Dreams of the Witch

by Deanna Chase

  “More bedrooms?” she asked, blinking at him.

  He chuckled. “You know, just in case somewhere down the road we want to fill them with more kids.”

  She laughed. “You’re getting way ahead of yourself, buddy.”

  “Perhaps, but I like to be prepared.” He was certain he was saying way too much way too soon, but after the night’s events, he just couldn’t manage to hold back. And he didn’t want to. “Faith, I think you must know by now, but in case you don’t… I love you. I’ve never told a woman that before, but I’m saying it to you. And I’ll love you for the rest of your life if you’ll let me.”

  “Woah,” she said softly.

  Fear started to creep into his gut as he waited for her to say something else. But he didn’t regret laying it all out there. Not after the night they’d had. After his parents died, he’d spent way too many years guarding his heart. He was done with that now.

  “You know what?” Faith asked, a slow smile claiming her lips.

  “No, what?”

  “You’re a little crazy.” Her eyes glittered with amusement.

  “Maybe, but I’m guessing anyone who has three older sisters and a devil dog might be a little crazy, too.”

  Faith glanced down at Xena, who was snoring lightly. “She looks pretty tame to me.”

  “So do you on most days,” he teased.

  Still smiling, she reached up and placed her hand on the back of his neck, pulling him down so that his lips were so close he could feel her breath on them. “I love you, too, Hunter McCormick. Now kiss me.”

  He didn’t hesitate. He closed the distance and kissed her tenderly, all of his love pouring out of him. She was everything he’d ever wanted and everything he’d never known he needed. And in that moment, he knew that whatever came their way, he’d be right by her side until the very end. When he pulled away, silent tears were rolling down her temples again. “Hey,” he said softly. “What’s wrong, love?”

  “Nothing. Nothing at all,” she said, shaking her head. “I’m just overwhelmed. Happy and overwhelmed.”

  “Aww, Faith.” He crawled onto the bed, stretched out next to her, and gathered her in his arms, spooning her with her back pressed to his chest. They lay together like that, with Hunter soothingly running his fingers over her arm, until they heard the pitter pat of feet on his wood floors.

  “Daddy?” Zoey said, her voice cracking.

  He sat straight up. “What is it, Zoey? Are you okay, baby?”

  “Can I sleep in here?”

  “Of course.” He scooted away from Faith, leaving enough room for Zoey to crawl between them. She settled in right next to Faith, sharing her pillow. Faith didn’t hesitate to wrap an arm around her and cuddle Zoey to her.

  Hunter felt like his heart was going to explode with all the love pouring from him.

  Faith glanced up at him. “Ready to turn out the light?”

  “Definitely.” He reached over, flipped the switch, and then cuddled his two best girls until the sun came up.

  Chapter 24

  “So,” Yvette said as she sat down next to Faith. “You and Hunter are just living together now?”

  Faith shoved a piece of Noel’s bridal shower cake into her mouth and nodded.

  Yvette tossed her dark hair over her shoulder and laughed. “Just like that? Your house burns down, so you shack up with the first eligible bachelor you find?”

  “Not the first one,” Faith said, taking her sister’s needling in stride. “I could’ve imposed on Brian, I guess.”

  “So many men, so little time,” Yvette said with a fake sigh.

  They both cracked up.

  “Hey, hey, no having fun without me,” Abby said, joining them. She was holding a wine bottle that had an actual wine glass attached at the top. “Did you see these?” She held the contraption up. “Saves time. No need for refills.”

  Yvette grabbed it out of her hand and took a long drink.

  “Hey! That’s my bottle.” Abby snatched it back and held it with both hands, snarling at Yvette like a dog guards his food bowl. “I won that playing the romantic movie quote game.”

  “Nice, Abs. Good thing Clay can’t see how unsexy you are right now.”

  “Clay always thinks I’m sexy.” She shimmied her shoulders, making her boobs jiggle.

  Everyone laughed. Faith’s heart was full of love for her sisters. They were at Noel’s wedding shower and the day had been full of pure joy. Yvette had done a fabulous job with the store, making it elegant with a silver and blue winter theme. Hundreds of candles had been enchanted to float in the store, each of them flickering with soft flames, while snow fell from the ceiling then disappeared into thin air before it settled on anyone. It was gorgeous and magical and perfect.

  Abby held the wine bottle up. “Cheers!”

  Yvette and Faith picked up their regular wine glasses and toasted her. “Cheers!” they said in unison.

  “Time for gifts!” Hanna called from across the room.

  They watched as Noel opened everything from a fancy can opener to slutty crotchless panties. When she held up the underwear, Faith called out, “She clearly doesn’t need those. Drew’s already figured out how to get past the modest ones.”

  Noel smirked at her sister and pressed a hand to her abdomen while everyone laughed and toasted to her pregnancy.

  “I think we’ll probably still figure out a use for these,” Noel said, folding the naughty underwear and putting them with the rest of her haul.

  Two pieces of cake later, Faith found herself sitting alone in one of the overstuffed chairs while Abby and Yvette helped Noel load her shower presents into her SUV. She reached down and started to massage her aching calf just above her cast.

  “Hey, gorgeous,” Hunter said as he sat down next to her. “You doing okay?”

  Faith yawned. “Just a little tired.”

  “That’s to be expected while the bone heals,” he said, taking her hand.

  “That’s what they tell me.” She smiled at him but then frowned when she saw the tension in his jaw. “What’s wrong?”

  “I heard from Mason. Gia contacted him. It sounds like she’s trying to get a plea deal that will sentence her to treatment and probation instead of jail time.”

  “No jail time?” Noel asked incredulously. She’d just walked back into the store with Abby and Yvette. “Are you talking about our mother?”

  Hunter nodded.

  “She has to serve time,” Noel insisted. “She almost got people killed.”

  “Noel,” Abby cut in. “Do you really think sending her to prison is going to change anything?”

  “It’ll keep her off the streets.” Noel’s expression was set into a hard line as she added, “What if she knocks on Faith’s door and prays on her sympathies again? Or if she hurts someone else? No. Treatment isn’t enough.”

  “Noel,” Yvette said. “Maybe we should get Faith’s opinion since she’s the one who lost her house.”

  They all turned and stared at Faith.

  She blinked and shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts. Then she turned her attention to Hunter. “Is treatment instead of jail time even a possibility?”

  “It is if you give a sworn statement that you believe the fire was an accident.”

  “It was reckless, and she was high!” Noel said.

  “It was,” Faith agreed, nodding at Noel. “No doubt about it. But you don’t really think she meant to burn down my house, do you?”

  “Of course not,” Noel said. “No one tries to burn a house down with marshmallows.”

  “No one competent anyway,” Yvette said under her breath.

  Despite the serious nature of the conversation, Faith chuckled. “I wouldn’t think so.”

  “This isn’t funny.” Noel crossed her arms over her chest and sank into a nearby chair.

  “It’s not,” Hunter said, taking Faith’s hand and crouching down beside her. “What do you think, Faith? Whatever you decide, I’m behi
nd you.”

  She squeezed his hand, wondering what she’d done to deserve a man so devoted to her. “You have a say in this too. Zoey was…” She frowned, unable to even say the words. “I wasn’t the only one in danger.”

  “No, you weren’t. But she did run into that burning building to save Zoey when she saw her dart in there. That counts for something,” Hunter said.

  “Take Zoey out of the equation for a moment,” Faith said to Hunter. “If she’d just burned my house down and nothing else happened, what would you say then? You actually know her better than any of us.”

  Hunter glanced around at the four Townsend sisters, and Faith could tell that he was uncomfortable with the question, but she really wanted to know what he had to say.

  She squeezed his hand. “Please, Hunter?”

  “Yeah,” Abby chimed in. “I want to know, too.”

  “Same,” Yvette said.

  He glanced at Noel.

  She reluctantly nodded. “Yeah, I guess.”

  Hunter ran a hand through his hair and then let out a deep sigh. “I know Gia to be loving when she isn’t high, and extremely selfish when she is. I don’t know how to judge if she deserves to do time. She’s two different people. If she had the ability to stay clean, then no. If she doesn’t…” He shrugged. “That’s up to law enforcement.”

  “Could you forgive her?” Faith asked.

  He stared at her with hardened eyes. “Honestly? No. She put the two people I love most in mortal danger. Addiction or not, actions have consequences. And while I hope she gets better, for her sake and everyone’s around her, forgiveness isn’t something she deserves from me. It’s something she’ll need to earn, and from where I’m sitting, I’m not sure she can.”

  “Dammit,” Noel said and turned to Faith. “Why did you have to pick someone so mature? Here I was harboring the biggest freaking grudge on the west coast, and he just put a pin in it. Do what you feel is right. I’ll stay out of it.”

  “Wow. We’re never going to hear that again,” Abby said. “Can we write that down?”

  “Shut it, Abs,” Noel said. “I’m not in the mood.”

  “This will help.” Abby handed her another piece of cake.

  Noel gave her the tiniest of smiles and shoved a forkful of cake into her mouth.

  “I’m for whatever you think is right, too,” Abby said, and Yvette nodded her agreement.

  “Great. Thanks guys,” Faith said sarcastically. “Just leave it all up to me.”

  They all chuckled while she buried her head in her hands. When she finally came up for air, she said, “I want to see her first.”

  Faith and Hunter sat across from Gabrielle in the visiting room of the county jail. She was dressed in a blue uniform that resembled scrubs, and she had bags under her eyes.

  “Suffering withdrawals?” Hunter asked without an ounce of sympathy.

  “I’m so sorry, Hunter,” she said, trying to reach for his hand.

  He pulled away and gave her a blank stare as he said, “I’ve heard that before.”

  “I know. You have no reason to forgive me,” she said, sounding so pathetic that Faith wanted to cry. Not for her, but for the loss of the mother she’d known and loved all those years ago.

  “You’re right. I don’t,” he said. “But you probably need to learn to forgive yourself before you ask that of anyone else. We’re not here to absolve you of your sins.”

  She tilted her head and gave him a curious look. “Why are you here?”

  He jerked his head toward Faith. “She wanted to see you.”

  Gabrielle turned her attention to Faith, and tears instantly filled her eyes. “I’m so, so sorry, Faith. Your house—” A sob got caught in her throat, and Faith didn’t really feel anything. Just pity.

  “It can be rebuilt,” she said.

  “But you could’ve been hurt, and Zoey…” She glanced at Hunter again. “I’d die if anything ever happened to your little girl.”

  “So would I,” Hunter said.

  “Gabrielle,” Faith said, “I really only have one question for you.”

  A pained expression crossed her features as she said, “You can call me mom if you want.”

  Faith frowned and shook her head. “You haven’t been a mother to me for a very long time. I don’t think that’s appropriate.”

  “Right. Of course. Gabby is fine. Or Gia,” she said, glancing at Hunter again. But he was staring over her shoulder, not making eye contact. Faith couldn’t blame him. ‘Gia’ actually had been a mother figure to him, but she had still failed miserably. It was amazing he had it in him to even make the trip to visit her.

  “Okay, Gia, I want to know why you want to go to treatment now when you’ve refused for the past twenty plus years. Is it only because you’re facing jail time, or do you actually want to get clean?”

  She sucked in a sharp breath and then blinked rapidly as tears fell silently down her gaunt cheeks.

  Faith was unmoved. “Please answer the question honestly. I doubt it’s going to change my decision about my statement to the police, but I really want to know.”

  She wiped away her tears and sniffed. Staring down at her hands, she said, “I won’t lie. I’m terrified of going to prison.”

  “That’s understandable,” Faith said.

  Her mother nodded. “It’s also true that I never sought treatment. I wanted to sometimes. I tried to quit on my own sometimes, too. Hunter knows. He’s seen the cycle. This last time, I really thought I might make it. I’d been clean for months. But then I saw you girls and… things got really hard.”

  Hunter looked at Faith and nodded. “That’s true. She did try several times.”

  “We didn’t have the money for a fancy rehab center, and to be totally honest, I didn’t really want to quit then. Not forever anyway. Not enough to swallow my pride and ask for help. But when I saw that baby run into your burning house, something broke in me. I was still half out of my mind on the potion, but I saw her and knew if I didn’t do something…” She paused and swallowed hard, seemingly unable to finish her sentence.

  Straightening her shoulders and staring Faith in the eye, she continued, “By the grace of the gods, I managed to get her out, and in that moment when I knew she was safe, I promised myself I’d find help this time. One way or another, I want and need help to get clean. The thought of Zoey… it’s unthinkable.”

  Faith held her gaze, wondering why the woman hadn’t felt the same way when Faith had been asleep in the chair. She wasn’t really all that hurt by her mother’s lack of concern for her. It was obvious her mother was broken in ways Faith couldn’t understand. She was just sad. “Is that all?”

  She shook her head, the tears coming faster. “I hate myself for what I did to you, Faith. You were my baby, the one I always thought I might be able to come back to. You were so little, so sweet, so pure. I just…” She covered her eyes with her hand. “I ruined everything and destroyed everything you own. Almost destroyed you,” she forced out, her voice barely audible. “I don’t know how I’ll ever forgive myself.”

  Faith stared at her for a long moment. Then she stood and said, “You’ll work on it in treatment.” Holding her hand out to Hunter, she added, “Good luck, Gia. I hope you find the strength to get well.”

  Hunter took her hand, and the two of them walked out of the visiting room. Faith stopped to sign her statement, and then they were back on the road. She turned to Hunter. “Do you think she’ll be able to stick with it?”

  He shrugged. “I hope so, for her sake.”

  “Me too.” Faith held his hand, and deep down she prayed her mother would get well. No matter what had happened in the past, she hoped someday to know the person her father had fallen in love with all those years ago. Until then, she had plans of her own.

  When they entered the town limits of Keating Hollow, Faith said, “Can we go by my house?”

  Hunter glanced over at her. “Why? It’s all gone, Faith. We already searched for anything
salvageable. All that is left is destruction.”

  “I know. I want to see it anyway.”

  He gave her a skeptical look but turned the truck in the direction of her former home.

  She reached over, grabbed his hand, and squeezed. “Thanks.”

  The closer they got to her house, the calmer she felt. She’d already had her dad drive her by the remnants of her cottage earlier in the week. Even though she’d known what to expect, it had been a shock to her system, and she’d given herself the afternoon to cry, to let it all out. Then she’d cleaned herself up and let it go. It was just a structure. It could be rebuilt. Her pictures and mementos, those were another thing entirely. She knew it would take time to get over the loss, but she’d already settled on a way forward.

  Hunter pulled his truck to a stop in the driveway and killed the engine. Turning to her, he asked, “How did it get cleared so soon?”

  The lot was empty, and the only evidence of the burned structure was the scorched earth. “Jacob called in a favor with the contractor who built his house. They came out yesterday and razed it.”

  “Okay, but why the rush? I was going to line someone up after the new year.”

  “Let me show you.” She pushed her door open and hopped down onto her good foot.

  Hunter was out of the truck and around to the passenger side handing her crutches to her before she could even reach into the bed for them.

  “Thanks.” She made her way over to where her house had once stood and stopped roughly where her bedroom used to be. Pointing one of her crutches toward the back, she said, “I was thinking a nice big en suite bathroom should go here, complete with a walk-in shower and a spa tub for two.”

  He grinned down at her. “I like the sound of that.”

  She moved a few paces. “This is the walk-in closet.”

  “Naturally,” he agreed.

  She led him around the area, describing what she wanted the kitchen to look like, where the gas fireplace would be in the living room, the large laundry room, and a separate family room. Then she made her way down the area where the hallway would be. “And here, Hunter, I think we’ll add three extra bedrooms and an office.”