Deadly Waters (A Witch in the Woods 17)(Paranormal Women's Midlife Fiction)

DEADLY WATERS A WITCH IN THE WOODS JENNA ST. JAMES Deadly Waters Jenna St. James Copyright © 2023 by Jenna St. James. Published by Jenna St. James All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the written permission of the author. This is a work of fiction. Names and characters are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. Created with Vellum CONTENTS Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Chapter 26 About the Author 1 “You’re sure you’ve packed everything you need?” my stepdaughter, Zoie Stone, asked for the third time that morning. “I mean, I know you can buy what you don’t have. I’m just double checking.” I gave her a one-arm hug. “I appreciate you asking, Zoie. You already discovered two things I forgot to pack.” Zoie sighed and sat down on the edge of my bed. “This is the first time you and dad have been gone from the island on an extended stay.” She grinned. “I mean, alone. Usually, I tag along. I’m just nervous.” Alex and I were married three days ago in Black Forest by my dad, Black Forest King. After the ceremony, everyone had crashed at the castle or Mom’s or Serena’s—since we all lived within a mile of each other on a dirt and grass lane. Mom, GiGi, and Aunt Starla then made a huge breakfast the next morning for everyone, and then afterward, we all walked to Black Forest where the animals presented Alex and me with presents made from the forest. It had been a magical few days celebrating with family and friends, but today Alex and I were leaving for the supernatural destination of The Bermuda Triangle for our honeymoon. Just the two of us. Finally alone. “Do you have a plan for where you are staying?” I asked. Zoie nodded as she folded one of my t-shirts. “I’m going to try to stay here at the castle tonight. But if I get freaked, I’ll just walk to your mom’s or maybe down to Serena and Grant’s place and crash on their couch and play with the babies.” My cousin, Serena, had delivered her twins almost a month early in Black Forest. Luckily, Cayden and Brooke were born healthy and were growing like weeds. But they were still babies and had yet to sleep through the night. Not exactly ideal for getting a restful night’s sleep. I was about to point that out to Zoie when Needles zipped through my bedroom door, his wings glowing green and yellow. Needles was my flying and talking porcupine partner. As the game warden for Enchanted Island, we looked after the care of all flora and fauna…on top of helping Alex at the sheriff’s department when they needed it. “I’m all packed,” Needles said, turning a somersault in the air. “I travel light. As long as you’ve packed the sunscreen so my quills don’t burn, that’s all I need.” I rolled my eyes. “How many times have I told you, Needles, you aren’t going on my honeymoon.” “He’s not going!” Alex’s voice boomed down the hallway. Zoie and I giggled. For several weeks—months, really—Needles had been threatening to join us for our honeymoon. And every time he did, Alex nearly worked himself up into an explosion. “That’s what he thinks,” Needles said. “It’s hula girls and Mai Tais for me!” “We aren’t going to Hawaii,” I said dryly. “It’s still an island.” Zoie leaned in close to me. “He knows we live on an island, right?” “I heard that!” Needles exclaimed. “And a vacation island is different from—well, just trust me, it is.” Zoie and I stared at each other for a second…before bursting into gales of laughter. “That makes zero sense,” I said. “Besides,” Zoie said. “I need you to stay here with me. Someone has to make sure I don’t throw wild parties.” Needles drifted down to the center of the bed next to the open suitcase. Since he was barely five inches tall, he was all but lost amid the stacks of clothes. “No promises.” “GiGi invited me to her place tomorrow night for dinner,” Zoie said. “Byron will be there.” “You don’t say?” I picked up the first pile of clothes and set them in the suitcase. “Sounds…interesting. What’s she making?” Zoie shuddered. “Oysters, artichokes, and chocolate dipped strawberries. She claims they’re aphrodisiacs.” I threw back my head and laughed. “Sounds like something GiGi would do.” “Way too much information,” Needles said. “But it’s a free meal,” Zoie pointed out. “So I’ll go.” We made small talk as I finished packing, then called down to Alex to come get the suitcases while Zoie and I headed to the library to read. I could have levitated the suitcases down the stairs, but I knew my gargoyle husband needed to blow off some excess energy. He, too, was nervous about leaving Zoie alone for four days—even though I’d repeatedly reminded him she would be eighteen in about five months. And, more importantly, she would be graduating from high school early at semester and enrolling in PADA’s detectives’ program. She was going to be staying alone soon enough. The Paranormal Apprehension and Detention Agency was a supernatural agency who had their fingers in all things supernatural. I’d worked as an apprehension detective for about twelve years before retiring and moving back to Enchanted Island. There were many branches of PADA, and Zoie had been recruited and accepted into the detectives’ program—along with her boyfriend, Brick. Fairy bells reverberated throughout the house, signaling someone was at the front door. “I bet that’s your mom,” Zoie