Page 55 of Hextreme Measures

That was enough to get him to shake his head. “Absolutely not. You’re not going in there alone.”

“Why? Don’t you think I can take care of myself?”

“That is not why, and you know it.” He was stern. “If you’re going in there, I’m going in there with you.”

“You would be putting your badge on the line if you did that.”

Frustration had Sully swallowing his anger. “You’re more important than my badge. It doesn’t matter, though,” he continued when it became obvious she was going to keep arguing. “I won’t lose my badge. I get to skirt procedure thanks to my work with the paranormal unit. Jack understands that rules can’t always be followed.”

That was both a relief and an annoyance, Ofelia mused. Ultimately, she nodded. “We’re not going through the front door. We’re going to walk around the block, and when we swing back around, I’m going to glamour us so the neighbors won’t see us. Then we’ll go in through the back door.”

Sully smiled. “You have a diabolical mind. I’ve always loved that about you.”

“Stop it with the schmaltz,” she warned as they started down the steps. “It’s freaking me out.”

“You like it, and you know it.”

Ofelia did like it, but only on a day when her best friend wasn’t in danger of turning into a banshee. Joking around and being romantic felt like a betrayal to her. Angelique needed her to be focused.

They didn’t hold hands for their walk. Instead, they pointed at various houses and pretended to be interested in the neighborhood. Ofelia didn’t want the neighbors to recognize them if they happened to be looking out their windows. She wanted them to assume that they were a married couple looking for a new house. There was nothing memorable about them.

Ofelia’s glamour spell kicked in as they made the final turn. Any neighbors would simply forget they were ever out there.

Ofelia was determined when she approached Shirley’s house again. She bypassed the steps that led to the front door and used her magic to open the gate that led to the fenced-in backyard.

Sully kept close, and he didn’t question Ofelia when she used her magic to bypass the lock on the back door. He merely smiled at how smoothly she’d carried it off.

“Should I be worried that you’re out here breaking laws all the time?” he asked as they poked their heads inside to look for the occupant. “You pulled that off a little too easily.”

“What you don’t know can’t hurt you,” she replied as she walked into the kitchen and took a look at the decorations. The house had an eclectic feel, with pots and pans hanging over the island to save space and poppets on the shelves serving as points of interest.

“Are those voodoo dolls?” Sully asked as he stared at the weird poppets. “They seem … off.”

“They’re poppets,” Ofelia replied. “Voodoo dolls, as portrayed in books and movies, are often misrepresented. Poppets are used for specific wishes, like if you want money, you would go for that one.” She pointed at a poppet that was made out of green cloth. “It will smell like cinnamon and mint.”

Sully made a face. “Those scents don’t belong together.”

“That’s not the aim of the poppets.” Ofelia focused on a different poppet. “That one is for love. See the red fabric? It will be stuffed with rose petals and lavender.” She stepped closer. “I’m pretty sure that hair is human.”

Sully moved in behind her. “You mean the blond stuff clipped to the poppet? I didn’t even realize that was hair until you said something.”

“It’s definitely hair.” Ofelia didn’t touch any of the poppets. Danger was hard to avoid when messing with other people’s magic. “Let’s look at the rest of the house.”

Sully wordlessly followed her. This really was Ofelia’s milieu, not his own. She had no problem fitting in with the voodoo queens and the hoodoo conjurers. They all respected one another when it came to talking about magic.

This house, the things he was seeing, made him distinctly uncomfortable. Ofelia seemed right at home.

“What’s this?” Sully asked when they were in the living room. The coffee table was covered with crystals and stones. The stones had strange markings on them. None of the stones were the same size.

“Runes,” Ofelia replied. “These stones are different.” She didn’t touch them. “Most of the stones I’ve seen like this have Viking symbols. I’m not sure what these ones depict.” She extended a finger, then pulled it back.

That was when Sully realized she wasn’t touching anything. “Are you afraid of those stones?” he asked, suddenly cognizant that she was showing Shirley’s house more respect than he believed the woman deserved.

“Afraid is not the right word,” she replied. “I am … respecting … the stones.” She glanced up at him. “We don’t know what the stones are supposed to represent. Until we do, it’s best not to touch them.” She took out her phone and snapped photos of the runes. Then she returned to the kitchen to take photos of the poppets.

Sully wasn’t as worried about respecting the space, so when Ofelia returned to the living room, she found him sitting in a chair flipping through an old, leather-bound book.

“What’s that?” she asked, stepping closer.