“Nina Hascoe.”
Mattie pulled out her phone and started texting. Then she hit send. “Good. That will help with her research.”
Undrea hoped something would. She gestured limply at the food. “Won’t matter if the stuff is frozen. Not when I’m in that state.”
“Good to know.” Mattie put a bag of shrimp on the table. “Ready to go?”
She wasn’t. But there was no reason to put it off. She could already hear Bowie crying to be set free. “Might as well.”
Mattie grabbed her hand. “Hey, it’s going to be okay. Maybe it wouldn’t be if you were alone, but you’re not. And I’m not just anyone. I’m the most powerful Celtic witch in this town. We’ve got this.”
Undrea nodded, then made herself smile. “Right.”
“Well, that was super convincing.”
Undrea laughed softly. “No, you’re right. We can do this. We’re going to do this. And it’s going to be all right. We have to save Ethan. And there’s no other way without understanding the magic he’s under.”
“That’s it. That’s exactly what you’re doing. Helping him.”
Undrea turned and went back toward the guest room, but she knew instantly something was wrong. She could see the bed from the hall. And Ethan was no longer on it.
She went into the room and checked on the other side of the bed to make sure he hadn’t rolled off. He hadn’t. She looked at her friend. “He’s gone. How is that possible?”
Mattie’s eyes narrowed. “Witchcraft, that’s how. I don’t know what kind of witch this Nina is, but this level of magic isn’t beginner stuff.”
“You think she magically transported him out of here?”
Mattie nodded. “Can’t you smell the ozone?”
“Ozone? No. My sense of smell isn’t any better than a human’s, unless I’m underwater.”
“Well, trust me, it’s there.”
Undrea’s gaze shifted to the hall, and she ran out of the room and down to the bathroom to check on Bowie. She opened the door and found him curled up in the sink. She looked at Mattie, who’d followed her. “So Nina took Ethan but left his cat.”
Mattie arched one brow. “I get the sense that Ethan is the only pet she wants.”
“What am I going to do? I’m worried about him. About his safety. I can’t let her have him. What if she puts another spell on him and forces him to marry her? He doesn’t want to, you know.”
Mattie nodded. “I agree, she can’t be allowed to get away with this, but this is bigger than the two of us now. We have to get Corette involved. Maybe Alice. Maybe the whole coven. We need to figure out what kind of witch she is so we know how to deal with her.”
“But you’re not a member of the coven.”
“No, but that won’t keep them from helping us.” She gestured at Bowie. “Is he going to be all right here by himself?”
Undrea nodded. “I’m sure he’ll be fine. He’s a good boy.”
“All right then. Get dressed while I put the seafood away. We need to go talk to Corette.”
“Shouldn’t we go by Ethan’s place and make sure he and Nina are there? Because if she left town with him, then what?”
“That’s not a bad idea. I’d bet good honey that’s where they are. She just used a lot of serious magic. Unless she’s some kind of super witch, she’s going to need some downtime.”
Undrea put her hands on her hips. “Maybe we could steal him back.”
Mattie tipped her head. “Neither one of us is James Bond, so dial it down. The last thing we need is a breaking and entering charge. Or for Nina to zap us.”
“Can’t you…” Undrea wiggled her fingers. “Magic him out of there?”
“No, I can’t.” Mattie frowned and stared off into space for a moment. “What kind of power does she have?”
Undrea knew that was a rhetorical question, but she shrugged anyway. “Beats me, but I need to know that Ethan is safe. At least for the time being.”
Fifteen minutes later, they were in Mattie’s car with Undrea driving. Undrea knew how to get to Ethan’s house and Nina knew what her truck looked like, so it made more sense to go in Mattie’s Nash Rambler.
Not that the 1959 butter-yellow sedan was exactly inconspicuous, but there was no other option.
“Are there security cameras?” Mattie asked.
“I don’t know. I don’t remember seeing any. But you’d think a guy like Ethan would have them. Then again, they just moved in. Maybe they weren’t installed yet?”
Mattie shook her head. “I bet they were. Just because you didn’t see them doesn’t mean there aren’t any. You probably weren’t looking.”
“I wasn’t.”
“You’d better park on the road then. We can’t risk her knowing we’re around.”
Undrea looked over. “Afraid she’ll zap us?”
Mattie frowned. “Yes. Aren’t you?”
Undrea shook her head. “I was, but then she had the chance and didn’t. In fact, she ran from me. Poof. Gone. Just like that.”
“Hmm.” Mattie was staring at Undrea but not really looking at her. “What kind of witch would be afraid of a mermaid?”
“I don’t think she knows I’m a mermaid, but a better question is why would a witch be afraid of a mermaid?” Undrea slanted her eyes at her friend. “Why would you be afraid of me?”
Mattie hesitated, clearly thinking. “Well…you could drown me. Take me under and keep me there until I was done.”
“Okay, but that would require a body of water. Something that isn’t easily accessible at my house. I don’t think Nina was afraid of me doing that.”
“Maybe. But since Nina doesn’t know what you are, it has to be something else.” Mattie smiled suddenly. “All she knows is that whatever spell she’s had Ethan under these last couple of years, you broke it. And now she thinks you’re as powerful, or more powerful, than she is. She might even think you’re a witch too.”
Undrea’s eyes narrowed as she thought. “That’s interesting. But can’t a witch tell another witch?”
“I don’t think that’s always true. Besides, we don’t know what kind of witch she is yet. She might truly be something rare, which is why she’s so powerful.”
“I really hope Corette can help us.” Undrea slowed and pulled off onto the shoulder just before Ethan’s driveway. “We’re here.”
Mattie rubbed her hands together. “Let’s go see what she’s up to. Phones on silent. I say we stay in the trees at the property line until we get close. And let’s stay together, okay?”
Undrea nodded. “You don’t have to ask me twice.”
They got out of the Rambler and picked their way through the trees toward the house that lay up the hill. Only a few exterior lights illuminated the outside. And only a soft glow came from the inside, like there was a television show playing or a computer on. From a distance, it was impossible to tell if anyone was home.
And there were no cars in the driveway, but the house had a garage, so that meant nothing.