Page 19 of Sweetwater and the Witch

Not that Harriet looked cute at the moment. Ravenna retreated a few more steps. If she made it to the basement door and managed to get through it, she could lock it. She would be safe in the basement.

“I must stop you before you destroy my business,” Garrett continued.

“I am not going to hurt the Lucky Quartz,” she said.

“I regret that our relationship must end this way. I thought you were the woman of my dreams, the one I’ve been waiting for.”

“What relationship? We had one date and we both agreed to call it quits.”

“I didn’t understand that you are a witch.”

“Who told you that?”

“There is only one way to deal with a witch. You must die.”

“Garrett, who told you I was a witch?”

“It doesn’t matter. I know the truth.”

A thought occurred to her. “Garrett, did you leave the burner and the torch and the fire starter on my doorstep?”

“Yes.”

Great. She was dealing with a real psycho. Who knew that one of the most successful casinos in Illusion Town was owned and operated by a madman?

She took another step back. The basement door was closer now. She needed to buy time.

“You don’t want to hurt me,” she said. “You’ll be arrested and put in prison. Your casino will be ruined if you’re not around to run it. There is no one to take over, because you are still trying to find a wife for a Covenant Marriage. You don’t have children yet.”

“No one will ever connect me to what is going to happen to you. I’m a powerful man here in Illusion Town. I own one of the biggest casinos inthe Emerald Zone. A man in my position has women standing in line trying to fuck him. The cops won’t believe for a minute that I went out of my way to kill a bitch like you.”

“You’ve really thought this through, haven’t you?” she said.

He was right. In Illusion Town the casino owners were among the most powerful people in the community. Garrett Willis could get away with murder.

They were passing her office now. The door stood open. She pulled some energy. Fireworks burst inside her office, sparking and flashing in colors that came from the far end of the spectrum. Brilliant. Distracting.

Startled, Garrett yelped in alarm, spun around to face the doorway, and fired. The shot boomed in the confines of the hallway.

Harriet succeeded in escaping Ravenna’s arm. She bounded down to the floor and raced toward Garrett, snapping at an ankle.

Distracted again, Garrett looked down, horrified. “No.”

He started to aim the mag-rez at Harriet and evidently realized he was more likely to put a round through his own foot. Frantic now, he scrambled backward, kicking wildly in an effort to get rid of Harriet.

A fierce energy shuddered in the hallway. Flames from the paranormal end of the spectrum flashed to life and leaped around Garrett. He dropped the pistol and flailed wildly.

His eyes widened in horror. “Fire witch. You’re a fucking fire witch.”

“I left that off the Banks agency questionnaire,” Ravenna said.

The fire blazed higher. Harriet released her grip on Garrett’s ankle and darted out of range.

“Stop,” Willis yelped. “Stop.”

He tried to lunge toward Ravenna but the flames engulfed him in a whirlpool of energy.

Willis’s mouth opened on a silent shriek. He convulsed and went down with a thud that shuddered through the old Colonial-era floor.

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