Once Upon a Witch: A Wicked Witches of the Midwest Fantasy Books 1-3

by Amanda M. Lee

  “This is unbelievably tacky,” Landon said.

  “Shouldn’t you have been tipped off by the potluck yard?”

  “That was beautiful.”

  The sound of footsteps on hardwood floors grabbed our attention. The woman who walked into the room was dressed in a hideous floor-length Victorian gown, a high lace neck covering her throat. Her gray hair was piled on top of her head, and other than some unnaturally saggy skin she looked relatively normal.

  “You must be … .” Landon broke off, unsure. “Do I just call you Mrs. Witch?”

  “Who are you and what are you doing in my house?”

  I couldn’t contain my surprise when I recognized the woman. It had been years since I had seen her. The last time was at a summer camp when she came to pick up her nasty granddaughter, Rosemary. That was fourteen years ago, though. It just couldn’t be. “Aunt Willa?”

  “Do I know you?” The woman seemed surprised by my recognition.

  “Who is she?” Landon asked.

  “She’s Aunt Tillie’s sister.”

  “I thought your grandmother was Aunt Tillie’s sister.”

  “She had two sisters,” I said.

  “What happened to the second one? Did she die, too?”

  “No,” I said. “She was just kind of … banished from the family.” I forced a tight smile onto my face as I regarded my great-aunt, who was, if you can believe it, even worse than the great-aunt who cursed us into a book of children’s stories. “How are you, Aunt Willa?”

  “I don’t know you,” Aunt Willa said, crossing her arms over her chest. “Why do you keep speaking to me as if you know me?”

  “She’s not real, Bay,” Landon said. “She’s not your aunt.”

  He was right. Instinctively I knew it. It was so surreal to think about. I cleared my throat. “You bear a resemblance to someone I know,” I said. “I’m sorry for the mistake.”

  “That doesn’t explain why you’re in my house,” Aunt Willa said. “When you enter someone’s house you’re supposed to knock. There wasn’t any knocking. I would have heard it.”

  “We’re sorry,” Landon said. “We got lost in the woods. We’re looking for a … phone.”

  “A what?”

  “There are no phones here,” I said. “Actually, we’re looking for a glass of water. We’re really thirsty.”

  “You expect me to reward you for breaking into my house?”

  She may have been a figment of Aunt Tillie’s colorful imagination, but she was exactly as I remembered her. I’d hated her visits when I was a child – and not only because she always brought my second cousin Rosemary with her. Rosemary was such an awful person. Aunt Willa taught Rosemary how to be evil, and Rosemary had nothing on her beloved grandmother.

  “You’re right,” I said. “We don’t deserve water.” I glanced around the cottage, my eyes falling on a heavy-looking book.

  “Get out of my house,” Aunt Willa commanded.

  “Actually, we were hoping you would show us your cottage,” Landon said. “We’re looking to buy a house, and we love this one.”

  “It’s not for sale.”

  “We’ll offer you a lot of money. Just let us see the kitchen.” Landon winked, trying to charm her.

  “I said ‘no,’” Aunt Willa said. “Now, if you don’t get out of my house, you’re not going to like what happens.”

  “Are you going to eat us?” All his charm was gone. Now Landon was irritated. “Isn’t that what you do? You lure children here with a yard full of yummy goodies, you drug them, you cook them and then you eat them.”

  “I don’t always cook them,” Aunt Willa sneered.

  Landon made a face. “That’s even grosser.”

  “Well, you’re out of luck,” Aunt Willa said. “I only like … young meat. You’re too old.”

  “We’re not here to be eaten,” Landon said. “We’re here to … Bay, do you want to help me out here?”

  “Sure,” I said. “What the heck is that?” I practically screamed the question and pointed. When Aunt Willa swiveled to see what I pointing at, I grabbed the book and brought it down on the back of her head as hard as I could, knocking her out. She tumbled to the floor, landing hard.

  “That was nice,” Landon said. “I thought we had to cook her, though?”

  “I was hoping we could bypass that little tidbit,” I said. “Since she didn’t poof into confetti like the wolf, though, I’m guessing we’re going to have to play it all out.”

  “Great,” Landon said, hooking Aunt Willa under her arms and grimacing as he lifted her. “Go turn the oven on.”

  “WELL, that was the grossest thing I’ve ever done,” I said, wiping my hands on my jeans and moving away from the oven. “Let’s get out of here.”

  “Don’t we have to wait … and watch?”

  “I don’t think that’s necessary,” I said, leading Landon from the kitchen and back into the living room.

  It had taken us almost twenty minutes to load Aunt Willa into the oven. Folding her in there was a lot harder than we thought. After trying three different configurations, we finally got her settled and closed the door. Now we waited for the final act to play out.

  “Go look out on the front lawn,” I said. “I’ll keep an eye on the door in case she somehow manages to climb out of there. The second you see Marcus and Thistle get to their feet we can go.”

  “And you can do your song and dance,” Landon said, laughing.

  “Exactly.”

  Landon gave me a light kiss and shuffled to the door. He leaned out so he could scan the yard. “Not yet.”

  I turned back to the kitchen, focusing on the oven door, which I could barely see from my vantage point. A loud bang reverberated from the adjacent room. I could only hope that wasn’t Aunt Willa coming to in the oven.

  “They’re moving,” Landon said.

  “She probably poofed into confetti in there,” I said. “That’s probably what I heard.”

  Landon didn’t reply. I turned my attention from the kitchen and found an empty room. The doorway was vacant … and I was alone. “Landon?”

  I started moving toward the door, the room dissolving behind me. Once everything was gone, instead of being within walking distance of the familiar brick road I found myself in a dark room. There was no sign of Landon. Clove and Sam weren’t standing on the lawn waiting for Marcus and Thistle to regain their senses. I was really and truly alone.

  I jumped when I heard the sound of voices, hoping everyone else was transported here with me.

  “Cinderella!”

  “Oh, crap,” I said. “Why me?”

  No one can make you do something you don’t want to do unless you let them. Except me. Always do what I tell you to do. I’m always right, and you’ll regret it if you cross me.

  – Aunt Tillie’s Wonderful World of Stories to Make Little Girls Shut Up

  Twelve

  “Landon,” I hissed, scanning the dimly lit room and trying to hold off the settling panic.

  He didn’t answer.

  “This isn’t helping my abandonment issues,” I grumbled, wiping my hand down my hips and frowning as I glanced down. My jeans and T-shirt were gone, replaced by a set of filthy rags that made my skin crawl. It was a dress – barely – tattered at the hem and hanging off my shoulders. A quick look down the bodice told me that bras were apparently banned in this tale. “Double crap.”

  “Cinderella!”

  I pressed my eyes shut, irritation and worry warring for supremacy in my mind. This couldn’t be happening. Not only had I been transported into my least favorite fairy tale, I also was the character who was about to be utilized for slave labor. I can’t even keep up on my own laundry.

  “There you are.” The voice was like nails on a chalkboard, and I recognized it instantly when the slim figure stepped into the doorway of the dirty room. I guess it was supposed to be a kitchen, but without a microwave and Keurig I couldn’t be sure. “Have you been hiding here al
l morning?”

  My high school nemesis, Lila Stevens, fixed me with a harsh look, and I had to bite my tongue to keep from unleashing hours of frustration on her. In my head, I knew the character only looked like Lila. It wasn’t really her. In my heart, though, I still hated her. It couldn’t be a coincidence that Lila was appearing in this specific story. “I’m not hiding,” I said. “I’m … contemplating the meaning of life.”

  “Oh, whatever,” Lila said, stepping into the room. She wrinkled her nose disdainfully. “This place smells … and you smell. You should try taking a bath.”

  “You should try shutting your mouth,” I grumbled, brushing my hair from my face. It felt greasy. That couldn’t be good.

  “What did you just say to me?” Lila flounced down the stairs, stopping right in front of me. Her hands were on her narrow waist, which looked thinner than normal thanks to the corset and hoop skirt under her bright pink dress.

  “I didn’t say anything,” I said, bartering for time. I wasn’t sure what to do. “Do you need something?”

  “I need my breakfast,” Lila said. “You were supposed to serve it to me five minutes ago. I’m hungry.”

  I pointed to the pot above the open flame in the fireplace. “Go nuts.”

  “Excuse me?” Lila’s eyes were narrow slits of seething hatred. “Are you suggesting I cook my own breakfast?”

  “Or go hungry,” I said. “I don’t really care which. Although, to be fair, I’m guessing you’ll be quiet if you have something shoved in that huge mouth of yours so I would prefer that you ate something.”

  “I … I …. I … .” Lila’s mouth was open but only staccato sounds emanated. It was a nice change of pace.

  “Have you seen any … strangers … around?” I asked.

  “Strangers?”

  “Three men and two women. They would probably be dressed in clothes you would find … odd.”

  “I find you odd,” Lila said. “You’re speaking to me as though we’re … equals. We may be stepsisters, but you’re not my equal. You need to learn your station in life.”

  “Thanks for the suggestion,” I said. “Um … where is the front door to this place? I need to get out of here. Which way is the yellow brick road?”

  “What are you talking about?” a now-furious Lila asked. “Have you gone crazy? Have you lost your mind? Are you suffering from the vapors?”

  “I might be going crazy,” I conceded. “I’m pretty sure my mind is teetering on the edge. I have no idea what the vapors are. Is that like gas? I definitely have heartburn, which is pretty interesting since I haven’t eaten in hours.”

  “I can’t even look at you,” Lila said, covering her eyes dramatically. “You’re like some horrible monster.”

  “You’re as lovely as ever,” I said, pushing past her and moving toward the door. “Just give me a hint. Do I want to make a right or a left when I get out of this room? I need to get out of this place. I am not finishing this story. I hate this story.”

  “What story?”

  “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” I replied, glancing into the hallway. There was nothing to signify which was the correct way to go. The structure was made of stone, high arching doorways cutting into the granite walls at regular intervals. It appeared to be a sort of castle, but I couldn’t be sure. “So … right? Left?”

  “I’m telling,” Lila said, shoving past me and taking a hard right. “You’re going to be in so much trouble you won’t be able to walk when Mama is done taking the switch to you.”

  Mama? Ugh. Who did Aunt Tillie cast in that role in her little fantasy world? It couldn’t be good. Despite my better judgment, I followed Lila down the long hallway. If I could just find a way to get outside of this place I could walk until I found the yellow brick road – and my family.

  “Mama!”

  I rolled my eyes. Lila was even more annoying in this world. At least I knew she was behind bars in the real world. She was allowed to run around willy-nilly here. Life just isn’t fair sometimes.

  “Mama!”

  Lila’s long corkscrew curls swung vigorously as she stomped down the hallway. I had an incredible urge to yank one of them. I had no idea why.

  “Mama!”

  “Why are you screeching?”

  Another figure popped into view from one of the doorways. It took me a second, and a bevy of unhappy memories from my childhood, to recognize her. I didn’t think this was Mama. This had to be the other stepsister. Even though she didn’t look exactly the same – a little more weight spreading around her hips than I remembered throwing me – years couldn’t erase the pinched and unpleasant face of … . “Rosemary.”

  Rosemary tucked a strand of dirty blonde hair behind her ear. Unlike Lila’s bouncy curls, lifeless hanks that looked as though they hadn’t encountered a brush in years marked Rosemary’s locks.

  “Where is our breakfast, Cinderella?”

  “It’s in the pot in the kitchen,” I said. “Which way is the door? I need to get out of here.”

  “How are we supposed to eat it if it’s in the kitchen?”

  “I would suggest using a spoon,” I said. “Or, in your case, maybe a shovel.”

  Rosemary was as flummoxed as Lila. “Is this supposed to be some kind of joke?”

  “While I’m sure you go through life with people laughing every time they see you, I can assure you this isn’t a joke,” I said. “Now, where is the door?”

  “I’m telling Mama,” Rosemary said, placing her hands on her wide hips and glowering at me. “You’re going to be in so much trouble you won’t know what hit you.”

  “Whatever,” I said. “I need to find the door. Where is it?”

  “Mama!”

  Rosemary’s voice was even more annoying than Lila’s. Nails on a chalkboard would be a reprieve.

  “What are you two screeching about?”

  I swiveled quickly, my gaze landing on another familiar figure from my life. This one was … jarring. “Edith?”

  Edith was the resident ghost at The Whistler, the Hemlock Cove newspaper where I worked. She’d been haunting the offices since she keeled over at her desk decades earlier. I’d never known her as anything other than a phantom presence. Seeing her whole – blood pounding through her veins – was fascinating.

  “What’s going on?” Edith asked. “Why is everyone yelling?”

  “I can’t believe you’re … real,” I said, touching her shoulder. “Well, I know you’re not real. I can actually touch you, though. It’s … so different. Do you feel different?”

  “Are you somehow addled?” Edith jerked her shoulder from my probing finger. “Have you forgotten your station in this house?”

  I guess, in a weird way, it made sense for Aunt Tillie to turn Edith into a nasty stepmother. She’d always had a problem with the woman in life, constantly complaining that Edith was trying to steal Uncle Calvin from her. I had no idea whether that was true, but Aunt Tillie’s dislike of Edith was legendary. It was dwarfed only by her dislike of Aunt Willa, Rosemary and Lila. I shouldn’t have expected anything else when Aunt Tillie decided to paint a picture of otherworldly villains.

  “Um … I’m guessing I’m your personal house slave,” I said. “The thing is, I have to … meet some people. I can’t make your breakfast this morning. You’re on your own.”

  Edith’s dark eyes fixed on me, and while she was never overly fond of me – unless she needed something – I found overt hatred there now. I inadvertently took a step back.

  “Who are you meeting?” Edith asked, suspicious.

  “Just some friends,” I said. “We’re going to a … party.”

  “What party?”

  “I think it has a lot in common with a pity party,” I replied.

  “I think you’re up to something,” Edith said. “I think you’re going to try to sneak into the castle.”

  “Isn’t this the castle?”

  Edith ignored me. “I think you heard about the prince picki
ng a bride tonight,” she said. “Do you honestly think you have a chance with a prince? You’re a servant. You’ll never be anything other than a servant.”

  “I’m not interested in the prince,” I said. “I don’t particularly like princes. I’m happy with my lot in life … which isn’t here.”

  “Oh, I know what you’re trying to do,” Edith said, reaching over and grabbing my chin so I had no choice but to focus on her. “I won’t let anyone mess with Rosemary and Lila’s chance to snare a prince.”

  I jerked my chin out of her hand, grimacing when I felt her claw-like fingernails catch on my skin. “I don’t care about your stupid prince. I don’t care about your castle. I don’t care about any of it. I just want to get out of here.”

  I stalked toward the far end of the hallway, hoping I could find an external door if left to my own devices for five minutes without nattering voices burrowing into the back of my brain. Things probably would have been fine if I had kept my mouth shut. That’s not in my nature, though.

  I turned around long enough to grace Edith with a withering look. “And neither one of your terrible daughters has a chance with the prince. Rosemary looks as though she fell off the back of the ugly truck and Lila has the personality of my ass. Neither one of them has a chance. Just … suck it up.”

  TWO hours later I was sitting in the storage room where Edith, Rosemary and Lila locked me in after wrestling me down and … quite frankly … pulling my hair. My scalp hurt ... and I was really grumpy.

  I was at a loss. Somewhere out there Landon was looking for me. I knew it. He was probably panicking because he couldn’t find me. Or – and this was a troubling thought – he was about to start waltzing with hundreds of desperate women at the castle. What if he was the prince? I was Cinderella, after all. I was supposed to claim the prince.

  “Crap,” I groaned, dropping my head into my hands. “I should have killed Lila the second she walked into the kitchen.”