3. Beth
"Good morning, Mama," Taryn said. "I'm starving."
"Good morning, Starving," Beth said, smiling down at her daughter. "Whatcha cooking for breakfast?"
"Really? I get to cook something?"
"If it's cereal. Otherwise, you can make the toast, if you're careful."
"That's mean," Taryn said, crossing her arms, pretending to pout.
"I'm sorry, my little love. You have so many talents. Cooking is one that you need to practice on."
"Phooey," she said, sticking her tongue out.
Beth laughed as Taryn sat down at the table. For the billionth time, her heart twitched because the little girl reminded her so much of her father. She had Beth's red hair, but Conner's chocolatey brown eyes. Taryn looked like her father. The child also had his attitude. Taryn also got something else from her father. She was a wolf shifter as well as a witch.
Taryn sat down at the table and picked up the Rick Riordan book she was reading.
"Has Apollo finished his quests so he can become a god again?"
"Nope. Not until the end of this book," Taryn said.
Beth smiled as she put slices of bacon into the pan. As always, her mind traveled back eleven years ago when Conner had put his arms around her and told her that he loved her. She had been so happy and in love. Her mind had conjured up a million images of them getting married and raising kids. She imagined them working together to create a life together.
Then, Matilda had caused him to forget her. Beth knew that it had nothing to do with Matilda trying to protect Beth's heart. It had everything to do with the fact that her mother wanted her to go down the same dark path that Matilda, and now Lyla, traveled. Beth was a powerful healer. But as with all good things, there was the bad as well. Beth could inflict great harm on people. She had the power to make a person's heart start or stop beating or steal a person's breath away – permanently.
Matilda didn't understand that Beth had a good soul. She would be the first to admit that she wasn't perfect and wasn't an angel. However, she could never, in a million years, intentionally hurt another living being.
Beth's heart and soul had stayed true to Conner. Men had hit on her and asked her out, but the answer was always no. She was resigned to the fact that she would spend the rest of her life alone. Sometimes she resented, even hated, her mother for it.
"Speak of the devil," Beth muttered as her mother sauntered to the front door.
She knocked and then walked in without an invitation. "Good morning."
"Good morning, Mother," Beth said.
"Good morning," Taryn said, quietly.
Matilda had always been hard on Taryn, not just because she looked exactly like Conner, but also because Taryn was a wolf shifter.
"I see you're reading that crap again," Matilda said, tugging on the book.
Taryn's eyes flashed. "It's not crap. I love Greek mythology, and I love these books."
"You should be reading the books I brought you."
"I don't like them, and I don't want to read them," Taryn said.
Matilda raised her hand, and Beth said, "Don't you dare hit her or hurt her with a spell. I will end you."
Grinning, Matilda said, "I knew you had some fire and brimstone somewhere inside of you."
"Taryn, why don't you go get washed up for breakfast? It'll be ready in a few minutes."
"But I'm already…"
"Taryn," Beth said, quietly.
Without another word, the little girl slid off her chair and went into the other room.
"Why are you here?"
"Can't I come by and say good morning to my baby girl and granddaughter?"
"No. What do you want?"
"The coven is having a meeting tonight. I want you to come." She looked at the room that Taryn had disappeared into and said, "And her, too, of course."
"No," Beth said.
Matilda's face turned red and she puffed up her chest. "You are still my daughter. You shall do as I say."
"No," Beth said.
"You're still mad at me for what I did to that man," Matilda said. "You've got to get over that. He was no good for you."
"That was for me to decide," Beth said. She set the cooked bacon to the side and mixed up the pancake batter, pouring it onto the griddle. "If there's nothing else, Taryn needs to eat."
Matilda growled at Beth and left.
"I've got to start locking the door," Beth muttered to herself.
"Can I come back now?"
"Yes, Baby Girl."
Beth flipped the pancakes. Conner deserved to know about Taryn. She was sure that Conner would be an amazing father. There just wasn't any way she could tell him. Conner would never remember Beth. Matilda's spells were way too powerful. She was probably the most powerful witch in Wyoming. If Beth tried to tell him about Taryn, Conner would think that she was just some weirdo woman trying to pull a con on him.
"Are you okay, Mama?"
"Yep."
"You've got that look on your face again."
"Oh. I was just thinking."
"Grandma got you all riled up again, huh?"
"I guess you could say that."
"Can I go for a run today?"
Beth sighed. "Yes."
After breakfast, they went to a secluded place on the mountain where Taryn could strip and shift.
"Thank you for letting me come. I know you don't like it when I go for a run."
"I just don't like the fact that I can't run with you and keep you safe. There are things in the forest that can hurt you."
"There are things in the rest of the world that can hurt me, too."
"I know." Beth sighed.
Taryn grinned evilly at her mother. "I have an idea. You should get a broomstick and fly with me."
Beth playfully swatted at Taryn. "Get going."
The clear waters of the creek captured Beth's attention. She stared down into the water absentmindedly, enjoying the purity of the water, trees, and nature that flourished around her. She shook her head when she remembered the conversation that she and Lyla had yesterday.
"If he truly loved you that much, Mama's spell wouldn't have touched him."
"Her spells are strong enough to scramble anyone's brain, including yours and mine," Beth protested. "She doesn't mess with you because you are following in her footsteps. The woman leaves me alone because she is afraid that someday she will go too far and I will snap."
"Everyone knows that you are a goody-two-shoes. You would never hurt anyone, no matter what."
"What's a goody-two-shoes?" Taryn asked.
Beth squealed and jumped. "Don't sneak up on me like that. And quit eavesdropping on my conversations with myself."
"You were broadcasting," Taryn said. "I'm pretty sure that anyone with any kind of ability to telepathically communicate heard you."
"Ugh," Beth said.
On the way home, Taryn studied her mother. "You were thinking about my dad again, weren't you?"
"Yes."
"If he's so awesome, why isn't he around?" Taryn asked for the hundredth time.
"It's complicated," Beth patiently explained again. "He didn't have a choice when he left. He didn't know I was pregnant."
"You could tell him now."
"I wish I could. He would be an incredible father."
"Why won't you tell me what happened?"
"I will when you're older."
Taryn crossed her arms over her chest. "I'm ten and very mature for my age."
"Yes, you are. Maybe I'm not ready to talk about it." Beth decided that it was time for a subject change. "We need to get you home and ready for tonight. It's the first night of the two-week rodeo challenges and the state fair. Are you ready?"
"Pegasus and I will win every time," Taryn said.
"I know you will," Beth said with a grin.
Beth nearly had a heart attack the first time that Taryn brought up the subject of getting a horse so she could learn to barrel race and do breakaway roping. Her best friend, Jenna, had a horse, did breakaway roping and barrel racing. Jenna just happened to know where Taryn could get a well-trained horse.
It turned out that Taryn was a natural. She placed in almost every competition she took part in. "I was thinking that I could start with the bull riding."
Beth's heart nearly stopped. She knew that the younger people rode bull calves and it wasn't as dangerous as riding the one-ton bulls that Conner rode, but the thought of seeing Taryn's broken body lying on the ground made her sick. Then, she thought of something.
"I don't think that you could do the bull riding. It would roll over for a belly rub as soon as you got near it."
"Not if I told it to buck like normal."
Beth hung her head and groaned.
Matilda walked in the front door right after they did.
"Mother, don't you ever knock? This is my home."
"I'm your mother. Besides, I knock sometimes."
"Ugh."
"I want you to come to the coven meeting tonight. Please."
Beth knew that it took a lot for her mother to say that word. She still had no intention of going.
"I've told you a million times, Mother. I'm not interested in your group. Besides, Taryn has the rodeo tonight."
"How dare you turn your back on your heritage," Matilda raged.
"Your type of magic isn't my heritage," Beth said with a sigh. "Can you go now?"
"No. What type of terrible mother are you to allow Taryn to fool with that rodeo nonsense? She is a witch and has no business barrel racing or any of those other events."
"She enjoys it and she's good at it."
"Your daughter is going to end up just like her no-good father. I should have taken care of her before she was born."
"Get out." Beth's voice was hard as steel.
Matilda started to say something else, but Beth just pointed to the door. The older witch left, slamming the door behind her.
"She just doesn't like me, does she?" Taryn said.
"Don't worry about her." Beth sighed, pulling Taryn into a tight hug. "She doesn't like anyone or anything that doesn't fit into her little narrative of how her world should be."
"Shouldn't you have said that she likes me fine and is just confused or angry?" Taryn grinned as she wriggled out of her mother's grasp.
"I guess I could have, but I'm not one to lie, especially when it wouldn't do any good. Not only do you have the ability to read people's thoughts, but you are too smart to buy a story like that."
Taryn grinned at her mom for a second and then she became serious again. "It's because I'm a shifter and I look like him."
"Yes, Baby Girl, that is exactly why."
"Her loss. I'm wonderful." Taryn laughed.
"Well, Wonderful, let's get you to the rodeo grounds. Pegasus is probably waiting for you."
Taryn grabbed a pear and went out the door.
Pegasus was a pure white horse that adored Taryn. It probably helped that Taryn and Pegasus could communicate telepathically. Not only was Taryn a shifter, which allowed her to communicate with other animals, but her magical gift was the ability to communicate with animals, calm them, and heal them. A raging bull would be a gentle kitten around Taryn.
Taryn was extremely excited. She was registered for all of the barrel racing and breakaway roping. She knew that her mother didn't want her riding the bulls so she agreed to sit that event out, at least for now.
Beth sat in the stands and watched Taryn. Her heart swelled with love and pride as she won prizes in both events. She was screaming, clapping, and smiling. The older couple next to her was laughing.
"I take it that you know that particular little girl," the woman said.
"That's my baby," Beth said.
"She did well. You should be proud."
"I am. So proud."
Then Beth's heart stopped and her stomach tightened into a knot. She closed her eyes, counted to ten, and slowly opened them again. Her breath caught in her throat. There was no way that she was hallucinating. Conner was at the rodeo.