Wicked By Any Other Name Part 23

"Everything looks pretty s.h.i.+tty right now," she mumbled, but she picked up her fork and started in on her pancakes. After a few bites she put her fork down.

"Eat," Trev urged.

"I will." She looked lost in thought. "I think you need to leave here, Trev. You need to find a way to either leave town or at least stay at the B&B. Once Carrie finds out you're here-and she will find out because Ginny saw you last night-she will make matters worse for you. She knew enough to find you to file the lawsuit."

"All because of that d.a.m.n sachet," Blair mumbled.

Stasi's cheeks turned a dark pink. "Her boys were with her and pawing the displays with their grubby hands. She was moaning about what a jerk her husband was to leave her and yet there she was in my shop picking up over $500 worth of lingerie in hopes of luring him back, at the same time she's b.i.t.c.hing the child support checks are late. Her priorities were so screwed up it wasn't funny. She's a disgrace to the very idea of romance. And I thought of her husband, who's a very nice man who got caught up by the idea of having the perfect family life, when instead he got Carrie and her kids, who act like nasty little gremlins more often than not. What if she had really succeeded in luring him back? He'd finally gotten away from her. I just wanted to make sure he didn't go back to that living h.e.l.l."

"Kevin is a nice guy," Jake agreed. "Some of us tried to tell him he wouldn't be happy with her. Carrie's previous marriages were proof of that, but he wouldn't listen."

"When Carrie wants to, she can come across as Mother of the Year," Blair said, munching on bacon. "But if life doesn't go her way, she turns into b.i.t.c.h of the Year." She cast an apologetic look at Jazz since it was known the B word wasn't one of Jazz's favorites.

Jazz waved it off. "Sometimes you have to use what fits. Although I know there are more explicit words out there that would also work, I am a lady." She glared at Nick who had snorted in his coffee. He murmured a quick "sorry."

Stasi's gaze returned to the window. She idly ate as she studied the frosted gla.s.s. She dreaded to think what the lake looked like now.

"So much is s.h.i.+fting. It's as if someone's manipulating the forces around us," she mused.

"We have it narrowed down to forest Fae," Jazz said. "But it doesn't explain everything, and it's still not specific enough."

"It will be." Knowing she would need all her strength, Stasi soon finished her hearty breakfast.

Once everyone had polished off their breakfasts, Blair picked up the dishes and coerced Jake into helping her clean up.

"Be useful for once," she told him.

He grinned. "If you only knew."

Stasi left the kitchen for a few moments and returned with her hiking boots on. She walked over to the coat rack and pulled off her coat and scarf. "I'm going to take a walk."

"Not without me." Trev was by her side in seconds.

She opened her mouth to argue with him, but she knew it would only delay her plans. She nodded and waited while he got his jacket.

Even in her warm clothing, Stasi s.h.i.+vered when they stepped outside. Trev quickly pulled the door closed behind them. The yellowish glow of candlelight was a bare glimmer through the window over the sink and the window in the door.

"It's even colder than last night." She pulled her cream-colored fleece cap on and tucked her hair up under it, so it could cover her ears, then slipped on matching gloves. Trev did the same with a navy wool cap and sheepskin-lined leather gloves he pulled out of his jacket pocket.

Stasi looked up, noticing the charcoal colored sky with ash-colored clouds dotted here and there. While the snow had stopped falling sometime during the night, the warning of more snow was in the air.

"I want to see the lake before we do anything else." She started to step down then halted when she noticed the ice on the treads. "Ice to water. Water to steam. Release to air and not be seen, if you please." The coating of ice on the wooden steps immediately melted then rose up in spirals of steam. In seconds the stairs were completely dry.

"I have to admit, I haven't spent a lot of time around witches, but you three are showing me what I've missed," Trev said, following her down the stairs. "And you have some nifty spells."

"They come in handy." She walked carefully across the frozen ground, hearing the crunch beneath her hiking boots. Trev moved up beside her and took her hand in his, tugging her behind him so she could walk in his footsteps. She smiled at his back, feeling warmed by his thoughtfulness, and while she knew either of them could have used their gifts to warm the ground, because she chose not to Trev did likewise.

"Why do you feel the need to see the lake? Do you think something else has happened?" He held back low hanging tree branches that would have smacked them both in the face.

"It's just a sense I have." She touched his jacket, stopping him. "While Blair and I aren't water witches, we've always felt a connection to the lake. When we had to leave the area, we always made sure that the lake was protected," she explained. "Especially when a ski resort was built up here in 1930. Blair and I were afraid that someone would buy the land and the lake would be available for guest use only. We already owned the building, and we purchased the land around the lake. This way we knew the land wouldn't ever be sold."

Trev a.s.sessed his surroundings. "You two would be very wealthy."

She shook her head. "Money isn't important to us. Yes, we're typical females. We love nice things and we have our splurges, but it doesn't cost much to live up here and our shops give us a very nice living."

"You are one in a million," he said softly, stepping forward to take her in his arms. He lowered his head to kiss her, but she ducked away.

"In air this cold we'd be frozen together," she warned him.

"I can't think of a nicer way to go. Cinnamon ice, yum!"

She laughed and stepped back. "Come on, Wizard Barnes, we have things to do." She turned him around and gave him a little push.

Stasi felt the odd s.h.i.+fts the moment she stepped into the open area surrounding the lake. The barrier was once again invisible, but she could still sense its presence. On the other side of the lake, a series of green glowing b.a.l.l.s floated in the air. The lake's surface was now unruffled, the surface serene and a silvery color.

"It's calmed down, but it's completely frozen over." She bent down and picked up a small stone, tossing it toward the lake. The minute it hit something unseen it disintegrated into dust that fell to the ground.

Trev pursed his lips in a low whistle. "Nothing like adding a little extra oomph to its protection. I don't know about you, but I'd like to keep our bodies in one piece."

Stasi stood up and dusted off her hands. "I agree."

"You said it normally doesn't freeze?"

"Only a few times, and it's cold enough now for it to happen. If someone came out here and saw the frozen surface, they might think it was good for ice-skating. Luckily, with all the trees and rocky surface, s...o...b..arding or even sledding isn't advised." She frowned as something colorful appeared on the other side of the lake. "There's something over there." She pulled on Trev's sleeve and hurried around the worn path circling the lake.

By the time they reached about halfway to the other side, Stasi could hear the faint whimpering of a child.

"Carrie's son," she whispered, picking up the pace.

"Stasi, wait!"

But she ignored Trev and ran, skidding a few times on frozen ground but managing to keep her balance. By the time she reached the other side she was out of breath as the cold air squeezed her lungs.

A small boy dressed in a red down jacket and heavy pants sat on the snowy ground. His tears had frozen on his cheeks and while he didn't appear to be harmed, he was scared and cold.

"Danny?" Stasi asked, dropping to her knees beside him. She dug through her pockets but found them empty. Before she could conjure up a handkerchief, Trev handed her one.

"I'm Kenny," he whispered, identifying himself as the other twin. "I want my mommy."

She put her arms around him, alarmed at the cold feel of his skin. "Where have you been?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. I went to bed and woke up out here."

Stasi noticed his lips were blue and his skin bright pink and chapped, but didn't see any signs of anything more serious.

"Here, big guy." Trev stripped off his jacket and wrapped it around the boy before he swung him up into his arms. "Let's get you home where you can get some warm food."

"Mommy will be mad, but I didn't run way," he whimpered, hiding his face against his shoulder. "Honest."

"We know that, sweetheart." Stasi rubbed his back. She looked up at the expression on Trev's face. "What's wrong?"

"Maybe it's best that just I take him back," he said. "Tension's high enough as it is and ..."

"And Carrie hates my guts," she admitted with a sigh. The realization hurt. She didn't like the woman. Never had. But that didn't stop the pain from rippling through her. She stepped back. "All right. Do you know where her house is?"

He shook his head.

"It's 405 Fremont Lane. It's a winding road behind Grady's BBQ Pit. It's the fourth house on the left."

"I'll be back soon," he promised, kissing her quickly then striding off.

Stasi remained in place and watched them walk. She could hear s.n.a.t.c.hes of their conversation as Kenny lamented how his mom was going to be really mad at him.

Once they were out of sight, she looked back at the lake and the green glimmering globes. She took a deep breath and held up her hand.

"I seek knowledge. I seek information. I seek a way to repair the trouble in my land." She smiled when the tiny gold light hovered over her palm. "Please lead me."

She was surprised when the ball had her turn around and face a large tree. A soft hum from the sphere instructed her to step forward.

"But where are the doors?" she asked, walking until her nose touched the rough bark. "Ahhhhh!" Her next step took her literally into the tree, and she found herself falling downward into an abyss.

In what seemed like hours and was probably only minutes, Stasi hit bottom. An "oomph!" escaped her lips as she fell on her rump and rolled to one side.

"d.a.m.n it!"

"You're not very graceful, are you?"

Stasi slowly climbed to her feet and rubbed her injured posterior.

If she wasn't mistaken, the griffin doorknocker was grinning.

"That first step is a dilly."

The griffin rolled his eyes. "If I had a bar of gold for every time I heard that. Enter, witchling." The doors slowly swung open.

Stasi wasn't surprised to find The Librarian seated behind the counter with scrolls about him, scratching away with his plumed quill pen.

"You are a stubborn one, young Anastasia," he said in his prim voice as he looked up. His faded eyes were keen as he studied her.

"The answer is here," she insisted.

"And what makes you think that?" He set his quill pen down by the parchment he'd been writing on.

"Because The Library knows everything. It holds knowledge of the ages, whether the past or the future. It knows what is harming our land and frightening the mortals," she told him. Her voice rose. "Maybe you don't like us witches or the mortals, but they're innocents and you're bound by your code to help them. So d.a.m.n it, we need help!"

The Librarian raised an eyebrow and a corner of his mouth twitched ... just a little, but enough to let her know it wasn't a frown. "Now you sound more like Griet."

Stasi wasn't sure what was more frightening. That The Librarian had actually attempted a smile or that he hadn't blasted her out of the realm the moment she shouted at him.

She knew one thing. She wasn't going to back down.

"Will you help me?" She deliberately didn't tack on a please. She'd already yelled at him and she knew he wouldn't easily forget that transgression.

He slipped off his wire-rimmed spectacles and polished them with a snowy handkerchief. "All of you witchlings are the same. You expect your answers to be found in scrolls or books, when they just might be found within yourself. Fear is a strong emotion, young Anastasia. It can only be conquered by an equally strong emotion. Once you realize what that emotion is, you will find a way to save the people of your town. You have already tapped into your inner strength. You just need to use all that is within you." He tucked his handkerchief away and set his spectacles back on his nose.

"That's it? No wonder Jazz says you suck!" She'd already crossed one line, so another wasn't going to make much difference now. Hic! She slapped her hands over her mouth, but it was too late. The d.a.m.ning bubble was already floating before her eyes.

His already thin mouth narrowed even more. "Perhaps you need to conquer the past so that you may heal the present."

She opened her mouth, hoping she wouldn't hiccup again, but the elderly wizard had clearly had enough of her questions ... and her. He flicked his fingers at her.

"Be gone."

Stasi's eyes widened as she was swept backwards through the doors, which neatly closed after her and whooshed her back up the way she came. The sense of going in reverse sent her stomach into overdrive as she was tossed out of the tree and once again landed on her b.u.t.t.

"I am never defending you again, you pompous a.s.s," she muttered, limping back to the building.

Chapter Eighteen.

Trev had no trouble finding the house, because the front yard was filled with people carrying flashlights, the rounded lights bobbing up and down as they moved about. When a man turned and saw him walking up the road, he shouted Carrie's name and waved his arms.

Carrie flew out of the house and almost bowled Trev over as she tried to grab Kenny. The boy broke into tearful howls the minute he saw his mother and reached out with his arms. Trev immediately handed him over.

Others called out to alert the others the search could be called off, that Kenny was home.

"Where was he?" she asked, cradling her son protectively against her b.r.e.a.s.t.s.

"He was out by the lake."

"I didn't go out by myself, honest, Mom!" Kenny cried, burying his face against her neck. "I went to bed and when I woke up I was outside."

Carrie's usually faded eyes blazed to brilliance as she stared at her attorney. "She did this," she spat out the words. "She took my son to scare the h.e.l.l out of me. She endangered his life just because she thought she could. Now do you see what a monster she is?"

"Carrie." Reed Palmer walked up and laid a hand on her shoulder. "Be grateful Kenny is back. That's the important thing here. If, indeed, it was Stasi who was behind this kidnapping, then the authorities can deal with it."

Trev studied the man, whose tone and expression seemed full of concern for Carrie, but he caught a hint of something else. He had been around town long enough to hear the gossip that Reed had pursued Stasi, but she had always politely turned him down.

Who says a scorned man can't feel just as much wrath as a scorned woman?

"Stasi had nothing to do with this," he stated.