I arrived at the healer’s clinic to find Daniel pacing the floor of the waiting area. My heart began to pound when I recognized the other man in the room. If I’d dreamed this entire appointment, how on earth could I have included a man I’d never met before? Of course, Gareth would argue that the man was the semi-psychic part of my dream.
“You’re two minutes late,” Daniel said, appearing relieved to see me. “You’re never late.”
“I know. I’m sorry.” My voice was no louder than a whisper. “I had to make a stop in front of the toilet.”
Daniel smoothed back my hair. “We’ll see what Boyd has to say about it.”
I couldn’t tear my gaze away from the strange man in the chair. “Excuse me, is that a nature magazine you’re reading?”
The man glanced up with a smile. “Yes, it is. My own copy, though, I’m afraid. I always bring something to read with me in case I end up waiting too long.”
“That’s smart,” I said.
Daniel took my hand. “Are you feeling okay, Emma? You look unwell.”
“Just the usual,” I lied.
We sat in the corner to wait our turn. Daniel tucked his wings in as far as they could go in order to fit in the small space. “I’m sorry I left early this morning,” he said. “Since we didn’t get to talk much last night, I wanted to hear about your new case when you woke up.”
“Last night,” I repeated. Images of the Spotted Owl flashed in my mind, except that had been part of my dream.
Daniel stroked my cheek with his thumb. “Did you have a bad night? You seem off.”
“I’ll be fine.” I inhaled deeply, determined to shake off the weird vibe. “I’m defending a client named Percy. He seems like a lovely faun. The charges against him don’t make sense.”
Daniel patted my thigh. “You think that about all your clients.”
“If you met Percy, you’d feel the same way.”
The healer’s assistant poked her head into the waiting area. “Phil Saxby.” She gave him a friendly smile. “Always nice to see druids coming into the clinic. Sometimes they think they’re above that sort of thing.”
Phil laughed. “Not me. I know my limits.”
Inwardly, I groaned. Isn’t that what he said in my dream? I pushed the thought aside and tried to focus on the appointment. The main goal was to make sure the baby was healthy. I wasn’t that far along—anything could go wrong, including my brain, apparently.
Ever the doting husband, Daniel kissed my hand. “Not to worry, Emma. We’re next. I bet the baby is perfect.”
Tears welled in my eyes. “You’re an absolute angel.”
He fluttered the tops of his wings. “So I’m told.”
Boyd stepped into the waiting area. “Come on back, you two. Let’s see how you’re progressing.”
Daniel nudged me excitedly toward the exam room. The whole scene felt eerily familiar.
Once inside the room, Boyd patted the table. “Have a seat here, Emma.”
“I don’t need a hospital gown, do I?” I asked.
“No, no, not for this,” Boyd said. “Druids have their own way of doing things.” He rubbed his hands together. “Flat on your back is best.”
“That’s how she got here in the first place,” Daniel quipped.
My stomach churned. I’d had semi-psychic dreams, but never insanely accurate ones. What was happening?
I climbed onto the table and did my best to remain calm. Stress was bad for the baby; I knew that much. Boyd’s open palms hovered over my midsection and he closed his eyes. I heard his soft inhalations and exhalations as he worked.
“It’s a strong heartbeat, isn’t it?” I asked.
His eyelids fluttered open. “Yes, indeed. Everything’s coming along, nicely, Emma. Do you have any questions for me?”
“When will she stop puking?” Daniel asked, beating me to the punch.
“Hopefully, only a few more weeks,” Boyd replied. “If it carries on for longer, we’ll take a closer look.”
“Do you happen to know anything about angel-sorceress hybrids?” Daniel asked.
Boyd tugged his ear. “Can’t say I’ve seen one of those before, but there’s a first time for everything. I wouldn’t worry. There are all sorts of hybrids out there. Yours is hardly out of this realm.”
I coughed loudly before he could make a joke about vampire ghost babies.
“Are you okay?” Daniel asked. His brow wrinkled with concern.
“Saliva went down the wrong pipe,” I lied.
“If questions pop up, feel free to stop in,” Boyd said. “Healers know how nerve-racking the process can be for first-time parents.”
Daniel shook the druid’s hand. “Thanks, Boyd. That definitely makes us feel better.”
Actually, this appointment wasn’t making me feel any better at all. If anything, I felt worse because something seemed amiss, but I had no clue what.
“I need to go back to the office and get ready for my interviews,” Daniel said. “Do you want me to fly you home first or will that be too hard on your stomach?”
“I’m heading to the academy to see Marjory Limpet about curriculum changes, then I need to go to Paws and Claws to talk to them about Percy. We can meet there if you’re interested in a healthy dose of cuteness overload.”
Daniel kissed my forehead. “I have all the cuteness overload I could want right here.”
My heart melted. “Good luck today,” I said. “I’ll swing by later and see how you’re doing.”
He squeezed my hand. “With the perfect wife and a baby on the way, I can’t do much better.”
I practically ran to the academy, desperate not to be late for my meeting with the High Priestess. I didn’t want to give her any more reasons to dislike me. As I passed Brew-Ha-Ha, the shop door opened.
Spell’s bells. Astrid. Just like in my dream, she held a to-go cup in her hand. The pleasant aroma of cinnamon filled the air.
“Hey, perfect timing,” the sheriff said.
“Amos Parker,” I said.
Astrid smiled. “You and I are always on the same page. Yes, his report came back. Multi-organ failure.”
“Because he was as old as dirt?” I queried, although I already knew the answer.
“That’s exactly what I was going to say,” Astrid said. “I’ve been trying to get in touch with his son, but no luck yet. I think he must be out of town.”
I stared into the distance, the sense of deja vu threatening to overwhelm me. “I appreciate the update,” I finally said. The clock tower began to chime, prompting me to move. “I need to run. See you later!”
“You should slow down, Emma,” Astrid called after me.
I rushed down the corridor and came to a screeching halt in front of the door. Marjory Limpet’s office was less jarring now that I knew to expect the Floridian-style color scheme.
“Ah, yes. Emma Hart.” Marjory glanced up from her paperwork with that disingenuous smile.
“I’m sorry I’m a smidge late,” I said, before she had a chance to scold me. “I came straight from an appointment.”
“I see.” As she did before, the High Priestess focused on the paper in front of her. It seemed my presence wasn’t her priority.
One of the dogs came over to sniff me. “Lola and Lulu really are the cutest dogs. Whatever brought you to Minneapolis was worth it for the dogs alone.”
Marjory’s head snapped to attention. “How did you know I’ve been to Minneapolis?”
“I…uh.” I didn’t have a good response. Because of deja vu didn’t seem adequate. “Sometimes I get flashes of information.” Oh no. Did I seriously tell a blatant lie to the new High Priestess? I bent down to pet the dog so that she couldn’t see my horrified expression. If there was a coven hell, there was already a torture chamber with my name on it.
“It must be because of your sorceress heritage,” Marjory said.
“I think so,” I replied. “That’s why I can communicate with my vampire ghost roommate,
Gareth.” Suddenly, the lie seemed more reasonable.
“What else can you sense?” Marjory asked. “Can you read auras? I’ve always found auras fascinating.”
I didn’t want to stretch the lie any further. “No, the information comes to me sparingly. I never know when to expect a hit.” I fell silent for a beat, trying to remember our conversation from yesterday. “For instance, I know you reviewed my file again this morning.”
Marjory’s brow slowly lifted. “So I did.”
“You seem to have your mind made up, but I swear I’m not a troublemaker, Miss…High Priestess,” I said. “Life has a way of throwing me curveballs. I just try to catch them so they don’t knock the wind out of me.”
“I assume a curveball is a human world reference,” she said.
“I guess you didn’t attend any Minnesota Twins games while you were there.”
“I don’t know what that is, but no,” Marjory said. “I went for personal reasons and ended up bringing two dogs home from the journey.”
I sensed a story there but opted not to pry. “They’re adorable. They seem very well-behaved.”
“They are excellent companions,” she said. “I highly recommend them. Do you have any pets?”
“He’s not a pet, exactly,” I said.
“I don’t mean your familiar,” Marjory said.
“Neither do I.” Hmm. How to describe Magpie? “There’s a rather large, fearsome cat that lives in my house.” There.
Marjory’s nose wrinkled. “Cats. Such a stereotype that witches need cats in order to function. I mean, I can get around without a broomstick, can’t I?”
“I don’t think witches and wizards are as tied to their familiars as you seem to believe,” I said. “My friends are fond of their companions, but they have separate lives. They don’t even bring them to the secret…to the academy or anything.” Although I found it interesting that Marjory saw fit to bring her dogs to work.
“Your experience is likely different, having an owl as a familiar,” Marjory said. “It’s not the same as a typical witch.”
“No, I’m sure you’re right.” No point in arguing. The High Priestess had opinions and I wasn’t going to change them during the course of a single conversation.
“I believe you have references to give me regarding the proposed changes to the curriculum,” I said.
“I do, in fact.” Marjory retrieved the Blue Ribbon academy information and handed it to me. “If you could review this and let me know your thoughts, I would appreciate your feedback.”
I slid the information into my bag. “I appreciate that you’re interested in a variety of perspectives, High Priestess.” That was one major difference between Marjory and Lady Weatherby.
“Like it or not, coven members seem to value your opinion,” Marjory said. “I imagine one way to win them over is to indulge you.”
Well, that seemed a little manipulative, but, as long as she actually intended to take my feedback on board, what harm did it really do?
“Oh, I’m sorry about the incident during your welcome speech,” I said. I realized that I’d only apologized to her in my dream.
Lola placed her front paws on Marjory’s thigh in a bid for attention. “The regurgitation? Think nothing of it. A simple spell took care of it.” She gave me a pointed look. “Simple spells are more often than not the most useful. It’s when we try to get complicated that things go awry.”
“Oh, I don’t know about that,” I said. “I’ve managed to make simple spells seem horribly complicated.”
“That’s the sorceress in you,” Marjory said. Her expression shifted to one of grim determination. “Not to worry, Emma, we’ll make a witch out of you yet.”
Chapter Nine
Paws and Claws was my next stop of the morning, despite my uneasy feelings that I’d already experienced this moment. Unlike the nuggets of information I remembered from my healer’s appointment and my meeting with the High Priestess, I didn’t recall specifics from my visit to Paws and Claws. Not that it mattered. I couldn’t rely on a dream to do my job for me. If I intended to mount a successful defense for my client, then I had to gather as much evidence in his favor as possible. Due to the serious nature of the crime, I knew the prosecution would move swiftly on this case, which meant I didn’t have much time to help Percy.
I narrowly dodged a few black cats as I entered. One of them turned and meowed at me. Better than a hiss.
“Emma,” Chip greeted me. “What a pleasant surprise. Don’t tell me you’re in the market for another creature in the house.” He stood behind the counter, offering a kitten food by hand.
I admired the kitten’s gorgeous ginger coat. “What a sweetheart. Is he unwell?” I asked.
“Abandoned, it seems,” Chip said. “We need to get his strength up, poor little fella.”
I rubbed his tiny foot. “Where did you find him?”
“In the woods,” he replied. “We’ve had a rash of abandonments lately. I can’t decide if it’s something to do with open borders or what.”
“But human world animals could always wander in and out,” I said. “It was only the paranormal ones that got trapped here.”
“He’s one of us,” Chip said.
I looked blankly at the kitten. “A familiar?”
“No, he’s meant to have wings. See?” Chip turned the kitten and rubbed his thumb long the back. “You can feel where his wings should have sprouted.”
“A winged cat,” I echoed. Now that he said it, it sounded familiar. “He’s adorable.”
“His deformity could be the reason his mother abandoned him.”
The idea that the kitten had been abandoned because he failed to meet a physical standard was enough to move me to tears.
“Oh, Emma. I didn’t mean to upset you,” Chip said. “That’s the nature of wildlife. Animals are capable of cruelty, but also incredible kindness.”
I sniffed. “I know, Chip. I’m just sensitive to stories like that.”
“Because of being adopted?” he asked. His question didn’t surprise me. Everyone in town seemed to know my background.
“Yes, but also…” I inhaled deeply. “Because Daniel and I are having a baby.” Now that I’d seen the healer and all was well, I could start sharing the good news more openly.
“That’s fantastic, Emma,” he said. “Well done to the two of you.”
“Thank you,” I said. “We’re both thrilled, and a little frightened.”
“No reason to worry, Emma,” Chip said. “You and Daniel will be phenomenal parents. I can’t imagine you’re in the market for another new addition.”
“No, I’m here to ask you about Percy Atkins.”
The change in Chip's expression told me that his experience wasn’t a positive one. “I see. I guess I should’ve realized you’d be defending him.”
“You think he’s guilty?” I asked.
“I have my reasons,” Chip said vaguely.
“Would you mind sharing them?” I asked. “If there are things I need to know about my client, I’d appreciate the help.”
“Things have gone missing from the supply closet recently. I hadn’t blamed Percy, but once he was arrested, I put two and two together.”
“What kinds of things have gone missing?” I asked.
“Rare stock that’s for emergency purposes.”
“Percy hasn’t volunteered here for very long,” I said. “Is it possible the stock went missing before then and you noticed afterward?”
“Doubtful,” Chip replied. “We take inventory once a month.”
“Are you the only one with a key to the closet?” I asked.
“There’s no key. We don’t lock it,” Chip said. “There’s never been a need.”
No key. That’s right. I remembered. “If you don’t lock it, then anyone could walk in from the street and walk out with supplies.” Although he had no evidence that Percy stole the supplies, it certainly wouldn’t help my case if the accusations came to li
ght.
“We don’t advertise that we have them,” Chip said. “Like I said, they’re for emergencies and fairly uncommon. If Percy is smuggling angel dust, it wouldn’t surprise me that he wanted to raid our supply closet. The items are good for creating potent mixtures with prohibited substances like angel dust.”
“So you think he could be selling mixtures rather than the individual substances?” I queried.
“Probably both. His job is a dispenser at Cure-iosity Shop, right?” Chip asked. “Seems like a reasonable assumption to me. He clearly knows what he’s doing.”
I stroked the kitten one last time. It was a nice change to pet a cat without having him hiss at me. “Thanks for your input, Chip. I hope you’re wrong, but I appreciate the information.”
“Have you talked to the folks at Cure-iosity Shop yet?” he asked. “If I have missing stock, they’re sure to have the same issue.”
“Only if Percy is actually the culprit,” I said, and I wasn’t convinced.
“I know you like to see the good in everyone, Emma,” he said, “but sometimes you have to be willing to see the harsh reality.”
“I’ve seen plenty of the harsh reality, thanks,” I said. “I’d rather continue to see my glass as half full because, sometimes, that’s exactly what it is.”
Chip lifted the kitten’s paw and used it to wave at me. “Good luck, Emma. I hope you’re right this time.”
I heaved a sigh. For Percy’s sake, so did I.
Cure-iosity Shop was next on my list even before Chip mentioned the dispensary. I needed to question Sammy Munez, Percy’s allegedly competitive co-worker. Hopefully, I’d be able to gauge whether she had a hand in framing my client.
The smell of herbs and spices wafted through the air of the shop, both sweet and pungent. Although Cure-iosity Shop was new to me, the place felt oddly familiar. With its wide variety of items, it reminded me of pharmacies in the human world. It sold everything from cosmetics, to toys and games, candy, and medicinal substances. I lingered in front of a row of jars with all manner of herbs and berries. They included Spellbound staples like burstberries and fizzlewick—items unheard of in the human world. Each item had an information card on the shelf beneath it. No Google required when the pertinent details were right in front of you.
Wands Upon A Time (Spellbound Ever After Paranormal Cozy Mystery Book 3) Page 9