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

We pulled up to the same spot where Liam had parked. With missing curtains and a vacant driveway, the place looked empty now that she’d moved out.

“Look, there’s a neighbor outside.” I pointed.

He was busy clipping his hedges. If he wasn’t careful he’d take out a big chunk since he was watching our every move.

Annabelle and I got out of the car. We’d almost reached the man when my phone rang.

“It’s my mom,” I said. “I should answer.”

“Halloween, where are you?” My mother’s voice sounded a bit panicked.

“What’s wrong?” I asked. “I’m just following up on a lead.”

“Oh, dear,” my mother said. “This just keeps getting worse.”

“What keeps getting worse?” She was making me sick with worry. “There’s something bad that you’re avoiding telling me, isn’t there?” I asked.

“Okay, try not to freak out too much,” my mother said around a sigh.

“It’s a little too late for that,” I said.

“Okay, here goes… Nicolas is out as the leader of Enchantment Pointe Coven.” She rushed the words.

Instantly my blood boiled. I wasn’t really surprised that this had happened. “When did this happen? He hasn’t called me.”

“Someone next door just told me. I guess it just happened. You might want to call and ask him what’s going on.”

“That’s exactly what I’m going to do.”

“Just be careful,” my mother said. “This is going to get worse before it gets better.”

Sadly, I knew she was right about that.

“I’ll be careful,” I said and then clicked off the call.

“What happened?” Annabelle asked as I dialed Nicolas.

“He’s out as the leader.” I put the phone to my ear.

Annabelle shook her head. “She’s so evil.”

Nicolas picked up and I knew by his voice that what my mother had heard was true.

“Why didn’t you call me?” I asked.

“I didn’t want to worry you. You have enough on your mind. Plus, everything is fine. I was fine before being the leader and I’ll be fine after too.”

“So you’re not even with the Underworld anymore either?”

“Apparently she doesn’t need my services with the detective agency.”

“She only did this because of me,” I said.

“You don’t know that, and regardless, I’m fine. We are fine,” Nicolas said.

“I’ll see you soon, okay?”

“Hey, wait a minute. Where are you? It sounds different there.”

“I’m looking for a way to fix this,” I said.

“So you’re not at the apartment?” he asked, sounding stunned.

“No, she’s closing my mother’s place too. I will need a new place to stay.”

“You’re moving in with me. We’re getting married anyway, why not move in now?”

Why not? I wasn’t sure why. I had always turned down his offers to move in with him. Now I knew I had to say yes. I wouldn’t have an excuse.

When the phone rang, I saw that Liam was calling.

“I guess you heard the news,” I said when I picked up.

“Actually, I was calling to tell you something,” he said. “I already talked with Nicolas and he told me that he’s no longer the leader. But that’s not what I was calling to tell you.”

My heart sank and my stomach flipped. Now he was going to give me more bad news. I hadn’t thought that was possible. I stood a little straighter and braced myself for the news. “Okay, let me have it.”

“Well, I’m no longer the leader of the New Orleans Coven.” Liam’s words rushed out like a dam had broken on a rushing river.

So now they were both out of jobs because of me. “I’m so sorry, Liam.”

“It’s not your fault. I didn’t call you to make you feel bad. I’m sorry.”

I knew he hadn’t meant to, but it was inevitable that I would feel this way. All this was my fault. If I had stopped the witch from getting the spellbook none of this would’ve happened. Everything would have been perfect. I had let down not only myself, but my friends and family. I had no idea how I could make it right. That seemed impossible.

“I don’t suppose she gave you any reasonable explanation?” I asked.

“I believe her words were, ‘I don’t like you.’”

“I guess that’s reasonable,” I said. “Reasonable in her crazy world.”

“Why don’t you come here to Enchantment Pointe? We can have dinner tonight and discuss what we can do to stop her.”

I tried to remain positive, but deep down there was self-doubt. I didn’t want to make the guys feel any worse than they already did though.

“Yeah, I guess I could do that. I’ll call you. I’ll be there around seven.”

Liam sounded down and definitely not himself. He seemed distracted. I hoped he would feel better by the time he got here tonight.

***

At seven o’clock I was sitting in the local Italian restaurant at the back table, waiting for Liam and Nicolas. The smell of marinara sauce lingered in the air and made my mouth water. I was sure that we would come up with some plan tonight over dinner.

The dim lights in the restaurant made a romantic setting. It would be awkward to have a romantic dinner with both men. Considering a short time ago they’d both asked me to marry them. The restaurant was full and I’d gotten the last table. Chatter and the sound of clanking dishes did little to calm my nerves. I couldn’t shake the antsy feeling in the pit of my stomach. 

It would be some grand scheme that we would pull off effortlessly. The book would be mine again and Nicolas and Liam would be coven leaders again. I checked my watch again for the tenth time. It was now ten minutes after seven. It wasn’t like either one of them to be late.

I tried to talk myself out of worrying just yet. I was never good at talking myself out of worrying though. The waiter came back around again, asking if I would like to order now.

“I just need a few more minutes,” I said.

I’d also told him that ten minutes ago.

I sent Nicolas a text, but he didn’t answer. That definitely wasn’t like him. Next I sent Liam a text, but he didn’t answer either. He was more likely not to answer than Nicolas, but still… I couldn’t believe they were both no-shows. Things had just gone from bad to worse. I’d been stood up.

This just let me know how hopeless they thought I was. No, no I had to stop thinking negatively. All of the thoughts were wrong. They would be here. There was something else going on. The fact that they hadn’t answered their messages meant something bad happened. I had to find them. So much for no negative thoughts.

They must be together. I doubted that they were in Enchantment Pointe. Maybe they were in New Orleans. Unless they were here looking for the new leader at LaVeau Manor. This could be bad. I had to get to them right away.

I didn’t want to go alone just in case things got bad, although I hated to drag Annabelle into this. She was my best friend and reluctant partner in crime. I knew she’d want to go. I pulled out my phone and dialed Annabelle.

“What’s up?” she asked.

“I have a favor to ask. Are you busy?”

“Just cleaning out the birdcage. Other than that, no.”

“I think Liam and Nicolas went to the manor. We have to go there and find them.”

“But we’re not supposed to be there, remember?”

“This could be life or death,” I said.

She sighed. “Okay, let me put the newspaper down and I’ll be right there.”

I left money on the table for the waiter who’d had to deal with me not ordering. I decided to wait outside for Annabelle. It was already almost eight o’clock, so I knew that Nicolas and Liam definitely weren’t showing. This was not something they would have ever done and I knew they were in trouble.

“Hang on, guys, I’m coming to get ya.”

People looked at me strangely as I dashed out of the restaurant. A few people walking down the sidewalk cast a glance my way, but they soon turned their attention away when they realized there wasn’t an emergency.

Traffic passed up and down the street. I looked at each car hoping to see Nicolas or Liam, but now I held out little hope. Was there an accident? I felt alone and scared as I waited against the brick building. 

Soon Annabelle pulled up to the curb and I hopped in. She zoomed away from the curb and we headed toward the manor.

“They still aren’t here?” she asked.

I could have made a snarky remark, but my snarkiness just wasn’t in top form tonight.

“They never showed up,” I said. “I have a bad feeling.”

Annabelle cut the right turn sharply and I shifted in the seat. “We’ll find them, don’t worry.”

I tapped my fingers nervously against the leather seat.

“You’re giving me a panic attack with that tapping,” Annabelle said, glancing over at me.

“Sorry, I’m just anxious.”

“We’re almost there. Hang on,” Annabelle said.

“We should park a little way down the street so that she doesn’t see your car.”

“Good idea,” Annabelle said as she passed the driveway.

We pulled over on the side of the road a little bit down from the manor. No other cars were on the road. The isolation became eerily evident now that we were in this situation. It always felt as if eyes were on me when I got anywhere near the manor.

“We can walk back down there to see if we spot Nicolas’ or Liam’s cars in the driveway. Maybe she got rid of them already,” I said.

“Don’t have such morbid thoughts,” Annabelle said as she cut the ignition.

We walked down the side of the road toward the manor. We paused when we reached the gate. This time it was open. The gravel on the side of the road crunched under our feet. The sound of insects and the occasional bird taking flight from a nearby tree was the only other sounds. Millions of stars filled the sky above us. I felt as small as an ant under the expanse of the universe. 

“The fact that this gate is open is a little unnerving,” I said.

Annabelle leaned over slightly and peeked down the driveway. “It seems like a trap, doesn’t it?”

“Like she’s the spider and we’re flies falling into her web. Nevertheless, I don’t think I have any other option.”

Annabelle swallowed hard. “I guess you’re right.”

We stepped closer and nothing happened. I waved my arm across the gate’s sensor and then my leg. It looked like I was doing the hokey pokey. That made us a little braver, so we moved even closer to the gate. I expected once we stepped inside that it would close on us. Monique was probably watching through the surveillance camera. Annabelle and I paused by the gate.

Finally, I stepped forward, waving an arm and leg again. Nothing happened. That overwhelming since of being watched didn’t leave me. It sent chills up and down my spine. It was almost as if someone was draining my energy as I stood there. Could it be as simple as that? Witchcraft was always such a complex thing.

“Are you ready?” I asked.

She pushed her shoulders back. “Ready.”

I held my breath as we stepped through the gate. To my surprise, the gate remained open. Monique was probably playing games, giving us a false sense of security. The tree branches began waving wildly. The trees swaying made a whistling sound as if they were talking to me and saying how glad they were to see me again. Yet there was another message—no doubt it was a warning to be careful. With each step, it felt as if eyes were on me. I had the impression Monique was observing us from the window. Peering up at the manor, I didn’t see her peeking out at us.

“Do you think she’s even home?” Annabelle asked.

“It seems quiet, but I think she’s giving us a false sense of security. She’s waiting for her chance to pounce.”

Right after I said that I regretted it. Annabelle’s face turned paler and I knew she was panicked.

“Let’s take a look in the window from the porch.” I pulled on her arm.

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” Annabelle whispered.

“It’s the only way we’ll see if Nicolas or Liam are here.”

“Their cars aren’t here,” Annabelle said.

That was her way of saying she didn’t want to be here any longer.

“Maybe they walked like we did,” I said.

She gave me a look as if to say that was highly unlikely. We slowly inched the rest of the way to the porch and then up the steps. My breathing became more rapid. Once on the porch, I motioned for Annabelle to peek in the window to her right and I went to the left. I had no idea what Monique would do to us if she caught us. Probably cast some terrible spell on us.

Things looked a lot different inside the manor. It was decorated with modern-style furniture. I didn’t think it matched the style of the home, but it wasn’t my place to decorate any more.

“What has she done with the place?” Annabelle asked when she stepped over to where I stood.

“Created a mess?” I asked. “What I want to know is how she got the spellbook? We need to think back to when she first got there.”

“Is there anything unusual that happened?” Annabelle said. “What if she had someone to help her?”

“I don’t remember closing the front door. Someone could have come in after we went to the kitchen. Of course that doesn’t explain how they got into the safe,” I said.

“Probably their witchcraft,” Annabelle said with a click of her tongue.

“Let’s look in some of the windows on the side of the house. Maybe we can find a way in.”

“No way, Hallie, I don’t think we should go inside.”

I sighed. “Okay, but let’s look in the windows.”

We walked down the steps and headed toward the side of the house. My anxiety increased as we weaved around the tall hedges. The tree branches whipped and swayed with each step we took. Oddly enough the wind wasn’t touching us. The sound of a car caught our attention.

“She’s back. What do we do now?” Annabelle asked in a panic.

“We wouldn’t be able to get down the driveway without her seeing us. There’s only one option. We have to go around the side of the house.” I motioned.

We ran for the side of the house. Once there we stayed close, pressing our backs against the stone structure. My breathing was heavy and I tried to steady my heartrate. I felt like a spy on a covert mission.

Once there, I said, “We can go to the back and around the other side. By the time we get there she should be inside and we can sneak back down the driveway.”

“This is terrible. She will chop us into pieces if she finds us here.”

“She won’t find us,” I said as I motioned for Annabelle to follow me.

When we got to the back of the house, I heard Monique at the back door. Okay, this plan wasn’t working out as I had hoped. Now we would have to wait until she left the back door. I hoped she didn’t look out and see us. The graveyard was a short distance away. The small iron fence was now my focus point. I set my sights on it like a laser. That was my target and I had to reach it. Trees surrounded the small graveyard. Lucky for us they would be perfect to help conceal us.

“Maybe we can sneak through the graveyard. It leads to the other property and we can get out that way.”

Annabelle didn’t look thrilled about going through the graveyard, but it was better than being caught. Finally, she nodded. “Okay, we’ll go.”

As soon as we reached the edge of the graveyard, I spotted a woman. I stopped in my tracks and Annabelle almost bumped right into the back of me.

“What’s wrong?” Annabelle asked.

When I didn’t answer, she followed my gaze and spotted the woman. The woman wore a dark blue dress with a cape. The hood was up over her head, but her dark hair peeked out from under it.

“Who is it?” Annabelle whispered.

“I don’t know.”

“I hope she’s not with Monique. She’ll go get her and tell her that we’re here,” Annabelle said.

The woman made eye contact with us. There was no way we could hide from her now. I didn’t know whether to run or to actually talk with her. She started over to us. There was something familiar about her. Especially in the eyes. She wore a long black dress. Was she a ghost?