A Witch's Halloween, page 20
This was it. This was why it was worth it. We couldn’t save five, but by stopping Kaden, we had saved so many more. Those people could meet a pink and purple T. rex dressed as a pegacorn, and years from now, it would be a story shared with friends. And maybe a few of them would dress up as a T. rex pegacorn.
Elron pulled me against him. We watched two more kids. Elron squeezed me gently. “They’re waiting for us.”
“You’re right.”
I thought we’d go around back, but Elron took me in through the front door. “You need a moment to freshen up, and I’ll make you an energy-boosting tea to get you through the night.”
“That would be lovely.” The memory of the little girl hugging Ty wouldn’t leave.
At the door to my apartment, I looked up at Elron. “Could you ask Ty, not tonight, but later, if he’d be happier somewhere with more people?”
Elron cupped my face. “He is happy here.”
“I know, but…” I leaned into him. “He looked so happy.”
“I will ask, but I know the answer.” Elron pressed a kiss to my forehead. “I’ll have your tea in a few minutes.”
“Thank you.”
It took me all of ten minutes to freshen up and another five sitting on the sofa and trying to find energy to go over to Elron’s apartment. I stared out the window, not that I could see much.
Family, work, they only got so much easier. Compared to the worst, this was better. That didn’t make this week’s case or this month’s family dynamics easy. Each event had its own challenges. Comparing them didn’t make me feel better, and it didn’t change what kept me up at night. All comparing them did was make me feel bad. I’d gotten through the demons. Why did these five deaths hurt?
With a perfunctory knock, Elron slipped in, a mug in hand. He set it on the coffee table and settled in next to me. “Michelle?”
I picked up the mug and sipped. Peppermint, rosemary, and clove: sharp and bright to keep me alert, spicy to chase away the evening chill. “Thank you.”
“Are you okay?”
“Thinking.” I sipped the brew.
He arched a brow.
“Tonight hurt. This month has hurt. After everything…” I sighed. “Why does it still bother me?”
“This is now.”
“So?” I asked.
Elron shook his head. “You are not hearing me. This is now. These are the current problems. What you have weathered before does not change today’s difficulties. You can be sad for the deaths. You can be angry with my parents.”
“I know that, but shouldn’t it hurt less? I’ve been through worse.”
“And how would you have felt without what you’ve lived through?” He held out a hand. “Perhaps without your past, you would have made mistakes that caused harm or given into my parent’s demands. You cannot know how today’s events would have affected a past you.”
The mug warmed my hands as I took another sip. “It’s not fair to judge past or current me by the other standard.”
“Yes.” He opened his mouth to say more and then closed it.
I drained the mug and set it on the table. “Makes sense.”
“No time in your life has exclusive rights to your sorrow, fear, frustration, or any other emotions.” He held out a hand.
Scooting closer, I intertwined my fingers with his. “They get to hurt, in their time, in their way.”
“Precisely.” He pulled me in for a hug.
I leaned into him. “You don’t seem as bothered.”
His sigh ruffled my hair. “Victim or not, the vampire had to die. He couldn’t be allowed to continue killing.”
The unspoken words laid heavy on his voice. He’d always been more comfortable than me at taking justice into his own hands.
“And,” Elron continued, “my parents would test the patience of a saint.”
I snorted. “They are a bit much.”
“They were always rigid, fixated on traditions. I do not remember them being obnoxious.” Elron leaned his cheek against me. “If only they had been slower at making the trip. We could have married before they even showed up to complain.”
“The dream.” I couldn’t help my grin.
“Our dream.” He pressed a kiss to my neck. “Now, we need to hurry, or we will ruin Tricks’s dream.”
“Right.” I shook off my musings and followed Elron though the back door.
A small fire and floating orbs of light illuminated the green space behind the Lodge. The stone altar sat just outside the ring of light, with two plates and one fat candle honoring Samhain. Chairs circled the fire, and a small table held a cauldron and tidily wrapped presents. My parents and Nana, my paternal grandmother, had come. Nana had trapped Enor and Erwin in conversation. Mom, Dad, and Tricks were laughing.
Tricks spotted us and bounced over. “You made it! I wasn’t sure you would.” Her smile faded. “Or would want to.”
“Of course I want to. Birthday parties are the best.” I gave her a quick hug. “Work took a bit, that’s all.”
Her eyes searched my face. She must’ve found what she was looking for because she nodded. “Are you ready for cake? Landa has tons of food in the side garden, but that’s for Samhain, so all we have is my cake.”
“I would love cake, but let me say hi to my parents first.”
“Oh, right.” Tricks smiled sheepishly. “I didn’t think.” She bounced over to Elron.
I marveled at her energy.
Mom and Dad held back enough to look me over from head to toe. Mom extended a hand, a tendril of magic probing me for injuries. “We heard about the excitement.”
“Ruined Halloween, but I’m fine.” I caught Mom’s eye. “I promise.”
She withdrew her magic. “So I see. Can’t blame me for checking.”
I gave both of them hugs. “I’ll tell you all about it tomorrow, but I think videos are already online if you want to see for yourself. Four murdered spirits, crazed vampire, and all.”
“I’ve had enough excitement this month.” Dad looked past me.
It didn’t take a clairvoyant to know he was watching Enor and Erwin. Not much I could do about them. “I hope it wasn’t too awkward while you waited.”
“We managed.”
Well, that was the best any of us could hope with Elron’s parents. “Tricks and Samhain, remember?”
Dad nodded. Mom grimaced but agreed.
“Michelle! I have missed you.” Nana deftly turned me away from my parents while pressing a kiss to my cheek. “All that excitement. I saw the video. You did good catching that vampire. The one tossed in the air, she was out cold.”
Since I couldn’t get a word in, I nodded.
“Now, we need to sing so this girl can get her cake. I wanted it to be memorable.” Nana pointed at the cake.
What I’d thought was a cauldron was actually the cake. It didn’t look like any cake I’d seen before. Tricks’s cake was matte black, with a handle on each side and smoke spilling out of the top. “It’s perfect for her.”
Nana beamed. “That’s what I thought. Now, go get Elron and the birthday girl so we can sing, and she can open presents.”
I did as ordered, and all of us belted out a birthday dirge for Tricks. By the end, she was laughing so hard it took her two tries to blow out the candle that had risen out of the cauldron cake.
We feasted on pumpkin spice cake, being sure to leave a couple of slices on the altar. Once we’d finished, it was time for presents. Frankly, I was proud of Enor and Erwin. Other than pursed lips and the occasional glares, they didn’t fuss about the party. True to their word, they gave Tricks her own phone. She squealed and hugged them both.
Nana gave Tricks a voucher for a one-way dragon flight anywhere in the country. Mom and Dad gave her a set of books about growing up, picking school, jobs, careers, and all sorts of good life advice. I gave her a trio of spelled note boards. Hers was the master board, and she could use it to send notes to the two others. I’d hoped she would give Elron and I the secondary boards. She gave one to the two of us but gave Nana the other.
I had to turn away and dab away a tear. We’d done it. Tricks knew she was loved and wanted. If nothing else, that was worth the annoyance of her parents.
That left Elron’s gift, the one I’d thought would be her favorite. That had been before the phone, so this would come in at a close second.
She unwrapped a wooden box about ten inches across and four feet long. She opened it and found an elven-forged longsword, a matching bracelet, and a note from Elron. She stared at the sword and bracelet before opening the note.
I knew most of what it said. The sword and bracelet set was like Elron’s and would allow her to summon the sword from anywhere. He’d gotten permission from her parents, but she couldn’t have it until they agreed she was trained and responsible enough to carry it full-time. I figured going after Kaden had added six months to her training, but that was fair.
She jerked her head up, “I can keep it?”
Elron nodded.
Erwin might have smiled. “Yes.”
She hurled herself at Elron. “Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you!”
That made this month worth it.
Tricks didn’t get a chance to test the sword. It was time for the bonfire. Enor and Erwin sent her back inside with her presents. She ran back out as a gong sounded.
I linked arms with Elron, and we went round the Lodge to the side garden. Landa and her husband Mander had set up a feast. Trays, bowls, and platters filled two tables. A stack of soul cakes towered above the rest of the deserts. Paxton and Baden, both long-time residents, came out. Priscele, an off-and-on resident, was back too. A few overnight guests and friends of Landa’s joined the party as well. Ty loomed off to the side, happily accepting cheek scratches from anyone who ventured near.
Landa welcomed everyone, lit the bonfire, and the party began.
The next few hours flew by in a mix of food and friends. We enjoyed the food, left offerings for spirits, lit pumpkins and a late addition, carved turnips. Those of us who were staying at the Lodge brought the light back inside and lit the fires. We finished the night with spiced wine and toasts.
A hearty meow pulled my attention away from the last toast. The cat was back. It looked up at me.
“What?” I hissed.
It sat and stared.
I went back to the toast.
The cat lingered beside me as I said goodnight to family and friends.
It was late, and I could hardly keep my eyes open when I turned to go inside.
The cat darted in front of me.
I swore. “What?”
It looked at the Lodge.
“You want to come inside?”
It bobbed its head.
“Fine, but you better not mess on anything. Or shred my sofa.” I glared at the cat.
It bobbed its head again.
“A deal is a deal, no going back on it.” I snagged an extra plate of ham on my way inside. There were plenty for the spirits. They could spare a few slices for a cat.
The cat followed into my apartment. I set down a water bowl and went through my workroom until I found sand and a plastic tub. It would have to do for now.
Elron stopped by, raised a brow at the cat, kissed me goodnight, and left.
Like I could blame him.
While the cat inhaled the ham, I made it a bed with an old blanket and a pillow. Surprisingly, it went for the bed and not the sofa.
I escaped. The cat was tomorrow’s problem.
Chapter Twenty-Five
MEOW.
MEEOOOOOOW.
I jammed a pillow over my head. “It’s too early!”
MEOW.
“Sleep!” I closed my eyes and prayed for patience. And sleep.
Mostly sleep.
It didn’t work. All I could do was wait for the next shriek.
My clock flipped from five forty-three to five forty-four.
Thump.
“What’s that?” I bolted out of bed and out of my room.
A naked woman sprawled across the floor beside an overturned footstool. I blinked, and she was still there.
This wasn’t at all how my morning was supposed to go.
My wand settled into my hand. “Who are you, and how did you get here?”
She turned her head, looking at me with amber eyes that edged toward orange. “Meow?”
“I don’t speak cat.”
She tilted her head. A lock of short cropped black hair fell across her brow. “Sorry.” It came out gravelly.
“Hell cat, I presume?” I probed her and found a well of magic like my own. It wasn’t irrefutable evidence of her background. She could be a crazy witch who broke in.
She cleared her throat. “Something like that. Can I have a blanket?”
I dismissed my wand and tossed her a blanket from the sofa. “Do you have a name? It seems rude to call you hell cat. I don’t love it when people call me witch.”
“Oh.” She curled up inside the blanket. “I had a name, but I can’t use it. I guess… I guess I need a new name.”
This morning wasn’t going at all how I’d hoped. “Would you like tea? And toast? I’m a dreadful cook, so that’s as good as it’s going to get before Landa serves breakfast.”
“Yes, thank you.” She lurched to her feet and followed me into the kitchen. “Tea and toast would be great. The soul cakes smelled so good, I couldn’t resist. Cat stomachs don’t appreciate cake.”
My eyes darted toward the litter box.
“No, before.” She shook her head. “Before I came in.”
“Ah.” It was going to take a lot of tea to sort this out.
Thankfully, the hell cat didn’t feel the need to talk until after we were both sitting down with steaming mugs of tea and buttered toast.
“I don’t know where to start.” She scooted her toast around the plate. “There are rules, you know. And I’m not sure of all of them. It’s a jumble.”
I sipped my tea. My brain still wasn’t fully awake. Frankly, I’d planned on a solid ten hours of sleep, and I was at half that. Until at least my second cup of tea, I didn’t have it in me to think too hard.
“It’s hard to tell time as a cat.”
“Were you trying to stop the vampire?” It was the only question I really cared about.
She nodded. “It was so weird. I was at a fire, again, and then I had this feeling. Compulsion might be a better word. I realized I was a ten-pound cat. How can a cat stop a vampire? I tried, but it all went wrong.” Her shoulders rounded under the blanket. “I did try.”
“I believe you.” I got the teapot. “Refill?”
She nodded.
I topped off both mugs while I thought. She had valuable information about the vampire. And the drunken incidents, but those were less important. I could question her, but if I did that, she’d have to answer all the questions again for Rodriguez and Jerry.
“You need to talk to the police.”
“No, I don’t. I didn’t do anything.”
I set down my mug. “The Dionysus effect? That wasn’t you? The spider? Halloween Essence? And those murders. Any of those ring a bell?”
“I’ll talk to you. Only you.”
This wasn’t going well. “What if I stay with you the entire time?”
She tossed a crust onto the plate. “And what do I tell them? I don’t even have a name. Why would anything I say matter?”
“They already think you matter.” It was too early for this. “Why don’t you shower, think it over, and I’ll get some actual clothes for you.”
She leaned back. “You won’t make me talk to them?”
“I don’t see how I could.”
“Then it’s a deal.”
I exhaled. “The shower is this way.”
The hell cat followed me to the bathroom. I got an idea of her clothing sizes, set out a few things, and closed the bedroom door behind me.
My first call was to Ethel’s office. There had to be a protocol for helping a hell cat back into the world of the living. Barring that, a newer plan of ours allowed witches to relocate to a new clan or move outside a clan’s influence. We had the resources to make my new guest’s life much easier for a while.
Sure enough, there was an entire process for helping hell cats. I got all the files sent to me, including a relocation plan, and got things moving.
The shower turned off, and I hurried the next two calls. Neither Rodriguez nor Jerry sounded happy to hear from me this early, but they agreed to come out to the Lodge if the hell cat would talk to them.
And last, but far from least, I sent Elron a message to stay away while I dealt with the hell cat. With any luck at all, he’d keep his family away too.
I brewed more tea while the paperwork was printing. The stack landed on the table with a thud. I worked through what I could, though there was a lot of information that had to come from the hell cat.
A few minutes later, the hell cat came out. My clothes were a little loose on her, but I attributed that to five days living off whatever she could scavenge. It wasn’t like she’d grown up as a feral cat. She’d had a steep learning curve.
She snagged a piece of toast and settled into the seat next to me. “I’ll talk to the cops, but I don’t want to be on the news, or have reporters hounding me.”
“We can work with that.” I messaged the men, and they confirmed they’d be over in an hour. I set the phone to the side. “Until then, you have choices to make. I called the premier’s office and notified them of your existence. This stack is all the paperwork. Most of it is for the government, some for the clans. Citizenship, identification, and aid from the clans in starting your new life.”
“It’s real then. And I can’t go back.” She sagged into the chair. “At the very beginning, I didn’t know how to change shape. Then I didn’t want to. I had a life I loved. I can’t go back.”
“I’m sorry.” That was all I could say. I’d never died and been reborn. I’d never had to leave everyone behind.
“This isn’t my face. Or it wasn’t. How do you get used to a new face?” Her hand brushed across her hair. “I was a redhead. That’s gone too.”
“Can you tell me who you were?” It was optional information on the forms. Some hell cats couldn’t or didn’t share. Some did. My goal was to place her far away from her old life so she could start again.
