The Monstrous Seven (A Hannah Hickok Witchy Mystery Book 4)
“I acted like a complete jerk, just like Trent and Rob.”“You were with Hannah inside, though,” Tyler pressed. “It was just the two of you, and your anger wasn’t directed at her on the street.”
“No, and she wasn’t affected by whatever was happening,” Boone added. “She noticed the others changing but was fine. She also saw the guy dancing in the alley. I’m thinking, whatever this was, only men were influenced ... and to commit violence against other men.”
“That’s kind of a jump without proof,” Cooper argued.
“Is it?” Boone obviously felt differently. “You said that Hannah inserted herself between you and Trent to protect you. You were angry at her for putting herself in danger, but in reality the anger manifested in Trent’s direction. You were still polite when you asked her to go on the porch. You didn’t snap at her or anything.”
“She didn’t deserve to be snapped at.”
Boone cracked a smile. “Of course not. She’s perfect. You’re not getting what I’m saying. Whatever happened was pointed at men. It was an effort to get men to kill each other.”
“And I didn’t get a full dose because I was in the barn and much farther away from the action,” Tyler noted.
“Or it could be because you’re gay,” Boone added, immediately holding up his hands when Tyler pinned him with a dark look. “I’m not suggesting you’re not macho like this one.” He jerked his thumb in Cooper’s direction. “It wasn’t your girlfriend being talked about in a sexual manner, though. Cooper’s dander was up because of Hannah. He was being territorial ... and so were the other two men.”
“That kind of makes sense,” Tyler said finally. “What about Justin, though? He was there and didn’t act out of sorts.”
“He’s much younger, though,” Cooper pointed out. “Both Rob and Trent were in their thirties, and from what you’ve described, they were both alphas. Cooper is most definitely an alpha.”
“Are you saying that makes me a beta?” Tyler’s annoyance was on full display. “I’m totally not a beta.”
“You’re not,” Hannah reassured him, reaching across the table so she could squeeze his hand. “You’re totally macho. You’re a chest-thumper of the highest order.”
Tyler snickered as Cooper rolled his eyes.
“I don’t thump my chest,” Cooper muttered, although he was relieved to see that Hannah had perked up some since the initial incident. “I think Hannah is right, though. Whatever happened out there wasn’t two guys killing each other for no good reason. They were pushed.”
“What does that mean for us, though?” Hannah queried. “I can’t imagine that a man being killed with a prop gun on Casper Creek property is going to go over well. We’re going to be sued ... and it’s not going to be good. I could lose the town, couldn’t I?”
Cooper opened his mouth to argue with the suggestion but ultimately snapped it shut. She wasn’t wrong. Even if it could be proven a magical entity had set things into motion, they still had to deal with the real-world justice system. “I don’t know what you want to hear,” he said finally.
“I’ll take the truth.”
“The truth is that this isn’t going to be easy,” Boone volunteered. “We’re going to have to tear apart the ammunition storage area to see if there are other live rounds here. If there aren’t, it’s possible we could blame the company that provides the prop materials but ... it’s not going to be easy. That’s on top of the fact that Justin is the one who probably loaded the gun and he should’ve been able to tell the difference between the rounds.”
“How would they be different?” Hannah asked. “I mean ... I don’t know much about weaponry like this.”
“A live round would be heavier,” Cooper explained. “Even if he was distracted, he should’ve been able to tell.”
“Unless the man somehow made it so the round was real,” Hannah supplied. “I mean, if he can control emotions, isn’t it possible that he can switch out ammunition without actually touching the gun?”
“I honestly don’t see how,” Cooper replied after a beat. “I know that’s not what you want to hear, for multiple reasons, but that seems like a stretch.”
“Except that the odds of this bullet taking out a random guy in the middle of the street are slim,” Boone noted. “I mean ... the re-enactors don’t really point the weapons at each other. If there was one live bullet and it actually killed someone, the odds of that have to be astronomical.”
“That’s true.” Cooper dragged a restless hand through his hair. “I don’t know how we’re going to prove any of this.”
“I don’t either, but we’re going to have to try,” Boone said. “The future of Casper Creek relies on what we’re able to come up with. That means we have to start digging ... and the ammunition storage room is going to be our first stop. If we’re lucky, the coroner will come up with something helpful, too, but that will be tomorrow at the earliest.”
“So let’s head to the ammunition room.” Cooper pushed himself to a standing position and shifted his eyes to Hannah. “You can come if you want, although it might be better if you take a bit of downtime. I’ll bring dinner up to you in a few hours and fill you in. You should rest, maybe take a bath or something.”
Hannah thought it was her duty to go with him, but the pleading look in Cooper’s eyes told her that she would be more hindrance than help. “A bath sounds great, although I should collect Jinx first.”
“I’ll collect Jinx when I’m done,” Cooper countered, referring to her oversized black lab. “Last time I saw him, he was happily chasing the goats in the paddock. If he stays there another two hours or so, he’ll be tired out. That’s probably best for all of us.”
Hannah nodded. “Okay. I’ll go upstairs.”
Cooper stood with her, taking the opportunity to pull her close. “It’s going to be okay,” he whispered so only she could