The Magic of Halloween Night

by Kathi Daley

  Chapter 16

  Friday

  “I found the perfect one,” Paisley yelled as she ran across the pumpkin farm with Cass. Gracie, Tom, and I were on their heels.

  “That is a pretty perfect pumpkin,” I agreed. “It will look really good on that table near the front window.”

  Paisley grinned. “I want to get some for the front porch too. And one for my room.”

  “We can get as many as you want, sweetpea.” I knew I was totally overcompensating for the fact that I had ended up being late to Paisley’s play last night even though I’d sworn I wouldn’t be, but Tom and Gracie had gotten there early and had sat right in the front. When I’d explained to Paisley what had happened, she said she understood.

  “I’m going to head over to the barn to pick out some fruit for a pie and some gourds for the table,” Gracie said.

  “I’ll come with you,” Tom offered.

  Paisley smiled up at Cass. “Do you want to help me find a big one for my room?”

  “Absolutely.”

  I couldn’t help but smile as Cass and Paisley took off across the dirt field, hand in hand. He really would make a wonderful father. To Paisley and to any children we might decide to have. I’d struggled daily with my fears ever since we’d decided to take our relationship to the next level. Had my decision been rash? Had I sealed both our deaths? And if something happened to the two of us, what would become of Paisley?

  “Ugh!” I said aloud as I headed in the direction Cass and Paisley had gone off in. I knew that trying to find an answer to a question that really had no answer — at least no answer that could be foretold — was going to make me crazy. The only way to know if Cass and I had activated the curse was to wait and see what happened in the months and years to come.

  I did love him. So much. I wanted to have a life with him. I wanted Cass, Paisley, and me to be a real family. Denying my heart’s desire to save Cass’s life was one thing, but denying us the happiness we might have had when I didn’t really know how the whole thing worked seemed sort of pointless.

  “Hey, Callie.”

  I smiled as Naomi walked toward me with the most gorgeous man I’d ever seen by her side. “Hey, Naomi.”

  “This is River. He’s a friend of Hancock’s.”

  I knew Hancock was Naomi’s neighbor and part-time lover. “I’m happy to meet you,” I said. “Are you in Naval Intelligence as well?”

  “Actually, I am,” he answered.

  I didn’t know exactly what it was that Hancock did for the Navy, but I did know that he seemed to pop in and out without warning, and for some reason, Naomi was fine with that.

  “Will you be in town long?” I asked.

  “A few weeks.”

  “Is Paisley here with you?” Naomi asked.

  “Yeah. She and Cass are looking for the perfect pumpkin for her room.”

  “River has a little sister about Paisley’s age,” she informed me. “She’s going to be staying with River and me out at my place for a week. I wanted to ask Paisley about maybe coming by and spending some time with her. I’m afraid she’ll be bored since there aren’t really any kids living near me.”

  “I’m sure Paisley would be happy to do that.” Naomi and River? “They headed up the hill. I was just heading in that direction.”

  The three of us continued up the hill. When we arrived at the top, Cass greeted River. Apparently, the two men knew each other, which confirmed in my mind that River had visited Foxtail Lake in the past. The men both pitched in to help Paisley with her search for the perfect pumpkin while Naomi and I held back.

  “She looks happy,” Naomi said.

  I nodded. “She’s doing a lot better now that I’ve made the decision to take over as her guardian should Ethel be unable to continue in the role.”

  “And Cass?” she asked.

  “Cass?”

  “Will he be helping you in this new role?” She looked in his direction. “He does seem to be a natural.”

  “He really is good with her,” I agreed. “It’s just that…”

  “It’s just that people you have loved died, and you’ve been convinced that the reason they died was because of a curse that you can neither prove nor disprove the authenticity of.”

  “Exactly.”

  She took my hand in hers. “I think I can help you with that.”

  “You can?”

  She smiled. “I know a witch, and she knows a spell. You and Cass and the crazy situation you’ve found yourselves in have been on my mind a lot, so I talked to her about you and your situation.”

  “And?” I asked.

  “And the right words, spoken with the right intent under a blue moon on Halloween night, should do the trick.”

  I raised a brow. “Do the trick?”

  “The curse was cast with words that were all mixed up with emotion and intent. Similar words said with an equal amount of emotion and intent, said under the Halloween moon, should be enough to undo whatever was done in the first place. If you’re interested, I can get you the right words to say. The emotion and intent will be up to you.”

  Oh, I was tempted. So very, very tempted. “What do you mean by emotion and intent?”

  “The witch who cast the spell did so out of rage. Her strong emotion, combined with the intention to do harm to the one who hurt her, was the base. When combined with the right words, and I suspect a full moon or another astrological event, the curse was born, which put future events into motion. If you want to undo what was done, then you must bring your own emotion and intent to the table. Nature has provided the blue moon, and I will provide the words.”

  “And it’s as easy as that?” I asked, still skeptical.

  “Only if you believe. I mean, really believe. If you don’t believe with your whole heart, if your intent is less than pure or your emotions held in check, it won’t work. But yes, if you are pure in heart and are open to the magic of love and possibilities, then it will work.”

  I thought about Cass. I thought about the life we could have. I thought about the strong belief that had ruled my life since I was old enough to believe in curses. I wanted so badly to believe Naomi. To trust what she was telling me. I wanted to commit fully to Cass. I wanted to marry him, adopt Paisley, and maybe have a couple children of my own. I wanted the happily ever after with all my heart. Naomi asked if I could bring a pure intent and strong emotion to the table. I knew I could. The question in my mind was whether or not I would be able to leave my fear at the door.

  Chapter 17

  Epilogue

  “Paisley, are you almost ready?” I called up the stairs.

  “I’m just getting Baxter,” she called back down the stairs, referring to her golden retriever. “Are Tom and Gracie here yet?”

  “I can see them walking across the yard. Cass is loading Milo, and he looks like he’s ready to go, but I still need to strap the boys into the van. You and Baxter can just meet us in the drive.”

  “Okay.” I heard a crash and then a giggle.

  It had been five Halloweens since I’d taken a chance on love and stood under the full moon on Halloween night with a pure heart and strong intention. I’d faced my fear and risked everything to have a chance at living the life my heart desired. I had to admit that letting go of the fear that had shaped my life to that point had not been easy. In fact, truth be told, I’d been flat out terrified. But I’d wanted so badly to have the life I now enjoyed, that I’d offered up that fear, closed my eyes, and took a leap of faith.

  I suspect the story about Naomi’s witch, and the magical words that would set me free were hogwash. I supposed I knew even at the time Naomi had shared her magical cure with me that it was my belief in the curse that gave it its power, and if I wanted to be liberated of its impact on my life, I simply needed to set it free. Once I’d made the commitment and married Cass, Gracie had decided to take her own leap of faith and had finally married Tom. She’d moved into Tom’s cabin, leaving the big house for Cass, Pais
ley, and me. The arrangement really was ideal since we each had our own space, yet we continued to live on the same property. Most evenings, we all still gathered together for a meal around the same table where Gracie and I had eaten when I was a child. The only downside to the arrangement was that Gracie seemed to be forever losing things and then having no idea which house she’d left them in.

  “Did you ever find my gray sweater?” Gracie asked as I strapped Hunter and Hayden, the twin boys Cass and I had brought into the world nine months ago, into their car seats. “I know it’s warm today, but I suspect it will be chilly by the time we get back from the pumpkin farm.”

  “I found it. It’s on the third-row seat. I was going to sit back there with Paisley and Anna after we pick her up. Cass will drive, and Tom can ride shotgun. You can sit on the middle seat with the boys since it’s easier to get in and out of, but if they get fussy, you and I can switch.”

  “It’s a good thing you have a big car,” Gracie chucked as Baxter jumped into the cargo area with Milo.

  I smiled. “It’s the perfect car for my perfect family.”

  “Did you tell Grandma that we’re going to stop by and bring her a pumpkin?” Paisley asked after climbing into the third-row seat.

  “I did, and she’s very excited about seeing all of us,” I answered. Even though Ethel had decided it was time to go into assisted living, and Paisley had moved in full-time with us, we were very diligent about visiting her on a regular basis.

  “Did you ask her about the diary she was going to lend you for your article?” she asked.

  “I did.” I kissed both my sons on their chubby cheeks and then climbed in next to Paisley. “Dex loved my idea about writing a town history, and I think your grandma’s diary is going to help me really pull things together.” I hugged her. “Your idea was excellent.”

  She grinned. “I’m going to be a newspaper columnist like you someday. I’m grateful for the opportunity to help out when I can.”

  My heart bled just a bit when I realized that Paisley would be going to college in two years. God, how I’d miss her. But I wanted her to have her heart’s desire, and at this point, being a journalist seemed to be where she was heading. As Cass started the van and pulled out of the drive, I turned and looked back toward the attic window where Alastair sat staring down at us. Little had I known that first night when I’d sat with the cat in that very window after leaving New York and returning to Foxtail Lake, that the life I’d been sure at the time I’d mourn until the end of time, had in fact, only been a placeholder for the life I’d been destined to live all along.

  The End

  USA Today best-selling author Kathi Daley lives in beautiful Lake Tahoe with her husband Ken. When she isn’t writing, she likes spending time hiking the miles of desolate trails surrounding her home. She has authored more than a hundred books in twelve series. Find out more about her books at www.kathidaley.com

  Stay up-to-date:

  Newsletter, The Daley Weekly http://eepurl.com/NRPDf

  Webpage – www.kathidaley.com

  Facebook at Kathi Daley Books – www.facebook.com/kathidaleybooks

  Kathi Daley Books Group Page – https://www.facebook.com/groups/569578823146850/

  E-mail – kathidaley@kathidaley.com

  Twitter at Kathi Daley@kathidaley – https://twitter.com/kathidaley

  Amazon Author Page –https://www.amazon.com/author/kathidaley

  BookBub – https://www.bookbub.com/authors/kathi-daley