Wicked by Any Other Name (9 page)

“I think he wants you to go with him,” Stasi said, wanting the same. She was curious about why Trev was here, and she didn't want an audience when she got her answers.

Blair looked from the dog to Stasi to Trev. “Okay, but if he tries anything, zap him a good one,” she told Stasi before she allowed the dog to lead her back through the trees toward home. “Fine, I'm coming! If you tear this jacket, I'll use your fur to make myself a new one.”

Trev chuckled. “You'd think she doesn't like him.”

“He isn't hers,” Stasi said. “He shows up on our doorstep every so often for food. I think Blair considers him occasional entertainment.”

“You mean she doesn't—?”

“Doesn't what?”

Trev chuckled. “Nothing. I'm sure it will all work out.”

Stasi studied him, liking this more vulnerable side of him. She could see his shirt half tucked into his jeans under his jacket and buttons in the wrong order. “Why do I think you know something we don't?”

“I think the two of you do know, but for some reason you prefer to keep it tucked away.” He glanced back at the barrier. The flames were gone with no sign they'd ever been there. With the barrier invisible, no one could tell the lake was protected. The question was, why did someone or something feel that need? And who or what was that someone? The lights over the water flickered in and out until one by one they winked out of sight.

“I can tell you that no wizard created this.”

“And no witch had his or her hand in it either,” Stasi said. “This couldn't be caused by Mercury retrograde or the lunar eclipse. This is all pure magick. We just don't know what kind.”

Trev took her arm to steer her back to the house. “It has to be someone who lives locally. They'd have to be able to return to feed the power on a regular basis.”

Stasi pulled back. “There's no sense of an avoidance spell here. We can't allow just anyone to stumble out here. We can provide some sort of protection for ourselves, but a mortal could be in danger.” She stared at the lake, racking her brain for just the right spell.

“I think I have something that would work,” Trev offered. “If you don't mind?”

“You'd help?”

“Of course.” He rubbed his palms together. “I'm a little out of practice, but this should do it.”

Stasi stood back and watched as Trev drew closer to the unseen barrier, but remained far enough back to be out of harm's way in case the barrier fought back. Multi-colored sparks of light danced off the wall as he held his hands up and chanted under his breath. The wind picked up, sending the few remaining leaves scattering, and the air grew so cold, Stasi saw her breath frost the air. She widened her stance as the wind grew even stronger, almost pushing her off her feet. The air grew so heavy and dense with power it felt like a living thing wrapped around her. If she hadn't been watching closely, she would have missed the flare of intense cobalt blue that whooshed from Trev's eyes like a serpent winding its way around the lake's boundary until it met back where they stood, the serpent's mouth grabbing hold of its tail as it froze into a ring that she could tell held a lot of magickal muscle. She looked out over the water, again seeing the strange green lights dancing off the water's edge, but floating further away from them than before.

“I sensed you had a great gift, but I had no idea it was this strong,” she whispered, awed by the immense control she felt still coming from Trev. She stared at the ring circling the bottom of the barrier. She knew it would deter a mortal from coming out this way, but not harm any human or animal that might come close.

Trev blew out a breath and a sharp laugh. “I haven't done anything like this in a long time. I guess they're right. It
is
like riding a bicycle. You never lose your touch, but it sure takes a lot out of you.” He blew on the tip of his forefinger as if it was a gun barrel. He turned back and grinned at Stasi, looking more like a boy proud of his accomplishments than a powerful wizard.

Stasi fell in step with him as they retraced the path back to the house.

“Thank you.”

“You and Blair have a big job here.” He nodded when she looked at him with surprise. “It wasn't difficult to figure out, Stasi. The two of you have done your best to protect the town from developers without interfering so much you'd end up in trouble with the Witches' Council. You walked a fine line and succeeded.”

Stasi stopped when they reached the back stairs. She could hear Bogie's frantic barking inside, then the Border collie's echoing barks and Blair ordering them both to be quiet. She guessed they realized they were on Blair's last nerve, because they quieted down immediately.

She stopped on the bottom step, which allowed her to be closer to eye level with Trev.

“We've lived here on and off since the town first sprang up during the Gold Rush,” she said. “Something about the lake gave us this sense of completion, and we vowed we'd never allow anyone to harm this area. We set up wards throughout the woods to protect the wildlife and to keep the town safe. They're nothing major, just a bit of a safety zone.”

Trev reached out, tentatively at first, and then stroked her hair, threading strands between his fingers. Her first thought was to step out of his reach; the second was to stay where she was. She opted for Door Number Two. And didn't move a muscle when Trev moved that all-important extra step that brought him right up to her.

“Few work so hard to protect an entire town,” he murmured, keeping his gaze centered on her face.

“It's our town,” she whispered, as if speaking too loudly would break the spell that sprang up between them. A spell that had nothing to do with magick, but with what arced between the opposite sexes. She tipped her face up, silently inviting what she knew would happen. She was curious whether this was a good idea.

She reminded herself that she was determined to do what she normally wouldn't, and that thought kept her still on the step.

Trev lowered his head until his mouth rested a breath above hers.

“You're a tempting woman, Anastasia Romanov,” he whispered.

She smiled.

“You found what I said funny?”

She shook her head. “You didn't call me a witch.”

“Magick may in your blood, but it's your femininity that calls to me.” His mouth covered hers in a kiss that sent pure fire racing through her veins. She was amazed the steps didn't go up in flames as she first rested her hands on his shoulders then slid them up around his neck. His mouth slid across hers, stroking and seeking until she opened her mouth. He was a man kissing a woman, showing her his attraction, and she couldn't help but respond with all she had.

Trev quickly unzipped his jacket and Stasi's, pulling both open before bringing her fully against him. The warmth of his body kept the night's chill at bay as they stood there, tasting each other and feeling the urgency build. She tasted pure male and the power that was in his blood. For a moment, Stasi was tempted to climb up on him and have her way with him. In all her years, she hadn't felt the intensity she felt now with Trev, or wanted a man as badly as she wanted him.

“Stasi,” he murmured, cupping her face with his hands, turning his head to another angle as he feasted on her mouth.

“Trevor,” she whispered back, feeling joy deep within. The sensation was so strong she felt overwhelmed.

“So beautiful. So caring. Why would you do what you did to Carrie?” he muttered, lost in the moment and not realizing he had just said the absolutely worst thing he could say. Stasi broke away from him so fast he rocked back on his heels, almost falling backwards.

“What's wrong?” His eyes were still a filmy, unfocused blue.

She blinked back her tears. “You bastard.” To make matters worse, she hiccupped and an iridescent bubble escaped her lips. A second quickly followed. She wanted to conjure up one of Jazz's fireballs to throw at him for making her hiccup. “You son of a bitch!”

Before Trev could backpedal to figure out what went wrong, Stasi pulled back her hand and punched him in the gut. He exhaled a painful whoosh of air and covered his stomach with his arms.

“What was that for?” he wheezed.

“You think about it. You think good and hard about it!” she spat at him as she lifted her hands. “Snowman, come to me. Snowman let me see. Snowman do your job, if you please!” She spun on her heel and stomped upstairs.

“Stasi!” Trev's advance toward her was halted by what felt like a ton of snow falling on top of him. He cursed and sputtered as he tried to brush the snow away from his head and body. “Damn it, Stasi!” Her reply was the back door slamming and the light by the door winking off. Trev muttered as he walked off, replaying the moment in his mind. He uttered a variety of curses as his last line echoed inside his head. He headed for his car, planning how he was going to get himself out of this mess without Stasi deciding to do some serious damage to him. Because at the moment he wouldn't have blamed her for wanting to turn him into a warthog. “Carrie, I'd love to throttle you for getting me into this mess.” He scuffed the ground with his boots as he walked. “But if you hadn't come into my office and made my life miserable I wouldn't have met Stasi—who seems to be determined to make my life another kind of miserable.”

“He's horrible! Hic!” Stasi batted away the bubble and zapped the one that followed. She told Blair about Trev's spell to keep people from harming themselves at the barrier and then his kiss, along with how he had ruined it. “He deserves warts!”

The dog whined and nosed his way into her lap while Bogie floated up around her shoulders like a furry neck roll.

“Drink this,” Blair urged, pushing a cup of tea into her hands. “And don't stop until it's all gone.”

“Thanks—
hic!
” She did as ordered then waited. She smiled then groaned as another hiccup ballooned in her chest and bubbles filled the air.

Blair shook her head. “This is more than nerves.” She took the cup from Stasi's fingers before she could drop it and refilled it. “Drink again.”

“I'm drowning in tea!” Stasi wailed after the third cup. “
Hic!
” By then, the kitchen was rapidly filling up with the bubbles. Bogie reached out and batted at them, while the Border collie was happy bumping them with his nose and snapping at them.

Blair dropped into one of the chairs and took Stasi's hands. “It's the hearts. They're going to mess you up big time.”

“I'm going to smack Cupid back to his creator…
hic!
” She covered her face with her hands. “I'm going to borrow Fluff and Puff and tell them to eat all his enchanted arrows. That'll fix him! He'll be out of business, that lowlife matchmaker who thinks he has the market on romance.”

“Uh, ladies.” Fergus stood uncertainly among all the bubbles that floated through him. “Did you figure out what's going wrong?”

“Not exactly, Fergus,” Blair said. “But we're working on it. Just be careful when any of you come over here, okay, and let us know if anyone else disappears?”

“Okay.” He nodded and vanished.

Blair turned to the dog next. “Don't you have a home to go to?” He sat back on his haunches and lifted a paw, bobbing it up and down while he cocked his head to one side. “Oh no, you can't stay here.” But the dog had already taken off down the hall. She ran after him. “Bad dog! You cannot sleep in my bed!”

“She'll lose the battle and let him stay and he'll take all the covers as he has before,” Stasi said, pulling Bogie around to sit in her lap. She stroked the dog behind his ears. He looked so blissful, if he'd been a cat he would have purred. “Closest she's had to a man in her bed for some time.”

She tidied up the kitchen and returned to bed, noting that by now it was well after four. She felt so tired she was ready to drop where she stood. But once she was undressed and under the covers, with Bogie curled up on the pillow by her head, she lay wide-awake.

“He does a nice thing at the lake, then he kisses me,” she murmured. “How am I supposed to face him in Wizards' Court after this? Forget that, how am I supposed to face him in this town?”

To make matters worse, when she fell asleep she wasn't counting sheep but hearts dancing in a conga line.

***

“That dog hogs the bed,” Blair grumbled as she and Stasi ate breakfast. Both dogs had their heads in bowls of kibble. “And he snores.”

“I don't know. I would think it would be like sleeping with a huge stuffed animal.” Stasi looked out the window and frowned. “There wasn't any sign of snow when we were out there a few hours ago.”

Blair joined her at the window and peered out. “Wow, there are several inches out there now.” When the collie barked, she headed for the back door and opened it for him. “Typical guy. First they charm you into bed, then they eat and run without one word about calling you.”

Stasi continued staring at the trees collecting falling snowflakes on their branches. “We need to check the lake again.”

“What's wrong?”

She shook her head. “I don't know, but something feels very troubling out there.” She ran to the coat rack and grabbed her jacket along with Blair's and threw it to her.

“But you said Trev cast a spell of protection,” Blair said.

“He did, but something still feels off. We really need to go back out there and we need to go now.”

“Boots this time,” Blair reminded her. “The path will be slippery with the snow.”

Her warning proved true as they slipped and slid along the path.

“The air smells odd,” Stasi commented, as they grew closer to the end of the stand of trees.

Blair wrinkled her nose. “Yeah, it smells almost like dead fish.”

They stopped short at the sight before them.

“Yowza.” Blair whistled softly.

“This is really not good.” Stasi felt her stomach sink all the way down to her toes.

They stared at a barrier that was no longer invisible to the naked eye. Now it stood crisscrossed with lines of dark green and gray, while the blue ring Trev had conjured was cracked, broken in places, and covered with splashes of black as if a strong fire had burned it. The normally placid surface of the lake was showing whitecaps, even though there was very little wind. Stasi and Blair kept their distance as they walked around the lake and found the blue ring in the same condition all the way around.

“That was the most powerful spell I'd ever seen and it was destroyed as if a first year student cast it,” Stasi whispered, as they walked back to the house. The minute they stepped into the kitchen they grabbed more coffee to warm up. “Something's very wrong and I think we need help.”

“Agreed.”

Stasi glanced at the coffee-pot-shaped clock and noticed the time. Her first thought was not to open the store, but she knew she had to keep on as if nothing was wrong. “I'll call Jazz today. I'll also try Maggie. Her gift is protection spells.”

Blair nodded. “I'll do some research on the retrograde and lunar eclipse and see if it does have anything to do with this.”

“It's October first, town decoration day, remember?”

Blair groaned, then brightened up. “That's right. Jake said he'd help us set up the heavy stuff.”

“Yes, Blair, think of the important things,” Stasi said dryly before heading to her bedroom to get ready.

When the women went downstairs and around to the front of the building they found a lot of activity going on. While the town's main street wasn't long, it featured shops geared for tourist trade and always decorated for holiday occasions. Men stood on ladders arranging orange twinkle lights over store windows and doors, while men and women wearing western clothing busied themselves decorating windows and setting out carved pumpkins, scarecrows, and hay bales. The few empty stores were draped in black and decreed to be the sites of a famous gunfight or a gruesome death. Wilson Carruthers, now in a battered hat, wore wool pants and a flannel shirt sporting a blood-spattered front where he'd been “shot.” With his matted beard and dirty face, he looked menacing and perfect for a haunted town.

Stasi had chosen a simple soft pink and blue plaid skirt and pink cotton blouse under a matching plaid fichu with a delicate cameo pin attached to her collar. Her felt spoon bonnet matched the blue in the plaid. With the snow on the ground, she opted for thermal tights to keep her legs warm and wore ballet flats. She had pulled her hair up in a simple knot with a black lace snood covering the bun. She had kept her makeup to a minimum, using only a hint of blush and a lightly tinted lip balm.

“I always liked that outfit on you,” Blair said, going for the dramatic with a midnight blue velvet riding habit and flat brimmed hat with a matching veil. A few stray curls teased her cheeks. The full skirt was looped up over her wrist, she held a riding crop in her left hand, and wore black riding boots. She looked down at Stasi's full skirt. “But you took the hoops out.”

“I did it as a matter of self-defense. I hated hoops even back then. It seemed every time I sat down they'd fly up and smack me in the chin. I added a little ‘extra,'” she held up her fingers to form quotes, “to make it look like I'm wearing hoops.”

Blair rolled her eyes. “Yeah, we don't want Agnes's Fashion Police coming after you. Although, I bet she won't be wearing a steel-boned corset or hoops.”

“I don't know how we functioned back then.”

“I don't know how I managed to ride sidesaddle for so many years and not fall off.” Blair grinned. “At least we're not in the era where we'd be wearing a bustle. They were almost as bad as wearing hoops.”

“Ladies.” Jake sauntered up dressed in his usual jeans and flannel shirt topped by a denim sheepskin lined jacket. A worn cream-colored Stetson and battered cowboy boots finished his look.

“Morning, cowboy,” Blair purred, batting her lashes. “All you need is a horse.”

He doffed his hat. “Thank ya kindly, ma'am. Looks like you could use one too.”

“Shows what you know. Riding sidesaddle isn't as easy as it looks.”

“You've ridden sidesaddle?”

“Just once on a dare,” she said, in hopes of covering up her gaffe. “Last time I visited one of those horse farms in England.”

“I wouldn't have thought you'd be the type to ride.”

Blair's smile grew larger. “Depends on what I'm riding.”

“Could we keep this conversation G-rated, please?” Stasi begged, not sure whether to laugh at her friend's less-than-subtle flirtation or punch Blair in the arm.

“Maybe I better get to moving the heavier decorations out of your storerooms,” Jake suggested.

“Good idea,” Stasi agreed. She turned when two women wearing what had been called camp dresses from the Civil War era walked in their direction, carrying bags from Fresh Baked Goods. “Ladies.” She inclined her head.

“Martha, Jeanine.” Stasi's smile dimmed as the women abruptly crossed the street and didn't bother to acknowledge them. She turned to Blair. “What's going on?”

She frowned. “I don't know, but it doesn't feel right.”

“Miss Romanov, do you want me to help you put your lights up?” a boy asked, also dressed as if he'd lived during the town's beginnings.

“Thank you, Tyler, we appreciate your offer.” She smiled back.

“Tyler Madison, you get back over here!”

He snapped to attention. “Mom? I was just helping—”

His mother ran over, grabbed his hand, and glared at Stasi as she pulled her son away.

“You stay away from my son,” she hissed, dragging the protesting boy off.

Stasi was stunned. Blair swore under her breath.

“Ladies.” Trev walked up, looking twenty-first century in jeans and a rust colored sweater topped with a dark brown leather jacket. “Don't you two look as if you'd stepped out of a history book.”

“You've been to the lake again,” Stasi said, noting his grim features.

“What? No, I saw the two of you being snubbed.” He turned to Stasi. “What about the lake?”

“Whatever kind of magick powers you may think you have, the barrier shattered the spell you cast.” She went on to explain what she and Blair had found earlier that morning.

Trev's features darkened even more. “No one and nothing should have been able to interfere with that spell.”

“Maybe not everyone reads your rule books,” Stasi snapped.

“Good one,” Blair muttered.

Trev held up his hands. “Truce. Tell you what, let me string those lights for you, then I'll go take a look at the lake.”

Stasi was tempted to refuse his offer. She knew Jake would be only too happy to help them put up the lights. Or they could even use magick and have them up in a wink, but they tended not to use their power too obviously.

“It's for both shops,” Stasi said. “And we accept your offer.” She noticed someone else she had considered a friend crossing the street rather than approach them. The snub hurt a great deal, but she wasn't about to show it.

While Trev busied himself checking the orange and white twinkle lights before stringing them up, Stasi set out period underwear in the display window, showing a corset, crinolines, and bloomers along with a few lace-edged chemises popular in the late 1800s. She draped a string of pearls along the bottom shelf and arranged a silk fan and two tiny embroidered silk purses there also.

Blair put out toys from that same time period, including two porcelain dolls with ringlet curls and silk dresses, a set of soldiers dressed in blue and gray, and various pull toys. The center of the display was an old-fashioned rocking horse. A discreetly placed sign in a corner explained that the items on display weren't for sale.

Trev studied her window. “Serious collectors would kill for those.”

“They can try, but it won't do them any good. I have a few people who come up here every now and then hoping to buy some of the antiques I refuse to give up.”

“Such as Felix,” Stasi said. “Her Kit-Kat clock. It's just as well, since few would understand why their clock would talk to them. Most of this we only bring out for special occasions.”

Trev looked around, seeing tourists stroll down the sidewalk, stopping at some windows to look in at the shop owners in their period dress. It looked like any other day in the small mountain town, but the three could feel the shifts of unnatural energy in the air and the awareness that something was very wrong and needed to be corrected before something truly bad happened.

“I don't like this.” Stasi rubbed her hands along her arms.

“Did you call Jazz and tell her what's been going on?” Blair asked.

“I left her a voice mail and asked if she'd come up early.” Stasi felt a strange prickling sensation along the back of her neck. “Excuse me.” She held a handkerchief to her lips as she hurried into her shop.

“Oh no.” Blair grimaced.

“What's wrong?” Trev felt torn between following Stasi to see what was wrong and seeing what he could learn from Blair.

She looked around, then leaned in. “Stasi lived in Salem Village from 1691 to 1693. She was a companion to an elderly widow.” She nodded at Trev's shocked expression. “It was pure luck she was never accused, because many thought she was too pretty and too sweet and witchcraft must be involved. Alda Gibbons, the woman she worked for, lost her husband to the sea. He was a ship's captain, and his ship went down during a storm on the return trip from England. When the accusations began, Stasi knew it would look worse if she left, so she dampened her powers as much as possible and kept a very low profile. Luckily, the town respected Alda and I believe that helped Stasi. But still, she was there during that terrifying time and she's refused to erase those memories.”