Sia (Naughty Witches Book 3) Read online

  And just like that I realized she was right and I was the idiot, the lightbulb going off over my head.

  “If you had a team of regular employees they would notice that you grow way more than possible. It would not only ruin your explosive output your magic allows, but you’d have more problems with people trying to find out how you do it.”

  “Ding, ding, ding,” she mocked as she went back to leading the tour. “Especially since my proprietary blend of nutrients is water. It’s all magic. So yes, it’s a headache and a half, but Gaia blesses my business and everything because I’m generous and help a lot of people. You’ll also see how happy everyone is—or the majority.

  “Our economy as a country might be doing well, but we know that doesn’t transfer to everyone. The rich get richer and the middle class and poor are hurting all the time. I can’t fix that but I can help those who want to help around here. I can save some people on their grocery bills if they are willing to give me some time. I also cut a lot of costs being smarter than other companies.

  “I don’t pay for avocados that are pricey, I grow them. I don’t buy many oils, I distill them myself. A company like Lush buys oils and then also what they use in their products, like steeping roses in water and using that water. I just grow the roses and when I distill them, I get the oil and hydrosol to use. I donate oranges to three schools and they give me back the peels so I can distill them.

  “That’s the deal I make with a lot of everyone and I can because I deal locally. Any container is also made from recycled material, and when people buy from me, it’s part of the agreement when they click that purchase button or in the store they will recycle containers, as they’re all recyclable. I wanted to do coupons if people post the recycling on social media, but I have no idea how to handle that.”

  “It’s not a bad idea though,” I admitted.

  She smirked at me over her shoulder. “Yeah, too many people assume blondes are stupid.”

  I frowned. “I didn’t assume you were stupid. You’ve seemed frazzled and I understand that’s your circumstances, but I wasn’t given the full picture. I was trying to get all the pieces before I decided one way or another.”

  “That’s great in theory, but your stern eyes tell a lot of what you judge.” She might have said more, but there were a few vehicles at the brew house so she jumped on the ATV and we headed that way.

  “Morning, boss,” a guy about my age said, giving her a worried look. “You sleep at all, Sia?”

  “A bit. I’m fine.”

  “You’re not but you won’t listen to us,” a woman grumbled from next to him. “You’re going to drop. You’ve barely slept since the store got robbed again and cleared out.”

  Sia just shrugged. “A lot of stock to replace.”

  “The IOUs were a good idea,” she praised, glancing at me. “I’m Carrie, part-time manager of the brew house.”

  “Jimmy,” the guy introduced. “I’m part-time manager of the greenhouses.”

  “Deon, security specialist,” I said as I shook their hands. “What IOUs?”

  “Sia had the genius idea that instead of trying to get the store up after the break-in and the people working there quit, to put IOUs people can give as gifts and get them product after we recover and get more. She’s going to have an after-Christmas sale at a discount to make up for the lateness if the site can come back online. I guess that’s why you’re here.”

  “Partly,” I answered vaguely, giving Sia a look I wanted to know more later. “The employees at the store quit? That’s fairly suspicious.”

  Sia shrugged. “Normally, but you don’t really blame part-time workers for not wanting to work at a place that has been broken into three times in under six months and completely wiped out. One was just a brat who said she was tired of cleaning up my mess so she would have been fired anyways.”

  “Well, how kind of her,” I drawled. People really were assholes sometimes.

  “So if we have any ideas on how to help Sia and things we think should be implemented, we should tell you?” Jimmy checked.

  “Yes, please, I’d love to hear your thoughts after I get some time to fully grasp the scope of her business. I wasn’t given much information, as a mutual friend basically told me to pack a bag and go keep her friend safe or she’d beat me.”

  Sia snorted. “That sounds like Meave. I would have thought she’d told you a bit more than that.”

  “Not really,” I told her firmly, hoping she understood this all from my side more.

  “Good, because we have to stop shipping with just regular mail when the site comes back on,” Carrie told me, skipping that whole part I mentioned of letting me learn more first. “There’s not any tracking and people just constantly say it was lost, stolen, or damaged without any proof or just because it’s expensive and they want free. The losses on orders is a joke.”

  “I know, I know,” Sia sighed. “I keep meaning to look into it but we’ve had some problems.”

  “I know, but you’ve got the right help to hopefully fix it, so he better fix it,” she said, giving me a quick look like she didn’t care if I was bigger than her and that she would pound me if I didn’t help Sia.

  I appreciated people who were fiercely loyal so I didn’t even mind.

  Sia unlocked the brew house and let us inside. I bit back a whistle as I took in what was really a large factory.

  “What’s special on the docket?” Jimmy asked her as they helped her get the place ready.

  “The firemen group are coming to take down some fir trees, as we need more distillated,” she answered. “So they get whatever they want in payment.”

  Carrie snorted. “What they want is you.”

  Sia smirked but didn’t comment. “And we need the paths cleared of snow for carts. If you could have one of the part-timers handle that with the snow blower, I’d be happy.”

  “Got it,” they said together.

  After that it was a fifteen-minute meeting catching them up on where she was at and needed. She might be running a circus but the woman knew her stuff and what was needed.

  Basically—from what I could tell—her workers handled the prep, packaging, and shipment while Sia solely did the brewing herself during the weekdays.

  There were plastic barrels of product to get to sale ready along with slab after slab of soaps to be cut and packaged. Honestly, it was overwhelming and I couldn’t get over it all.

  Carrie showed me the warehouse area so I could figure how to handle it better.

  “You’re worried how often people just slip a bar or bottle in their pocket as they leave?” I guessed.

  She shrugged. “Wouldn’t you? Most seem like good kids and I get she likes helping kids who need jobs or like me who couldn’t afford college without the help I get from this gig, but not everyone is as grateful and loyal as I am.”

  “Makes sense.”

  “I don’t want you to get the impression Sia’s neglectful or not smart like some people assume or think she lets people walk all over her by being so generous. Nothing is further from the truth, but everyone needs help,” she clarified. “She may seem frazzled but that’s when the store started getting broken into and she’s not had a break. She’s ridiculously organized with lists of what she needs from us always.”

  “Anyone would get dizzy handling this complicated of a dance,” I agreed, trying to reassure her I wasn’t judging Sia… Since I’d already been harsh on that one and was willing to learn from my mistakes.

  People started showing up and Carrie was all over them with what needed to be done and getting people set up. I headed back over to the greenhouse with Sia as Jimmy drove his truck over, and people were arriving there too.

  Jimmy had a team under him of those in charge of each greenhouse and making sure people behaved, which was an efficient way to handle the circus.

  I decided to hang out in one of the greenhouses and get a feel for the process better, introducing myself to Linden, who was setting up at th
e doorway of the greenhouse. There were several folding tables and after he also added a large scale and got a list from Jimmy, he seemed ready to go.

  The first was a group from a local infusion brewery that also had a restaurant with pretty good food, from what Linden said. The first handed a list of what they needed to Linden.

  He read over his lists and confirmed what Sia needed. Since she didn’t want tomatoes, he instructed them to harvest loofah, making notes on his list who it was assigned to so they didn’t have extras.

  The group brought their own gloves, but there was a bin of clippers they each took along with a trolley of trays, and away they went.

  “That’s a pretty smart system to handle this level of crazy,” I admitted.

  “It also helps spacing it out,” he told me. “The companies Sia has the deal with can only come Saturdays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays. She has other groups on Sundays, Wednesdays, and Fridays but I only do this group on those three days. And she limits the hours so it’s a lot of crazy, especially Saturdays, but it’s better than a trickle all the time and people respect the flow better.”

  That I could see. People weren’t just on the clock, but they were on the clock for their company as working with a client and that put them on their best behavior. That part was really smart for sure.

  He also explained that it went faster as a group than one solo picker loading trays and doing sections like it was a nine-to-five job. One normally was on the harvesting bucket that could be raised up or down as needed, while others were loading up and handling some of the back and forth.

  Another group came, and at that early in the morning they were pretty much all business. Plus, they had other greenhouses to go to. This was just one portion of what they needed.

  When the brewery group was done there were four other groups already working by then. They checked out with Linden, weighing everything as he marked it all down.

  He also listed weights and everything they’d harvested for Sia. The guys stacked it into the larger plastic shipping container–type carts on wheels attached to the electric trolley someone would drive over to the brew house.

  I pulled out my phone and realized I had my own notes I should be taking.

  For one, this paper and pen everything needed to go. There was a better way to handle this with tablets, a shared inventory list, and drop-down menus even. That way they could share information from greenhouse to greenhouse.

  I thanked Linden and headed to the greenhouses with the vertical farming to find Sia talking to a guy quietly off to the side.

  He leaned down and whispered something in her ear that she liked but still flicked his forehead. He laughed quietly and tucked a piece of her hair that had fallen out of her braid behind her ear before walking off.

  I went over to her and cleared my throat. “So you’re seeing someone?”

  She gave me an amused glance before going back to watching the guy’s ass as he walked away. “I’m seeing several someones, and sometimes they bring friends.” She leaned in and lowered her voice. “It’s sort of how LLL witches work, after all.”

  I watched her strut off, reminding myself it was just business and I had work to do, that I didn’t care who she slept with.

  And just to show how stupid I was, I stayed and worked in her home office on her computer while she had her “date” with that same guy—who was a fireman, I learned—and the cop friend he brought with him.

  Uh-huh, just work.

  3

  Sia

  “How come you don’t do summonings like other witches?” a deep voice asked from behind me after I finished my fun with the hot cop and even hotter fireman who was my regular Saturday night guy.

  I locked the door and turned to face Deon, swallowing my amusement at his annoyance. He didn’t bring up the sex we’d had and acted like it didn’t happen and now he had the balls to act miffed I had sex with someone else?

  That would work out well for him.

  “Have you seen a familiar around here?” I asked him as I headed to the kitchen for a late dinner and recharge before I got back to work.

  “No, but I know witches who still summon on their own,” he pushed. “Or take temporary familiars.”

  I shivered at the idea. “Yeah, I know some too but I won’t. I won’t ever take a familiar.”

  “So your family was shitty too?” he asked after a few moments as I portioned out food. I waved to it to ask if he wanted some. “Yes, please, thank you.”

  I nodded and loaded another plate to zap as I thought of how to answer. It really wasn’t his business, but if he was going to help me stay safe, he needed to know the truth.

  “You know most witches don’t start showing powers until ten or so, right?”

  “Yes.”

  “Mine sort of exploded the first time my mom tried to teach me to cook. It was clear food wouldn’t be what I ever made,” I explained as I put in the first plate and set the cook time before hitting start. “She wasn’t a particularly powerful witch, but I come from a ‘respected’ bloodline. She took me to my grandmother, hoping to get some sort of approval she’d never gotten on her own before.

  “And she did. My grandmother was thrilled after reading my magic. She declared it far and wide that Gaia had gifted to her bloodline the most powerful potions witch to be born in centuries. From that moment I was the golden goose. At first it was which bloodline I would have a familiar from, as I could have my pick, and a witch who bonds with a familiar before eighteen was bonded to her bloodline.”

  He slowly nodded. “I knew that. Something about if she needs one that young then she’s powerful and needs the support of her bloodline to help her.”

  I snorted. “Bullshit. It’s the dark to light. We have the power but familiars control us during summonings. We can’t be forced to take a familiar, but if we do before we know much of anything, we’re trapped to them and our bloodline forever. Some say it’s in the hopes it won’t turn dark but that’s a crock.”

  “So what happened?” he asked as the microwave beeped. He opened it and handed me the plate before switching and restarting it.

  “My mother decided she wanted more approval and acknowledgment, as having given birth to such a powerful witch and that one familiar forever was short-sighted. Instead, it would be much better and for the good of all if I was offered as a breeding mare to any bloodline who wanted a baby from such a powerful witch. I was put on display and watched every second of every day.

  “Witches from all over came to train and work with me in the hopes it would win over my grandmother and mother and their sons could breed me, get that power into their bloodlines, because I wouldn’t get to keep my own babies, they would. They would get the hopefully witches with my power in them and could teach them everything they wanted, only like not the truth on that bonding bloodlines thing.”

  “I’m sorry,” he murmured when I didn’t continue. The microwave beeped again and we sat at the island, enjoying the lasagna and some breadsticks. “But you got away, right?”

  “I did; Briony saved me,” I whispered, swallowing loudly at the debt I owed her that could never be fully repaid. “She’d gone through something similar about a hundred years before me, as totem magic is very rare. Her family planned to sell her off but she ran, and when she heard that the new shtick was even worse, she basically stormed the castle on the night the first was chosen.”

  “Holy fuck,” he coughed.

  I chuckled darkly. “Oh yeah, they decided to make it all a whole big, lavish thing of parading me around on my sixteenth birthday and picking the first stud to try and breed me that night, the bed it would happen on displayed. I was frantic, fighting and screaming I wouldn’t agree, and my grandmother smacked me and told me to stop being selfish and do what I was told as I was hers.

  “Seconds later all the windows near us blew and Briony comes walking in like an avenging angel. She took my grandmother’s head right there and announced to everyone that if she ever heard o
f another family even thinking of breeding their daughters or allowing them to be raped, which Gaia would never allow, she would be their punishment.

  “She told me to take her hand and she would keep me safe, and I didn’t even need to think twice about that. I did and off we rode on awaiting horses. I sobbed the whole ride in relief and just gratitude. She saved me from a fate worse than death of a yearly raping by different men and babies I didn’t agree to and wouldn’t even get to keep.

  “I stayed with her for a while until I learned what I needed to so I could survive on my own and then I moved on. Granted, I didn’t move far as I only left Wyoming to move to Nebraska, but I used the money I earned working for her and bought this farm. I built it from there and everything you saw today. She tells me the debt is paid but it’s not. It never will be and I do what I can to help her save others.”

  “That still doesn’t answer why you don’t summon,” he said after several minutes of quiet when we were almost done eating.

  I tried to think of how to explain it. “You know a familiar grounds a witch and focuses her, not just raises her power, right?”

  “Yes, in theory, but I’ve never done it.”

  “Summoning spirits is a precision magic. It’s focusing and using a scalpel to make the right cuts to let only one in or the one you want and not get overwhelmed and everything go to shit. I’m not saying this to boast, but I’m a bit more like a jackhammer I’m so powerful. Without grounding or someone helping, I wouldn’t let one through but closer to opening a permanent door, which is bad.”

  “So you’ve got a much bigger engine than most, not your lack of control or skill?” he checked.

  I nodded; that was fairly accurate. “Yeah, no matter the car, if you put a plane engine in, things will go bad. You can’t over-spell a potion. There are levels of potion for what you need or like nature magic all witches have. It’s why I kept having to expand the greenhouses, because it was exploding. Most witches can’t get what I can from the full or new moon.”

  “Got it.” He frowned. “I think. It’s a bit hard to wrap my mind around given I can’t practice and wasn’t involved with magic.”