Almost Midnight (22 page)

She shifted a pinky to stop the rain. Still feeling like a fish out of water, even though she was soaked, she looked around. At the foot of the stage gathered the crowd of about three hundred. Closer, standing on the stage, were another thirty or so faces peering at her—probably laughing on the inside at her mistake.

She spotted her mom, looking fretful. In the mix of people, Della and Kylie stood a few feet away. Kylie's aura was bright, as it got when she went into protective mode. Had Kylie saved her? Her gaze shifted to Della. Perhaps even Della with her vampire strength had helped in the rescue. Then she noted Della's “told-you-so” smile. Why was…? Oh, heck, Miranda knew why.

Ever since Perry had taken off for Paris, the vamp had been pushing her to go out with Shawn. Now the question waiting to be answered was why Shawn was here.

She started to get up. Shawn bolted to his feet and reached down to help her. The words,
I can do it
rested on her tongue. But she bit them back.

His warm hand slipped into hers and she felt it. The spark of attraction. She'd carried a torch for him—the older brother of one of her friends—since she was twelve and he was fourteen.

In the corner of her eye, she saw Della grin and wave a hand under her nose as if she was picking up on the pheromones.

And dad-blast it, it was true. She had the hots for Shawn, but he wasn't … Perry. She couldn't open herself up to Shawn until … until she knew how things really stood between her and Perry.

On her feet, she saw the council gathering in one corner of the stage. Freaking great. No doubt they were about to chastise her for causing such chaos. Her gaze went back to her mom. The thought of her being humiliated—again—at Miranda's failure stung like a paper cut right across the heart.

Then another deep cut sliced into her heart. She wasn't going to Paris. She wouldn't see Perry.

A knot of emotion rose in her throat.

All of a sudden, a loud bam sounded. Miranda's gaze, along with everyone else's, went to the auditorium door that had been slammed open. Three men dressed in dark suits came storming inside. A gasp echoed in the building.

Leading the group into the large room was a tall, dark man who owned any room he walked into—no matter what the size. Burnett James. Burnett, super vampire and part owner of Shadow Falls Camp, was also an agent with the Fallen Research Unit (FRU), which was basically the FBI of supernaturals. He didn't slow down until he and the other men stopped right in front of her and Shawn.

What was Burnett doing here?

Did her screwup warrant the FRU showing up? Then she noted the vampire's stern expression. Oh, hell, she was in deep doo-doo now.

*   *   *

Burnett wasted no time taking control of the situation, ordering people back, and insisting no one leave until his people had had a chance to interview them.

After swallowing her shock at seeing him, she found her voice. “What are you—?”

He held up one finger and sent her a look that demanded silence. She didn't argue. Kylie and Della might feel comfortable enough to butt heads with the badass vamp, but Miranda … not so much.

She could still remember the fury in his eyes when she'd accidentally turned him into a kangaroo.

“We'll speak in private,” he stated.

Private? Oh, shit! Had her spell seriously gone so wonky that it required the FRU's presence?

She forced herself to speak again. “I have a dressing room.”

Nodding, he gave orders for the other agents to start interviewing the audience. Though why, Miranda didn't have a clue. He already had the guilty party in custody. Her.

He motioned for Miranda to lead the way and then with a slight wave, he indicated that Shawn, Della, and Kylie were to follow. Not so private after all, huh? Nothing like getting your ass chewed out in front of people.

With five people in the dressing room, it felt small, and she worried there wasn't enough air in there for everyone. And considering her state of mind, she needed a lot of oxygen. Taking a gulp now, she almost felt light-headed.

“Are you really okay?” Burnett asked as soon as the door to the dressing room clicked shut. While the question insinuated he cared, his tone rang rock hard and had her palms itching again.

“I'm … fine…” Finally she couldn't stand it anymore. “I'm sorry,” she said. “I mean, I stopped it before it hurt anyone, right?” She glanced at Shawn, praying he hadn't lied to her earlier. “You said I did. Did you lie to me?”

“No.” Shawn looked at her oddly. “Wait, do you think … You didn't cause that fireball, Miranda.”

“I didn't?” Air, old air, gushed out of her lungs.

“No,” Shawn said. “You were still entrapped in the bubble when it appeared. Your spell was contained. But you sure as hell stopped it from hurting anyone else.”

Relief washed over her and she smiled—a weak one, but a smile. “I thought … I mean, I'd just finished my spell and I thought…”
I screwed up again
.

“She was freaking amazing,” Della spouted out. “You should have seen her, Burnett. Before Kylie or I could get on the stage, she had that monster-ass fireball trapped in that invisible bubble, waving her arms around, as if daring it to come any closer. Then she made it rain and that ball burst into cinders. And then she fell to her knees like in that epic movie,
Gone to the Breeze,
I think that was the name of it, where the heroine yells out, ‘I shall never go hungry again.'”

“
Gone with the Wind,
” Miranda corrected, then stood dumbstruck hearing Della's description of the events.

“Breeze, wind, same thing,” Della said.

Kylie spoke up as if reading Miranda's mind. “Della's right. You were amazing.”

“I agree,” Shawn said, and his blue eyes landed on her with warmth.

Warmth. Lots of warmth. What was he doing here anyway?

“Now isn't the time for praise.” Burnett studied Shawn. “Do you know who might have done this?”

“No,” Shawn spoke up. “Whoever placed the spell didn't leave an imprint. It's the same as the scene from yesterday.”

But they did, Miranda thought, remembering the foreboding she'd picked up on. Then she reheard what Shawn had said.

“What other scene?” Miranda asked. “What are you talking about?”

Burnett spoke up. “You might as well know. Two girls were murdered.”

“That's horrible, but how does that … what does that have to do with this?”

“They were both supposed to participate in this competition.”

“What?” Miranda asked. “Who?”

Burnett frowned. “Roni Force and Cindy Bryant.”

“Oh, my God. I know them. We're not close, but … I've met them both. Why hasn't anyone mentioned it here?”

“We've kept it out of the media while we did the initial investigation.”

Miranda's brain still wasn't wrapping around this. “But … why would anyone want to kill them?”

“That's what we're trying to find out. We didn't see a connection between the two murders until we realized this morning that they were both supposed to compete today. I sent Shawn here while I chased down some other leads. But after what happened, it seems that it has something to do with all this.”

“All this? This what?” Miranda asked.

“The competition.”

“But why … I mean…”

Burnett ran a hand through his dark hair. The strands seemed to fall right back as if even his hair feared disappointing him. He gazed at Shawn and then back at Miranda. “According to him, this is the second biggest contest. The finalists in this contest will compete to reign as high priestess. Correct?”

“Yes, but I just don't see anyone … killing off the competition.” But no sooner had the words left her mouth, she knew better. “Okay, maybe you have a point.”

Just because she didn't live, eat, and breathe the idea of rising in the ranks, didn't mean others didn't. For that matter, more than the contestants wanted to win, there were the contestants' moms. Wicca-competition moms made soccer moms seem like candy stripers.

Right then, the door to her dressing room whooshed open. Speaking of soccer moms, her mother stormed in. “You did it! You did it!” She grabbed Miranda up for a hug. “They just announced the winners. You finally put those little bitches in their places.”

Miranda pulled back. Her mind spun. She'd won. She was going to Paris. Kylie and Della could come with her—if she could get them to agree to it.

“We're going to win, Miranda. I'll do anything to make sure you win!”

Burnett stared at her mom. As if …

“Don't say that, Mom.”

“Why not? It's true. You finally stood up to your potential. You're going to be high priestess. I feel it in my bones. This is the day I've been living for.”

Burnett cleared his throat. “Excuse me, Ms. Kane. But can you give us a few more minutes … alone?”

She looked slightly insulted. “Sure, but hurry. The press wants to interview and photograph my daughter.” She left with as much commotion as she'd arrived with. The door slammed shut.

Silence fell on them. Miranda looked at Burnett. “Please don't tell me you suspect…”

“No.” Burnett held out his hands. “Don't worry. I'm not particularly fond of your mom, but I don't see her as a potential suspect. That said, do you have any idea who would do this?”

“What about the girl that put horseshit in front of your door?” Della said. “I smelled it when she did it,” she added, looking at Burnett. “I swear, if Kylie hadn't held me back, I'd have pulled her off the stage and opened a can of whoop ass.”

“What?” Burnett asked, looking at Della for explanation.

Kylie took a step closer. “And she's the one who was spying on you at Shadow Falls, too, right?”

“I'm lost here!” Burnett said. “Who is she? And when was she spying on you at the camp?”

“A long time ago.” Miranda shook her head. “It was nothing.”

“Piece of cake,” Della said. “Miranda put her in a cage for a while and then Kylie told her she couldn't keep her, so Miranda released her.”

Burnett shook his head. His gaze and frown shot back to Miranda. “Could Tabitha be responsible for this?”

Miranda shrugged under his intense gaze, but forced herself to speak her mind. “Tabitha is crazy, but … I mean, dropping shit at someone's door is one thing. Killing … I don't think she'd do that.”

“Well, someone did it, and until we know for sure, you need to stay on guard. Your winning the competition could mean you're the next target.”

“Next target for what?” she asked and then her heart pounded when she realized what he meant. She was the next target for murder.

Thoughts ran amok in her mind.
Murder. Murder.

“Wait. I felt it,” she finally spit out.

“Felt what?” Burnett asked.

“A foreboding. Danger.”

Burnett looked at Shawn. “You didn't feel it?”

“No. Predictions of danger is a special gift. It doesn't run in my family.”

Burnett looked back at Miranda. “Do you know who sent you this message?”

“No one sent it. It's like ESP. I just picked up on it. But if I feel it again, I'll recognize the source as the same one.”

Burnett shook his head. “So you felt this warning and you didn't do anything?”

She didn't like how that sounded, but he did have a point. “Well, I … I thought it was a mood spell, but then…”

“Then what?” Burnett asked impatiently.

“I thought Tabitha was doing it, and then … Tabitha was acting crazy. She told me to stop it, like I was the one putting the spell on her.”

“So you think you both felt the warning?” Burnett looked confused.

“Not likely,” Shawn said. “As I said, the gift generally runs in a family. And it's not that common.”

Burnett let go of a deep breath and focused back on Miranda. “So what were you trying to say?”

“I … don't know. I mean, I sort of thought what you said, that we both were reading it, but Shawn's right. That isn't likely. So I'm just trying to make sense of it.”

Burnett's phone dinged with a text. He looked at it and then back at Miranda. “When you make sense of it, make sure you let me know.” Then his gaze shot back to Shawn. “I need to go do some interviews of the Wicca council. Keep an eye on her. And don't go out there for interviews or photos until I'm back.”

Shawn's eyes filled with unease. “But what if her mom comes back in and…”

“Handle her,” Burnett said.

“Didn't you see her?” Shawn asked. “She can't be handled.”

“Don't worry, I'll protect you,” Della said with sarcasm.

 

Chapter Six

As soon as Burnett left, Miranda dropped down into a chair and stared at her two best friends standing next to Shawn. “I can't believe this.”

She took a deep breath and tried to take it all in.

Two girls were dead.

She'd won. She'd freaking won the competition.

Which, according to Burnett, made her a target. She'd possibly just made someone's hit list. Not good. Not good at all.

But it also meant she was going to Paris.

Going to see Perry.

And Della and Kylie could come with her.

Just before she found some pleasure in that thought, another one hit.

She didn't deserve to win. Right before the bubble had closed she'd gotten zapped with some kind of juju. And whoever did it had to have some mega power, because no one seemed to notice.

She ran her fingers through her hair. “Crap!”

“Crap what?” Della asked. “You mean your hair? You lost your colors. I almost didn't recognize you.”

“I think it looks good,” Kylie offered.