“No, but I don’t think she’s a witch. I’ve been too distraught and in hiding to focus on figuring it out. But I think it’s clear that she’s dangerous.”
“You must realize that you can’t stay here. We have to go.” The Woodsman stood like a stone statue by the door, his enchanted ax clutched in his massive hands. Honora hadn’t realized he was there. She should have known he was wise to her little search.
“Not before I show her what’s at stake,” Jonathan said.
They followed the Woodsman out of the tree and back to the station. He directed Honora to the arch and to the waist-high stone pedestal with a large crystal embedded in it.
“How do you do it?” she asked, captivated by the magical device.
“My persuasion is strange. I always called it ‘the gift of loneliness.’” He held up his palm and an invisible wall pushed Honora back.
She pressed her body forward against the pillow of air. “You can repel anything? That’s amazing,” She smiled warmly.
“Not to a young wizard wanting to make friends. I wanted to pull others to me, not push them away. So I developed my mind to compensate for a wasted persuasion.” He sighed. “That’s what I thought when I was young. As my mind grew, so did my understanding of the magical potential and what I could do with it.” He directed her attention to the pedestal. “The crystal is ancient. It helps conduct the magic.”
Jonathan waved his wand, and the wall came alive, appearing as sparkling swirls of opaque energy shooting up into the sky. The power felt warm and alive. Her gaze shifted to the gate. “How did the fake Jane get through if the gate isn’t open?”
“We aren’t sure. There’s speculation that she had help from one of the travelers.”
“Which one?” Panic flared in Honora.
“We don’t know. The council is still searching for the traitor,” he said, with eyes cast down as another wave of sorrow rolled over his face.
Her mother was many things, but she wasn’t a traitor. Honora focused on the archway. “How does a traveler pass through the wall? Tell me how the arch works.”
“We let a door open. A small space in the magical energy stream is disrupted for the exchange. We set a time for return and then we reopen the door to let the travelers back inside. The correspondence is passed through by the guardian while the Woodsman stands guard.”
“Can anyone else do what you do to keep the wall up?”
“The wardens maintain the magical levels and make sure the energy current stands, but I’m the one who created the network of spells. I’ve tried to pass on the craft, but I need more time to train the wardens.”
“We need a strategy,” Honora said. “I can’t let that impostor use me to get to you.”
“I have an idea, but first we must return to Stargazer City. I have a favor to ask of you.”
“Name it. I’ll do whatever it takes to keep you safe.”
“I don’t want you to keep me safe. I want you to kill me,” Jonathan said, grabbing Honora’s arm.
“Kill you?” she said, jerking out of his grasp. “That sounds like a terrible plan.”
“I know, but it could be our only hope.”
13
Jonathan’s plan was insane, completely crazy, verging on utter madness. It was just the kind of plan Honora could totally get behind—so crazy it had to work. And yet her nerves were on edge. The next part of the investigation was crucial. They were attempting to outfox a fox, and it could really go either way. Part of her hated having to leave the North. She kept thinking that maybe Jonathan would be safe here with trained protectors, but he was determined to return to his life, what was left of it, and face down the darkness that had slipped into Everland. After what happened to his wife, she really couldn’t blame him.
Honora loaded up her gear and prepared to head back to Stargazer City. Ren’s rough beard had brushed against her cheek when he gave her a hug goodbye that morning, and the sensation kept returning as thoughts of him lingered in her mind. She was such a sucker for a handsome wizard carrying dangerous weapons.
“I’ll do anything I have to do to end this for good.” Jonathan leaned against the porch railing. He was young again—at least, he looked young.
“You shouldn’t talk that way.” Honora fingered the silky cocoon Ren had made for her and stuffed it into the bottom of her backpack.
“Killing me is the only way, real or not. It’s a sacrifice I’m willing to make. The wardens will have to do without me for a while until we can find out who on the council can be trusted. The creature chose well in hiring you. I can’t hide forever. It will find me eventually, unless we do something drastic.”
“I’m all for a good fake-out, but I’m worried this could go very badly. It’s your choice, and I’ll support your decision.” They weren’t really going to kill him, but they were going to get pretty close.
“The creature must believe I’m dead, and then we must identify its species. Then you’ll have to discover who else from the Otherworld has crossed the wall.” Jonathan adjusted his glasses. “We assess the damage done and confront the council.”
“Can’t we use one of your illusions? You could change your identity again.” Honora wanted to make sure they had all options on the table.
“The creature will suspect an illusion from me. It knows my work. We must make my death look real. Very real. I know it sounds harsh, but truly I want to live. I’m counting on you and your sister to pull this off. We can do this, and we must. Just remember to never turn your back on that creature pretending to be my wife.”
“Don’t worry. I’ve learned my lesson. What I need now is for you to stay at the station with the Woodsman until I get back. I’ve got an idea, and I need to go alone. I’ll be back as soon as I can,” Honora said.
She made her way back to Rawlands and took the train to Willow Realm to Vivi’s shop, The Potion Garden. Keeping a low profile, she hadn’t sent a message and just dropped in on her sister unannounced, hoping she could get some serious potion-making help.
Walking into The Potion Garden was like stepping into a jewel box of multicolored glass bottles filled with the most spectacular potions a witch could dream up. She was proud of her sister for starting her own business and admired her creativity. Even more so, she was glad Vivi finally admitted that her true persuasion wasn’t potion-making, but prophecy.
For her sister’s own safety, Honora wanted to divulge as little information as possible, and she wasn’t about to ask Vivi if she sensed the demise of the witching wall and the collapse of Everland’s safety, doomed to be overrun by Otherworlders. Prophecy was the potential future. No need to muddy the waters now.
“Hey, this is a nice surprise. I didn’t expect to see you again so soon,” Vivi said, giving Honora a big hug.
“I found him,” she whispered in her sister’s ear. “But it’s hush-hush. No one can know. I came here because I really need your help.”
Vivi’s eyes widened. “Sure. I’ll do whatever I can. What is it?”
All Honora needed was a potion that would sort of kill the wizard she’d been paid to find, convincing her client he was dead. No problem. Honora tried not to flinch under Vivi’s eagle-eyed glare after she explained the kind of potion she needed.
Vivi’s spunky assistant, Pepper, wandered in from the back.
“Let me get this straight,” Vivi said. Her long brown hair was pulled up on her head and was filled with stalks of dried flower and herbs. Her feet were bare, and the bottoms of her jeans were frayed. “You need a potion to make a wizard appear dead in every way, but he will eventually wake up.”
“Can you do it? Please? I know it’s short notice, but I’m really counting on you two and your potion-making skills.” Honora looked at her watch and winced. “I only have a few hours until I need to be back in the city.”
“We’ll try,” Vivi said. “I hope you know what you’re doing.”
“Is this some kind of joke? Are you having a party?” Pepper was V
ivi’s resident potion master. “Is it zombie-themed?”
“I wish. No, this is the real deal.” Honora poked around the vast collection of spellbooks. “There has to be some kind of concoction in here, right?”
“We could try a dead man’s potion,” Pepper said. “But they’re dangerous. The wizard who takes the potion is technically dead and may not come out of it really well.”
“That’s true,” Vivi said. “He might lose some short-term memory and maybe a few toenails.”
“Gross. And, no, he can’t lose any memory. This wizard’s mind is the most important thing about him. I can’t risk him waking up a veggie. He’s got to wake up sharp.” Maybe this wasn’t going to be as easy as she thought. “Don’t you have a sleeping spell that resembles death or maybe a deep-napping potion?”
“We could try a lover’s deathbed potion,” Vivi said. She twisted up her mouth in a contemplative look. “When star-crossed lovers wanted to escape their families to be together, one of them gulped down a potion to appear dead, but it just stills the heart and makes the lover appear dead. The potion was inspired by an old Otherworld story Mom read to me once.”
“What happened in the story?” Honora asked.
“The other lover commits suicide, thinking her true love is dead,” Vivi shrugged. “You asked for a convincing potion.”
Honora cracked her knuckles. She wasn’t a handwringer, but she was getting desperate. “I need him to look like a corpse. You’ve got to help me. His life is depending on this potion.”
“A divine corpse potion!” Pepper yelled. “I forgot about that one.” She raced to the shelf, grabbed a huge, weathered spellbook, and spread it open on the counter. “It’s like a dead man’s potion and a sleeping beauty potion all in one. Whoever takes it will appear dead for at least three days, but will stay in suspended animation. No memory loss or no graying of the skin.” She shuddered. “I know a guy who did a dead man’s potion back at the academy to avoid an exam, and his toenails looked like daggers when he woke up.”
“The divine corpse sounds good. Well, it sounds creepy, but that’s where I am right now in my career.”
“Let’s look at the ingredients and see if we can whip this up. You’re sure this is what you want?” Vivi gave her sister a concerned look.
“Positive.”
Pepper went to the front of the shop to check the supplies and help a customer.
“Are you really okay with this?” Vivi asked. “A divine corpse potion is one of my stranger requests.”
“It’s what he wants. I have to trust his judgment. I can’t argue with such a distinguished wizard. He’s my elder, and it’s his call.” Honora rested her elbows on the counter while her sister worked. “I just hope everything goes according to plan.”
“When do things ever go wrong for us?” Vivi snorted. “We’re Mayhems. Our lives always go exactly as we plan.”
Honora smiled at her sister. “You’re right. I really should be planning for the unexpected, if that’s even possible.”
While Pepper and Vivi made the potion, Honora watched the shop and strategized on how to pull off a fake death. She had to come up with a good location to place the body and make it appear Jonathan had died of natural causes, someplace visible where he’d be safe. Plotting a death scene was more complicated than she realized. There were so many variables. She couldn’t let the creature Jane get the body. She hated to admit it, but with everything at stake, she needed help.
Sitting on the front stoop of the shop, Honora wrote a quick note to Jenny Liu, warning her that Jane was really a dangerous impostor. She asked Jenny to keep an eye on her and find out if she was meeting with anyone. The cardigan queen had turned out to be a real threat. Finding out what was down the Rainers’ drain was more important than ever, Honora realized, recalling the creepy talon. Whatever it was that had killed the real Jane, it wasn’t going to be pretty.
14
After getting the potion from her sister, Honora returned to the North Woods Station and the next phase of the plan began. Luckily Willow Realm was much closer north than Stargazer City, and it didn’t take her as long to reach her destination. She flew overhead as Ren and Jonathan traveled on the snowcraft out to the old oak in the woods where Jonathan had been hiding. A few of the Woodsman’s wolves trotted along in the snowy wake of the craft. Honora had decided the fewer involved in the process, the better, and that included the Woodsman and his guardian.
Honora had a special task for the wolves.
Once they all arrived at the small cottage carved into a giant tree, Jonathan extinguished the embers still burning in the potbellied stove. Ren tossed the wizard’s food and fuel supply. They broke the lone window and reduced the room to shambles.
Honora handed Jonathan the potion. “Are you sure you want to go through with this?”
“I see no other option, but the hard work starts after I drink this, and that will be up to you. All I have to do is go to sleep. The entire plan hinges on you, dear witch. So, the question really is—are you ready?” His eyes welled with concern.
“Of course,” Honora said, hoping to sound convincing, realizing the significance of her current situation. She squared her shoulders. “Don’t worry. I’ll take care of everything. You have my word.” Her choice had been made when she took the case. Now, she had to trust the plan. Just stay focused on the tasks ahead, she reminded herself. Ready or not, she couldn’t let the wizard down.
“Thank your sister for me.” Jonathan uncorked the potion, gave her a quick salute, and gulped it down. With a grimace, he swallowed hard and lowered himself down into a battered armchair and leaned his head back. Within a few minutes his breathing slowed. Honora held his hand and stayed by his side as the potion coursed through his system. She trusted her sister and Pepper and their potion-making skills, but her stomach churned as Jonathan finally drifted off. Spit bubbled from his parted lips, and his chest stilled. His breathing stopped.
Honora swallowed hard and exited the tiny cottage. “Ready,” she said, her voice soft, distant.
Ren nodded. “See you back in town,” he said, igniting the snowcraft’s engine with a spell.
Honora lifted her chest, hovering on the cold air. After completing their task, the wolves drifted off into the woods, silently as ghosts.
Honora and Ren met at the sheriff’s station to report the death of Jonathan Rainer. The creature posing as Jane had hired her to find her husband, and that’s exactly what she’d done, but that didn’t mean he had to be alive, and as far as the creature Jane needed to know, her husband had met an unfortunate end in the icy cold North Woods. But Honora realized the only way to pull this off was to do it by the book and let the local law enforcement handle the death and turn over the body.
Rugged, bearded, and heavily armed with two axes strapped to his belt, Sheriff Higgins leaned back in his sturdy chair and listened attentively as Honora explained that she was a private investigator from Stargazer City, searching for a wizard who unfortunately she’d found dead in a small, desolate campsite in the woods not far from Rawlands. Her hired local guide, Ren, backed up her story.
With a shrewd gaze, Higgins scrutinized her, his silence deafening. Finally, he nodded and gathered a few of his deputies to investigate the site and retrieve Jonathan Rainer’s body. It didn’t take long for the team to make its way back to the tree. The campsite was in shambles. Wolf prints covered the area. The animals had left deep gouges in the wooden door, partially pulling it from its rusted hinges. Dismounting his snowcraft, the sheriff waved Honora and Ren back while he and his crew conducted a thorough investigation of the scene.
Honora’s muscles stiffened as she sat perched on the back of Ren’s craft.
Bursts of light filtered from the doorway. Once, at a crime scene, Andreas Corder allowed Honora to watch some detection spells. Law enforcement had a specialized spell kit to investigate a scene—fingerprint potion, aura-reading spells to detect previous occupants, and blood-detection glow c
harms, which illuminated any area where blood once existed. Sheriff Higgins was probably confirming there was no foul play. A deputy inspected the door, sprinkled powder from a carved horn, waved his wand over the destroyed surface, and stepped back as the door was suddenly covered in glowing yellow fingerprints. The deputy pulled a piece of parchment from his kit, waved his wand, and the fingerprints magically transferred from the door to the page.
“Cool,” Honora said, engrossed in the police work.
Within minutes, the sheriff waved them in. “From our initial search, it appears as if Rainer got trapped inside and ran out of fuel and supplies. He probably died of exposure, but a coroner can tell you more specifically. It happens to even the most experienced campers,” Higgins said, rubbing his short black beard thoughtfully. “Packs of wolves come down from the high north to prowl the area for food.” He turned to Honora. “What’d you say he was up here doing?”
“Actually, he was on sabbatical from his research. He’s an academic and was trying to get away from the pressures of work,” Honora said with a straight face. She wasn’t totally lying. Part of the job of being an effective investigator sometimes meant not telling the whole truth.
The sheriff tilted his head to the side and gave her a half-smile. “He left one pressure for another. City wizards never realize the dangers of the wild until it’s too late.”
It was a wise statement that she completely agreed with. “His wife sent me to find him. She’s terribly worried,” Honora added.
“She had a right to be worried. He had no business coming up here. The weather is too extreme, and the woods too dangerous for academics, especially when they’re alone. Exposure to the elements was swift. His body feels like an ice cube.” Sheriff Higgins’ brow was pinched. His shoulders sagged.
Fly By Midnight (A Sister Witches Mystery) Page 14