| |
You’re really sure about this? Rascal asked through their soulmate connection. He huffed as he lifted a box full of jars and began walking out of the room.
Wynona gave him a wry smile. “Nope. But I’m doing it anyway.”
A low grumble came out as he moved down the hallway. “If she so much as leaves a scratch on you, I’m letting my wolf eat her.”
Wynon laughed softly, though the sound did little to cover her erratic heartbeat. She knew Rascal could hear it, but there was nothing for it. Wynona was far from ready for her sister to move in, but there was little to do at this point.
If she turns me pink, I’m moving in with Wolfy, Violet added.
Wynona paused and rolled her eyes. “No one is using magic on anyone.” She pointed to Violet. “Including you, or me or anything else. There will be rules for her living here and I definitely don’t plan on this becoming a permanent situation.” Wynona threw her hands to the side. “But she’s my sister.”
Rascal opened his mouth and Wynona held up her hand.
“I know she’s been horrible. I get it. I do. But I don’t think who she’s been is who she wants to be.” Wynona sighed and her shoulders drooped. “I believe my parents are the root of the problem and if I can help Celia escape the same way Granny did for me...then I’m going to do it.”
Rascal pinched his lips but nodded. “You’re right. Without help, you wouldn’t have made it out and I’d have never met you.” He walked back her way and wrapped his arms around her, pulling Wynona’s head tightly against his sternum.
She let her arms wind around his torso and snuggled in. Rascals hugs were the best. He was so strong and warm, and she felt as if nothing bad could ever touch her when he held her just like this.
He kissed the top of her head. “You’re amazing. You know that?”
Wynona tilted her head back. “You’re the only one who thinks so, but I’ll take it.”
He chuckled and kissed the tip of her nose. “We’re still on for our date though, right?”
Wynona nodded. “We haven’t had a date in forever, no way am I letting this get in the way.”
“Perfect.” Rascal stepped back. “What else do you need me to carry?”
“I think we about got it,” Wynona said, studying the room. It was completely bare at this point. Wynona came with nothing, so she hadn’t had much stored in the space except extra jars and doo-dads for her teas. She’d have to reorganize the greenhouse in order to find a place for everything, but it wouldn’t be that big of a deal. There was probably some room at the shop as well, if she got desperate.
“Do you even know when she’s coming?” Rascal asked, heading to the kitchen.
Wynona smiled as she walked behind him. He was always led by his stomach. “No. But I suppose it’ll be whenever she manages to snag those grimoires.” Wynona scrunched her nose. “It could take Celia months to figure out how to do that.”
No sooner had they entered the kitchen than a knock came on the front door.
Wynona paused and looked toward Rascal, who was scowling.
“Speak of the devil,” he muttered.
Wynona gave him a look. “Be nice.” She turned to the mouse racing across the floor. “You too, Violet.”
Neither answered her as Wynona walked to the front door. The fact that Celia had knocked instead of bursting in actually was a good omen. Before, her sister would never have cared about Wynona’s privacy or respected her boundaries. This could only be a good sign.
“Hello, Celia,” Wynona said with a small smile. She hoped her sister couldn’t tell how nervous she was. Though Wynona spoke as if all would be well, there were bound to be some unpleasant circumstances ahead.
Celia raised an eyebrow. “I don’t have them.”
“Okay...”
“But I need to move in anyway.”
Wynona folded her arms over her chest. “I thought we had a deal.” Wynona’s eyes wandered over her sister. Celia looked...worn. Her hair was pulled into a tight ponytail, her eyes slightly red-rimmed and her pale skin paler. Sympathy immediately began to build in her core, but Wynona forced it down. She wasn’t naive enough to think this would be easy. She needed to lay down some ground rules and it would be better to have everything done from the start. The deal had been that Celia would have the grimoires. Wynona couldn’t break it so quickly.
“I know,” Celia snapped. Her eyes flashed silver. “But it’s not going to be as easy as I had hoped.”
“I didn’t expect it to be easy,” Wynona said calmly. “But you’re asking me to turn my life upside down and welcome someone into my home who would have gladly killed me only a couple months ago. If you want me to believe you’re serious in changing, then I need you to bring me something that’s a sacrifice.”
“You want those books because you want to build your powers,” Celia accused.
Wynona shook her head. “No. I want those books because I want to understand my powers...and control them.” She worked very hard to stay low in her tone, though she was tempted to fight back. Anger, however, wouldn’t help the situation. Celia was upset enough for the both of them.
Celia huffed and wiped at her eyes. “I said I would get them.”
“And I said you could move in when you did.” Wynona could feel Rascal getting restless behind her. He wanted to come tell Celia to go away until she had finished her side of the bargain. Wynona sent soothing vibes back to him through their mental link. She understood the sentiment, but she was doing alright.
“If I wait,” Celia choked out, “I might not be alive in order to retrieve them.”
The words hung in the air between the sisters like sharp lightning waiting for a place to strike.
Wynona was tense, but unsure. Celia was often a drama queen, but Wynona was also very aware of who their parents were. “Are you saying Dad is trying to kill you?” she asked slowly and warily.
Rascal was done waiting, and he stepped up behind her back. “Are you claiming a threat on your life?”
Celia huffed and rolled her eyes, then sniffed. Slowly, the sneer she’d been wearing trembled off her face and her eyes filled with tears. “He didn’t flat out say he would kill me,” she murmured. “But he’s made it clear I’m of no more use to him.”
“And the grimoires?”
Celia shook her head. “They’re somewhere in Mom’s personal library. I haven’t figured out how to get inside the vault yet.”
Wynona frowned. “Mom has a secret library?”
Celia laughed a little through her tears. “Be grateful you weren’t exposed to it. There’s some scary stuff in there.” She pushed out a breath. “It’s where she practices her magic.”
Wynona nodded. Lots of witches had a room where they did their work. Hers was the greenhouse, though Wynona didn’t practice anything big in there. All that glass made things a little too...fragile.
“She has a bunch of wards on it that keep me from getting inside without her.”
Wynona considered her sister. Celia was asking for refuge, and hadn’t come with any luggage. Wynona knew her sister had enough clothes to cover a small country three times over. Either she was a wonderful actress and they had planned for her to come empty handed, or she really was desperate. “Do they know you’re here?”
Celia shook her head. “Not yet. But I only had a small window while they were at a press conference.” She smirked. “Airian helped keep an eye out so I made it out of the castle without being detected.” Her triumphant grin fell. “I’ve been on watch ever since Mom and Dad failed to bring you back.”
What do you think? Wynona sent to Rascal.
Rascal growled softly, answering her without words.
Celia pinched her lips together. “So that’s it, then? Without the books, I’m expected to just go back and let them suck the life out of me?”
Wynona closed her eyes. “No,” she said softly. She looked at her sister. “I need those books. But I don’t expect you to risk your life getting them.” Wynona stepped back. “Come on in.” She ignored Violet’s snarky comments in her mind as Celia cautiously stepped inside. “There are no booby traps waiting for you,” Wynona said wryly.
“Maybe not, but Wolf–” Celia caught herself and swallowed hard. “It doesn’t take a genius to figure out your boyfriend doesn’t want me here.”
Rather than try to smooth things over, Wynona decided to go with the truth. “He doesn’t. He thinks you’re going to betray me and that this is just another ploy from the family to bring me back against my will.”
Celia was quiet and her eyes were on the ground. Finally, she looked up from under her lashes. “Why did you let me in?”
Wynona didn’t miss the fact that Celia hadn’t denied the allegations. She put her hands on her hips. “Because Granny wanted me to take care of you. And this is the best way I know how.” She hesitated for just a moment. “Would you like some tea?”
Celia’s brows pulled together and she tilted her head. It took several seconds before she responded. “Okay.”
Wynona spun on her heel, took Rascal’s hand and led the way farther in the house. “It’s not very large,” she said. “But I like it.” She waved toward the kitchen table. “Have a seat.”
Rascal stayed near Wynona, just shy of hovering as she got the water ready. She looked back at her sister and studied her. “Lemon balm and thyme,” she murmured before turning back to the cupboard.
“Grandma used to do that,” Celia said softly.
Wynona walked back to the table and sat down, the tea fixing itself behind her. “She taught me.”
Celia nodded, watching her tapping fingers. “I know.”
Wynona continued to watch her sister. She was a shell of her former self. Wynona would have almost preferred her snarky, egotistical sibling to the quiet broken one in front of her. She wiggled her fingers and the tea settled itself in front of Celia. “Give it a couple minutes to steep and it’ll be ready.”
Celia nodded.
Rascal joined Wynona at the table and Violet ran across the floor, scrambling up the table leg and up Wynona’s arm.
Celia watched the creature with a curious eye. She fiddled with her teacup. “Is it true that’s your familiar?”
Wynona reached up to pet Violet, slightly hesitant to answer, but knowing there was little way to hide it.
She more than likely heard it from your mother.
Wynona nodded subtly. “Yes,” she said out loud.
Celia winced, her eyes going between the mouse and her sister. “I’m sorry,” she said softly, more than likely referring to the fact that she had tried to kill Violet during their first meeting.
Wynona’s hesitancy melted away and she found herself reaching out. “You didn’t know.” She patted her sister's hand, then pulled back, not wanting to overstep any boundaries. “Tell me what’s going on with our parents.”
Celia snorted. “What’s not going on with them?” She brought the cup to her nose and took a deep sniff. A small smile played on her lips. “You know...this smells a lot like what Grandma used to make.”
“Like I said, she’s the one who taught me how to make teas, I’m sure most of what I do will remind you of her.”
Celia nodded. After a tentative sip, she drank a little deeper. Sitting straighter, Celia set her shoulders back, looking more confident and a little closer to herself. “So...I know this isn’t going to be easy on either of us, but I wanted to say thank you for taking me in.”
Wynona leaned back, thankful that Rascal’s arm was across the back of her chair. “You’re right. This isn’t going to be easy. But you didn’t seem happy and I wanted to give you a chance to...” She shrugged. “Find yourself? Make your own decisions? Be your own person?”
“All of the above?” Celia finished. She shrugged and pursed her lips. “Truth is, I don’t really know what I want.” Her eyes were on the teacup. “But the crazier Dad got, the more I knew I needed to get out.” She shivered. “He was starting to send me on really weird errands.”
Rascal jerked to attention. “What do you mean?”
Celia leaned back. “I don’t have any hard evidence that he’s up to anything,” she said quickly, her color disappearing again. “I just thought it was weird.”
Rascal narrowed his eyes and Wynona could practically hear him thinking.
“What kind of errands did you do?” she asked. Granny had been so insistent that Wynona take over Hex Haven in order to get their crooked father out of office. If they found a way to have him arrested instead...it would save her from even thinking about staging a coup.
Celia ticked her head back and forth. “Did you know that I visited both the Roseburg mansion and Silvaria’s apartment before the whole murder thing?”
Wynona’s eyebrows went up. “Dad told you to go there?”
Celia nodded, drinking more of her tea.
“Well? What did you do?”
Celia shook her head. “I was delivering messages.”
“What were the messages?” Rascal pressed, his tone becoming a little dark.
She scowled at him. “They were sealed envelopes, Officer. How was I supposed to know?”
Violet chittered. Any witch worth her salt would have read them.
Then isn’t it a good thing Celia has more integrity than that? Wynona shot back.
“They were sealed with a ward. I couldn’t do a thing about it.” Celia sneered. The tea was obviously working a little too well.
Ha! Forget integrity. She just wasn’t strong enough. Violet seemed a little too pleased with that observation.
“Do you think Dad had something to do with the murder?” Wynona asked, a fleeting fear that she’d been wrong crossing her mind.
Celia shook her head. “No. At least...I don’t think so. But it does seem odd.” She leaned forward. “Plus...why didn’t he just mail them? He’s been having me take letters all over to creatures for the last couple of years and I’m not sure why.”
“Are any others tied to people who have been killed?” Rascal asked. His hold on the back of Wynona’s chair was so tight she could hear the squeak of the wood.
Reaching over her shoulder, she pried his hand off and rubbed his fingers soothingly. His growl changed to a more pleasant rumble and Wynona smiled.
Celia, however, wasn’t nearly as thrilled. “Is this what I’m going to have to watch? You two playing lovers all day?”
Wynona tried to keep the heat creeping up her neck at bay, but she knew her face was flushed when she responded. “I suppose it is,” she said tightly. “If you’re going to move into my home, then you’re going to have to deal with my lifestyle.” Pushing away from the table, Wynona said, “I’ll show you to your room and find you something to wear. Tomorrow we can figure out what you’re going to do about clothes and such.”
Celia sighed, but followed.
“I don’t have a bed yet,” Wynona announced, flipping on the light in the room. “I wasn’t sure when you would be here or what you would bring along.”
“Nothing,” Celia said, crossing her hands over her chest.
“I’m sure we can fix that, but not tonight.” Wynona continued to ignore her sister’s rudeness. She was growing tired. They would have to talk about rules tomorrow. But they would talk about them.
Darn right, Violet agreed.
“You’re welcome to the couch,” Wynona said. “Or a pile of blankets, if you prefer. But until tomorrow, that’s all I’ve got.”
Celia opened her mouth, then seemed to think better of it and closed it. “I’ll take the couch, thanks.”
“Sounds good,” Wynona said primly. She stuck her chin in the air. “I’m going to go say goodnight to Rascal. If you don’t want to see us being...lovers...then I’d recommend you wait a few minutes before coming out.” With that parting shot, Wynona came back down the hall and walked right into her soulmate’s waiting arms.
This is a disaster, he sent to her.
I know, Wynona admitted. But what else can I do? And now she thinks Dad is up to something? Wynona leaned back enough to see his face. I have to try and figure this out.
You have to stay safe. He bent down for a sweet kiss. “Please put wards on your room as well as on the house.”
Wynona nodded and gave him an encouraging smile. “I will.”
“Okay, lover,” he teased with a wink. After one more lingering kiss, he slipped out into the dark.
Wynona sighed. Their date couldn’t come fast enough. She needed that time with him and only him.
Clingy, Violet muttered.
Wynona picked the mouse off her shoulder and scratched behind her ears. “Come on, Violet. Let’s go to bed.”
Still clingy, the mouse said, though she leaned into the scratching.
Wynona let out a long breath. Just once, she wished her life would get easier instead of harder. But it seemed that tonight was definitely not the start of a smooth patch. And if Celia was right about their father...there might not be a smooth patch for a very long time.