Pumpkins and Potions

by Tegan Maher

  11

  “Great job, Serena,” Grant said. “You said you know who the killer is?”

  “I do.”

  “Good. Now, let’s go get a car and finish this. ”

  I turned to Mayor Stone. “I’m so sorry I ruined the pie eating contest again this year. Please forgive me.”

  Mayor Stone waved his hand. “Don’t you go worrying about that. I don’t know what’s going on, but I hope you tell us soon, Serena.”

  “I will, promise!”

  Grant grabbed my hand, and together we raced across the park toward the bakery. We were almost to the edge of the park when I spotted Daisy sitting on a park bench eating a corn dog.

  “Wait.” I stopped and pointed at Daisy. “I’m pretty sure I know who the killer is, but I’m curious as to what Daisy meant when she said Jack stole something from her.”

  Without saying anything, Jack all but dragged me to the bench. A startled Daisy watched us with huge eyes as we all but ran her down.

  “Daisy, I don’t have time to explain,” I said, “but what did you mean when you said Jack stole something from you?”

  Daisy’s green eyes flew to Grant and her face turned pink. “Oh, it’s nothing.”

  “Daisy,” I said between gritted teeth, “I’m only asking because it’s important.”

  “Matter of life and death,” Grant said. “Promise. And nothing you say goes beyond here.”

  Tears pooled in Daisy’s eyes, and her bottom lip trembled. “He stole my heart. He stole my self-worth. He made me think I was special, only to cheat on me with Serena. He never even told me it was over.” Tears fell down her cheeks and she wiped them away. “He took way more from me than I was willing to give…and I don’t know how to get it back.”

  I closed my eyes, sighed, sat down beside her, and batted down my dress. “I’m really sorry, Daisy. Jack was a jerk. We all knew that. But you can’t let your self-esteem be wrapped up in what someone else thinks of you or how someone feels about you. You have control and power over that, not some random person in your life.”

  “I know,” she whispered. “I just need some time to get over it.”

  On impulse, I leaned over and gave her a hug. “Stay strong.”

  I leaped up from the bench and motioned for Grant to follow me. In two strides he caught up with me and together we jogged back to the bakery, me cursing the dress the whole way. We were almost to my car when my cell vibrated. Without missing a beat, I reached down and yanked it out of my strapless bra.

  “Whoa.” Grant shook his head as if clearing it. “What the—where—why?”

  “How else was I going to carry a phone?” I looked at the text and then thrust the phone at him. “It’s bad.”

  Grant took the phone, stopped next to my car, and read aloud. “You better have found it by now. Meet me at the cemetery in fifteen minutes or I start cutting Tamara.”

  “Get in,” I growled. “Time to show this witch just who’s boss.”

  Grant dropped down next to me in the passenger’s seat and buckled his seatbelt. He didn’t say anything as I beat down the bottom half of my dress enough to where I could move the steering wheel safely. “I didn’t argue about you driving because I’m well aware you know the island way better than I. But I’m going to insist you buckle up. It’s the law.”

  Grinning, I strapped myself in, which also helped keep the dress from springing back up. “I wouldn’t admit this to just anyone, but I’ve been waiting years to take her down.”

  12

  “It’s Rose Winterbourne, isn’t it?” Grant asked.

  I nodded and pulled out onto the deserted street. “Yes. I knew for sure when we pulled the diamond out of the pie. She’d said earlier that Winter Witches love their ice, and everyone knows ‘ice’ is—”

  “Another name for diamonds,” Grant finished. “Very clever. Maybe you should be the detective?”

  I snorted. “That’s more my cousin Shayla’s job. She’s the detective in the family.”

  “I need to meet this Shayla,” Grant said. “Especially if she’s the reason this isn’t your first murder investigation.”

  “Just don’t bring it up around Mom,” I said. “She wasn’t too happy with Shayla, and it wasn’t even Shayla’s fault.”

  “Now that we know who the killer is and where she’ll be, I want you to stay in the car when we get inside the cemetery. I’ll call for backup, and we can get this done nice and quick.”

  I threw back my head and laughed. “You have no idea what you’re going into. Trust me, you’re gonna need me.”

  “Listen, Serena, I appreciate all you’ve done so far, but now I need to do my job. I don’t want to come off like—”

  “You’re being a pompous know-it-all jerk?” I turned left onto Hallowed Drive. “Look, I also know Rose, and she’s not bluffing when she says she’ll cut Tamara. Winter Witches are a lot like their name—very cold and unemotional. They also can do some crazy things with water, ice, and snow. Please just call the chief and tell him to bring the Binder to the cemetery and hurry. I don’t know how long I can hold her off.”

  “The Binder?” Grant asked.

  “Chief Hawkins will know.”

  Sighing, Grant fished out his cell. “I’m going to need a crash course in all things witchy if I plan on staying in this position.”

  “But you do plan on staying, right?”

  He smiled. “Yeah, I guess I do. I mean, seriously, how can I go back to arresting regular humans after taking down a witch?”

  “You haven’t taken down anyone yet, cowboy.”

  He winked. “That’s Little Boy Blue to you.”

  “Of course.” I glanced at the clock while Grant spoke to the chief. My time was up. I drove through the archway of the cemetery entrance and passed the first tier of graves. In the distance I could see Rose’s car.

  Grant hung up the phone. “Chief Hawkins said he’ll be here in about ten minutes. I think we should just wait for my backup. That’s protocol.”

  “I don’t think so. We’re out of time, and I’m not letting Rose hurt Tamara.”

  “Fine. I’ll go in, you wait here in the car.”

  I snorted. “How’re you going to take her down?”

  “I’m the cop here. I even have the badge and handcuffs to prove it, remember?”

  I sighed in frustration. “Rose is a Winter Witch. You saw a little of what she is capable of tonight. Your metal handcuffs won’t work. I remember once when we were teenagers, her older sister got busted for shoplifting. After Officer Hexton handcuffed her, Rose’s sister waited until his back was turned and then did some kind of spell that froze the metal cuffs. Rose ran over with an ice hammer, tapped the cuffs, they shattered, and both girls took off down the street.”

  “No way,” Grant said. “Science tells us the point at which metal can freeze is—”

  “This isn’t science, it’s magic! There’s a difference, Detective. You need to learn that simple fact before it kills you. Why do you think I told you to have the chief bring the Binder. Simply handcuffing her isn’t going to work.”

  “Fine,” he said between gritted teeth. “What do you suggest?”

  “I’m going to let you out here. Rose’s car is up ahead. Your job is to stay hidden behind a tombstone or whatever and either draw Tamara away or somehow get her attention so she knows to come to you.”

  “I can do that,” Grant said. “In fact, that was going to be my suggestion, only you were going to be in the car. Now that you aren’t, what will you be doing?”

  “I’m simply going to keep Rose distracted until Chief Hawkins shows up with the Binder. From there, you guys can take over.”

  “But how will you distract her in a way that won’t get you killed? You said yourself she’s a powerful witch.”

  I snorted. “I said she’s a Winter Witch.” I sighed. “Okay, just so it doesn’t freak you out, I might as well show you now. Whereas Rose can call up snow and ice and things like that, well, I
haven’t exactly told you everything about me.”

  His eyes widened. “What can you do?”

  “While both my parents were witches, my dad’s side also had dragon in their lineage.”

  “Dragon?” Grant mused. “As in those mythical creatures that blew fire and kidnapped princesses?”

  “Something like that. My element is fire. It’s within me at all times, and I can call it up whenever I need.”

  “Show me,” he whispered.

  I turned my hand over, palm up, and a few seconds later a small fireball hovered about two inches above my palm. Grant’s mouth fell open.

  “What the—it’s hot. I mean, of course it’s hot.” He laughed self-consciously. “I mean, it’s literally fire.”

  “It is.”

  He shook his head. “This will probably take me a while to wrap my head around. But Chief Hawkins said I could trust you, so I am.”

  “I’m only going to keep her busy with a silly little fire versus ice fight until the Chief can contain her.”

  “With this Binder thing?”

  “Yes. It’s sort of like a force field. Nothing can penetrate it. Which means everything inside the bubble can’t get out.”

  “Unbelievable.”

  “This is where you get out,” I said.

  “You know this is highly irregular, right?” Grant said. “Most civilians don’t just insert themselves into an investigation and volunteer to bring down the bad guy.”

  I smiled wickedly as he opened his door. “I’m not a civilian…I’m a witch. You should remember that.”

  13

  “That’s close enough,” Rose said as she held the pointed end of an icicle to Tamara’s throat.

  I had no doubt that icicle was as sharp as any knife would be—probably more so. Because the cold from the icicle would also burn Tamara’s skin.

  “Do you have it?” Rose demanded.

  “I do,” I lied.

  Grant still had the diamond, but I wasn’t going to tell her that.

  “Give it to me!” In her anger, Rose’s hand slipped and she made a small slice in Tamara’s neck. Tamara whimpered, and I saw red as a slow trickle of blood oozed out from the cut.

  Movement caught my eye, and I saw Grant crouch down behind a tombstone almost directly behind Rose. Everyone was in place, it was time to get the show started.

  “Not until you let Tamara go,” I said.

  “Let Tamara go?” Rose cackled. “How about I let her go…in pieces? Which piece do you want first? Her ear?”

  As Rose lifted the icicle toward Tamara’s face, I struck. I called up the fire that always simmers inside me and threw my first fireball. I didn’t want to chance it hitting Tamara, so I aimed low, hoping to catch Rose off balance enough she’d let go of Tamara and Grant could nab Tamara.

  And that’s exactly what Rose did. She pushed Tamara to the ground and barely had enough time to react with her own ball of ice before my fireball struck her. I watched in relief as Grant grabbed hold of Tamara’s shoulders and dragged her behind a nearby headstone.

  “So you want to play, Serena?” Rose taunted. “That’s fine. I don’t mind making you bleed before I take back what is mine!”

  Before I could even blink, Rose let loose with both hands, sending razor-sharp ice shards my way. I conjured up the largest fireball I could and sent it flying, then did a half spin until I was hiding behind a tall, white crumbling old tombstone. The two ice shards I didn’t get with my fireball made a tinkling sound as they shattered against the headstone.

  “You knew Jack was at our house alone because you heard Tamara mention it when she came into the bakery,” I said. “Isn’t that right?”

  “Yes. I drove past your house and saw his car. My plan was to go inside, kill him, and place the blame on Tamara. But he saw me outside in the driveway and took off for the garden, making me chase him down and kill him.”

  “So it was just a coincidence he fell between the daisies and the roses?” I mused.

  “Apropos though, right?” she scoffed.

  Grant must have circled wide, because suddenly he and Tamara were now crouched three monuments down from where I stood. He put his fingertip to his lips.

  “Rose!” he hollered. “You need to give this up. We have you surrounded. You aren’t going anywhere. We know you killed Jack to try and get the diamond.”

  “The diamond that belonged to me!” she screamed. “He thought he could charm his way into my life, steal from me, and not suffer the consequences. Well, no one takes what’s mine. No one!”

  She started throwing ice shards again, both hands a blur as she let them loose one right on top of the other. She moved slowly toward where Grant and Tamara were hidden, and I saw that as my opportunity.

  Once again I brought forth a fireball that was double the size of my hand. I had no idea I could even do that, but in my rage and terrified state, I guess anything was possible. I waited until I knew she was totally focused on getting to Grant and then stepped out and threw my fire orb directly at the side of her face. I hit my mark, and Rose screamed in pain.

  Unfortunately, only her right hand went to her face, the left hand was still throwing little ice spears. Grant chose that moment to stand up from behind the headstone, and two of the ice shards caught him…one slicing through his outer arm, and the other impaling him in his side.

  I screamed his name and then let my rage take over. I have no idea how many fireballs I hurled Rose’s way, but it was enough that she couldn’t counter my attack. It wasn’t until Chief Hawkins called my name and touched my arm that I realized Rose was down and had stopped fighting back.

  I heard myself crying when I came back from wherever my mind had taken me during the fight. I turned my head and saw Grant still on the ground, Tamara kneeling by his side, her hands hovering above his injured side.

  I ran over and dropped down next to her as Chief Hawkins engaged the Binder over Rose. “How bad?”

  “His arm will be fine,” Tamara said. “It’s his side I’m worried about. I don’t think it pierced anything vital, but he’s bleeding a lot. Mom and I can heal him though.”

  “Freakin’ hurts,” Grant mumbled. “Burns.”

  “I know,” Tamara said. “The burning sensation is actually the cold burning your skin. The cut on your shoulder will heal fine in a day or two, but I’m going to need to do a little extra to your side. The ice sliced you open pretty deep. ”

  Grant winced. “No offense. But shouldn’t I see a doctor?”

  Tamara ran her hand lightly over Grant’s brow. “My mom is a healer. She’s taught me everything she knows. But your side is pretty bad, and it needs to be handled right now. Are you okay with me helping you?”

  Grant’s painfilled eyes locked on mine. “It’s okay?”

  I sniffed and nodded. “Yes. Tamara’s mom and her grandma are both healers. I can’t tell you how many times Tamara has doctored me over the years. She knows what she’s doing.”

  “I’m just going to give you a little something for right now,” Tamara said. “Then we’re going to transport you over to my mom’s house not far from here. Her garden is four times what mine is, and she’ll have everything you need to heal quickly. I’m going to do both a numbing and soothing spell.”

  I saw an immediate change to Grant’s face. “Thanks. You’re right, it does feel better.”

  “Just close your eyes and rest now,” Tamara said. “We’ll take care of everything else on our end.”

  Hawkins clamped down on my shoulder. “How is he?”

  “Okay,” I said. “Tamara wants to take him to her mom’s house.”

  “Heck of a way to be introduced to the people on this island,” the chief said. “I tried to talk with him about it a couple times, but he just refused to believe.”

  “I know.” I said. “Can we hold off on making any statements until we get him settled?”

  Chief Hawkins glanced back at Rose, bound in the bubble but still raging, and nodded. �
�She ain’t going anywhere for a while. There is a silver lining…I finally get to see that cousin of yours when she comes to haul Rose away. It’s rare she visits anymore.”

  14

  “So that’s it?” Grant said, sitting up in Tamara’s old bed. “This secret supernatural agency that your cousin is a part of comes and takes away the bad guy? No paperwork to fill out and file? No statements to attorneys? No court trials? Nothing?”

  I smiled at his confusion. “That’s it on your end, yes. We don’t—we can’t deal with bad guys like they do in the human world. It wouldn’t work.”

  “So what happens from here?” Grant asked.

  I knew he wasn’t ready for that answer.

  I shrugged. “My cousin will travel to the island and take Rose with her, and we’ll go on with the rest of our lives.”

  He narrowed his eyes at me. “You aren’t telling me something.”

  “How’s the arm and side?” I asked.

  He didn’t say anything for a long moment. “It’s good. I can’t believe how good it feels, to be honest. I also can’t help but think you and Tamara are in the wrong fields. You should be in law enforcement, and Tamara should be in medicine.”

  I laughed. “Now you sound like our parents. Nope, baking has always been our dream.”

  “Sure has.” Tamara walked in the room and handed Grant a cup. “Now drink up.”

  Grant looked down at the cup and grimaced. “Can’t I have coffee? Surely coffee has healing powers of some kind?”

  Tamara laughed. “Drink the tea. Trust me, it’s going to heal you faster than the coffee.”

  “You look cute in that pout, Detective Wolfe,” I teased.

  “Don’t push your luck, Spellburn,” he growled then took a sip of the liquid. “What is this?”

  “Invisibility tea,” Tamara said.

  “Yeah right.” Grant took another long drink. “It’s actually pretty good.

  Tamara walked over, wrapped an arm around my waist, and leaned her head against my shoulder. “Mom says he should be healed enough to go back to his place tomorrow.”