Magic & Murder (Starry Hollow Witches Book 1)

by Annabel Chase

  My curiosity was piqued. "What do you mean by magical drinks?"

  "Like the ones you had at Linnea’s,” Marley said. “Moonglow.”

  "Oh. Those were magical drinks? I just thought they were normal drinks with funny names like Sex on the Beach or Rusty Nail."

  Marley shook her head. "Oh, Mom."

  "Seriously, though,” I continued. “What makes them magical? I didn't feel anything weird after I drank it."

  "It depends on the drink," Sterling explained. "In general, magical cocktails are made from fruits and other ingredients that aren’t available in the human world. Burstberries, mickleberries, and fizzlewicks. Things like that."

  “So mickleberry fizz is magical?” Marley asked, staring into her empty glass.

  “There won’t be a magical effect,” Aster said, “but yes.”

  "Mom, may we please have a snack?" Aspen asked. Or maybe it was Ackley. It would take me more than one visit to tell them apart.

  "Aspen, you are my bottomless pit," Aster said.

  Okay, so Aspen wore the blue bowtie and Ackley wore the red one. Noted.

  "As it happens, I have hors d'oeuvres ready in the kitchen,” Aster said.

  Of course she did. Magical Martha Stewart wouldn't make a hosting faux pas like no hors d'oeuvres. Me, on the other hand, would serve hors d’oeuvres as the main course. Who doesn’t love mini hotdogs?

  "Can I help you bring out the platters, Mom?” Ackley asked.

  "Of course you can, my sweet," Aster said. She held out her hand and he took it. "Come then, let's bring the food out for everyone to enjoy."

  I had to admit, I was starting to feel a bit nauseous in the middle of all this sweetness and light. Aunt Hyacinth was put-together like Aster, but less filtered. That probably came with age, though, unless you were from New Jersey. In Aster's house, there was too much perfection. I hated to say it, but it was starting to grate on my nerves. I was desperate for one of the boys to make a fart joke.

  Aster and her progeny reappeared with a platter of food.

  "Oh, I love these," Marley said, picking up what appeared to be a mini burger.

  I gave her a sharp look. "Where have you ever had these before?" Certainly not in my apartment. The only culinary skills happening in there were on the television screen during a cooking show.

  I took a bite of one and the taste exploded in my mouth. It was insanely good.

  "Popcorn balls," I said.

  "No, silly," Aster said. "These aren’t popcorn balls. They’re crab cake sliders.”

  I waved her off. "No, it's just an expression." I hoped there were more of these because I could eat the whole platter by myself.

  "Because swearing is so rampant in New Jersey, my mom tries very hard not to use bad language around me," Marley explained. "She’s trained herself to use all of these innocent expressions."

  Aster’s expression shifted to one of admiration. "That's lovely, Ember. I think it's a wonderful gift to give our children, to shield them as long as we can from life’s vulgarities."

  I raised a finger. "Speaking of shielding, this might be the right time to ask for some help."

  Sterling's brow lifted. "What kind of help?"

  "You know I'm working at the paper,” I said. “My boss, Mr. Hale…”

  Aster shuddered. "Yes, we know Alec Hale.”

  "He seems to be able to read my thoughts, or at least snippets of them. He said I should learn to shield them. How do I do that?"

  "Yes, we can definitely help you with that," Aster said. “Sterling and I are master shielders, aren't we?"

  Sterling nodded in agreement. “That we are, my darling."

  "I don't blame you for wanting to protect your thoughts from him," Aster said. "I'm sure you're deathly frightened of him. He's a very intimidating man. Vampires generally are, but Alec seems to make a sport of it.”

  Intimidating wasn't quite the word I was thinking of, but I decided to keep that nugget to myself.

  "How about after dinner?" Aster asked. "Once the children are occupied with dessert."

  Marley lit up. “Did someone say dessert?"

  I wrapped my arm around her shoulders and gave her a squeeze. "My little sweet tooth. You come by it honestly."

  We polished off the hors d'oeuvres and moved into the dining room for dinner. There was not a speck of dust or a knickknack out of place in that room either. I didn't know how she managed to keep the house so orderly with two four-year-old boys and a working husband without the use of magic. It wasn’t like Aster sat at home all day doing nothing. From what I gathered, she served on the board of many committees. She was taking her role as a Rose-Muldoon very seriously, unlike her siblings.

  The dining room was just as warm and inviting as the rest of the house. The long rectangular table was made of white oak and impeccably set. The cutlery was wrapped in a crisp white linen cloth and fastened with silver moon napkin rings.

  "You’re welcome to come and set the table at my house anytime," I said. Marley was lucky if I remembered to rip off a couple of paper towels to stand in as napkins.

  Aster took her place at one end of the table, her sense of pride evident.

  Sterling returned from the kitchen, holding two large platters of food. He set one down in front of his wife and brought the other one to his end of the table.

  "I hope you like sea bass,” Aster said. "I tried to choose a safe option since it's your first time dining here."

  Marley was practically salivating. "I can't wait to try everything."

  She couldn’t wait to try sea bass? I hardly recognized this child. As perfect as she was, she was not an adventurous eater. Starry Hollow seemed to have triggered something in her.

  Dinner consisted of polite and mildly amusing conversation. Aster finished two juniper juleps and started on a third. Her mother’s daughter. It was how I imagined dinner parties went in the human world, when people were getting to know each other. I’d never been to an actual dinner party, so my only frame of reference was from television and movies.

  Once everyone's plates were cleared, Aster sent the children off to play. "A little break before dessert is always a good idea," she said.

  I remained at the table with Aster and Sterling.

  "Can I interest you in any tea or coffee?" Aster queried.

  "I'm good with water," I said.

  "Marley seems like a wonderful girl," Sterling said. "You must be very proud."

  "I am, but I can't take any credit for her," I said. "She was born like Athena out of that guy’s head. Fully formed and amazing."

  Sterling grinned. "You mean Zeus?"

  "Yeah, that guy," I said. "I can never remember his name. Marley told me about him one time. She likes mythology."

  "Well, that will certainly come in handy in Starry Hollow," Aster said. "Was there no part of you that was ever drawn to mythology and folklore? I would've thought the magic would have been calling to you all these years."

  "I'll be honest, I have given it a bit of thought,” I said. “I think it's because I was so focused on survival. Who has time to dwell on gods and goddesses when you're worried about feeding your child and paying your rent? Even before my husband died, we weren't exactly rolling in dough. We were always worried about money. I was pregnant when I graduated high school, so I wasn’t able to get a job right away."

  Aster and Sterling fell silent for a moment, probably counting their many blessings.

  "I'm sorry. Did I overshare?" I had a tendency to do that.

  "Not at all,” Aster said. "I told you before. We’re family. You should always feel free to say anything you like."

  Somehow, Aster didn't strike me as the unrestrained type. She was far too polished.

  "So you want to learn about shielding your thoughts," Sterling said. "It's quite simple, really. You just need to exercise it like a muscle."

  "Eventually it will be automatic," Aster added. "Your mind will do it with no conscious effort."

  “No conscio
us effort?" I queried. "That's right up my alley."

  Aster wore a vague smile. "You seem harder on yourself than you deserve."

  Although I disagreed, I didn't want to argue with my cousin at her lovely dinner party. I might not be invited back and the food was too delicious to risk it.

  “So pretend I'm Mr. Hale," Sterling said.

  While Sterling was reasonably attractive, it was hard to picture him as the chiseled and sensual vampire. Sterling’s good looks were more all-American, whereas Alec Hale’s were of the devastatingly handsome variety.

  “Now visually wrap your mind in a cloak,” Sterling said. “Choose a black cloak. It makes it easier to imagine."

  I closed my eyes and tried to picture it.

  "Whatever thoughts you’re holding at the moment, keep them protected inside the cloak,” Sterling continued. “Treat them like precious cargo that can’t be trusted with anyone else.”

  "When I was learning," Aster began, "I liked to pretend I was a spy in enemy territory and I’d been captured. I would practice keeping my state secrets in my mental cloak. Knowing it was a life or death situation made it somewhat easier."

  Sterling broke into a grin. "You never told me that."

  Aster shrugged and gesticulated, nearly knocking over her empty julep glass. "There's a lot about me I haven't told you. We have many years left together. Probably best to leave some surprises, don’t you think?”

  "I quite like the idea of playing spy," Sterling said with a mischievous glint in his eye.

  Oh, man. I did not need to be here for sexy times between a married couple. Maybe we’d have to skip dessert. Marley would be disappointed, but the alternative was much worse.

  "So pretend I'm Alec Hale and I’m standing next to your desk, demanding you finish typing up your piece by the deadline," Sterling said. "You have negative thoughts about this, but you don't want Alec to hear them."

  I wrapped my negative thoughts in the black cloak. It was hard to know whether I was successful without having a mind reader in the room. Still, it was helpful to have a method that I could practice at home.

  We went a few more rounds before Aster decided it was time to serve dessert. She rang a silver bell like the one her mother used. Again, I heard no sound. Moments later, the boys appeared in the dining room and I cackled like the witch I apparently was.

  "Gods above," Sterling sputtered, staring at them.

  Although the boys still wore their linen shorts and knee socks, their top halves were covered in what I assumed was Aster’s lacy lingerie. Their faces were fully made up, including bright red lipstick. Marley appeared behind them, looking chagrin.

  "I'm sorry," she said. "I tried to stop them, but they were maniacs. There were more arms and legs than I could handle and then the cat jumped into the drawer…”

  Aster balked. “Viola was in the drawer?”

  “You should see her familiar, Mom,” Marley said. “She’s so pretty. You’ve never seen yellow like this on a cat.” Marley hesitated. “I’m sorry, Aster, but she may have gotten yellow cat hair on some of your black underwear.”

  “Ackley and Aspen Rose-Stanton,” Aster said, her tone low and threatening.

  “It was Aspen’s idea,” Ackley said, pointing.

  “You know you’re not allowed in my drawers,” Aster said.

  “It’s a good thing we found these,” Aspen said. “I think you need to throw them away.”

  “Why is that?” Aster asked, her eyes narrowing.

  “Look at the holes everywhere,” Aspen said, poking his finger through the lace. “I think the moths got to them.”

  Aster’s pale skin glowed red. “Take those items off carefully and place them on my bed, please. Now.”

  “We may have also knocked over your lamp,” Ackley said.

  Aster’s eyes bulged. “Which lamp?”

  “The pineapple one,” Aspen said.

  I didn’t want to ask Marley what she was doing during all of this. I knew her too well to think she was involved in the shenanigans.

  “Calm down, Aster,” Sterling said. “It’s nothing a little magic can’t fix.”

  I was pretty sure I saw steam flowing from Asters’ ears. “Sterling, you know perfectly well that goes against everything we’re trying to teach the boys.”

  “Magic, magic,” the boys began to chant in unison.

  Sterling gave her a lopsided grin. “From the mouths of babes.”

  “You know what?” I said. “It’s getting late. Marley and I should go. Our dog will need to go out for a walk before bedtime.”

  “But Mom…” Marley began and I knew she was going to ask about dessert.

  “Not now, Marley,” I said.

  Aster pushed back her chair. She looked close to tears. “I’m sorry, Marley. Let me send dessert home with you. I can wrap it up quickly with magic.”

  “Magic, magic,” the boys chanted again.

  Aster’s head whipped around like the little girl in The Exorcist. “Not another word out of you two or you’ll be drinking bile from a lizard’s eye socket tonight.”

  The twins paled and clamped their mouths closed. For all of her beauty and polish, Aster had a tough streak that resembled her mother’s. Now that I’d seen it, I’d never forget it.

  Aster relaxed her shoulders. She turned back to us and flashed her pearly whites. “Now let me get that dessert to go, shall I?”

  Chapter 15

  The Starry Hollow Broomstick Tour ran twice a day, once at noon and once at four. Each tour lasted forty minutes.

  “I’m not sure about this,” Marley said, gripping my hand.

  “It’ll be fine,” I replied. “It’s like a ride at an amusement park.”

  “I hate rides. You know that.”

  “We’ll ride the same broom. Come on, it’ll be fun. We’ll get to see the town from a completely different perspective, like one of those helicopter tours over New York City.”

  “Didn’t one of those crash?”

  I hugged her tightly. “Marley Rose, you will survive the Starry Hollow Broomstick Tour, even if it kills me.”

  “Yes, that’s exactly what I’m worried about.”

  I sighed loudly and stepped up to the counter to purchase our tickets.

  “Skilled or unskilled?” the man behind the counter asked.

  “Um, skilled in some ways,” I said. Like repossessing cars, and I could leap a fence like nobody’s business.

  He pointed upward. “Do you have experience riding a broom?”

  “Oh, no. Two unskilled tickets.”

  He tore off two orange tickets and I gave him the money.

  “You’ll need to join the line on the left,” he said.

  Each line had about six people already waiting. We joined the unskilled line, and I had to assume we were the only witches in it since most witches were probably adept broom riders.

  “Are we ready for the four o’clock tour?” a woman asked. She looked familiar--I was fairly certain she’d attended my induction ceremony.

  The crowd responded eagerly.

  “Excellent. Skilled riders will choose their brooms first,” she said. “Then I’ll have the unskilled riders come over.”

  We waited patiently for our turn. The woman smiled broadly when she saw me approach.

  “How lovely to see you here,” she said. “I’m not sure if you remember me from your ceremony. My name is Lotus.”

  I vaguely remembered meeting a Lotus. “Yes, hi. This is my daughter, Marley.”

  “Welcome to Starry Hollow,” she said. “Although most people here are tourists, this tour is a great way to get to know your new home.”

  “That’s why we’re here,” I said. “Can we ride together?”

  “Absolutely,” she said. “I’ll make sure you have the beginner broom. Don’t want you streaking across the sky into human airspace.”

  “No, we don’t want that either,” I replied. Marley gripped my hand and squeezed. Hard. “Lotus, my daughter has some
concerns. It’s perfectly safe, isn’t it?”

  Lotus gave Marley a reassuring smile. “Of course it is. Just don’t let go and, if you feel nauseous, don’t look down. And don’t wave to anyone.” She started to move away, but suddenly turned back again. “And don’t try to look behind you or you might lose your balance.”

  “Um, thank you, Lotus,” I said, and steered Marley to the rows of hanging broomsticks.

  “How about this pink one?” I asked, trying to distract her from the list of potential dangers.

  “Mom, you know I don’t like pink.”

  “Right. Sorry. There was a time when you did, you know? You may not remember, but I do.”

  “Here.” She snatched a turquoise broomstick from the hook. “This one looks good.”

  We huddled with the rest of the tourists on the dock marked ‘Tours.’

  “Are we going out over the water?” Marley whispered, and I heard the anxiety in her voice.

  Lotus clapped her hands. “If I can have everyone’s attention, please. I’m going to run through the basic rules and help any of our unskilled riders who require assistance. Then we’ll be on our way. Sound good?”

  People murmured their assent. Lotus ran through the instructions and rules with more precision than any flight attendant I’d ever seen on TV. I felt a rise of excitement when I realized that we were about to ride a broomstick over Starry Hollow. A broomstick!

  Marley was told to sit in front of me and I would steer the broomstick from behind her by holding a leather strap.

  “Now these broomsticks are all imbued with magic so you don’t need to be a magic user in order to ride one,” Lotus said. “My broomstick is bright red with the Silver Moon flag flying at the back. I’ll be at the front of the pack so keep an eye on me.”

  We sailed into the air, higher and higher, until the figures below were mere specks. The breeze ripped through my hair and I knew I’d look like a rabid cavewoman by the time we landed. As we flew over the town, I periodically poked Marley in the side to make sure she was okay.

  "Stop poking me, Mom," she insisted. "I'm fine."

  "Are your eyes open?"

  She hesitated. "Maybe."

  I poked her again. "Open your eyes, you’re missing all the good stuff."