Grace Under Fury

by Annabel Chase

  “What are you doing back here?” Grandma croaked.

  “Stay back,” I said in a loud whisper.

  She caught sight of the demon beetle. “Oh. This is the guy, huh? Doesn’t look like much.”

  The demon hissed again. It seemed to know it was truly trapped this time. As I held the hammer over my head and prepared to drive it downward, compassion stilled my hand. The borer demon didn’t deserve to die. It was only being true to its nature and feeding. Yes, I had an obligation to protect the population of this town from supernatural shenanigans, but this demon wasn’t a malevolent force. It wasn’t attacking people because it was vicious and cruel. It didn’t even ask to come here. The demon had simply been attracted to the coffee beans and inadvertently ended up in Corrine’s shop.

  I gripped the glowing hammer and swung it—but not at the demon. At the last second, I twisted and connected with the giant wheel of cheese.

  “Move!” I yelled.

  Neville and Grandma jumped toward me as the display came crashing down on top of the beetle, trapping it within its scooped out center.

  I touched Grandma’s arm and quickly siphoned her magic. I cut my palm and placed a bloody hand on the chunk of cheese, creating a ward around the wheel. It had to be a blood ward because the demon had already proven it could break through the basic protective ward around the lemon trees. Even if it ate its way through the cheese, there’d be no escape for the borer demon until the wheel was delivered safely to Otherworld.

  “The package is secure,” Neville said.

  “Thanks, I can see that.”

  Grandma’s legs crumpled beneath her. Neville managed to slide an arm around her waist to stop her from falling.

  “What did you do that for?” Grandma asked, shooting me a menacing look. “Use your own…” She stopped abruptly before she used the word ‘magic.’ Too many witnesses had gathered to investigate the commotion.

  “I needed a shortcut,” I said, panting a little. Thankfully, I didn’t need too much magic, so the siphoning didn’t wipe me out.

  “Yuck. Why is there blood on the largest wheel of cheese?” someone asked.

  Mrs. Hughes stepped closer. “You’ve destroyed the festival’s best display,” she said, shaking a finger at me. “Your first year back and look what you’ve done.”

  “It was an accident,” I lied. “I hurt myself.” Of course, she couldn’t see the borer demon and I couldn’t explain its existence.

  Mrs. Hughes pulled out her phone. “I’m calling the chief to report this act of aggression.”

  “Aggression,” Grandma said, incensed. She shook off Neville’s arm and took a wobbly step forward. “I’ll show you an act of aggression, you ungrateful piece of plastic.”

  Mrs. Hughes’s fingers flew to touch her Botoxed face. “How dare you threaten me. You shouldn’t even be allowed here. This is exactly why your family was banned in the first place.”

  A small crowd had assembled and I didn’t want to create any more of a spectacle. I’d done enough damage for one day.

  I shoved the mystical hammer into my backpack and looped my arm through Grandma’s. “Come on. We should go. There’s plenty of cheese back at the house.”

  I had to calm Grandma before she retaliated. As much as I disliked Tanner’s mother, I couldn’t unleash Grandma on her. Nobody deserved that.

  “What about the display?” Neville asked.

  “It’s too dangerous to leave up,” I said quickly. “That thing is clearly a liability. The town could be sued. There was a case just like this in Nebraska and the town had to pay millions. My Uncle Moyer told me all about it.”

  Excited chatter erupted among the onlookers. I decided to take the opportunity to haul the wheel to safety. I could’ve lifted it by myself, of course, but I couldn’t let the people see my true strength. Like the borer demon, some things were best left invisible to the human eye.

  “Neville, wait here while I drum up some helpers.” Anton and my father were here somewhere. Probably Uncle Moyer and Tomas, too.

  “To do what?” Neville asked.

  “Push it back to an upright position, and then we can roll it away.”

  “To where?” Neville asked.

  It was too big to fit in my office. “Davenport Park, near the mound.” I’d contact FBM headquarters to dispatch an extraction team immediately.

  “Are you sure you don’t want my help?” Grandma asked. “I’d be happy to take care of any number of things here.” If her eyes could shoot daggers, Mrs. Hughes would be Swiss cheese right now.

  “We’re good, thanks,” I said. “You should go home. One giant mess is more than enough to clean up for one day.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  I woke up the next day feeling back to my normal self, a sure sign that the potion had worked and the borer demon had been safely returned to Otherworld.

  I opened the window of the attic and was greeted by the echo of a hammer on a nail. John was back in the barn and hard at work. Thank the gods.

  “Good morning, sunshine,” Alice said. She swept across the attic. “From the chatter downstairs, it sounds like all’s well that end’s well.”

  I turned toward her. “I suppose.”

  “That statement hardly rings with enthusiasm,” Alice said. “You defeated the demon, used your blood, and didn’t gain any new fury powers. Isn’t that what you consider a success?”

  I offered a sad smile. “You’re right, Alice. It is a resounding success.”

  “Then why so glum?”

  I crossed the attic and changed into running shorts and a T-shirt. “I’m not glum. I’m fine. It’s a beautiful day and everything is as it should be.” I slipped on socks and shoes and headed for the steps.

  Alice whooshed in front of me. “Bullshit.” She gasped at her own language. “Oh, my. Where did that come from?”

  I stopped in my tracks. “I’m allowed to feel sad, okay? It’s a basic emotion.”

  “I’m not saying you shouldn’t,” Alice said. “It seems surprising when you have so much to celebrate. That’s all.” She scrutinized me. “Unless something happened with the chief.”

  I lowered my gaze. “Something happened with the chief and then something else happened.”

  “That’s…fairly vague,” Alice said. “Care to elaborate?”

  I let loose the breath I was holding. “He’s moving on.”

  Alice floated out of my path. “I see. Is this because you rejected his advances?”

  “I guess so. Corinne LeRoux asked him out and he said yes.”

  “A witch.” Alice wore a sympathetic expression. “In some ways, that’s worse, isn’t it?”

  “In a lot of ways,” I admitted. “I expected him to settle down with a nice human and live a safe life.” That was what I wanted for him—happiness and safety.

  “Does Corinne realize she’s stepping on toes?”

  “I gave her my blessing,” I said. “She thinks what he thinks—that I’m not really interested.”

  “What are you going to do about it?” Alice asked.

  “The only thing I can do—nothing.” I headed downstairs and tried to shake off the feelings of sadness and disappointment. Now that the demon outbreak was over, the emotions that had been waiting in the wings were now flooding my system. I didn’t choose to be a fury or an FBM agent. I didn’t choose to be part of this maddening family and live in Chipping Cheddar. But I chose to keep Chief Fox at arm’s length for his own protection and I had to accept the consequences.

  Princess Buttercup met me at the bottom of the steps. She was wrapped in a silk scarf and had a glittering butterfly clipped to one of her ears.

  “My compliments to Olivia,” I said. I rubbed the top of her head before walking into the kitchen where the rest of my family was mid-breakfast.

  “Pancakes, Eden?” Aunt Thora asked.

  “There’s only one answer to that question,” I said, and settled next to my brother at the table.

  “Aunt E
den, I had whipped cream on my pancakes,” Olivia said proudly.

  “That sounds like a genius idea,” I said. “I think I’d like some on mine.”

  “Coming right up,” Aunt Thora said.

  “I’m glad you’re feeling better,” I told my niece.

  “We all are,” my mother said. “You’ve finally made yourself useful around here.”

  Anton’s phone buzzed and he glanced at the screen. “Oh, wow. Good news. The renovations on our house are about finished.”

  “Thank Nyx,” my mother said, but quickly recovered. “Oh, I mean what a shame. We’ve so enjoyed having you here.”

  “We’ll be sorry to go,” Verity said. “It’s been cozy all under one roof.”

  “Yes, cozy,” my mother repeated, and I could tell by her expression that wasn’t the adjective she’d choose.

  “Mom-mom,” Olivia said, “you’ll still see us all the time when we move out, right?”

  My mother leaned over and stroked her hair. “Of course, darling. We’re family. We don’t leave.” She paused. “Well, unless your name is Eden and you have an ego the size of Texas.”

  “What’s an ego?” Olivia asked.

  My mother gave her cheek an affectionate pinch. “Don’t you worry about that right now. You focus on your id.”

  Olivia frowned. “What’s an id?”

  My mother straightened and looked at Verity. “What are they teaching these children in school anymore?”

  “The alphabet,” Verity said.

  My mother patted Olivia’s head. “Don’t you worry, sweetheart. Your father was in the slow class, too, and he turned out okay.”

  Verity bristled, while Anton merely seemed amused. He tended to take our mother’s jabs in stride.

  “If they’re moving out, does that mean I can move out of the attic until the barn is ready?” I asked.

  “No,” my mother and Grandma said in unison.

  “Why not?” I asked. “There’ll be plenty of room.”

  “We need to keep the rooms available for their overnight visits,” my mother said.

  “They live locally,” I argued. “They don’t need overnight visits.”

  “The children will,” Grandma said.

  “And Ryan will still nap here during the daytime when his mother is too busy being a feminist to look after him,” my mother said.

  Verity cleared her throat and gave my mother a murderous look.

  “What?” my mother asked, blinking innocently.

  “We won’t leave you completely empty handed,” Verity said. “We’ll let Charlemagne stay here. The handbook says it’s vital not to disrupt a python’s schedule too much.”

  Ooh, Verity for the win.

  Olivia’s lip began to quiver. “Charlemagne won’t come to live with us?”

  Verity squeezed her daughter close. “Now, honey. It’ll be fine. Charlemagne loves living here with Princess Buttercup.” I noticed she didn’t mention Candy. Nobody loved living with Grandma’s familiar, not even the snake.

  “Olivia, you’ll be here all the time,” Verity said. “You won’t even notice that the snake’s not living with us.”

  Olivia sniffed. “It’s not fair.”

  “We have to do what’s best for Charlemagne,” Verity said, “no matter how much it hurts us.”

  Princess Buttercup barked and ran for the front door.

  “Bit early for company,” my mother said.

  “I bet it’s that Michael Bannon coming to apologize,” Grandma said.

  “I bet it’s Mrs. Paulson with more muffins,” Aunt Thora said.

  I pushed back my chair. “Why don’t I just answer the door and we can stop speculating?”

  On my way there, Alice stuck her head out of one of the walls. “It’s the chief.”

  My stomach tightened. Was I in trouble for yesterday’s chaos? It wasn’t as though I could explain the situation.

  I gave my shoulders a quick shake to loosen the muscles and opened the door. He stood on the front porch, wearing tight jeans and a cotton shirt that showed off his toned physique. Kill me now.

  “No uniform?” I asked.

  He glanced down at his casual attire. “I’m not on duty.”

  Well, that was a relief. He wouldn’t come here to give me a hard time about the festival if he wasn’t in chief mode.

  A small bark beside him drew my attention downward. “Achilles,” I said, delighted. Princess Buttercup pushed past my legs to greet the pug with a gentle sniff.

  Please don’t drip acid on the adorable pug, I thought.

  “That’s quite a look you’ve got there, Princess Buttercup,” he said.

  I snatched off the butterfly clip and the silk scarf. “Olivia’s been playing dress-up with the pets lately. Her new obsession.”

  “At least she’s moved on from you.”

  “Seems to be the general trend,” I said, and immediately cringed.

  An awkward pause followed.

  “I assumed you were here to give me a hard time about the festival,” I finally said.

  “By all accounts, it was an unfortunate accident,” he replied. “I think I know you well enough now to realize you’re not running around destroying coveted displays for the thrill of it.”

  “You’re more understanding than some people,” I said.

  He chuckled. “Like Mrs. Hughes? That’s the mother of your ex-boyfriend, right?”

  “Tanner,” I said.

  “Right. She tried to file a complaint, but it’s nothing you need to worry about.”

  I inclined my head. “What do you mean that she tried? What stopped her?”

  “Nothing stopped her,” he said. “I let her complete the paperwork, and when she left, it might have fallen straight into the wastebasket. Another unfortunate accident.”

  “So if you’re not here to scold me,” I said, “then what brings you here?”

  “Achilles has learned a few tricks,” Chief Fox said. “I thought you might like to see them.”

  My spirits lifted at the thought of Chief Fox spending quality time with his new companion. “That’s great,” I said. “I’d love to.”

  He paused. “I could show you a few tricks of my own, as well, if you’re interested.”

  A whirlwind began to pick up speed in my stomach. “Chief…”

  He held up a hand. “Relax, I’m kidding. You’ve made it clear you’re not interested.”

  “It’s not that simple,” I started to say, but it really was. It had to be.

  “I get it, Agent Fury,” he said. “We’re both dedicated to our jobs and we don’t want to do anything that would interfere with our respective duties.”

  “We’re rule followers by nature,” I said. “It’s why we chose the paths we did.”

  “True, but there’s no reason we can’t be friends, right?” he asked. “Nothing in the rules about that.”

  “No, of course not,” I said.

  “Then how about we head to the park and Achilles will show us what he’s learned?” He scratched Princess Buttercup behind the ear. “Her Majesty, too.”

  The hellhound barked in response. I knew what her answer was.

  “I guess that wouldn’t be breaking any rules,” I said.

  “Oh, and I invited Corinne LeRoux,” he added. “I hope you don’t mind. She said she’ll meet us over there. She doesn’t have a dog, but she seems fond of them.”

  It took me a second to organize the rush of thoughts and emotions that invaded my body. “That sounds…” Awful. Terrible. Heartbreaking. “Great.”

  The chief grinned. “I was hoping you’d say that. Come on, Fury. Let’s see if you toss a Frisbee as well as you toss the world’s largest wheel of cheese.”

  I cast a quick glance over my shoulder to see Alice’s ghostly form watching from the window. Her expression seemed to mirror my own.

  I forced a smile and followed the chief to his car with Princess Buttercup trotting beside me. If this was the only way forward, then I�
�d stay between the lines that had been drawn for me. My name might be Fury, but I wasn’t like the others. I followed the rules. I was good. That was my true nature and I was determined to keep it that way. I’d been a part of my family long enough to learn that deviation was a slippery slope and the cost was far more than I was willing to pay.

  “Keep up, Fury,” he teased. “You’ve got to prove yourself.”

  I slipped into the passenger seat beside him. “I’m trying,” I said.

  I really, really was.

  Look out for Bedtime Fury, Book 5 in the Federal Bureau of Magic Cozy Mystery series!

  Also by Annabel Chase

  Thank you for reading Grace Under Fury! Sign up for my newsletter and receive a FREE Starry Hollow Witches short story— http://eepurl.com/ctYNzf. You can also like me on Facebook so you can find out about the next book before it's even available.

  Other books by Annabel Chase include:

  Starry Hollow Witches

  Magic & Murder, Book 1

  Magic & Mystery, Book 2

  Magic & Mischief, Book 3

  Magic & Mayhem, Book 4

  Magic & Mercy, Book 5

  Magic & Madness, Book 6

  Magic & Malice, Book 7

  Magic & Mythos, Book 8

  Magic & Mishaps, Book 9

  Spellbound Paranormal Cozy Mysteries

  Curse the Day, Book 1

  Doom and Broom, Book 2

  Spell’s Bells, Book 3

  Lucky Charm, Book 4

  Better Than Hex, Book 5

  Cast Away, Book 6

  A Touch of Magic, Book 7

  A Drop in the Potion, Book 8

  Hemlocked and Loaded, Book 9

  All Spell Breaks Loose, Book 10

  Spellbound Ever After

  Crazy For Brew, Book 1

  Lost That Coven Feeling, Book 2

  Wands Upon A Time, Book 3

  Charmed Offensive, Book 4