate. Go and get that boy and bring him back here. Nathan too. What was I thinkin’?”
One of her cousins grinned as Allison hurried past. “Don’t worry about it, hon. It wouldn’t be a family reunion without a few scuffles, right?”
“Right.” She hoped everyone felt the same by the time she got back.
She heard her mother call to her. “Allison, wait!” She turned to see her parents coming after her. “Mama, I know you’re concerned about me, but I really gotta go.”
“Honey, you’ve got to understand that men have their own way of lookin’ at things, especially when they’re being protective.”
Allison snorted. “Protective? He smashed Isaac in the face.”
Her mother nodded, taking her by the hand. “I know, that’s what I’m talkin’ about. Men have their own way of seein’ things.”
Allison frowned and shook her head. “Well I don’t appreciate him going around breaking noses, either. That’s for sure.”
Her mother shared a small smile with her father.
Allison looked back and forth between the two of them. What were her parents thinking? “You’re okay with that?”
Her mother’s eyes glittered with mischief. “Isaac broke your heart, and now he’s got Linnie on the line. Yet I’m still having to be nice to him and accept him into my family for the sake of your sister. If the guy gets a broken nose out of it, why shouldn’t I enjoy it?”
Allison smiled at her mom. Well, if she looked at it like that… “Mom, I’ve really got to go.”
“Okay, just don’t be surprised if your new guy is upset.”
She looked at her mother quizzically. “Upset? Because of the fight?”
Her mother gave a long-suffering sigh. “No, because you took Isaac’s side rather than his when he was standin’ up for you.”
Allison groaned. She hadn’t thought about it from that perspective. “You think he will be?”
“I would be,” her father said.
She looked over to where her sister was now babying Isaac, and then back at the road, where her brother had been parked. His car was long gone.
She didn’t like violence, but all the same, Kenrick had been provoked into defending her. And what had she done? She had taken The Toad’s side.
She’d longed for a man who would stand by her. And what had she done the moment she’d found one? She’d sent him away. Or as good as. What was the matter with her? “Oh, dear Lord. I messed up, didn’t I? What do I do?”
Her father crossed his arms and smiled down at his wife. “Groveling?”
His wife nodded and glanced at Allison sympathetically. “Groveling always works.”
Without another word, Allison scooped up her purse from one of the picnic benches, and headed to her truck. She quickly realized she’d loaned it to Tara and turned back to her parents. “Can I borrow your car?”
Her father threw the keys.
Without another word, she grabbed them mid-air and took off running.
Kenrick held fast to the bars as Nathan tried to force him into the jail cell again. He appealed to the witch. “Come, lass. Ye can help me if ye’ve the desire. I know ye can.”
“I am helping you. Nathan, we need to go back and support Allison. You don’t want her left alone, do you? “
Nathan tried to force Kenrick, but was fast running out of strength. The man could not budge him.
“Lass, think of Linnie and The Toad. What they must be spouting at her. Mayhap making her cry.”
Nathan gave him a shove. “Stop playing on her sympathies! There’s nothing she can do here.”
Kenrick turned his head. “Are ye crazed, then? She’s a witch, and a woman. Like as not she can do whatever she wishes.”
“So if I let you go,” Tara said. “You’ll go straight back there and fix things? No more fighting? And maybe you’ll let Allison know what she means to you?”
“Aye, on my honor, I will!”
“If she lets you go?” Nathan’s voiced his exasperation. “She doesn’t have any say in this! It’s up to me and I say you’re saying here. I can take care of my sister without you.”
Tara took a step forward. “Nathan, Allison—your baby sister—is back there with your other, evil, sister and The Toad. Don’t you think she’s had enough of them over the last few months? Are you really gonna make it worse by having the three of us, her support system, here, while she’s there? By herself?”
“She’s not by herself. My parents are there, aren’t they?”
Tara’s brows shot up and she stomped toward him, only stopping when she was practically nose-to-nose with him. “Not exactly the same thing, is it?”
A shaft of guilt pierced Kenrick. He should never have left. He was supposed to be there for Allison. And he needed to say his goodbyes before Soni showed up and took him away.
Excess rage gave him the strength to throw Nathan off and stride toward the door.
Tara put out a hand to stop Nathan. “Let him go!”
“No!” Nathan brushed her off, then rushed to catch up to Kenrick.
Another officer came through the door, did a double take, and at Nathan’s urging, grabbed Kenrick just as he made it to the door. Between him and Nathan, they wrestled him into the cell and slammed the door shut.
“Aaarrrrhhh!” Kenrick hit the bars with his open palms.
Tara stood with hands on hips and glared at Nathan. “Are you serious right now?”
Nathan was breathing hard. “As a heart attack.”
Kenrick called to him, almost desperate to get out. “This is about your ego, isnae it, man? This is nae a way to impress a lass, Nathan, I can tell ye that.”
“He’s right.” Tara glared.
Nathan looked stricken for moment, but the expression was quickly wiped away when he saw Kenrick looking at him.
“Who says I’m out to impress anyone?” Nathan thumped the bars twice and looked at Kenrick. “You just doubled your time and earned yourself four hours in here, buddy.”
“Four hours?” Surely Soni would have come for him by then. He sank back against the bars and pushed his palms into his eye sockets. He couldn’t contain his emotion and sprang back up and screamed as he threw his shoulder at the door.
The three on the other side jumped back.
“Ye’ve got to let me out of here!”
“Jeez, dude. Not going to happen. Calm down or I’ll make it five.”
Kenrick met Tara’s gaze. “Ye need to help me. Ye’re a witch, and I need ye to stop another witch from taking me before I’m ready. She could arrive at any moment. I need to see Allison once more. I must explain things to her. Please.” He hadn’t shed a single tear as lifeblood gushed from his chest wound on Culloden’s battlefield. Why must tears fill his eyes now?
Tara’s eyes widened. “Are you serious?”
“As a heart attack,” he echoed Nathan’s earlier words.
“That just makes so much sense.” Tara started for the door. “I’ll find some salt.”
Allison arrived at the police station but she couldn’t find anywhere to park.
Her brother’s car was there.
Her own truck was there.
So this was definitely the place to be.
She drove down to an appliance store half a block away, parked, jumped out, and ran up the street.
Why had she taken Isaac’s side?
She thought about everything Kenrick had done for her. From the minute she’d met him, he’d been nothing but awesome; starting with not calling the cops on her, for running him over. Helping wit
h Bonnie, fixing her fence and shed, making her feel beautiful and desirable once more—she couldn’t believe she’d reacted that way when all he was doing was defending her.
She was huffing and puffing by the time she arrived at the double doors of the police station, and bent over to catch her breath. She really needed to start working out. Once she could breathe enough to move again, she ran up the stairs and flung the door to the station wide.
A quick glance around showed her brother was nowhere in sight. Nor was Tara, nor Kenrick.
She approached the front desk. “Hi, Nathan King is my brother. Have you seen him?”
Just then, Tara and Nathan came through the doors behind her bickering about salt, of all things.
“You will clean up the mess you made.”
Tara held up a canister of Morton table salt. “Of course I will. I’m not going to make a mess and leave it. What do you think I am?”
“Well, I don’t think you’re a witch.”
Tara smiled at Nathan. “I’m not sure if that was a compliment or not.”
“Tara? Nathan? What’s going on?”
Tara’s eyes lit up when they landed on Allison. “Oh my gosh, I am so glad to see you right now! Nathan locked Kenrick in the back and Kenrick is freaking out because a strange witch is going to show up and take him away. Which makes total sense when you think about how the two of you met, doesn’t it?”
Allison’s brows drew together. “What?”
Tara waved her fingers in the air. “It’s hard to explain, so we’ll talk later. I’m needed at the moment. I made Kenrick a small circle with some salt I found in the break-room but I think we need more just to be safe. Come on back. Kenrick will be thrilled to see you.”
Nathan rubbed the back of his neck. “Oh no, you don’t. The two of you need to calm down.”
Tara turned her brother. “Calm down? Are those your favorite two words of the day? Everybody’s calm but you. The four of us should still be at the family reunion right now, eating food, getting fat, and gossiping about Linnie. But where are we? We’re at the police station because somebody needed to calm down today.” She looked pointedly at Nathan. “The next thing you know, me and Allison will be sharing a cell next to Kenrick’s.”
“Now, Tara—”
Tara rolled her eyes as she turned and went through the waist-high swinging doors that led to the back.
Allison was quick to follow, and Nathan was right behind her.
“I don’t see why the two of you didn’t just stay at the reunion,” Nathan grumbled.
“And I don’t know why you insisted on hauling Kenrick to jail. Just so you know, I’m not leaving without him,” Allison tossed at her brother.
Nathan sighed loudly. “The man needs to learn a lesson.”
“And what lesson is that?” Tara snapped. “Is this because he hit Isaac? Or is this because you couldn’t get him in the jail cell without assistance?”
They reached the doors, and Nathan surged forward. “I’ll go first.” He glanced pointedly at Tara. “You’d think that I could get some kind of respect around here.”
Tara snorted and went through the door.
Allison smiled and followed. “Good one, Nathan.”
Chapter 14
Kenrick stood inside the small circle of salt in the center of his cell. He hoped the witch knew what she was doing, and also hoped Soni wasn’t going to be mad at him for refusing to leave.
She’d a young girl’s tender heart. Surely she’d understand.
The door opened and Tara stepped through, Allison right behind her.
Kenrick lunged for the bars. “Allison!”
“Oh, Kenrick! She hurried to grasp his hands reaching through the bars before turning to face her brother. “Are you kidding me?”
Nathan held his hands out. “Now, Allison.”
“You’re going to let him go, and you’re going to do it right now.”
Nathan crossed his arms stubbornly. “I am not.”
Allison scowled at him. “I’m pretty sure this isn’t even legal, taking him from a family reunion and locking him up for disruptive behavior. This is Texas. It’s a family reunion. Fist fights will break out. I mean, let’s be realistic, how often are you guys called upon to do something like that?”
“You be surprised how often we get involved in domestic disputes. And you sure changed your tune all a sudden.”
“Maybe I did. See how easy it is to change your mind? You took it upon yourself to do this, so you can take it upon yourself to undo it.”
Nathan looked put-upon. “What happened? You were mad at him earlier for hitting Isaac, and now you’re mad at me instead?”
Kenrick squeezed Allison’s hands and almost felt sorry for the man, but wanted to know what she had to say about that too.
“Look,” she glanced up at Kenrick, her beautiful blue eyes gazing into his, her silvery hair curling about her face, and he tightened on his hands. “I know he was only trying to help. To defend me. I know very well he’s not a violent man. He’s kind, and gentle, and protective. It was the protective part that got him in this situation today. I don’t blame him for that. In fact, now that I’ve had a chance to think about it, I’m flattered by what he was trying to do. Does that make sense?”
Her brother snorted. “No.”
“You know what? Shut up and let my fiancé out of here! You didn’t arrest Isaac, so you don’t get to arrest Kenrick either.”
Nathan lifted his hands. “He’s not just here because he hit Isaac. I’ll have you know he resisted arrest, too.”
“Are you kidding me right now? This is about you saving face?” Allison huffed out a breath and Kenrick thought she’d never been more beautiful. More vibrant. More alive. “If you hadn’t arrested him in the first place, for no reason at all, then he wouldn’t have been resisting arrest. Let him out of here!”
The warmth in Kenrick’s chest seemed to expand. He’d been a soldier, then a ghost for almost three hundred years. No one had worried over him in a good long while, since farther back than he could remember. Watching Allison stand up for him, praise him; it warmed his insides and he actually had to avert his gaze and will his feelings back before they moistened his eyes.
“’Tis all right, lass. If ye’ll keep me company, I’m willing to stay here, behind a locked door, so long as yer with me.”
“Aww.” Tara put a hand to her heart. “Come on, Nathan. Don’t be so hard-nosed. Let him out.”
Kenrick almost felt sorry for the other man as the two women faced off against him.
Nathan’s jaw jutted. “Not going to happen.” He pointed a finger at his sister. “And this is the last time I try and do you a solid. I was only trying to help, and you know it.” He turned and headed out the door.
Both girls followed him and Kenrick immediately missed the warmth of Allison’s hands gripping his own.
“What’s all this, then?”
Kenrick slowly turned his head, almost disbelieving his own eyes when he saw Soni a few feet away, sitting on the cot, her ankles crossed and swinging. “Soni?” He ever-so-carefully stepped back within the circle of salt.
She grinned at him, that beautiful, festive smile he’d once have done anything to receive. “Aye, laddie, ’tis me sure enough. Ye were expectin’ me, were ye not?”
Oh, he was expecting her. He’d just hoped she’d turn up later, rather than sooner. But she’d always been a sweet, reasonable girl. He glanced at the door and could hear Allison, just outside, arguing with her brother. It didn’t sound like she was making a bit of progress.
Soni stared at the circle he stood within. “Is that salt?”
Kenrick’s head swam, making it hard to think clearly. He searched her face for any sign of anger. “It was just to give me a bit more time, do ye see?”
“It is salt!” her jaw dropped and her eyes sparked. “And yer using it against me!”
He was relieved to note the spark was amusement rather than fury.
&
nbsp; “I must say my goodbyes. Do ye understand?”
“How did ye get locked up in here? I can get ye out, ye know. Easy as pie.”
Anxiety flooded him. “No! That is to say, I’m fine right here. I … I …” He didn’t know what to do, so he turned toward the closed door, and yelled out Allison’s name. “Allison! Are ye there, lass? I need ye.”
He glanced at Soni once again, relieved to note that rather than angered, the little witch glanced about the jail cell, humming and content.
“How did ye know to salt, anyway?”
He was reluctant to say, but even more reluctant to ignore the question. “’Twas another witch.”
She perked up, her generous mouth smiling. “Another witch, ye say?”
“Aye. I’d hope … I hope yer not angry?”
She giggled. “Nae angry at all. Busy as I am, I’ve a mind to sit back and watch the show.”
Just then, the door swung open.
The first thing Allison saw was the beautiful girl in the cell with Kenrick. She stopped and blinked in surprise.
Tara barreled into her from behind. “Whoof. Why’d you—”
“What is going on here? Who are you?” Her brother, bringing up the rear, sounded confused.
Tara gasped. “It’s the witch! Did it work? Did my salt circle work?”
The girl laughed merrily, extended her leg, and swiped a foot through the circle.
Tara’s face fell. “Oh. I was so sure …”
“Cheer up, lassie.” The pretty girl grinned. “Things are not always as they seem. In fact, they rarely are.”
Allison lifted her hand to the bars, her gaze moving from Kenrick to the girl. “What is going on here?”
Kenrick surged forward to grip her fingers, then released her to jump back into the circle.
Allison glanced to Tara. “Did you do this? Is this one of your friends?”
Tara, her expression entranced, gripped the bars. “I’m Tara Romano. I’m with the Texas Wicca group. I was standing outside the door this entire time, and I never even saw you slip inside. I’m dying to know how you got in here, how you got inside the cell, and if you can be my new best friend.”
