Author note: Hello everyone! Here is another chapter. It was a little hard to get this chapter flowing so let me know if there is something that you find "off".
Disclaimer: I own nothing that is recognizable in this fanfiction story. The Midnight, Texas series belongs to Charlaine Harris.
Chapter 4 – Sexy Beast
Winnie groaned loudly as she walked through the door of Bobo's office. The owner of the shop looked up from his paperwork, to see the female psychic plop down in the chair beside him. He saw the bright yellow words written on the front of her shirt and chuckled; it read 'I'm a Friggin' Ray of Sunshine' which was ironic given her obviously sour mood.
"Good morning," Bobo greeted.
"Not even close," she said letting her head fall back against the back of the chair, "Wait, I take that back, I should say 'not any more'.
"Manny can be with whoever he wants, but I keep having to leave the house when she comes over because their time together is spent having sex. Then he tells me I'm only upset because I haven't gotten laid recently—and while that's true—I'm mostly upset that, not only is he in an unhealthy relationship, but it's making me uncomfortable in my own house.
"Maybe I should just find my own place," she muttered before turning her head and looking at him, "Or get a new brother?" Winnie laughed and turned back to the ceiling, "What do you say Bobo? How about having a little sister?"
When she didn't get a response, Winnie looked back at the man. He was sitting their staring at his desk but not really seeing anything, lost in his own thoughts.
"Bobo? You okay?"
He shook himself both physically and mentally, "Yeah, I'm fine. Just…never mind, it's nothing. But I wouldn't mind having another friend," he replied giving her a playful smile, "and right now I could use some help. How about you help me dust up the place and take your mind off this nonsense?"
She hopped up with a bounce and smiled down at him, "Yeah, but first…do you have any coffee?"
He laughed and shook his head before getting up and heading to the small kitchenette to refill and turn on the coffee pot.
Bobo was putting up the cleaning supplies while Winnie went to pick up the newspaper. She read the headline on the first page and grimaced.
When Bobo came back to the front, she silently handed him the paper before moving around to the other aisle to give him privacy while he read.
A few minutes later Fiji came into the store. "Hey, I brought you some—," she paused seeing the man's face and when he threw down the paper he had been reading she asked, "What's wrong?"
"Investigation my ass," he snarled, "They know who did it—Lowry, Aubrey's husband. Problem is they can't find him."
Fiji shook her head and tried for a reassuring tone but her voice wavered, "They will." She moved past him and further into the store.
"Well, I happen to know for a fact that Sons of Lucifer hangs out in the back room of the Cartoon Saloon."
Fiji stood there watching him with a look mixed between confusion and annoyance, "You're thinking about going there, aren't you?"
"I don't know," he replied quietly.
"Well you should know. Don't. Just let the cops do their job, and stay away from the Cartoon Saloon." She started to walk toward the back but stopped when Bobo spoke.
"He killed Aubrey…"
The dark-haired woman turned around tongue slowly licking her thinned lips, face clearly annoyed.
"…killed the Sheriff."
Fiji looked hurt as she spoke and her tone was reproachful, "And you just got out of jail, on suspicion of murder, and we risked our lives to get you out. And you going after Lowry's just gonna bring the cops right back to Midnight. That is not good for anybody. So you will stay out of it."
The man nodded and agreed, "You're totally right. Yep."
"You bet I am."
"I wasn't, um…thinking straight," he continued.
She was delighted that he was agreeing with her, "You certainly were not."
"I'll stay clear of this whole mess. I…" he held his hand over his heart, "Promise."
The Wiccan nodded with a pleased smile. "Good. Now, do you want to come over for dinner tonight? I am making shepherd's pie." She asked with a coquettish look on her face.
Bobo smiled back shyly, "I love your shepherd's pie."
"I know," Fiji said, smiling brightly.
"Hello?" a woman's voice called from the front of the store.
The voice drew the attention of Bobo, Fiji and their reluctant audience of Winnie, who had frozen not wanting to repeat what had happened at the church with Joe and the Rev.
Fiji decided to leave and headed for the exit, "I'll see you later."
"Okay," Bobo agreed while taking the basket the woman handed him.
"I need to speak to somebody who works her," a blonde woman announced as she came closer.
"That would be me," the brunette man answered.
"Did a guy come in here recently and pawn a Rolex?" the female asked as she stopped in front of Bobo. She was older, mid to late forties, and dressed in nice clothes.
"Did he drive a vintage red Caddy?"
The woman's face showed clear recognition of the description and Bobo nodded.
"Mm," he said with raised brows before moving to a display and clearing his throat. The woman followed. Bobo pulled a watch from a case and showed it to the woman.
The stranger breathed a sigh, "Ass head. It's my brother. He's missing, and our parents are worried about him," she explained. "He didn't happen to say where he was going?"
"He didn't say," Bobo began, "But I do think I know someone who can help you."
He quickly told the woman about 'the resident psychic' and told her were to find him. She left after getting directions.
Winnie walked up behind him, startling him a little when she spoke, "That is some serious UST between you and Fiji. You both have got it bad."
"What, no, Fiji's just a really good friend," Bobo denied.
Winnie gave him a 'seriously' face. "Yeah, well, I'm your friend too, and I can honestly tell you, she wants to jump your bones," the psychic stated bluntly, "And with all the tension I can sense between you two, the feeling is not only mutual but you've been pining over each other for some time."
He shook his head and Winnie could tell he was about to disagree again so she cut him off.
"Yeah, sure, deny it all you want," she rolled her eyes, "but when you two are ready. I'll be rooting for you." She smiled and left the store.
Winnie caught up with the blonde stranger as she was about to enter the RV and she came in behind the older woman. Her brother shot her a curious look that clearly asked 'what are you doing' and she gave him one that told him 'don't even try it, I'm not leaving'.
Winnie sat down on the long seat and the woman looked to her curiously so she said, "I'm a psychic too."
The woman scoffed and joked, "What, do psychics come in pairs now?"
The gypsy girl laughed. "From birth," she waved a finger between her brother and herself, "We're twins."
Manny went to pull candles from the cabinet and the woman started to speak, "The only time Ted visits our parents is to beg for money or steal something, but now that he's missing they're beside themselves. You ask me, he's probably holed up with some stripper again."
Putting the candles down, the male psychic began to say, "I need something of your brother's, something meaningful to him…to give me a psychic impression, a clue as to where he is."
The woman shook her head in disbelief but said, "Sure," handing over a ring from her finger she explained, "Ted's pinky ring. I took it as collateral last time I loaned him money. Will that do?"
Manny took it. "I think so."
Winnie helped close all of the curtains and then sat back down to quietly observe.
"Anything?" the woman asked.
Manny and Winnie both turned to the front of the RV as they heard a noise. Ted's ghost appeared in the passenger seat and the redhead winced when she got a good look. There were open wounds on Ted's jaw and neck. Manny's face went slack.
Their client turned to see what they were staring at but obviously didn't see anything as she asked, "What is it?"
"Getting images," Manny started saying as he watched Ted's ghost take in the surroundings and then looking at himself, "Does your brother work with heavy equipment?"
"Ted doesn't even have a job."
"You can see me," the man's ghost said pointing at Manny.
"Oh, yeah," the medium whispered.
"Pats," the ghost recognized his sister and moved closer to her, "Oh, Pats, you were right. I sucked as a brother, a son. It was all my fault. Should have never picked up that hot blonde," he scolded himself.
"What hot blonde?" Manny questioned leaning forward.
"See? I told you." The woman said turning her head in shame.
"Just at a rest stop," answered Ted, "One minute we're driving along. Next, something's eating me like a taco."
Winnie felt a little sick at that description as she looked at the ghost's disfigured face.
"And she stole my Caddy," the ghost finished.
When the woman and ghost were gone, Manny started looking up all the local bars and clubs in the area. As he finished up he spoke to his sister, "I'm going to go look around. You should stay here in case that blonde shows up in town."
"You can't go alone!" she protested. "She's eating people, Manny. What if you find her and she attacks you?"
"It'll be fine. I'm just going to see if I can find Ted's car, as soon as I do I'll come back and point the cops and his sister in the right direction."
Winnie narrowed her eyes. "The first sign of trouble and you'll come back?"
"I promise."
She reluctantly nodded before agreeing, "Alright. I'll stay here."
Watching the RV drive off, Winnie started thinking about what she would do while she waited for her brother to return. Ghosts still popped up around the house so she chose to go out. The first thought was going to the restaurant to grab an early lunch but that thought was quickly dismissed, since she still felt a little queasy after seeing Ted's ghost. She went through all her options until she settled on going to Fiji's to see if the woman had any ginger, maybe she could calm her stomach and have lunch afterward.
Fiji wasn't at her place so Winnie decided to go back to her house, but she stopped when she saw the reverend tending the pet cemetery. She walked over and he must have heard her coming because he stood and turned to look at her.
The weretiger didn't exactly smile but his eyes brightened when he saw her. "Hello, Winifred, can I help you?"
"I doubt it," she answered with a shrug, "I was looking for Fiji but she's not home. When I saw you, I came over to see how you were doing?"
"Most days I'm good," he said with a small half-smile, "Thankfully, today is one of those days. And you?"
"My stomach is a little upset actually. I was going to ask Fiji for some ginger and see if it helped," she replied, "There was a woman that came by looking for her missing brother. Manny agreed to help. When the brother's ghost showed up he wasn't in good shape. He'd been…eaten."
"Eaten?" the Rev asked slightly alarmed.
With a nod she explained, "Yeah, apparently the brother, Ted, picked up a 'hot blonde' at a rest stop and then she attacked him. There were bite marks on his face and neck, but it was weird. The marks looked like the ones you'd find after an animal attack, they were jagged like whatever took a bite out of him had really sharp teeth. I'm pretty sure she wasn't human."
"Do you know where he was attacked?"
She shook her head, "No, but it was after he came here. Ted pawned a Rolex at Bobo's and drove off with an envelope full of cash. His sister came to the pawn shop looking for him. Now Manny is out there. He said he was looking for the brother's car, but I know he's really trying to find the woman and-or Ted's body."
"Perhaps it is not just your stomach that is bothering you," the reverend told her.
"You're probably right," she acknowledged, "But this is Manny's choice. He agreed to help and he'll do what he can. Worrying about it won't help anyone and all it is doing now is throwing off my appetite."
He smiled kindly, "I'm sure you can find a way to distract yourself."
She really couldn't stop the giggles that burst out of her, once she had them contained she cleared her throat, "Excuse me, I just remembered something my brother said this morning about me needing to get…distracted. But you're right. I'm going to go find something to do. See you later, Rev."
The RV drove up outside the house and Winnie glanced up. She had been busy drawing all afternoon and was on the couch, pencil in one hand and a spoon of peanut butter in the other. Her stomach had settled after she started drawing but by then she decided to stay home instead of going to the restaurant. So she was currently in a pair of plaid lounge pants and a white tank top with the words 'I'm Not Weird. I'm Limited Edition.'
Manny came charging into the door only to stop short at finding his sister in the living room, "Come on," he said breathlessly, "We need to talk to the others."
"What's going on?" she asked dropping her book and pencil on the table, at the same time she licked the spoon clean, and put it down beside them.
"I found the car, and the woman. Turns out she's definitely not human."
"Well, duh?" she said before going into the bedroom. She called out form the other room, "Hold on, I need to change into a pair of jeans…and shoes...and a jacket!"
"Just hurry up!" He called back in exasperation.
"Geez, I'm ready," she exclaimed coming out of the bedroom fully dressed with shoes and her riding jacket on. She walked passed him and opened the door before looking at him expectantly, "Come on. What's taking you so long?"
He shook his head and playfully asked, "Why do I put up with you?"
"One, I put up with you. Two, I'm your sister. And three, I'm awesome," She said as they left, "The benefits of keeping me around, far outweigh the cost."
He nodded while she spoke and then replied with a smirk, "All valid points."
The two psychics had decided to use the Midnighters Room in the restaurant for the impromptu meeting.
Manny asked Joe for help and Chuy had also come, both men were seated at the table across from each other. Lemuel joined them and was leaning on the table beside Joe. Fiji, who was sitting on a small end table beside the door, seemed to be dressed up but a little sad. Creek was currently working but was staying in the room for the meeting, and she was standing beside Manny. Winnie stood on the waitress's other side. Manny was watching over Joe's shoulder as the artist sketched out the creature the medium was describing.
As Manny described the monster that had eaten his client's brother, Winnie was actually able to get a brief vision of the woman and it made her shiver. When she caught a glimpse of Joe's drawing she thought it was almost a perfect match, except for the mouth.
Joe looked at Manny when he was done.
"More teeth," he told the artist.
Joe made the addition but Manny still seemed unsatisfied. He gestured with his hand as he spoke, fingers curled like claws, "Yeah, but more—rows of teeth, and mouth open like this gaping hellhole."
Fiji moved to stand with the other women in the room and looked at the sketch.
"Like a shark, but with fangs instead of triangular teeth," Winnie elaborated using her thumbs and pointer fingers to make a triangle. Her brother looked at her and she shrugged before explaining, "I suddenly got a vision when you were describing her. She's one bad fiend."
Joe sighed but Manny continued, "And a-a spider web tattoo on the shoulder."
"And she was…" the artist drew out.
"Eating…" the brunette replied and turned to look at the three women, "people, yeah."
"Sounds like a succubus, which is odd," Lem told them. "I haven't seen one around here in over a century."
"A succubus?" Manny questioned.
"Ancient supernaturals—hunters, rare," he stood and started to pace as he continued with his explanation, "They usually lie low and they have a perpetual glamour that lets them appear beautiful so they can seduce their prey."
"Prey? As in…men."
"Mm-hmm," Lem said as he passed by Winnie and took the seat at the head of the table beside where the gypsy girl stood, "But they only feed on men who've caused pain."
"Wonder why she came after you?" said the beautician as he looked at Manny.
Winnie frowned at the accusing tone in Chuy's voice but she turned to glare at the waitress when Creek spoke.
"Yeah, why?"
Manny let out a nervous chuckle and glanced away before his eyes fell on the floor. His brow knit as he countered, "So no—no one here has ever caused anyone pain?"
"Fair enough," Joe said nodding to the male psychic.
"The real question is, why now?" Lem asked, "Why would a succubus show up here acting so rechlessly?"
Winnie was the only one who noticed the significant glance that passed between Chuy and his husband, before Joe's face tensed and he gave a minute shake of his head.
'Right, the Veil,' Winnie remembered. She glanced at her brother worried about what he would do if, no when, he found out.
"Hey, Manny," Winnie said quietly as Creek left the room, "Maybe you should sit down? You seem a little jumpy."
"Yeah, alright," he sighed as he sat down on the tabletop beside Joe.
Winnie moved over to his right and started rubbing his back. "You've been running around since this morning and you did great work," she complemented, "You found a succubus in a Texas sized haystack." She smiled at him and pat his shoulder, "Take a break."
"This succubus is leaving a trail of bodies," Joe spoke up as he looked at the twins.
"And bodies will bring the law back to Midnight, we can't have that," the vampire elaborated.
Chuy voiced the next statement, "We need to stop her before she causes more damage."
Manny nodded, "So how do we do that?"
"Dragon's breath…"Joe informed, Manny gave him a curious look that he waved away as he continued, "according to medieval folklore."
"And Wikipedia," Chuy added, trying to cover.
"Okay," Manny acknowledged, "Short of finding a dragon, how do you stop a succubus?"
"Maybe you could just set her on fire?" Winnie asked quietly so only her brother could hear.
Fiji came closer with a look of 'eureka' on her face, "I think I know," she stated softly.
Everyone except Lem, who left to get Olivia, headed over to Fiji's to see what her idea was.
Winnie was walking next to Chuy and lowered her voice so no one else heard as she asked, "I know I'm going to sound like a kid when I say this, but here goes—Can we get ice cream after we kill the succubus? I've been craving it lately."
He laughed silently and pursed his lip trying not to smile. "Sure."
"Yay," she chirped quietly and flashed him a grin before wrapping both her arms around his in a quick hug.
The group made it into Fiji's house and into her herb garden, where she started collecting herbs and began to explain, "I'm making a tincture. It's really just a fancy word for potion. This will remove the succubus's glamour." She tasted one of the herbs she clipped and chuckled, "Yeah. Without her looks, she will not be seducing anyone."
Creek walked closer to the Wiccan woman trying to get a better look.
"See," Fiji said giving her mixture a shake, "it's really just basic chemistry."
"So we can slow her down, but how do we find her?" Manny asked.
"She'll be looking for men," Joe warned.
Creek shared her thought, "If a woman's trolling for guys around here, there's only one place to go on a Thursday night."
"Not me," Winnie said aloud while checking out the fresh rosemary, "I like that whole 'getting to know you' stage. I've got to understand a guy before we can start humping like bunnies, which is really hard to do when you're a gypsy, but I manage." She scoffed, "Besides I enjoy marathon sex and it's easier when you have things to talk about during intermissions."
Manny cleared his throat before speaking, "Winnie?"
She turned around with raised brows and a curious hum.
"We, uh, can hear you," he explained.
"I know," she acknowledged, "I also know that we're all adults and most of us have healthy sex lives." Winnie glanced at the others who appeared a little shocked. Joe wouldn't meet her eyes, and Chuy had a small smile playing on his lips. "Shouldn't we get going?"
Outside of the Cartoon Saloon almost everyone grabbed a bottle with the potion. Winnie was the odd duck but she wasn't worried as they entered the bar. The succubus only seemed to be targeting men.
Fiji turned around to address the group, "We just need to get a drop of tincture in the succubus's mouth."
"Then we have to get her away from people, somewhere private before anyone notices what's happening," Lem suggested.
"We should split up. Blend in," Manny told them.
"Sure," the vampire said voice full of sarcasm as he took Olivia's jacket, "Blend in."
Winnie watched everyone move away and was trying to decide where she would start looking when she heard Fiji.
"Really?" the black-haired woman asked disbelievingly.
Winnie glanced in the direction the other woman was looking and spotted who she thought was Bobo. Remembering the conversation between him and Fiji that morning Winnie winced and followed the woman who was following the pawn shop owner.
A flash of an image appeared in her mind's eye and when she had processed the vision, Winnie moved faster even passing Fiji as she tried to catch up to Bobo.
She was in time to watch her landlord enter the room.
"I want to talk to Peter Lowry," he announced.
"I don't think I know the man," the biker closest to Bobo said. "You enjoy the remodel?"
Bobo didn't reply, instead he head-butted the man in the mouth causing the biker to fall against the pool table.
"I know Lowry killed his wife and the sheriff. But he's the police's problem now. All I want is to be left alone," Bobo stated.
The man bared his bloody teeth as he spoke, "You make me sick, Winthrop. You're a traitor to your family, your race. You got so little pride you'd rather pollute yourself by living with those—"
Bobo punched him this time and the man went flying onto the same pool table he had landed on earlier. The shop owner then grabbed a pool cue, broke it in half, and moved over the downed biker ready to stab him.
This is the moment Winnie had seen and she was ready to move but then the cue went flying out of Bobo's hand and she had to jump out of the way. The peace of wood flew right past the psychic and into Fiji's hand. Everything around them seemed to stop as the whole room took in what was happening.
Bobo looked ashamed as he saw the two women standing at the door.
Fiji dropped the cue and her visage was hard when she spoke, "Bobo, we should go."
"Any of you set foot in Midnight again, I'll kill you," Bobo warned as he moved to the door. He said something to Fiji when he was close.
All three left quietly and without interruption.
When Fiji and Bobo stopped in the hall to talk Winnie kept walking. The gypsy could see Olivia, Lem, Manny and Creek all in the main room but she spotted Joe and Chuy going into another hallway leading to another set of back rooms. It was easy to pick her way through the crowd and she soon caught up to them. They were too engrossed in their conversation to notice her.
Around the next corner all three saw what appeared to be a slender curly-haired blonde, but when the person turned around they had a beard.
Winnie giggled which startled Joe who she was standing behind, "I wonder if he plays as a Bearded-Lady?" She saw them both looking at her strangely, "What? Some Bearded-Ladies were just men dressed in women's clothes. Long time ago, the women is Shakespeare's plays had facial hair."
Chuy laughed, "True."
"Didn't I see you with Fiji a while ago?" Joe asked.
"Yeah, but we ran into Bobo and their talking now. I'm the only one that doesn't have a bottle of the potion, so I thought it would be better to stay close to someone who did. Olivia and Lem are out, Manny and Creek are together, so that leaves me asking you guys if I can tag along. Personally, I think we should blow this place and find a Popsicle stand."
"Still craving ice-cream, huh?" Chuy teased.
"Oh, I've got it bad," she replied absently rubbing her stomach.
Chuy slung his arms around both Winnie and Joe's shoulders and turned them in the direction of the bar, "Come on, maybe we can get you a margarita."
They had entered the room when Manny found them, "The succubus is outside."
Their group came running out of the bar to find Lem and Creek in the lot with the succubus who appeared to be choking and her fangs were showing.
"We need to get her out of site," Joe told Lem, who nodded.
"Got it," the vampire replied before throwing the succubus over his shoulder and speeding away in a flash.
"Let's go," Olivia said thrusting her chin toward the RV and everyone piled in before Manny took off.
They found Lem with the succubus, who was still gasping and then fell to the ground.
They surrounded and watched as the female creature started jerking around and letting out pained cries.
"Is this normal?" Manny wondered aloud.
"Transformations are always painful," Fiji informed him.
A green mist seemed to finish stripping away the glamour to leave behind the form of a wrinkled hag in a tattered dress made from roots and moss.
"Good job on the tincture," Chuy complemented.
The succubus got to her feet and in a raspy voice she questioned, "What have you done to me?"
"I took away your glamour, so you couldn't kill any more men," Fiji admitted.
"We had no choice," Lem told the angry paranormal. "Supernaturals lay low in these parts. Indiscriminate hunting of humans will not be tolerated."
She moved to lung at the vampire who retaliated by throwing her into a tree. The succubus fell limply to the ground and rolled.
The male psychic stepped forward, "She dead?"
The creature suddenly opened her eyes and snarled causing most of the group to jump back. She flopped around and they could hear the crunching of bones as the succubus seemed to move in unnatural ways.
Manny winced, "Oh, God."
Winnie, Manny and Creek shared the same disgusted grimace. A second later, the succubus crawled off on all fours into the surrounding trees and they lost sight of her.
"You all expected that?" Manny asked the others.
Fiji shook her head from her place beside Bobo. "No."
"That's a surprise," Lem confirmed.
"What do we do now?" Bobo questioned as his eyes scanned the trees.
"Creek!" a voice suddenly called out, "Help!"
"That's Connor," the waitress said in recognition.
"Let's go," Bobo ordered.
Then Manny suggested, "Everybody split up."
Winnie sprinted forward and let her psychic sense guide her. She found the succubus before the others, but the creature had already found Creek's brother.
"Over here!" Winnie shouted and she heard the others coming their way.
"Wait!" Creek cried as the others arrived, "I'm begging you. Don't hurt him."
The succubus turned to look at Creek before proclaiming, "He deserves it. They all do," then she turning back to snarl at the young man and readied to bite him.
"Let him go," commanded Olivia as she pointed her weapon at the hag.
"We know what you're going through," Lem tried to placate, "I struggle with appetites that I need to keep in check. Maybe I can help."
"Hey," Manny yelled as he came into view on the other side of the succubus. Then he told the others "Grab him. Stay back."
Lem used his speed to get Connor away and Manny used the propane tank he was carrying as a flamethrower to set the succubus on fire. She screeched as the flames consumed her and seemed to melt.
The others came closer as the flames died and Manny sat the tank down saying, "Closest thing to dragon's breath I could find."
Winnie came up to hug her brother as Joe told him, "Uh, quick thinking."
"Literally a hot mess," Olivia commented before she and Lemuel left.
Winnie's visage took on a contemplative look and she hummed as she gazed at the molten fiend. The others noticed this and became curious about what she was thinking. Two seconds later, she seemed to snap out of it and turned to Chuy.
"Okay, time for ice-cream," she said cheerily.
Manny guffawed.
His sister turned to the laughing man, "What?"
"You really talked them into buying you ice-cream?" Manny said in amusement.
"No," Winnie defended with a hurt look but added in a matter-of-fact tone, "They haven't offered yet."
He just shook his head and draped an arm around his sister's shoulders to pull her closer before telling Chuy, "Watch out, she's even better at conning people than I am."
"I don't con my friends, Manny," she told her brother as they walked away. As they passed she snaked an arm into Chuy's and grinned at him before continuing, "I convince them." Both men at her sides laughed and she smiled happily. "You can do that with best friends and brothers."
They all got back into the RV and went back to the bar to get their individual vehicles.
When they reached town everyone went their separate ways. Manny left Creek, Connor and his sister at Home Cookin' before heading back to their place to park the RV.
Winnie ordered ice-cream at the bar and stood waiting. Creek passed by and the gypsy gypsy gave her a nod. Her eyes drifted over to the booth that Joe and Chuy were sitting in and she saw Joe move into the booth next to Chuy and wrap an arm around his husband.
"Here you go," Madonna said setting the bowl of mint chocolate chip on the counter.
"Thanks," Winnie said as she picked up the bowl and went to sit next to her friends.
They watched her as she took Joe's previous seat and the angel moved his plate of food out of the way so she could set the bowl down.
"You know," she started to say, her eyes on her dessert, but stopped to swallow down the emotions that suddenly choked her, "I'm going to miss you guys. I've never really had friends before. There are a couple of contacts here and there but…no friends. Since I was a kid, Grandma and Manny were all I had. Now, it's just Manny."
"And us," Joe added and he gave her a small smile when she looked at them.
She suddenly beamed at them, "Yeah."
The next morning Winnie left the house and ran into Bobo on the sidewalk. She matched his steps and started walking next to him.
"Morning," he said with a bright smile.
"Good morning," she replied looking at him suspiciously, "You're looking happy this morning and you're obviously heading toward Fiji's. Finally decided to ask her out, I see."
They paused outside the gate to the Wiccan's shop.
"Yeah," he admitted with a boyish grin.
She returned it with a happy smile, "Well, like I said before, I'm rooting for you."
"Thanks," he replied and they both turned in different directions. He went toward Fiji's and Winnie crossed the street to the church.
Entering the church, Winnie didn't see the reverend so she moved further inside.
"Hello, Winifred," a quiet voice spoke from behind the gypsy.
She gasped and turned around to find the man she had been looking for. Her heart pounded in her chest and she was surprised at how close he was standing.
Laughing away her nervousness, she spoke, "You scared me, Rev. Manny's always telling me I should get a bell. Maybe I should buy us both one," she teased and he laughed.
"My apologies," he offered and then teasing lightly said, "We do seem to share a knack for sneaking up on people."
"Yeah, sorry about that," she apologized, remembering what happened last time she was at the church. "I just got used to everyone around me wanting to stay away from 'the crazy gypsy girl', so I learned to be quiet and people would ignore me."
Her face twisted into a pained smile, "There was actually a group of kids that tried to stone Manny and I once. I mean, everywhere we went people talked behind our backs but as we got older, people got crueler. There are reasons why I don't like crowds, or being alone, and why I can't stand bullies."
"People can be cruel," he acknowledged in a tone full of understanding, "but you shouldn't allow their cruel actions to rule your life. Do not allow them to have that kind of power over you."
She shook her head and looked him in the eyes. "I don't. I've just learned to be cautious," as she spoke, Winnie held up her hands, gloves on display.
"That's good to hear," he told her and then his expression became curious, "Was there something you needed?"
"No, I just wanted to let you know that we found the succubus last night. She won't be causing problems anymore." She bit her lip and finished saying, "If you've got the time, maybe I can run a few thoughts by you."
"Always. Would you like to take a seat?" he offered.
She nodded and took a seat on the closest bench. "Things have been crazy since Manny and I got to Midnight. Our grandma taught us to leave when the going gets tough. I'm afraid that one day Manny will decide it's too much and leave. As much as I've come to care about this town and the people in it, I will never abandon my brother."
"Life is full of hard decisions, but the choice is always yours to make. It's the blessing and curse of having free will."
"Mm," her brows rose in a facial shrug. A moment later, she smiled impishly, "You're absolutely right!" She got up from the bench and stretched out her hand to him causing him to give her a curious look, "I choose to invite you to eat breakfast will me this morning. I also choose waffles, which means going to the restaurant. You can choose to refuse, in which case I will have to choose to decline any refusal you can come up with. So," she smiled shyly, "Will you have breakfast with me?"
A smile slowly came to his face and he almost seemed to surprise himself as he said, "I would be delighted." When he rose he took her hand and gently placed it in the crook of his elbow, and they left together.