Page 95 of Last Witch Attempt
“I don’t think so.” Evan was calm. Other than Mom’s teapot, the destruction was purely cosmetic. “What happened?”
“Millie attacked Aunt Tillie,” I replied as I rubbed my elbow. It had taken the brunt of the drop from the ceiling. “I think she managed to get the drop on Aunt Tillie earlier today. She had her locked up somewhere.”
“In a barn on the old Finch property,” Aunt Tillie added. “She actually thought she could keep me captive in a barn. She warded it to the tenth degree but missed a few too many holes. I guess that shows who the superior Tillie is.”
That was up for debate.
“She was going to keep you there until she made her escape,” I guessed, rolling my neck. Little aches and pains were starting to make themselves known. “Do you know where she plans on going?”
Aunt Tillie shot me an incredulous look. She was still trying to make her way around Evan, but the vampire stood fast. “We didn’t sit down and have tea. I don’t care where she’s going. I’m going to end her.”
“You’re the reason she’s here. Why did you create her?” Something else occurred to me. “Actually,howdid you create her?”
“Don’t worry about it.” Aunt Tillie shot me a death glare. “That doesn’t matter.”
“I think it does.”
“No, it does not. Suffice it to say that it was an experiment … and like many experiments, I didn’t like the outcome. She’s going back in the bottle.”
She was dreaming. I had no idea what Millie was now, but Millie was not simply going to toe the line and do as Aunt Tillie wanted. “We need to talk,” I said.
Aunt Tillie’s eye roll was pronounced. “I don’t answer to you.”
“You answer to me,” Mom snapped, her fury palpable. She’d crawled to her broken teapot and there were genuine tears in her eyes. “This was Mom’s teapot.”
My stomach clenched. No wonder Mom loved the teapot so much. “Maybe we can fix it,” I suggested as I started toward her. My knees protested crawling, and when I reached Steve, who was still under the table, I paused long enough to give him a tight smile. “It’s okay to come out now. Dinner is still good.”
Steve opened his mouth, then shut it. He opened it again, then shut it again. He reminded me of a guppy.
“It’s okay.” I used my kindest tone. “Millie won’t come back tonight.”
Steve finally found his voice. “How do you know that?”
“She would have to be an idiot to come back, and she’s no idiot.” I pinned Aunt Tillie with a dark look. “Unfortunately, she’s way smarter than she should be.”
“Oh, don’t look at me that way.” Aunt Tillie stopped fighting Evan and marched over to stare me down. “This is not my fault.”
I had to force myself to remain calm. “Whose fault is it?”
“Margaret. We had to do that spell because of her.”
“And the first time you brought Millie into this world?” I pressed.
“It’s not what you think.”
“Tell me what happened.”
For a moment, I thought she might tell me the story. She looked as if she wanted to. The expression was gone as quickly as it appeared, and she straightened.
“Don’t get in my way again,” she warned, her gaze bouncing between faces. A genuine look of regret crossed her features when she looked at Mom, who was still fussing over the broken teapot. “I’ve got this. Stay out of the way.” She marched toward the kitchen, casting her evil eye toward Evan. “That goes for you too.”
She swept out of the room, magic trailing behind her like hellhounds preparing for the hunt.
“What did I miss?” Evan asked when she was gone.
“Just the basics. Millie took Aunt Tillie captive. Aunt Tillie escaped. Millie says she has a plan. And I saw the naiad.”
Evan nodded. “I heard about the naiad. That’s why I’m here. I wanted to make sure you were okay.”
