“Sure.” Hannah was amiable as she bobbed her head. “The thing is, you guys seem pretty in tune with one another. I think you’ve already put the torture behind you.”
Rather than argue, Maddie heaved out a sigh. “I thought we would have more time.”
Hannah had to bite the inside of her cheek to keep from smiling. “So, you think you’re pregnant, too.”
“I think it’s a possibility,” Maddie clarified. “I don’t know anything, and I really don’t want to talk about it right now. We’re supposed to be catching a murderer. Isn’t that where our focus should be?”
Hannah bobbed her head. “Absolutely.”
“So ... what are we doing out here?”
“Looking for a little guidance.” Hannah turned grim as they crested another hill and a small creek came into view. “And unfortunately there’s only one person I know to ask.”
Maddie followed Hannah’s gaze, frowning when she caught sight of a white-haired woman sitting on the opposite side of the creek, her feet resting in the water. “Is that ... ?”
Hannah nodded, resigned. “Astra.”
“I thought she was evil.”
“She is, but she’s also knowledgeable. Come on.” Hannah gestured for Maddie to follow. “Let’s get this over with.”
Astra was all smiles as they approached. She leaned back on her elbows and regarded the two women with a smug sneer. “You two look as if you belong in a Double Mint commercial.”
Hannah frowned. “What is that supposed to mean?”
“Just that you look like very blond twins.” Astra’s eyes narrowed as she regarded Maddie. “Not a witch,” she said after a beat.
“No,” Hannah agreed. “That means you have no reason to mess with her.”
“I can always find a reason.”
Hannah had no doubt that was true. “Just leave her alone and focus on me. I have a few questions.”
“I’m sure you do.” Astra’s smile turned sly. “I would’ve thought Cooper had already filled you in. He came to see me, by the way. He had some other hunk of burning love with him. I’ve never seen him before, but my witches were all atwitter. Who is he?”
“A married man,” Maddie huffed out.
“That’s not really a deterrent,” Astra commented, although her eyes automatically drifted to Maddie’s ring finger. “I take it you’re the wife.”
“You take it right.” Suddenly, Maddie felt irrationally territorial. “You need to stay away from him.”
Astra’s grin broadened as something flashed in the shadow of Maddie’s aura. “Not a witch but powerful. What are you?”
“I’m just a woman,” Maddie replied.
“You’re more than that.” Astra cocked her head, her mind clearly busy. “You’re one of the psychics who have congregated at Casper Creek, aren’t you? It makes sense. I guess they all couldn’t be frauds. The odds wouldn’t hold out.”
“They’re not all frauds,” Hannah agreed. “Some of them are the real deal, including Maddie. That’s why we’re here, though. Cooper mentioned you knew Velma. We’re trying to figure out who killed her.”
Agitation, faint as a whisper, scrolled across Astra’s face. “Well, Cooper told you wrong. I didn’t know that woman.”
“But ... you said she was a fraud.”
“That doesn’t mean I knew her personally. Her name is well-known in certain circles, though. She tried to ingratiate herself in so many different groups I lost count over the years.”
“I’m not sure what that means,” Hannah hedged. “What groups?”
“What groups?” Astra rolled her eyes in a mocking manner. “You are unbelievable. You’re no longer a novice. You should better understand what’s going on around you. Velma Sanders understood. She grasped the power that goes along with a title. That’s why she fought so hard to climb to the top, even though she was a complete and total idiot. She was also devoid of power.”
Maddie stirred. On the surface, she believed she should let Hannah handle the conversation. Something Astra had said caused suspicion in the back of her mind, though. “How can you possibly know that if you never met her?”
“Because I know people who know people,” Astra replied, not missing a beat. “You might not be a witch, but you understand about power. Not everybody is quote-unquote normal.” She used air quotes to drive home her point. “You’re not. This one isn’t.” She inclined her head toward Hannah.
“Being what we are, doing what we can do, makes us the exception,” she continued. “We’re the sort of people others aspire to be. They want our power. Velma was like that. She wanted power, and even though she wasn’t special, she conspired to take it.
“Now, while there’s nothing I despise more than a fraud, I have to give Velma credit. She had quite the racket going on ... and for years. That obviously caught up with her, though.”
“She was going to make an announcement before she was killed,” Hannah volunteered. “I don’t suppose you know what that announcement entailed, do you?”
Astra shook her head. “No. As usual, though, you’re missing the obvious point. It’s not about what Velma was going to announce. It’s likely that she was going to spout some nonsense about developing a new power or something. She was hanging with a group of psychics, after all.
“What’s important is who had reason to be threatened by her or what she planned to announce,” she continued.
“That’s what we’re trying to find out,” Hannah groused. “It’s not as easy as it sounds. There are fifty psychics in Casper Creek. As you said, some of them are frauds. Given the number of ghosts hanging around, though, some of them are real.”
“Hmm. I didn’t think about the ghosts.” Astra nodded her head approvingly. “That’s a great way to at least confirm those on the up-and-up. Good job.” She flashed a thumbs-up that almost seemed sincere. “If you want to know who killed Velma, you have to figure out whose life she could’ve derailed. She didn’t have as much power as she pretended. Obviously she had some form of power, though. You need to find out what.”
“And how do we do that?” Maddie snapped, her temper
