by Laura Kirwan
Judging Brian and Natalie to be the most dangerous members of the group, Meaghan decided keeping them apart was the best option. She climbed into the backseat and dragged Natalie in with her. Fortunately, the cruiser wasn’t equipped with a barrier between the front and backseat, so Meaghan could keep an eye on everybody.
“Sit up here with me, babe, please?”
“I’m not your ‘babe,’ Brian, and I never have been,” Natalie said dismissively. “We made out a couple times in high school. Get over it. You know Jhoro and I are deeply in love and plan to build a life together.”
Brian scowled into the rearview mirror. “When I get my hands on that son of a bitch, I’m taking him apart. Nobody steals my girl.”
“I’ll help,” Annie chimed in. “He stole my man.”
“What man?” Natalie asked, eyes narrowed.
“He’s trying to turn Russ gay.”
“That’s impossible. He loves me. Only me.”
Brian stared into the mirror, his face red. “And I love only you, Natalie. Why can’t you see that? I’ve always loved you. He wasn’t even human ten weeks ago.”
“Well, I don’t love you,” Natalie said, with a flip of her copper curls. “Quit whining and get us out to Meaghan’s house.”
“We find him,” Brian said, his face hard, “and I’ll kill him. I’m the only one around here with a clear head.”
“Brian,” Meaghan said, “can I borrow your gun?”
“My gun? Why?”
“I need to check something inside the museum and I want to make sure I’m protected.”
“I’ll go in. You stay here,” Brian said.
“You need to stay out here and keep Natalie safe,” Meaghan said. “Evil wizards are crawling all over town. And they hate witches.”
“I’m not giving you my gun. I don’t have a shotgun in this car. My sidearm is the only weapon I have.”
Meaghan leaned closer and put a motherly hand on his shoulder. “You know you’re the only one who can protect Natalie,” she whispered in his ear. “If I go in there and something happens to me because I can’t defend myself, you’ll either have to leave her here at risk or bring her inside, where she’ll also be at risk. And if you leave her, she’s so crazy right now she might run off to find Jhoro. You don’t want that.”
Brian thought a moment. “You know how to use a Glock?”
“Absolutely,” Meaghan lied. She knew how to use a shotgun, but had only shot a pistol once before. “Give it here. I’ll be right back.”
Reluctantly, after making sure she knew how to work the gun’s safety, he complied. Meaghan got out of the car and holding the gun like she’d seen on TV, crept onto the porch, and into the museum. Once she was inside, she dropped the act. I can’t believe he fell for that. Holding the gun carefully, she headed down to the basement.
Meaghan examined the trapdoor that led down into the tunnel. There was a hasp on both sides, and Annie had left the combination lock lying open on the floor. That would work. She double-checked that the safety was on, then dropped the gun into the darkness. She clicked the padlock shut and twirled the dial. Annie knew the combination, but appeared to be a bit more rational than Brian, so Meaghan hoped she wouldn’t tell him.
Meaghan returned to the car.
“Where’s my gun?”
“Locked away safely.” Meaghan glared at Brian. “You’re hexed. Think like a cop for a minute, okay? What will happen if you shoot Jhoro?”
“I’ll go to jail,” he said in a sullen tone.
“Exactly. You told me last night that you couldn’t explain black magic to the district attorney. You think a magic-induced jealous rage would be any easier to sell?”
“No.” He banged his hand against the steering wheel. “But if I see that son of a bitch, I’ll knock his lights out. I don’t need a gun to do that.”
“Fine,” Meaghan said. “Have at him, as long as you do it with your fists. Throwing a punch gives you more time to think. With that gun, one squeeze and you’re both screwed.” She slumped back into the seat, exhausted. “Now get me home.”
“But, Jhoro won’t be . . .”
Meaghan silenced Natalie with a glare. “Not one word.”
“Will Russ . . .”
“From any of you,” Meaghan said to Annie. “Brian, drive. Eyes on the road. If I see you sneaking so much as one peek at Natalie in the rearview mirror, I will smack you in the back of the head with one of my shoes. Do you understand me?”
“Yes,” Brian growled. “We better be able to find my gun when this is all over.”
“If we can’t, I’ll buy you a new one. Now shut up and drive.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Eldrich appeared deserted. Except for the occasional abandoned vehicle, they saw no signs of life. And no signs of the Order. Whatever the dark wizards were up to, it seemed to center on city hall.
That didn’t make Meaghan feel any better. If they were using city hall to amplify whatever they’d already done to Jamie when they carved those cryptic sigils into his flesh, the whole town could be at risk.
And even without the magical boost from the vortex on the third floor, Jamie had been able to blow out the windows. There was no telling how much damage he could cause at the center of a magical geyser with the collective power of the Order behind him. Or what torment they were subjecting him to while they were using him.
As dangerous as Marnie’s love spell had the potential to become, it was ultimately a distraction. To fight the wizards, she needed her troops united behind her. Instead they were acting like a bunch of horny teenagers.
Jhoro and Marnie. They had to be found.
As it turned out, Owen Finnerty had already solved half that problem for her. When they got to the Keele house, Meaghan saw Owen sitting on the front steps of her neighbor’s house.
He walked over, pulled her aside. “I found your Fahrayan houseguest.”
“He’s inside?” Meaghan whirled around to see Natalie rushing into the house with Brian and Annie glowering behind her. “Shit. Brian wants to kick his ass.”
“No. He’s next door with Edna. She grabbed his ass a few times, but I think now she’s settled down into Mrs. Robinson mode. Trying to be sly.”
Edna McGinty was eighty-five and had buried three husbands. Meaghan had caught her sneaking peeks, with binoculars, at Jhoro through her lace curtains. Suddenly, it wasn’t so amusing, especially after Sid’s comments about Jhoro’s omnivorous sexual appetites.
“Oh, God. What’s he doing?”
Owen sighed. “He’s weeping. It appears he’s no longer able to screw his way around his grief.”
“Where did you find him?”
“Lying on top of his dead lover’s grave. I assume you know what’s going on?”
Meaghan nodded. “Got a good idea. Love spell gone wrong?”
“Yeah. Maybe that closed gateway hasn’t quite lost all its mojo. By itself, I don’t think it could have made the spell go free-range, but it could have been a contributing factor.”
Jhoro had insisted that Finn be buried in the stone circle that marked the now-defunct dimensional gateway to Fahraya. “How’d you get him to go with you?”
“I took him by the hand and led him to my car. He’s such a hot mess at the moment he didn’t resist.”
“Was there a woman with him? A witch with black hair?”
Owen shook his head. “Not that I saw. She’s the one who conjured up this disaster?”
“Yeah, I think so. I don’t suppose you speak Fahrayan?”
Owen snorted. “Do I look like a Troon?”
Meaghan pointed at her house. “There’s one inside. Does anyone in there know you’re here?”
“No. Well, I suppose they do now unless the pack you arrived with were too love crazy to notice me. You want me to introduce myself?”
Meaghan shook her head. “God, no. John’s in there along with my brother and neither one are fond of leprechauns. Hang on.” She pulled out her
phone and called Sid.
“Where are you?” he hissed. “Annie and Natalie are about to claw each other’s eyes out. Unless they turn on Russ first.”
“I’m in the driveway. I need you to translate. Make a quiet exit and get out here.”
Meaghan slid the phone back in her pocket. To Owen she said, “So why aren’t you all gaga? Or are you just playing it cool?”
Owen rolled his eyes. “Please. Love charms? Give me a break. That’s kiddie magic.” He paused a moment. “So, you had a chance to look at my proposal yet?”
Meaghan glared at him. “What do you think? How did you find Jhoro anyway? What made you go out there? And how did you know to come here?”
“Checking a hunch. I can feel magic gone wrong even if it’s not affecting me. And I had to take him somewhere. I figured you’d show up eventually, and Edna and I go way back. The Order’s skulking around town, by the way.”
“Yeah, I know. They showed up at city hall with Jamie.”
Owen’s eyes widened. “Oh, shit. That can’t be good. What happened?”
“He blew out all the windows and then the mayor’s secretary dragged me into a magical safe room and we escaped through a secret tunnel.”
“He was in his office when he did it?”
Meaghan shook her head. “No. He did that coming in the front door. We have to get this love-spell crap dealt with fast. As dangerous as it might get, it’s still only a sideshow.”
Sid trotted up, in his usual assortment of trendy boys’ and girls’ clothes. Today it was plaid cargo shorts, orange Chuck Taylor high-tops, and a powder blue T-shirt featuring a glittery butterfly and ruffled shoulders. On top of his blue head sat a pair of neon green sunglasses. “Sorry that took so long.” He looked Owen up and down and with a sly smile said, “Who’s your handsome friend?” He stuck out his small blue hand. “I’m Sid.”
“I’m a leprechaun,” Owen replied.
Sid pulled his hand back like he’d been burned. “Uh . . .” He glanced up at Meaghan. “You know this guy?”
“Owen Finnerty, meet Sid. Sid, Owen Finnerty. Yes, we met earlier today. He’s not the typical leprechaun.”
As soon as Sid heard Owen’s name, he took a big step backward. “Owen Finnerty? Oh, dear.” He nodded at Owen. “Mr. Finnerty, I’ll skip the handshake. You understand.”
At least now I don’t have to ask Sid if there’s any dirt on Owen, Meaghan thought. All I need are the details. Which I don’t have time for right now. She decided to trust Owen on a provisional basis until she had evidence otherwise.
Owen sighed. “Screw up one time and it’s like you’re radioactive.” He looked up at Sid. “I haven’t struck a single leprechaun’s deal since my little misadventure. Don’t believe everything you hear. I’m a legitimate businessman now.”
“Yeah, you and Michael Corleone,” Sid said. “Meg, do you know anything about leprechauns?”
“Yes, Sid. I do,” Meaghan said. “Enough to know that whatever Owen may have done or may currently do, he’s not a typical leprechaun. That doesn’t mean I trust him.” She gave Owen a pointed look. He rolled his eyes again. “But it does mean I’m willing to listen to what he has to say. And, in case you haven’t noticed, the three of us appear to be the only persons in Eldrich not under the influence of magic. So, no drama, please. We’ve already got more than we can handle.”
Sid frowned but dropped it. “Who am I translating for?”
“Jhoro. He’s next door.”
“Jhoro?” Sid squeaked. “He’s here? Do you have a mirror?”
“A mirror?”
“Yes. Look at me. I haven’t seen him since, well, you know, and I need to look my best.”
Owen laughed. “Oh, you’re one of those Troon. Relax. He’s in such a state I doubt he’ll notice.”
Sid looked glum. “Because he’s all hot for Marnie now?”
“Oh, for God’s sake,” Meaghan said. “C’mon. We need to figure this out.” She marched over the lawn to Edna McGinty’s front door with Sid and Owen in tow.
She knocked on the screen door before stepping inside the foyer. “Edna? It’s Meaghan.”
Instead of Edna McGinty, Jhoro hobbled into view. Owen hadn’t lied. Jhoro was a mess. Eyes swollen from weeping, he wore the same clothes, now muddy and torn, that he’d left the house in the previous evening. Angry red scratches covered his arms and his bare feet.
“Mama,” he choked.
Meaghan opened her arms, and he went to her. She hugged him while he sobbed into her shoulder. She felt her own tears try to well up again and she shoved them back down. Not the time, she told herself sternly. For once the sensible voice stayed quiet.
When he’d calmed a bit, she steered him into Edna’s living room, and led him to the sofa. “Sid, ask him what happened.”
Hiccupping like a child from too much crying, Jhoro choked out his story as Sid translated.
Marnie had taken him for a drive in her car, as Russ has suspected. She drove them into a clearing about a half mile from the spot where Finn was buried, although she took a roundabout route and Jhoro didn’t realize at first where they were. She pulled a blanket from her trunk and spread it on the ground. While Jhoro lay down to look at the stars, Marnie puttered a bit and then appeared with a plastic shopping bag.
He pulled her down on the blanket and they kissed a bit. Then she said some words, moved her hands, and that was the last thing he remembered until he woke up later, alone.
The remains of a small fire smoldered a few feet away. A sweet, cloying scent hung in the air. Marnie’s car was there, but there was no other sign of her. He felt a bit dizzy at first, but otherwise normal, until he heard a small pop from the fire.
Flames flared up and belched a cloud of smoke, this time acrid, and when the smoke cleared, Finn was standing before him.
“Or at least the image of Finn,” Sid explained. “But he was still Fahrayan. He had his wings. When Jhoro tried to touch him, his hand passed through him. Then Finn turned, unfurled his wings, and started to fly. That’s how J got so cut up. Running barefoot through the trees trying to follow.”
Edna appeared with a pitcher of lemonade and plate of cookies. Jhoro slouched listlessly beside Meaghan on the sofa, his head on her shoulder.
“Watch it, girlie,” Edna said. “Don’t you steal my new boyfriend. I’ve had my eye on Blondie for a while.”
“Yes,” Meaghan said. “I’ve noticed. That’s a nice pair of binoculars you have, by the way.”
Edna threw back her white head and laughed. “And lately there’s been a lot to see.” She leered at Jhoro. “Owen here told me that he suspects a love charm gone awry?”
Meaghan raised an eyebrow. “You’re aware you’re being hexed?”
“Honey, I’m feeling things right now I haven’t felt in years. No way this is natural. I’d be comforting him in a totally different way if I didn’t have bones like Cheetos. One good thrust and he’d crack me in half. But what a way to go.”
“Edna,” Owen said, in mock condemnation. “You naughty girl. You’re making me blush.”
“Ha, as if I could, you little stinker.” Edna turned her attention back to Meaghan. “Never trust a leprechaun, particularly one as charming and handsome as this wee bastard.”
“Can we resume our story?” Sid said, frowning at Owen. “Still have a crisis on our hands, remember?”
“Yes, Sid,” Meaghan said. “You’re right. So, Jhoro was running through the woods. Then what happened?”
Sid buzzed something to Jhoro. With a shuddering sigh, Jhoro slumped deeper into the sofa cushions, a look of despair on his face, and began to speak.
“He says that Finn finally landed and he realized that he was standing on Finn’s grave. He had no idea how close he and Marnie had been to it.” Sid listened intently for a moment and then grimaced. “We’ve got big trouble if we can believe what the Finn apparition said. Finn told him that the witch had tried to use magic to make Jhoro forget his grief and then
the wizards came. The wizards in the gray robes. They took her.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
“The good news,” Owen said, “if you can call it that, is she’s still alive or the spell wouldn’t still be going.”
“How do you know that?” Meaghan asked.
“Love charms are personal magic.”
“But this has blown way past Marnie and Jhoro,” Sid said.
“No, it’s merely been amplified,” Owen replied. “Someone talks into a microphone and everybody hears it. But if the speaker shuts up, then the sound stops, you know?”
Sid gave Owen a sullen look. “Not if it’s recorded.”
Owen ignored him. “Love charms are about creating an intimate emotional connection with someone. But it’s not real, at least not at first. It’s basically a magically induced crush. Sometimes it can grow into real love. But the magic dies when the spell caster does.”
Meaghan nodded. “Edna, you still want to jump Jhoro’s bones? More than you did before today?”
Edna smiled. “Yesterday, he was mere entertainment. Today—if I was forty years younger . . .” She giggled as her face grew pink. “Oh, what I wouldn’t give for an estrogen patch and denser bones. I think it’s safe to say I’m still under the influence.”
Jhoro stared at the ceiling, bereft, tears leaking out of his deep blue eyes.
Meaghan leaned away from him toward Owen. “This,” she gestured back at Jhoro, “is being caused by the spell, too?”
Owen shrugged. “Hard to say. If her intent was to make him forget, she clearly didn’t accomplish that. But love magic is fussy stuff. Lots of ways for it to go wrong—as you already know. Maybe all Marnie did was force him to finally feel his grief instead of trying to screw his way around it.”
“Which I bet wasn’t her intent,” Meaghan said. She leaned back against the sofa. Jhoro slumped over and put his head on her knee like a small child. Even curled in a ball, he was so tall his feet hung off the end of the sofa. She stroked his hair distractedly.
“So,” Meaghan said, “what happens if we take him to my house? Edna seems to be able to control her impulses.”