A witchs halloween, p.22
A Witch's Halloween,
p.22
His brows went up, but he didn’t comment as he poured our drinks.
“The night of the first murder was her first night as a hell cat.” I told him what I could while I snacked. It was better to talk about it now. Once I read up on her old life, it would be too tempting to tell him everything.
In turn, he told me last night had shaken his parents and Tricks. The latter unsure of her judgment, the former fearful of her safety out in the world. We agreed Tricks would grow into herself. None of us were our best at seventeen, no matter how much we thought we knew.
Enor and Erwin, well, it had been a long time since Elron was a child. They’d forgotten what it was like, and, from Elron’s account, had grown more insular. Hardly a recipe for wild success.
Twenty minutes later, I gave Elron a kiss and retreated to my paperwork. I finished the reports for the police and got most of Kat’s paperwork done. It lacked a photo, but she could take care of that.
With forty minutes left before dinner, I searched for Kat’s old clan and the accident. At first glance, it was simple enough. Explosion, magic gone wrong, death, and a clan reeling from the loss. But questions remained. Why did the spells go wrong that day? Why was the explosion so large? Had it really consumed all the remains of several people?
As promised, I cleared my search history, and told no one of Kat or her clan. But I did wonder. And next time I heard news from the Fyr clan, I’d read more than the headline.
After dinner, we moved to the parlor. Tricks sat next to me. When Elron and his parents began debating the relative merits of different mushrooms, she nudged me with her elbow.
I raised a brow.
Tricks checked on her parents, who were still arguing with Elron. “What did you think of the spider silk?”
“It’s beautiful.” And that was all I was going to say on that matter so close to my sharp-eared future in-laws.
She leaned over and cupped a hand around her mouth. “I think Elron should wear it.”
My brows went up. I swirled a word confusion spell around us. “Why?”
“It’s our culture.” Tricks’s head tipped to the side as she shrugged. “You should wear a witch dress and he should wear the fancy elven stuff. Represent who you are.”
“That’s a thought.” I let the magic fade before anyone got suspicious.
The rest of the evening was surprisingly pleasant. If I’d known it took a murderous vampire to get Enor and Erwin to behave, I would’ve asked Henry to scare them weeks ago.
Tricks’ words kept tumbling through my mind. Maybe we’d been going about some of these shared traditions wrong. Instead of trying to show everything as equal, we could blend portions of the event, but simplify the ceremony and dress. Elron’s parents wouldn’t like it, but that was a separate issue.
After dessert, chocolate for me and fruit for the elves, Elron and I headed back to our apartments. When we were well out of earshot, I bumped his shoulder.
“Yes?” He raised a single brow.
“Tricks had an idea.”
“Did she? Will my parents be running back to Alaska to escape her?”
“Doubt it.”
He opened the door to his apartment.
I followed him in. “It’s about the wedding.”
Elron leaned against the back of his sofa, ankles crossed. “I had an idea about that myself.”
“Oh?” This I had to hear.
“You first. You brought up the subject.” His eyes sparkled.
Mine narrowed. He seemed far too relaxed for a conversation about our wedding. “Okay. Tricks suggested you wear the spider silk. She said we should honor our individual heritage, not trying to blend everything.”
“She has a point.”
“I thought so,” I said. “We could keep the blended event but simplify the ceremony. Take out all but the common and important bits, keep it as simple as possible.”
“Agreed. That will simplify matters.” Elron pushed away from the sofa, took my hands in his, and went down on one knee.
“What are you doing?”
“Attempting romance,” he said dryly. “May I continue?”
I nodded.
He pressed a kiss next to my engagement ring. “Michelle, my love for you will always be tougher than dragon hide and as unrelenting as the ocean. However, it is not patient. I have no desire to spend a hundred or three hundred years proving our love to my parents. Will you run away with me? Marry me away from our friends and family, marry me so we can put these petty disputes behind us.”
“Yes!” I hurled myself at him, which ended up with both of us sprawled on the floor laughing. “Yes. I’ll marry you anywhere, especially if we leave the family behind.”
He cupped my face in his hands. “I’d hoped you would say that.”
I tugged his head down. “Give me a kiss and then tell me the plan. I know you have one.”
Elron pressed a quick, hard kiss to my lips. “You want to know the plan?”
“Yes!”
He kissed me again and then helped me to my feet. “Pack a bag. I’ll tell you on the way.”
“Tonight? Really? Like now?” I knew I was repeating myself, but my elf was so rarely impulsive.
Elron scooped me up and carried me to my apartment. “Yes.”
“Then I better hurry.” I darted to my bedroom and pulled out a suitcase. This time it felt right.
Magic, murders, mayhem, parents… Nothing would stop us.
Want to dive into another witch story? Check out the first book in my new series, Accidental Necromancer!
Also by N. E. Conneely
To see the most up to date list of works please visit
neconneely.com/books
* * *
A Witch’s Path Series:
Witch for Hire (Book 1)
A Witch’s Path (Book 2)
A Witch’s Trial (Book 3)
A Witch’s Concern (Book 4)
A Witch’s Rite (Book 5)
A Witch’s Demons (Book 6)
A Witch’s Magic (Book 7)
A Witch’s Halloween (Book 8)
* * *
Kelsey Pine Urban Necromancer:
Accidental Necromancer (Book 1)
Reluctant Necromancer (Book 2)
Undead Necromancer (Book 3)
Coming Summer 2021
* * *
The Earth Born Cycle
Earth Born (Book 1)
Fire Forged (Book 2)
Spirit Formed (Book 3)
* * *
Witch’s Path World:
Handyman for Hire
Oceanside
Fireball
The Golden Egg
* * *
Michelle’s Case Files:
Michelle’s Case Files: A Collection of Short Stories
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About the Author
N.E. Conneely lives in northern Georgia with her husband, her dog, and a mountain of books. They sweat through the summer and freeze through the winter, and life as they know it comes to an end when so much as a single snowflake falls out of the sky.
For fun, N.E. plays with her dog, reads, knits, crochets, paints, and does tie-dyeing and origami. She makes a great pizza and is currently negotiating with her husband about sea monkeys and growing a vegetable garden.
Please visit neconneely.com to find information on her current projects.
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N. E. Conneely, A Witch's Halloween
