Spellbound Murder Complete Trilogy (Spellbound Murder Box Set Book 1) Page 4

  “Then we have to find a way to give the police the information they need,” Noah said.

  “We don’t know what they need,” Mr. Contrey said. “And I won’t let our community be exposed.”

  Arguing broke out around the table. Mira watched for a while and wondered if she should make her escape.

  “This is a lively bunch,” Emmit said. He didn’t sound happy about it. “But the response is hardly effective.”

  Mira shrugged. “The council gets things sorted out before it gets to the rest of us.”

  “The problem is,” Della said, “there’s no way to get around it. The police have to know, but they can’t know.”

  “I think there is a way around it,” Mira said.

  Emmit looked closely at her. “Do you think there is, or do you know there is?”

  It was an uncomfortable question. Emmit was watching her, seemingly expectant of a positive answer. If there was one thing Mira was certain of, though, it was that she was a talented witch. If given enough time, a witch could get around almost anything.

  “I’m positive,” Mira said.

  She received a calculating look from Emmit before he stepped up to the table. Those sitting next to and across from where he stood went silent. Like a chain reaction, voices died around the table.

  Mira looked closer at the elders. Emmit hadn’t actually done anything, but he had expected them to pay attention—and they did. Was she doing the same thing? Paying attention to him because he expected it?

  “There is a solution to the issue,” Emmit said. “Mira, would you please explain your idea?”

  That same expectant look from Emmit was now directed at her, but in a good way. He had taken her words at face value, without even knowing what she had in mind.

  Was that a good thing or bad?

  Whichever it was, his expectations made Mira feel more confident. “Yes. We really only need one person involved in the case to know the truth, right?”

  “We can’t trust a human that we don’t know,” Mr. Contrey snapped.

  “It’s not a matter of trust.” Mira wasn’t about to be deterred. “It’s a matter of keeping them quiet.”

  Mr. Contrey let out a sigh, but Ms. Vears leaned forward, clearly interested in the new direction.

  “How do you propose we keep the person quiet?” Ms. Vears asked.

  Mira glanced quickly at the one person in the room she wanted to avoid. Mr. Singer, the elder witch in the room, might not be too happy with her suggestion, but she knew it would work.

  “We bind someone.” Mira hurried on before anyone, especially Mr. Singer, could interrupt. “If we bind the human in the singular area of not letting our secret out, we could work with that person.”

  “Is that possible?” Mr. Contrey asked the head witch.

  Mr. Singer tapped his fingers on the table while his eyes bored into Mira. “It’s a slippery slope. It must be a talented witch, and there might be repercussions that the witch would face.”

  “But the witch could work with the police then, right?” Noah asked.

  “How would it look from the outside?” Ms. Vears asked. “The witch would look like a random civilian leading someone around. We know that Della could show up, but she couldn’t work on the case closely.”

  “It would have to be the witch that worked with the police,” Mr. Singer said. “A person of strong mind could eventually break the spell. The witch would be the only one able to sense the weakening and do something about it.”

  “You know all the witches in the area,” Mr. Contrey said to Mr. Singer. “Are there any that would work?”

  “We should go,” Della whispered low enough that only Mira and Emmit could hear. Della could sense the direction things were turning.

  Mira didn’t bother with a response.

  “I have one in mind,” Mr. Singer said.

  Mira bit her lip. She had meant to give the idea and then let them work it out, but she could tell from the way Mr. Singer was watching her, sizing her up, that he had Mira in mind.

  She could do it. She was certain of that. It was her idea and it would work.

  “The repercussions are very real, though,” Mr. Singer said to Mira.

  She knew they would be. Binding was one of those spells that fell in the gray area between good and bad, but it dipped more than a toe in the dark side and there was no way to avoid it.

  “But if it helps us find the murdering bastard who did this to our people, isn’t it worth it?” Noah half asked, half yelled at Mr. Singer. It was difficult for a werewolf to get over their anger.

  He was right. If it helped find a killer, it would be worth it, right? It wasn’t the first time that Mira had tripped over the line and fallen into the darker side of magic. The first time, it was addiction that painted her black. If she had risked throwing everything away on selfish reasons, she could risk this.

  Finding Sally and Helen’s murderer could even balance the scales.

  “The karmic backlash could be large if the person bound fought the spell. Only the witch doing the binding can say if it’s worth it,” Mr. Singer said. It was the first time he had looked away from Mira since she had shared her idea. “And it must be voluntary. Karma can kill. There will be no intimidation and no coercion.”

  He was adamant, but it surprised Mira that the others took it as a fact. No one disagreed or argued.

  “Is there someone on the case you would suggest binding?” Mr. Singer asked Mira.

  She thought about Detective Burke and Detective Flint. Detective Flint was out of the question. He didn’t like her, and she wasn’t fond of him. Having to follow him around and work with him was out of the question.

  “There’s a new lead,” Mira said. “I’d need to find out more about him, but right now, I’d suggest Detective Burke.”

  “Are we moving forward with this?” Mr. Contrey asked.

  Mr. Singer drummed his fingers on the table again.

  “Barring any other options,” Emmit said, “I think Miss Owens’ idea would be ideal if you find a likely candidate.”

  “Mira?” Mr. Singer asked.

  It was one word, but Mira knew what it meant. Was she prepared to make the sacrifice?

  Mira nodded.

  “We’ll explore other possibilities, but you’ll hear from me later tonight,” Mr. Singer said.

  “Let’s go.” Della didn’t bother keeping her voice down this time. She grabbed Mira’s arm and pulled her toward the door.

  “Mr. Harker,” Ms. Vears said. “Would you care to join us for the rest of the meeting?”

  “Thank you for the offer,” Emmit said, “but I only thought it prudent for Mira to share her interview with you. I’ll take my leave.”

  Della had Mira out the door before Emmit had finished talking, and she didn’t stop pulling on her until they were well away from the room.

  “Ouch,” Mira said, trying to gain back access to her arm. “Why are you pulling on me?”

  “You’ve obviously lost control of your senses,” Della snapped. “I’m getting you out of here before you decide to do something else stupid.”

  Mira sighed, not wanting to fight with her best friend. Once they reached the empty sunroom, Della dropped Mira’s arm and rounded on her.

  “What were you thinking?” Della asked, her face a contortion of concern and anger.

  Mira needed to put an end to this before it started. “If you could help someone find Sally’s killer, wouldn’t you do whatever you could?”

  “It depends on what I had to do to help.”

  “That’s a lie and you know it.”

  Della blew out a huff of air. “Tyler has the ability to do this. I’m sure there are others.”

  “They don’t have an excuse to be there. I’ve worked with the police before, so I can work with them again.”

  The door to the sunroom opened and Della glared at Emmit as he entered.

  “I’m sorry if I’m interrupting,” Emmit said.

 
; “This is your fault,” Della snapped.

  Emmit raised an eyebrow at her. It may have made others pause, but Della wasn’t the type to stop until she was ready.

  “Don’t look at me like that,” she said. “You had no right to say anything in there.”

  “I knew that Mira’s information would be valuable and her idea would have merit,” Emmit said. “It may have solved a difficult issue.”

  “You do realize that if this murderer is targeting supernaturals, Mira is basically jumping out in front of him, waving a red flag.”

  Huh. Mira hadn’t thought about that.

  “I doubt anyone outside the room will be told that this was Mira’s idea. Unless you tell them, of course.”

  “You really are a special kind of stupid,” Della said.

  Emmit’s face hardened.

  “Della!” Mira had had enough. Her friend was treating her like a child and Mira wasn’t going to stand for it. “It was my decision to make.”

  “What decision?” Emmit asked, not taking his eyes off Della.

  Della crossed her arms and glared. “She’s the one doing the binding.”

  Chapter 5

  Emmit’s face went blank. “I hadn’t realized.”

  Although his expression didn’t give him away, Mira could see that he was thinking furiously. It was his eyes again. People say they are a window to the soul. Maybe that was especially true for Emmit Harker.

  “I know that you are a very skilled witch,” Emmit said. “But why were you chosen for this particular task?”

  “I, um, managed to help on a case when I was in college.” Mira really didn’t want to go down that road, so she tried to find a way to cut the conversation short. “In the end, I became listed as an expert.”

  “What is your expertise?” Emmit asked.

  “Certain ritualistic aspects of the occult,” Mira said.

  “How does that help?” Emmit asked.

  “It will. Trust me,” Mira said.

  “And you believe this will make Mira a target?” Emmit asked Della.

  “Don’t you?” Della asked.

  “It is a possibility,” Emmit said.

  “I’ll be working with the police, not on my own,” Mira said. “I’ll be fine.”

  Della didn’t look convinced, and it was hard to tell what Emmit was thinking.

  “It’s not as though I’m helpless.” Mira sounded more defensive than she would have liked.

  “Of course you’re not,” Emmit said. “Also, Della and I can assist in keeping you safe.”

  Mira's stomach tightened and it had little to do with the anxiety of the situation. Emmit wanted to help keep her safe. He barely knew her, but he seemed to have faith in her judgment and her skill as a witch.

  Who was Emmit?

  Della seemed to be thinking along the same lines. “We don’t know you.”

  “Well, you shall have the chance to get to know me,” Emmit said. “I was going to ask Mira to assist me with something, so I planned to be around. Now that this situation has arisen, I have twice the reason to keep myself available.”

  Mira’s heart sunk. Emmit did have faith in her skills, but it was because he needed a witch.

  “What do you need help with?” Mira asked.

  “Never mind that now,” Emmit said. “It can wait. I have a feeling the council will be wrapping up soon. Are you staying to talk to Mr. Singer?”

  “No way,” Mira said. “Not with my mother around. He can call me later.”

  Della frowned and tapped her foot. “I have to stay. Judge Wilton is here, and I need to speak with her outside of work.”

  “It’s no problem,” Mira said.

  “It shouldn’t take me long, if you want to wait,” Della said.

  There was no way Della could spend less than an hour talking about something work related, and Mira wasn’t in the mood to stick around for that.

  “We can catch up later,” Mira said.

  Della cast an apprehensive look at Emmit.

  “You can’t be worried yet,” Mira said. “I haven’t even done anything.”

  “I have a feeling that we all need to be worried,” Della said.

  “We should be cautious at least,” Emmit said. “I’m sure the council will encourage vigilance.”

  “Well, I’m getting out of here before they do,” Mira said, leaving the sunroom. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  Once back among the milling supernaturals, Della disappeared into the crowd. While keeping a close eye on the people around her in an effort to avoid her mother, Mira went straight for the front door.

  She made sure not to go too quickly, though. Mira could feel Emmit following. She had no idea what he intended, but she found that she really wanted to know.

  Emmit was still behind her when she reached the coatroom. She walked into the long closet and noted that most of the coats were black, which made her blue one stand out. When she shrugged on the coat, she looked at Emmit, who had joined her.

  He was watching her.

  Mira struggled for what to say. The questions why are you following me, why are you helping me, and what do you want from me, all raced through her head. Who are you, was still in the forefront.

  Those were such big questions.

  “Thank you for your help inside,” Mira said.

  “I did more harm than good,” Emmit said, “and that wasn’t my intention.”

  “What were your intentions?” The question slipped out before she thought it through.

  He looked uncomfortable with the question. “I was only hoping to get the chance to talk with you.”

  “Was it about something particular?” Mira asked.

  A small smile appeared. “I have to admit that I was hoping to get to know you better.”

  “For this project you wanted to ask me about?” Mira asked.

  The smile didn’t fade. “The project slipped my mind once I got here.”

  “Oh.” Mira had hoped for that answer, but now that she had it, she didn’t know what to do with it. The one thing she couldn’t do was keep the smile from her face. “Well, it was nice to see you again.”

  She hadn’t realized Emmit had been tense until she saw him relax. Had he been worried about how she would respond?

  The noise in the other room picked up.

  Mira looked nervously over Emmit’s shoulder to see if anyone was heading their way. “I really should go. If my mother finds out I’m the one doing this, she’ll keep me here for hours.”

  “Would the council tell her?” Emmit asked.

  “I’m not sure, but if I stay, I’m likely to trip up and say something.”

  “Would you like me to accompany you home?”

  Mira cocked her head and frowned. “That seems presumptuous.”

  Emmit looked confused for a moment, and then light seemed to dawn and he stiffened again. “I didn’t mean—what I meant—” His cheeks turned pink as he shut his mouth to stop the stammering.

  Mira became even more enamored with his British accent now that he was tongue-tied, but she raised a questioning eyebrow waiting for him.

  “What I should have said,” Emmit continued once he had recovered his voice, “was may I see you safely home?”

  “There’s a lot for me to do tonight,” Mira said uncertainly.

  Emmit’s voice was flat. “I understand.”

  Something in his voice made Mira nervous, and she discovered that his face was carefully constructed not to give a hint as to what he was thinking. There was once again something telling in his eyes, but she had no idea what they were trying to say.

  Movement behind Emmit caught her eye.

  “Hey,” Tyler said from the doorway, “everything okay?”

  “Good evening, Tyler,” Emmit said, without looking around. “I was checking to see if Mira wanted me to follow her home to make sure she arrived safely. Would you mind if I borrowed your car?”

  Tyler looked questioningly at Mira.

  “Act
ually, I walked,” Mira said.

  Emmit frowned.

  “We can give you a ride, then,” Tyler said. “I’m ready to go if you all are.”

  “That would be wonderful,” Emmit said, although he still wore a frown.

  “I parked a block away,” Tyler said, grabbing a coat. “I’ll grab the car.”

  “Thanks,” Mira called to Tyler’s already retreating back. She was conscious of the fact that she was alone once again with Emmit and struggled to find something to say. “Did you come with Tyler?”

  “No,” he said, “but we were planning to meet here and leave together.”

  Mira nodded. “Do you mind if we wait for him outside? I have a feeling this room is going to get crowded soon.”

  He didn’t say anything, which Mira took as an agreement.

  Passing between Emmit and the line of hanging coats, she was close enough to him to feel the warmth radiating from his skin.

  His hand wrapped around her arm and she froze. She hadn’t seen him move. Since Emmit was a head taller than she was, she had to look up at him. It felt as though he were looking into her, searching for something.

  “Yes?” Mira tried not to sound upset, but she had been taken off guard.

  “Remember that it is possible someone is targeting the community,” Emmit said. “You may have not done anything to make yourself stand out to the killer yet, but that doesn’t mean he’s not aware of you.”

  She let out a breath that she hadn’t noticed was caught in her throat. “I’ll remember.”

  His words felt foreboding, but Mira shook off the thought. When he didn’t release her, she looked pointedly at his hand.

  “Sorry,” he said, letting go.

  Mira swallowed hard and nodded. Now that she was over the initial reaction, her mind focused on how close Emmit was. She could have sworn his eyes were gray before, but they seemed to be turning green now. More importantly, they were looking at her.

  “What brought that on?” She asked.

  Emmit stepped back. “It was rude. I am sorry.”

  “It’s okay,” Mira said, taking a step towards the door. When Emmit didn’t move, she glanced at him over her shoulder. “Are you coming?”

  He gave her a small smile. “I’ll be right behind you.”