Page 38 of The Neighborhood Witch

“This was empty,” Hugo exclaimed.

“Doesn’t look like it to me,” she replied with a wink.

The kids gathered their candy and left his porch.

“Well, I’m all tapped out,” Hugo said.

She investigated her bucket. “Yeah, me too. It was a good night.”

“It was a great night.”

His eyes locked onto Alice. He gave a thought to invite himself over. As the trick-or-treaters’ night ended, he wanted their night to continue, but an unseen force kept pulling him inside. He tried to speak, but the words failed in that moment.Would she accept? Would she even want me to come over?These questions raced through his mind. He needed to ask, but in that moment, he couldn’t.

Hugo grabbed the front door. “Well, have a good evening.” He opened it.

“Hugo,” Alice shouted.

He stopped and fixated on her. She shifted uneasily as she gave a few taps to the bottom of her plastic cauldron. She pouted her lips. He felt like she wanted to tell him something, or ask him something, but she was holding back.

“You too.”

“Enjoy Samhain,” he said and disappeared inside.

Hugo stood in the entryway and closed the door behind him. He placed the bucket on the entryway table. It knocked over a pile of mail to the floor. Max came running down the stairs to greet him. Her tail wagged, beating against the wall in excitement.

“Come on, Max,” Hugo commanded. “Let’s go outside.” He strode through the house to the kitchen.

Max went bounding down the back stairs, surveying her little kingdom to find the perfect spot. Hugo stood on the porch, looking over at Alice’s house. The purple house. He thought of her purple hair. The way the black witch’s costume hugged the curves of her body and how the skirt floated in the air. Her playful jokes. Alice sitting on the railing. Her emerald green eyes. All these emotions flooded him. He cupped his hands around his mouth, fingers up like he was praying, his thumbs pressed against his lower jaw.

Do it.Have some guts and do it. His eyes followed Max as she continued her adventures around the yard. She investigated smells all over—the shed, the unkept bushes, the hibernating grass. She circled and circled to find the best spot.

He turned toward the purple house. His eyes focused on the large bay window.What do you have to lose? Go have some fun.

“Come on, Max,” Hugo yelled. “Let’s go get a treat.”

Max ran into the house. Hugo shut the door and locked it. He opened the refrigerator and surveyed the chilled wine bottles. He grabbed the closest one, but released it after spotting another bottle. The black and gray checkerboard label with the playing card, four card suits, and the crown. He pulled out the mysterious new brand and shut the door.

He hurried back down the hallway and placed the bottle on the entryway table. He ran up the stairs. His foot caught the edge of the step. He extended out his arm to brace himself before launching back up the stairs. He was on a mission, and nothing would stop him.

Moments later, he bounded down the stairs, no longer dressed as a vampire, with the same enthusiasm as Max had earlier. He woredark jeans and a black, long sleeve Henley shirt. Sitting at the base of the steps, he put on his black shoes. He opened the closet door and removed his black leather jacket. Max came running at the prospect of going on another walk.

“No walk tonight,” Hugo said as he stood. He removed his black leather jacket from the closet and slipped it on.

Her tail still wagged.

“Computer, lights off.”

The lights in the house turned off as an electronic beep confirmed the command.

Hugo snatched the neck of the bottle between his middle and ring fingers and yanked it off the table to pass it to his other hand. He opened the front door. He glanced back at Max, who had a gleeful smile on her face. Her tail wagged. She still loved the prospect that they were leaving for a walk.

“Don’t wait up, buddy,” Hugo said.

Max’s tail stopped wagging, and she sat down as he exited and shut the door behind him.

Chapter 11

Samhain

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