After the funeral, mourners descended en masse on the house that’d once belonged to him—a miner’s cottage similar to Holly’s, with a big yard, wide verandah, and patchworked additions stuck to the back.

  Holly lingered on the porch, listening as murmurings echoed from inside the house behind her. She smoothed her hands over the black dress she’d found in her aunt’s belongings and wondered how she’d gotten from her dead-end job in Sydney to here.

  The scent of Hannah’s perfume still clung to the fabric, bringing up memories she’d rather forget—like the fact she’d never asked where her aunt was buried.

  The window to the front room was open, the lulling breeze sucking the lace curtains in and out. It looked like the house was breathing in an attempt to clear itself from the grief that was pouring out of it.

  Apparently, Marty Dunne was well respected amongst the people of Dunloe—the kind of guy who knew everyone and their business—and they’d all come to see him off.

  “I heard he crossed paths with those devil worshippers,” Holly heard a woman say.

  “Nonsense,” a man replied. “Those are just stories kids tell each other to scare the shit out of themselves.”

  “No,” the woman fired back. “Marty found a mutilated rabbit out there.”

  “When?” the man scoffed.

  “A few years ago.”

  The man grunted. “It was probably a fox. They get out there, you know. Anyway, it’s one less rabbit to worry about.”

  “A fox doesn’t remove internal organs and nail them to a tree, does it?”

  Holly rolled her eyes and moved away from the window. Gossiping about nonsense at a time like this…? Tactless and cheap.

  She moved towards the other side of the house, wondering where Sarah was. It’d been a while since she’d seen her, but the sound of raised voices drew her attention.

  “He left everything to you,” she heard a woman say. “The house, his bank accounts. Everything.”

  Holly lingered by the side of the house and peered around the corner. An older woman with blonde hair was looming over a red-faced Sarah, practically shaking her fist in her rage. The woman was impeccably put-together in a tailored black dress, heels, and makeup, but her anger showed the cracks.

  “Oh, so that’s what you’re so pissed about?” Sarah fired back. “Not that he’s dead, but that he didn’t give you any money?”

  “We were married for twenty years!”

  “And you drove him away!”

  “There were a lot of problems in our marriage, Sarah. You—”

  “You did nothing,” she spat. “You let him go out there, time and time again, knowing what he might stir up. He went missing, and you and your stupid cult did nothing. I’ll never forgive you.”

  Sarah turned and stalked away, headed straight for Holly’s hiding place. Not that she was hiding, but it certainly looked that way, so she stepped off the end of the verandah and onto the garden path.

  As her friend approached, she said, “Are you all right?”

  Sarah nodded, her shoulders tense, and kept walking.

  Holly glanced up at the woman, whose expression changed eerily fast when she saw her standing in the yard. She smiled and walked over, holding out her arms.

  “You must be Holly,” she said, all signs of the argument gone. “I’m Samantha Dunne, Sarah’s mother. Thank you for coming.”

  “It was the least I could do, Mrs. Dunne.”

  “Oh, please. Call me Samantha.” She waved a dismissive hand, sending a waft of strong perfume into Holly’s face. “I’m sorry you had to witness that. My relationship with Sarah’s father was tense towards the end and—” She swallowed a sob that looked a lot like crocodile tears and fanned herself with a manicured hand. “I’m sorry. It’s just…it’s just a shock.” She let out a small gasp. “Like your aunt. I must offer my condolences to you, too! Oh… There’s been so much tragedy lately.”

  Holly stood there, a little stunned as Samantha Dunne babbled on, bouncing from one thing to another like one of those rubber bouncy balls. She was really beginning to understand the things Sarah had told her about her mother.

  “Thank you,” she replied.

  “Oh, Sarah’s lucky to have a friend like you.” She lowered her voice and touched her arm lightly. “I worry about her. Would you… I mean, you seem like such a lovely young woman. Would you keep an eye out for my Sarah?”

  Holly tensed. “Of course.”

  “If you ever need anything, you’re more than welcome to come to me. We all miss Hannah so much. She was such a vibrant member of the community.”

  “Thank you. I’ll keep that in mind.” Awkward. “Uh, I’m going to check on Sarah.”

  “Of course.” Samantha smiled, flashing her perfect white teeth. “It was lovely meeting you, Holly. Don’t be a stranger.”

  Holly smiled back and got out of there as fast as she could without it looking like she was fleeing. Once she was around the corner, she rolled her eyes. I wonder what Hannah thought about her… Her aunt didn’t suffer fools, not even one shred, so she probably held the same amount of exasperation as Holly did.

  She found Sarah sitting on the porch step, hugging her knees and looking like she carried the weight of the world on her shoulders.

  Holly sat beside her. “Hey.”

  “So, that was my mother,” Sarah drawled. “The wicked witch of Dunloe West.”

  Holly said nothing. Samantha struck her as insincere, but she wasn’t about to tell Sarah that.

  “Laid it on thick with you too, huh?”

  “Something like that.” Holly chuckled. “So, your dad left you the house.”

  Sarah let out a laugh and wiped at her eyes. “He did like to annoy the hell out of Mum. Anything for one last stab.”

  “I’m sorry I didn’t get to meet him. He sounds like a lot of fun.” A wave of guilt rose inside her, the image of Marty Dunne’s body at the bottom of that mine shaft coming back to haunt her. She did what she could, right? She tried.

  “Yeah, he was the best. I just… I just can’t believe he’s gone.”

  They sat together in silence, listening to the dull roar of the wake inside the house. Thankfully, all talk of devil worshippers had subsided—for the time being, at least—but another car had arrived, carrying the one person Holly wanted to avoid most in the whole of Dunloe.

  Detective Jin Xu.

  She hadn’t seen him since she’d revealed her hidden talent at the oval and her stomach twisted as he climbed out of the silver sedan. He’d said nothing about her glimpse, or if she’d been right… He’d said nothing at all, which was the problem. All Holly knew was that it’d been too late to help Sarah’s dad, so yet again, her glimpses were useless instruments of torment.

  Jin wore his black suit a little too well, and she tried not to notice as he approached.

  “Miss Dunne,” he nodded, “I’m sorry for your loss.”

  Sarah rose to her feet and narrowed her eyes at the detective. “Thanks.”

  Jin didn’t seem to notice her curtness as he turned his attention to Holly. “Miss Burke.”

  She tensed but offered a smile as she stood. “Detective.”

  Sarah cleared her throat. “If you’ll excuse me.” She turned and walked into the house, leaving Jin and Holly on the verandah.

  “Was it something I said?” the detective asked, raising his eyebrows.

  “I wouldn’t take it personally.”

  Jin shoved his hands into his trouser pockets and stared up at her, his gaze cutting right through her flesh.

  “It was pointless,” she blurted. “It was too late to save him.”

  “Don’t regret trusting me,” he replied. “It may have been too late, but by finding him, we were able to give his family closure. That’s important, too.”

  “What good is it to have this…this ability and not have it mean anything? Is it just to torment me?” She wrapped her arms around her stomach. “What did I do?”

  Jin frowned and stepped closer. “You saw your aunt’s death, didn’t you?”

  The truth stabbed into her heart and she shook her head. “Please, I don’t want to talk about it anymore.” He’d figured it out so easily.

  The detective studied her for a moment. “Forgive me. I must do the rounds. People expect it, unfortunately.”

  “Sure. Of course.” She moved aside, allowing him to pass.

  As he stepped up onto the verandah beside her, Holly shivered, his nearness pulling at her like a magnet.

  Jin paused, his gaze briefly meeting hers. “If you ever need me…”

  His voice was so hushed, she wasn’t sure she’d heard him at all, but by the time she gathered herself, he was already inside the house.

  Detective Jin Xu…

  “Who are you?” she whispered.

  Patrick stood in the dining room and stared down the hall, his anger rising as he saw Jin talking to Holly and Sarah outside.

  Jin had a lot of nerve showing up at the home of the man he’d killed for his funeral.

  What are you up to?

  His expression faded as Sarah turned and stalked inside. When she saw him, her eyes darkened. She was angry and rightly so. He hadn’t told her about Jin, and after everything that’d happened, there hadn’t been a good time to divulge it. Right now, Sarah was easily triggered by her grief, so they had to be careful.

  “You didn’t tell me the cop who found Dad is a vampire,” she hissed, standing in front of him.

  Patrick grimaced and looked out the front door, where Jin was speaking with Holly. He was torn between rushing out there and getting the vampire away from Holly and staying by Sarah’s side.

  “He showed up the night I was supposed to head out into the diggings,” he murmured.

  “Why didn’t you say anything?”

  “Because I hoped he’d leave.”

  “Leave?” Sarah scoffed. “He’s compelled himself into the police department.” When he didn’t reply, she added, “Oh, I see. It was him, wasn’t it?”

  “Sarah.” Patrick grasped her arm and pulled her to the side of the room. “Be careful. You don’t want to mess with Jin.”

  She wrenched her arm away. “What does he want? What does my dad have to do with it?”

  “Sarah… Your dad was in the wrong place at the wrong time, that’s all.”

  “Is that supposed to comfort me?” she demanded. “Because that only makes it worse.”

  “Understand this,” Patrick hissed. “He’s installed himself into the police, the emergency services, and probably the local council. How many people did he compel out on that oval?”

  The witch hesitated, some of her anger fading. “What’s going on, Patrick? Why is he here?”

  “Revenge,” he whispered.

  Sarah’s face paled, and he knew she was piecing it together. Jin had been here before, in another time, and she knew the coven was still up to their old tricks. Their single-minded obsession was why she’d left.

  “I’ve seen his face before,” she whispered. “There’s a photo in the museum… He was here when this all began.”

  “That’s why we have to be careful.” He looked over Sarah’s shoulder to the front door, where Jin was still standing with Holly. “We can’t make a move until we’re sure what he’s planning. Do you understand?”

  Sarah nodded and her lip curled. “When the time comes, I want to be the one.”

  “Sarah—” he began, but she wasn’t listening to him as she stalked away.

  Outside, Jin had moved towards the front door and Patrick felt a little comfort by the fact the vampire wouldn’t be able to cross the threshold—vampires couldn’t enter a human’s home uninvited. It was a supernatural disadvantage to their predatory nature, though how and why it existed, he didn’t know. Magic was full of loopholes and balances with the natural world. How anyone understood them at all was beyond him.

  Jin’s gaze met his and the vampire smirked…then stepped across the threshold.

  Patrick’s expression faded as the ‘detective’ came to meet him. “How did you get in here?”

  Jin picked up a glass of scotch from the table beside them, bypassing all the finger food. “She hasn’t signed the paperwork, so technically, the house still belongs to my lunch.” He swirled the alcohol and lifted the glass to his nose. Breathing deeply, he said, “Mmm… They’ve brought out the good stuff. Fancy.”

  “If you try anything—”

  “Relax. I’m not going to cause trouble today of all days and deny a young witch the chance to mourn.” His expression turned cold. “I’m not completely heartless.”

  “Sarah’s left the coven,” Patrick told him. “She wants no part in their schemes.”

  Jin sighed. “Yes, that’s true, but she’s still coven-adjacent. Whatever will she say when she finds out that you were responsible for her father’s death?”

  “You’re the one who killed him, Jin, not me.”

  “Yes, but you’re the one who put me in that hole.” He slapped the vampire on the shoulder. “Cause and effect, my friend. Every action has a reaction.”

  That was it, then. Jin seemed set on his path, and Patrick didn’t know if anything he could say would change his course, but he had to at least try. “These are different witches. It’s a different time. Let it go.”

  “Different?” the vampire scoffed. “It seems like déjà vu to me.”

  The clack of heels on the floorboards paired with the crackle of magic announced the arrival of Samantha Dunne.

  “You’ve got a lot of nerve showing up at my husband’s funeral,” she spat, pushing in front of Patrick.

  “Ex-husband,” Jin drawled. “Are you going to contest the will?”

  “I don’t think you realise who you’re dealing with.”

  Jin chuckled. “I know who you are, Samantha Dunne. I know who all the members of the Trine are.” He smiled and leaned closer. “It’s convenient that you kept it in the family.”

  “Then you understand what you’re up against,” she hissed. “We could end you here and now. Do not test us.”

  “In front of the entire town? I don’t think you’re that stupid.”

  “Jin, this isn’t the time or place,” Patrick murmured. People were already starting to notice the commotion.

  “That’s the thing…” the detective replied. “There is no more appropriate time than right now, in the house of the man who brought me back to life.” His smile spread. “I wanted to thank him for his sacrifice.”

  “I’ll kill you,” Samantha hissed, her eyes widening with rage.

  “Now, now, it’ll be all right.” Jin patted her shoulder and chuckled. “Patrick has had ample opportunity to kill me, but he hasn’t. Why is that, I wonder? Stupidity? I wouldn’t put it past him, but it smells more like fear to me.” He looked around at the room of humans, his lip curling. “I’ve been in Dunloe long enough to make plenty of provisions if my work is interrupted. But what are they?” He laughed and raised his glass. “There’s only one way to find out, so take your best shot, Samantha Dunne, because if I go down, the entire town goes with me.”

  “Even Holly Burke?” the witch demanded.

  “Especially Holly Burke.”

  Patrick glanced at the front door, but Holly had disappeared. His heart skipped a beat, but he didn’t care if Jin heard it or not. If he’d done something to her…

  “It’s like you said, Patrick,” Jin said. “This time, things are different.” He lifted his glass again, aiming it towards Samantha. “Mrs. Dunne, on behalf of the Dunloe police department, I’m so sorry for your loss.” He drank and turned, wandering into the kitchen like he owned the place.

  Patrick narrowed his eyes as he listened to Jin lay on the charm with Marg Guthrie, the elderly woman who ran the museum.

  “Find out what he’s done and fix it,” Samantha demanded.

  Patrick sighed and shook his head. “You don’t command me.”

  “Our interests align, Patrick.”

  He nodded, knowing better than to push her now that she was irate, and he looked around the room. Holly was still absent. Samantha hadn’t been alive when things first went sour with Jin, but he remembered like it was yesterday. He didn’t want a repeat, either.

  Something we both agree on, he thought. I guess hell does freeze over.

  “Don’t do anything hasty,” he warned. “If you force his hand by going after her—”

  “We will do what we like,” the witch hissed. She picked up a glass of scotch and strode off, her heels clacking on the battered floorboards.

  “Of course you will,” he muttered.

  That’s what I’m afraid of.

  CHAPTER 10

  After three weeks in Dunloe, Holly had come to a stark realisation. She liked her quiet life—actually, she preferred it.

  Her sneakers crunched on the dirt track, the golden earth carving a stark path through the bush. Above, the sky burned with the fire of a spectacular sunset, but within the trees, the shadows were already lengthening into night.

  The only place Holly seemed to find any peace was in the diggings on the other side of Moonlight Creek. The cottage was full of the memories of Aunt Hannah, Sarah was a wall of anger because of her mother, and the town was still buzzing from the wake the day before.

  She shook her head as the faint cries of parrots screeched in the distance and breathed in the heady scent of eucalyptus and earth.

  It was just small-town drama. The wake had been full of gossip and arguments, and outlandish rumours, too. Devil worshippers…? It seemed like people actually believed it.

  Holly understood why Sarah and her mother had butted heads, but there was no missing the tense altercation between Jin, Patrick, and Samantha Dunne. Even though she couldn’t hear a word they were saying, the tone of the scene was clear. The locals had it in for the new police detective…or was it the other way around? It was too difficult to tell.

  What was it with this town? Things had been weird from the moment she’d arrived. At first, she could easily pin it all on stress, but now she had the strangest feeling that something else was going on in Dunloe.