Writing Witchy (Witch Hunters) (16 page)

Sean grinned at him. “Afraid of an itty bitty girl?”

“Hell, yes. You were, too.”

“
Yeah, well…. Okay. She is a bit abrasive.”

“You two, she is my
cousin
,” Mystique said, clearly exasperated. “I’m calling her.” She whipped out her cell phone. “I’m putting this on speaker phone.”

Nikita answered almost immediately.
“Myst, you need me to neuter that husband of yours?”

Sean scowled at the phone. “Hell, no.”

Mystique laughed. “Nikita, I’ve got you on speaker. I’m here with Sean and his brother Keith. We were wondering if we could ask for your help with something.”

“Three witches and you need my help,” she replied, her tone dry. “What’s the situation?”

“It’s another witch,” Mystique began. “Keith, why don’t you explain?”

Keith thrust his fingers through his hair. This was embarrassing. “I have a friend, Harlow. Well, I thought it was only friendship. She wants more, but
…”

Nikita interrupted him. “You’re fucking with me
, right? Did I impress you as Dear Abby?”

    “This is serious, Nik,” Mystique answered.
“This witch won’t take no for an answer. She sent threatening flowers to his mate, who happens to be human.”

Grumbling came over the line followed by a loud sigh. “
Your timing sucks. I’m on a mission for Mama Skye, so I can’t come out there. How can I help you?”

“You can keep an eye out for her. The road she’s travelling with her magic, she’s bound to come onto your radar at some point,” Keith said.

“I’ll let you know if she does.”

“Nik, I want to talk to you alone for a second,” Mystique said. She picked up the phone and walked outside.

“We haven’t told her about the baby yet,” Sean explained. “You’re the first to guess.”

“Not even Mom and Dad?”

“No. They’re extending their stay in Italy. I thought it’d be a nice homecoming present.”

Their father was a screenwriter and their mother a casting director. But currently, they were on vacation.
Keith had teleported to visit his parents that long ago day when he’d met Imani. So when he’d called to announce their engagement, they weren’t surprised.

As though sensing his thoughts, Sean asked, “When are you and Imani getting married? We may not get the parents back until your wedding.
They’ve become the worse slackers ever. I don’t know where we went wrong when we were raising them.”

Keith shared a grin with his brother. “Hey, they deserve a break after everything you put them through.”

Sean arched a brow. “Funny. But which one of us is happily married with a baby on the way and which of us has a crazy woman stalking him? Who’d have thought this role reversal would ever happen?”

Keith groaned. Yeah, who would have? He was a serial monogamist. When his relationships ended, it was usually a mutual decision and things ended amicably.
There was no shedding of tears or angry words. It was probably an indicator of the lack of passion involved, but Keith had never minded. He’d been content. He wasn’t Sean. Sean had always had girls calling him up, weeping on the phone, popping up at the house, begging him to take them back. Nothing like that had ever happened to Keith. No, he never could have seen this coming.

Chapter Fourteen

Imani filled her arms with as many grocery bags
as she could carry at once. She’d spent the afternoon shopping with Mystique. Tomorrow, she and Keith would host their Halloween/engagement party at her house. It had been Thea’s idea. She’d said since the two of them were such science fiction fans, that a Halloween party would be fun and apropos. Though Thea had helped with some of the planning, Imani tried not to overburden her pregnant friend. Pregnancy didn’t seem to have any adverse effects on Mystique. If anything, she was even more beautiful. Mystique explained that she was using an old family remedy to overcome the morning sickness and fatigue.

She was really surprised at how much she’d grown to genuinely like Mystique. Despite her fame, Mystique impressed her as one of the most normal and undemanding people she’d ever met.

At her door, Imani performed a delicate balancing act with her purchases as she attempted to extract her keys from her pocket. “Why didn’t I take my keys out first?” she grumbled to herself. It was impossible to get her hand into the denim and retain her hold on all three bags at once. Finally, she bent over and placed one on the porch.

“Hi, Imani. Long time no see.”

She straightened to find Harlow at her side. As usual, she was dressed in black from head to toe. Her blouse had long flowing sleeves. Her skirt brushed the tops of her shiny midnight boots. Before she could utter a word, the other woman stepped close. She seemed to produce a dagger from nowhere.

“Invite me inside,” Harlow ordered.
She opened her mouth to refuse, but Harlow interrupted. “I wouldn’t try my patience. My plans don’t involve hurting you if I don’t have to. Now, the door.”

Imani dug out her keys. She fumbled a bit from nerves but she got the door open. She didn’t trust Harlow
, but if she could put some distance between the two of them, it would give her a chance to get away. As she stepped over the threshold, Harlow grasped her arm. “Uh, uh. You’ve forgotten. I have to be invited.” She pressed the tip of her knife deeply enough into Imani’s side that it pricked her skin.

“You’re invited,” Imani said stiffly.

Harlow grinned. “Why thank you.” She swept into the house. “You can put those down. And then I want you to call Keith. Might as well get this party started.”

Imani placed her bags on the coffee table. Asha came from beneath the couch to investigate.
Imani gently redirected the cat away from the groceries. Then Imani moved to go into the kitchen to the phone. She would call 911, hang up and then call Keith. Hopefully, Harlow wouldn’t notice the first call.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Harlow snapped.
  Asha batted a paw at the loose material of Harlow’s skirt. Harlow kicked out a leg, sending the cat scurrying. Asha’s reflexes were too quick and Harlow’s boot failed to make contact. Asha bounded onto the back of the sofa in a single leap. She aimed a vicious hiss at Harlow.

To get her attention off her cat, Imani said,
“I’m going to call Keith like you asked. The phone is in the kitchen. Unless you want me to go back out to my car and get my cell phone.”

Harlow glared at her. “Not like that, you idiot. Just call him and he will come.”

Whoa, Imani thought. Harlow’s grasp on reality was more tenuous than she’d believed. What was she going to do when Keith didn’t arrive?

“Call him!”

“Fine,” Imani snapped. “We’ll try your way first and then we’ll do it my way. Keith!” Silence reigned as they stared at each other. Harlow looked expectant as though she expected him to materialize out of thin air. Imani crossed her arms over her chest. She couldn’t resist a smirk. “Now, do you want to give the phone a try?”

“Call him again. This time, tell him that I’m with you.”

Sighing, she said, “Keith, please come. Harlow is here with me.” Before she could open her mouth to suggest using the phone again, Keith was there. Imani gaped at him. He hadn’t come through a door. He’d just popped in! “H-how’d you…?” She gasped as Harlow grabbed her from behind and dragged her close, pressing the dagger to her neck.

“Keith, you’re just in time to watch a little female bonding. I’ve bought Imani a present.”
Harlow extended the hand she’d had clasped about Imani’s waist. In her palm was a melting chocolate square.
Eww
, Imani thought,
pocket candy
.

Keith’s bright blue eyes focused on her, his expression
almost apologetic. Imani swallowed. For the first time, she was truly frightened. “Imani, sleep,” he whispered. What it lacked in volume, it made up for in power. Her eyelids drooped and she felt her legs go weak. Though she struggled to fight it, she lost consciousness. The floor was rushing up at her.

***

Keith caught Imani and placed her on the couch. Asha was soon at her side, nuzzling her face. Keith felt guilty about rendering her unconscious, but he couldn’t let her be witness to what was about to happen. He kissed her forehead.

“Sweet,” Harlow said sarcastically. “You’re only delaying the inevitable.”

He sighed. “Yeah, I am.” He straightened. Immediately, he placed her under a spell that bound her so that she was unable to move unless he allowed it. “But not the inevitable that you’re talking about.” He closed the distance between them. She still held her hand out with the candy she’d intended to force on Imani. “I hate that it’s come to this. I wish you could have just accepted no as my answer. Needless to say, your open invitation into my home is retracted. I can only assume that you forced an invitation out of Imani. She’ll be selling this house, so there will be no need for you ever to return here.” Her gray eyes were filled with anger, but she didn’t speak. She couldn’t. His control of her was complete. “I was here the day your package for Imani arrived, but needless to say, your plan would have failed even if I hadn’t been. She’s allergic to chocolate. Gives her a horrible rash. So I took the box home and examined them. Some really subtle work, you did there. I haven’t been able to deduce what the results of consuming the potion would be.” He smiled. “So you’re going to show me. Eat the candy,” he commanded.

Panic filled her gaze even as her mouth opened and her palm drew near. She attempted to fight it, but his spell was too complete. The chocolate slid between her lips
. He watched her chew. It was but seconds after she swallowed that her nose began to twitch in a rodent-like fashion. She sprouted whiskers. She began to shrink.

She’d become a rat. Keith shook his head in disgust even as he released the immobility spell he’d placed her under. He created a small mouse hole in the front door.
It was a mercy she probably didn’t deserve. He could already hear hissing behind him. “I’d go quickly, if I were you.” The rat was out the opening in a flash, only seconds from becoming Asha’s dinner. The cat let out a plaintive meow as he sealed the hole. “Sorry, kitty,” he said.

He sat next to Imani and brought her out of her magic
-induced sleep. She sprang up. “What happened? How did you get here? My God, did I
faint
?”

She sounded so appall
ed by the possibility that he would have laughed if he didn’t have bigger worries. He’d hoped she’d forget the part about him suddenly appearing. This left him with two options. To make her forget, or finally tell her the truth.

Imani looked around. “Where is she? Did you let her go?”

“In a manner of speaking.” Because he had let her go.

She bit her lip and turned away, but not before he saw tea
rs fill her copper eyes. His gut clenched. He hated seeing her distressed. “Do you love her that much that you’d let her go after she held a knife to my throat?” She made to stand and he placed a restraining hand on her thigh. He had no idea she was harboring such thoughts about him and Harlow. She shoved his hand off and stood. Pacing in her agitation, she said, “No. You say you love me, but you’ve protected her at every turn. I said I wanted an alarm system. You thought there’d be no need. Well, you were wrong. And if-if you hadn’t popped up here today….” She stopped with a frown. She stared down at him. “You
popped
in. Out of thin air….”

It was now or never. But telling a white lie was one thing. Bewitching her was another.
He didn’t want to do that to her, and felt guilty as hell for making her sleep. But if he’d told her before, she would have known she could have escaped into her home and Harlow wouldn’t have been able to follow her. She would have known that he didn’t love Harlow because he couldn’t. Imani was it for him. “Imani, please sit down.”

“I don’t want to.”

“Please.”

“No. Not until you’ve given me an explanation…for something!”

Keith tensed, bracing himself for her reaction. “Imani, I’m a witch.”

She frowned. “You mean a Wiccan? That’s nice to know before we get married, but what does that have to do with anything?”

“No, I’m not a Wiccan. I was born this way. I’m a witch. And so are my brother and Mystique. And Harlow.” He could see he wasn’t getting through to her. “Make a wish and I’ll make it come true.”

She shook her head.
Her thick curls bounced around her shoulders. “You’re sounding as unbalanced as Harlow.”

“Humor me. How do you think-
-” He broke off to swallow as he realized what he was risking. He was trying to convince her of the very thing he’d been keeping from her all this time. “How do you think I got here? I teleported when you called me. Please, Imani, just make a wish.”

“I wish for a Bengal tiger.”

He tilted his head to the side. “Something that won’t attempt to kill us, please.”

She seemed to pause to consider.
“I wish for five dozen white roses, each bouquet having one pink rose in the center.”