by K E O'Connor
He lifted one shoulder. “Ursa’s a pain in my butt. Her uncle sits on the Scrutiny Committee and oversees the standards maintained by Magic Council employees. Whenever Ursa has a problem, she runs straight to him, and he dumps it on someone else to deal with.”
“And you’re the latest victim of being dumped on?”
“You got it.”
“So you’ve handed your problem on to me.”
“Better that than a harsh sentence and an immediate loss of your power and freedom. Judge Zimmerman is most insistent that he’s not bothered by the Scrutiny Committee, so we run around placating Ursa and her uncle.”
“And you think I can solve her issues? I’ve already dealt with her dolls once. It didn’t end so well. Not all of them survived.”
“You must get this right, or you’ll face the consequences.”
I tipped back on my heels and peered into his emotionless face. “Is that the only reason you stood up for me in there?”
“What other reason could there be?” He held my gaze for a second too long, before gesturing to the main gate. “We’ll go to Ursa’s house immediately. We need to keep her updated, or she’ll only cause more problems for Judge Zimmerman, and that means more problems for me.”
“Or rather, me.”
“You’re getting good at this.” His smirk turned into a full-on grin. Olympus was enjoying this.
“This is a mistake. Ursa will hate seeing my face again. She pretty much threw me out after I smoked her favorite killer doll.”
“Then convince her you’re an asset, not an issue. And I’ll be there to ease any concerns she may have.”
“You’re coming with me?”
“I have no choice. Before we left, Judge Zimmerman assigned me as your guardian.”
I wrinkled my nose. “You mean you’ll be hanging around all the time watching my every move?”
“That’s the plan. Aren’t I the fortunate one?” He smiled slyly. “And while you’re dealing with Ursa’s issues, you’re to remain in her house. That’s part of the agreement.”
“For good?”
“It’ll be easier to track you if you have a single residence and aren’t moving from place to place. And it’s not forever, just until you fix her latest drama and give the judge some peace.”
“You mean, I can’t leave?”
“You may leave, providing you get my permission. But I need to know where you are at all times. The judge took a risk by giving you this assignment. Do not let him down. Or me.”
I shook my head. I was still bemused as to why Olympus was taking this chance on me. “Ursa and her uncle must be horrors if you’re gambling on me to sort this mess out.”
“They are. Besides, we have nothing to lose. If you get this wrong, you’ll simply be sentenced, as was the original plan.”
“And if I get it right?”
We reached the gates. Olympus nodded to a guard on duty, and he opened them for us.
“If you get it right, then you can expect Judge Zimmerman to be fair. He’ll be true to his word about taking your assistance into account when sentencing you.”
“I may get to keep my powers?”
“Most likely. And if he’s in a generous enough mood, he may even let you keep the house as well.”
I gulped. “What house are you talking about?”
He snorted a soft laugh. “I know you’re hiding Magda’s house.”
“No, I’m not.” Technically, that was the truth. My awesome familiars had done all the hard work there. “You saw the rubble. The place went ka-boom days ago.”
“I did. And it took me a while to figure out that the rubble was in the wrong place. I’m assuming you’re hiding the house behind magical wards?”
Olympus sounded surprisingly calm for someone who’d figured out he’d been duped.
“What if I am?”
“Then it’s another example of how powerful you are, and how careful we need to be around you.” He surprised me by smiling. “Relax. I have no plans to knock down that house. Not at the moment, anyway. I can only imagine the strong magic hidden within those walls. If you’d wanted to do anything truly hideous to the village, you’ve had all the resources at your fingertips, and you’d have done it by now.”
“Does that mean you think I’m not such a bad witch?”
“I’m on the fence about that. And you need somewhere to stay while you’re in Witch Haven. It would be a shame to lose the magic and spells Magda collected over the years.” We reached the end of the pathway.
His admission stunned me. I may get to keep my powers and my house. I really couldn’t afford to get things wrong with Ursa. Not with so much riding on it.
I turned and looked back at the building we’d come out of. It was enveloped in such a thick mist, I could barely see it. “Where are we?”
“Don’t concern yourself about that. The Magic Council moves around. It’s risky to have meetings in the same place too often. There are many forces out there who’d like to get rid of the Council. I expect you’re one of them.”
“Nope. You can scrub me off the list of magic users planning to bring down the establishment. I don’t hate the Magic Council. I hate what they did to me and Magda, but I put my hands up and admitted to what I’d done, and they imprisoned me based on the evidence. But...”
“But? You have something to say about the organization that just threw you a lifeline?”
“You threw me a lifeline.” And I was still figuring out why. “I wish they’d loosen up. They seem so out of touch with the real world.”
“Big organizations get like that. We become slow moving, and it takes too long for anything effective to happen.”
“It sounds like you’re making plans for a career change,” I said. “Have you grown disillusioned with your employer?”
“There’s no chance of that. My life is my work. And perhaps one day I really will rule this entire organization. Then things will be very different.”
“That doesn’t sound like much fun. There must be more to you than work.”
Olympus smoothed a hand across his chin, but didn’t speak. He reached out as if to take hold of my hand, but stopped and stepped away. “Your secret is safe with me. You can keep the house hidden. I don’t want to see you homeless, and I wouldn’t wish my worst enemy to have a permanent home with Ursa. But you must stay there while you deal with her issues.”
I opened my mouth, then closed it again. Olympus kept on being nice to me. Did I trust him? After all, he was Magic Council, and a big part of my problem.
“Ah! There are your familiars.” Olympus’ gaze shifted away from me.
I turned around. “How did they know I was here? Wherever here is.”
“I summoned them. I thought you may require backup when you move into Ursa’s house.”
I couldn’t figure Olympus out. It was as if he’d had a personality transplant. And I had no idea what to say, so I said nothing.
Russell arrived first, giving a hearty caw and circling around my head several times.
“And just so you know, I will be looking into your claims of this dark witch coven,” Olympus said. “Perhaps I may borrow Magda’s journal to read. I could find something you missed.”
“Oh! That would be great, so long as you look after it. I couldn’t find any names in this journal, but if I can get back to the house, I’ll keep searching. Magda must have put more information about the coven somewhere.” I handed over the journal.
He tucked it under his arm. “If there’s any truth to your claim, I’ll get to the bottom of it.”
I blinked several times and nodded. I really couldn’t get used to this new version of Olympus.
“You’re free.” Nugget trotted over and flicked his tail at me. “We thought we’d arrive to find you turned into a shadow, and have to drag your hollow, pointless body away and figure out what to do with it.”
“Awww! You always say the sweetest things to me.”
Hilda ran up
my leg and onto my shoulder. “And you’re talking to Olympus,” she whispered in my ear.
I glanced at him. “We’ll discuss that later. For now, I’m a sort of free witch, with a few conditions attached.”
Russell flapped around my head, cawing happily, before settling on my other shoulder.
“How did you work out a deal with the Magic Council?” Nugget said. “I figured you were done for.”
I glanced at Olympus, who’d moved a short distance away. “Well, I had some assistance. The Magic Council agreed to let me go, so long as I help them with the problems Ursa’s having in her house.”
“You’ll help the witch who stole from you?” Nugget wrinkled his furry nose. “Why would we do that?”
“It was that option, or be locked up again,” I said. “And once we’re inside her house, we’ll have the perfect chance to find out why she stole the ghost jar from us, and get it back.”
Olympus cleared his throat and shot me a warning glare.
I lifted a hand. “I deserve to get back what’s mine. Don’t worry, I won’t blast Ursa with magic unless she really annoys me. But I will do a little searching while her back is turned. I’m getting that ghost jar back. It could be important to finding Luna.”
I looked at my familiars and smiled. This felt good. Now we were back together, we could make some progress.
“Be careful when you’re at Ursa’s house,” Olympus said. “That place is full of unpleasant secrets.”
I nodded. “I’ve already encountered a few. I’ll be on my guard.”
“Why is Olympus worried about your safety?” Hilda whispered.
That was an excellent question, and one I had no time to dwell on.
“When do we start?” Nugget said.
“Right away,” Olympus said.
I shrugged. There was no time like the present. “How do you feel about making friends with more creepy possessed dolls?”
***
An hour later, and after a quick stop at Magda’s house to grab a few essentials, I stood outside Gravesend Manor with Olympus and my familiars.
Olympus knocked on the door and stepped back. “Let me do the talking. Ursa needs to be handled sensitively.”
“You can handle her as sensitively as you like, but she’s no friend of mine,” I said. “I’ll deal with her hexing, or whatever it is, but I won’t pretend we’re friends.”
“Just don’t go killing anyone,” Olympus said.
Ursa pulled open the door. She stared at me and frowned before her hard glare settled on Olympus. “What are you doing bringing her here?”
He gave a slight bow. “I have a proposition for you. Indigo specializes in assisting with problem hexes and hauntings.”
I opened my mouth to protest, but snapped it shut the second Olympus glared at me.
“And what’s your point?” Ursa said.
“The Magic Council has hired Indigo on a freelance basis to assist you with the matter of your... troubled dolls. I believe you expressed concerns to your uncle about them.”
Ursa pursed her lips. “I did. But this won’t do. She’s already been here. She didn’t help.”
“That’s not true. I located the problem and stamped on her,” I said. “That was more than you did.”
Ursa narrowed her eyes. “You left behind chaos and ruined Mary-Sue. I’ve only just finished fixing up that room and settling down my dolls.”
“Indigo has assured the Magic Council she won’t cause any trouble. And she’ll be working under my strict guidance. I’m overseeing all matters in regard to this case. I’ll also have guards outside your home, so if there are any problems, you can call on them for assistance.” Olympus gestured at me. “And we also think it’s best if Indigo stays here, so she’s around to assess any trouble you have. She’ll be on call night and day.”
I wasn’t happy about being under house arrest, or being at Ursa’s beck and call, but I shouldn’t be surprised this was happening. The Magic Council was a long way from ever trusting me, so why not use me for anything they could get? To them, I was just another problem to neutralize once I’d served my purpose.
Ursa was quiet as her cold stare tracked over me and my familiars. “I’m unhappy about sheltering a dark witch in my home. What if she tries to hurt me?”
“You know how to look after yourself. Don’t pretend you have no power.” I rested a hand on my hip.
Ursa continued to glare at me.
“Since Indigo returned to Witch Haven, she’s been helping others in need. She assisted her friend during a troublesome haunting and has been cooperating with me and the Magic Council. I trust her to do the right thing when it comes to your problem,” Olympus said.
Well, spank me with a broomstick and call me a moon nymph. Olympus was standing up for me yet again. Had he been given a potion that made him lighten up? I wasn’t complaining if that was the case, but it would take a while to adjust to this new version.
Ursa crossed her arms over her chest. “I don’t like this. But so far, the Magic Council has been most unhelpful. She can come inside, but this is only on a trial basis. And I will be watching to see how she does.”
“She’ll do fine,” I said. “Just so long as you don’t rile her too much. Then she can get angry and her magic gets out of control.”
“No one needs to get angry,” Olympus said sharply.
Ursa huffed out a breath. “Do you expect me to feed her and find her somewhere to sleep?”
I looked at the huge house which must have at least a dozen unused bedrooms. And Ursa lived alone, if you discounted the evil dolls and grumpy gnomes. “I’m sure you can squeeze me in somewhere. And I don’t eat much.”
There was a long pause. Ursa stared at me, and I stared back.
“Oh, very well. So long as you deal with my dolls. And by deal, I don’t mean smash them to pieces.”
I went to step inside and then looked back at Olympus. “Aren’t you coming in?”
He shook his head, his gaze sliding to the side. “Ursa has a gnome problem I need to tackle.”
“I’ve encountered the gnomes. They’re not friendly. One of them threw a stone axe at me.”
He leaned forward so his mouth was close to my ear. “I have a sledgehammer I intend to use on them. Go inside. And try not to kill each other.”
“Stop dawdling,” Ursa said from the hallway.
I hurried inside with my familiars, and the door slammed shut behind me. I jumped. It must have been the breeze, because Ursa was striding along the hallway in front of me, and there was no one else around.
“Follow me. I’ll show you the house. I don’t want you in most of the rooms, though. Stick to where I tell you.”
“I need full access if I’m going to solve this problem. I’m not even sure what I’m dealing with yet. Is it a hex, a curse, a possession?” I jogged along behind her.
“To the left, you’ll find the front floral parlor, games room, second entertainment room, dining room, and kitchen. To the right, there’s the green front parlor, the library, the study, and the reading room.”
“Wouldn’t it make more sense to have the library and the reading room in the same place?” I said. “It must get annoying having to go find a book and then walk to another room to read it.”
“No, it wouldn’t. I don’t want you going in either of those rooms.”
“If I sense a malevolent presence in the rooms, am I allowed to go in?”
“Tell me if you sense anything, and I’ll make that decision,” Ursa said. “At the back of the house is the utility room, and several storerooms for supplies and dried goods. They’re out of bounds, too. Let’s go upstairs. I’ll put you in the guest wing, in the room furthest from mine.”
“That sounds perfect,” Nugget whispered. “I’m already feeling bad having to breathe the same air as this harpy.”
“I heard that,” Ursa said. “And animals should be kept outside. I don’t want my carpets shredded or soiled.”
�
��These are my familiars. It’s important they stay close. If I’m without them, I won’t be able to do my job properly.”
Ursa gave a most unladylike grunt. “If they put so much as a paw or a claw wrong, they’re out. I don’t care how important they are.”
“I know where I’d like to put my paw,” Nugget muttered.
“I heard that, too,” Ursa said. “The wing to your left is my private wing. Don’t go anywhere near the rooms on this side of the building. The right side is the guest wing.”
“That’s where the creepy dolls are located,” Hilda said.
I nodded as I followed Ursa along a dimly lit corridor. The wallpaper had large faded pink roses on it, and the carpet underneath was a washed out deep blue. This must once have been a luxurious house, but now carried an atmosphere of neglect and despair.
Ursa headed back to the top of the stairs. “That’s enough of a tour. I suppose you want dinner?”
I hadn’t eaten in what felt like days. “If it’s no trouble.”
“Of course, it’s trouble. I’ll make you a sandwich. You can eat in the kitchen. I always turn in early, so you’ll have to entertain yourself.”
“Can we use the entertainment room?” Nugget said. “What games do you have?”
“No. Stay out of there.”
Nugget grumbled under his breath all the way down the stairs.
Ursa led us into the kitchen. It was a dark room, with small, high up windows set in one wall. The units were black, and the gray granite work surface glittered.
Ursa dumped bread and cheese on the counter, along with a knife and a plate. “Don’t leave any mess. I’ll come back for you and show you to your room once I’ve made it up.” She turned and stomped out.
“This is going to be so much fun,” Nugget said.
“It’ll be okay.” I sliced off some bread and made a sandwich. “We’ll figure out the hex or curse, neutralize it, and get out as quickly as we can. We’ll be here a couple of days at the most.”
Nugget froze and his eyes widened.
I turned and grimaced as I spotted a dozen stuffed animals adorning one wall. I turned my back on them and ate standing up, while tossing pieces of bread and cheese to everyone.