by Tonya Kappes
I had to admit, I was intrigued. I followed her up the double-decker set of steps to the A-frame wooden structure, seeing nothing but a wall full of windows.
The inside of the resort reminded me of the interior of a ski lodge. In the middle of the open large room, a stone fireplace warmed the room with the roaring fire. All the walls were floor to ceiling windows giving the most spectacular views of Whispering Falls.
“Here is where our customers can come and get a snack and on the other side of the fireplace is the large kitchen. The breakfast side of the business.” Amethyst’s heels clicked, her skirt swooshed around the fireplace.
The other side had two large farm tables and benches on each side. They were set with dishes, utensils, chalices, and cloth napkins ready for someone to sit and partake in the delicious smells coming from the boiling pot on the gas stove.
“I’m making beef stew if you would like to sample.” Amethyst slid with grace over to the stove and slowly stirred the soul-warming food.
“I’m good.” I patted my stomach. “But this is amazing.”
“When I approached the Elders about my idea, they loved it.” She tented the pads of her fingers and drummed them. “I told them I was going to visit my friend in Whispering Falls and they told me there was a desperate need for something exactly like this due to the rapid economic growth of the community.”
“Yes.” I shook my head and grabbed Mr. Prince Charming off the counter next to the stove. He definitely wanted a taste of the stew. I held him in my arms and stroked him. “I’m shocked it’s in the forest. Great concept, but forest?”
“Where else can you have a Treesort?” Amethyst chuckled in a condescending way. “I mean, it adds to our, let’s say, magical feel of the community.”
“Oh, it does,” I agreed, but something tugged at my intuition. I swallowed the lump and rubbed my bracelet letting the emotion float away. “I can’t believe how beautiful it is up here.”
I walked over to the windows, taking in the views. The mountains still had fog sitting around the tops of them, barely making them visible. When the fog lifted, it had to be the most amazing view.
“Over there is one of the cabins.” Amethyst pointed to another tree house in a tree in the distance.
“What?” I was confused.
“Full Moon is a Treesort. This is the main building but the guests sleep and shower in their own tree house.” She pointed around to different trees. Suddenly they all came into focus. “The sunsets are beautiful from any room and the moon is always full.” She grinned. “You really should come back tonight after your little smudging ceremony because I’m having a celebration party for Petunia.”
Maybe my little trip out here was just what Amethyst and I needed to call a truce to whatever tension was between us.
“That’s nice of you.” I smiled and glanced back out the window. “Can we take a look at one of the guest rooms?”
“Sure.” She motioned for me to follow her.
I put Mr. Prince Charming down and he followed right along, down the steps. With our feet on solid ground, we hurried east where not too far off in the distance was a round tree house. The path between each tree house was marvelous. Tiny white lights dangled along the tree branches lighting the way. Pops of colorful flowers dotted the path.
“Singing Nettles.” I stopped when I heard the hum of the flower my mother loved so dearly.
“Yes. They are hidden among the ferns. As they are magic and could throw off any mortal.” Her finger pointed to them as they happily swayed and hummed. “Here we are. My only opening tonight. I do wish I was sold out though.”
“You will once the tourists hear about it.” There was no way she wouldn’t be. It was a fascinating concept for a hotel and anyone who loved Whispering Falls, would love this. “I’d be more than happy to put Full Moon brochures on my counter.”
The way I saw it, if Full Moon was thriving, so was the rest of the village. Win, win.
The steps up to the round tree house looked as if they were floating.
“If you don’t mind me asking, what is your spiritual gift?” I asked as curiosity stung my gut.
“Oneircritic.” She waved her hands in the air. “I interpret dreams. So this little adventure is perfect in a town that seems to suit my needs and I get to be with Petunia.”
Dream interpreter?
I bit back the idea swirling in my head about telling her about my dreams. It wasn’t like I could trust her. We weren’t fast friends and we really didn’t have any history that didn’t have tension around it. Not to mention my gut still tugged at me, along with my dream.
I ran my hand over my wrist, feeling for the third eye charm. Mr. Prince Charming darted up the floating steps like it was no big deal along with Amethyst. I took my time, a bit scared of how sturdy they were.
“Tell me, June,” Amethyst stopped at the top. Her skirt swooshed as she abruptly stopped. “Do you have dreams? Or nightmares?”
I grabbed the side rails of the floating stairs as they swayed back and forth. A burst of wind came out of nowhere, sending what leaves were left on the autumn trees tumbling. The wind picked up again, the leaves swirled in tornado form around my feet, moving up and around my body.
Amethyst clapped her hands. The wind died.
“I. . .” I wasn’t sure what to say. It wasn’t as though I trusted Amethyst to know what was going on, nor were we friends. Plus I wasn’t sure what had just happened with the wind and the leaves. My breath quickened. My pulse pounded. I let go of the rail and grabbed my wrist.
“I mean, if you ever need anyone to talk to about your dreams, I’m here and waiting.” She turned back around and continued as if nothing had just happened. “Every guest house has a bedroom or two, depending on the size rented, along with a bathroom and a small refrigerator. Plus an amazing balcony.” She stood at the top of the steps with her back to me and her gaze crossed in front of her. “I was very happy with the outcome. The Order of Elders were very accommodating.”
“Wow.” My jaw dropped. “Spectacular.”
“There isn’t a bad view from any of the ten tree house options.” Amethyst opened the door and let us in.
The little house was decorated very romantically. A large fluffy couch and chairs along with fancy French chic furniture. The bedroom was just as fancy with the off-white décor and the four-poster King bed was draped in sheer curtains and dangling lights.
“A good night’s sleep is guaranteed here.” Her eyes lit when she smiled. She whispered, “Magic.”
Meowl, meowl, hiss. Mr. Prince Charming darted out the door and down the steps.
Amethyst straightened tall and stuck her chin in the air. Her eyes lowered.
“I guess that is my clue to leave. I’ve overextended myself. Mr. Prince Charming is good at letting me know.” I felt I needed to make excuses for his sudden ill behavior, but the words of Bella sang in my memory. Listen to Mr. Prince Charming.
“Yes.” She stood on the balcony. “I’m sure you can find your way back to town.”
“Thank you for showing me around. It’s truly lovely.” Slowly I walked down the steps and didn’t look back. If I did, I knew her stare would run through my veins.
Maybe my little visit didn’t do anything for the tension.
Chapter Six
I was pleasantly surprised to see A Charming Cure’s shelves were practically empty. Faith had sold almost all the premade potions. She was such a natural at sales.
“You have been busy.” I smiled on the outside, but inwardly groaned when I saw how much I was going to have to make in the late hours of the night. The ceremony for me to resign as Village President and hand it over to Petunia would go well into the night. There was no way I would have time in the morning to get all the potions made.
Still, I wasn’t complaining. It was a good day. All I had to do was up my production to double what I thought I needed. Plus I could store them in the little room off the back where I kept a refrigera
tor and a couch for late nights such as the one I was going to have tonight.
“You have been gone a while.” Faith pointed to the clock on the wall. “You have so many repeat customers.” She pointed over to one long-time customer, Adeline.
“Adeline!” I was delighted to see her.
She was my link to the outside world I grew up in. She was the owner of the Piggly Wiggly in Locust Grove, Kentucky, my hometown where I’d lived with Darla. Oscar had lived across the street. In fact, his first job was with the Locust Grove Police. This was all before we knew we were spiritualists.
His parents were also spiritualists, making him a wizard. He was much better with a gun than a wand. Either way he was devilishly handsome.
“You look great.” I put my arms around her. She gave me a quick hug.
“You look a little tired.” She took a good look at me before she jumped up and squealed. “Oh my God! Is that what I think it is?”
She pulled my hand up to her face. Her jaw dropped. My mom’s diamond sparkled. I couldn’t stop myself from smiling. I felt like a schoolgirl.
“You and Mr. Hotty?” She referred to Oscar.
I didn’t have to answer. The smile on my face said more than words ever could.
“Wow! I’ve not been here in awhile, but last time I was, Oscar was dating someone else.” She reminded me of unhappier times.
“Things change.” My shoulders lifted. “Say, what’s going on with you?”
“Not much. I wanted to stop by on my day off and get some refills.” She had a litany of bottles in her hands. She loved getting the facial creams.
“Sorry to bug you, but I’ve got to get going.” Faith said her goodbyes and passed Peony on the way out.
She was dressed to the nines. Her hair was long and straight. Her eyes were lined with black liner, her lips candy-apple red, and she wore a long-sleeved tight, black knit dress you would see a mortal wear on Halloween.
“I can’t wait to see what potions you make for Petunia’s ceremony.” Peony clapped her hands.
She was definitely the younger of the two.
“Excuse us for just a minute,” I said to Peony and took Adeline by the arm, dragging her clear across the room.
“What was that about with Elvira?” Adeline nervously laughed.
“We get all kinds in here.” I smiled trying to cover up Peony’s immature mistake. “You look great.”
“Thanks. It’s all the yoga.” She put her hands in prayer pose and nodded her head slightly forward. “Which you should come to one night.”
“I just might take you up on that offer.” I ran my hands down her arm, my intuition picking up on nothing, which was good. “Do you still live in the same house?”
“Yep.” She rocked back on her heels. “Anyway, what do I owe you for all this?”
“Nothing.” I waved her off and watched the last bit of customers leave for the day. “You are my friend. I will refill your soul anytime.”
“You know.” She cocked her head. “That is exactly what you do. You fill my soul.” She smirked. “And to think I’m trying to get you to come back to Locust Grove and do yoga.” She shook her head and walked to the door. I opened it for her. “Seriously, come by and see me. I miss talking to you.”
“I will. I promise.” I closed the door behind her and flipped the sign to closed.
I was going to make good on my promise. Adeline was a real friend outside of the spiritual world. She didn’t have any expectations of me. She didn’t know my real reasons for moving my cure shop from the flea market to here.
I blew my bangs out of my face and took a deep breath when I turned around to get a good look at Peony. She was next to the counter giving Mr. Prince Charming the rub of his life. I was hoping to talk to Madame Torres before I went to the smudging ceremony to see what she was glowing about. She glowed when she was mad, she glowed when she was happy, she glowed just to glow, so I wasn’t sure if she had any information about my nightmares or why Mr. Prince Charming had given me the third eye charm. All I knew was that I was going to have to wait to talk to her until after the ceremony.
“I’m not sure about your village, but we don’t really play the spiritual, witchy part with clothing. Its here that matters most.” I tapped my finger to my heart. “And you can’t go around talking about it in front of non-spiritualists.”
“But I thought.” She opened her mouth and shut it quickly when she looked at me and I was shaking my head.
“Regardless of who you think is safe and not safe, you never know,” I warned giving her the benefit of the doubt because she was young and I remember how I felt when I came to Whispering Falls and didn’t understand the spiritual rules or the impact of my actions on the village as a whole.
“Oh okay.” She nodded her head, her eyes big.
“Now, let’s get to making the smudging sticks.” I went back to the counter pausing for a minute when I noticed my charm bracelet.
I touched each one happy to know Adeline had given me a little reprieve from the situation that could be looming over me. Danger. Death. Burning buildings.
“I love your bracelet,” Peony said when we went around to the cauldron.
“Mr. Prince Charming gave it to me on my tenth birthday.” I played with the turtle charm, missing one emerald eye stone. “This one was my first one. I had no idea he was my fairy-god cat and each charm was for protection. The turtle charm means courage, longevity, strength, protection, innocence, and patience. Everything I needed as a ten-year-old girl.”
“Yeah.” She shuffled the toe of her shoe on the tile floor while looking down. “That is the hardest part about this world. I have no idea if what I’m doing is right or wrong. Just like that.” She pointed to the cauldron.
“Have you figured out your talent?” I asked. Her eyes crossed. “Your spiritual gift. Petunia’s is talking to animals and afterlife.”
“My cousin, Gwendolyn, she says I’m trying to figure it out. She says I’m not letting myself become what I’m supposed to become.” She watched as I flipped the switch on the cauldron.
I sprayed the cleaner in and made it spic and span clean. There was no holds barred on tonight’s ceremony since I had to put a protective smudge on the village, Mr. Prince Charming gave me the charm, and my nightmares were getting more vivid.
“Your cousin is right.” I ran my finger down the line of potions behind us and grabbed the bottle of Raspberry Leaves, Rosemary, and Verbena.
The Raspberry Leaves and Rosemary offered protection, while the Verbena was to bring peace. Both would be much appreciated at this time.
“You really think so?” She planted her hand on the counter and leaned on it.
“Yeah. You seem young and you have to let your gift grow. I didn’t know I had a gift until a couple years ago.” I wanted to make her feel better. “And I’m way older than you.”
“Not by much. I’m twenty-one.” She watched me intently as I started the mixture.
The oily tonic in the cauldron bubbled to a frothy mixture, perfect to dip the smudging bundle into and no one would ever know I had used an extra spell for Petunia’s ceremony.
It was my way of slipping the protection in without alarming anyone.
“I have to apologize for Amethyst.” Peony was a lot like Petunia. They both apologized for other’s actions. “She is a little protective over Petunia. They’ve been friends a long time. They are like sisters.”
“I wish she didn’t judge me so much and I’m not really going to put a spell on her.” I winked and slowly stirred the cauldron. The mixture needed to be a dull brown in color so it would blend in with the smudging bundle. “I guess I can’t relate because I don’t have any family or friends.”
“It looks like you have a husband.” Her eyes glanced at my ring.
“Oh yeah.” Memories of Oscar getting down on his knee and asking me to marry him made my heart soar. So much so, I had almost forgotten about the evil lurking in the air. “Oscar is my family.”<
br />
Mewl. Mr. Prince Charming growled.
“And you buddy!” I ran my hand down his fur before reaching on the shelf for the bundle of blue sage smudge sticks.
“That is what you wave around?” Peony was very interested.
I had a twinge of jealousy in me because she was young and had a big interest in learning.
“It is.” I dipped the bundle in the cauldron, letting the protection mixture add to the protection the blue sage was already going to give to Petunia and her reign as Village President. “It will help Petunia keep a clear head.”
“Amethyst told Petunia you shouldn’t do the ceremony because you weren’t strong enough to keep the presidency going,” Peony said.
“Seriously? God, what a . . .” I bit my lip. “Maybe I should put a dash of something in here for Amethyst so she can keep her mouth shut.”
I held the smudging stick over the cauldron to let the extra drip off. If Amethyst didn’t reel her mouth in and change her attitude, Whispering Falls was going to be too small for the both of us.
“I’m sorry.” I regretted saying that to Peony. “I shouldn’t have said that. I don’t like being judged by someone who doesn’t even know me. You are kind and I can see you and Petunia are a lot alike.”
Peony smiled. Her eyes forgiving and not another word was said about Amethyst.
The knock at the door got our attention and we peeked out from behind the partition.
Oscar stood on the doorstep. He looked a little cold. I snapped a clothespin and the smudge stick to the shelf so it would dry and walked over to the door.
“I’m starving and Colton said he and Ophelia were going to have to cancel tonight. Something about inventory at the book store.” He pulled me into his arms and wrapped me into a warm hug. The cold air rushed behind him. “But me and you can grab a bite to eat after the ceremony. Maybe in Locust Grove?”
“Oh, yeah.” There wasn’t anything I wanted more than to be with Oscar and on a date.
Ahem. Peony cleared her throat from the back of the store.
“Peony.” My face blushed. When I was around Oscar, the entire world seemed to melt away. “I’m sorry. This is my fiancé, Oscar Park.” She walked toward us. I said, “Peony is Petunia’s sister and here for to see Petunia take the Village President oath.”