Almost Midnight (Shadow Falls: After Dark #3.5)(56)

“I didn’t?” Air, old air, gushed out of her lungs.

“No,” Shawn said. “You were still entrapped in the bubble when it appeared. Your spell was contained. But you sure as hell stopped it from hurting anyone else.”

Relief washed over her and she smiled—a weak one, but a smile. “I thought … I mean, I’d just finished my spell and I thought…” I screwed up again.

“She was freaking amazing,” Della spouted out. “You should have seen her, Burnett. Before Kylie or I could get on the stage, she had that monster-ass fireball trapped in that invisible bubble, waving her arms around, as if daring it to come any closer. Then she made it rain and that ball burst into cinders. And then she fell to her knees like in that epic movie, Gone to the Breeze, I think that was the name of it, where the heroine yells out, ‘I shall never go hungry again.’”

“Gone with the Wind,” Miranda corrected, then stood dumbstruck hearing Della’s description of the events.

“Breeze, wind, same thing,” Della said.

Kylie spoke up as if reading Miranda’s mind. “Della’s right. You were amazing.”

“I agree,” Shawn said, and his blue eyes landed on her with warmth.

Warmth. Lots of warmth. What was he doing here anyway?

“Now isn’t the time for praise.” Burnett studied Shawn. “Do you know who might have done this?”

“No,” Shawn spoke up. “Whoever placed the spell didn’t leave an imprint. It’s the same as the scene from yesterday.”

But they did, Miranda thought, remembering the foreboding she’d picked up on. Then she reheard what Shawn had said.

“What other scene?” Miranda asked. “What are you talking about?”

Burnett spoke up. “You might as well know. Two girls were murdered.”

“That’s horrible, but how does that … what does that have to do with this?”

“They were both supposed to participate in this competition.”

“What?” Miranda asked. “Who?”

Burnett frowned. “Roni Force and Cindy Bryant.”

“Oh, my God. I know them. We’re not close, but … I’ve met them both. Why hasn’t anyone mentioned it here?”

“We’ve kept it out of the media while we did the initial investigation.”

Miranda’s brain still wasn’t wrapping around this. “But … why would anyone want to kill them?”

“That’s what we’re trying to find out. We didn’t see a connection between the two murders until we realized this morning that they were both supposed to compete today. I sent Shawn here while I chased down some other leads. But after what happened, it seems that it has something to do with all this.”

“All this? This what?” Miranda asked.

“The competition.”

“But why … I mean…”

Burnett ran a hand through his dark hair. The strands seemed to fall right back as if even his hair feared disappointing him. He gazed at Shawn and then back at Miranda. “According to him, this is the second biggest contest. The finalists in this contest will compete to reign as high priestess. Correct?”

“Yes, but I just don’t see anyone … killing off the competition.” But no sooner had the words left her mouth, she knew better. “Okay, maybe you have a point.”

Just because she didn’t live, eat, and breathe the idea of rising in the ranks, didn’t mean others didn’t. For that matter, more than the contestants wanted to win, there were the contestants’ moms. Wicca-competition moms made soccer moms seem like candy stripers.

Right then, the door to her dressing room whooshed open. Speaking of soccer moms, her mother stormed in. “You did it! You did it!” She grabbed Miranda up for a hug. “They just announced the winners. You finally put those little bitches in their places.”

Miranda pulled back. Her mind spun. She’d won. She was going to Paris. Kylie and Della could come with her—if she could get them to agree to it.

“We’re going to win, Miranda. I’ll do anything to make sure you win!”

Burnett stared at her mom. As if …

“Don’t say that, Mom.”

“Why not? It’s true. You finally stood up to your potential. You’re going to be high priestess. I feel it in my bones. This is the day I’ve been living for.”

Burnett cleared his throat. “Excuse me, Ms. Kane. But can you give us a few more minutes … alone?”

She looked slightly insulted. “Sure, but hurry. The press wants to interview and photograph my daughter.” She left with as much commotion as she’d arrived with. The door slammed shut.

Silence fell on them. Miranda looked at Burnett. “Please don’t tell me you suspect…”

“No.” Burnett held out his hands. “Don’t worry. I’m not particularly fond of your mom, but I don’t see her as a potential suspect. That said, do you have any idea who would do this?”

“What about the girl that put horseshit in front of your door?” Della said. “I smelled it when she did it,” she added, looking at Burnett. “I swear, if Kylie hadn’t held me back, I’d have pulled her off the stage and opened a can of whoop ass.”