As I enter the mudroom of Archie’s house, I shout out to him. “I’m here, honey! Don’t move. I’ll heat your dinner and bring it to you. I assume you’re on the sofa?”

“Aye!” he yells from the living room. “Icing again. Bloody good you arrived when you did. I was about to chew on the leather cushion.”

“Very funny. It won’t take me long.”

I warm up the sandwich and soup in the microwave and carry his dinner to him on a tray, placing it on the steamer trunk. Archie removes the ice pack and sits up.

“Mmm. What delicacy you’re providing me. You must have slaved over this meal.” He winks at me.

“You seriously aren’t making fun of my cooking, are you?”

He chuckles and takes a bite of the grilled cheese. “Naw. A simple dinner is fine for a Friday night. We’re all knackered after this week. I don’t know what we would have done if the college hadn’t approved the TA positions for Spence and Skye. Especially for Ashley Lewis.”

“I’m glad, too. Still, our school loads have put a dent in our leisure time this semester. I’ll be so happy when I graduate. I don’t know what to do with my public policy diploma, but at least the degree will be completed. Then I must find a full-time job. I’m thinking I should move out of Leslie’s house. Investigate apartments.”

Archie takes another bite of his sandwich and sets it on the plate. “You never want to discuss it, but—”

“No. Don’t say it.” I plop on the loveseat next to him.

“For fawk’s sake, Gwyn. We’ve been together for over two years, if you don’t count the few months we were apart. I understand you relish your independence, but I think the reason you don’t want to move in with me has more to do with trust. I love you more than I ever thought I could care for a person. You still don’t trust me, but you can. I’m not Richard.”

“I believe you, Archie. Even after what happened with Laura Lovelace. I understand it wasn’t your fault. She cast a spell on you with the help of Nick Evans.” I glance at my great-aunt’s painting on the fireplace mantel. “Still, there’s always a tiny part of me that worries you’re under the influence of Aunt Gorawen’s picture. How will I ever know for sure?”

He runs his fingers through his wavy locks and growls. “You frustrate me, witch.”

“I’m sorry. I wish I could do something to make it up to you.”

“Me, too. But I’m too sore to indulge in any extra-curricular activities. My arse burns.”

“Why don’t we watch a movie in bed on your tablet? You go ahead, and I’ll take these dishes to the kitchen.”

“A wonderful idea. No need to rush. I’m moving slowly. When you get upstairs, I’d like you to change the bandages for me. It’s a bugger trying to replace them on my own arse.” He laughs as he heads up the stairs.

“I’ll be happy to attend to your fine ass.”

“You’re a tease, woman.”

I load the plate and bowl into the dishwasher, turning out the light as I exit the kitchen. When I get to the living room, I pause. I stare at the painting of my mom. She stands in a field of wildflowers, reaching toward the impending storm.

Did Aunt Gorawen’s charmed picture send Archie to me as a protector? Did it influence his love for me? How will I ever know for sure?

Chapter threeOh, Baby

Mystic Sage, Bearsden’s occult store, is bustling with shoppers. Typical for a Saturday, but more so with Halloween and Samhain arriving in the middle of next week. Orange, black, and purple decorations splatter the walls and rubber spiders hang from the ceiling. The entry door dings as it opens, the bamboo chimes clanking when it shuts. Shane Murphy, the owner and my devoted friend, ordered some adult costumes, hoping to lure in students from campus. It worked like a charm—pun intended. After all, we are witches.

I ring up customers all morning, both students and townies—the locals—until a lull in the frenzy occurs. The herbs are especially pungent today after Shane filled the baskets, tickling my nostrils as usual. I pinch my nose to suppress a sneeze but snort, anyway.

My boss chuckles. “I’m sorry, darling. Would you like a break? I could run the cash register for a spell while you stock the shelves in the crystals room.”

“Nah. I’m OK. Just forgot to take my allergy meds this morning. My own fault.”

“How have you been? We’ve been so busy the last few weeks with Samhain approaching, I’ve neglected to ask. Has your vision expanded into the next phase?”

I sigh. “No. I’ve dreamed about the intruder, though. Nothing new. Invades my sleep and scares the shit out of me. Archie and Seamus have been helping me sift through the Irish and Scottish folklore for gray beings, but we’ve found zip.”

He pats his slight paunch. “That’s too bad. Keep up your crystal training schedule like your aunt laid out for you. Eventually, the vision will reveal more of itself…safely.”

“Yeah, but I don’t think the threat is eminent. Better we spend more time at Agnes’s house finishing the database. We have very few grimoires left to get through. Unfortunately, we’re all so busy. For now, I think we’re safe. My intuition has been getting stronger. I don’t sense any immediate danger.”

“That’s good to know. I better go to the back. I’m expecting a delivery soon. Holler if the consumers become violent.”

“I will,” I say, laughing. “Jeff is supposed to be here in a minute, anyway.”

“When he gets here, take a break for lunch.”

Shane ambles through the doorway to the storage area in the back, and I tidy up behind the counter before the next wave of vampire and zombie wannabees drag their feet into the store. A ding and a clank resound, and my body buzzes with the warning of a witch. But this magic has a unique flavor. It must be Seamus.

I pop my head above the counter for a peek to find none other than Courtney Davies standing there with a tentative smile. She’s as perfect as I remember her, nearly white blond hair, fair skin with a rosy glow, and crystal-clear blue eyes. Instead of the standard T-shirt and jeans of her grad school days, she’s wearing a beige dress blouse and a black skirt, her locks gathered in a bun. A tinge of jealousy returns, sparking pounding palpitations.

“Hi, Courtney,” I say, fumbling with the pens in the skull mug. “I thought you left the city.”

“I…I did,” she replies. “But I found a better job back here in Bearsden. I’m working at the town hall in Mayor Devine’s office. Someone told me about a grant writing position, and I jumped at the chance to return here. Bearsden felt like home when I was in grad school. I desperately wanted to come back. And Mayor Devine is so nice; she wants the best for the city.”

Holy crystals. Hopefully, it’s not an attempt to win Archie back. Courtney was so thirsty for my boyfriend, she aided Jeff’s cousin Audrey Kenilworth in infiltrating the coven. Helping her allowed the Sluagh to cross over and attack me, an attempt to eliminate me from the picture. I mean, Archie is charming and incredibly sexy. But why go to those lengths over a man who clearly had no interest in her any longer?

“Bearsden is a wonderful town,” I say. “I’ve lived here all my life, so I understand why you would want to return.”

“I’ve been here for a year. In fact, I’m married to John Erickson.”

“Oh, the new city councilman. I heard he had a wife. Never imagined it was you.” Not in a million years.

“Yes. His day job is in tech, though. I’ve kept to myself, so I haven’t run into anyone, not even Elijah.”

The door dings again, and a few students walk in sporting DUB fleece jackets with the scotty dog mascot. A cool breeze follows them in, sending a chill through my body.

“Well, congrats on your nuptials. If you’ve been here a year, why is this your first time stopping in the store for spell materials? Aren’t you practicing magic now?”

She glances at the glass window. Outside, Jeff Williams, the fresh DUB grad and co-owner of Mystic Sage, is shaking hands with Mayor Jessica Devine, a woman with light brown hair in her mid-60s. Another woman, most likely in her early 40s, has joined them. She could be Courtney’s older sister—perfect blond strands, rosy complexion, dainty nose.

“I wasn’t sure how the coven would react to my return. Also, I knew you worked here and didn’t want to make you feel uncomfortable.”

That was thoughtful of her. Before, she was a whiny, spoiled brat of a woman. Did she mature after she graduated? She returns her attention to me.

“You have every right to buy at this store. I don’t hold grudges.” Except for my cheating husband Richard and Shane’s ex-girlfriend, Cordelia Davenport. None of us can forgive that witch for pulling a Dearg Due into our world. The vampiric demon killed five young men.

“I’m not here to buy witchcraft materials. I need to apologize for my past behavior. In college, I was immature and selfish. Getting out into the workforce changed me. I only desire to do what I can to help the town.”

Wait. Is she trying to lay groundwork to get back into the coven? “I appreciate your apology, but I don’t think the Fellowship would allow you to return. We’re already at thirteen members again.”