“Emma might be trapped in a curse,” Daniel said, as though the possibility was the most normal thing in the world. Only in Spellbound.
Boyd snapped to attention. “What kind of curse?”
“A repeat spell,” I said. “I seem to be living the same day over and over again.”
“She broke a toilet as a test,” Daniel added.
Boyd considered me. “I see.”
I sat up and slouched against the wall. “I don’t like the way you said that.”
“I take it you’re concerned about how such a spell might impact the baby?” Boyd asked.
“Yes, of course.”
“I think it depends on how long it continues,” Boyd replied. “Any idea how much time you might’ve lost already?”
“I don’t know whether each day repeated equates to a full day,” I said. “It probably depends on the spell, but this is my third visit to your office for the same appointment.”
Boyd twiddled his thumbs. “Gotcha. That’s helpful. Well, I think even if it does equate to a full day, you’re fine as long as you’re drinking, eating, and sleeping normally.”
“I’m eating as much as I can in light of the morning sickness,” I said.
“That should pass soon enough,” Boyd replied. “If it doesn’t, come back and see me.”
Sure. Assuming I got myself out of whatever mess I was in. “And what if I’m right about the curse, but I can’t break out of the cycle?”
“Then you should probably come see me for that as well, in case we need to provide special assistance to the baby.”
Special assistance? I choked back tears.
“That doesn’t sound good,” Daniel said. Understatement of the year.
“I can’t let anything bad happen to our baby,” I whispered.
Boyd’s expression turned grim. “Then I sure hope you get to the bottom of this curse real soon.”
Chapter Thirteen
After my appointment, I sped to the northern outskirts of town to the secret lair instead of going straight to my meeting at the academy. My friends were always my go-to for spells gone awry. They had as much experience as I did and they’d been instrumental in helping me break the curse on Spellbound.
I placed my hand flat against the rock and said the magic words before entering the lair. As expected, my friends were there, gathering the necessary elements to create the Marjory Limpet doll.
“This voodoo doll is going to take you most of the day,” I said, sweeping into the room.
“How’d you know that’s what we planned to do?” Sophie asked.
“I’ll tell you in a minute,” I said. “I need to clear my head.” I dropped onto the sofa and put my feet on the coffee table in an effort to relax. It didn’t really help.
“Can you blame us?” Laurel asked. “She was awful at the welcome reception.”
“She might be more awful than we think,” I said. “She might be responsible for hexing me.” I told them about my situation and the current theories. “I could really use your help. I don’t want to be stuck in this day forever.”
“Think about it this way,” Begonia said. “You’ll never age.”
I cast an apprehensive look at my stomach. “Yes, but neither will my baby.”
“Baby?” Millie repeated.
I offered a weak smile. “Yay. Baby on board.” I waved an imaginary flag.
The witches stared at me in disbelief.
“Are you joking?” Millie asked.
“Not a joke,” I said. “I’m pregnant and, if I can’t figure out how to start moving through time in the usual fashion, my baby and I are going to have a serious problem.”
Begonia was the first one to come over and hug me. “Emma, I’m so thrilled and frightened for you at the same time.”
“Me too,” I said.
“An angel-sorceress hybrid,” Laurel said. “This is fascinating.”
“Yes, you’ve said that,” I told her. “Want to meet me at the library later? You said there are lots of books on hybrids we can look through and see what we can learn about my baby, like how long my pregnancy might last.”
“Are you sure you want to do it today?” Laurel asked. “Maybe you should mix up the schedule so you can learn something new.”
I winked. “Already doing that.” I told her to meet me at the time when I’d previously gone to the Mayor’s Mansion. A visit to Lucy would have to wait until tomorrow—the real tomorrow. “I’m supposed to meet the High Priestess right now, but I don’t want to go without talking to you first.”
“She would certainly know how to hex you,” Laurel said.
“Yes, but she’s not my only suspect,” I replied. “I’ve been going through each suspect in my head, trying to see if I can learn anything new today.”
“Who else is on the list besides Limpet?” Begonia asked.
“Sammy Munez, the co-worker of my client, Percy. If I get Percy’s case tossed, she won’t be able to muscle in on his job.”
“And keeping you in an endless loop, keeps you from doing that,” Millie said.
“But it also keeps you from not doing that,” Laurel said. “I mean, there’s a chance you’d lose, right? And Percy would go to prison. That would help Sammy.”
“I suppose that’s true,” I admitted. Still, I couldn’t rule her out at this stage. Not with so little to go on.
“Who else?” Begonia prompted.
I shrugged. “Even if it’s not Sammy, it might be connected to Percy’s case, but in a way I can’t see.” I closed my eyes and exhaled. “Any suggestions on what to do next?”
Laurel walked over to the bookcase and pulled a thick grimoire from the shelf. “Same thing I always suggest. Let’s hit the books.”
“Yes,” Begonia said excitedly. “Even if you can’t figure out who’s responsible, we might still be able to reverse the spell.”
“As long as we can identify the one that was used,” Millie pointed out.
“Then we best get started,” Sophie said, her jaw set with grim determination. Everyone grabbed a grimoire and sat down to peruse the index.
“We’re looking for any kind of repeat spell, right?” Begonia asked.
“Yes,” Laurel said. “Anything that would cause Emma to relive the same day over again. We’ll make a list and go through them together.”
“Lists,” I repeated. “Now you’re speaking my language.” Not to mention Gareth’s. The vampire ghost loved lists more than I did.
We paged through the books and noted any relevant spells. The future parts of Voodoo Doll Marjory rested in the middle of the table and it began to feel like an altar we were praying to them for guidance.
“Okay, let’s discuss our findings,” Laurel said. She set down her quill and prepared to read.
Before she could begin, Millie cleared her throat. “Before we do that, can we discuss your look, Laurel? If this day is going to start over again, I might as well say what’s been on my mind. You won’t remember it anyway.”
Laurel folded her arms. “What about my look?”
Millie rolled her eyes. “You know. This dark purple lipstick and zombie makeup.” She zigzagged a finger in front of Laurel’s face. “I know we’re supposed to leave you to it and not say anything so that you don’t continue to rebel, but, I’ll be honest, it’s getting tired. I’m kind of over it.”
“Why should my appearance bother you?” Laurel asked. “I’m not asking you to dress like me.”
“I know, but we spend so much time together,” Millie said. “I have to look at you.”
“Then maybe we should reconsider that,” Laurel said, her expression tense.
“No, no,” Begonia said. “Let’s not overreact, witches. The other Amazons didn’t mind that Diana started wearing different clothing from them, did they?”
Millie frowned. “That’s Wonder Woman.”
“Yes, exactly,” Begonia said. “Laurel is like Wonder Woman in this scenario. She’s wearing her new, cool uniform
.”
“But…” Millie started to protest.
Begonia rushed to place a hand over her mouth. “Let Laurel express herself through fashion if she wants to.”
“Fine.” Millie’s muffled voice came through Begonia’s hand.
“Thank you.” Begonia removed her hand from Millie’s big mouth. “Now, can we get back to the actual crisis? Emma’s baby is at stake.”
“I have three potential spells,” Laurel said.
“I only have one,” Millie said.
“I didn’t find any relevant ones,” Sophie complained.
“That’s okay,” I said. “Neither did I.”
“I have one,” Begonia said. “It’s called Entrapment.”
I leaned over to look at her open page. “That sounds intriguing,” I said.
Begonia read aloud—“Use of Entrapment results in the subject being frozen in time, unable to move forward.”
“Frozen within the same day, though?” Laurel queried.
Begonia scanned the rest of the passage. “It doesn’t specify.”
“Well, it’s a fuzzy maybe,” Laurel said. “My first one is the Happy Times spell.”
“That doesn’t sound like much of a curse,” Millie mumbled.
“It allows the subject to relive happy moments of her choosing,” Laurel explained.
“Not quite what’s happening to me,” I said.
“Are you certain?” Laurel asked, focusing on me. “Maybe you’re reliving this day because of your happiness surrounding the baby.”
“That’s true,” Sophie said. “You must be sharing the good news over and over again.”
I shook my head. “I didn’t choose this, though. Someone would have chosen it for me and there’s nothing particularly happy about it. I can think of several other, happier days I would’ve chosen.”
Laurel continued to read. “How about the Hamster Wheel?”
“That sounds more plausible,” I said. “What does that do?”
“The subject is forced to go through the same motions over and over again,” Laurel replied.
“Until what happens?” I asked.
Laurel reviewed the page. “Oh.”
“What?” I came over to look at the page, but Laurel covered it with her hands. “Show me.”
“It says until you drop dead of a heart attack,” Laurel said quietly.
I released a breath. “Not ideal.”
“Probably not your hex either,” Millie said. “It suggests a lot of motion and you’re not doing anything particularly stressful. You’re having a normal day, right? Just the same one.”
“True,” I said. Millie’s comment made me feel slightly better. A heart attack would mean losing the baby and possibly me. Daniel would be diving off that clifftop at Swan Lake without anyone to stop him.
“What’s your third one?” I asked Laurel.
“The Revisit,” Laurel replied. “You revisit a day in your life until you fix it the way you want it. Then you progress to the next day.”
“Is it a spell I’d use on myself, though?” I asked.
“Not sure.” Laurel contemplated the details. “Maybe there was something about this day you didn’t like and you decided to change it.”
“Maybe you didn’t like Boyd’s feedback about the baby,” Sophie said.
“No, I doubt it,” I said. “I would remember that he gave me negative feedback at some point and then I made it positive.” The more I thought it, the less Sophie’s theory made sense.
“Maybe someone else wants you to fix something and has trapped you until you do it,” Millie suggested.
“If that’s the case, then you’d think they’d give me a heads up so I can work faster,” I said. I glanced at the clock. “Crap-on-a-stick. I need to go. I’m already late for my meeting.”
“Look on the bright side,” Begonia said, “If you don’t break the curse today, you’ll have to go to the meeting again tomorrow. She won’t remember you were late today.”
“Unless she’s the one responsible,” Millie said. “Watch your back, Emma. Until we get to the bottom of this, you don’t know who you can trust.”
“You,” I said, looking at my friends. “I know I can trust you.”
I drove straight to the academy from the secret lair, bypassing Brew-Ha-Ha where I’d run into Astrid the other two days. I didn’t need to be reminded that Amos Parker had died as a result of multi-organ failure. My immediate concern was the High Priestess. If Marjory Limpet was the cause of the curse, then this was my chance to fix it.
I hurried to her office, knowing I was already late. I hovered in the doorway for a brief moment, observing Marjory in silence as she scanned her paperwork. Did she really have a legitimate reason to hex me? Inwardly, I sighed. It didn’t matter whether the reason was legitimate. It only mattered whether she was the one responsible. She’d already expressed a dislike for me and she obviously was more than capable of performing a repeat spell.
One of the dogs noticed me and began to yip. As Marjory stood to calm the dog, a small book fell out of her pocket. Thanks to my nature as a pleaser, I immediately leaped forward to pick it up for her. Etched in gold lettering on the cover were the words ‘pocket grimoire.’
“Emma, I didn’t hear you come in.”
“I’ve never seen one of these,” I said. “How handy.” I began to flip through the pages and saw various spells highlighted in yellow.
Marjory looked at me as she rubbed Lola’s belly. “They don’t tend to produce them anymore. That’s an old edition.”
“Very useful in a pinch,” I said. My heart hammered against my chest when I saw the highlighted entry on page fifty-two.
“What’s a Merry-Go-Round spell?” I asked, barely able to utter the words.
Marjory frowned. “I don’t recall off the top of my head.”
“Why is it highlighted in your book?” I asked. “It seems to me you’d only highlight ones that you intended to use.”
“I don’t see why that’s any of your concern,” she replied in a clipped tone. She snatched the book from me and shoved it back into her pocket.
“You’re an accomplished witch,” I said. “Why do you need to carry around a pocket grimoire anyway? Is this a dementia thing?” I had no idea where that theory came from and immediately regretted saying it out loud.
Marjory jerked her head toward me. “Dementia? Most certainly not and I kindly ask that you don’t spread such ridiculous rumors in an effort to undermine me. I know how you operate, rebel rouser.”
“I have no interest in undermining you,” I said. “I’m interested in figuring out who cursed me and how to stop it.”
Marjory peered at me. “Someone cursed you?”
“Yes,” I said. “I seem to be living the same day over and over, like that spell in your book.”
Marjory set the dog on the floor. “It just so happens that counter spells are one of my specialties.”
I folded my arms. “How do I know the Merry-Go-Round spell isn’t one of your specialties?”
Rather than give me the offended response I expected, Marjory gave me an appraising look.
“What?” I asked. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
“I’m trying to decide how I can convince you that I had nothing to do with hexing you.” She tapped her nails on the edge of the desk. “If I help you break it, then that would prove my innocence, no?”
I eyed her suspiciously. “Unless that’s what you wanted me to think. Reverse psychology.”
“Either way, you’d be free,” Marjory said. “Probably worth the risk.”
“You’d really help me?” I asked. “Even though you think I’m out to topple your regime?” I realized I’d used Millie’s words from the secret lair.
“The plain truth is I love magic, Emma,” she said. “Its endless possibilities. Its connection to the universe. It’s why I want to overhaul the academy curriculum. I want everyone to have the best possible experience when learning an
d develop the deep love and respect for magic that I have.”
“I worry when feelings are that intense,” I said. “That’s when the zealots come out.” In my experience, zealots equaled problems.
Marjory’s laughter hit a high note. “I’m no zealot, Emma. I simply have a healthy respect for the coven and its capabilities and I want all of our members to feel the same.”
There was nothing to do except take her word for it—for now. “So what do we do?”
She opened the pocket grimoire and reviewed the page with the Merry-Go-Round spell. “We need a few ingredients. I should have them on hand. They’re common enough.”
I followed Marjory to the far side of the office where she began to pluck materials from her shelf. Her hands moved so quickly and deftly that I missed half the items she pulled. Unsurprisingly, she appeared to be a knowledgeable witch.
“We’ll take these to the work table and see what we can do,” Marjory said. “Carry those two jars.”
I picked them up and brought them to the table. “I appreciate you doing this. How will we know if it works?”
“I would imagine you’d poof into a new day,” Marjory said. “Or wake up tomorrow and know time has passed.”
“Because my vampire ghost roommate’s head isn’t hovering in front of mine when I open my eyes?”
Marjory shot me a quizzical glance. “Your what?”
I sighed. “It’s a long story.”
“You seem to have a lot of those,” she said.
I laughed. “You have no idea.”
In typical High Priestess fashion, Marjory used this opportunity as a magic lesson. She didn’t do anything for me. Instead, she instructed me every step of the way so that I could do it myself. It seemed in sharp contrast to her controlling behavior toward the coven. I decided maybe there was more to Marjory than met the eye.
“Now, use your wand and repeat after me,” Marjory said.
I produced Tiffany, my light blue wand, and pointed it at the mixture.
“The wheel of time, one can tell/its broken spokes, reverse this spell.”
I repeated the incantation and looked blankly at the High Priestess. “What now?”
Wands Upon A Time (Spellbound Ever After Paranormal Cozy Mystery Book 3) Page 13