Wicked Brew by Amanda M. Lee

underwear that fit again.
    My body was weary, but I couldn’t make myself relax. Something was about to happen – and not just in Belinda’s room.
    “There she is.”
    I jerked my head up when I heard the voice. I saw Jonathan Denham and his mother round the corner a few seconds later. They had another man with them, and Tom Denham was trailing behind the small group with a morose look on his face.
    Marcus snapped awake, and he was cradling Annie protectively against his chest as he looked to me for answers. He wasn’t sure what was going on, but he was readying himself for a fight.
    “They can’t get in that room, and they can’t have Annie,” I said, my voice low.
    Marcus nodded.
    “Whatever I say, just go along with it.”
    He nodded again.
    “Oh, and if I try to kill them, just let me,” I added.
    “Yeah, we’ll have to agree to disagree on that one,” Marcus said. “I’m not sure monthly conjugal visits will be enough to keep me honest.”
    He has an odd sense of humor sometimes.
    I got to my feet and cut Denham and Arlene off before they could get too close to Belinda’s room. “What are you doing here?”
    “We’re here to claim our grandchild,” Arlene said.
    “Well, Chief Terry said you couldn’t,” I replied. “He’s in charge. You’ll have to take it up with him.”
    “This is our attorney, Donald Hollingsworth,” Arlene said. “He says your Chief Terry has no jurisdiction over this child.” She moved toward Marcus and held out her arms. “You can give her to me.”
    Marcus shook his head. “You can’t have her.”
    Arlene narrowed her eyes. “What? Are you some kind of pervert?”
    “No, that would be your son,” I said.
    “Stop saying that,” Denham snapped. “I am not a pervert.”
    “You knocked up your student.”
    “That was … she seduced me.”
    “Yeah, right,” I said, rolling my eyes.
    Hollingsworth stepped closer. I didn’t recognize him, which meant the Denhams had gone outside of Hemlock Cove to retain legal counsel. That was probably a good idea on their part. “Ma’am, you have to hand that child over.”
    “I don’t have to do anything,” I said. “And I’m not doing that. I don’t care what you say.”
    “You listen here,” Arlene seethed, wagging her finger in my face. “You’re not in control here. I am.”
    “And that’s what matters to you, right? Control?”
    Arlene was taken aback by my challenge.
    “I get you,” I continued. “I get what you are. You’re a woman who henpecked her husband and raised a monster. You’re a woman who wants a chance to mold another young mind. You’re a woman who wants to control everything.
    “I’ve known women like you,” I said. “Well, that’s not exactly true. I’ve known women who need control – one in particular – but the difference is, she still manages to know what’s right and wrong.
    “Sure, she straddles the line,” I said. “She often crosses it.” Goddess, does she cross it. “She still manages to do the right thing. I don’t even think you know what the right thing is. That’s how far gone you are.”
    “Oh, you’re so full of yourself,” Arlene said. “You think you know how to read people. Now, let me tell you about you. You were raised in a family of all women, and you never learned your place. You want to stand out, so you dye your hair odd colors. You want to be special, but everyone else around you has something more – something better – to offer.
    “You’re insecure, and you’ve latched onto my granddaughter to make yourself feel important,” she continued. “You think, if you somehow beat me, then you’ll have everyone in your family applauding you. You still won’t be special.”
    I snorted. She was trying to throw me off my game. I’d grown up with the master, though. She couldn’t shake me. Still, I needed to play the game to buy time, and I was more than willing to do it.
    “Oh, you couldn’t be more wrong,” I said. “I’ve always