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“Christ, haven’t you learned not to piss the cook off?” King demanded.

“I suggest we bury him in the hills if Meadow stops baking,” Law suggested.

“Some things a man shouldn’t mess with. That includes a dude’s snacks,” Bow agreed.

“Can’t believe you assholes are selling us out for cookies,” Chill complained.

I barely refrained from crying with laughter as the men in the room all sent Chill a disgusted look.

“It’s cookies,” Abyss said, as if that explained everything.

Inglorious shook his head and headed for the platters that Meadow was still holding. “Here, let me take them. They have to be heavy.”

“You’re so sweet,” Meadow stated. “I’ve prepared a special plate just for you in the kitchen.”

Inglorious smirked as his brothers howled around him. He took the trays from Meadow, left them on the closest table, and followed her obediently to the kitchen. Before anyone could move, the hungry descended on the cookies.

Needless to say, it was a massacre.

Inglorious

“So how was your dinner with Phoe?” I asked Nanci later as we got ready for bed.

She glanced over, looking completely smug, and I knew she was about to lie.

“Fine, it was a really nice time. I love Bernard’s cooking; if I lived opposite him, I’d be as round as a house.”

Okay, that wasn’t a lie, but I knew what was coming, and I asked anyway. “And did you make plans for Halloween?”

Nanci nodded, looking happy. “Yes, we’re planning to hold a party here. We’ll use the huge ballroom on the first floor of the town hall. Phoe believes, and I agree, it’s big enough to accommodate at least three hundred people. That’s more than adequate for us, our allies, and employees that we might invite.”

“Babe, come on. We are talking Phoenix Michaelson here. There is no way Phoe is only having a Halloween party,” I disagreed.

Nanci didn’t even blink as she continued lying. “Phoe said she’s bored, tired and needs a break. A party would be great… unless you disagree?”

“Oh no, baby girl, you don’t get to put this on me. Have your party, but keep me posted on what’s going on. I don’t want any surprises.”

“Of course, I’ll keep you updated, darling; there won’t be any surprises at all.” There it was, confirmation that Nanci was lying through her fucking teeth. She called me darling, and she only ever said that when she wanted something. It was a tell Nanci had, and I’d never let her guess I’d figured it out; otherwise, she’d stop. My woman was perverse like that.

Nanci

I was desperate to know what Phoe would create. Her imagination had no limits at Halloween. Whatever I was imagining would be tame compared to what Phoe devised. I mean, she even once contacted a famous paranormal investigator. Then paid him to attend a fright night to investigate a haunted place.

The town hall had a basement, and in it were all sorts of records that, by some miracle, hadn’t been damaged when the town was abandoned. There were so many records—residential, business, zoning—but also something incredibly valuable. At one point, Merritt had its own newspaper. And that basement held copies of every single edition that had been published. I planned to search everything if I found time and see what I might discover to help plan Halloween.

I was also going to recruit Amy to look online for any articles concerning spirits supposedly observed here. Merritt was promoted as a Wild West town; in truth, we’d been a mining town. But had ghosts been seen here? None of us had ever seen one, but that didn’t mean others hadn’t. If a ghost legend existed, maybe that would help Phoe with her plans.

Inglorious’s hands landed gently on my shoulders as I brushed my hair and kept plotting. My eyes met Inglorious’s in my mirror. Inglorious smiled, love radiating from him, as he bent down and kissed my head.

“Love you, Nanci. Don’t ever leave me.”

I placed my hairbrush down and spun on my stool to face him. “Who’d have imagined we’d find ourselves here?”

“Do you regret leaving Vegas?”

“Never,” I said softly. “My life is meant to be lived here with you in Merritt. That, my love, is written in stone. And nobody or nothing will change how I feel about you.”

Chapter Two.