Aunt Tillie breaking down Star Wars
Nine
She is not afraid. She is not alone. She is two blocks from the inn.
My heart thudded as I slapped at the hand. Then the words, the tone and the voice infiltrated my head and I widened my eyes.
“I mean ... a lot of trouble, Bay,” Landon growled, keeping his hand in place over my mouth so I couldn’t respond as he dragged me lower into the foliage. “I can’t believe you thought that lullaby thing was going to work a second time. And REO Speedwagon? Really? You thought I would dream about that dreck?”
I managed to wrench his hand from my mouth and shifted so I could see his face. He was dressed in black jogging pants and hoodie, his hair swept back from his face. He looked furious.
Despite that, I was glad to see him. “I planted that song because it’s romantic. You know, that part about loving you forever and stuff. I wanted you to sleep well.”
Landon shook his head. “That won’t work.”
“I do love you.”
“Oh, geez.” Landon rolled his eyes. “You are ... un-freaking-believable.”
I shrugged. “I had to see.”
“I know you did. I was expecting this move, if you want to know the truth. I knew you wouldn’t be able to let it go. Coming out here at night made the most sense.”
“So ... why didn’t you try to stop me?”
“Because I’m not your keeper.”
“You stalked me in the woods,” I pointed out. “That’s something a keeper might do.”
Landon scowled. “Are you trying to give me an aneurysm?”
“No. I’m trying to see what they’re doing. Why are they out here searching in the dark?”
“I don’t know.” Landon relaxed his grip, though only marginally. I could’ve attempted to flee but I had nowhere to go. He was behind me, and if I ran forward I’d end up in enemy hands. I was better in his hands. Er, wait, that sounded kind of dirty, didn’t it? “I don’t understand why they’re out here.”
Landon was more focused on the search than me now, and something occurred to me. “You let me go without confronting me because you wanted to follow me.”
“You’re full of it.”
“No, it’s true.” I vehemently shook my head.
“Stop that.” Landon forced me lower so he could jerk the hood on my coat over my head. “You should’ve worn a dark hat, Bay. Your hair stands out. That’s how I so easily followed you in the woods.”
“You could’ve made a noise,” I complained. “I kept thinking about Bigfoot ... and bears ... and that video of the cougar people say is real. I wouldn’t have thought about those things if you’d been with me.”
“You deserve to think about those things,” Landon fired back. “You cast a spell on me, planted a lullaby in my head so you could more easily lie. And it was a terrible eighties ballad.”
“I love that song.” I folded my arms over my chest as he tied the hoodie tight so my hair wouldn’t spill out. “I always think of you when I hear it on the radio.”
“That won’t work on me. I’m angry. We’re going to talk about this later.”
“What are we going to do now?”
“Watch what they’re doing, of course.” Landon sat on the chilly ground and pulled me into his lap. “Now ... shh.”
I studied his profile for a long moment. “This makes it easier for you, doesn’t it? I went into the woods and you had to follow because you always feel you need to protect me. If someone catches us, you can always say you were trying to stop me from making it to the scene.”
“I wouldn’t use that exact excuse. I’d say I woke up, you were gone, and I was worried so I went looking.”
“It’s the same thing.”
“I guess, depending on how you look at it.” Landon kept his eyes averted. “You’re right that I wanted to see if they were doing something out here. I don’t like admitting it because I’m afraid you’ll take it as some tacit approval and keep doing things like sneaking through the woods in the middle of the night. That’s never a good idea.”
“But?” I prodded.
“But I want to see what they’re doing, too,” Landon admitted. “We didn’t know about this. They didn’t tell us. There has to be a reason for that.”
“You think they’re hiding something, don’t you?”
“Not aliens.”
“I didn’t say aliens. I told you my hunch.”
“I don’t know that I believe your guess either,” Landon countered. “I just want to see. I can’t hear what they’re saying if you keep talking. Besides that, you’ll draw attention to us if you don’t stop.”
“Fine.” I snuggled against him, enjoying the way his arms automatically came around me. “Just for the record, I don’t think we should fight about this. We were both at fault.”
Landon snorted lightly. “Bay, we’re going to fight about this.”
“Why?”
“I hate REO Speedwagon.”
“That’s a good band.”
“Shh.” Landon brushed his lips against my cheek. “I need to see, Bay. Just ... be quiet. That can be your punishment.”
“Fine, but I’m going to make you listen to REO Speedwagon later. That’ll be your punishment.”
“I can’t wait.”
I FELL ASLEEP.
I wasn’t sure when it happened. We watched the workers in the field for a long time. I grew bored after a bit and Landon refused to engage in conversation, so I drifted off. He eventually woke me, placing a hand over my mouth to make sure I didn’t speak too loudly.
“We need to go, Bay,” he whispered. “They’re getting closer to the trees.”
“What?” I was confused. “We’re still out here?”
He cocked a dark eyebrow. “Did you think I would carry you back? It’s more than a mile.”
I shrugged. “That would be the gentlemanly thing to do.” I made a big show of stretching. “What time is it?”
“After two. We need to go now. I don’t want to risk them seeing us.”
“Okay.” My legs were cramped as I stood, and I had to hold onto his arm to collect my strength. “Did you see anything good?”
“I don’t know. They’re looking for something.”
I’d figured that out myself. “What?”
“I don’t know. Come on.” He grabbed my hand and pulled me away from the light. “We need to go. Now.”
I didn’t argue. His tone told me he meant business. I linked my fingers with his and picked up the pace. “I guess we can talk about REO Speedwagon on the way back. They really are underappreciated.”
“Yup. You’re definitely trying to kill me.”
I WOKE BEFORE LANDON, which wasn’t surprising. He was hyper-vigilant during the walk home, keeping me pinned to his side as he constantly looked over his shoulder. Even though I wanted to torture him with REO Speedwagon lyrics, his agitation forced me to keep my mouth shut. By the time we returned home we were both exhausted, so we tumbled into bed.
My nap at the crash site gave me an edge, so I got up and showered before him. With nothing better to do, I decided to make breakfast. I wasn’t much of a cook — the kitchen witch genes that fueled my mom and aunts skipped my generation — but we had bacon. We always had bacon because it was Landon’s version of chocolate. It was the one thing that always put him in a better mood.
I didn’t have eggs, hash browns or toast to go with it, but I figured the bacon was a nice side dish for the instant oatmeal I planned to prepare. Anything was better than heading up to the inn and watching Clove struggle with what I was sure would amount to a righteous hangover.
“You’re up early.”
I jolted at the sound of Landon’s voice, turning quickly to find him standing in the doorway of our bedroom. His hair was mussed and he wore nothing but boxer shorts. Even though he looked a little worse for wear, he was quite the sight to behold.
“Why don’t you ever wake up with bedhead?” I complained.<
br />
“Just one of those little gifts from the Goddess,” Landon replied dryly as he joined me in the kitchen. He planted a kiss on my neck as he leaned around me and snagged a slice of his favorite treat. “What’s the special occasion?”
“Why must there be a special occasion?”
“You cooked.”
“I made bacon and oatmeal.”
“That’s still cooking.”
“Barely.”
“You never cook.” Landon moved to the coffee pot and poured himself a mug. “I thought we were going up to the inn for breakfast. I was a little worried when I woke and you were already gone. I thought maybe you’d left without me.”
“I wouldn’t do that.”
Landon arched a dubious eyebrow as he leaned against the counter. “You would if you thought it would get you out of an argument.”
“Are we going to argue?”
“A little bit.”
I heaved out a sigh. I knew he wouldn’t say “no,” yet I was hoping for it all the same. “I thought it would be better to argue here. Clove and Sam stayed at the inn. I’m sure she’s hungover. Plus, well, if we fight in front of my family Aunt Tillie will find out what we did last night and she’ll be all over that site today.”
“Fair enough.” Landon sipped and eyed me speculatively. “Do you want to say something?”
“Yes.”
“I figured. You can start.”
“REO Speedwagon has put out some fine music.”
Landon took me by surprise when he chuckled. “Fine. I stand corrected. I promise to dance with you to REO Speedwagon one night this week if you let it go.”
That was far too easy. I expected to wear him down with a music argument before we got to the big stuff. “Oh, well ... .”
“I want to talk about you planting the lullaby in my head in the first place,” Landon persisted. “I don’t like it when you do things like that. You’re not supposed to use your magic on me.”
“And I don’t like using my magic on you. It’s just ... this case is different. You can’t share information with me. That means I have to use alternative means to get information. I thought it would be easier for you if I slipped out while you slept.”
“You thought it would be easier for you,” Landon corrected. “You knew I would argue if you told the truth.”
“Maybe.”
“You’re right about this being hard on both of us, Bay,” Landon said. “I don’t like it any more than you do. We’re both trying to do right by each other when it’s impossible to tell the truth. I don’t expect you to volunteer your plans to me.”
“You don’t?” That was news to me. “That’s not what you said at dinner last night.”
“That was wishful thinking, not expectation. I know I can’t stop you from chasing this. It’s not in your nature to look the other way.”
I licked my lips. “It’s weird. While I was walking through the woods and trying not to focus on that cougar video that’s been making the rounds, I thought about that. About how it would be easier if I could just let it go. It would be the best thing for both of us if I could.”
“Not for both of us.”
“I didn’t want to plant the lullaby,” I supplied. “I also didn’t want you waking up and wondering where I went. I can’t figure out why it didn’t work.”
“Perhaps it didn’t work because your heart wasn’t in it.”
“Maybe.”
“Or perhaps it didn’t work because I was only faking being asleep.”
I jerked my head in his direction. “You weren’t asleep? I assumed you woke up when I left, maybe heard the door shut. Are you saying you weren’t asleep in the first place?”
“No. I knew you were going to sneak out.”
“How could you possibly know that?”
“Because, while your cousins got so drunk they had to stay at the inn, you nursed the same glass of wine while pretending to refill it,” Landon replied, matter-of-fact. “I’m a trained investigator. I watched you. I knew you were going to make a move. Otherwise, you would’ve had more than one glass of wine.”
“I thought you drank more than you obviously did,” I admitted ruefully.
“I did the same thing you did. I filled glasses of wine and then gave them to Clove and Thistle.”
“Oh.” I pursed my lips. “I guess I should have watched you more closely.”
“I don’t think that’s the part of the conversation we need to focus on, Bay,” Landon countered. “I’m more interested in the part where you tried to spell me.”
“It was for your own good.”
“I think you believe that. I’m not sure it’s true.”
I balked. “It’s true. I wanted to make sure you were safe in bed.”
“While you were running around the countryside.”
“Hey, you wanted to stay out there a lot longer than I did,” I argued. “I was ready to come back five minutes after I arrived. You wouldn’t have even noticed I was gone if things went according to plan.”
“That’s the point. What if they hadn’t gone according to plan? What if you’d been discovered and taken into custody?”
“Then you would’ve woken to a very annoying phone call.”
“Would I? I’m not so sure. Agent Gibson could’ve held you for twenty-four hours without allowing you to place a call. Do you think that would’ve gone over well?”
Huh. That hadn’t even occurred to me. “No. I guess not. I didn’t think about it.”
“I know you didn’t.” Landon placed his coffee on the counter and moved next to me. “We need new ground rules for this case. Our previous rules are fine for other cases, but this is different.”
I was instantly alert. “What kind of ground rules?”
“The type where we both acknowledge we have jobs to do but our relationship is more important,” Landon replied without hesitation. “That means if we can’t say something, we acknowledge that. But no lies.”
“I didn’t lie.”
“No spells, at least against me. That’s not fair.”
I blew out a sigh and ran my hand through my damp hair. “Okay. I can live with that. I didn’t mean to hurt you.”
“You didn’t hurt me. I knew what you were doing all along.”
“And you followed because you wanted to see for yourself,” I mused. “Did you figure out anything last night? I mean ... I know you can’t tell me, but I’d feel better knowing that you understand where all of this is going.”
“I didn’t figure anything out. Gibson is hiding something from me, and I don’t like it. I have no idea what he’s looking for. It doesn’t make any sense.”
“Have you noticed there’s no wreckage out there?”
“As a matter of fact, I have.”
“Was it collected that first night? Was it ever out there?”
“Sweetie, I really don’t know. The first day we were there the smoke was too heavy to see anything. Gibson insisted we stay in town yesterday. I assume the wreckage was removed then.”
“No, it was gone before I went out there yesterday morning. That means they collected it during the night.”
“Which explains why you felt the need to go out there last night.”
“I simply wanted to see what they were doing. I’m more confused now than when I left the house.”
“Yeah, well, that makes two of us.” Landon grabbed a slice of bacon from the plate on the counter and snapped it in half, giving the bigger chunk to me before munching on his portion. “Gibson’s full of himself, but he’ll have to start talking at some point.”
“Why does he outrank you?”
“That’s simply part of the game. He’s been with the bureau longer, and this is his case. I’m merely auxiliary help.”
“Hmm.” I bit into the bacon and chewed, thoughtful. “Does the bacon mean you forgive me?”
“I was never really angry. I just wanted to make sure we were on the same page.”
“We ar
e. I won’t be a butthead again.”
“Oh, you’ll be a butthead.” Landon’s eyes twinkled as he grinned. “But you’re my butthead. I’m kind of fond of you no matter what you do. No more lullabies, though. I don’t like it. It feels ... invasive.”
“Even if I pick something like Bob Dylan?”
“No. More. Lullabies.”
I held up my hands in capitulation. “Got it. I won’t do it again.”
“Good.” Landon rolled his neck. “Are you really going to make me eat this mush or can we get breakfast in town?”
“Oh, thank the Goddess.” I pushed the oatmeal away. “Let’s definitely go to town.”
“See, we’re already back on the right track.”
“I can’t tell you how relieved I am.”
Alien Inspiration
Do you think we can order one of those aliens from Predator and put it in Margaret Little’s house? I’m asking for a friend. Not me. A friend. No, seriously. I’m just asking.
Aunt Tillie discussing the limitations of online shopping
Ten
Infinite space. Infinite Aunt Tillie. Infinite terror.
I parked in front of Hypnotic, taking a moment to wave at Landon as he parked across the street. His expression reflected curiosity, but he didn’t cross and demand answers. We were trying to compromise. In addition to that, what he didn’t say but I picked up was that he figured he was better off not knowing what I was up to.
Oh, sure, he hated being in the dark. As long as he didn’t know what I was doing, though, he could honestly deny any allegations Gibson lobbed in my direction without feeling guilty. Landon was an oddly moral man — not that there’s anything wrong with that — so he hated lying. I was a witch and sometimes lying came with the job, so I was more flexible. He was right about the lullaby, though. That wasn’t fair to him ... although I was considering playing a game that involved all eighties ballads to mess with him. But that would have to wait until this was settled.
Close Encounters of the Witchy Kind (A Wicked Witches of the Midwest Fantasy Book 6) Page 9
