T*Witches: Dead Wrong Read Free

—”
    Emily was not amused.
    “Don’t worry,” Cam added mischievously. “Bree’s dad never does what he says. He’s totally undependable.” At least that part was true.
    “David?” Emily challenged.
    “Uh, maybe you could go with them?” he suggested.
    “You know I can’t. I’ve got two deadlines coming up.” Cam’s mom was trying to get a country house redecorated before spring and working on an all-weather porch for a home in the Heights. She was a much better interior designer than a cook. “What about you?”
    Dave’s dark curls bounced as he shook his head. “The Blake case is going to trial next week —”
    “Don’t ask me,” Dylan teased. “Robbie Meeks’s family is taking us boarding at Stratton — ”
    “You know what I’d really rather do?” It was time to introduce the alternative, Alex decided. “I mean, dating movie stars and making the Boston club scene sounds fresh, but I’d so love to go visit Mrs. Bass, the librarian at Crow Creek. She was my mom’s best friend —”
    “You want to spend your vacation with a librarian?” Dave sounded skeptical.
    “But Alex,” Cam said, playing along, “she’s such an
old
lady, and so strict. Of course, I haven’t met her, except through her e-mails to Alex,” she told Dave and Emily again, “but she sounds so … straitlaced.”
    “Oh, she is,” Alex agreed. “Straitlaced and sensible. I haven’t been back there in over six months. Haven’t visited my mom’s — I mean, Sara’s — grave or seen my old friends —”
    “Of course, there’s not much to do in Crow Creek, except for that Big Sky theme park.” Cam groused.
    “Which closes for the winter,” Alex added.
    “Nothing to do but read.” Cam sighed. “I mean, I guess we could give old Mrs. Bass a hand at the library —”
    “Won’t Bree be disappointed if you change plans at the last minute?” Emily asked.
    “Like she’d notice?” Alex said. “Everyone else is going to be there.”
    “She
will
notice,” Cam interrupted, feeling more guilty than she let on, “but we’ll do something to make up for it when we get back.”
    “Okay,” Dave said, with a trace of impatience in his usually jovial voice. “What’s really going on?”
    Alex quickly shoveled a forkful of mystery meat into her mouth while Cam, as see-through as J. Lo’s designer duds, said, “That is so not fair. We were just —”
    Dave did a talk-to-the-hand stop sign. “You want to go to Montana,” he said. “You want us to trust you, right? You’ll have to trust us, then.”
    “Nailed!” Dylan grinned.
    When all else fails, try the truth,
Cam silently advised her twin.
    Alex shot her an evil look.
Hello,
she said silently to her sister,
if they know it’s to change Ike’s mind, Dave will have a gazillion legal reasons why we should stay out of it; and if I tell them we want to help a friend of mine who’s in “big trouble,” Emily’ll freak
—
    Hello,
Cam reminded her,
they’re on to us. Under the circumstances, some of the truth’s better than none! Now, you want to do it or should I?
    Alex took a breath and put down her fork — which was no hardship, considering how vomitacious Emily’s cuisine was. Finally, she said, “I want to go home. Just once, before you become my legal guardians —”
    “If that awful man has his way we may not even be able to —” Emily began.
    Alex shivered. Ike had found out where she was and, without writing or phoning or trying to get in touch with her personally, he’d hired a lawyer, claiming that he wanted Alex back.
    Not gonna happen. NGH!
Alex heard Cam assure her. And she needed the assurance. She needed Cam. The thought of living with Ike Fielding again …
    Cam took Alex’s hand under the table.
    We’ve got to get there — but how?
Alex asked.
    Get the ’rents to finance our trip,
Cam answered.
    Brilliant,
Alex scoffed silently.
Planning to mug them?
    Sort of,
Cam shot back.
Emotionally.
    She hated to do this. Actually,