Lucky Witch: A Beechwood Harbor Magic Mystery (Beechwood Harbor Magic Mysteries Book 5)

by Danielle Garrett

  “So? Doesn’t prove a thing!”

  “Other than that you heard about Sasha’s arrest and immediately went to her house to make sure the SPA didn’t get ahold of them. What were you planning on doing with them?”

  “I didn’t steal them,” he growled against the sidewalk.

  Agent Bramble got the cuffs secured and hauled him to his feet. He wobbled as the stunning spell still had a grip on his muscles.

  “Who did, then?”

  “Grady.”

  I blinked.

  “He wanted to turn them all over to the SPA. Said we needed to turn ourselves in, too.”

  “How did he know she’d been arrested?” Agent Bramble asked. “Sasha didn’t get a courtesy phone call.”

  “Ben did. He called Grady.” Marco tensed his jaw. The fact he’d been passed over clearly annoyed him. “He was their golden boy. I wish I could see the look on Sasha’s face when she hears that he was the one who was going to betray them all! I was the only one who cared. Who wanted to help. Grady hated her, but he was weak. Afraid. I couldn’t run as fast, but I was twice the wolf than he could have ever been.”

  I shook my head, marveling at the fragility of his ego and just how deep into destruction it had driven him.

  “What I can’t understand is why you came to tell me about any of it. Were you feeling guilty and wanting to get caught? Or what?”

  “I knew you’d bring Nick with you to the bar that night. You weren’t going to let him out of your sight. I had some of the loyal pack members waiting to grab him.”

  The confession chilled me to the core. “Why?”

  “He would have been asked to join the pack. If he refused, we would have put him down.”

  Sasha’s phrasing sounded even more deadly coming from his lips.

  I hurled the journal back into the car and slammed the door. “Get him out of my sight. I just hope you can find a hole dark and deep enough for this monster.”

  Marco snapped his teeth at me. “You think you’ve won, but this isn’t the end, witch! I’ll get a message to the rest of the pack. They’re going to knows there’s a traitor in those woods. They’ll find Nick and tear him to pieces!”

  I flicked my wrist and Marco went limp.

  Agent Bramble frowned at me. “That wasn’t exactly protocol, Holly. We don’t typically knock out assailants.”

  “Good thing I’m not an agent then, huh?”

  She didn’t reply.

  Her assistant, Janine, met us at the end of the sidewalk a few minutes later and did her neat lasso trick to take the now-drooling Marco back to headquarters. We went back to the car and I helped her bag up the journals and other items from the Taurus parked outside the bar. We made sure there weren’t any gawking human witnesses nearby and then went up the hill to the portal.

  Agent Bramble opened the doors but paused before going through. Turning to me, she held up the bag of items we’d pulled from Marco’s car. “I’ll get these to the team at headquarters. They can decipher what’s usable and start working on a cure for Nick. I’ll call you as soon as I have more information. In the meantime, try to find a way to explain away his absence to his friends and family. I don’t know how long this process will take.”

  I nodded, even as tears welled up in my eyes. We’d caught Grady’s killer and stopped the remaining poison from Sasha’s evil plans, but I couldn’t help feeling like I’d failed Nick in the process.

  Agent Bramble called me to SPA headquarters a few days after Marco’s arrest and informed me that Sasha’s mother had been moved to a new prison and that the confirmation of her bumped-up appeal trial had satisfied Sasha. To her credit, she held up her end of the bargain and agreed to speak with an agent in regards to the journals and notebooks found in Marco’s apartment. The agent came back with stacks of notes and that the team was working around the clock to find a way to help Nick. She showed me a stack of parchment filled with scribbled notes and illustrations, instructions crammed into the margins. I spent an hour reading through everything, connecting the pieces and details.

  “I’m sure you’ve figured out what it is that I’m asking of you,” she said when I placed the last piece of parchment on the desk in front of me.

  I glanced up and shook my head. “Actually, no. I don’t. I thought I was just here to take Nick back home again.”

  She smiled and folded her hands together. “A few days ago you sat in that same chair and I told you that you would make a great agent. Now, you laughed it off, but I was being sincere. After watching the way you handled Ben on that call, I saw it in your eyes. You were reading his every word and movement. You did the same thing with Sasha. Careful and quick on your feet. We wouldn’t have been able to get to the bottom of any of this without you.”

  “You’re not seriously asking me to join the SPA?” I sputtered a laugh. “Are you?”

  Her expression remained unchanged. “In a manner of speaking. Yes. I am.”

  The laugh bubbled out louder and I shook my head. “No way!”

  “Hear me out, Holly.” She lifted a hand and I tried my best to rein in the hysterical laughter. “We have lots of capable agents, but we need more leaders. Someone like you, who could come in on a case-by-case basis to really hone in on the details, gather the resources you need, and attack with a single-minded focus.”

  Suddenly the humor was sucked from the room.

  “I’m sorry, Agatha, but no. I’m not interested in working for or with the SPA.”

  She tilted her head. “Can I ask why not?”

  Half a dozen reasons surged to the tip of my tongue. “For starters, I just got my potions license. My business is flourishing and takes up a lot of time. If I was running around sorting out SPA cases, who would be tending to the plants, making potions, helping my customers? Everything I’ve worked for over the last five years would evaporate. On top of that, I’m happy in Beechwood Harbor. I don’t want to move. To the havens … or anywhere, for that matter,” I added, bitterness twisting the word.

  “You wouldn’t have to leave Beechwood Harbor. With the portal, you would only need to come in when needed. As for your potion business, nothing would stop you from continuing. This would be a very select position. You’d serve as a consultant. We’re not asking for a full-time commitment. You would have the freedom to pick and choose which cases to work on.”

  I blew out a puff of air.

  “Staring with Nick’s,” Agent Bramble continued, gesturing at the pages before me. “Our team will take Sasha’s research and get to work on a cure. Now, if they had your help, I’m sure it would go a lot faster.”

  I scowled at her, realizing exactly what she’d led me into.

  The perfect trap.

  “I expected better of you, Agatha.”

  She smiled, not offended. “Oh, come now, Holly. We both knew you weren’t going to leave here without Nick. This will be a good taste of what it would be like. Tell you what, we won’t even draw up paperwork until after Nick is cured.”

  I sighed. “Fine. I’ll think it over. In the meantime, where do we start?”

  She stood. “I’ll take you to the lab right now. We already have a team working on dissecting the information. You’ll be a valuable asset for filling in any blanks. Not only that, but you’ll be working shoulder-to-shoulder with the haven’s top potion masters. I can only imagine what kind of partnerships you might form.”

  Beside myself, I smiled. “You’re a crafty hawk, aren’t you, Agatha?”

  She held the door for me. “I just know you a little better than you thought I did.”

  Agent Bramble’s gamble paid off. I worked with the fascinating team she’d assembled, and three weeks later, Nick walked out beside me, his hand clasping mine. We were debriefed together by Agent Bramble and another senior agent. Everything we’d seen, heard, and done was all strictly off the record. The team was part of an underground project inside the agency and any whispers or rumors could get the whole thing shut down. She also inform
ed us that the remaining members of Sasha’s pack had been rounded up. Most of them were terrified newbie wolves who were eager to participate in trial runs of the forthcoming potion work needed to cure their condition. Agent Bramble assured us that none of them were a threat to Nick, but cautioned us to be careful during the next full moon.

  Once we were finished at headquarters, we were released to go back to Beechwood Harbor, and as we stepped through the portal, we both breathed a sigh of relief.

  “Man, it’s good to be back,” Nick said once we closed the cellar doors, shutting off the portal from the rest of the sleepy little town. “As cool as the haven is, I’m pretty sure I won’t be chomping at the bit to go back again anytime soon.”

  I laughed. “Same here. Though, I’m not sure I’m going to have much of a choice.”

  He turned to me, his brow creased. “What do you mean? I’m better now. Or, at least, mostly.”

  He was still a werewolf, but the defect in the curse was gone. He would only change once a month, on the full moon.

  “Agent Bramble wants me to keep working with the team to see if we can use Sasha’s research and our own findings to produce a real cure for all werewolves and make it available for those who want to accept it.”

  “Oh. Wow.” He bobbled his head. “I guess you can’t walk away just yet, then.”

  “Not exactly. But, hey, it’s worth it.” I smiled up at him. “You’re here! And you’re you again!”

  He laughed but then something shifted, the mood drawing closer.

  “All thanks to you.” He took a step toward me and my breath caught in the back of my throat. “I can’t imagine what I would do without you.”

  His once-again blue eyes searched mine and then dropped to my lips.

  A flurry of emotion rippled through my stomach as he moved another step closer. My eyes slid closed for half of a heartbeat and then popped open again. Nick’s mouth was lowering to mine. I planted my hands on his chest and whispered, “Nick, I’m sorry. I can’t—”

  His eyes opened and he realized our lips were inches apart.

  He jerked back, startled. “I’m so sorry, Holly. I don’t know what I was—uh—thinking.”

  A slow exhale slipped from my lips and I took a few steps back. “It’s not your fault.”

  He rubbed a hand over the back of his neck as he looked off into the distance in the opposite direction. “I should get home. It’s been a while. I’m sure my voicemail is off the hook. I’ve got to catch up on paying bills and probably need to go grocery shopping. People probably think I’m dead.”

  I smiled. “We told everyone you won a three-week cruise to the Bahamas, actually. And, I um, well, I stocked your fridge last night, after I got the call you were coming back home.”

  A new emotion flashed in his eyes and he quickly dropped them to the sidewalk between us. “Right. Well, thank you twice then. For everything.”

  “Don’t mention it,” I replied, my voice thick.

  My chest tightened as Nick waved and turned to head home. A dozen emotions swirled under the surface and when I looked up the hill toward the manor, I knew that I wouldn’t forget this moment for as long as I lived. It would stand as a milestone, reminding me of the exact moment my life changed courses. Again.

  Chapter 23

  The best part of having St. Patrick’s Day in the rear view—besides the fact that the whipped cream at Siren’s Song no longer looked like sludge—was bidding farewell to the gnome-obsessed Barnaby. I’d assumed he’d already gone and was surprised to find him at the dining table one morning when I padded to the kitchen to jumpstart my morning with a tankard of coffee. Evangeline stood on the other side of the counter, poking a fork into the toaster. From the smell in the room, she was attempting to fish out a piece of something that might resemble a charcoal briquette.

  “Morning, lassie!” Barnaby said cheerfully, dunking his own non-burnt piece of toast into a cup of what looked like coffee.

  I wrinkled my nose. “Morning?”

  He thumbed over his shoulder. “I came by to say farewell and she insisted on me staying for breakfast.”

  “Right.”

  Evangeline looked up with a smile.

  “I thought you’d already left. St. Patty’s Day was over a month ago.”

  “Turns out the beach life agrees with me,” he said, grinning as he bit into a piece of toast.

  “Where will you go from here?” I asked, moving to get my own cup of coffee. Evangeline had brewed a full pot. She was hopeless with most kitchen work, but was reliable with the coffee pot. And some days, that’s all you needed.

  “Back home. I’ve been gallivanting around long enough. My wife won’t be happy if I stay away much longer.”

  “You’re married?”

  “Oh, yes. Seventy … uh, seventy-three years? No! Four! Seventy-four.” He gave an impish laugh. “Don’t tell her I forgot.”

  “Secret’s safe with me,” I quipped.

  “Anyway, I came to tell ya that you won’t have any more problems with those pesky notes. All of mine have been taken down. So, whoever was playing a silly trick, they won’t have a reason to now.”

  I sighed. “Barnaby, we know who was putting up those fake notes.”

  “You do!”

  “A vampire who claims you stole quite a sum from his family safe.”

  Barnaby flushed.

  “He was posting the notes leading to the cabin in hopes of catching you.”

  He gulped. “Any idea where he might have gone?”

  Evangeline stood from the table. “Our friend, Lacey took care of it. But I would suggest that you find a way to pay him back.”

  Barnaby sighed heavily. “I haven’t even spent the money. It was supposed to be the grand prize!”

  “Well, maybe you can turn yourself in and they’ll have mercy on you.”

  “Aye. I’ll put the money back.” He tipped his hat to Evangeline. “Thanks for the breakfast, lass. See you next year!”

  Before I could object, he snapped his fingers and a pool of smoke filled the kitchen.

  “Little green devil!” I hissed.

  After my shift at Siren’s Song, I wandered through town, stirring through the mess of thoughts that remained tangled in my mind even days after my meeting with Agent Bramble. Her offer hung over me, presenting itself whenever my mind had a tiny blip of free time. I hadn’t mentioned it to Adam yet, a fact that weighed a little heavier each day. The truth was, I was afraid. Things had only started to knit back together between the two of us and now that the danger was gone, I was afraid of disturbing the fragile peace between us.

  When I returned to the manor, I’d bolstered a measure of courage and set off to find Adam. He was in the kitchen with Lacey, a pairing that struck me as odd. Mostly because they weren’t trying to tear one another to shreds.

  “Hey, guys,” I said, stepping inside.

  Adam turned from rustling in the cupboards to offer a slight smile. “Hey, gorgeous. How was work?”

  I shrugged and then looked at Lacey. A goblet of faux blood sat at her right but it didn’t look like she’d even touched it. Whatever she was reading clearly had her attention. I’d have to wait a little while to get Adam alone.

  Lacey sniffled and I peered down at her, inspecting her a little more closely. Judging by the smudges at the edges of her eyes, she’d slept in her make-up and it didn’t look like she’d brushed her hair.

  “Is everything okay, Lacey?”

  “Huh?” she glanced up, dazed.

  Adam sat down beside her, a shadow of concern over his face. “What’s going on, Lacey?”

  Lacey lifted her hand, revealing a skinny piece of parchment. “I’ve been summoned home.”

  “Home?”

  She nodded, glum.

  Adam and I exchanged a quick glance, both of us wearing blank stares. Lacey had never mentioned her home to me. We’d lived under the same roof for over a year but there were more questions than answers when it came to my
knowledge of her life outside of Beechwood Harbor. In that moment, looking at her profile, the tight line of her mouth as she stared down at the scrap of paper, I realized just how little I knew about her.

  “Is that a bad thing?” Adam asked, never one to worry about tact or timing.

  Lacey folded the paper, squared her shoulders, and gave a decisive shake of her head. “It’s fine.”

  She might be on heck of a beauty queen, but she was a terrible actor.

  “When do you have to leave?” I asked softly.

  “Next month.”

  “How long will you be gone?”

  Lacey sighed. “For as long as my father wants me to be.”

  Adam and I exchanged a dark look.

  “My father is the Barron of the East,” she revealed, still staring ahead.

  “What?” I gasped.

  Her upper lip curled back. “Lord Vaughn is both my father as well as my elder. If he summons me home, I don’t have a choice but to go. And he isn’t exactly the type to let me in on the details of his plans. I have no idea what he wants from me, but I imagine it will be a long time before I’m able to return to Beechwood Harbor. If I ever get to come back.”

  “Lacey,” I whispered. “I’m so sorry.”

  A mirthless laugh slipped from her lips. “I’m surprised he’s taken this long. In a way, I guess he figured I was suffering enough, living in the human world, and all.”

  “Why would he want you to suffer?” I asked before thinking it through.

  If the question bothered her, she didn’t let it show. She dragged in another deep breath and glanced over at me. “Five years ago, I humiliated my family. My sister, Melanie, fell in love with a human. Our father found out and threatened to have the man killed.”

  Adam swore.

  Lacey nodded. “We’re pure vampires. We weren’t turned. We were born this way, from a long line of powerful vampires and part of an esteemed household. It is our job to pass on the lineage to our offspring. So, obviously, marrying a human is completely out of the question.”