Stormy Sky Magic (Familiar Kitten Mysteries Book 9)

work, he didn’t strike me as the violent type. Just a country boy out doing God-only-knew-what in that storm, but I was about to find out.
“Afternoon, sheriff,” he said and gave me a nod.
“This bridge is about to be underwater, sir. I’m going to need you to go back,” I said politely. “Whatever it is, it can wait until the storm is over.”
“All due respect, sir, it can’t,” he said, and I saw the raw determination in his eyes.
“What’s going on?” I asked and hoped the story was a short one.
“My boy… My stepson, he just called his mama. I promised her I’d get to him. I’ve gotta get into town and get him. Problems with his father, and I’m afraid if I don’t go get the boy, he’s going to take off walking in this mess.”
“Something I need to get involved in?” I asked. Domestic issues were some of the hardest, and sometimes most dangerous, to deal with.
“No, sir. I think this will be the end of our issues with that man. I assure you I’ll call you if we need you, though. Please just let me be on my way. His mama and I can’t stomach the idea of him being out in this stuff, but he will. It takes a lot for a little kid to have enough, but I think he’s had it.”
I knew deep down in the pit of my stomach that the man was going to gun it and go across that bridge no matter what I said. That would have been more dangerous than if I just stepped out of the way and let him go. I didn’t know for sure if his truck would make it, but if anyone could, it was him.
“Go on,” I said. “Get your boy, but if I have to stand here and watch you get washed away, I’m going to find a way to arrest you.”
“Appreciate it, sir,” he said and rolled up his window.
I stood back by my car and held my breath as he crossed. The water was at least halfway up his tires, and in some places, it was higher. The truck was heavy enough that he didn’t get swept away. We must have had a guardian angel watching over us that day. Him because he didn’t die, and me because I doubted I’d be sheriff much longer if I’d let him.
In fact, for a split second, I almost thought I saw a guardian angel standing across the other side of the creek. I blinked and the lady in a white dress with what looked like huge wings tucked behind her back disappeared.
“I’m going to need another vacation after this,” I mumbled to myself. “Stress has got me seeing things.”

Chapter Three
Kinsley
I’d accidently grabbed one of the throw pillows when I’d yanked the cushions off the couch. It had gotten tossed down the steps with the cushions, and once I’d gotten downstairs, I’d put it underneath an antique oak table stored down there.
That’s where I sat with Tangerine on my lap and Meri next to me on the pillow. He was pressed against my leg until thunder shook the house so hard I thought it might have been an earthquake. At that point, he moved onto my lap with Tangerine. The two of them huddled together while I huddled under the table with them.
I couldn’t see out into the basement because the table was pushed into a corner, and I’d covered the two remaining openings with the pillows. I’d texted Mom to let her know I was okay and we were ready to ride out the storm. She answered that she and Dad were doing the same.
“The house won’t fall on us,” Meri tried to reassure me.
“Really? How do you know that?” I asked.
“It’s still magical, remember? It can protect us,” but he sounded more like he was trying to convince himself than me.
“You can’t die,” I said. “Remember?”
“I know,” he said, but he wasn’t worried about himself.
My hands covered my belly protectively. “So why are we even down here if the house will protect us?”
“Because I don’t know anything for sure anymore,” he said softly and then nuzzled against my stomach. “Better to be too safe.”
Before I could say anything else, I heard a rumble off in the distance. It was sort of like thunder, but not quite. If I had to describe it, I would have said it was more like a freight train, and it was getting closer.
“I think it’s coming,” I said.
“I think you’re right,” Meri answered.
I put my arms around him and Tangerine and pulled them as close to me as I could. When I closed my eyes, I envisioned a bubble around the house. It might not work. I might not have enough power, but I had to try.
The freight train sound grew closer, and with each passing second, the house above me shook more. For a moment, I wondered if I’d lost my mind and a train really was headed for Hangman’s House.
But then, like some sort of miracle, the sound began to get farther away. The house stopped shaking, other than small tremors from the occasional massive clap of thunder, and I decided to crawl out from under the table and check.
I couldn’t stay under there forever, and it had grown stiflingly hot. Meri climbed off my lap first, and Tangerine followed. The little dog wasn’t shaking anymore either. I trusted her instincts. If she thought the danger had passed, then perhaps it had.
Is it over? I texted to my Mom. Then I sent the same text to Thorn.
My mother answered, but Thorn did not. I was still in the basement at that point, but I was out from under the table. Meri was sitting on the bottom step waiting to go back upstairs like nothing had ever happened. Tangerine sat on the floor below that step watching me and panting happily. Now that the danger had passed, she seemed to think we were