Page 42 of Wicching Hour

“Then that’s what we’ll do,” Declan said. “Does five work? Five thirty?”

Miguel nodded eagerly. “Yes, sir. I know there are a few other guys who also can’t do late nights. I think they’d really appreciate being able to meet early mornings.”

“Good,” Declan said. “I’ll send out a message.” He turned to Bracken and me. “We’re here to look for an SUV for my girlfriend’s great-uncle—one I can fit in too.”

“Absolutely,” Miguel said, a broad smile on his face. “Ford started making the Bronco again in 2021 and it’s been really popular ever since. If it was for you,” he said to Declan, “I was going to suggest the Raptor edition. It’s a little bigger, but also more expensive. This one is the Everglades edition. It’s a four-by-four, of course…”

He went on about a whole lot of things that meant absolutely nothing to me. Bracken test drove the first one we saw and then both Bracken and Declan test drove the bigger one Miguel had referred to. Personally, I thought the rear-facing camera was very cool and I loved that the top could come off. The rest? No idea.

Miguel told us we could get a bench seat in the second row, understanding that would be much better when dealing with someone in wolf form.

In the end, Bracken bought the first one we saw, the tricked out emerald-green Bronco, and Declan ordered the bigger one for himself. Given he was now going to need to drive up to Big Sur, sometimes twice a day, he wanted something that worked better than his pickup.

Miguel’s body language was lighter with the promise of early morning runs and two big sales.

We had to wait a few as they took Bracken’s SUV in back to clean, even though it was already immaculate. I looked between the two men who’d both just dropped a lot of money on a new vehicle.

“Wait,” I said. “You didn’t both buy Broncos just because I love them, right?” I mean, seriously, what the hell did I know about cars?

They both looked at me and smiled, neither saying a word.

A man in blue coveralls brought the Bronco around and Miguel gave Bracken the keys and had him sit in it so he could walk him through inputting the driver settings and whatnot.

“You go ahead and drive with him,” Declan said. “I’ll follow you back. I want to swing by my place and see if they need me and then I’ll be over. I want to hear what the plan is for these new players gunning for you.” He leaned down to kiss me and then remembered I didn’t have my backpack and therefore no seawater to reset my magic, so instead, he picked up my gloved hand and kissed that.

“On second thought,” he added, “I’ll go get you a new backpack. You need to have ocean water with you at all times until we have your cousin taken care of.”

I nodded. “I have plenty of art supplies. I just need a backpack and a jar. And, honestly, if you can’t find a little one, like I was using, skip the jar. I have empty honey jars I can use. I just liked the little honey bear.”

We turned back when it seemed like the tutorial was winding down. The concentration in Bracken’s face as he committed to memory every bit of information Miguel gave him made me smile. I tugged Declan’s hand. It was wrapped around mine. “How long do you have to wait for yours?”

Declan shrugged one shoulder. “Miguel said it looked like a dealership in Salinas has the one I want: bench seat, azure gray exterior, all the rest. We’ll see. If they don’t, he has to order it, which can take a couple of weeks.”

“So,” I said, leaning against his arm, “does this mean you’re doing two-a-day trainings now?”

He let out a gust of breath. “Looks like.”

“I know you have to,” I whispered, “but I worry about you falling asleep and ending up in a ditch or over a cliff.” I squeezed his hand. “Please promise me to be careful and pull over and sleep in your truck if you’re tired. Okay?”

He lifted my hand to his lips again and said, “I promise.”

TWENTY

Double Vision

Declan walked me to the passenger side, opened the door, and showed me the handle for pulling myself up and in. Even though I wasn’t having trouble, I still felt his hand on my butt, guiding me to the seat. Odd, that.

The drive back to the gallery was fun. I kept wanting to push buttons to see what would happen but didn’t want to irritate or distract Bracken. When Declan got his, though, I was pushing the shit out of all the buttons.

“Oh, I forgot to tell you,” I said. “Aunt Elizabeth and her family are coming for dinner tomorrow night. Can you join us? They want to help us find Calliope.”

He nodded. “You already told me. Do you have something to serve, or should we go to the market?”

Hmm, did I? “I always have frozen lasagnas in the freezer now because of Declan. It’s also not unusual to find steaks in my refrigerator. I never see him add them, but they’re there.”

Bracken chuckled. “I’ve always like Elizabeth. When I was still occasionally visiting the family, I saw she was a kind child. She wasn’t the strongest wicche but didn’t seemed to care one way or the other, which I found refreshing.”

“That was my take too.” I put down the sun visor, as my head was starting to hurt. “Lately, though, I’ve begun to question that. I think she’s been hiding her gifts.”

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