by Esme Addison
Lidia scowled at her daughter and then Pepper. “I think we’d all be dead if there was a problem with the nuclear plant. Don’t you agree?”
Minka gulped, avoiding her mother’s stern gaze. “Right.”
Pepper offered Lidia a quick smile before looking at Alex. “What just happened?”
“No one knows,” Alex said.
Ever the journalist, with recorder in hand, Pepper grinned at Alex. “This could be my biggest story to date! Bigger than the murder of Randy Bennet.” She sighed dramatically.
Pepper, who was a reporter for the local newspaper, the Bellamy Bay Bugler, was always on the hunt for a story. And Pepper, whose last name was Bellamy, was the daughter of the mayor and a descendant of the town’s founder. Despite that privileged beginning, she still hustled for a story like her life depended on it.
“What if the networks pick my story up? I could be interviewed. Maybe asked to join someone’s team as a television reporter.” She fairly swooned. “I’ll be back. I need to get some first-person accounts of what just transpired.”
Minka stared into the distance, a frown developing on her face.
And Alex noticed. “What’s wrong, Mink?”
She shook her head. “Just hoping this is not another case of the military destroying the environment.” She turned to look at her cousin. “We’ve been discussing Camp Malveaux during our Bellamy Bay Preservation Society meetings. We—mostly me—are concerned about the proximity of the military base to our beaches. They’re only forty-five miles east of here.”
“What does that have to do with what happened?”
“In my research, I read that even though military bases may be good for local economies, they’re not so great for the environment, with their weapons testing, pollutants, and spilled oils. Maybe they’ve done something to make people sick. Not sure what would account for the outage, though.”
“Enough speculation,” Aunt Lidia snapped, and began ticking off ingredients. “Let’s make a tea. We’ll need gingko biloba, ginger, butcher’s broom, cayenne, wild indigo, mistletoe, skullcap, and black cohosh. For the vertigo and dizziness.” She looked at Minka. “Got that?”
“Yes ma’am,” Minka said, and hurried into the shop.
* * *
In just an hour, the shop was almost back to normal. Tourists and locals alike didn’t know what to make of what had happened earlier. However, Bellamy Bay appeared to have recovered, and customers trickled into the store while all the tea Aunt Lidia had prepared was gone. She stood behind the counter, eyes narrowed as she surveyed the shop floor. “I knew the tea would be a good idea. Looks like most everyone has recovered from their symptoms.” She looked at Minka and Alex. “How are you two feeling?”
“Exhausted,” Minka said.
“Same,” Alex confirmed.
“It certainly was a strange occurrence.” Lydia said. “Mayor Bellamy personally called every member of the local business owner’s association to assure us that everything was fine in town and under control.”
“Was it the nearby military base?”
Lidia shot her daughter an amused look. “Put your protest posters away. The mayor specifically stated it had nothing to do with the base.”
Minka frowned for a moment, then brightened. “I wonder if the Bizarre Bellamy Bay blogger will cover this? If something strange is going on in town, he’ll cover it and get to the truth of it.”
“I don’t know about that site, dear. Hard to believe what’s on it sometimes. For example, he posted that there is a monster lurking in Bellamy Bay’s maritime forest. Nonsense. I’d know if such a creature exists. And it doesn’t.”
Alex could care less about monsters and blogs. She wanted to make sure her family was okay. “Has anyone heard from Kamila today?”
“We communicated as soon as this thing happened,” Minka said, tapping her right temple. “And she’s okay. She was at the beach when it happened. She said a few remote-control airplanes and drones just fell out of the sky. But no one was hurt.”
“I wonder if this event will affect my plans with Jack tonight? He may have to work.”
Minka wiggled her eyebrows at Alex. “That’s right. You have a date with the handsome detective.”
“I’ll text him to confirm.” Alex glanced at a clock on the wall. “With everything going on, I forgot to ask If I could leave a few minutes early to go home to shower and change.”
Minka laughed. “You mean you don’t want to show up in your work clothes?”
Alex tugged at her ponytail. “I need to wash my hair.” She looked down at her clothes. “And put on something not covered in beeswax and essential oils.”
“Get out of here.” Lidia nodded and smiled “Have some fun.”
Alex stood, untying the apron from around her neck. She didn’t need to be told twice.
* * *
Ninety minutes later, Alex arrived at Bread & Putter, a golf-themed gastro pub that specialized in Scottish food and whiskey. After a long, hot shower, she felt renewed. She’d blown out her long dark hair so that it fanned around her shoulders. She wasn’t much for makeup, but she’d added a bronzer to her cheeks, to emphasize her summer tan; a pinkish-nude lip gloss; and black mascara and liner that would really accentuate her green eyes.
They’d agreed to meet at what was essentially a fancy sports bar so she wasn’t too dressed up. Dark rinse jeans, high-heeled sandals, and a white lacy top that showed off her tanned shoulders completed her look.
Located on Maple Street, a road that ran parallel to Main Street, the sports bar was located in an old building with a white stone front, large plate-glass windows, and blue and green tartan awnings. It was a two-story building that had a cigar room on the second floor.
She’d been here a few times with Jack. It was one of his favorite places to eat, with its dark wood and leather furnishings, framed photos of golfing greats on the walls, plus the accoutrements of golf hung up as decorations. Large televisions spanned the room, with most on golfing games being played around the world, though there was one television on a 24/7 news channel.
She spotted Jack at a corner booth, and her lips automatically rose in a smile. It was hard not to smile at a handsome man with deep dimples. With chiseled features, a square jaw, a bronzed complexion that came from living at the beach in the summer, and beautiful blue eyes fringed with long lashes, he was undeniably attractive. He rose to his six-foot-one height when he saw her approaching, and greeted her with a warm hug. He was casual in khaki pants, a collared denim shirt with the sleeves rolled up, and a braided leather belt, and Alex was glad she hadn’t gone too dressy with her wardrobe choices.
They’d met very soon after Alex had moved to town. He’d bumped into her while he was jogging and she was walking her German shepherd, Athena. They’d bonded over both being transplanted New Yorkers in town, then developed a friendship that had become something more.
She could feel the muscles in his arms as he wrapped them around her for a tight embrace. He gave the best hugs, Alex thought with a sigh. She pressed her face against the hard muscles of his chest and breathed in his fresh summery scent.
“Hey, you,” he said, grinning when they parted.
She slid into the leather seat across from him. “Hi yourself. So how was your day?”
“Busy. A body was found today. On the edge of town in some woods. The maritime forest? Some college kids drinking in the woods found him. So, there’s that.” He picked up a roll and tore it in half.
“Want to talk about it?”
He spread a pat of soft butter on his bread and looked at her. “There’s not much to discuss. He’s unidentified at this point—Caucasian male, probably early thirties. Dressed like he’d just left work. We’re hoping there are dental records somewhere. But I don’t want to talk about it,” he said with finality. “No work at dinner. You know the rule.”
She gave him a knowing look. “You’re tense. I wish you’d let me give you a calming tea blend to drink. I
t would really help with—”
He groaned good-naturedly. “You know how I feel about that hocus-pocus stuff. When we first met, I made my feelings clear on the topic. I don’t mind that you work at an apothecary and think herbs and lotions can really help people, but please don’t push me to try something I’m not comfortable with. I’ve got a prescription for sleep meds if I need to relax.”
Alex studied him for a moment, noting the stubborn angle of his jaw. “Okay. Just trying to help.” Her gaze bounced around the room as she tried to find a way to change the subject, and it landed on a television showing the latest international news. People dying. War being raged. She looked at Jack. “Do you ever get tired of it, working in law enforcement? Putting away the bad guys?”
“No, it never gets old.” Jack chuckled. “I can’t believe you even have to ask.”
“I use to wonder the same thing about my dad. It never ends, and it takes a toll.”
“You’re right. It’s a never-ending job, and it can and does negatively affect marriages, family … But men like your father and me, we don’t get tired of it. If anything, it’s what we’re meant to do, how we’re wired.”
Alex laughed. “My father used to say that it was his lot in life to ensure justice always triumphed. And that he had accepted that a long time ago and that I would have to do the same. Accept what life has given me.”
Jack reached for the second half of his roll. “And do you accept what life has given you?
Alex thought of her life. Her mother had died when she was young. Her father had recently passed away. And she was a mermaid, whatever that meant. She’d accepted a long time ago that she didn’t have a mother. She was still trying to accept the fact that her father was gone. But her being descended from mermaids? That was still a work in progress.
And while she was happy that she had reconnected with her mother’s side of the family, she didn’t love the fact that the world she’d thought she lived in didn’t exist. It was an ephemeral creation in which magic existed. Her father has raised her to believe that such things weren’t real. And it had been a lie. Her father had lied to her her entire life, and that realization stung.
So no, she didn’t quite accept the fact that she was a mermaid living in a magical world.
Jack watched her for a moment. “It’s written all over your face.” He leaned back in chair, pushing the bread basket away. “You’ll never find happiness until you truly accept yourself.”
She couldn’t help but grin. “Thanks, Yoda.”
Jack laughed. “Just sayin’.”
Alex sat back to the dining room, and when Jack’s attention focused on something over her shoulder, she turned to follow his gaze.
It was Dylan. Also a Magical. So yeah, the Sobieski women weren’t the only ones in town with … abilities. There were a few others who’d settled the area when Alex’s ancestors had. Dylan Wesley, CEO of his family’s company, and member of the wealthy, important, and influential Wesley family was a bit of a thorn in Alex’s side.
She bit her bottom lip as she watched him guide a tall, curvaceous woman to a table in the center of the room.
“That guy certainly lives a charmed life,” Jack commented with a grin. “CEO of a million-dollar company, sports cars for every day of the week, and always with the flavor of the week on his arm.”
When she’d first moved to town, Alex had met Dylan and been surprised to discover they had known each other as children, played together when she’d visited for the summer. As adults they had a very strong attraction to each other, one that Dylan wanted to explore. But Dylan, who was a self-professed nonpracticing Magical like Kamila, seemed to evoke magic when it suited him, and in ways that upset Alex’s otherwise orderly life.
Being with him left her feeling unmoored, wanting to take chances and act spontaneously. After her mother had drowned, she’d lived her life as cautiously as possible, even becoming a risk analyst because she was good at evaluating risks and recommending ways to mitigate them. Dylan was the opposite of safe.
Jack was more her speed. Steady. Reliable. Just like her father had been. First a police detective, then a police chief, her father had died six months ago from complications of the heart. Jack reminded her very much of her father, and she knew that if they’d had the opportunity to meet, he would’ve like Jack. She could not say the same for Dylan.
Alex looked at Jack. “You’re not doing so bad yourself, Mr. Frazier.”
He leaned in, grabbed both her hands, and brought them to his lips. “You’re right about that, Miss Daniels. I don’t have the million dollars, but I certainly have the beautiful woman.”
At five feet five, and with an athletic yet feminine physique honed by almost daily jogs, Alex knew that men generally found her attractive, but it was still wonderful to hear—especially when it came from her boyfriend. A zing of happiness bounced around her belly at the thought, at the sound of the word. Boyfriend. It was still a new thing. She hadn’t had a steady guy in a couple of years—too busy with work and tired of the kinds of guys she was meeting. So being in a relationship felt strange … but nice.
She gazed into his eyes, grateful that she’d met Jack. Though they’d butted heads when she’d tried to prove her aunt wasn’t guilty of a murder when Jack had arrested her, there was also a connection, a mutual attraction that was slowly growing into more. They’d been seeing a lot of each other in the past three months. She glanced at Dylan, who noticed her at the same moment, and he inclined his head toward her in greeting.
Tall and deeply tanned, he had dark hair, darker eyes and elegantly defined features reminiscent of a male runway model. He dressed like one too.
The woman with him threw her head back in an uninhibited laugh that immediately annoyed Alex.
The last time she’d seen Dylan, he’d asked her to give their relationship a chance. And she’d flatly turned him down. She gave Dylan another glance. He was leaning forward, saying something amazingly funny. Either that or his date was just a flirt. She was certainly a beauty, with lush brown hair that glistened with red highlights in the dim light of the gastropub. Her hair fell in waves past her shoulders, making her look like a heroine on one of those bodice ripper romances.
She had full round features that gave her face a seductive slant. Her dress was a flimsy, gauzy bright teal-blue with fluttery cap sleeves, gathered under her ribcage in the empire style, showcasing deep cleavage, with the skirt skimming her body and pooling at her feet. The effect was creative and artsy, and Alex immediately felt clunky and unattractive in her jeans and simple white blouse.
Another musical laugh from Dylan’s date. Really? Dylan was that funny? He’d never been that funny with her. Ugh. What was she saying? She stopped herself. She did not want to be with Dylan. She wanted Jack.
Dylan caught her eye, but she ignored him, instead leaning forward and planting a kiss on Jack’s lips, whose eyes widened as he leaned back with a satisfied smile. “You must really love golf,” he quipped.
“Something like that.” She snuck another look at Dylan and was gratified to see a red tinge to his suntanned cheeks.
Alex focused on her dinner. The meatloaf was delicious, filled with local onions and mushrooms, and she’d almost finished her entrée when the woman with Dylan dramatically waved an arm covered in bracelets of brightly colored crystals. A sob escaped her lips, and she pointed to one of the screens on the wall. One of the few on a news station.
Alex hadn’t been paying attention to the news feed, but it appeared they were covering a tidal wave that had hit mainland Japan.
The woman bowed her head and covered her eyes while Dylan went to the bartender and spoke briefly to him. The bartender picked up a remote and changed the channel.
Alex watched as the woman raised her head, removed the fingers covering her eyes, and glanced at the screen. And she smiled approvingly. What was that about? Alex wondered.
The waitress arrived and swapped out their finished dishes for an impossi
bly large slice of apple pie smelling of cinnamon and paired with a large scoop of vanilla ice cream artistically covered in bourbon sauce. They both grabbed forks and dug in. Alex closed her eyes and moaned in delight while Jack raised his eyebrows, watching her.
“That good?”
She grinned. “Oh yeah.”
He took his own bite and nodded. “So good,” he agreed, and for a moment they ate in companionable silence.
When they were done, Alex pushed her plate back. “Did you discover any more about the outage after you left the shop this morning?”
“Yeah. Word came from somewhere on high that there was a glitch with the power grid. Nothing to investigate further or be concerned about.”
Even the cell phones? “What about—”
But Jack’s look silenced her. And then he smiled.
Alex gazed at him thoughtfully. “Well, that’s that.”
They enjoyed the rest of their meal, updating each other on the past few days. When they left, Alex cast a glance over her shoulder at Dylan. He was watching her, which for some reason made her smile.
Not being physically around Dylan had been beneficial in helping Alex to keep him off her mind. But now, seeing him tonight, she realized that she still had feelings for him. Not love—she’d never been in love—but an attraction still the same. Didn’t mean she would act on it, but it surprised and disappointed her to know that as into Jack as she was, she still felt something for Dylan. She didn’t want the attraction to be there. Not after he’d used black magic a few months ago to scare her off investigating a murder that implicated her aunt and involved his family.
Since moving to Bellamy Bay, Alex had borrowed Minka’s Prius, because, coming from New York City, she didn’t own a car. She was still using it. Minka didn’t mind, and Alex kept the tank full of gas and the car cleaned, and she’d promised to help with any maintenance bills that came up until she decided what to do about transportation. They stood next to the car now, her leaning against it like she was in high school, Jack standing so near she could smell the notes of sea salt and lemon in his cologne.
