"She's fucking amazing," Bess whispered. Ursula cut her a look but then silently agreed.
"You have no place here anymore. The vote came in and you're out." Rob's smugness could be felt. It was thick, cloying, that overreaching humidity after a summer rainstorm, and overreaching male privilege.
Tilly scrunched her nose at the feeling and Eloise scrunched hers at the smell of too much spicy cologne and the scent of crisply unused money.
"I've said this before and I will say it again, Rob," Cora lifted her head. "If the town doesn't want me as mayor, I gracefully bow out. But I will still stand here for those who need fighting for. You," she pointed to a narrow-eyed Rob then pointed to the three women, "and you three are clearly here to create a space of privilege for whomever you decide has earned it. And as long as people like you are yelling, people like us," she made a wide sweep of her arm, "will come toe-to-toe with you to match your noise."
"You still do not have the power here," Rob said.
"Power is an interesting concept," someone shouted through another bullhorn.
They turned to see a tall blonde woman wearing a light pink blazer walking through the crowd that Freida brought, and behind her was a single file of women in matching pink blazers.
The woman who spoke held out a file to Jessica whose wide smile greeted her. She then boldly walked up to a wary Rob and held out another file.
He looked at it then back at the woman. "What is this?""You're not Rob Sandis?" she asked, a faux look of confusion on her pretty features.
"I am," was his proud reply as he took the folder.
Her confused look melted into a practiced smile. "Then you've been served."
She promptly turned, winked at Jessica, and then she and her line of pink-clad businesswomen found a place behind The Lost Souls Coven.
As Rob stuttered out indecent expletives, ripping open the manila paper someone else parted the crowd- slow, steady, tall.
Tilly's heart tripped when she saw Theo in his uniform with two officers flanking him.
Her mind rewound Astra's words about him using her, and she swallowed against the pain and fear, but that was pushed aside when he pulled out handcuffs and read Rob Sandis his rights in the middle of Salem, in the middle of a crowd he had used fear to collect.
Jessica watched on with a look of content joy.
They couldn't hear what was happening but Rob was loud about not agreeing with the charges. He looked wildly to Astra who simply stood by, the only emotion showing slightly on her face was annoyance. She would not save him here.
She didn't need him.
The two officers escorted a bewildered and irate Rob through the crowd. But Theo stopped for a moment, his head turned and dark eyes zeroed in on Tilly. He'd known exactly where she was standing in the crowd and the people and space between them melted away.
Just empty space, no noise, him staring into her and there was a beckoning, a promise.
A promise of what, she wasn't sure. But then he gave her a half smile, breaking the concrete of his stoic face and she knew without one note of doubt or anxiety that he had not used her.
And the warmth that flooded her was the catalyst for kicking out any voices in her head that screamed uncertainty.
Rob called Astra's name and she ignored him, pinning Crystal with a look. "Theatrics won't get you out of this."
When Margaret walked out of the parting crowd, Crystal smiled.
"Came to see for yourself, Margaret?"
Astra's eyes darted to where the older woman stood. Shock was clear on her severe face, shock that rippled through the other two at her side as she nearly stumbled to bow her head.
"Margaret, I didn't know," she looked for help from the others. This was the first time she looked nothing like the solid general in control.
"You didn't know that I would be here to see what you and your," she looked Esther and Beatrice up and down with an unimpressed look, "sidekicks were up to?" Her tone held annoyance.
"We're doing our job. My job," she corrected.
"Oh?" Margaret took three graceful, but powerful, steps toward her. They watched with rapt attention as Astra became rigid, and yet exuded insecurity. Tilly soaked it up, feeling hydrogen peroxide bubbles inside of her at the woman's fear and discomfort. "And when did you decide that your job was to use dark magic?"
