A Witch in Time

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“And now, for news abroad,” boomed the nasal voice of the famous gossip TV news anchor. “It’s been a few weeks since the death of his father, King Nassir Assam Salamuddin, but Prince Karim Idris Salamuddin still hasn’t taken the throne. Is the playboy prince going to be crowned soon? Palace insiders say he doesn’t want to give up his freedom, though official statements say that the coronation will happen after an appropriate mourning period.”
“And when is that?” the flamboyant co-host interjected. “I’m dying to see His Highness wearing that crown.”
“Who knows?” the host replied. “Zhobghadi is a such a mysterious country, and it’s only recently they’ve even been on anyone’s radar. As you know, the late king set the tongues wagging when he married an English—”
Jade Creed grabbed the remote control and pointed it at the TV, silencing it. “Ugh, I don’t know why you listen to this trash.”
“Hey!” Meredith Jonasson protested. “I can’t watch the real news anymore, it’s too depressing. I’d rather learn about which celebrity is screwing who.” When she saw Lara and Elise walking into the kitchen, she turned to them. “Did you guys get any good stuff?”
“A couple of things.” Lara raised the shopping bags in her hand in the air.
Jade’s light green eyes sparkled with mirth. “That’s more than a couple of things.” She walked over from where she was sitting on one of the stools and hugged her friend before turning to Elise. “Hey, Elise, did you survive shopping with your mom?”
“Mostly,” she joked.
“Did you have Daric head to Shanghai for all of this?” Lara gestured to the food on the table. While most people would think that sounded crazy, it was a normal occurrence in the Jonasson household since Daric was a warlock who could travel great distances in the blink of an eye.
“Nah, he’s too busy,” Meredith said. “I got takeout from Emerald Dragon.” She pointed to the empty stools. “C’mon, eat up.”
Elise took the seat next to Aunt Jade, who handed her a plate of rice and a pair of chopsticks. She thanked her and began to dig into the vast amount of dishes piled on the table.
“How’s Astrid doing?” Lara asked Meredith. “And the baby?”
“She’s doing amazing, of course,” Meredith answered through a mouthful of General Tso’s chicken. “The job’s stressing her out a bit, but I know she’ll do well there too.”
“I can’t believe Lucas chose her to be Beta.” Jade reached for an egg roll and plopped it on her plate. “I mean, I know she’ll be great, and hello—a female Beta? It’s about time. But it was still a surprise.”
“To me too,” Meredith admitted. “But I’m so fucking proud of her.”
“And you let her know by arguing with her, right?” Lara snickered. “You guys are so much alike.”
“Hey, she’s the one who thinks she knows everything, while I’ve only been working as second-in-command for the Lycan Security Team for almost three decades.” Meredith swallowed and turned to Jade. “Speaking of daughters, how’s Dee? Is she enjoying the field work?”
Perhaps it was because of her sensitive, nurturing nature that Elise noticed the fleeting, pained expression in Jade’s eyes. But the other woman quickly composed herself and took a sip of water. “She’s doing great. Calls every few days, though I wish it was more often. But it’s not like they have cell reception in the middle of nowhere.” Deedee Creed was a professor of Archeology at New York University. Elise had heard from her mother that she had left New York a couple of weeks ago after receiving a grant to do some field work.
“What is she doing again?” Lara asked. “And where is she?”
Jade pursed her lips. “Her focus is on the ancient cultures of Mesopotamia, so she’s going all over the Middle East. When she last called me, she was in Lahore. She’ll be there for a couple of months before she makes her way to Afghanistan.”
“Sounds exciting,” Meredith said.
“And dangerous,” Lara added. “I’m surprised Sebastian let her go.”
“Well, she’s a grown woman, and she loves her job.” Jade looked around as if worried someone was listening in, then lowered her voice. “Don’t tell anyone, but of course Sebastian has people looking out for her. He found out who was doing the security for Deedee’s team and underbid them and got the contract instead. He’s got eyes on her at all times.”
“And Deedee doesn’t know?” Lara asked.
Jade shook her head. “She’ll be furious if she found out. You know how daughters are. They can be so hardheaded.”
“Yeah, we only want what’s best for them,” Meredith said. “Why can’t they just listen to us? And do what we tell them?” She shook her head. “Oh Lara, you’re so lucky Elise is a good girl. She listens to you, right? And she’s got a good, stable job that doesn’t require her to go into dangerous situations?”
Elise nearly choked on the piece of broccoli that she was chewing, but stifled the urge to spit it out until her eyes watered.
Lara laughed. “Elise has always been a dream.” She smiled warmly at her. “You were never a fussy baby. Always slept through the night, rarely cried, ate anything we put in front of you. Plus, you were a straight A student and never got into trouble.”
Yes, that’s who she was all right. The good girl.
“And you work with animals,” Meredith said.
“She loves her work, and she’ll probably be made director of the shelter soon.”
“Mom.” Elise slapped a hand over her forehead. “It’s not sure yet. My boss just talked to me about retiring the other day.” Shelly, the current director of the animal shelter, had called her into her office and told her she was thinking of taking early retirement so she could move to Arizona to be with her daughter and grandkids. She wanted to see if Elise would be interested in the position. While she was flattered, Elise wasn’t so sure she wanted to become director. It would mean spending more time behind a desk and