Page 4 of Zoe

“And I think I like the cat better than I like you,” Heather said, lifting her chin and looking away.

“Meow,” Zoe said. “Will you two behave?”

“Nope,” Maria said.

“Nope,” Heather echoed.

Zoe shrugged. “Okay, no chocolate cake until you two bury the hatchet and not in each other’s head.” She walked off and left them to it.

“See what you did,” Heather said.

“Well, maybe a little less cake for your hips is a good thing,” Maria said, yelping at the zap from Heather’s magic. Maria returned fire.

“Hey!” Heather snapped and rubbed her backside to dull the pain of the sting.

“I had a big target,” Maria said and chuckled as Heather narrowed her eyes and wagged a warning finger at her. “This kitty has claws,” she said, smiling as if she meant it.

“If she wants to keep them, then she had better behave,” Heather warned her.

~

“So, no eggs?” Carter said and huffed again.

Billy pulled the pickup outside his mother’s cabin and turned off the engine. Then he turned to look at his brother. “For the fifth time, no damn eggs,” he said, growling.

“You just let her get away,” Carter said.

“I wasn’t about to rugby tackle her car as it drove off,” Billy said. “Now, let’s go and see what the big emergency is before I decide to break your egghead.”

Carter turned to look at his mother’s place and jumped in his seat. She was standing right in front of the window starring at him.

“Took you boys long enough,” Eileen said, placing her hands on her hips and offering them an expectant look.

Billy pushed open the door and unfolded his large frame from inside. “We needed to dig our way out of old man’s falls; it was snowed under,” he said. “But, we’re here now, and with quite a good load from our hunt, even if we were dragged back early.”

“Good,” Eileen said. “Nice to know you boys weren’t snoozing and drinking the days away while your mother needed your help.”

“With what?” Carter asked, getting out of the car and slamming the door after him. “And why couldn’t the number one son do it alone?”

“It was Robert who was the problem, but it’s too late now,” Eileen said. “He’s already mated.”

Billy spat out a roar of a chuckle, and Carter followed him. “Mated? To who?”

“Towhatmight be the better question,” Eileen said.

“Explain?” Carter said, confused.

“Witches,” Billy said, finally figuring out what was off about that woman who ran off with his eggs.

“Yep, he mated a witch,” Eileen said.

Carter snorted his amusement again. “And what were we expected to do, hold his paw?”

Eileen raised her chin and grunted. “Doesn’t matter now,” she said. “The deed is done, and we have a witch in the pack.”

“How many witches are there on the mountain?” Billy asked.

“Why, you run into one?” Eileen asked.

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