Wicked by Any Other Name (10 page)

Trev ducked his head. “Excuse me.” He turned to Stasi's shop.

When he went inside, he found her seated on the high-legged stool behind the counter. She had taken off her bonnet and sat there with her head resting on her arms. Horace squatted next to her, stroking her arm and muttering words in a long dead language. His wings rustled together with a raspy sound. Bogie floated around her, whimpering and moving in to offer comforting kisses. And then there were those red hearts mocking him.

“This isn't Salem, Stasi,” he said quietly, leaning across the counter to rest his hand on her head. He inhaled a faint scent he knew to be wholly her own.

She lifted her head a fraction of an inch. “Blair told you.”

“She's worried about you.”

She groaned. “I will turn her into a pigeon.”

“Fearful people do strange things, but mortals are a lot more advanced nowadays.”

“Sure, they hire wizards to sue witches.
Hic!
” She glared at the bubble that floated in the air. Bogie nosed it and it disappeared.

Trev chuckled. “You seem to do that a lot when I'm around.”

“Go away.
Hic!
” She slipped off the stool and headed for the stockroom.

Trev followed her partway and watched her pull a bottle of water out of a small refrigerator.

“I'm going out to the lake and take another look around,” he announced. He ran the back of his fingers down her cheek. “Have dinner with me.”

She stiffened. “I thank you for helping us, but don't you think our having dinner out would be wrongly construed if Carrie found out?”

“The only one seeing it that way is you.” He took a step forward. “Have pity on me, Stasi. I really do hate eating alone.”

“I've seen the looks women around here give you. You wouldn't be alone for long. The Sit ‘N Eat is your best bet. I won't say Ginny will protect you, but she'll make sure you have a hint of privacy. But if you feel brave enough, try Grady's. It's more a honky-tonk at night, so you might have to fight for your dignity.”

“Then protect me.”

She sighed. “You won't stop, will you?”

He grinned, aware he was wearing her down. “No, I won't.”

“I close the shop at six.”

“I'll pick you up at seven.” He left before she had a chance to change her mind.

***

Trev zipped up his jacket and tucked his hands in the pockets against the frigid air as he took the trail around Stasi and Blair's building. With the snow and patches of ice on the ground, he was grateful he wore hiking boots appropriate for the rough ground.

“Not a good day for a walk.”

Trev stopped and looked over to see the town handyman standing near the back steps. His shearling-lined jean jacket was buttoned up against the cold and Trev envied the dark-haired man's flannel-lined jeans. He wouldn't have minded a pair of those right now.

“I have to admit that when I want to kick back I'm more tempted to head to Tahiti or the Caribbean for scuba diving and wind surfing,” Trev agreed, echoing the man's relaxed stance. “Blair doesn't know the truth about you, does she?”

Jake grinned. “That woman is so smart and so quick-witted, but I have to say there's times she totally drops the ball.”

Trev grinned back. “You ever plan to tell her?”

Jake looked off into the distance. “I'm sure the time will come, and she'll want to kill me on the spot for keeping it from her. Some relationships aren't meant to progress too fast. I know she's interested, and I feel the same, but for now, it's kinda fun this way.” He moved forward, walking with Trev. “What about you and Stasi? Even I can see there's something brewing there.”

“Wizards and witches don't make a perfect pair,” Trev said simply. Even though there was a time-honored edict that wizards and witches don't mate, there were still red hearts floating over Stasi's head, along with a matching set over his, but Trev didn't feel like going into details.

“I'm sorry your spell didn't work out at the lake,” Jake said, walking beside him.

Trev shot him a sideways look. “You know about that?”

“Stasi told Blair.”

“And?” He wondered if she'd also told her friend about the kiss.

Jake's teeth flashed white. “Some things it's best not to mention.”

He froze just as they reached the end of the stand of trees ringing the lake.

“What do you sense?” Trev asked, trusting the other man's perception more than his own.

“Something dirty, cruel,” he murmured, walking more slowly now, then stopped. “Whoa, something did a real number on your spell.”

Trev walked around Jake and stared at the now visible barrier around the lake, which looked armed to the teeth with the crisscrossed strips of magick and the ruins of the protective ring he had constructed to protect mortals from stumbling onto the barrier and being harmed in the process. Now, it was as if whatever had created the barrier wanted everyone to know about it. And he guessed who would be the first to be blamed.

Jake watched Trev approach the barrier, then stop when flames licked around the bottom edge. He backed up to a safe distance and watched the flames die down, but he sensed that they lingered in the ground waiting for an unwary victim.

“You can't destroy it, can you?” he asked.

Trev shook his head. “Not without some potent help. And with no idea what created this, I wouldn't even know who to ask.”

“What kind of magick do you think it is?”

Both men turned at the sound of the feminine voice. Stasi stood at the end of the path. In deference to the cold morning, she wore a brown wool cloak with the hood pulled up over her hair. There was a determination stamped across her delicate features that Trev hadn't seen before.

“You don't know, do you?” She moved forward, not slipping once on the snow even though she still wore the fragile ballet slippers. “Neither of you know what monster is out there frightening people into thinking Blair and I are evil and turning our beautiful lake into this horror.”

“Hey, I just ran into Trev and came along for company,” Jake explained, looking easygoing and with no evidence of the sharp intelligence he'd shown Trev a few moments ago. “He was trying to explain this to me.” He pointed to the lake. “Man, anyone comes out here they'll think aliens have landed or the lake monster finally decided he wanted to be alone.”

“The lake monster?”

“A local legend,” Stasi said. “Sometimes you can look out and see bubbles or a shadow of something in the middle of the lake, but there's never been a problem with anyone out there fishing. Kids come out here on a dare to find the monster. So far, no one has succeeded and not one child has been eaten.”

Trev turned back to the barrier. “It needs to be hidden or at least masked.”

“No offense, Trevor, but you weren't very successful the last time,” Stasi said sharply.

He ignored her as he moved toward the barrier again. Jake walked with him, his boot heels crunching on the icy ground.

“Is the lake a tourist spot during your festivities?” Trev asked. “Any ghost tours given out here?”

Stasi shook her head. “All the ghost walking tours are in town and at the local cemetery. They feel it's more colorful. The lake monster legend isn't even talked about much except among the kids. I think they'd prefer to keep this place their own secret.”

“Can you cover the barrier?” Jake asked.

“I can try. Considering what happened last time, who knows? But this time I'll study the structure more and not just show off,” he murmured.

Stasi stepped back. “I must return to the shop.” Her speech turned more formal as if she had mentally stepped back in time. She turned around, her cloak flying around her ankles as she walked away with both men watching her.

“You need to come up with some serious mojo to force Caustic Carrie to back down on the lawsuit,” Jake said. “If you don't you'll never have a chance with Stasi.”

Trev turned away from the enticing sight of Stasi walking away. “I'm not allowed to do that. Besides, as I said, wizards and witches don't mix.”

“An old wives' tale,” Jake scoffed. “There's another witch that will tell you just because they say one thing doesn't mean it doesn't happen. Especially since she's with a vampire.”

“Amazing a vampire would stay with a witch, since blood taking is so important a ritual for them with their lovers,” Trev said, surprised. It was well known that a witch's blood was poisonous to a vampire. Any vampire who dared take a witch's blood would suffer a serious case of heartburn at the least and death at the worst.

“Then you don't know Jazz Tremaine and Nick Gregory. They're playing the odds and so far, they're winning. And no way he'd try to take even a taste of her blood. She throws a mean fireball,” Jake added, following Trev as he moved closer to the barrier, then started walking around it.

Trev studied the ground, watching how the flames would immediately lick the ground if they moved even an inch closer to the barrier. Even as the blaze increased the air remained cold.

“Fire but no heat,” he murmured.

“More damage that way,” Jake commented. “If you don't feel the heat you don't realize how badly you're burned until it's too late.”

Trev deliberately moved a step closer. The flames shot higher, still not providing heat but something more sinister that Trev could only sense. It took some time for the facts to pop up in his head, but when they did he knew he was facing something more than he had expected.

“Not burned. Melted,” he said finally. “You don't feel any heat, so you'll venture too close. Once you've gotten within its range, the fire will lick at your skin and instantly melt it like wax. By the time it's finished, you'll be nothing but a puddle on the ground. It will even melt your bones.”

Jake grimaced. “Sounds like something out of a bad sci-fi or horror movie.
The Lake That Ate the Town.”

“This isn't normal magick.” Trev crouched and picked up a small stone. He arched back and threw the stone as hard as he could. The men watched the stone hit the barrier and bounce back so hard and fast it buried itself in a tree trunk. “If the stone had hit one of us we'd probably be cleaved in two.”

“That still doesn't tell us what kind of magick it is,” Jake said.

“It's got to be some kind of power from the earth, but it's nothing I'm familiar with.” Trev glanced at him. “Feel like a hike?”

“Sure.”

As the two men, each bearing his own special form of magick, walked along, they found a common denominator. They both were fascinated with a witch, and each had their own reason for keeping their distance. Even if they knew deep down it was a losing battle.

***

“So, girlfriend, tell all. What are you going to wear on your date with the wizard?” Horace asked as Stasi closed out her register. It had been a slow day, so it wouldn't take her long. “You're not going to wear one of those sack dresses are you?” He cast a derisive look over her period costume. “Now, if you were in Regency clothing, I'd say fine. At least they showed off the bod, but what you're wearing covers too much.” He tapped a claw against his chin. “Maybe you could borrow something sexy and sassy from Blair. She's got some outfits that could qualify as pretty good slut wear.”

“I have very nice date clothes,” she pointed out. “And Blair will make you suffer if she hears you calling her clothes slut wear.”

“Honey, you haven't been on a decent date in ages and as for getting laid…” he paused, “well, that's been even longer.”

“I am
not
discussing my sex life or lack thereof with you.”

He perked up. “Will you tell me if the wizard nails you? Come to think of it, maybe you won't have to tell me. Maybe you'll just float in here wearing that post-coital glow. Oh wait! You'll have your phone with you. Maybe you could take a few pictures for my scrapbook. Hey!” His arms and legs windmilled in the air as Stasi picked him up by his wings and gave him a little shake. “Not nice!” He glared at her.

“Then stop acting gross.” She held him a couple of inches above the counter then released his wings.

Horace fell to the counter and rolled over. He stood up in a crouch, rubbing his butt.

“You used to be nice,” he muttered.

She picked up the moneybag and noticed Bogie had already disappeared from his bed. “Good night, Horace.”

“Just remember, it's okay to give a little tongue with a kiss,” he called after her.

“I'm telling Jazz to bring Fluff and Puff with her,” she caroled as she left the shop, flipping the sign to
Closed
and locking the door. She smiled as she heard Horace's wails of outrage. The gargoyle and the bunny slippers had major issues.

She met Blair, who was also closing up shop.

“Do you want to go down to the Sit ‘N Eat?” Blair asked. “I don't know about you, but I don't feel like cooking or even heating up.”

“I—ah—I'm having dinner with Trev.” Stasi looked across the street, so she wouldn't have to see her friend's reaction.

Blair's lips widened in a knowing smile. “Really?” she drew out the word. “I wonder how this date will go.”

“It's not a date.” She rounded the side of the building and headed for the stairs leading to the top floor.

“He asked you to dinner?”

“Yes.”

“And I'm sure he'll pick up the check.”

“He better.”

“Then it's a date. This is worth me nuking something for dinner. What are you going to wear?”

“Considering it's going to be thirty degrees tonight, I'm thinking something warm.” She picked up Bogie, who had greeted her at the door. Since he wasn't fond of cold weather he usually transported himself from the shop to the apartments.