If there was anyone around who could help.
Another burst of energy whizzed overhead, but it seemed to stop while halfway across the room, halted in its tracks by a billowing plume of black, foul-smelling smoke that appeared to have come from nowhere. Which, Kate supposed, it had. That was how magic worked.
“You can’t defeat me,” the Escobar witch said, her tone almost bored. “I’ve spent many years studying these arts. I have my father’s strength. You are soft, like the rest of your clan. You do not know what it is to suffer for your art.”
“True,” Jack replied, sounding amused. An act, Kate knew, but one she hoped the witch might fall for. “Around these parts, we prefer to take joy in the use of magic. If you’re suffering for it, then I think you’re doing it wrong.”
This verbal salvo must have angered the Escobar witch, because she snapped out something in Spanish. Immediately afterward, a bolt of reddish lightning zinged through the air, striking Jack in the shoulder. He cursed and fell to his knees.
Kate wanted to scream his name, but she didn’t — she knew that would only distract him, and he had to keep all his focus on the witch, on keeping his defenses up. Luckily, the Escobar witch didn’t appear to be paying any attention to Kate as she crawled her way across the floor, possibly for the same reason. For now, the woman had to maintain her own defenses. She probably thought she would have plenty of time to deal with Kate and her mother later.
“Had enough?” the witch asked. “I do not need you for this spell, de la Paz warlock. You can walk away from all this. That is what my father told your misguided prima, after all. Let us rule things in California, and we will leave you alone. Forget this woman, this ‘civilian,’ as you call them, and just walk away.”
“I don’t think so,” Jack replied. His voice was tight with pain, but it didn’t waver. “You see, I’m a cop. My job is to protect innocent people like these women here from criminals like you.”
The Escobar witch drew herself up, red-painted lips curling. “A criminal? I am no criminal. My cause is a righteous one.”
“Tell it to the judge, lady.”
He made an odd motion with his hands, holding one steady while he pushed outward with the other, and immediately Kate’s ears popped, as though Jack had somehow displaced half the air in the room. The burst hit the Escobar witch squarely in the midsection, and once again she stumbled, this time catching her foot on one of the steps that led into the sunken living room.
That wasn’t enough to deter her, though, because she countered with another of those lightning strikes, two of them hitting Jack simultaneously. At once he collapsed face first on the carpet, smoke rising from his shirt. A few yards away, Lynda gasped. She didn’t really know who Jack was, and had to be out of her mind with fear, but clearly she understood that the man who’d just been struck down was the only person who could help them.
No. No, Kate thought. This can’t be happening. He has to get up.
But he didn’t move. By that time, Kate was only a few feet away from him. She glanced back over her shoulder and saw the Escobar witch getting to her feet, unsteady, but with a malevolent smile touching her full lips and a triumphant light in her coal-black eyes. Limping, she began to make her way across the room to the spot where Kate crouched.
Clutched in the woman’s right hand, hidden before now by the long black robes she wore, was a curved, evil-looking knife.
Shit.
Kate backed away, scrabbling now on her hands and knees. So close to Jack. He had to get up. But he wasn’t moving.
But there, mostly hidden by his body, was his gun in its shoulder holster.
“It doesn’t hurt,” the Escobar witch said, her voice almost friendly. “What I did to your husband…that hurt, I’ll admit. But I had to bring my assistants to this plane. Now that they are here, it takes less to appease them.”
“Oh, really?” Kate replied, not caring how inane she sounded. Her fingers reached for the holster, fumbled with the snaps that held the gun in place. “Still sounds like they’re kind of high-maintenance. Maybe you should look for different friends.”
“I assure you — these ‘friends’ are very useful.”
There…the 9mm was free, sliding cold and heavy into Kate’s desperate grasp. “Then make sure you say hi to them for me.”
A click of the safety, and she lifted the gun, aimed directly at the witch. Head shot? Kate didn’t know if she’d be able to pull that off. Better to shoot her right in her cold black heart.
The sound of the gun going off was louder than anything Kate could have imagined. Of course — the only other time she’d shot a gun, she’d been wearing ear protection. The noise echoed in her ears, ringing like some infernal bell.
And then — there was the witch, slumping to the blood-spattered carpet, her black clothing wet with the stuff. Her dark eyes were wide, startled.
Knees shaking, Kate got to her feet and approached the wounded woman, gun held at the ready. The witch’s eyes met hers, narrowed with pain. Incongruously, she smiled.
“I will not live to see my father’s dominion,” she whispered. “But my blood on its own is enough to complete the spell.”
With one swift motion, she raised the curved blade she held, whispered a few words in a language Kate didn’t recognize, and then drew the edge across her own throat. Blood, red-black in the dimly lit room, gushed from the wound, further soaking the carpet.
A harsh keening sound. The sensation of cold, leathery wings beating at the air. The ground trembled underfoot, and from somewhere in the house came the tinkle of broken glass.
Then, just as suddenly, as it had come, the supernatural disturbance ended. Whatever the Escobar witch’s death had summoned, it was gone now.
Kate let out a hiccupy sob and ran back over toward Jack. After making sure to engage the gun’s safety once again, she set it down on the coffee table. “Jack? Jack!”
Blearily, his eyes opened. They focused on her first, and then moved toward the lifeless figure of the woman lying on the floor. An expression of incredulity moved over his features, and she couldn’t help laughing. Laughter tinged with hysteria, perhaps, but still.
“See?” she said. “I told you I knew how to shoot.”
Epilogue
Jack set down his phone and looked across the patio table at Kate. Despite the losses she’d suffered over the last few weeks, she now appeared almost serene, as though she was ready to put the past behind her and look forward to the future.
To a future with him.
“That was Luz,” he said.
“Oh?” After all the necessary cover-up of her father’s true cause of death, after the dust had settled and the dead had been buried, Kate made the decision that she couldn’t live in Scottsdale anymore. Too many terrible memories, too much to remind her of what she’d lost. Her parents’ house had been put on the market, and Lynda had moved up to Clarkdale to be near her new grandson. The shock and sorrow would always be with her, but at least she could try to focus on the newest member of the family, a welcome distraction from the horror of her husband’s murder.
And since Jack refused to remain in Scottsdale without Kate, he’d resigned his commission with the police department. What he was going to do with himself, he wasn’t sure…but if what Luz had just told him was true, he had a feeling all of them were going to be very busy for the foreseeable future.
Watching Kate carefully, he said, “We had to be discreet about making inquiries, because this is going to turn out to be an embarrassment for everyone involved, but it seems that the Escobar woman’s spell did what she intended it to. About a week after the night she died, apparently Matías Escobar walked right out of the prison in Florence and disappeared.”
“He what?” Kate set down her coffee cup. Even though she’d been working outside in the yard the past few days and had begun to pick up something of a tan, she now looked deadly pale. “How is that even possible? Wasn’t he in a maximum-security prison?”
“His sister’s death provided the energy needed to restore his gift. Remember, his power was controlling people with his voice, getting them to follow his commands. He probably wanted to take some time to experiment with it, to make sure that it truly was working the way it used to before Connor and Angela took it away, but once he’d determined that he was back in the game….” Jack paused there and picked up his own coffee. It had gone lukewarm during his conversation with Luz, but right then he just wanted the caffeine. The shock of the news the prima had just shared made him feel far too tired. “Matías would have used his power to charm a few guards to let him out and walk him out of there. Once he was free, he could have found someone in the town near the prison to literally give him the shirt off their backs, most likely a car, too. No doubt he’s already joined up with dear old dad in California.”
“But….” Kate drew in a breath, the worry clear in her face. “But what are we going to do now?”
“I’m not sure,” Jack replied. He reached across the table to take her hand in his. Her fingers felt cold, fragile. In that moment, he vowed that she would never suffer harm or loss again, no matter what happened.
“Just know that I’ll always be here for you. I’ll always protect you. And if the Escobars bring the fight to us…we’ll be ready.”
The Witches of Cleopatra Hill series will continue with Deep Magic, due out in October 2017.
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The Arizona Witch Clans
This list does contain some minor spoilers for earlier books in the series. Married names are indicated with parentheses.
The McAllisters (Jerome, Arizona, and the Verde Valley)
Angela McAllister (Wilcox) – prima, or head witch, of the McAllister clan
Rachel McAllister – Angela’s aunt
Bryce McAllister – one of the McAllister clan’s elders
Allegra Moss – one of the McAllister clan’s elders
Margot Emory (Wilcox) – formerly one of the McAllister clan’s elders, now married to Lucas Wilcox
Sylvia Emory – Margot’s mother
Ruby Lynch – former prima of the McAllister clan
Henry Lynch – son of Ruby McAllister and Patrick Lynch
Tobias Miller – fiancé of Rachel McAllister
Sonya McAllister – Angela’s mother, deceased
Boyd Willis – a McAllister warlock
Micah Landon -- an absentminded artist
Floyd Barnett – lives above the store next to Rachel’s
Rosemary McAllister – lives on the other side of Rachel’s store above the tea shop
Susan Callery -- an artist with a studio in the same building as Tobias’ flat
Efraim Willendale -- runs the post office
Wyatt McAllister -- owns a B&B on Paradise Street
Dora McAllister – Great-Aunt Ruby’s caretaker
Jocelyn Riggs -- the clan’s strongest medium
Kirby McAllister – a cousin of Angela’s and one of her “caretakers”
Tricia McAllister -- the new clan elder after Margot Emory steps down
Richard McAllister – Tricia’s husband
Caitlin McAllister (Trujillo) – daughter of Tricia and Richard; a seer
Michael McAllister – Caitlin’s older brother, a chef
Roslyn McAllister -- Caitlin’s first cousin; youngest sister of Jenny and Adam
Marcus McAllister -- Tricia McAllister’s older brother, father of Jenny, Adam, and Roslyn
Lysette McAllister – Marcus’ wife and mother of Jenny, Adam, and Roslyn; a civilian (non-witch)
Jenny McAllister – eldest daughter of Marcus and Lysette McAllister
Adam McAllister – only son of Marcus and Lysette McAllister
Roslyn McAllister – youngest daughter of Marcus and Lysette McAllister
Evan McAllister — a distant cousin of Angela’s; the clan’s “fixer”
The Wilcox Clan (Flagstaff, Arizona, and the northern third of the state)
Connor Wilcox – primus (head warlock) of the Wilcox clan
Damon Wilcox – former primus of the Wilcoxes, now deceased
Lucas Wilcox – a cousin of Connor’s, now married to Margot Emory
Mason Wilcox (McAllister) – Connor’s cousin and a friend of Angela’s; now married to Adam McAllister
Danica Wilcox – Mason’s younger sister
Joseph Wilcox – Mason and Danica’s father
Olivia Wilcox – Mason and Danica’s mother
Andre Begonie – Angela McAllister’s father
Marie Wilcox (Begonie) – a cousin of Connor’s, the Wilcox clan’s seer
Eleanor Garnett – the clan’s healer
Darrell Wilcox – a Wilcox warlock gifted with heating the area around him
In the 1880s:
Jeremiah Wilcox – the Wilcox clan’s primus
Nizhoni – Jeremiah’s second wife, a woman of the Navajo
Jacob Wilcox – Jeremiah and Nizhoni’s son
Samuel Wilcox – Jeremiah’s brother
Edmund Wilcox – Jeremiah’s brother
Nathan Wilcox – Jeremiah’s brother
Emma Garnett – Jeremiah’s only sister; children are Louis, Susan, Marcus, and Jeffrey
Aaron Garnett – Emma’s husband
Grace Wilcox – Samuel’s wife; five children are Benjamin, Addie, Esther, Clay, and Dorothy
Lida Wilcox – Edmund’s wife; their three children are Kathleen, Annabelle, and Wyatt
Jennie Wilcox – Nathan’s wife; their four children are Oliver, Calvin, Levi, and Victor
The de la Paz clan (Phoenix, Arizona; Tucson, Arizona; and the southern third of the state)
Maya de la Paz -- prima of the de la Paz clan up through Protector
Alex Trujillo -- Maya’s grandson
Diego Trujillo -- Alex’s older brother
Alicia Trujillo – Alex and Diego’s little sister
Letty Trujillo – Diego’s wife
Luz Trujillo – Alex and Diego’s mother and Maya’s daughter; prima of the de la Paz clan after the end of Protector
David Trujillo – Luz’s husband and father of Alex, Diego, and Alicia
Valentina de la Paz – the de la Paz clan’s healer in the Tucson area
Alba de la Paz -- the healer in the Phoenix area
Zoe Sandoval – the de la Paz clan’s prima-in-waiting
Zander Sandoval – Zoe’s little brother
Luis Sandoval – father of Zoe and Zander
Andrea Sandoval – mother of Zoe and Zander, Alex Trujillo’s aunt (Luz and Andrea are sisters)
Luis de la Paz – Alex’s cousin; works at the family’s store
Jack Sandoval -- Luis Sandoval’s youngest brother; a detective with the Scottsdale P.D.
Miguel de la Paz -- a private detective
Oscar de la Paz -- with the Tucson P.D.
Also by Christine Pope
THE WATCHERS
(Paranormal Romance)
Falling Dark
Dead of Night
Rising Dawn (June 2017)
THE WITCHES OF CLEOPATRA HILL
(Paranormal Romance)
Darkangel
Darknight
Darkmoon
Sympathetic Magic
Protector
Spellbound
A Cleopatra Hill Christmas
Impractical Magic
Strange Magic
The Arrangement
Defender
Bad Blood (August 2017)
Deep Magic (October 2017)
Books 1-3 and Books 4-6 of this series are also available in two separate omnibus editions at special boxed set prices.
THE DJINN WARS
(Paranormal Romance)
Chosen
Taken
Fallen
Broken
Forsaken
Forbidden
Awoken (July 20
17)
The first three books of this series are also available in an omnibus edition at a special low price!
THE SEDONA FILES
(Paranormal Romance)
Bad Vibrations
Desert Hearts
Angel Fire
Star Crossed
Falling Angels
Enemy Mine
The first three books of this series are also available in an omnibus edition at a special low price!
TALES OF THE LATTER KINGDOMS
(Fantasy Romance)
All Fall Down
Dragon Rose
Binding Spell
Ashes of Roses
One Thousand Nights
Threads of Gold
The Wolf of Harrow Hall
Moon Dance
The Song of the Thrush (November 2017)
Books 1-3 and Books 4-6 of this series are also available in two separate omnibus editions at special boxed set prices.
THE GAIAN CONSORTIUM SERIES
(Science Fiction Romance)
Blood Will Tell
Breath of Life
The Gaia Gambit
The Mandala Maneuver
The Titan Trap
The Zhore Deception
Refugees (September 2017)
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About the Author
Christine Pope has been writing stories ever since she commandeered her family’s Smith-Corona typewriter back in the sixth grade. Her work includes paranormal romance, fantasy romance, and science fiction/space opera romance. She fell under the Land of Enchantment’s spell while researching her Djinn Wars series and now makes her home in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Sign up for Christine Pope’s newsletter and get an exclusive Witches of Cleopatra Hill prequel short story!