Whiskers & Warrants

Whiskers and Warrants By Nicolette Pierce Published by Nicolette Pierce at Pierced Heart Publishing Whiskers and Warrants is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons living or dead is entirely coincidental. Copyright © 2023 by Nicolette Pierce Cover design by Mariah Sinclair | TheCoverVault.com All rights reserved. 1st Edition, License Notes This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This book may not be resold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, please return and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author. CONTENTS Books by Nicolette Pierce About Author Wanted: Paranormal Tracker 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 Kittens & Kidnappers Thank you! Books by Nicolette Pierce Find the Author BOOKS BY NICOLETTE PIERCE Sage Moon Novels Witch’s Key to Success and Murder Witch’s Folio of Flower Felonies Witch’s Ride to Runes Black Moon Novels Whiskers & Warrants Kittens & Kidnappers Mars Cannon Novels Deadly Dancing Predator Patrol Security Squad Biker Brigade Fearsome Foursome Nadia Wolf Novels The Big Blind High Stakes Cashing Out Squeeze Play The Last Tailored Suit My Traitor Pocketful of Diamonds Last Hand Jade Sommer Novels Mostaccioli Murder Penne Pyro Fettuccini Fiasco Rigatoni Ruin Lasagna Larceny Bucatini Bomber Coconut Cove Novels Crime at the Cabana Please visit Nicolette on her website: www.nicolettepierce.com Join the mailing list to receive updates and fun free stuff! Sign up at: https://www.nicolettepierce.com/newsletter/ “Like” Nicolette on Facebook: Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/NicolettePierceAuthor Pierce Patrol Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/PiercePatrol View the map of Forgotten Falls! https://www.nicolettepierce.com/map/ ONE Istared at the help wanted ad on my phone and then at the creaky train that was supposed to take me up the White Mountains alive. Both were dubious endeavors, but I had little choice. I was homeless, jobless, boyfriend-less . . . a lot of lesses in my life at the moment. This would be my fresh start. A time to get back to my roots, like Grandma Fina insisted. She was the one who told me stories about Forgotten Falls. How the paranormal creatures and witches lived in harmony without the outside world to bother them or hunt them. It sounded like a break from the human world I needed. Rolling my suitcase to the front counter of the mountain railway, I pulled out my credit card. “Need a ticket up to Mount Washington summit?” the girl behind the counter asked. “Forgotten Falls,” I said. She frowned and looked down at the laminated map that was yellowed with age and curled at the corners. She tapped on the railway path that led up the mountain. “We don’t have stops except at the top. Never heard of Forgotten Falls before.” Grandma Fina had given me directions here and specifically told me to take the train to Forgotten Falls. “Is there a different train?” I asked. “Am I on the wrong side of the mountain?” Please say no. My funds were already depleted, and I had no desire or athletic ability to traipse around New Hampshire trying to find a town. “This is the only one,” she said. “Would you like to talk to the manager?” “Would your manager know anything about Forgotten Falls?” She shrugged. “If anyone knows about it, he would. He’s been here forever.” “Sounds like he’s exactly the person I should talk to.” She pointed to an exit door off to the side. “Head out back. He’s always in the rail yard.” Rolling my suitcase out the door, I found a sprawling equipment graveyard at the base of the mountain. Not seeing anyone, I ventured into a tangled mess. “Hello?” I called. When no one answered, I blew out a frustrated breath. My future job was slipping through my fingers while I wasted time locating the manager. “Hello?” I called again as I weaved my way through rusty metal equipment, tripping on things hidden in the long grass. When no one answered again, I stopped and decided it was time to practice a little magic. Being in the human world, I hadn’t been able to practice like Grandma Fina had wanted. So my skills were as rusty as the junk piles that surrounded me. Wiping the sweat from my brow as the sun beat down on me, I whispered, “Find the manager.” I let my words swirl in the mountain breeze and then, with a flick of my fingers, I sent them away to hunt. “Yer a wind witch,” someone said behind me. I whirled around to find an impossibly thin man. His long gray beard had to weigh more than his body. “Depends on who you are,” I said, knowing most people were either afraid of witches or didn’t believe in them. “Finch Latimer,” he said, hooking his thumbs on dusty jeans that only stayed in place because he wore both suspenders and a belt. “I run Glitchy Gear Railway.” “Perfect. You’re the guy I’m looking for. I’m Wren Whisper, and I need to get to Forgotten Falls.” He eyed me under bushy brows. “I’ve never seen you ride the train before. You new?” I nodded. “I’m applying for a job and need to get to Forgotten Falls before the position is filled.” “What job?” he asked. “Not much changes in Forgotten Falls, including jobs. Unless someone died. I think I would have gotten an announcement on that, though.” He fished around in his pocket and took out a . . . was that a corn-cob pipe? Seriously, how