by Sonia Parin
“You conspired against your own daughter.”
Morgana stilled. “I did no such thing. I had a tough decision to make and I made it. I knew she would prove herself innocent and capable of wielding her powers.”
Jonathan slammed his fisted hands against his hips. “So, you admit it. You put her through a trial without even telling her about it.”
Lexie studied her mom’s expression, looking for signs of remorse. She found none.
Jonathan swung around again and faced the orbs. “And you two were in on it too.”
“You have no right to cast aspersions on any of us,” Morgana said. “You, of all people.”
Jonathan swung back to face Morgana. His lips parted but no words came out.
Lexie saw him take a deep swallow.
Jonathan?
She heard the name bounce around her head along with an avalanche of questions.
A gust of wind swirled around the room sending papers flying. Cat and Mirabelle’s orbs swayed. Mr. Ellsworth grabbed hold of his wife, scrambled across the room and dove under the couch.
Morgana and Jonathan turned toward Lexie.
“You’re all afraid of me,” Lexie murmured.
Morgana tossed her head back. “Nonsense. We merely needed to see what you would do. What you could do…”
Lexie stepped forward. “I would kill him again.”
“Yes, well… I promised the Coven Disciplinary Board you would never take matters into your own hands again. It’s the only reason why they haven’t taken further action.”
Lexie’s fingers twitched.
Luna dashed across the room, leaped up and landed on her shoulder. “Remember what I said about showing them who’s the boss?” Luna mentally asked. “This is not the time.”
Mrs. Ellsworth cleared her throat. “If you wouldn’t mind easing up on the swirling gust. I need to get across the room to my broth. It’s about to boil.”
Lexie only then realized the wind she had called on continued to swirl around her. Drawing in a breath, she called on it to cease.
Luna’s tail flicked. “That was rather intense,” she whispered.
Cat’s orb wavered and then hovered closer to Lexie. “For the record, both Mirabelle and I were against sending you to the Crone’s realm. We tried to reason with the Coven Disciplinary Board…”
As Cat spoke, Lexie’s pushed herself to look at Jonathan. She remembered the question he had refused to answer. Had the Crone’s realm been chosen as her prison, the only place where they thought she could be contained? The O’Connors were responsible for setting the wards…
She couldn’t believe Jonathan would work against her, but what if he’d thought it would be for her own good?
She shook her head. She had found a way back and Jonathan hadn’t stopped her from leaving, she reasoned.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Mrs. Ellsworth scuttling across the room carrying a small bowl with the broth she had prepared.
“I just want to know one thing.” Lexie turned to her mom. “Did you make Rebel sick?”
Her mom gave a small shake of her head. “We… We merely took advantage of a situation.”
Lexie remembered the Crone’s advice.
If you can see your future, you can see all possible outcomes and always be two steps ahead of everyone.
Lexie tried to pull her gaze away from her mom, to shut her out. If anyone asked how she felt, she wouldn’t be able to answer them.
Would it have killed them to discuss all this with her before taking action?
Had they ever stopped to wonder if they could trust her or had they simply assumed she might have been too far gone?
When she found herself still staring at her mom, she realized she wanted to see something. Morgana gazed back at her with the steadiness of purpose. She would not back down. She had acted as the High Chair.
That could not have been easy for her.
Lexie closed her eyes and focused on her breathing.
“Well?” Luna asked. “Are we going in or not?”
Snapping her eyes open, Lexie looked straight at her apartment door. They hadn’t gone in yet. They… She had…
If you can see your future, you can see all possible outcomes and always be two steps ahead of everyone.
Lexie wound her fingers around the doorknob and turned it.
Octavia sprung to her feet and hurried toward her. “Lexie! Did you get everything? Are you alright? We’ve been so worried…”
Mrs. Ellsworth gave her husband a reassuring pat on the hand and got busy finishing her broth.
Making a beeline to the table, Lexie checked on Rebel.
“You should sprinkle some fairy dust on her,” Luna told Priscilla.
The fairy nodded and as she sprinkled the dust, she said, “I bring you goodness from the forest, the freshness of our springs, the scent of pine needles, the warmth and purity of our light…”
Rebel opened an eye and asked, “And?”
“Oh, and some blueberries.”
Jonathan sidled up to Lexie. “So far, so good.”
“The broth should be ready soon,” Mrs. Ellsworth announced. “Don’t crowd around Rebel. Give her some breathing space.”
Stepping away from the table, Lexie eased down on the couch.
“Don’t get too comfortable,” the gnome warned. “I might need you to go out and get more ingredients.” Mrs. Ellsworth swung away only to bump into Luna. They both stared at each other and, taking a sideways step, she hurried along.
Luna leaped up onto the couch and settled next to Lexie. “I think I’m temporarily off the menu.”
Lexie gave her a scratch on the head. She was about to swing her legs onto the couch when Jonathan sat down.
Octavia emerged from the kitchen carrying mugs of coffee. “I thought you might want some and… I took the liberty of organizing an espresso machine. If you don’t want it, I can take it back.” She set the mugs on the coffee table. “Now, tell me about your adventure…”
Epilogue
Lexie’s apartment – the rooftop
Lexie sat on the ledge staring out into the spring night. She’d been watching Luna weaving her way along the rooftops, peering inside people’s apartments and, for some reason, chasing her tail.
“I didn’t ask for any of this,” Lexie whispered. She’d resisted until her cousins had tricked her into accepting her responsibilities. “Well, here I am,” Lexie mocked.
Now, they feared her power. Or maybe they feared what she could become. She didn’t know for sure because no one had stepped forward and stated their objections to her having so much control over the elements.
She hadn’t confronted them. Not even after looking into her future and witnessing their reaction to her return and to Jonathan’s accusations. Instead, she had chosen to ignore all the possible outcomes and she had walked into her apartment as if nothing had happened.
After the dust had settled, she had taken another look at her future and then another and another. In every version of her possible future, her family had conspired to have her imprisoned in the Crone’s realm. For her own good.
Would she ever confront them?
She didn’t think so.
Lexie stood up on the ledge.
Would she use her powers again the way she had against the serial killer?
She heard the door to the rooftop open and steps approaching. Without turning around, she said, “You found me.”
What would happen if she used her powers again to punish someone for a crime they would otherwise commit over and over again?
An image swept through her mind.
Three figures surrounded her, their hands joined as they formed a circle around her.
She tried to hold onto the image long enough to identify the figures. Her fingers curled into the palm of her hands. Before she could see their faces, the image blurred and disappeared.
She had her answer. If she ever took matters into her own hands again, it wou
ld cost her dearly.
Three people would make sure of it.
Three people she hadn’t been able to identify.
Jonathan came to stand beside her.
“Have you stayed connected to the O’Connors?” Lexie asked.
Jonathan laughed. “With Rebel and Priscilla talking nonstop, I can’t even hear myself think.” He leaned forward. “Is that Luna? What is she doing?”
“She’s being a peeping Tom. Wait, now she’s having a heated argument with her tail. Again. I’ve never seen her do that.”
Still leaning forward, Jonathan looked down at the street below. “When we arrived at your place I thought you would demand that your mom appear and explain herself.”
Lexie shrugged. “I’ve decided to try another tactic.”
“Do you want to run it by me?” Jonathan asked.
Lexie’s voice softened. “I’m going to pretend none of this happened.”
“Oh.”
Lexie stepped down from the ledge. “Do you have a better suggestion?”
He gave a pensive shake of his head. “No. Blissful ignorance has served me well in the past. Turning a blind eye to the blatant truth staring me in the face works too. I’ll go along with it.”
“Really? So, what will you do the next time you see my mom?”
He lifted both shoulders into a shrug. “The same thing I do every time. I’ll scowl at her and then step out of her way.”
She saw Luna peering down a skylight. She looked up, sniffed the air and then came bounding toward them.
“What are you two talking about?” Luna asked.
“Jonathan was just saying he has a spare room at the pub for Mr. and Mrs. Ellsworth and he’ll be happy to put them up for the night or until Cat’s forest is safe. We’ll have the apartment to ourselves tonight.”
“Oh, that’s good news. But I thought you might have been discussing making arrangements for the ceremony.”
“What ceremony?” Lexie asked.
“The pledge. Remember? You need to take the vows. I think it will be a wonderful farce. All those who conspired against you will be there, waiting to see what you’ll do with the gathering. If ever you decide to turn rogue, that would definitely be the perfect time. You could smite them with your magnificent powers.” Luna made a rat-tat-tat sound. “I might even lend a hand. No one’s seen what we can do together.”
Yes, Luna could become a lethal weapon. She had already proven it once before during the feline extravaganza… “I have a better idea. We’ll put up a Gone Fishing sign and spend a week lolling about and watching TV.”
“How about some pizza?” Jonathan offered.
Luna licked her paw. “I think we want to have a girls’ night in.”
“Sure.” Jonathan dug inside his pocket and drew out a small pouch. He tossed it in his hand a couple of times. “I guess you want this back.”
Lexie caught it.
The fairy dust.
“Actually, some pizza would be good.” Lexie wouldn’t forget what she’d seen when she’d looked into her future. Jonathan had betrayed her but she had the feeling he hadn’t been aware of it. “You two go on. I’ll be down in a moment.”
She watched Jonathan and Luna stroll away.
“You still had the fairy dust,” Luna muttered. “Why did you have to give it back? We could have used it. I could be flying right now. I needed it for my own survival. The fairies outnumber me now…”
Jonathan laughed. “Just be grateful Lexie didn’t adopt the troll.”
Lexie stared out into the clear sky.
When she heard the door to the rooftop close, Lexie drew in a long breath. Easing it out, she closed her eyes.
What now?
Whether they realized it or not, everyone in her inner circle knew something about her and three of those people had the ability to bind her.
Lexie hadn’t been able to identify them but she had somehow understood what the circle meant.
Luna had suggested she might be evolving into the most powerful witch in their coven. When she’d woken up that morning, her abilities had felt… disjointed. Haphazard.
Lexie unfurled her fingers and held out her hand. Opening her eyes, she watched a snowflake wafting down. Yes, she could command the elements and produce a snowflake in spring. But what would she do if she encountered another serial killer?
“I was wondering if you’d ever show up,” Lexie murmured.
Random O’Rourke came to stand beside her.
“Are you going to answer your question?”
When Lexie had looked into her future, she hadn’t seen the O’Rourke detectives.
He shook his head. “I suppose what you really want to know is what we’ll do if you ever decide to take matters into your own hands again.”
Lexie shot him a brisk smile.
He cleared his throat. “For the record, we all objected to the plan of imprisoning you in the Crone’s realm.”
“I came back. What if I hadn’t managed to find my way out? The Crone’s realm is warded against the O’Rourke detectives and Jonathan won’t tell me why.”
Random shoved his hands inside his pockets. “Octavia got me into his inner sanctum.”
Lexie’s breath stalled.
“He keeps the door to the Crone’s realm warded but there are others. Other doors that time has forgotten.”
The O’Rourke detectives would have found a way in?
His voice lowered. “There are also other realms.”
“Why are you telling me this?”
He fell silent. Finally, he said, “Hypothetically, that serial killer could have ended up in one of those realms. Locked up for eternity without spilling any blood or without the finger of blame pointed at you.”
Had he just suggested they could work together? Collaborate?
Hearing her thoughts, he answered, “Yes.”
“Wouldn’t that be breaking the rules?”
“When the alternative is to step back and watch a serial killer go free…” he shrugged. “I think we can adapt to the new circumstances.”
“I’m trying to picture the O’Rourke detectives going rogue.”
“We’re not turning rogue. We’re merely adapting… Expanding.”
She stood next to the man who, not long ago, should have been able to bind her and throw her into an O’Rourke dungeon.
“Well? What do you think?” he asked.
“I… I think my cozy little world has just shifted.” You can’t go home again, Lexie thought.
He leaned over and looked down at the street below. “Your pizza just arrived.”
Decision time, Lexie thought. Giving a small nod, she said, “Come on. Let’s go have some pizza.”
I hope you’ve enjoyed reading Witch Fairy Tale.
The next book in the Mackenzie Coven Mystery series: Witch in Flight.
Other books by Sonia Parin
A Mackenzie Coven Mystery:
Witch Inheritance
Witch Indeed
Witch Cast
Witch Charm
Witch Trials
A Mackenzie Coven Collection: Witch Namaste, Good Witch Hunting, ‘Tis the Season to be Creepy
Witch in Exile
Witch Fairy Tale
A Mackenzie Coven Mystery Short:
Witch Namaste
Good Witch Hunting
‘Tis the Season to be Creepy
Jingle Purrs
Potion Heist
The Power of Two and a Half
A Deadline Cozy Mystery
Sunny Side Up
Snuffed Out
All Tied Up
The Last Bite
Final Cut
Sleeping With the Fishes
A Kink in the Road
The Merry Widow
Dying Trade
A Dear Abby Cozy Mystery:
End of the Lane
Be Still My Heart
The Last Ride
The Last Stop
The Las
t Dance
An Evie Parker Mystery:
House Party Murder Rap
Murder at the Tea Party
Murder at the Car Rally
For updates about upcoming releases, please visit the author’s Amazon page, Facebook or Bookbub