With You In Spirit (The Bassinville Witches Series) (6 page)

Catherine thought for a moment, and then gave a quick shake of the head. “Not that I can think of. They never found out who took my dad-if anyone. We don’t know anything about it at all.”

Joe sighed, and hitched his trousers up, taking a look back at Mya sat in her clean white living room.
“Alright.
Well, I’ll ask in the morning, as I say. You should probably try to get some rest now, you might need it. Is there anyone I can call to go with you to work in the morning?”

Feeling a slight pinch in her stomach at the thought of leaving her mum on her own, Catherine nearly brushed him off, but then nodded, and replied, “Yeah, Shawna can go with me. We’re supposed to go out tomorrow night anyway.”

“Good. I’ll call her now.
And, Catherine?”
His eyes seemed to soften as she looked up at him. “Try not to worry, okay? I know it’s hard, but nothing is going to happen to either of you while I’m on the case, got it?”

Smiling gratefully, Catherine patted him on the arm, and turned to go towards her bedroom. But she could help hearing her mother’s words swirling around inside her head.

“They can’t be found. They can’t be caught. They will get to us whether someone is with us or not.”

“D
amn it girl, I’m sorry! I just thought
your friends should know, that’s all
!”

Catherine had just finished work, and met up again with Shawna. She hadn’t really talked much to her that morning, not wanting to get into an argument with her. But now she was letting her have both barrels about telling Jackson.

She spun on her heel, feeling it dig into the dusty dirt underneath. “I don’t care, Shawna! I asked you not to tell anyone else, and you just had to tell him, of all people! You know he’s going to be far too over-protective now.” Looking at Shawna dejectedly, she turned around, and continued to walk ahead.

Shawna ran up and grabbed Catherine’s arm, making her stop again,
her
hair flying over her shoulder. Shawna swallowed, and then sighed. “You’re right, okay? I should never have told him without asking you first. But I only had the best intentions at heart.”

Catherine’s face softened slightly. “I know you did. Let’s just forget about it, okay?” She held out her arms, and the two women embraced, smiling. Shawna pulled away, and came next to her, both of them continuing to walk on.

The town was so quiet in the evenings. It was still hot, and flies buzzed around everything. The sound of children laughing far off carried over to them, making Catherine smile slightly. As she looked up towards Henri’s, she could see that most of the town were already there; their cars parked neatly outside.
Typical for a Friday night, of course.

As they drew closer, they could hear the cliché rock music spilling out from indoors, along with the laughter and squeals of the patrons inside.
The neon sign outside made a slight humming sound, its fifties retro-style writing making it feel as though it might have gone back in time. The trucks and saloons parked up outside all had the same dust marks up the sides from driving on the town
’
s roads.

Shawna went ahead, jumping up on the wooden decking outside the bar, and pulled the door open, the sounds inside suddenly jumping up in volume as if someone had flicked a switch. Both of the women pushed their way inside, greeted
by shouts and waving. They waved back, stopping to talk to a few people, before pushing their way over to the bar.

Henri saw them and smiled, but nudged the barmaid working next to him. She looked up, and squealed in excitement, running over towards them. This was Hannah, Shawna and Catherine’s friend ever since she spilled a drink on them by accident when they came in the bar for the fi
rst time. Dressed in a tight pin
k tank top, her shoulder-length blond hair swinging around her face; she was the fantasy of a lot of the men in here. But like Catherine, she wanted to set her sights a little higher. That didn’t stop her messing around with a lot of the men though, and Shawna and Catherine had in the past had to get her out of plenty of scrapes with angry girlfriends.

“Oh my gods, I haven’t seen you two for days!” she grinned, leaning over the bar and throwing her arms around both of them, nearly knocking over several glasses at the same time, all respectively grabbed by their owners. “Where have you been?”

Catherine coughed at the strong perfume her frie
nd had on, and unwound her arm. “We haven’t seen you for
three
days, Hannah; we were hardly at the other side of the world.”

“I know, but it always feels like it! So what can I get you both?
The usual?”
When both of them nodded, she bounded off to grab glasses for them. It wasn’t hard for most people to work out that her element was fire-she had a fiery temper, played with fire with other women’s men, and was full of sparks. Shawna watched her, shaking her head.

“I swear that girl’s gonna bust a spring or somethin’ soon. Does she ever run out of energy?”

Catherine laughed merrily at her friend’s disgusted expression. “I don’t think
so,
I think she keeps creating it.”
She turned around to look at everyone in the bar. Nearly everyone in the bar was from the town, and those that weren’t were still well known by everybody. There was a rowdy game of pool going on in the corner, and raucous laughter following it. Men and women were stood drinking and smiling all over the wooden floor. A couple grind-danced together over by the jukebox, while the woman’s friend tried to chat up a biker-looking man, changing her hair from black, to brown, to blond using her magic. Catherine grinned and turned away.
The woman would be using magic to incr
ease her breasts next,
she thought sarcastically to
herself.
She briefly wondered if Caden would like her as she was, or if he would like it if she changed herself by magic. She chased that thought away, thinking that she shouldn’t change herself, and she couldn’t show him anyway. He wasn’t a Wiccan, as far as she knew.
Which meant that she wasn’t actually allowed to tell him at all.

Shawna noticed the light shining in Catherine’s eyes, and tapped her on the arm, bringing her back. “What’s that look for? You waiting on someone?”

Catherine giggled, and shrugged, casually.
“Maybe.
I said I would meet Caden in here tonight.”

“Oh? Come on, girl! Spill, what happened last
night!
”

Hannah came over to the two of them, just in time to catch the last part of Shawna’s sentence. Placing the two cold glasses down in front of them, she raised an eyebrow, pulling a surprised face. “Now don’t tell me our little Catherine has a man! Come on, tell me more!”

Laughing at their enthusiasm, Catherine hopped up onto one of the barstools, and leaned in, perching her elbows on the polished wooden bar-top. “Okay, okay. Shawna and I met him yesterday. His name is Caden Rouquette, and he is
hot
.” Shawna nodded agreement, fanning herself dramatically, feigning fainting. “Anyway, I went to see him last night, and we had a little chat. Not long, but he told me a little about himself. Then when I went to leave, he kissed me. I don’t mean he just pecked me on the cheek either, I mean he
kissed
me. Then I said I’d meet him in here tonight.”

The three women squealed at the same time, Hannah clapping her hands in delight. “He sounds yummy. Where can I get one?”

Shawna’s face snapped into seriousness, and she pointed her finger at Hannah. “Hey, you stay away from this one, he’s Catherine’s. You keep your claws out.”

Hannah bristled slightly, pouting. She pulled at her top slightly, wiggling her head comically at Shawna. “Alright, you don’t have to get all shouty on me. I was only kidding.”

“Good.” Shawna moved her hand, and smiled again. “Not that he would even look at you anyway; he only had eyes for Catherine yesterday.”

Hannah grinned happily at Catherine, and quickly walked over to the other side of the bar, excusing herself, to where three of the men were shouting for her attention. Easing straight away into seductive mode, she flicked her hair across her shoulder, pushing her chest out for them. Their eyes nearly dropped out on the bar.

Catherine turned back to make a funny remark about it to Shawna, when she saw her friend looked suddenly thoughtful. Peering at her, she frowned. “What is it Shawna?”

Opening her mouth as if to say something, Shawna snapped it shut again, as if she had thought better of it. She took a quick swallow of her drink, and then placed it down carefully, taking a deep breath. “Okay, look…this is just me thinking out loud, but…isn’t it weird that this Caden guy turned up and took an interest in you, and then that dagger appeared in your room?”

Catherine sat back on her stool, not liking where this was going. “
What are you trying to say? That a guy isn’t going to show interest in me unless he’s a murderous maniac?”

Looking shocked, Shawna shook her head furiously, her plaits nearly whipping into someone behind her. “No, no…I told you, it’s just me thinking of nothin’. Forget I said it.”

As if he had heard them talking about him, the door suddenly swung open, and the tall figure of Caden strode in. The girl who had been changing her hair stopped abruptly, leaving it stuck somewhere between black and blond. Catherine gave Shawna a last look, and slid off her stool, waving over to him. He saw her, and waved back, grinning broadly.

He was dressed in his usual shirt and jeans get-up, his Stetson balanced on top of his tousled black hair. Catherine felt that swooning feeling again as he drew close to her, and he wound his arm around her waist. He leaned in and gave her a chaste kiss, a taste of what he had left her with the previous night.
“
Hey there, Miss Ca
therine.”

She grinned back up at him.
“Hey, Mr Rouquette.”
Remembering her manners, she looked to her left, where Shawna was looking at her amusedly. “Sorry, this is Shawna; I’m sure you remember her from the other day.”

“Of course.
It’s a pleasure, Shawna.” He smiled at her, and tipped his hat. Even Shawna looked a little
bit flustered, and Catherine
w
as
sure she might have tipped her hand in return, and giggled ‘
Oh, you’
, if Hannah hadn’t come over.

“Well, hello there handsome! You must be the lovely new man that Catherine has been telling us about. It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance.” Hannah gushed, leaning over the bar at him again. Shawna scowled at her, and she leaned back, but kept the confident smile on her face.

“The pleasure is mine, ma’am.” Caden tilted his hat again, and smiled at her, but his eyes fell again on Catherine. Shawna cast Hannah a triumphant look, who just shrugged in return, and grinned.

Caden looked into Catherine’s eyes, making her feel lost in them again, drugged by him. “Can I get you a drink?
Or maybe some food?
I feel like I should make up for last night. I guess it was maybe a shock for you.”

Catherine blushed, and leaned up to whisper into his ear. “I don’t think you have anything to apologise for. Not after that amazing kiss.”

A thought seemed to pass over his face, giving him a wicked, sinful look, and he leaned down to her ear, making it tickle. “Well, I guess I may have to apologise to you a little more tonight then.” His words sent a shot of lust through Catherine’s thighs, making her curve against his firm body.

“Hey, are you two going to stop necking or what?” Shawna interrupted, but her eyes were sparkling. She loved seeing her friend happy, as it wasn’t often she was interested in a man, and she had
never
seemed this interested in a man. Beckoning back to Hannah, she asked, “Are you going to have a break soon? I can’t sit here with Romeo and Juliet drooling all over my lap.”

Hannah chuckled, and glanced over at Henri, who nodded as he poured someone a beer. She turned back to Shawna, pushing her glass-wipe into her waistband. “Just give me a second, honey; let me grab some fries from the kitchen first.”

The music changed on the jukebox, and the volume of the place seemed to go even higher. A woman jumped up on a table, and began to dance for a group of appreciative men below, teasing them with flicks of her skirt. Some of the others laughed, and shook their heads, grabbing a partner to dance, or clashing glasses together in a friendly toast.
As always, someone smashed a bottle by accident, the
shouts of ‘Sorry, Henri!’ soon following. Henri sighed and made an exasperated gesture at them, before disappearing into the crowd with a dustpan.
Hannah reappeared again with a basket of fries, and plonked herself down next to Shawna, who grabbed some of them hungrily.

There was another sweep of wind, a
nd the door flapped open and
shut again. Turning, Shawna and Hannah saw Jackson walk in, looking left and right, as if searching for someone. Catherine hadn’t noticed yet, giggling away to Caden.
Hannah leaned over to Shawna, chewing on one of the fries, and whispered, “He ain’t gonna like this. He’s still got one hell of a crush on her, ain’t he?”