Wicked by Any Other Name

by Linda Wisdom

  “I need someone like that,” Blair grumbled.

  Her wish was granted as she was pushed backward in her chair and the collie got up and bounded over to her. He kept his paws on her shoulders as he covered her face with kisses. No amount of batting at him deterred him from his task. When he finished, he moved back to sit on his haunches and bark at her.

  “The one who wants to be my boyfriend is a dog… literally,” Blair moaned, picking up a napkin from the coffee table and wiping her face free of dog slobber.

  “Stop complaining about your lack of a sex life and do something about it,” Jazz said lazily. “I’d rather hear Stasi’s story. It’s a lot more satisfying. Of course, now we have to wait until Trev lets her up for air.”

  And wait they did, until Trev stepped back. His chest rose and fell heavily while Stasi looked starry-eyed. There was no need of hearts now as they looked at each other.

  “What was that for?” she asked between swollen lips.

  “My retainer, in case Carrie finds another way to pursue her case,” he replied. “I took myself off the case. Jazz, let that lawyer you hired know Stasi already has someone fighting for her.”

  Three witches and one ghost all displayed dropped jaws.

  “You did this for me?” Stasi stammered.

  “Congratulations, you finally got a brain,” Jazz chimed in.

  “It’s about time,” Blair muttered.

  “How romantic.” Irma looked teary-eyed.

  “What have you done, Trev?” Stasi whispered, gripping his arms. “Carrie’s already vindictive toward me. Her anger transferred to you too will make matters worse.”

  “No, she’ll learn that she can’t use the wizard’s legal system for her own twisted ends.” He pulled off his jacket and tossed it on the couch. Stasi smiled and picked it up, hanging it on the coat rack.

  Blair hopped up and came back with coffee.

  “What happened?” Stasi asked, sitting down with him as he drank the hot brew.

  Trev began with his arrival at Carrie’s house and told everything up to his exit from there. With each word he spoke, Stasi’s fingers twisted nervously.

  “It’s like Old Salem Village,” she whispered. “It only took a tiny few to begin the whispers and the paranoia. Now it’s here. The return of the past.”

  “This isn’t like that time,” he assured her, putting his cup down so he could put his arms around her. He kissed the top of her hair, inhaling the soft scent of lilacs and spring flowers that he knew he would always associate with her. “No matter what, people don’t have the old superstitions they suffered back then.”

  “It doesn’t matter. Fear spans time. Even The Librarian said it would come from the past.”

  Trev looked at her sharply. “You saw him again?”

  She nodded. “I fell through a tree.”

  “Just like Alice in Wonderland,” Blair said.

  “It was a long drop, too.” Stasi unconsciously rubbed her bottom as she remembered the shock of falling onto it. “The Librarian said I have to use the past to heal the present. Then I told him that Jazz was right, he sucked. The next thing I knew I was thrown out of there and back up out of the tree.”

  “You told my uncle he sucked?” Instead of showing shock, Trev threw his head back and laughed. “No one has ever said anything like that to him before. Most visitors show him more awe than scorn—with the exception of Jazz, of course.”

  “He’s mean,” she complained. “He likes to give us puzzles instead of answers, or at least a direction in which to search for our own conclusions. Plus I didn’t technically say he sucked. I just said that Jazz was right in saying he sucked.”

  “It’s always blamed on me,” Jazz said with a long-suffering sigh.

  “Something tells me my next family reunion will be interesting.” Trev hugged her against him. “My mother will enjoy this story. And you,” he whispered in her ear bringing a blush to her cheeks.

  The collie got up and wandered to the back door, scratching at the wood. Blair hopped up and let him out and at the same time let Nick in.

  “You stirred up quite a hornet’s nest out there, wizard,” Nick greeted Trev. Snowflakes lingered on the vampire’s dark hair as he shrugged off his heavy coat. While he was impervious to extreme temperatures, he preferred to blend in every way he could. His pale skin didn’t look out of place on dark winter days, although his skin never got red or chapped from the bitter cold.

  “You were out there when it all went down?”

  “I not only heard it all, but I played spy for a while after you left. They were too caught up in the moment to even notice me.” As a vampire, Nick could move among others without being noticed if he so chose. His additional training as a former Protectorate enforcer enhanced that ability. “For a while it sounded as if Reed was the wronged one, even more than Carrie.” He shot Stasi a wry glance.

  “I don’t know what his problem is. We never even went out,” Stasi muttered.

  “Which makes his dislike for you even more intense. You kept rejecting him while he was courting you over time, but you paired yourself off with Trev almost immediately,” Nick said.

  “It’s the red hearts.” Even as she said it she didn’t believe her explanation. She was now convinced the hearts had only made sure she and Trev were thrown together. “The red hearts,” she murmured.

  “Yes, you said that.” Blair flopped back into her chair, lifting her feet to rest on the coffee table. “Red hearts. Cupid’s idea of a joke, but it looks like it backfired on him. They glow, they glimmer, they dance, they conga, I think they’ve even done the hustle. Wouldn’t it be lovely to have a nice quiet night with nothing more exciting than a movie marathon and lots of popcorn? To prepare for Samhain without having to look over your shoulder?” She glanced at a wall that was left blank for a reason. “And why hasn’t Maggie wallmailed me back that she’s ready to give up those lovely dresses she wore in 1810? And Thea promised me all her jewelry from the Victorian era.”

  “Thea giving something up? You must have caught her when she was in one of her insane moods.” Jazz yawned, snuggling up to Nick. “She never gives up anything, especially jewelry.”

  “Red hearts.” Stasi paced back and forth. She snapped her fingers. “Cupid set this in motion! He wanted to get even with me. He made sure that Carrie found Trev, who would come up here, the hearts would show themselves—and Cupid sat back and enjoyed the show. Yes, I know I’m rambling and none of it makes sense. But look what’s happening now. It’s gone beyond a joke. I haven’t seen any of the ghosts since that last time with Fergus. I know I told him he should stay in his realm, but he’s never listened to me before, why would he do it now?”

  “Do you think what’s between us is some kind of sick joke?”

  Stasi turned and her heart sank when she saw the stricken look on Trev’s face. She ran over to him and knelt down on the carpet by his knees. “No, I don’t,” she said earnestly. “But it started out that way. You can’t tell me that you came up here expecting all this to happen between us. I saw you as the enemy when you first walked into the shop. Now, I don’t.” She placed her palm against his cheek. “I don’t see Wizard Barnes, attorney. I see Trev, my lover.”

  He reached down and pulled her up onto his lap. “Good. Now I don’t have to convince you we make an excellent match.” He cupped her face with his hands and kissed her deeply, tasting the sweetness that was pure Stasi. She smoothed her hands up his chest to his shirt collar and gripped the fabric tightly as she sank into the kiss, her tongue darting into his mouth to twist and twirl around his. It didn’t matter the room had no heat at the moment. They were creating more than enough on their own.

  “Um, Stasi? Trev? You do know you have an audience here, don’t you?” Jazz interrupted with a hint of laughter in her voice.

  Stasi immediately drew back and covered he
r face with her hands. The kiss she shared with Trev before hadn’t turned as intimate as this one. Anyone looking at her would have thought she was embarrassed, except her shoulders shook and muffled laughter could be heard.

  “I can’t believe this.” She struggled to contain her laughter but she couldn’t. “I don’t normally lose control.”

  “Neither do I.” Trev pulled her back against him.

  “Maybe Mercury retrograde and the upcoming lunar eclipse seem to have turned our lives upside down, but I’d say something happened for the better where you’re concerned,” Blair said. There was no doubt in her sincerity. Seeing her best friend happy made her happy.

  “Plus, Trev knows if he hurts you he’ll have twelve witches to deal with.” Jazz playfully bared her teeth at him. It wasn’t as effective as if Nick had showed fang, but the intent in her eyes assured Trev he would be in for a world of pain if he ever hurt Stasi.

  “I’ve already thrown myself into the mix,” Nick offered. “Stasi’s like family.”

  “Then I’m glad my intentions are absolutely honorable, because Stasi means too much to me to ever let her be hurt.”

  Stasi’s blood warmed at Trev’s words and what sounded suspiciously like a vow to her. Yep, he’s a keeper.

  “Witch and vampire. Now witch and wizard. What will happen next? Witch and gnome?” Blair wrinkled her nose at the thought.

  “I could fix you up with Dweezil,” Jazz suggested with a wicked light in her moss-green eyes.

  “Gross!” Blair impulsively pulled her sweater up to cover her face and flashed a sight of a silky teal bra.

  “Nice bra, Blair!”

  Amid applause from Jazz, Blair lowered her sweater and scrunched up her face. “You’re not going to embarrass me. Well, now that we’ve had our warm and fuzzy moment, let’s see what we can find for dinner. I’ve never been so grateful for a gas stove. I haven’t cooked anything over an open fire other than s’mores for decades, and I’d like to keep it that way.”

  Stasi got up to follow her. Trev kept hold of her hand and squeezed it lightly.

  “I meant it about my family, Stasi,” he murmured. “I want you to meet them, and I want them to get to know you.”

  She felt the warmth begin at the tips of her toes and move all the way up through her body.

  “I wish you could have met my family.”

  He looked around him. “I think I already have.”

  She followed his gaze, seeing Jazz and Nick whispering, Blair beyond in the kitchen while Fluff and Puff played a three-way tug-of-war with Bogie. Sirius remained his quiet majestic self by Irma’s side.

  “You’re right. You have.” She dropped a kiss on top of his head and went to the kitchen.

  “I’ll help.” Jazz started to get up, but her offer was half-hearted.

  Stasi waved her back down. “No thank you. With your lack of cooking skills the whole kitchen could blow up. But you can set the table when dinner’s ready.”

  “That she can do without mishap,” Nick agreed.

  Stasi walked into the kitchen and watched Blair pull a paper-wrapped package out of the refrigerator and then re-seal it with magick.

  “At least the food won’t spoil,” she said, unwrapping the hamburger and dropping it into a pot to brown. She pulled down cans of diced tomatoes and spices from the shelf. “Chili seems right for tonight.”

  “We have sourdough bread to serve with it.” Stasi brought out a couple of large cans of beans and a box of macaroni. She turned to the back door when she heard a soft knock.

  “If it’s that damn dog, he’s not staying for dinner,” Blair growled. “Can you imagine what chili would do to his digestive system and our lungs?”

  “Then it’s a good thing it’s only me,” Jake said, coming in and walking over to Blair, shaking himself off, sending snowflakes all over her. She squealed and threatened him with her spoon, but he only laughed and backed off. He pulled off his jacket to reveal a navy thermal shirt under a red and blue plaid flannel shirt. He unbuttoned the cuffs and rolled them back a couple of times to bare his well-shaped forearms.

  “You’re welcome to stay for dinner. We have plenty,” Stasi told him.

  “Witches Cauldron Wine and Dine,” Blair muttered, retrieving another can of beans from the cabinet.

  Jake took the can out of her hands along with the others and rummaged through the drawers until he found a manual can opener.

  “I wonder if the snow will ever stop.” Stasi looked out the window.

  “Fred tried to fire up his snow blower with no success. Same with all the other ones in town. Mine didn’t even let out a burp.”

  “Towns have been buried under water, but I wonder how many have been buried under snowdrifts.” Blair suppressed a shiver. “There are children in the town. What will happen to them with all this cold?”

  “We’ll solve this. We’ll find a way.”

  Jake pushed the opened cans over to Blair. “Why can’t you use magick to get rid of the snow?”

  “No way we’d try that. Mother Nature would have our hides if we mess with her territory,” Jazz said, coming in and pulling out crockery bowls and spoons. “And she has punishment down to a fine art.”

  “Only because you called up thunder too many times,” Blair reminded her.

  “Can you twitch your noses or wiggle your fingers or even cross your eyes to get the snow blowers working?” Jake asked.

  Stasi paused in setting out the bowls and spoons. “Maybe we could do that. Mother Nature can’t be angry if we’re tinkering with machinery.”

  “I don’t think it will work,” Jazz said. “I’m not being pessimistic. It’s just with everything else, why do we think we can make the snow blowers work? I don’t know about you two, but the only mechanical device I’ve used magick on was the car when I ran out of gas on the freeway.”

  “And that didn’t go well,” Irma pointed out from her spot in the family room. “The engine almost caught fire.”

  “Can’t happen. It seems the car is safe as long as you’re in it.” Jazz tapped her chin with her forefinger. “The only good reason to keep you in the T-Bird.”

  “We need to stop everything,” Stasi said. “Fix the lake, the town, the people.” She glanced at Jake.

  He made a face. “They’re… uh… well, they don’t see you as their favorite people right now. They all seem to think you’re doing this because Carrie filed the lawsuit. That you’re on some sort of vendetta and taking it out on everyone. I did some nosing around this afternoon. There’s something going on over at the town hall. I saw lots of flashlights and lanterns in there, so I went over to investigate.”

  “Was that safe, when they know you spend time with us?” Blair asked.

  “I wasn’t noticed. Trouble is, I could only hear murmurs, and there was some kind of barrier around the town hall like there was around the lake. I slammed right into it.” Jake rubbed his nose. “But I hung around nearby and later on they all came out. The barrier must have dissolved when they left.”

  “They probably want to run Stasi out of town on a rail. Which goes to show they really don’t know her,” Jazz said. “Blair and I would go after everyone in a heartbeat if we were seriously pissed, but not Stasi. She’s the good one. Even if she was targeting Carrie and making her suffer, she wouldn’t go after anyone else. Even if they sided with Carrie, the way these idiots are.” She shook her head.

  “You three are really close,” Jake pointed out. He lifted an eyebrow.

  Blair shot him a “don’t get any ideas” look. “Get your mind out of the gutter, Jake Harrison. You’ll never have that particular fantasy fulfilled.”

  “Nick wouldn’t even dare ask such a thing,” Jazz told him. “He likes his body parts where they are.”

  “Trev hasn’t gotten that far, but I think he’d be smart enough not to sugges
t it,” Stasi said.

  “In fact, why don’t you go into the family room and hang out with the guys?” Blair shooed him out of the kitchen. “Let us women do the work.”

  “Why do I feel as if sarcasm coated those words?” He grinned as he did as she ordered.

  “You seriously need to jump his bones,” Jazz murmured to Blair.

  “I’ve given him more than enough hints I’m amiable, but he seems to ignore them. I’d swear he was gay, but I’ve caught him checking out my ass a few times.”

  “Hence miniskirts and crop tops last summer,” Stasi teased.

  “Whatever works.” Blair looked down at her fleece boot-cut pants and hoody. “And a much better fashion statement. Today, I dress for warmth.”

  “Don’t we all.” Stasi filled a bowl with kibble for Bogie, who immediately materialized at his dish, and two matching dishes of kibble for Fluff and Puff, who came chattering in from the family room. “None of you are getting chili,” she informed them. “We like to breathe.”

  “I’m surprised Horace isn’t in here whining that he’s starving to death,” Blair commented.

  Stasi shot up. “Horace!” She raced toward her room. “Trev!” She ran in and headed for her dresser.

  “I don’t even get dinner first?” he joked, walking in.

  “We forgot to take Horace out of my dresser. He’s still under your spell,” she told him, touching the wood and feeling the power still covering it.

  “He can’t die in there, he’s made of stone.”

  “No, but he can make my life miserable. You have to break the spell.”

  He sighed. “Peace and quiet be gone, Horace be heard.”

  “All right, this isn’t funny! Let me out! I know you can hear me! I heard that fucking spell break!” The wood drawer almost bowed under the pressure of gargoyle punches.

  Stasi slid it open. Horace pulled off the scarf that had covered him, actually shredded it to bits, and hopped up on top.

  “You two are in so much trouble,” he grumbled, storming the length of the dresser. “I’m reporting you for cruelty. You’ll be cited, that’s for sure. I won’t allow this to be ignored.”