And while I had no doubt Karleen would do or say anything to prevent a union between her son and me, there’d been no lie in her words. She obviously witnessed someone go through that very situation, and had no intention of watching her son suffer it.
I picked up my coffee and the remaining brownies and then rose. “Let’s head upstairs. It’s more comfortable.”
We spent the rest of the night snuggling on the sofa, watching Netflix and talking about anything and everything but the elephant in the room that was our feelings.
Belle was right—I was going to be an utter mess when we did eventually break up. But there was no chance in hell I’d change the situation, even if I could.
As that old saying went, it was better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.
And I did damn love the man.
* * *
Aiden didn’t head back to his own place in the morning, instead staying to help us out. Which was just as well, as we were swamped midmorning with customers and Penny was all but run off her feet. Once the café was closed, I sent Belle upstairs to read through her gran’s books while he cleaned up and I caught up on the prep. It was close to dusk when his phone rang. He leaned a hip against the counter to answer and, after a slight pause, stiffened. “Have you called Monty?”
“I don’t think Monty’s back from Melbourne,” I murmured.
He glanced at me, one eyebrow raised in question. I nodded and silently added to Belle, Looks like I’m standing in for Monty again.
I do like how he calls on you rather than Ashworth in these situations, Belle said. Ashworth is the more logical choice, given his history working for the Regional Witch Association and the fact he subbed in the position before Monty arrived.
I think he likes my face better than Ashworth’s.
Belle snorted. That is a certainty.
I grinned and walked into the reading room to grab my backpack, then followed Aiden outside. The truck’s lights flashed as he clicked the remote, and we quickly climbed inside.
“Where are we going?” I asked, as he reversed out and then headed for the street. “Has there been another murder?”
He looked right and left before pulling out onto the street with lights and sirens on. “No, but they were certainly newly married. The creature ran after they defended themselves.”
“If we’re dealing with a ghoul, I’m surprised.”
“The woman threw salt at it.”
Wise woman. “So I’m along for the ride because your rangers weren’t able to track it via scent?”
“They can, but I told them to wait until we got there.”
I frowned. “Why? Salt obviously works, and they’re armed besides.”
“Except this thing appears to be something other than a ghoul.”
My frown deepened. “What makes you say that?”
“Because,” he said, his voice flat, “this one had huge, bat-like wings, only half a torso, and intestines that trailed along behind it like streamers.”
Chapter Five
The description matched the fragile memories I’d caught in the last victim’s mind. Even so, I had to ask, “Are you sure the couple weren’t drunk?”
“According to Jaz, no. And they have pictures of this thing.”
“Most people would be a screaming mess after seeing something like that.”
“Apparently, she watches a lot of those ghost hunter type shows.”
I snorted. “I suspect there wouldn’t be many ghost hunting shows highlighting that sort of spirit.”
A smile briefly flirted with his lips. “Does the description of this thing match anything you’ve seen or read about?”
“No, but it’s not like I had any reason to study the supernatural before I came to this place.”
He grunted. “If we manage to track it tonight, will you be able to deal with it?”
I couldn’t help a smile. “Unknown, given I have no idea what we’re dealing with. But if you wanted certainty in that regard, you should have called in Ashworth.”
“I would have, but he and Eli are off the reservation tonight.”
I glanced at him. “How do you know that?”
“Gossip.”
I chuckled softly. “Well, if we do track it down, I’ll do my best to deal with it. But if worse comes to worst and it runs, I’ll throw a tracking spell. If it is some variation of ghoul, it’ll go to ground for the day. That’ll give us time to find and kill it.”
He nodded and didn’t say anything else. Several kilometers out of Castle Rock, he turned onto a dirt road and sped up a slight incline. The building on the top of the hill was another small, whitewashed cottage with a red tin roof and red-painted door. The veranda out the front was large enough to hold a rough-hewn table and two bench seats, and no doubt had a magnificent view over the valley.
All the lights were on inside, and there were three vehicles parked to the right. The first was a black Mercedes SUV that probably belonged to the couple who’d reported the incident, but the others were ranger vehicles.
Mac—a brown-haired wolf who’d transferred into the reservation a few years ago—stepped out onto the veranda as we pulled up.
I slung my pack over my shoulder and followed Aiden.
Mac gave me a nod of greeting and then said, “The creature tried to enter via the rear glass doors.”
Aiden motioned him to lead the way. “It seems to be developing a pattern.”
“Well, I guess glass doors would be somewhat easier to break into, given the lack of legs.” His tone hinted at amusement. “The doors weren’t forced open, though.”
“That suggests they weren’t even locked.”
Mac glanced at me over his shoulder. “They weren’t, but the creature didn’t get far, as the salt was thrown before it could attack. I guess it was lucky they’d been eating dinner and the shaker was already out on the table.”
“Timing is everything in the survival stakes,” I said. “Though it is a little odd the ghoul attacked so soon after dusk. They tend to wait until deeper
