to deal with a spirit this way.”
“A comment that does not ease my fear in any way.” I took a deep breath that also didn’t help a whole lot. “Monty, Ashworth, or Eli might know, but in the meantime, we should check your gran’s books.”
“I’ll do that tomorrow. You need to grab everyone else and figure some means of trapping these things.”
A smile tugged my lips as we made our way up the stairs. “My familiar has her bossy pants on this evening, it seems.”
“Actually, I haven’t got any pants on.”
My grin grew. “Monty would be pleased to—”
The rest of that sentence ended in a grunt as Belle shoved her weight sideways and my shoulder hit the wall. “Tart,” I muttered, smiling as I straightened.
“If you stop being a teasing bitch, I’ll stop being a tart.”
I chuckled softly. “One foul revitalization potion coming up.”
“I’ll be asleep before you finish making it.”
“Then I’ll wake you.”
“You’re evil, you know that?”
I chuckled again. Once I’d helped her into bed, I headed back down to make the potion. She was asleep by the time I returned, so I left the concoction on the bedside table for her to drink whenever she woke up.
When I checked her the following morning, the glass was empty but she remained asleep—and probably would be for a good part of the day, given just how drained she’d been.
I rang Monty and Ashworth and asked them to come over once the café had closed for the day, but I couldn’t get hold of Aiden. I left a message and then got down to doing all the little things needing to be done before we opened. The day was steady rather than flat-out, which at least gave me time to run upstairs and check Belle was okay. She was only just beginning to stir by the time Monty and Ashworth arrived.
“Hey,” Monty said. “What’s up?”
“We had a visit from our White Lady last night, and Belle finally communicated with her.”
Monty’s expression immediately became concerned. “Is Belle okay? I know strong spirits can seriously drain a talker’s strength.”
I placed a hand on his arm. “She’s fine but she’s sleeping it off.”
His relief was evident. No matter what Belle might think, his flirtation was more than just a game. “Good. But if she needs a revitalization potion—”
Fuck, no, came Belle’s somewhat sleepy comment. He’d probably add some ever-loving herbs to it.
I barely restrained my grin. Even Monty wouldn’t go that far. He wants to woo and win by fair means, not foul. Are you coming down?
That would be another ‘fuck, no.’
This time, the laugh escaped but I managed to cover it with a cough—though Monty’s raised eyebrow suggested I hadn’t done so too well.
“White Lady?” Ashworth said. “I gather I’m missing some information on this matter.”
“Monty didn’t fill you in?”
Ashworth scowled at him. “No, he did not.”
Monty’s grin was as wide as the Cheshire Cat’s. “Must have forgotten. Sorry.”
“A little more sincerity wouldn’t go astray,” Ashworth growled. “What has the specter got to do with the flesh stripper?”
“Everything. She’s hunting them.” I headed behind the counter to make us all a coffee.
“Them?” Monty said, voice sharp. “There’s more than one?”
“There were three, but thanks to the fact she killed one—”
“The shape shifters are the flesh strippers?” he cut in excitedly. “That’s awesome.”
Ashworth gave him a dark look. “Only the greenest of witches would consider such a fact awesome.”
“Hey, it’s not my fault you’re jaded, old man.”
“This old man will clip you over the ears if you don’t watch your manners.”
Monty’s grin widened. “Even on crutches, I could outrun you.”
“I wouldn’t bet on that.”
“Neither would I.” My voice was dry. I placed their coffees on the table, then sat down and quickly updated them on everything Vita had told us about the Empusae. “We’ve two problems—”
“One, how to find them,” Ashworth cut in.
“And two, how to protect Belle if she does allow this spirit to share her body,” Monty added.
“It’s the second one that worries me the most—do either of you know any spells that can stop a hostile takeover?”
Ashworth frowned. “I know there are a few that can force a spirit out of a body, but I’ve only ever used the usual assortment of charms to prevent the spirit ever getting a hold. They won’t work in a case like this.”
“Not when the spirit is this strong or being willingly invited,” Monty said. “I know uni had a course on spiritual possession. I’ll contact the dean and see if he can give us