by Tonya Kappes
His lips met mine. He whispered, “Do you have time to do more than pack?”
Little did he realize that his kiss was more persuasive than he knew.
Chapter Four
“Who are you?” The salt water swished up against my shoulders. The man’s diamond eyes stared at me. His coal black hair was slicked back. There was a mole on the side of his face. “Please tell me.” I begged to know. I needed to know. “I can help you change your fate.”
The thunderous sound overhead caught my attention. The sound of lapping water curled around the both of us as the sandy sea floor underneath me gave way. A wave behind the man’s bobbing head was building.
“Tell me!” I begged before the wave plunged over him and me, taking us both under. An orange swirl dug deep beneath the water’s surface, circling around the drowning man. He stretched his arm toward me and I reached. . .
I sat straight up in bed, gasping for air. Mr. Prince Charming’s eyes glowed in the darkness of the bedroom. He pawed at me. The insides of Madame Torres swirled in a fit of orange rage, settling into a picture of the Magical Cures Book.
Meow, Mr. Prince Charming’s lips moved, but nothing came out.
I peeled back the covers and eased myself out of bed so as not to wake Oscar. He would never approve of me getting up in the middle of the night to go to A Charming Cure to get the necessary items I needed to take with me.
I grabbed my clothes off the floor, where they had landed once Oscar and I had gotten home from all the food and wine drinking, and scurried out of the bedroom, getting dressed in the hall. Mr. Prince Charming was already waiting by the door. I grabbed my bag and my keys before I headed down the hill.
“Stop.” I waved the fireflies away from my face and ran down the hill as fast as I could. There wasn’t a lot of time to spare. Oscar might wake up and he wouldn’t be happy if he did and I wasn’t there.
All of the shops were dark. The gates glistened underneath the full moonlight. I stepped up on the sidewalk and took a few steps toward A Charming Cure; the Singing Nettles flowers in the flowerbox underneath the A Cleansing Spirit Spa’s window hummed a sleepy tune.
“I’m so sorry,” I apologized when I walked by and a few of them were yawning.
“June?” The voice appeared before the person stepped out of the shadow. “Are you okay?”
“Petunia.” My heart thundered in my chest. Baby Orin was strapped in the Kangaroo pouch on the front of her. Lightly she bounced on the balls of her toes and patted his hiney. A bird’s head popped in and out of the side of her messy up-do with each bounce. “You scared me.”
I looked down at Orin and smiled. I ran a hand along his sleeping body.
“Orin was having a rough night, so we decided the Singing Nettles and full moon were just the trick he needed.” She looked down at her baby with pride on her face. “Now, what about you?”
“I guess I needed the Singing Nettles too.” I winked. I did love hearing them hum and sing in harmony. In fact, they were one of Darla’s favorite flowers to look at even though she couldn’t hear them since she wasn’t a spiritualist. She knew they were special even without knowing their true beauty.
“Want to talk about it?” She took her comforting hand off Orin and placed it on me. “I don’t know any woman who’d come out to the shop in the mid-morning hours before she left on a fabulous vacation unless something was wrong.” Her eyes drew down with a curious brow lift. “And the teenagers told me you were a little restless earlier when you were going to dinner with Oscar at Full Moon Treesort.” The teens flittered around and around, lighting our way over to the gate of my shop.
“Can’t get nothing past those nosy kids.” I joked and placed a hand on the gate before I opened it. I looked back but she wasn’t following me. “You can come on in.”
Mr. Prince Charming rushed in as soon as I opened the door. I flipped the lights on. A sense of calm swept over me as the shop lights lit up the magical bottles.
“Almost breath taking.” Petunia looked around the room at the twinkling glass. “You do amazing work.”
“Thank you.” I walked back to the counter to retrieve the Magical Cures Book and noticed my charm bracelet was lying next to the register. Mr. Prince Charming jumped up and pawed the bracelet. I glanced up at Petunia. I couldn’t tell if she was assessing the situation as a friend or as the Village President. “You might’ve picked where Oscar and I are going for our honeymoon, but it still won’t keep us completely safe.”
“How do you figure?” She pushed her hand up into her messy brown up-do and pulled a piece of catnip out of it along with a mouse toy. She tossed both onto the floor.
Mr. Prince Charming couldn’t resist. He jumped down and batted the mouse before he sniffed the catnip and rolled all over it.
“I keep having a nightmare about water that I can only think to be the ocean. There was even a salty taste in my mouth.” It wasn’t like I was breaking any of the by-laws; I was sharing with her. Allowing her to give an opinion. “You know as well as I do what happens when I have a nightmare.”
She brought her hands up to her face and drummed the pads of her fingers together. “Yes.” Her lips pursed. “Something bad happens—like a death.”
“Exactly.” I turned around and ran my finger down the shelf of glass bottles where I kept all of my ingredients for the potions and stopped at the Alder Bark. “This one will be good.”
I grabbed the bottle and returned back to the counter where I disappeared behind the partition where I kept my cauldron. I flipped on the switch and opened the Alder Bark, sprinkling a few drops into the cauldron.
“Here.” Petunia walked behind the partition and pulled a twig from her hair. “Blessed Thistle will help strengthen the potion and protect even more.”
“Thank you.” I smiled when I took it. “You are a good friend.”
It was then that I knew I could confide in her as a friend tonight. I returned to the cauldron and stirred the bark with the thistle, letting them dissolve into each other before I retrieved the Magical Cures Book from underneath the counter.
The tattered journal would do its magic as soon as I touched it and would open up to the exact page I needed. The potion of extra protection called for Laurel Leaves, which made me pause because it was used for males in weddings and since Oscar and I had already said our I-do’s, I wasn’t clearly sure on what this was for, but I still grabbed the bottle off the shelf. Echinacea didn’t surprise me since it was good for strengthening spells, but a pattern was emerging for me.
“There is a lot of strengthening in all of these ingredients.” I chewed the corner of the inside of my lip and read through it again to make sure. Before I could even pick up the ladle to stir, the cauldron smoked with jade streaks running up in the air. The smell of sugar drifted out of the smoke, leaving a chemical taste in my mouth after it was inhaled through my nostrils. I circled my hand over the cauldron and let the elixir dance the way it had chosen, which was in the motion of waves of the ocean as if it knew my dream. Underneath my fingertips, the mixture fizzled, bubbled, and moved as the ingredients became one.
On the shelf beyond the partition were the empty glass bottles that spoke to me when they glowed. The simple crystal with the cork top shimmered and glistened, calling me to pick it. When I touched it, I knew the small electric charge that hit my fingertips had a mighty power and it was the right bottle for the potion I was going to take with me for extra protection—even if I was just being overly cautious.
“And.” I looked over at Petunia, who was breast-feeding Orin. “I can’t let Oscar know because I told him that I wouldn’t do any sort of spell.”
“June.” Petunia’s jaw dropped. “You cannot do that.”
“He went to Izzy and talked to her about me taking Madame Torres, so he knows I’m worried.” I held the bottle over the top of the cauldron and let the potion magically fill up the crystal bottle. “If he’s worried, then I’m a tad bit worried.”
“Maybe he’s just being cautious.” She brought Orin up to her shoulder and burped the sleeping baby. “He always falls asleep feeding, but he will be right back up in a minute.” She tucked him back in the pouch. “I want you two to have a wonderful time.”
“I’m sure we will.” I picked up the bracelet and clasped it around my wrist. I grabbed the book and the potion and put them in my bag before I strapped it across me. “I better get going before Oscar wakes up and sees I’m gone.”
I took one last look around the shop once Petunia stepped outside with Mr. Prince Charming. Everything looked like it was ready for Faith to take over for the time I was gone and I liked how the shop welcomed her. I flipped the lights off and locked it up tight before I darted down the front steps, out of the gate and up the hill to where I was happy to see Oscar still asleep.
Our suitcases were packed and unzipped on the floor of the family room. I took the items out of my bag and pushed the book and potions to the bottom of my suitcase, sticking all the clothes on top. I crept into the bedroom and snatched Madame Torres from the side table.
“What are you doing?” Her face floated inside her ball. “It’s not time to awaken.”
“You have all morning to sleep.” I informed her and took a shirt out of the suitcase. “Snugged up tight in this shirt.”
“You will not put me in there!” Her voice echoed loud and clear. “I demand it!”
“Well, so do I.” I wrapped the shirt around her several times. Mr. Prince Charming lay on top of the shirt once I stuck it back in the suitcase. “You can’t go.” I shooed him out of the suitcase. My bracelet jingled from my wrist and I shook it toward him. “Remember, you gave me a new charm.”
Rowl! He darted off in the direction of the bedroom just in time for the sound of Oscar’s alarm going off.
“Rise and shine,” I hollered from the family room and glanced over at the coffee pot then glanced at my hands. I shrugged. “One time,” I giggled and wiggled my fingers toward the pot. Instantly, a full pot of coffee was in the carafe.
I tried to stop the big smile from creeping across my lips, but couldn’t. I was feeling a little proud of the new fun gift Aunt Helena had given me and found myself wishing I had it all the time. I opened the cabinet and took out two mugs and filled them before I went back to the bedroom where Oscar was lying with a big grin on his face.
“Finally.” He propped himself up on his elbows. “We are getting out of here to enjoy our honeymoon.”
“Tulip Island here we come.” I planted the biggest grin on my face even though my gut churned with an uneasiness.
A car horn beeped outside.
“And the Karimas are here to take us.” Oscar jumped up and quickly threw on the clothes he had laid out the night before. “I knew they would be early.”
“I didn’t know they were taking us to the airport.” I walked back down the hall with the two cups of coffee still in my hands. I set them on the small kitchen table and opened the door.
Patience and Constance Karima were standing on the threshold. Constance shook her finger, Patience followed.
“I told you to be ready.” Constance tugged on the collar of her housedress. Her grey hair sat in tight curls around her round head. Her green eyes glared at me from underneath her glasses.
“Be ready,” Patience repeated. She too tugged on her housedress. Everything Constance did, Patience did. The twins had soft grey curls all over their heads and small wire-rimmed glasses. They were the oldest members of Whispering Falls and they owned Two Sisters and A Funeral. They were the only funeral home in Whispering Falls and it was perfect for their gift of being ghost whisperers.
“That’s right, seeester. I told them.” She waddled back to the hearse that was parked next to my El Camino in front of the cottage.
“Umhmm.” Patience hurried over to the hearse. “You told them.”
“Where are your bags?” Constance asked.
“I’ll get them.” I went back inside and Oscar had the suitcases zipped and was rolling them toward the door. I looked over his shoulder and did a quick onceover around the room to make sure he hadn’t seen the Magical Cures Book and potion bottle I had stuck in my bag. I didn’t see either, so I was confident he didn’t bother looking.
Mr. Prince Charming glared from the top of the couch.
“I know. I wish you could go.” I ran my hand down his back. He didn’t budge. He didn’t purr. He didn’t even try to bat at the dangling charm bracelet.
“He’s not,” Oscar said in a stern voice when he took the bags out of the cottage.
“I’ll make it up to you.”
“He’ll be fine.” Constance stood in the doorway. “And if you need us, we aren’t busy for a week.”
“Need you?” I asked. “You already said you’d take care of him.”
“Not the cat. You.” She pointed directly at me. “I hear that you are having them nightmares again and if you need us, me and my sister can come over there and help you out.”
“Oh, I’m sure we’ll be fine.” I gulped. A sudden fear gripped around my heart like there was a hand in there squeezing the life right out of me.
Chapter Five
“Tums? Pepto? Anything?” Oscar asked. He looked a little green around the gills.
I helped him off the sea propeller plane and got him seated on the sandy beach where the plane had skidded to a stop. I dumped the contents of my bag on the beach to see if I had anything I could give him.
“Nothing,” I said sympathetically. “Maybe they have something.” I nodded to a grey-haired gentleman and a young red-headed woman next to him.
“Welcome, welcome to Tulip Island where all of your fantasies will come true.” The man and the woman both wore white suits and black flip-flops.
He clapped his hands. A young man, also in a white suit, came out of nowhere with a tray full of filled champagne flutes.
“Whoohoo!” A brunette woman nearly knocked me over as she waved down the boy. “We need all of those!”
Drinks were the last thing Oscar and I needed. From what I had heard from him, he’d been on planes several times in his life where I’d never been on any. I opened the purse and looked down into it.
“Oh!” My eyes popped open when I found something that resembled a Tic-Tac at the bottom. I picked it up for inspection. It could’ve been a piece of gum. Regardless, I glanced at Oscar and his head was buried in his hands. I looked around to see if anyone else was looking at us, but they were too busy getting a lei strung around their necks and gulping up the champagne.
I rubbed the pad of my finger and thumb together while I contemplated using the finger spell technique. I mean, it would be for the good of not only a vacation, but for Oscar to feel better. Who on Earth wants to start a vacation off sick? Especially in a place like this?
I contemplated my choices while I looked around. Tulip Island was magical in a natural way. The crystal blue and green water spread for miles ahead and to the sides of me with no other land in sight. The beach was whiter than any sand I’d ever seen and the large palm leaves swayed in the light breeze making the temperature feel comfortable.
“Cheers to the bride!” One of the girls yelled with the flute lifted high in the air. A group of four women and four men gathered around and clinked their glasses.
“Cheers,” I grumbled and took another last look at the mystery piece of candy or whatever was in the bottom of my bag. Without giving it much more thought. I did it. I touched the piece of whateveritwas with my finger and healing Oscar’s sick tummy in my mind. The little zap transferred from my finger to the candy.
“Oh! Found a mint.” I held it up between my finger and thumb, grinning ear-to-ear.
“A mint?” Oscar’s eyes dipped down on the edges. “Are you kidding me? I need more than a mint.”
“Oh try it.” I shoved my fingers in his face. “Darla always gave me a mint to settle my stomach.”
He looked up at me with a look of uncertainty on his face.<
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“I don’t even like mint.” His brows furrowed.
“You don’t like an upset stomach either.” I shrugged. I put my fingers to his lips. “Open up.”
“June.” He groaned and I took the moment to shove the mint in.
“Chew!” I demanded.
“How is everyone here?” The grey-headed man walked up. “June and Oscar Park.”
“How did you know our names?” I asked in a curious, oh-my-god-did-Aunt-Helena-or-someone-tell-them-about-us way.
“I know everyone who comes to my island.” The man folded his hands in front of him before he turned toward the island and opened his arms wide doing a sweep in front of him. “Ten visitors this week. The wedding party and the two of you.”
“Oscar got a little sick on the plane over from the mainland.” I pointed to Oscar. He was getting a little more color back in his face. “It was so gorgeous.”
Flying was nothing like I expected it to be and I truly enjoyed looking down on the earth and realizing I was so much smaller than I realized.
“I’m feeling better.” Oscar stood up and stretched his neck side-to-side and brought his arms above his head. “Actually feeling a lot better. Mint must be good for the bad belly.”
“Mint?” The man looked at Oscar and then slid his eyes toward me.
“I had a mint in the bottom of my purse. But I’m sure we’d love a toast of your champagne.” I pointed to the young man who was once again surrounded by the wedding party.
With not a second to waste, the grey-haired man lifted his arms to the side and clapped two quick times. The boy that couldn’t be any more than ten years old scurried over with the tray.
“I’m Mr. Victor, your host. This is Gene, he will help you with all your needs.” Mr. Victor nodded for Gene to step ahead. “That is my daughter Violet. She will help you plan all of your adventures.”