Life's a Witch (25 page)

“We had nothing to do with that field,” Charlie said, his voice weak. “I swear I’m innocent.”

“No one believes you, Charlie,” Landon said. “You might want to talk this out with your parents. The first one to come in and confess gets the best deal. I’m thinking that’s your only course of action.”

“We don’t need deals, because we’re innocent,” Stephen said. “My father told me that you don’t have a case. You don’t have anything on this. You and your … girlfriend … are poking around to see if you can find anything. Everyone knows that you can’t.”

“I guess we’ll have to wait and see on that one, won’t we?” Landon’s voice was harsh.

“I guess so,” Stephen challenged. He stared Landon down for a moment and then broke eye contact. “Come on, guys. We don’t have to put up with this.”

Landon waited until they were gone before grabbing my shoulders and forcibly swiveling me so I faced him. “Are you trying to kill me?”

I frowned. “I texted you what I was doing,” I argued. “What more do you want?”

“I want you to keep your head in the game and not risk our entire future because you’re in a foul mood,” Landon snapped. “What were you thinking?”

“I was thinking that they were doing something hinky behind the high school, and I wanted to see what it was,” I replied, miffed. There was no need for his attitude. “That’s why I texted you who I was following and where I was going. I thought those were the rules.”

“There are no rules if you die on me, Bay,” Landon raged. “I … you … we … I can’t deal with you being in danger. It kills me.”

I softened my stance at his admission. “I only wanted to listen. They said something about ‘they’ being angry about everything being lost. I think they’re working for someone.”

“Oh, you don’t think the high-schoolers are drug kingpins? I’m shocked!” Landon waved his hands in the air for emphasis. “Think, Bay! You cannot die on me. I can’t take it.”

I pinched the bridge of my nose. Between Landon’s meltdown and Clove and Thistle’s imminent payback, I was having a terrible day. “I don’t want to die on you,” I replied, lowering my voice. “I don’t want you dying on me either. That doesn’t mean I go after you yelling because you’re in a dangerous situation.”

Landon tugged a restless hand through his hair. “I know I’m being a hypocrite,” he said, his voice shaky. “It’s not fair. I’m not going to pretend it’s fair. You sit at home all week wondering about me and I pitch a fit when you do anything.

“I can’t seem to help myself,” he continued. “The thought of something horrible happening to you … it paralyzes me sometimes. When I got that text and knew what you were doing I thought my heart might actually explode.”

“I can take care of myself,” I reminded him. “I did it for a long time before you came along.”

“That’s not good enough for me, Bay,” Landon said. “I need to know you’re safe. I’m sorry. I think I’ve been pretty good about including you … and bringing you along on adventures … but I draw the line at you dying on me. You can’t die on me. I forbid it.”

I pursed my lips to keep from laughing. “Well, I forbid you dying, too.”

“I think I can live with that,” Landon said, reaching out to snag my hand. “I don’t want you to stop being you. You have intuition … and power … and heart. You also have a mouth that doesn’t know when to quit sometimes. Just … be careful.”

“I will,” I said. “I’m sorry you’re upset.”

“I’m sorry I’m upset, too,” Landon said, pulling me in for a hug. “I think Aunt Tillie cursing you to smell like bacon might make me feel better.”

“You have to let that go,” I hissed. “It’s starting to bug me.”

“It’s going to bug you a lot worse if she curses you to smell like Brussels sprouts and I don’t stop complaining for days,” Landon said, linking his fingers with mine and dragging me around the building. “Come on. If you’re good I’ll buy you lunch.”

“Just no Brussels sprouts, right?”

“Definitely not,” Landon said.

I pulled up short when we rounded the corner, frowning when I saw Nathaniel floating next to a nearby tree.

“What is it?” Landon asked.

I didn’t answer him. “What are you doing here, Nathaniel?”

“You’re on the wrong path,” Nathaniel said, his eyes flashing as his wispy aura darkened. “You’re not looking in the right place. Those guys are my friends. They wouldn’t hurt me. They’re too … cowardly … to do that.”

“If we’re on the wrong path, who did kill you?”

“It wasn’t them,” Nathaniel said, his expression grim. “It’s right in front of you if you bother to see it. It’s … right in front of you.”

I opened my mouth to question him further, but he dissolved before I got a chance. Landon flicked a worried look in my direction, but patiently waited.

“He says it wasn’t them,” I said finally.

“Do you believe him?”

“He has no reason to lie.”

“Did he say who did it?” Landon pressed.

“He said it was right in front of my face but I wasn’t seeing it,” I said. “I think we’re missing something else.”

“I think that’s the story of our lives,” Landon said. “We’ll figure it out. We always do.”

I hoped he was right. Nathaniel was destined for an afterlife of pain if we couldn’t put him to rest. A killer was running free, and I worried Nathaniel was only the first victim if we didn’t figure this out soon. Things were getting out of hand.

Twenty-Five

“I can’t go in there.”

“You have to go in there.”

“They want to kill me.”

“They’re actually low on the list of people who want to kill you today,” Landon said, pushing me into Hypnotic and watching Thistle and Clove spin in unison in my direction. “Well, I might’ve been wrong on that front. They look pretty ticked.”

“Welcome to our store,” Clove intoned robotically. “We’re thrilled to see you.”

“Yes,” Thistle said. “We’re very glad to see you.” She took a step in my direction, causing me to slam into Landon when I involuntarily stepped back.

He put a reassuring arm around my waist. “If I leave her here with you guys, are you going to play nice?”

“Yes,” Thistle said. “I have a very nice game I want to play with her.”

Landon sighed. “Why don’t I believe you?”

“Because we lack the ability to tell the truth right now,” Clove said. “We’re really happy about it, too.”

“Hey, look at that,” Landon said. “You’re starting to get the hang of sarcasm.”

“You are such a … wonderful man,” Thistle said, scowling. “I want to do wonderful things to you.”

“You know what? I’m staying to eat with you guys after all,” Landon said, moving toward the couch in the middle of the store. “I offered to buy Bay lunch, but she insisted on seeing you guys first. I think she’s feeling a little guilty because Aunt Tillie lifted the curse on her and not you guys.”

“Thanks to your boundless wisdom, that is our happy lot in life today,” Thistle agreed, making a face as she slapped her forehead.

“This can’t go on,” I muttered. “She’s going to have an aneurism if she keeps this up ... or accidentally poke her own eye out. You have to call Aunt Tillie and get her down here.”

Landon balked. “Why would I do that?”

“Because I need them to go back to Hollow Creek with me, and they can’t go like this.”

“You’re not going back to Hollow Creek without me, and I can’t go this afternoon because Chief Terry and I have a meeting with the county guys,” Landon replied. “They want to start conducting searches right away and they’re going to show us a search grid.”

“What happens if … ?”

“I don’t know, Bay,” Landon answered honestly, knowing exactly what I was going to ask. “I’m doing the best I can, sweetie. If Aunt Tillie says the field can’t be found, then I have to believe her. If they find it … .”

I knew what he wasn’t saying. If they found Aunt Tillie’s field, there was absolutely nothing he could do for us. He would kick, scream and fight – but we would be in real trouble. “We need Aunt Tillie down here right now.”

“Bay, I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Landon said, clenching his jaw. “We just had this talk.”

“We just had this talk when it was about you and me,” I clarified. “This is about my family, too. I need to go down to Hollow Creek. Nathaniel said the answer was right in front of my eyes. My heart is telling me that I need to go back there. I know you don’t like it … .”

“Fine,” Landon said, giving in. “If you go down there I want Clove and Thistle with you. If they’re going to be of any use, the curse has to be lifted. I’ll call Aunt Tillie.”

“Oh, thank you, kind sir,” Clove said, throwing her arms around Landon’s neck. “I’ve always loved you.”

“Okay, now I’m starting to get uncomfortable,” Landon said. “You’d better prepare yourselves … because this is going to take a lot of groveling.”

“ABSOLUTELY
not!”

Aunt Tillie arrived at Hypnotic thirty minutes after Landon called, and wasted no time shutting him down. I think she only came to town so she could see our faces when she did it. She’s a mean little thing when she wants to be.

“You have to do it,” Landon pressed. “Bay needs to go out to Hollow Creek, and she can’t go alone.”

“There’s nothing stopping Clove and Thistle from going with her,” Aunt Tillie countered. “They’ll just be really nice when they go.”

“I need to know they can say a spell to save themselves if it comes to that,” Landon argued. “I need to know Bay is safe.”

“Why wouldn’t Bay be safe?” Aunt Tillie was convinced we were lying to get out of our punishment.

“Because Bay followed Stephen, Dakota and Charlie behind the school, and I found that Stephen kid threatening her,” Landon replied.

“Bay is an idiot sometimes,” Aunt Tillie grumbled, not surprised in the least by my actions. “Do you think he killed Nathaniel?”

“Nathaniel showed up,” I answered. “He said they didn’t kill him, and that I was looking in the wrong place.”

“If they didn’t kill Nathaniel, why would they go after you?”

“I think they’re upset about the pot field,” I explained. “I overheard them. There was a lot of chatter about ‘they’ being upset. They’re either working with someone or for someone.”

“That sounds delightful,” Clove said.

Aunt Tillie rolled her eyes. “Okay. I admit it. That’s annoying.” She snapped her fingers. “The curse is lifted. Go forth and say something nasty.”

“I’m going to make you eat dirt for this, Bay,” Thistle seethed. “It’s going to be filled with worms … and beetles … and grubs.”

“And we’re back,” Landon said, sending Aunt Tillie a rueful smile. “Thank you.”

“I’m not doing it because of you,” Aunt Tillie scoffed. “I’m doing it because I don’t want Bay getting hurt.” She plopped down on the couch, kicking Landon’s legs out of the way so she could get comfortable. “Let’s break this whole thing down and look at it from the proper perspective, shall we?”

I hate it when she talks down to us.

“We know the field was planted on the far side of the creek,” Aunt Tillie said. “How were they getting to it? That area isn’t accessible unless you want to hike three miles in from the road. I doubt they were doing that on a daily basis.”

“We think there was a shallow pathway through the creek that the kids knew about,” I answered. “When we busted the kids drinking out there, a few of them ran into the creek. That seemed like a stupid idea until … well … until we found the pot field.”

“That would mean more than a few kids knew about the field,” Aunt Tillie pointed out. “That’s not a very smart way to run a business. The more rats in the maze, the more people to eat the cheese.”

“That was truly profound,” Thistle deadpanned.

“They’re teenagers,” Landon said. “Teenagers aren’t known for being smart business partners.”

“We need to go out there,” Aunt Tillie said, rising to her feet. “You’ve got me curious now.”

“You’re going with us?” I was flabbergasted. Aunt Tillie’s idea of an outing was walking to her greenhouse so she could smoke her glaucoma medicine in peace. “Why?”

“I don’t like anyone threatening my family,” Aunt Tillie replied. “That’s my job.”

“And you do a bang up job of it,” Clove said.

“You’re not still under the spell,” Aunt Tillie said. “You don’t need to be nice.”

“Oh, I wasn’t being nice.”

Aunt Tillie smirked. “Let’s go out there while it’s still early,” she said. “If anyone is searching out there, we’ll use a spell to track them. If Bay is right and there is something left at Hollow Creek, these kids won’t be able to control their impulses. They’ll go for it sooner rather than later.”

“And what will you do if they come after you?” Landon asked.

Aunt Tillie’s smile was nothing short of evil incarnate. “Well, then they’ll find out I can’t control my impulses either.”

Landon grinned. “May the Goddess have mercy on their souls, right?”

“Oh, honey, given my mood no one is going to have mercy on their souls.”

“THIS
place is just as much of a pit as I remember,” Aunt Tillie said, making a face as we spread out to search the banks of the creek an hour later. “It smells, too.”

Clove wrinkled her nose. “I don’t smell anything.”

“That’s because I have the olfactory senses of an elephant. I can smell things mere mortals can’t detect.”

Thistle shot me a dubious look. “Did she just explain something?”

“Don’t you idiots watch the Discovery Channel?” Aunt Tillie asked. “Everyone knows that elephants have the best sense of smell. I’m like an elephant.”

Thistle opened her mouth to say something, but Aunt Tillie silenced her with a look.

“I’ll restore the curse.”

Thistle sighed. “Fine. You’re an elephant. Can you use your keen sense of smell to find whatever Bay thinks is out here?”

“What do you think I’m trying to do, fresh mouth?”

“It would help if we had an idea what was out here, Bay,” Clove suggested. “Are we looking for something big or small?”

I had no idea. I only knew we were looking for … something. “I can’t explain it,” I said. “I know we’re supposed to find something out here. I’m sorry I can’t be more precise.”

“Well, I guess we should split up and start looking,” Thistle said. “At this rate we’ll be having dinner out here.”