Charmed Ever After (The Halloween LaVeau Series Book 6) (13 page)

He looked us up and down. “I’m afraid the club is full.”

I looked over his shoulder through the open door. “I can see in there and it doesn’t look like it’s full.”

“That’s not for you to decide now, is it?” He crossed his arms in front of his chest.

“Are we seriously being kicked out?” I asked.

“Technically, we haven’t allowed you in, so you can’t be kicked out.”

“Oh, good, a wiseass,” I said.

Calling him names probably did nothing to help our cause.

“Sorry, there’s nothing I can do.” He motioned for the people behind me to go inside.

“You just said it was full. Why are you allowing them to go inside?” I gestured.

“They had reservations,” he said with a smug smile.

“Reservations, my patootie,” my mother said.

It looked as if this was getting us nowhere.

“Come on, ladies, let’s get out of here.” My mother motioned.

I felt eyes focused on me. When I glanced inside the club, I spotted Monique. She glared at me. Then she started across the dance floor.

That was when I remembered the dress. Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to have a confrontation with her right now. Not until I figured out what was going on with the trunk and the dress.

I grabbed Annabelle and my mother’s arms. “Let’s hurry.”

I knew she’d be out of there and after us in no time. We hurried down the sidewalk and then across the street.

I wasn’t sure how safe we were even in the car. When I looked over at the Bubbling Cauldron, Monique was standing outside the entrance. She glared at us as we drove by. A couple other men were standing beside her. I was pretty sure that one of them had been at my mother’s place earlier. That didn’t surprise me at all.

She lifted her arm in order to cast a spell our way, but my mother pulled away quickly. Thank goodness for her crazy driving skills. Otherwise we might have been zapped by who knew what kind of spell.

“Whew. Thank goodness we got away from there,” Annabelle said.

“She really has it out for me,” I said. “And I don’t know why because she already has the book.”

“I think you have something else she wants,” my mother said.

“But what?” I asked.

“I don’t know, but one thing, you can’t go back to the apartment. She’ll be looking for you there.”

My mother was probably right and I didn’t want to go to Annabelle’s place and put her in danger. We no longer had the protection of the Underworld detectives.

“You’ll just have to stay with me,” my mother said. “I’ll send a friend over to get your things and Pluto.”

Great. Now I had gone back to this… living with my mother. Maybe I could get another twenty cats to complete my identity. We pulled up to Annabelle’s place.

“Are you sure you don’t want to stay with us at my mom’s?” I asked.

Annabelle shook her head as she climbed out of the car. “No, I’ll be fine. I just need to sleep in my own bed.” She walked toward her house.

“If anything happens to her it’s totally my fault,” I said.

My mother didn’t argue with me. Once at her home, I settled into my room… the guestroom. Well, it used to be my room, but now it had her exercise equipment and a bed crammed into the corner. Not even a little mint on the pillow. Maybe I was too used to being the innkeeper. My mother did have photos of me all over the house from various events that involved my leader status. Before I’d become the leader she just had pictures of the two of us together, her usually frowning because I’d just performed a bad spell. I guess she’d have to go back to those old photos. My mother’s friend had brought over Pluto. I was happy to be reunited, though he didn’t seem impressed other than knowing I had food for him. He slept at the end of the bed, curling up in a ball.

Immediately I pulled out the book and started working on the spells. It was all I had to ease my stress at the moment. As I wrote the next spell I wondered if I should try a little one. Maybe just a small spell wouldn’t hurt. My mother had done so well with the one that I’d written in this down that maybe this book really would help me.

I recited the words and waved my hands in the air. The lights zoomed around the room and it looked like it was going well so far. Maybe I should have tried a spell a lot sooner. I wanted to see if it would guide me to Nicolas and Liam.

I’d just finished the spell when my mother screamed. She yelled for me and I knew that something had gone terribly wrong. Why did I even bother with spells? I jumped off the bed and hurried for the door and then down the hallway. My thoughts raced as I ran for her. What if the leader had gotten into the house and attacked my mother? No one messed with my mother. Powerful witch or not… I would let Monique have it if she touched my mother.

“Mom, what’s wrong?” I yelled. “Where are you?”

“I’m in the living room. You have to come now.” Her voice was full of panic.

“I’m coming,” I yelled.

So I’d messed up another spell. When I reached the living room, I stopped in my tracks. There was a man sitting on the sofa. He looked at us and smiled, as if it was totally normal for him to be in her home. He had dark hair with a little bit of gray sprinkled in, blue eyes, and dimples. He was very handsome. I guessed he was probably in his late fifties. He wore a black suit, white shirt, and blue tie. Was he a salesman?

“Whatever you’re selling buddy, we’re not buying. Come back at a normal time of day and maybe we’d consider it. I take that back, don’t come back. You broke into my mother’s house. You are bonkers. I will have you tossed out of here on your butt.”

Okay, clearly I was a little wound up, but finding a strange man in the living room was enough to do that to anyone. 

My mother picked up her yellow and white polka-dot umbrella. Since it wasn’t raining, I assumed she was going to use this as a weapon. “Halloween LaVeau, can you tell me why there’s a man in my living room?”

Did I have an answer for her? Absolutely not. I knew it was due to my spell, and she knew that too.

“What spell have you cast?” She pointed the umbrella at him.

The man held his hands up, but still hadn’t said a word.

“I just wanted to find Nicolas and Liam. I thought a little one wouldn’t hurt.” I pinched my index finger and thumb together for a demonstration of size.

“You should know a little one is just as bad as a big one.” She kept the polka-dotted weapon aimed at him.

The man was still smiling at us.

“Who are you?” I asked.

He pushed to his feet and moved a little closer.

I took a protective stance. I was ready to fight if he made one aggressive move. “Don’t come any closer.”

My mother poked at him with the umbrella.

“I don’t want to frighten you, ladies,” he said. “My name is Ben.”

“Well, Ben, what are you doing in my mother’s living room?” I asked.

He looked around the room. “And a lovely living room it is.”

My mother and I stared at him.

“Anyway, I’m here because of you. Your spell brought me here.”

I’d had a feeling that was what had happened, although he could just be saying that because my mother had mentioned it. “But who are you? Where did you come from and why would my spell bring you here?”

“I was hoping you could tell me,” he said. “I don’t know why you brought me here.”

“Do you know Nicolas and Liam?” I asked.

It was a long shot and maybe that was a ridiculous question, but I had to ask.

“I’ve never heard of any Nicolas or Liam,” he said.

“Well, you will have to leave,” my mother said as she glared at him.

He flashed a handsome smile at her. “I’m afraid that can’t happen.” He moved back over to the sofa and sat down. “I have nowhere else to go.”

“You can’t stay here, so you have to go.” My mother motioned toward the door.

“I can’t do that. Now that the spell was cast I’m here to stay.”

“I’ve never heard of a spell like that in my life. Of course you can leave,” I said.

“Maybe you want to check your spellbook,” he said.

I glared at him. “I don’t need your smart remarks.”

My mother reached out and grabbed Ben’s arm, pulling him up from the sofa. “Come on, you’re leaving.” She rushed him over to the door.

Ben practically grabbed the side table in the hallway to keep my mother from pushing him out the door. “I don’t want to go back out there. Don’t make me leave.”

He was acting like a small child who didn’t want to go to school. I could tell him though that no matter what kind of hissy fit he threw, my mother would make him leave anyway. I never got to skip school and he wouldn’t get out of this.

My mother shoved Ben out the door. He was still complaining as she closed the door in his face. She locked the door, looked back at me, and then blew the hair out of her eyes. “Well, that was weird.”

“I feel a little bad for him. I’m the one who brought him here.”

“So he claims,” my mother said. “He could be anyone. Maybe he’s just saying that. Monique could have sent him here.”

“True, but wouldn’t he have done something to us when he had the chance?” I asked.

She shrugged. “I suppose.”

I moved over to the door and peeked out the little side window. My mother looked out the other window. Ben was still standing on the front porch. He looked like a lost little puppy.

“Look at him standing out there. Do you think he’s hungry?” I asked. “I think it’s going to rain. Maybe you could give him that umbrella you almost impaled him with.”

“I know what you’re doing, Halloween,” my mother said.

“What? I’m just talking. I do feel sorry for him though.”

She waved her finger at me. “You are too kind for your own good. This is why I always worry about you. You don’t always make the best decisions. You do things like this all the time.”

I understood what she meant and I was trying to be better about that. A drizzle of rain started to fall. I looked over at her.

She sighed. “All right, but if this ends badly it will be your fault.”

I held my hands up. “I take total responsibility.”

My mother opened the door and motioned for Ben to come back in. “Don’t try anything funny. No shenanigans.”

He hurried inside. “Thanks, it was getting wet out there.”

We stood in the foyer, staring at each other. Now what?

Finally, I asked, “Are you hungry?”

His eyes lit up. “Yes, I haven’t eaten in ages.”

“A bit of an exaggeration, but come on.” My mother motioned.

He followed us into the kitchen.

“I’ll make you some coffee to warm you up,” my mother said.

“We have cake.” I gestured toward the glass display dish.

He nodded. “I would like that.”

“Well, have a seat.” My mother motioned toward the wooden table and chairs.

He sat down while I cut a slice of cake and my mother made the cinnamon coffee. I placed the plate down in front of him and handed him a napkin.

“I could get used to this.” He tucked the napkin in his shirt.

“Well, don’t,” my mother replied.

My mother and I sat across from Ben, watching as he took a bite from the cake.

“Why don’t you tell us about yourself?” I asked. “Where are you from?”

“I’m from New Orleans,” he said, and then stuffed a fork full of cake into his mouth.

“Now we’re getting somewhere,” I said. “What do you do there?”

“I’m a… Well, I was a… I don’t remember,” he said.

I quirked an eyebrow. “You don’t remember?”

“See, I knew he was bad news,” my mother said.

“I died in 1897,” Ben said.

My mother spat out her coffee. The muddy liquid showered Ben’s face. My mother grabbed a napkin and handed it to him.

“Sorry,” she said.

Back from the dead? Had I reanimated him? I’d thought that was all behind me now.

“You appeared after my lovely daughter Halloween cast a spell.”

Ben looked at me. “Bad at witchcraft, huh?”

I wasn’t even going to answer that. “Eat your cake.” I pointed.

My mom looked at me. “You know, I was thinking maybe he has something to do with finding Liam and Nicolas. Maybe your magic wasn’t totally off.”

I supposed that was something. It made me feel a little better just to hear her suggest such a thing.

“Are you sure you don’t know Liam Rankin and Nicolas Marcos?” I asked.

He devoured more of the cake. Crumbs fell down the front of his shirt. He meticulously picked off the crumbs and then finally swallowed. “Never heard of them.”

“Well, there went that idea,” I said.

“That doesn’t necessarily mean that he isn’t here to help you find them,” my mother said.

“I don’t understand how he could help me find them if he doesn’t know them.” Then it hit me. Maybe he knew Monique.

“Do you happen to know the new leader of the Underworld? Her name is Monique.”

“I’m really not good with names,” he said. “Do you have a picture?”

“Oh, yeah, I carry a wallet-size in my wallet.” I smirked.

He held his hands up. “No need to be testy. I’m here to help.”

I leaned back in my chair. “I guess possibly I could find a photo.” I looked over at my mother and I knew what she was thinking. How the heck would I find a picture? “I have my phone. I’ll just have to snap one.”

That sounded like a terrible plan. Getting close enough to do that would be the hard part.

“All right then, so I’ll find a photo and you’ll tell me if you know her.”

This could be just a waste of time. As a matter of fact, I was almost sure it was a waste of time. I was trying to get rid of my negative attitude.

“Halloween, can I speak with you for just a moment, please?”

“Take your time, ladies, I’m just going to finish this delicious cake.” He stabbed the fork into the chocolate dessert one more time.

I followed my mother into the living room. “So now we’ve got this guy here, what are we going to do with him?” she asked.

“Well, I guess he’ll have to stay here until we find a picture of Monique. I’m sure it won’t take long,” I said, trying to make her feel better.

I knew by the huge frown on her face that she didn’t like this option.