Page 5 of Lycans & Lattes

I’d been watching it looming on the horizon for so long, a lightning-streaked reckoning threatening to roll in, and yet I still felt entirely unprepared now that it was here. And I knew deep in my bones that I couldn’t hold the line any longer.

Something had to give.

3

Willow

Everyone who could appear in the daylight had turned out to decorate the town square for the upcoming Halloween Festival. Even in late morning with unlit candles and darkened jack-o’-lanterns, it looked magical. Votives and tea lights dotted the steps of the witch-hat gazebo, pumpkins adorned every stoop, and flowers bloomed at the manicured edges of the town square in shades of burgundy, marmalade, and marigold.

I’d pulled out copious amounts of fall decorations from the café’s storage closet last week. Having a spooktacular storefront was more of a competition than a requirement around these parts, but I knew I would get an earful from Billy if I hadn’t carved half a dozen food-themed jack-o’-lanterns for my big bay window. Harlow, Jordyn, and I spent hours untangling leaf garlands, arranging faux cobwebs on the coffee menu, and brushing out the fur of the taxidermy trick-or-treating squirrels that had mysteriously shown up in my café last year.

Everything needed to look perfect for the most Instagrammable event in town.

The Halloween Festival usually brought thousands of visitors, but attendance was expected to double. This year’s tickets had sold out in a matter of minutes. I had a sneaking suspicion the new witch in town—and her social media degree—had had something to do with that.

Balancing on a wobbly ladder and clinging to the light post, I held the twinkling bat-shaped lights above my head while stretching toward the waiting hook.

“Holy Halloween, Batman!” Harlow cheered from the base of the ladder when the string came to life. “It looks great.”

“I just have to—” I looked down and instantly regretted it. “Whoa.”

I didn’t like heights, but between the two of us, Harlow had the clumsier feet, which should always stay firmly planted on the ground. Not to mention, she’d been packing on muscle since she’d started working at the café and was a more reliable ladder holder. Hauling bussing tubs, sweeping, and keeping the storeroom stocked with heavy bags of coffee beans was apparently just as good as lifting weights at the gym.

Jordyn called something out to Harlow from where she was decorating the apothecary window, and Harlow’s head whipped toward her like a moth to a flame.

“Coming!” Harlow replied, releasing the wobbling ladder I was precariously perched on.

“Wait!” I cried, windmilling my arms in midair like a cartoon character.

Lucky for me, Avery swooped in with supernatural speed and gripped the ladder, stabilizing it. “Got it!” the young vampire called up to me.

“Lifesaver,” I said with a sigh of relief. “I almost pancaked across the pavement because of my golden-retriever sister.”

“Jordyn being the tennis ball in this metaphor?” Avery quipped, peeking up at me with her gray eyes and razor-sharp winged eyeliner.

“You got it.” I chuckled, holding on for dear life while carefully stepping down, rung by rung.

“They’re cute together.” She had a dreamy look on her face when I peeked down between my feet.

I knew that feeling well: the mix of loneliness, jealousy, and a dash of hope just off on the horizon. “They know.” I took another step down, the creaking of old wood not giving me any comfort.

“Oh, Willow.” I felt Avery tug on my overalls. “There’s something falling out of your back pocket.”

“What?” I reached around and felt the corner of a crinkled-up piece of paper.

These overalls were fresh out of the wash, and I hadn’t opened up the café this morning. There shouldn’t have been anything in my pockets, but maybe Harlow had tucked it in there earlier? It wouldn’t be the first time my younger sister has used me as a purse.

I stepped onto solid ground before opening the note, and my pulse picked up speed.

It was the ominous message from the café, the one I’d tossed in the trash.

Stick to your own kind.

My stomach hollowed. How had it gotten into my overalls?

“You okay?” Avery asked. “You’re looking paler than usual.”

“Hmm?” I crumpled the note back up and shoved it in my front pocket. “It’s fine. I’m just being haunted or something.”