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The house sat dark and empty, as if a part of it had died along with its owner.
“I’m glad it’s just us this time,” I said, remembering the strange run-in I’d had with the young woman yesterday. I glanced toward the tall aged tree where her floppy sunhat had gotten stuck and was surprised to find it gone.
The girl had most definitely left without it, which meant she’d also come back. Probably in the dead of night.
“What do you mean? Who else were you expecting to find?” Greta asked, watching me closely. Always watching.
“Oh, I just meant Parker,” I said, preferring to keep at lea
st some of my cards close to the chest.
Greta shook her head. “He’s already got more than enough to handle in his role as liaison to the force. Notice how there isn’t any crime scene tape around? Lila was one of ours. Getting the normie police involved would only slow down the inevitable.”
“The return of the killer, you mean?”
Greta’s expression blanked. “What? Oh, yes. Of course, that’s what I meant.”
Uh-huh. I was starting to realize I couldn’t even trust Greta as far as I could throw her, which wasn’t far at all, given my disdain for regular exercise. Still, she was who I had right now. I’d learn whatever I could from her and then check back with Parker—or, heck, even Fluffikins—for confirmation later.
Greta smiled over at me, but I could tell it wasn’t genuine. “There’s no time like the present. Let’s get down to business.” She swept her hand in an upward flourish and the front door creaked open.
The first thing I noticed was that Mrs. Haberdash’s body had been cleared away. The grand entryway sat empty, but something in the air shimmered almost like a mirage. It was as if the house itself were waiting for something. Was that something me?
I stepped inside and felt its energy envelop me like a warm bath. Granted, I much preferred hot showers, but this new sensation relaxed me all the same. In fact, it almost felt as if I were floating. That was silly, of course, given that I was standing firmly on the hardwood floor. Nothing looked different. It’s just that I felt different.
Greta walked a slow circle around me, muttering to herself. Her whispered words were too quiet for me to make out, not until she stopped in front of me and grabbed onto both of my wrists, holding them at the pulse points. “It’s calling to you. Isn’t it?”
I nodded. What was the point in arguing?
“Then the first part was much easier than we expected it to be. The town has already accepted you as a host for its magic.”
“But this is supposed to be temporary,” I argued, unable to tear my eyes away from her intent, blistering gaze.
“That was the initial plan, yes, but we have to listen to what the land wants, too.”
“Which is me?” I squeaked.
“It most certainly seems that way.”
“But its magic is with Mrs. Haberdash’s murderer,” I pointed out without blinking, afraid to look away. I didn’t like where this was headed. It was even worse than the mind control Fluffikins and Parker had both exerted over me. I could avoid a single person, but what if the land itself decided it wanted to influence me? My only hope would be to move away from town—which, sure, I didn’t have roots down or anything, but it would still take time to make a run for it.
“For now. There are ways to change that, of course.”
“You don’t mean—”
“That you kill the killer and claim the magic for yourself?” she asked with a smirk.
I gulped hard and nodded. Did she honestly expect me to take a life as part of a stupid temp job? Magic was cool and all, but not cool enough to make me change the core of my beliefs. Murder was wrong. That should have been a given here.
Greta crossed her arms over her chest and shifted her weight from one side to the other. “Of course that’s what I mean.”
“I’m not killing anybody,” I argued fruitlessly. For all I knew, Greta or any of the others could force me to do it with their mind control magic.
“We’ll see,” my supposed mentor told me with a light laugh.
My stomach dropped to the floor right beside where Mrs. Haberdash’s body had lain sprawled less than twenty-four hours ago.
I liked the idea of magic, but in practice, it was proving to be way too much for me to handle. I wasn’t a witch, but I was even less of a murderer.
