Spelling Bee
Page 3
“Oh, yes they can,” I said.
I breathed a sigh of relief as the wizards pushed Carter forward so he got a full nose full of the smoke emanating from the pot. The effect was instant. The stupid glaze left his eyes, and he would have collapsed, if one of the beefier dads with bulging muscles and dragon tattoos on his bare arms hadn’t caught him just in time. I guessed he must have been from one of the other schools because I didn’t recognize him from ours.
“Oh, no, you don’t,” said the dad, and he propped Carter against the edge of the table while he regained his sense of balance.
Carter shook his head, his focus returning at last. The first thing he did was look up to me, his face contorted in pure embarrassment. I felt a pang of remorse that Pike hadn’t included a forgetfulness spell, but hey, like a wise man close to me once said, you don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.
“I’m so sorry,” he said. “I don’t understand. The spell I taught them––it wasn’t supposed to be that powerful.”
“Hey, don’t worry about it, accidents happen, you know?” I didn’t want to say too much, after all, my earlier point had been made, and hell, no real damage was done. Not this time. Why rub salt into sore wounds?
“So, I presume this means Crystal has won?” Lea said. She had miraculously reappeared at my side, now that the worst of the drama was over. “Since Pike’s potion was obviously flawed.”
“It wasn’t my daughter’s potion that affected Mr. Carter, it was my muffins!” I cried. Everyone around us laughed again, and even I managed a smirk––it did sound just a tad ridiculous.
Carter stood up, fully recovered, and turned to grab Pike’s pink vial of potion. “Don’t worry, I won’t be tasting it again.” He tentatively sniffed the contents.
Good, I thought. It was still too soon after the counter spell, and a single drop would send him back over the edge again. We all moved a little closer, anxious to hear his casting vote, but Carter didn’t seem to mind. He turned, but the contestants were lost in the sea of bodies.
“Everybody, please take your seats so I can bring this year’s Spelling Bee to a close!”
Anxious to hear his verdict, everyone returned to their seats. I sat impatiently at mine, bursting with pride for my daughter, in total awe of the smart child I had raised, whether she won or not.
Carter stooped down to pick up the hat he’d lost in the kerfuffle, dusted it off, then returned it to his head. He cleared his throat.
“Firstly, I would like to thank all of the contestants for being here tonight. I know we all found it, um, vastly entertaining.” He paused to grin, and a chuckle rippled over the audience. Even I had to laugh. “But a winner is required, and it’s my delightful duty to announce the winner tonight.”
The gymnasium was suddenly silent as we all held our breath.
“All of the potions were first class, and each of the contestants should be very proud of their brews. But one potion in particular stood out for me as being as close to perfect as any potion could become. Especially, now we know that even the slightest hint of an addition invoked its full potential.”
I beamed.
“The winner of the 2019 Capstone County inter-school Spelling Bee is Pike Candlewick!”
The gymnasium erupted, and I ran over to my daughter, getting to her even faster than the golden-colored winner bubble that floated from the judges and hovered over my daughter’s head. I kissed her over and over.
“Awww, Mom,” she said, embarrassed. She accepted my hugs for as long as she could before gently pushing me away. “Duty calls.” She turned to the other contestants, shaking their hands one by one. Crystal was standing inches away, and Pike hugged her hard.
“You better watch out next year,” Crystal said with a smile.
“You know I will.” Pike laughed.
I could have burst into a thousand sparkles, I was so full of love and pride. The big tattooed man had his arms wrapped proudly around Bibi, who if anything looked totally relieved the whole event was over. Even Lea took my hand and shook it. I knew she’d wanted her daughter to win. What mother wouldn’t? But tonight belonged to Pike and me, and my friend graciously accepted it.
“Well done.” She shook my hand warmly. “Pike did amazing.”
“Thank you,” I said. “So did Crystal. It was a close call.”
“Perhaps.” Lea smiled. “But you won, fair and square. Congratulations.”
“Thank you.” I grinned back at her, patting her hand.
Carter was standing directly behind her, and sensing she might be in the way, Lea winked at me. “Oh, I best be off. Time to embarrass Crystal.”
I laughed. It was what Moms did best, after all. I watched as Lea sauntered over to Crystal who was now talking with Bibi and her tattooed dad. Without missing a beat, Lea lay her spoor on his wrist. Way to go, Lea! I thought.
“A smart witch or wizard will always learn the counter curse for any spell they invoke,” Carter said once she left. He was looking over at Pike. “It is a sign of great maturity. And I, for one, am very thankful that she did. You must be proud of her.”
I laughed. “I am. Totally.” I glanced down at the pot, and the melted remains of my driver’s license. The only thing that sucked was I’d have to get a replacement, and, boy, how I hated the DMV. Still, it was a small price to pay, given the circumstances.
While everyone else was still dancing around my daughter, I began shoving my stuff back inside the bag.
“I’m sorry if I embarrassed you,” Carter said, refusing to leave my side. “To be honest, I’m totally mortified. I wish there was something I could do to make it up to you.”
I turned to face him. His self-assurance now looked a little fragile, but I was pretty sure it would come back in time, and I grinned. After all, he was still drop-dead gorgeous. And smart. Smart totally worked for me. It pressed all the right buttons. “Well, since you put it that way. How about dinner at nine? Saturday? Would that work?”
I saw the hesitation in his eyes. Would having dinner with a pupil’s mother be seen as unprofessional? “You, me, and Pike. A celebratory meal. You like lasagna?”
Carter’s embarrassment evaporated faster than a love charm in a gymnasium. “Of course,” he said beaming. “I would love to. And as you know, I never look a gift horse in the mouth.”
“Neither do I,” I said, suspecting this could be the start of something really good if we tried hard enough. I picked up Pike’s small pink vial of love potion, and after taking one last sniff of it, I popped the cork back in the top. “Neither do I.”
About the Author
Author Featured in USA Today! Adrienne lives in the Poconos, hates the cold but loves the mountains. Unabashed cat lover and writer of fantasy. Feed her coffee and chocolate and she'll write forever.
If you’re in love with the magical world of Misty Cedars, please sign up for Adrienne Blake’s newsletter to hear news of her new releases, Blood Curse and Necromancer’s Curse, coming later in 2019.
Thank you for reading.
Adrienne!
Also by Adrienne Blake
Souls and Shadows
Strange Magic
Tamed by the Alien
Taken by the Alien
Tamed by the Rancher
The Rancher’s Runaway Bride
The Cardinal’s Whores
London Lady
The Duke’s Daughter