A Barrel of Whiskey - (An Urban Fantasy Whiskey Witches Novel) (14 page)

“Why?” Leslie asked.

“Her gift has shown itself.”

“And?”

Rachel closed her lips and glared at her daughter.

“It’s a gift you don’t approve of.” Leslie snorted. “What is it? She raises demons? She talks to the dead? What else wouldn’t you approve of? Oh, I know. She does sex magick.”

That last one scared the crap out of Paige. She’d never heard of a witch developing a gift for sex magick, though it was a viable thing. Powering up before a large casting session with sex was amazing. Or so she’d heard.

“She’s a necromancer.” Rachel’s tone was filled with disgust.

“Oh-ho.” Leslie grinned and gripped the door. “Another child with a bad gift.”

“I wasn’t the one who slept with an Eastwood witch,” Rachel snarled.

“What is it with you and the Eastwoods?” Leslie shook her head. “And she didn’t
sleep
with him. She
married
him.”

“Which only made the union worse.”

“How is that even possible?”

“Do you know nothing?”

“Rachel,” Alma barked.

“Momma. Why you continue to shelter these two to the truth is beyond me.”

“I have my reasons.”

What truth were they talking about this time?

Rachel collected herself. “Can she stay or not?”

Leslie snorted. “You’re really going to just cast her off like you did your own children? Do you even know what love is?”

“I’m not casting her off,” Rachel said. She shifted her weight to her other foot and crossed her arms over her jacketed chest. “Momma, is there some way you can repress Leah’s gift like you did Paige’s? Keep her safe from herself?”

“I shouldn’t have shut Paige off from her gift.”

Alma hadn’t. Balnore had, but it didn’t escape Paige’s notice of what Alma said.

“Shouldn’t have? You saved the world.”

“I saved you.”

Rachel frowned.

“You obviously aren’t paying attention, girl. We need your daughter
with
her gift and we need her right now.”

“I’ll let you spend some time with Leah and then you can decide for yourself. Just let her spend some time your home, in her home.”

“Not with you in it,” Alma said.

“Mother.”

“Rachel. you’ve done enough harm. I will not allow you to inflict any more harm than you already have.”

Rachel lifted one corner of her mouth. “It’s not like Paige is even here.”

“Does that have anything to do with it?” Leslie demanded. “Paige is a part of this family. She’s welcome here any time.”

“You don’t have the wards drawn against her?”

“Why would we?” Alma asked.

“She summons demons.”

“And yet,” Alma said, “she hasn’t hurt any of us. Not once.”

Rachel mewed, the corners of her lips tucked in.

So, Rachel didn’t know Paige had summoned a demon to kill her? Alma hadn’t told her? Dexx hadn’t? Nick hadn’t?

Rachel crossed her arms over her chest. “Well, I’m not letting Leah stay here without me being here as well.”

“Then you should have called first.”

Leah was there. Just outside. It took everything Paige had to remain where she stood.

“Why is Dexx here?”

“Case.” Leslie’s tone was clipped. “Also, none of your business.”

“If Leah is here, everything is my business.”

“You’re the one who showed up and didn’t call first.”

Alma took a step closer to the doorway. “Look, you either want me to take that child off your hands, or you wasted a trip. What is it?”

Rachel dropped her arms. “I want to come home, Momma.”

Momma? Paige ground her teeth and sidled up closer to the wall, remaining in the shadow of the stair.

“No. You’ve done nothing to earn that.”

“Earn that? Momma, you sound so brutal.”

“I sound like you and how you treat your own daughter.”

“Paige doesn’t deserve anything more of me. She—”

“It’s your daughter who has done nothing wrong.”

“She summons demons.”

“She could sleep with demons and she’d still be your daughter.”

Rachel dipped her head. “That doesn’t mean she deserves anything more from me than what I’ve already done. I’ve saved her child. I’ve given her a proper home.”

“You’re saying my home isn’t proper?”

“Momma.”

“You can’t have it both ways.”

“Paige isn’t here anymore.” Rachel sighed heavily. “Your home is perfectly safe now. Safe enough for Leah and I to at least stay the night.”

“No.”

But Leah was in the car. Right outside. Right now. Paige wanted to run down the remaining four steps and out the front door, grab her daughter, and hide her. Would Alma have agreed to let Rachel stay if Paige wasn’t there? If Bobby wasn’t there? What if Alma turned them away and Leah got into trouble? Necromancy? That had something to do with the dead, though Paige couldn’t remember exactly what it was.

“Momma. You’d deny Leah a chance to sleep in her old room.”

“Of course not.” Alma put her hand on the doorframe. “But you’re not staying with her.”

“You’d make me sleep in a hotel.”

“Yes. I would. Now, is my grandbaby coming inside or do I need to call the police?”

Rachel huffed. “Well, I never. This is what I get for trying to do something nice.”

“Nice? Rachel Diane, you’re like a child. Your grandbaby didn’t have a gift you felt was acceptable, and now you want to dump her like you did your own children. But you still want the world to see you as a hero. You’re no hero, child. You’re a tyrant and a bully, and easily one of the ugliest people I’ve had the misfortune of loving.”

Rachel’s mouth fell open as she stared at her mother. “Well, I
was
going to let Leah stay the night anyway, but I guess I’ll just take her to the hotel with me in any case.”

“Do that.”

“But,” Leslie said with a slight smile, “when animated corpses start banging on your door in the middle of the morning, since it’s already the middle of the night, don’t say we didn’t try to help, because we did.”

“You ungrateful—” Rachel stopped herself and stomped her foot.

Stomped her foot? Adults really did that?

“Fine. You force my hand.”

“If that’s the way you want to see it,” Alma said.

Rachel sneered and turned, looking behind her. She gestured with her hand and turned back to her mother. “You really don’t want to anger me, Momma.”

“Why? Because you’re on the side of the angels?” Alma straightened. “I’m a damned witch, woman, and have been a might longer’n you have. So, you might wanna recollect just who doesn’t want to piss off who.”

Rachel didn’t say anything for a long moment, then she released a frustrated breath.

A girl stepped up beside her, blonde hair, taller than Paige had thought.

Rachel raised her hand to touch Leah’s hair, but then paused and withdrew her hand again. “I can trust you won’t kill her on her first night?”

“I haven’t killed any of the children you asked me to raise for you, have I?”

Rachel ground her teeth. “I don’t want Paige called. If I see her arrive, I will take Leah out of here.”

Alma tipped her head and raised her hand to Leah.

The girl stood still, but didn’t look up at her grandmother.

Rachel sighed, then gestured for Leah to enter the house. “Here are her bags. I would offer to bring them inside…”

“You wouldn’t make it past the threshold,” Alma said. “Trust me, child. We aren’t taking any chances with you this time.”

Rachel clicked her tongue. “As if I’m the danger.”

Leslie curled her lips through her smile. “Is there anything else?”

“I suppose not. Well, if there
are
animated corpses, I’m sure your wards will protect you.”

“I’m sure they will,” Alma said, shortly. “Good night.”

“I’ll check on her tomorrow.”

“Call next time.”

“I might.”

“You’d better. The wards might not let you on the driveway next time.”

“I might not come alone next time.”

Leslie smiled. “Do that. I’d like to see what happens when you bring an angel to this door.”

Paige couldn’t take her eyes off her daughter. It took everything in her to remain on the stair.

“Good night, Rachel.” Alma reached through the doorway and pulled a large suitcase through the door, then she shut it firmly in her daughter’s face.

Paige rushed down the remaining steps and stood, staring at Leah, wondering what to do, what to say.

Leah didn’t respond. She just stood there, staring forward, down the hall into the kitchen.

Shaking herself, Paige mentally pulled her head out of her butt. How had she felt when Rachel had left her and Leslie, taking only their brother with her? She’d been devastated. Only she’d been home, in the only place she’d known. Leah had been seven the last time she’d been in the Whiskey home.

“Hey,” Paige said quietly.

Leah looked up at her, startled.

Paige might not know the right words to say, might not know what her daughter needed, but she loved that little girl with every breath in her body. She’d find the right words. “Let’s go grab a cookie and warm up some milk.”

“I want to go to bed,” Leah whispered.

“Me, too.” Paige scooted around Leah, careful not to touch, though she wanted to fiercely. “Cookies first.”

“Get into the kitchen,” Alma said. “So Leslie can get the rest of Leah’s bags.”

Paige frowned over her shoulder. “Rest? Geez, Rachel wasn’t playing around. Is she even planning on staying a night?”

“If we’re lucky?” Leslie asked, glancing up the stairs.

Very true statement. Having Rachel there only complicated things a hundred fold. “Kitchen,” Paige said quietly. She hadn’t heard Rachel leave the doorstep. What was the woman planning? Was this really a drop off like she said? Had the angels hinted to her about Bobby?

Why would the angels think Bobby would be in the Whiskey house? Wouldn’t a witch’s house be the last place angels would think to look for God’s prophet?

She could only hope. She turned on the light to the kitchen and walked toward the dining room table, tucked away from the view of the hallway and the front door.

Alma followed Leah. “Let me take your coat.”

Leah didn’t move to take off her pink jacket. She sank in a chair and glared at Paige. “Why are you here?”

A part of Paige was hurt by Leah’s tone. Their phone conversations had been pleasant. Leah had been understanding of Paige’s lost memories. She’d been talkative and approachable.

This Leah, however, had just been abandoned. Sure. Rachel said she was going to remain in town. That didn’t matter. Abandoned was abandoned.

“I was fired,” Paige said simply. Leah was twelve. Old enough to not be treated like a child. “Also, Kamden was born and I promised Leslie I’d be home for his birth.”

“If you hadn’t been fired, would you have come?”

For as snide as that question was, it was still a good one. Paige had to admit to herself, she used work as an excuse to get out of family stuff. “Yes. I would have. Now, then. I hear you’re a necromancer. What does that mean?”

“I make the dead walk.”

“Ah!” Paige grinned. “You make zombies. We can blame the zombie apocalypse on you. Excellent.” She drew out the last word for effect.

Leah frowned through her glare.

Alma shoved a cookie at Paige. “Sometimes, your humor is ill-timed.”

“Grandma, I don’t think you quite understand how excited and prepared I am for the zombie apocalypse. In Denver, I’m prepared. I’ve got guns, ammo, food. Trust me. I’ve got this.”

Leah looked at Paige as if she’d lost her mind, but relaxed.

Which was exactly what Paige was going for.

“I don’t raise zombies.” Leah reached for a cookie and nibbled on it. “I reanimate the dead.”

Paige grinned through cookie crumbs. “Sounds like zombies to me.”

“You raise demons.”

“You mean, those teddy bears? Why yes, yes I do.” She clasped her hands and looked at her grandmother. “Which leaves me wondering what in the frell is going on.”

“What do you mean?” Leah asked.

“Well, we’re given our gifts for a reason, if you follow what some say. So, why do we need a medium, a demon summoner, an angel whisperer, a bard, a fire starter, a telepath, and a necromancer?”

“Not everything has to have a plan, Pea,” Alma said with a tired sigh.

Maybe not, but Oriel had told her to go home and she had a funny feeling there’d been a reason for it.

N
one of them had what it would take to stay up all night, so they opted to go to bed. Paige couldn’t sleep too long, however. Before the sun was even up, she was out of bed and had Bobby fed, washed, and burped.

Just like old habit.

She felt complete as she putzed around the kitchen. What was Leah going to want for breakfast? Should she start some bacon? Eggs? Pancakes? It was Thursday. What did the Whiskeys have for breakfast on Thursdays? Did Mandy and Tyler have school? Of course they had school. Shouldn’t they be awake already?

Before Paige could worry about it too long, Leslie stumbled down the hallway, rubbing her yawning face. “What are you doing?”

“I couldn’t sleep.”

“I want that energy. I miss that energy.”