The Last Witch Hunter (Witch Hunters) (12 page)

Chapter Nine

The persistent ringing of his phone woke Ronan from a dreamless sleep.
The clock at his bedside declared it to be five o’clock in the morning. Who the hell would be calling him at such an ungodly hour? Despite what some of his customers might think, there was no such thing as a carpentry emergency. That left only family. As he fumbled to get a hold of his cell, the screen went dark indicating the phone had sent the call to voicemail.

    He pressed a button to reactivate the screen and then squinted into the glaring light to see who had called
. Just as he’d made out his Uncle Hugh’s name, it began ringing and vibrating again. Ronan sat up as he answered. “Hello, Uncle Hugh, is everything okay?”

“Ronan, Brian’s been arrested.”

That was no real surprise. Brian had been getting into minor skirmishes since high school. Mostly for public drunkenness and the foolishness that accompanied it. What was surprising was that his uncle sounded stressed. “What did he do this time?” Ronan asked, glancing at the empty pillow beside him. Nikita had snuck out around three in the morning, mumbling some excuse about the cat. He knew she was lying but he’d let her go without a fight. She would learn soon enough that she couldn’t run from what they had.

“He’s being held as a person of interest in the murder of Gina Farris.”

Ronan sucked in a breath. “Wait, what? Who’s Gina Farris?”

“The woman they pulled from the river.”

He recalled seeing the reports on television. Gina Farris had come to town to visit family. She’d gone for an evening stroll with friends. Somewhere between a friend’s house and her parent’s home, she’d disappeared. “Holy shit.” He got out of bed and turned on the lights. Questions ran around in his head. Did Brian even know this woman? It wasn’t a secret that he wasn’t a faithful husband. Was it possible he’d been involved in her murder? “What do you need me to do? Have you called dad?” While his father wasn’t a criminal attorney, he could recommend someone.

“We can’t
talk about this over the phone. It’s very important that I see you today. There’s something I need to tell you. How soon can you come?”

Ronan was baffled by his uncle’s cryptic tone.
“Let me shower and get dressed. I’ve got one quick stop to make and I’ll be there.”

Even though they had been separated for only a few hours, Ronan ate up the sight of Nikita when she opened the door to him. The sun was still in the process of rising and it cast everything in a golden glow. Nikita glared up at him, her long hair in a disheveled braid. She wore a loose fitting white top that ended above her knees and nothing else. Her shapely cinnamon legs were bare to his gaze, making him want to back her into the house and pick her up so he could discover if she wore panties.

“What?” Her lips were swollen and
reddened from his kisses.

Ronan grinned. She could act pissed. It was her default setting, but he could see the sparkle in her
pretty brown eyes. She was happy to see him. He bent and captured her mouth in a slow kiss that would ensure she’d be thinking about him until he could make it back to her again.

He intended to keep the kiss light and sweet, but then she
opened her mouth beneath his. Unable to resist the temptation, he nibbled her bottom lip before sucking it. She slid her fingers into his hair and molded her body to his.
Mine
, he thought with a smile. Her tongue slipped into his mouth to tangle with his. Groaning, Ronan reluctantly pulled back. “I can’t stay.”

“Then why’d you wake me up?”

“I wanted you to know I’m going to see my uncle. He called me this morning. My cousin Brian was arrested on suspicion of murder.”

“Who did he kill? His wife?”

She didn’t seem at all surprised. But he supposed in her line of work there was no shortage of shocking events. “No. There were reports about a missing woman on the news. I don’t know how Brian is connected to any of this.”

“You don’t believe he’s guilty?”

Ronan ran a hair through his hair. “I don’t know what to believe. Maybe my uncle knows more. Brian has had trouble with the law before, but it’s always been minor infractions. Drunken bar fights, property damage, trespassing. Nothing to this degree.”

“Do you want me to come with you?”

“No. Uncle Hugh sounded urgent, but I don’t expect to be long. We can spend the day together and then tonight we can go out to dinner.”

She nodded. “Call me if you need me.”

***

Nikita watched Ronan’s long-legged stride as he crossed the yard and went back to his house. Moments later his garage door opened and his truck backed into the street.
He raised a hand and waved before driving away. Her girl parts hummed pleasantly in residual the afterglow of Ronan’s kiss. She crossed her arms over her chest and bit her lower lip. It still tingled where he’d sucked it into the warmth of his mouth.

What was she going to do about him? She was the last woman to equate good sex with deeper emotions. The sex was damn near addictive and she was more confused than ever.
A moment ago when he’d stood on this porch with her, it was almost as though she could sense his love for her. There was a low frequency hum, like a vibration between them. She’d felt drawn to him. Being in his arms was suddenly the most natural thing in the world. Having him hold her was like walking into a warm house on a cold winter night.

Nikita made a sound of disgust
at her own thoughts. Was she starting to believe that soul mate crap? Shit! She was. She needed to talk to her cousin. Mystique had been through all this and could tell her what to expect. And maybe even how to get out of the shit she’d just stepped in with Ronan.

A car passed by and she shivered as she realized she was standing on the porch in only a shirt. The morning air was nippy though temperatures were supposed to climb into the low seventies later today. Minx meowed and pawed at the screen door. Nikita let her out as she entered the house in search of her phone.

When they were kids, she and Mystique had been raised practically as sisters. Mystique had been raised with the assumption that she would be a witch hunter, also. Much to Aunt Meadow’s disappointment, Mystique hadn’t felt the calling to become a hunter. Over the years, Mystique had concentrated on her acting. Meadow had made Mystique’s occasional visits home intolerable and soon she didn’t visit at all. Nikita spent the same time hunting and honing her skills. So though the affection remained between them, they had grown apart.

She found her cell on the bedside table where she’d placed it last night after returning from Ronan’s house. Finding Mystique’s number was easy.
Of course when she heard her cousin’s voice, she was stumped as to how to begin this conversation. So she prevaricated. “Um, how are you?”

There was a beat of silence. “I’m fine.
Sean and I are in Wilmington for a bit. He’s scouting filming locations. We’re hoping to be in Asheville for Thanksgiving. Will you be there? I’d like the family to be together when I announce that we’re expecting a baby.”

Mystique had told her about the baby when last they’d talked. That reminded her of the other part of their conversation. Sean’s
brother had been having romantic troubles and they’d called her for advice. “Did the situation with Keith and his stalker work out?”

“Yeah.
There was a bit of trouble, but Keith handled it. He’s engaged to marry this very nice librarian. I’m hoping to convince them to celebrate Thanksgiving with us.”

“Is she a witch?”

“No. So don’t think you’ve got to interrogate her if she does come to dinner.”

“Is she his mate?”

“Yes.”

“So that’s a possibility? A witch having a human mate?”

Mystique laughed. “Of course. Look at my parents.”

Nikita sat down on the bed and crossed her legs. “Well, I kind of thought the two of them were just fooling around.”

“Kita, what a dirty, cynical mind you have! My father assured me that they are mates. Living without her was torture, but she was so filled with hate that it was the only way. He says the only way he survived was by visiting her in her dreams.”

She recalled Ronan saying something about dreams. Since she rarely slept, that wasn’t possible for the two of them. “How do
es a witch know when she or he has met their mate?”

“You just know. Sean and I were sharing dreams before we met. But our situation is unique because we’re in the acting biz. We knew of each other. Keith says that time froze when he met Imani.”

“But how does the human know?”

“Hm. I guess the dreams. And later, you can share thoughts and feelings through your link.”

Was that why she was suddenly sensing Ronan’s emotions? Why she felt so close to him? “How does this link form and can it be broken?”

“Um…well…”

Mystique’s stuttering told her all she needed to know. For an actress, who had done at least one love scene that Nikita knew of, the woman could be very shy. “So it’s sex,” she stated bluntly. Damn it. And Ronan had known it, but fucked her anyway. Hell, she’d fallen into that trap easily. “Can it be broken?”

“No. It’s forever.
It’s fated, destiny, all that girly crap you hate. Why are you asking so many questions? Do you know a human who wants to break her bond with a witch?” Mystique gasped. “Not my mom? She doesn’t remember does she?”

“No, no. It’s nothing like that,” Nikita rushed to assure her. Meadow had been consumed with such hatred of witches that it had affected even her relationship with Mystique. She’d raised Mystique to suppress her magic. After Meadow’s attempt to kill Sean, Keith had r
emoved her memories of witches, Meadow had become different person. Mystique got her mother back and Nikita didn’t begrudge her that. But at the same time, she’d lost her mentor, the woman who had helped her become the hunter she was today. “I’m still out here in Gray’s Landing.”

“Oh.
Then why the questions about mates?”

“Personal reasons. I’d rather not discuss it.”

“Oh,
my God
!” she exclaimed, each word louder than the next. “Not you, too? Fate really does love irony.” And then she emitted a strangled sound and began coughing.

Nikita sighed.
“Mystique, are you laughing?”

Mystique took a gasping breath. “Nope.” And then she erupted into a
peal of giggles.

Nikita rolled her
eyes and disconnected the call. She showered and dressed. Before preparing breakfast, she filled Minx’s bowl. As though she could hear the kibble hitting the bowl, Minx’s loud, plaintive meow could be heard even through the screen door and the heavy wood door.

***

Uncle Hugh whipped open the door to his apartment before Ronan could even raise his hand to knock. “Come in,” he said urgently.

Ronan followed his uncle inside.
He took a seat on the couch at Hugh’s urging. “How do you want to proceed?” he asked after watching his uncle pace for several minutes. “Dad can help us find the best attorney, but we need to know what we’re up against. I’m assuming Brian called you. What did he say?”

Hugh made an exasperated sound and finally he sank into the rocking chair, burying his face in his hands. “I’ve made a mess of that boy’s life. I was always too strict or too soft. But I was never what he needed when he needed.
I couldn’t protect him from his mother’s indifference. If I’d only known…”

Ronan had heard it before. Hugh’s ex-wife Rose didn’t have a maternal bone in her body. When she wasn’t ignoring Brian, she was taking him with her to the homes of the other men she was seeing. Hugh had suspected but had loved her enough to not want to confirm his suspicions. Brian acting out as a teen was completely understandable. But he’d turned rebellion into a lifetime occupation. “Uncle Hugh, you
can’t take responsibility for him forever. He’s an adult. My God, you sound like you believe he’s guilty.” He started to laugh. The sound sputtered to a stop and he choked as he observed his uncle’s serious expression. Ronan frowned. Brian was a piece of shit, but not a murderer. “Uncle Hugh, you can’t believe-”

“But I do more than believe. I know. I talked to him. He confessed. He confessed to the police and he confessed to me.” He
hit the arm of his chair with his fist. “The last time he came to see me, I knew something was wrong. He was happy, but in an unsettling
dirty
way. He kept talking about the missing woman. It was…like he was taking pleasure in the story. But what did I do? I did what I always do. I buried my head in the sand and refused not to see what was right before my eyes.”

Ronan was scrambling to assimilate this new information. “You say he confessed? When?”

“He was arrested around three in the morning. He called me and told me that he was going to confess.”

Ronan shook his head. He couldn’t imagine the pain his uncle was in right now. To know that his child had taken a life had to be killing him. “Uncle, this isn’t your fault.”