Something wasn’t right here.
Instead of using the public washrooms, she went to her mother’s suite to refresh herself. She still had the pass key from her last visit. She used the washroom then looked around, slightly shocked. Her mother’s rooms were a mess. She’d obviously barred the maid from coming in, and Vail understood why. Spell castings and drawings littered the surfaces and were pinned to the walls. The room’s desk was cluttered with candles, lace, fabric, gemstones, and all sorts of craft supplies. Vail glanced casually at all the knickknacks and froze. On the desk was a partially made wooden doll charm, the hinges on the neck, arms, and legs very cleverly whittled. Her mother had sewn the doll a pretty flower print dress. The wooden face was expertly painted and looked very sweet. The doll was still bald, and without hair covering it, Vail could see clearly the doll’s head had horns.
Her mother was making hex dolls.
She thought back to Nathalie, and her jewellery. The necklace around her neck had been a doll charm.
Shocked, Vail pawed through the other items. Man-sized silver bracelet links, leather tubing, ribbon, wax, and…hair.
“Oh, no.” She searched for and found the Von Vixen spell book open to the page Elanah was using. With a sinking feeling, Vail read the spell carefully, committing it to memory. She looked at the sketches and drawings on the walls and saw what her mother was going to attempt to do.
Working quickly, she did a quick sweep of the room. She grabbed a silver flask and smelled the contents. Then she grabbed a bit of all the things she needed and headed to the door. Just as she was about to exit, Dean walked into the room. Startled, Vail halted. He looked around slightly confused, as if wondering why he was there.
Looking at him, Vail knew Dean was doomed. Not only was her mother’s magic powerful, but Elanah had the rare gift of subtlety. The mind didn’t even think to fight her spells as they insinuated themselves slowly and completely. For now, Dean was lost to them. She felt bad for Nathalie.
“Your mother was wondering where you were,” he said, looking at the things in her arms. “Your drink is ready.”
Vail laughed and dumped the items on the bed, then shoved them in her pack. “Me and my mom do arts and crafts together,” she said, taking the bag and heading to the door. “It’s a mother/daughter thing.”
Dean smiled and Vail blinked. He was beyond handsome. Whatever hex was fueling his fascination for Elanah was changing him physically. His teeth sparkled when he smiled. His curly hair was midnight black and luxurious. His lips were red and his eyes a glowing chocolate brown. He was breathtaking.
Like her mother, whose hair shone, and whose big blue eyes sparkled like sapphires.
A match made in spells.
“That is so sweet,” he said, chuckling. “Well, get your things and let’s go. Everyone’s waiting!”
Vail sighed in relief at his cluelessness.
“So what brought you down here, Vailendra?” her mother asked curiously once she returned and had seated herself at the table. Everyone was staring at her.
Vail shrugged. “Supplies, and I had a question about Nathalie. Her symptoms don’t fit the rest of the girls. Mom, did you notice anything strange about her? Did anyone see what happened? She’s not magical. She’s gifted, so it’s strange.”
Elanah shrugged, and Dean didn’t bat an eyelash at the mention of his girlfriend. “If she wakes up, send her home. From what we could see, she was sick. Right Dean?”
He nodded slowly. “She was very sick. Even Luke and Mr. Barrington said so.”
Vail’s heart gave a thud. Luke and John were compromised. How did Elanah get around Luke’s power?
Max finally blurted out, “How’s Ella?”
Vail looked at him with a slight frown on her face. “Sad.”
Max looked crestfallen. Obviously, she was not getting his letters.
Katie smirked. “Max got me a job at the candy store. We’re seeing each other now.”
Max looked anguished, but he didn’t contradict her.
Vail tossed her drink back and stood up. “Well, I’m heading back. Thanks for the drink, mom. I’ll speak to you tomorrow.”
Elanah stood up to kiss her. “Alright, then. I love you, sweetheart,” she said, hugging Vail tightly, but when she let go her eyes were on Dean, and she looked very happy.
Now Vail was outraged and angry, but she hid it. “Yeah, me too. Bye.”
She got to the car she’d been given by John and turned at the sound of her name.
Max was running toward her. “Vail! My brother and father…Elanah did something to them. Nathalie isn’t sick! I’m so confused! I put Katie in the candy shop to spy on your mother, but now she’s completely enthralled with her too. Everyone is!”
Vail looked at him suspiciously. Max always seemed to say one thing and do another. What was she supposed to believe? But then he put up his hands. “I’m not dating her, honest! I feel like I’m the only one in this town who isn’t nuts!” He was clearly distressed.
Vail relented. “What’s the story with my mother and Dean?”
Max’s face shuttered. “They seem very attracted to each other. They meet every day. At first it was to get the candy store stocked, but now…well, I’m not sure what they do.”
Vailendra looked worried, especially after what she’d found in her mother’s room. She had to trust someone, and Max seemed to be the only one with his head screwed on straight.
“I’ll be honest, Max. I’m not sure what’s happening here. My mother asked me to watch a bunch of sick witches at a cabin in the woods while she created a spell to cure them. It was supposed to be an easy favour, but it’s turning out to be anything but.”
Max nodded.
“I’m not sure what my mother’s up too, but I’d appreciate it if you could keep me informed about what’s happening here. It certainly would help with some decisions I need to make. E-mail me everything you’ve seen, everything you know, no matter how insignificant you think it is.”
Max agreed and gave her his cell number in case of emergency.
She looked seriously at Max. “I understand you Barringtons are a very close family, however, if your family members are compromised you can’t tell them anything.”
Max agreed wholeheartedly. They had already gotten Luke. They weren’t going to get him.
When Vail got back to the cabin, her heart almost failed her at the sight of the destruction. Racing in, she found Ella and Nathalie barricaded in Ella’s room. As the girls explained what happened, Vail’s anger grew until she was practically incandescent. She marched into the other room and stared at the dead old letch. If he hadn’t been dead she would have killed him herself. How did she not know? “We need to find the girls, and Sadie in particular.” She turned to Ella. “Take a sip of this, but not too much.”
Ella did as she asked. She looked better within minutes. “This is fantastic. What is this stuff?”
“It’s a magical dampening potion that helps control the effects of the poison.”
“Did Elanah make this for us? She’s a genius!”
Nathalie stared warily at Vail, who addressed the girls frankly. “She made it, but she had no intention of sharing it.” She stared at Nathalie. “I didn’t know what my mother had planned, but I do now, and going against her head on is not smart. She’s powerful and motivated for some reason she has not seen fit to share with me,” Vail said a trifle bitterly.
Nathalie nodded. “Obviously, because here I am. And Dean? Is he okay?”
Vail shook her head and decided honesty was her best option. “It’s not good, Nathalie. Dean is under a powerful spell. There’s a serious air of intimacy between them. Again, my mother is a very powerful, very subtle witch who has been manipulating people for centuries. Once she spells you, she’s almost impossible to resist.”
Nathalie looked bleak and angry. “I need to get back before this goes any farther. He’s being used, again.”
“I’m sorry you got tangled
in all this,” Vail said sincerely, “but at this point it’s too dangerous for you, well, us to challenge her. She’d hurt you, Nathalie, and no one would be able to stop her, not even me. She has everyone under her control, and she wants something that belongs to you. She’ll be ruthless.”
Nathalie despaired. “I knew she wanted Dean. I was so angry I didn’t think when I confronted her about the charms, and I didn’t realize it was a trap when Luke let me look at the potion recipe in her rooms.”
Vail sighed. “That’s not all,” and proceeded to explain what all the spell drawings in Elanah’s room meant.
“Damn,” Ella said, awed in spite of herself. “She can do that?”
Nathalie looked scared. “What has been brought into our midst?”
“Get your things. We need a new place to stay. This place is no longer safe. My mother will realize some of her things are missing and come after us to remove any threat to her plans.”
“Surely she wouldn’t hurt you,” Nathalie exclaimed, trying to locate her stuff and thinking about her own mother.
“Me? No, but definitely you two. And Sadie. We have to find her. She’s the only one powerful enough to stop her.”
“Sadie snapped when she heard Elanah had spelled Luke. I’m sure she’s heading back to Barrington.”
“Then that’s where we’re going.”
Nathalie was tapping her lip. “Vail, call your mother now and make it seem as if everything’s okay. Only tell her about Horace, and conspire to keep everything he did a secret. This way she won’t come up.”
“Good idea.”
After everyone left, Dean walked Elanah to her room. They were holding hands, fingers linked loosely together. When she reached for her room key, he took it and opened the door for her, pushing it so she could enter. She pulled him in after her playfully, and he laughed as he sauntered in. The suite was filled with moonlight that shone through the double French doors, falling on Elanah and putting her in half shadow, making her ethereally beautiful. She pulled his mouth to hers as he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close for a kiss. She was so attracted to him. He tasted delicious and she was flooded with desire as he slipped his tongue into her mouth. His hands were roaming over her back and down into her jeans, squeezing her bum as he pressed against her.
She looked at him as she broke the kiss, panting. He smiled down at her and she could see his eyes were slightly glazed, and slightly confused, but there was desire there. He knew what he was doing and with whom. He smiled at her lazily, his handsome face staring at her with lust. He didn’t push her away when she reached to take off his belt. Such different behaviour with his amulet gone, she thought happily. She’d only ever felt such excitement and longing with Sean. It had been way too long.
When Dean stepped back to take off his suit jacket, paper crinkled under his foot. They both looked down and Elanah frowned, reaching to pick it up. She stared at the diagram.
“What’s the matter, Elanah?” Dean asked softly, reaching for her, but she pulled away. She walked over to her table and stared at it intently.
“I feel as if someone has been in my room…touching my things,” she said softly, and gasped. Her flask was missing. Her silver flask with her potion in it.
“I found Vail in your room earlier. She had come up here to freshen up.”
Dread filled Elanah. She knew her daughter would put two and two together, but how quickly? She’d isolated Vail in that cabin in the woods for that exact reason, so she wouldn’t get suspicious of her behavior and stick her nose in Elanah’s business. She looked at the handsome, young man now reclining on her bed with his shirt open and muscular chest exposed. She wanted him so badly, for so many reasons. She wanted to feel the heat of hot, male flesh against her body and inside her. She wanted his pleasure to fill her so she could carry a part of him with her.
Of course the most important reason was to separate him from Nathalie, permanently. Otherwise, there was no possibility of getting this man’s true love.
She had so many plans in motion. Vail was her daughter. She would never betray her.
He smiled invitingly, beckoning her over. Her hex was wrapped around him tightly now and he was ready for the next step. She was more than ready. Would a half hour delay make any difference with Vail at this point, supposing she suspects anything? Her daughter was hours gone. She needed a recovery plan anyway.
Elanah stripped slowly. Dean’s eyes tracked every one of her movements as she revealed her curvy body bit by bit. Naked, she climbed onto the bed and crawled toward him. Dean’s nostrils flared as he caught her lavender scent. She laughed when he grabbed her and flipped her onto her back, kissing her thoroughly as he massaged her breasts. He groaned as he rolled on top of her, his body sliding up, their hips aligning, but then he stopped and scrambled off the bed.
“I am so sorry, Elanah,” he said, shaking his head as if to clear it. “God, I’m engaged. I don’t know what I’m doing.”
Elanah pouted. His moral code was so damn strong. He wasn’t ready yet. She’d gone too fast.
The spell needed more time, although it had already taken longer than it was supposed to. He should have been hers by now, she thought frustrated, as she watched him button his shirt and straighten his clothes. Time would make him hers. She just had to be patient.
Still, it looked as if she would have to take more aggressive steps to get rid of Nathalie Parker. You don’t need to be faithful to a dead girl.
The phone rang. It was Vail.
“Hey mom, it’s me. I got back safe.”
Elanah was immediately on her guard. “Hi honey…did you take my flask?”
“Yes, I needed it. It only had water in it, so I dumped it out and took it with me. That okay?”
Elanah sighed, relieved. Daughters. Always touching your stuff. “No problem at all.”
Dean kissed Elanah briefly on the lips, his moment of unfaithful panic now a distant memory. She sighed as he left. She could feel his attraction to her was flaming hot, but his loyalty barrier was still too strong and he wouldn’t commit to the final act.
“Mom?”
“Hmmm?” She was sure Vail knew nothing, and she relaxed.
“Horace is dead.”
That startled Elanah and she almost dropped the phone. “What?”
“Heart attack.” Vail fed her the story that she, Nathalie, and Ella had come up with. “Anyway, I think it’s best if only Sheriff Holt and his team come up to collect the body. I think it would be hard on the girls otherwise. We don’t want your spell jeopardized.”
“Okay, just keep the girls close. They are not to come back here, understand?”
“Well, without Horace, I’m stuck here too.”
“I know, I’m sorry about that darling, but it won’t be for much longer.”
“Yeah. And mom…is it my imagination or are you getting very close to Dean Croft?”
Of course she noticed. “We’re just friends, honey,” she tried to reassure her.
“I’ll be honest, it didn’t look that way to me. Just remember, mom, he’s engaged, and they’re a very popular and well-known couple in Barrington.”
Elanah brushed her off. Maybe it is better Vailendra was stuck out of town. “You’re worrying for nothing.”
“Okay, I’ll talk to you in a few days. I’m calling the Sheriff now.”
Chapter 25 – Things Spiral Out of Control
Barrington County, Present Day
Max tried to debrief with Katie at school. He wanted Ella back. He was sick of being without her. It didn’t feel normal. Katie was on a high, talking about what a blast she’d had at the hotel last night.
Max was discomfited. Was his plant, his stoolie, trying to join the pack?
They were in the cafeteria line getting lunch. Katie just took a fruit cup, but Max was loading his tray. Like all his brothers, he had a big appetite.
“Max, Elanah is, like, the coolest girl I’ve ever met. She even gave me a necklace.”
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Max’s tray clattered onto the rollers as she pulled the necklace out from under her shirt. It was a doll.
“Take that off,” he growled, reaching for it, but Katie moved away, slapping his hand and covering the charm protectively. “Don’t you dare try and take this from me Max Barrington! It’s MINE,” she said possessively.
Max looked at her with despair. His ally, gone. Katie didn’t notice the expression on his face. She kept talking.
“Elanah and Dean are totally into each other. I saw them go back to her room together last night. She’s a smart cookie, Max. If you try and mess with her plans, she’ll get rid of you, mark my words. With Nathalie gone, the path to Dean is clear. Sort of like my path to you now that Ella is gone.” Katie looked at him and smiled.
They sat down and he gobbled his food in distress while she talked. She finished her fruit and tossed her cup in the garbage. She took his hand and dragged him out of the cafeteria into an empty classroom. “I have something for you,” she said, pulling it out of her pocket. It was a men’s bracelet made with silver links and leather, just like his brother Gabe’s. As he reached to take it, she put it behind her back and kissed him. Shock opened his mouth and Katie leaned into him, slipping her tongue inside. Max was horrified. She wasn’t his girlfriend. Ella was the only one he wanted to kiss. This felt so wrong.
He pulled away quickly. Okay, she’d kissed him. No big deal unless he made it one, he thought to himself. “No, Katie. We talked about this,” he said calmly.
Katie huffed. “Ella’s gone, Max. Why can’t you just live for now?” Angrily, she stuffed the bracelet back in her pocket. “Elanah says we have to enjoy life and take what we want, and I admire her for doing that in her own life. You know what? You’ll get this bracelet when you’ve earned it,” she raged, stomping out of the classroom.
Was that a threat or was Katie just running off at the mouth like usual?
Max was angry. Elanah had tampered with his friend, filling her head with silly ideas. You didn’t just take what you wanted from whomever you wanted. He was also angry at himself. He had put Katie in peril.
Malice: A Barrington County Novel Page 21