To set the scene…
“My client doesn't need to answer that,” Agatha stated firmly. She looked at Lilia, shaking her head.
The judge shook his head too, frowning. “Harkness, approach the bench.” Agatha groaned but did as she’s asked. The courtroom was boiling, sweat beaded on her forehead, she’d long since abandoned her purple blazer on her chair, and frankly, she was fed up.
With a lowered voice she leaned in, “Stephen can we just-”
“Agatha. What are you doing? You want this case to wrap up right? That's what you said before. No one wants to be here, just tell her to say what we need to go home; that was the original plan.” The Honorable Judge Stephen Strange was not always that honorable and not always the best judge, but hey, Westview was in the middle of nowhere. Who would they find to replace him?
Agatha glanced back at Lilia, who still sat patiently. Her curly hair was neatly tied back and she’d made herself look presentable for court. She looked back at Strange, her expression serious. “Things have changed.”
She turned away from the judge’s bench and went back to stand beside her client. “You’re doing great,” Lilia whispered, “At this rate I’m only facing two life sentences instead of the standard three.”
“You’re so dramatic,” Agatha hissed back.
The prosecutor, who everyone simply called Vision, stepped forward. Sweat ran into his eyes, and he too had removed his jacket. He looked from the jury to the judge, to the faces gathered to watch, to Agatha, and finally, to the defendant, Lilia Calderu. “Alright,” he said without any hint of exhaustion, “let’s review the charges one more-”
The collective groan of the courtroom was deafening.
Agatha clapped her hands together, “Let's break for lunch!”
And because she seemed to hold herself with more confidence than the honorable judge Stephen, the crowd was shuffling out the door before they could hear him confirm the request.
Six Months Prior.
Rio stood behind the counter writing down breakfast orders when Lilia took a seat at the bar. Rio didn’t bother asking for her order; she knew the drill by now. Literally all she had to do was write Lilia on the notepad and pass it off to Wanda in the back- that's how often she showed up. “Morning stranger,” smiled Rio as she brought her a pencil for her crossword. Lilia insisted on bringing her own paper.
“It’s going to snow today,” Lilia said without looking up.
The sky outside was sunny and bright, but Lilia had only ever been wrong twice. The first was when Rio first moved to Westview and Lilia had thought she was straight. She’d tried to set up a date for her, and Rio had to quickly explain that she was, in fact, a lesbian.
The second was when she thought Rio would leave Westview within the year. New residents never stuck around. Rio had been there for five, but Lilia still seemed slow to accept that she could befriend Rio without her moving away.
Rio didn’t mind though. She’d bring her the same order and stop in her tarot shop for Sunday readings, and try to make small talk when Lilia inevitably came in every morning but Wednesday. Wednesday was Rio’s only working evenings. Rio didn’t know Lilia didn’t come in those mornings, but Wanda noticed. She never said anything though. Neither did Jen, the hostess who worked part time as a hobby, or at least, that's why she said she did it.
Alice soon came in in full uniform. The cop sat down beside Lilia and Rio brought her a coffee.
Rio liked her life, much more than she thought she was going to when she moved to Westview. Sure, it was hours away from any other civilization, and yes, the technology was about forty years behind, but there were good people. She knew the name of every person who walked into Wanda’s, the diner Rio had made a focal point of her life. She was happy. Content even.
“How’s the morning patrol?” Rio asked Alice as she brought both her and Lilia their breakfasts. “Find any stray dogs misbehaving? A tumbleweed or two?” Westview was always quiet until at least noon. It was only eight thirty.
“Actually,” Alice said as Rio was ready to leave, “there was a run in. Some new busybody. Seems like she's moving in at the end of Witches Road, into the old house. Anyway, she picked a fight with Judge Strange.”
Lilia folded her paper and looked at Alice curiously. “The old house?” Lilia repeated, “Rio, that's just a few doors down from you.”
Jen, who’d been listening in, leaned on the counter beside Rio as she folded silverware into napkins. “I didn’t even know that place was for sale?”
“It’s not,” Rio shook her head. “Evanora Harkness still haunts, sorry, lives there.”
“She's not dead?” Wanda asked from the kitchen.
“Not yet!” Sharon Davis shouted from her booth across the diner, “poor dear is still in hospice! Any day now though.”
“Sharon, get over here,” Alice said, patting the stool beside her. Without hesitation Sharon picked up her place and took the extra bar seat.
“So,” Sharon continued, whispering to the gathered girls in a conspiratorial way. Sharon Davis was the nurse in westview. Not only the best, but the only. She also ran the Mortuary with her assistant, Darcy Lewis. “Evanora is still on at home hospice, but between the five of us-”
“Six,” Jen interrupted, “Wanda’s listening in.”
Rio resisted the urge to remind them that within the hour whatever Sharon said would be all over Westview.
“Between the six of us then,” Sharon said, “the dear has a week at most.”
Lilia scoffed, “Dear is a stretch. The woman is a menace.” No one objected.
Alice started another thought, saying “So the woman who fought strange is-”
“My new hero!” Wanda shouted from the kitchen.
“Here here,” muttered Jen.
“I will give a dollar to the first lady to get her whole thought out, uninterrupted,” Rio finally said. Lilia chuckled under her breath, smiling at her,
“Alice, baby,” Lilia sighed, “say your peace.”
Alice did. The new woman was in her late forties, dressed like she was from the city, very put together and very argumentative. Stephen Strange had stopped her to argue about where she had parked her car. Strange said she parked in his spot, but it was really just more of Evanora’s parking that never got used. “The whole thing was just blown out of proportion. It’s never that deep,” Alice sighed, chugging down more coffee before continuing. The woman didn’t give her name, but she had keys to the Harkness house. Alice took her side, obviously, because Strange was just parking in her driveway, and that was that. Alice even helped the woman take several suitcases into the house. The woman wouldn't answer questions, but it was clear she was moving in- at least for the time being.
The women all thought about what Alice was telling them. “She won't be around long,” Jen finally said, decidedly, “Even if she weren't only bringing suitcases, no one stays for long.”
“I did,” Rio reminds her, “I am.” She glanced at Lilia, unable to help herself.
“Well yeah, but you’re Rio!” Alice smiled, “you’re a badass. This lady was way too ‘city’ if you know what I mean.”
“You’re a punk cop,” Jen scoffed teasingly, “stranger things have happened.”
Alice waved her off. Rio had brought her second BLT. “Look, take it from me, there is no way Miss Rich Bitch thinks this town is good enough for her. She’s probably some relative of Evanora’s looking to take advantage, but who cares ‘cause she sucks too. It’ll balance out, then we’ll be rid of both of them. Happily ever after, la di da.”
Rio sat with that for a minute. She crossed her arms, leaning back against the counter. When she’d moved in, no one thought she would last. Too different, they thought, too different for the sameness of Westview. Rio understood though. She’d watched as the same lots remained for sale. Families filtering in and out, but you know, mostly out. Evanora had been supposedly dying since Rio moved in, and yet she had never seen anyone other than Sharon visit the harkness house. What's more, Rio had not only seen any other successful moves to Westview since her arrival, she hadn’t seen a single attempt from anyone to move onto The Witches Road.
Maybe she was just visiting, but this strange woman was already interesting.
“It’s going to storm,” Lilia said again, right as gray clouds rolled in and over the morning sun.
—
Rio’s shift ended a few hours later, when the storm clouds had been pelting the town with sleet and hail since early morning. Jen had gone home earlier, and Wanda closed the kitchen when her husband wasn’t able to get the twins out of school when it closed early too. Lilia was there though.
Rio held an umbrella over both herself and lilia as she locked up the diner with her spare hand.
“You were right,” Rio said as she offered Lilia her arm. They steadied each other on the icy pathway no one had gotten around to salting. “This storm is going to be hell in another half an hour.”
Lilia said something along the lines of “I always am”, but it was blown away in the wind. They parted ways to slip into Rio’s car.
“What do you think of this Harkness business,” Rio asked as they slowly pulled out of the driveway. Lilia stared aimlessly out the window, already lost in thought.
“I think we’re about to see the headline ‘WESTVIEW’S SMALLEST FUNERAL ATTENDANCE RATE ON RECORD’ in the gazette next week,” Lilia said.
“Are you telling the future again?” Rio teased as she pulled up to Lilia’s house. It was a short drive.
“I’m using context clues, baby.”
Rio couldn't help but laugh. “Hey, call me if you need anything tonight ok? I don't think this weather is going to get any better.” Lilia hummed. She did that sometimes, and Rio still couldn’t tell what she was supposed to take from that.
With a few goodbyes Lilia got out of the car and waved to Rio as she pulled out of the driveway.
Westview was very small, and decently condensed. It only covered a larger distance on maps because of the houses sporadically placed elsewhere that still managed to be too many hours away from other towns to be part of them instead of Westview. Lilia was only a minute or two from the Wanda’s. Rio lived a good ten minutes away though.
When she pulled into her own house, Ralph Bohner was pounding on her door. Ice and snow blanketed her house and yard as wind whipped it around violently. Rio shielded her eyes when she walked from her car to her porch. There was Ralph, wearing spongebob sweatpants and a stained superman T-shirt.
“Hey asshole!” Rio shouted over the wind. Ralph stopped banging on the door when he realized the house’s owner was not actually in the house.
He huffed and walked over like Rio was the problem. “Where the fuck have you been?”
“Working,” Rio put her hand on his shoulder and shoved him out of the doorway while she looked for her keys, “that annoying thing adults do.”
“I’m older than you,” Ralph protested indignantly.
“So act like it,” She shot back. Ralph brought out the worst in her. When she realized she must have left her keys in the house. Well, there was no way Rio was going to show him where she kept the spare key, so she leaned against the door with her arms crossed. “What do you want? You’ve been standing out here long enough for your balls to shrink, so this has gotta be important.”
Dogs get this look in their eyes when they get excited. When they figure out where you store the treats, their tail goes haywire if you walk anywhere near there.
If Ralph had a tail, it would be wagging.
Rio pinched the bridge of her nose, regretting the choice to give Ralph Boner a chance to complain.
“Stephen-”
Full disclosure, Rio drowned out everything he said next. She was cold, the sun was gone, she was actively getting hypothermia and for some reason she could see the bulge of an erection in this man’s pants. Stephen Strange was a stickler, but he was fair. Evanora was a bitch, but she kept to herself. Ralph was annoying. That's it. No redeeming qualities.
“-and then Evanora’s daughter came out-”
Wait what? Rio couldn’t see it through the current barrage of winter weather, but still, she looked down towards the Harkness house. “Evanora doesn’t have children,” Lilia had told her very early on. Interesting, thought Rio.
“-and then she said she’d sue me! Like this bitch thinks she's scary. Ok find she's terrifying, but who does she-”
“Hey Ralph?” Rio said, “If you like a powerline right now your tongue will stick to it!” She spoke with wide eyes and an exaggerated smile, “Go try!”
Ralph seriously considered it before glaring at her. But hey, at least he left.
Rio tugged her coat closer around her. It really was freezing. She pawed under the doormat for her spare key.
Everytime she spoke with one of her neighbors it made her feel like she was getting dumber. Every interaction was taxed. With Stephen she lost her patience, with Ralph she just lost. This time, he at least left her with something to think about. Evanora Harkness’s alleged deranged daughter. Rio was intrigued.
All would be forgotten when she could get into her house, make some tea, call off work because the storm was not easing up anytime soon. She just needed her key. Her key.
She just needed her key-
“God dammit where is it?” Rio asked herself. “Fuck.” It was gone. Not buried under snow, not moved, gone. Rio’s hands were numb from all the ice she’d sifted through. “Fuck fuck fuck!”
The car was no better. In fact it was worse. The plan had been to drive to Lilia’s, but the car wouldn’t start. Even if it did, the snow had accumulated so rapidly it was halfway up Rio’s calf with no sign of relief.
“Dammit!” She shouted again as she let her forehead slump down and hit the wheel. In a last ditch effort, she checked her phone. She tried to dial someone, anyone, but nothing went through. Another thing about living in westview: cell service was next to non-existent on a good day. If a bird so much as breathed wrong, it went down.
She couldn’t feel her fingers. She couldn’t see more than five feet out from infront of her face, and it was starting to get dark. Rio didn’t know what to do. She let her head fall back down against the wheel, blaring out a violent sound that perfectly expressed how she felt. “Dammit,” she said again, cold and defeated.
—
Rio woke up to hands tugging her out of the car. She didn’t even remember falling asleep. She barely realized she was awake. Someone was pulling her out of the car. Something was wrong, Rio realized quickly, something was very wrong, with both her body and mind.
“Jesus fuck,” she heard the stranger curse. It was a woman. She has a nice voice, Rio thought to herself, even if someone’s upset her. She managed to get herself to her feet. That’s the last thing she managed to do.
–
The woman she’d found unresponsive in her car showed some signs of life, but ultimately, she fell back against Agatha after a few moments. It was like holding a bag of ice, but at least she was light. Agatha did her best to pull the woman over her shoulder before blindly retracing her steps in the snow, back to her mothers house.