Kerry and Priya lived in a two-bedroom town house with a good-sized living room decorated in a pale palette with splashes of color and set adjacent to an open kitchen. The furniture was comfortable, and Clem took a seat to wait for the rest of the coven. Margie Bower tended to arrive first. She was a quiet woman in her forties with brown hair and circles under her eyes. Vanessa Jackson got there next; she wore her hair in beautiful braids, and today, she was glowing in a yellow sundress that was the perfect foil for her dark skin. Since they lived on the same street, Ethel Murray came in with her, a plump woman in her sixties with silver hair cut in a pixie style. Leanne Vanderpol rolled in last, a redhead in her late thirties with warm olive skin who favored pencil skirts to show off her curves and who always had on a pair of heels.

Ethel took one look at Danica and grinned. “You got laid. And it was powerful.”

At the old witch’s words, Leanne took a closer look. “Damn. So she did.”

“It’s been ages for me,” Margie said with a sigh. “I demand vicarious satisfaction.”

For fuck’s sake, she was navigating family interference like it was an active land mine, while her cousin was off boning. Clem’s eye twitched as Danica made a shooing motion.

Then Danica said, “I’ll take questions about my sex life later. Something big might be looming. Titus told me a big, scary guy barged into the bakery and started yelling about witches. He made threats and flipped the cash register and spiked his coffee on the floor when they asked him to leave.”

Fear swirled inside Clem, exacerbating her headache. Though witch hunters weren’t usually so overt in their actions, she couldn’t assume it was a mundane with mental issues. The safety of their coven depended on staying hidden.

Kerry cursed quietly, addressing Danica. “You’ve made two service calls there recently. If this guy’s a hunter, he could have followed your energy trail.”

Danica let out an unsteady breath. “Exactly what I’m thinking. I haven’t bothered using a dispersal ritual in ages. I got comfortable. And careless.”

Of course she did. She’s obsessed with the baker and his buns.

“The hunter hasn’t got us yet,” Ethel said with a pragmatic air. “My mother told me about one who came sniffing around in the thirties. They didn’t find us then either. Try to calm down.”

Breathe, Clem told herself. Stuff like this happens. It’ll be okay. I’ll find a way to keep them safe.

Seeing how upset her cousin was, Clem moved to comfort Danica, but Priya got there first. She rubbed Danica’s shoulder. “It’s not your fault. I suspect that none of us have been as careful with our magic as we could’ve been.”