Chapter 26

“I saw Jared leaving your apartment,” Deanne said the following morning, coming into Enchantment carrying a bag of fresh beignets. “I take it he spent the night?”

“He sure did,” Kendra replied. “Those smell wonderful. I didn’t have time for breakfast.” She reached for the bag. “I only grabbed a cup of coffee before I came down.”

“So much for getting him out of your system,” Deanne said. “Girl, will you never learn?”

“I have a lot to tell you, which includes why Jared spent the night with me, but I want to wait until Loren gets here.” Kendra spread napkins on the counter. “I love these, but they’re a mess to eat.” As she bit into the warm, soft beignet, powdered sugar trickled down her chin.

Deanne sipped her coffee. “Isn’t it awful about Kathleen? I couldn’t believe it when my dad told us how he and Jared found her. Who could have done something like that to her?”

Just then Loren hurried through the door. “Sorry I’m late. I couldn’t sleep last night thinking about Kathleen, then I overslept.”

“We were just talking about her,” Deanne said. “Under the circumstances, I feel bad about having our party tonight.”

“I was with Kathleen’s family for a while yesterday, and I mentioned the same thing,” Loren said. “They want us to go ahead. They said that, if anything, she loved a good party.”

Deanne nodded. “That’s for sure.”

Kendra brushed powdered sugar from her fingers and took a sip of coffee. “I have something to tell the two of you, and I want to do it before we open.” She proceeded to fill them in on everything Jared had told her, including the cursed vase of roses and the genie bottle, and what she’d remembered from the night at Minerva’s, ending with, “So you see, he was right, and I was wrong. Thaddeus is Adam, and Adam truly is the bad guy.”

Seconds ticked past as they stared at her, then Loren spoke, her voice barely above a whisper. “Jared has proof Adam killed Kathleen?”

“Not beyond his instincts and Adam’s past behavior.”

“I can’t believe my dad didn’t tell us this last night,” Deanne said.

“Jared doesn’t want anyone to know Adam’s been exposed,” Kendra said.

Deanne’s hands balled into fists. “What a fool he made out of all of us.”

“Tell me about it,” Kendra said. “Part of his power is his seductive charm.”

Deanne jangled her car keys. “Let’s go get the bastard. We’ll make him confess.”

Loren placed a hand on her shoulder. “Calm down. It’s not up to us. This is a job for your father and the Council.” She turned to Kendra. “I assume Jared has contacted them?”

“Woodrow is aware of Jared’s suspicions, but Jared is planning to take care of Adam himself. That’s where we come in.”

“Good,” Deanne stated. “I can’t stand the thought of just waiting around doing nothing. What’s our plan?”

“That depends on what Jared does. Last night, he said he would contact Adam and set up a place for them to meet. He also said he’d come to the party. We’ll have to keep an eye on both him and Adam. If they leave, we follow.”

Loren turned to Deanne. “I suppose we owe Jared an apology.”

“About doubting him in regards to Adam, yes, but he still left Kendra and put her through hell.”

“He did that to protect me. All we can do now is help him.” Kendra smiled. “Without him knowing, that is.”

“So you’re still planning on going to the party with Adam, or Thaddeus, or whoever the hell he is?” Deanne asked. “How will you be able to sit there and act normal?” She shook her head. “I couldn’t do it.”

“It’ll be hard for us all,” Loren said. “But for Jared’s sake and our own safety, we have to put on the performance of our lives.”

Kendra’s cell phone rang. “It’s Thaddeus,” she said, reading the caller ID. “Now we’ll see how good an actress I am.” She inhaled deeply, said a calming spell, touched her gold unicorn for strength, and answered. “Hello.”

“Good morning,” Adam said. “I’m sorry to be calling so early, but I wanted to catch you before the store opened. Did you hear anything about your friend?”

Kendra swallowed hard before she said, “It’s nice of you to ask.” She hoped her voice sounded normal. “Kathleen was found last night, and”—Kendra paused—“she’s dead.”

“Oh, Kendra, I’m so sorry. What happened?”

She dug her nails into her palm and silently counted to ten. “All we know is that she was murdered, probably by another witch.”

“What? How awful. If there’s anything I can do, please let me know.”

“Thanks. The Wiccan Council is going to conduct an investigation.”

“Do they have any leads? It’s such a tragedy. Violence between witches is so rare.”

Kendra couldn’t believe how sincere he sounded. She wanted to blurt out, “Yes, you sick monster, we know who the murderer is.” Instead she kept her cool and said, “I don’t have a lot of the details, just that she fought her attacker.”

“That poor girl. Again, if I can be of any assistance to the Council, please let me know.”

“I will, thanks.”

“Are you still planning on having the party tonight?”

“Yes. Kathleen would want us to.”

“Do you still want me to come?”

“Of course, but we have to get there early. Why don’t you meet us there around eight o’clock?”

“Sure, it’s Baby Blues, on Basin Street, in the Treme, right? Oh, and Kendra, I want to apologize for running out on your tour. My encounter with Dupre made me pretty uncomfortable, and when we went into his hotel, well, it just seemed like it would be best if I left before there was more trouble.”

“No problem. I understand.”

Kendra’s hands were trembling when the call ended. She turned to Loren and Deanne. “Oh, what a prick. The bastard was so sympathetic. Honestly, right now I could kill him myself.”

****

Frustrated, Jared leaned his elbows on his desk and stared at Angelique’s mirror. Try as he might, he couldn’t make the mirror show him where Adam lived. He whacked the desktop with his fist and the mirror bounced. The bastard must have one hell of a privacy charm.

He was ready to settle this, tonight. He understood that Kendra wanted to help, but he couldn’t risk her life. With the blessing of the Council, Jared planned to make Adam pay for the crimes against Rose, against Philippe, and against Kathleen.

Now that Kendra knew what Adam really was, an evil witch with no chance of reform, he worried she wouldn’t be able to hide her revulsion and might do something inadvertently that would alert him.

“Hey, asshole,” he shouted at the blank mirror. Nothing. Angelique was probably protecting the mirror from Adam, and now Adam couldn’t hear Jared summoning him. He glanced over at his cell phone. Kendra would have Adam’s number, but if he asked her for it, she’d want to know why. Damn it to hell, this shouldn’t be so complicated.

He picked up the mirror. “Show me Kendra.” The glass shimmered, then Kendra appeared standing behind a display case while two women tried on jewelry. Relieved she finally believed him, Jared thought of their extremely satisfying make-up sex of the previous night and smiled. As he watched Kendra show the girls more jewelry to try on, he hesitated. She’d be busy for a while. Did he dare try?

“Show me her cell phone.” Kendra’s purse appeared beneath the checkout counter, her phone visible inside. He sighed. Considering they were just back on friendly terms, she’d be furious if she found out. Perhaps there was another way. But who else would have Adam’s number? He rolled his eyes and picked up his phone.

“Hi, Minerva, this is Jared Dupre.”

“Jared, I knew you would be calling,” Minerva purred. “The cards are never wrong.”

“Then do you also know why I’m calling?” he asked.

She hesitated. “I’m not sure.”

“Minerva, I need Adam’s cell number or his address.”

“I could never give out personal information like that.”

Jared’s voice took on a steely tone. “Minerva, I know what Adam did to Kendra at your museum. I know you had a part in it. I don’t think the Wiccan Council would look favorably on a witch who allowed something like that to happen.”

He heard her intake of breath. “You have no proof.”

“Maybe not, but the Council would certainly investigate.” He had a thought. “Minerva, did you hear Kathleen LeBlanc is dead?”

“Yes, what a tragedy.”

“Did you hear how she died?”

“No.”

“She was found raped and beaten in a tomb in St. Louis No. 1. Your friend Adam killed her.”

There was silence on the other end, then she whispered, “Jared, is that true?”

“Yes.”

“I have to sit down.” He could hear the scrape of a chair leg. “Jared, I want you to know my life was threatened if I didn’t help him drug Kendra.” Her voice broke. “I never wanted to harm her or anyone else. I’ll tell the Council what I know about Adam, but I swear to all the Gods and Goddesses, I had no idea he planned on killing Kathleen.”

Jared knew she was telling the truth. In all the years he’d known Minerva, she’d never been evil—a little crazy maybe. “The Council would appreciate that. Now I need Adam’s cell number.”

“If he finds out I gave it to you, he’ll kill me.”

“No he won’t, because I’m going to kill him first.”

Seconds later Jared punched in the number, and on the third ring a surprised Adam answered. “Dupre?”

“Yeah, asshole, it’s me.” Not giving Adam a chance to reply he continued, “It’s time to end this. Meet me in St. Louis No.1 tonight.”

Adam hesitated. “I have a date with Kendra, so it will have to be some other time.”

“I’ll be at the party as well. When Kendra is occupied, we’ll slip out. This is between the two of us.”

“Agreed, but make sure you say your goodbyes to the lady, because you won’t be coming back.”

Jared scoffed. “I’m not only going to make you pay for fucking with Philippe, you’re going down for Kathleen’s death, and Rose’s too. So enjoy the party. It will be your last.” Jared ended the call and, with a determined set to his mouth, went to gather the things he’d need.

****

Adam turned to the mirror where Augustus scowled back at him.

“What did Dupre say?” Augustus asked.

“He wants to meet tonight.”

“Where?”

“St. Louis No.1.”

“At last my revenge will be complete.” Augustus glowered at Adam. “And this time you will not fail me. This will be your last chance. If you do not succeed in killing Dupre, then you must die nobly. If you run like a coward, I will do all that is in my power to make you suffer.”

When Augustus disappeared from the glass, Adam silently mouthed, “Fuck you.” It wouldn’t only be Dupre he’d rid himself of. He’d take great satisfaction in tossing the old man and his mirror into the Mississippi on his way out of town.

Adam scanned the room and made his plans. He’d have his car packed, and when he was sure Dupre was dead, he’d return to the party for Kendra. No one had better dare interfere. He smiled. Unbeknownst to the lady, she was about to take a trip.