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“So it’s mind over matter?”
I smiled. “That, and we’re witches, remember? We can charm them with nothing but our voices.”
There was a look of recognition and appreciation on his face. “Genetic, then? Do your sisters do this without gear?”
“Sometimes, but not in instances like this.” I worked on the next comb, squeezing into the small space made by the lift of the hood. “I haven’t worn gear in ages.”
“But why?”
I chuckled. “Because those things are hot as fuck, and it’s hard to move bees with gloves on. I know I don’t need it, so why bother?”
“So you don’t get stung to death.”
“They won’t sting me.” I slid the second honeycomb in the box and went back for more.
“You’ve never come up on pissed-off bees?”
“Some hives are more aggressive than others, but … I don’t know how it works. They just don’t sting me.”
“I just read a study about brain waves. What you’re doing, what you’re feeling emits different kinds of waves, and they think it’s possible that some people are more sensitive to them than others. Real-life vibes. Maybe it’s that. Maybe they just like your vibes.”
I smirked up at him. “You keep denying our powers with the dark arts.”
“If you were witches, you’d already have run me out of town with a spell or broken my legs by way of a voodoo doll.”
“Who’s to say we don’t have something brewing?” I got another free, removing it carefully. My hands were barely visible for all the bees.
“I think I’ll go with science.”
“The science of good vibes?” I scoffed. “You realize you’re trying to frack your way into their environment. You think they can feel my brain waves, but your drilling and diesel won’t affect them at all? That’s some logic.”
I could feel him frowning as I inspected the comb for the queen. I was just about to attach it to a frame and slide them into their new home when I saw her in the midst of a cluster and smiled.
“There you are.” So gently, I laid the comb on top of the box and reached into the fray to scoop up the knot of bees. They didn’t want to break from her, but I managed to separate them so I could put the queen in a clip. Now that I had her, the bees still in the tractor would migrate to the box where she was.
Grant let out a breath. “Christ. I haven’t been so nervous since I saw a guy put his head in a tiger’s mouth.”
“Oh, that’s nothing. Watch this.” I climbed up on the tire, dipped a hand into the hive, and came back with a wriggling, tickling handful. Hanging onto the tractor with my free hand, I leaned toward the box, flicked my hand toward the opening, and shot the whole lot of them in without incident.
“Witch.”
“Told you,” I said on a laugh.
He was quiet as I climbed back on the ladder and got to work on another honeycomb.
“What if,” he finally said, “we didn’t have to drill on your land? We just need what’s under it, and the cache we found extends into your neighbor’s land.”
“No.”
Another pause. “I know you think there’s no way to do this without disrupting your bees—”
“Because there isn’t. Even having you on other farms affects us. Now shut up, because if I get stung today because of you fucking with my vibes, I’m cutting a hole in your suit and locking you in here.”
That did the trick. And I found my smile again. There was nothing so heady as holding power over a man who thought he ran the world.
On the other hand, I was glad he mentioned the reason he was here. For a second, I’d forgotten he was the devil. Which was exactly how the devil got in, I supposed.
That was his plan, after all—to try to wiggle into my good graces. He still hadn’t figured out I wasn’t won over so easy. That, and I’d outlast him without fail.
He’d realize it soon enough.
But hopefully not until I’d fucked with him well and thoroughly.
10
Dat Ass
GRANT
I didn’t know why I was shocked to find thirty anti-fracking signs stuck in my small front yard the next morning.
Jo was my first thought in the way of perpetrators, though on consideration, it could have been anyone. Especially given that she had new and cruel ways to punish me. Signs were nothing when she could force me into an enclosed space full of bees.
With a sigh, I walked past the signs. Having played this game before, I knew that removing them would only multiply them—I’d wake up tomorrow with more.
As I headed toward town in search of a hot meal, I thought about what else she had in store for me, deciding that it was unimaginable and pointless to try. One thing I wouldn’t dare tell her was that yesterday was more fun than I’d had in a long, long time.
