Luke didn’t waste any time. “What the hell are you doing, you stupid idiot!” Luke shouted at Dean. Sadie had spotted them and was heading over. Good, maybe she could scare some sense into him.
“What are you talking about?” Dean asked stupidly, rubbing his head.
“Holding hands with a new girl while you’re dating Nathalie? The girl you’ve waited for since you were, what, born? Are you mental?” Luke yelled.
“She’s not new. That’s Beth,” Dean said vacantly.
Sadie had arrived and raised her eyebrows at the pitch of Luke’s voice. She looked at Dean and her eyes widened with surprise.
“I don’t care who she is. She’s not Nathalie!” Luke yelled.
“Beth’s my girlfriend, now, and I lo—” he hesitated and blinked. “Just mind your own damn business, Luke Barrington,” Dean said angrily.
“I don’t get it. What’s wrong with you? I’m your best friend,” Luke said in a very frustrated voice. “I don’t understand what you think you’re doing? I’m trying to help you!”
“Like I said, it’s none of your business,” Dean said. His eyes drifted towards the North West Quad, and Nathalie’s house. He looked confused.
Sadie put her hand on Luke’s arm and squeezed, pulling him back to whisper to him. “You’ll not reach him right now, Luke,” she said, frowning at Dean with narrowed eyes. “Let him go.”
Luke took a breath. “Are you going to basketball?” he asked Dean roughly.
“Why wouldn’t I?” Dean replied curtly, and turning on his heel, headed towards home.
Luke stood there dumbfounded for a few minutes before he spoke. “Sadie, what just happened?” he asked in shock.
Sadie watched Dean speculatively as he crossed Town Circle and headed towards home. “If I wasn’t going through my own odd happenings, I may never have believed it was possible.”
“What? What was possible?”
“That boy’s been hexed.”
“With what?” Luke asked with agitation.
“A binding spell of some kind, it looks like. Why else would he be obsessed with a stranger?”
“Well, he does know her. That’s the ‘Beth’ he and Nathalie have been talking about. They work together. She picks on Nathalie, actually. My God, I wonder if she knows? She’s going to be devastated, if she isn’t already,” Luke fretted. “Do we tell her?”
“It’s rivalry. Stealing a boyfriend or a lover is a very strategic way to destroy a rival. Love makes people crazy. It distracts them. They forget everything else, as I am personally beginning to learn…” Sadie mused and Luke watched her think. She drew her eyebrows into a small frown. “I’m absolutely sure Nathalie knows.”
I distract her, he thought, pleased. How did I ever think she was cold? I can’t believe I used to be afraid of her. What a doll…
“You’re staring at me again,” Sadie said matter of factly, taking Luke’s arm and heading towards the Barrington Estate.
“I thought we were going to eat…” Luke looked back at the tables longingly. “We should call Nat.”
“I need to do some research on this phenomenon of Dean’s. I will also find Nathalie and check up on her. We have some time. Dean is going home. This is very distressing,” Sadie said sadly. “I don’t know what I’d do…” She looked at Luke’s precious face. “Since we have some time before you head out to basketball, I thought we could smooch in the woods for a bit. I want to hold you right now,” she said softly, taking his hand.
Luke’s heart began to pound and he looked at Sadie with great interest, all thoughts of food forgotten.
Sadie glanced at him and smiled. She shook her head.
“You’re better than food, baby.”
That was a great compliment from Luke. “Thank you,” Sadie said softly.
The Barrington School Gym
Luke was late getting to basketball so when he arrived they had already picked teams. He was not on Dean’s, and he wasn’t happy about it. He hadn’t wanted to come in the end. He and Sadie had lain pressed together on a blanket they had hidden in the woods for their “alone time.” What started as playful smooching turned serious very quickly. They had kissed deeply for over an hour. She was like a drug with her hot wet mouth. He had crushed her to him and groaned at her softness as their bodies slid against each other. Sadie had been flushed and panting and even she didn’t want to stop, but they did it for Nathalie and Dean. He’d had to force himself from her and take a cold shower before donning his basketball shorts to avoid embarrassing himself. Sadie had just laughed at his dilemma as she drifted away through the trees towards home.
They ran around the gym and Dean ignored Luke. They bumped into each other a few times but Dean avoided looking or speaking to him. He was physically there but strangely absent. He didn’t talk to anyone, not even the new guy they secretly admired. This guy never missed a shot and could jump higher than anyone. They attempted to make friends with him, and tried not to fawn all over him. He was friendly, but he always disappeared right after they finished playing.
After the game, Dean left quickly and Luke just let him go. As he was walking home Sadie phoned.
“Hi gorgeous,” Luke said warmly.
“Hello, Luke,” Sadie said in her cool voice.
Luke smiled. This was the girl who had been wrapped in his arms, sighing with pleasure a few hours ago, but you couldn’t tell by her voice, Luke thought with a laugh.
“I looked through Elanah’s spell book and found a section on hexes. It looks as if Beth might have made up a hex for Dean.”
A hex? Now this was something out of the twilight zone. Luke shook his head. “Sadie, are you sure? A hex, really? It looks more like a love spell. God, what am I saying?”
“Spells can be good. Hexes never are. She’s compelling him. Witchcraft is real, Luke. You’ve seen it yourself, and he’s showing all the signs. Did he pay any attention to you?”
“No…”
“The hex will get stronger. Right now he’s going through his regular motions, but shortly he’ll lose interest in regular things. Today he’s attentive but showing some confusion because his mind is fighting it. Tomorrow he’ll be a bit more obsessed…until he becomes mindless to anything but her.”
“How do we stop it?”
“We find the source of the hex and we destroy it.”
“Oh my God,” Luke’s voice trailed off.
“We have to find it, and soon, Luke. There is a point of no return when this type of spell works on a person for a while. Binding spells are slavery spells and fall on the dark side of the spectrum. This is the dangerous part when fooling around with magic. Soon he won’t be reasonable anymore, and even if we destroy the spell, Dean will be irrevocably changed. According to my source, it may even drive him to suicide.”
“Your source?” Luke asked curiously.
There was silence on the line.
“Sadie?”
She sighed. “The hex is in Elanah’s book, but she copied it from another witch. That witch was Willow Kellar. The identical hex, and notes on its effects, are in Willow’s spell book. It’s actually more of a grimoire. It’s here, in the house. I found it, even though Liora tried to hide it. Willow was the master of male manipulation. She used men to get what she wanted.”
“And you touched it??” Luke was aghast. “It’s evil!”
“I took precautions when handling it.”
“Do you think Beth…”
“Luke, we found Elanah’s book with all the other books in the library, remember? Maybe Beth was the one reading it.”
“It’s possible. The rare books are available for anyone to read, but Liz is very careful when giving them out, and getting them back.”
“Anything could have happened. It’s not a nice spell, Luke. If Elanah copied it from Willow, they may have been working together.”
“Great…did you reach Nathalie?”
“No, her mom says she went out, so I’ve been focusing on research.”<
br />
“I’ll see if I can find her. Do you want me to come over so we can talk about all this?” Luke asked hopefully, his mind shifting to earlier in the evening.
Sadie laughed. “My aunt was cleaning her shotgun today. Best you stay on Barrington property tonight.”
Luke ached to hold her again. He seemed to have a one-track mind these days. He was a walking bag of hormones. “Okay, I guess,” he said, pouting.
“Call me if you find Nathalie,” Sadie said coolly. “’Bye darling,” and Sadie hung up.
Darling! Wellllll…Luke grinned and biked to the fair. With Sadie helping they’d figure this out.
He knew where Nathalie would be—at the fair, keeping an eye on Beth. He found her watching Wayman giving kids horse rides.
Nathalie was devastated, but was holding it together in public. She seemed relieved to see him, “but if I have a minute alone, I’m going to lose it,” she said sadly.
They had a quick conversation and Luke told her what Sadie had observed and what she thought was happening.
Nathalie was surprisingly receptive. “There was a weird mist around him, but it could have been my tears. Oh, I don’t know,” Nathalie said in a shaky voice.
Luke put his arm around her. “I’m sorry Nathalie. Sadie said it’ll be an object, like a bag or a sachet. I can get into Dean’s room…”
“Don’t bother. The only place it can be is at the candy factory. The Croft household is like a bus station—there’s no way anyone can sneak in the place. Plus, he left me a coffee on my desk this morning, so he was fine when he got in.” Nathalie rubbed her eyes. “I’ll look around his desk and see if I can spot anything out of the ordinary.”
Luke was quiet for a moment. “You okay, Nat? You’re taking this crazy idea very well.”
She didn’t answer right away. “No, Luke, I’m not okay,” she said. He could hear the ache in her voice and sense the unshed tears. “I want to shake him and slap her, but I’ve got to believe something completely out of the ordinary is going on because it’s not possible that Dean would do this. It’s just not possible…” Nathalie’s voice trailed off.
Nathalie had just been by to see Taline, who had frowned at hearing what happened. “So you didn’t give Dean the amulet?”
“I didn’t really have a chance, and I was waiting for the perfect time.”
Taline had sighed. “Strange times, Nathalie,” she said, looking around at the fairgoers. “It would have been better if he had gotten it sooner rather than later, but no matter. We’ll figure this out.”
“It’s just a necklace, isn’t it?” Nathalie had asked, looking at her curiously.
Taline just looked at Nathalie before adding, “I just saw Dean walking through the fairgrounds towards Beth’s chocolate stall. I have to agree, he really isn’t himself. He didn’t say hello or stop at the stable,” Taline had said. “It’s not like him at all.”
“The chocolate stall?” Nathalie said despondently.
Taline smiled grimly. “Don’t worry. I’ll get Wayman to grab him before he does anything stupid.”
But Wayman had a barn full of excited children, as Nathalie had been observing.
“Luke, can you…”
“Sure, I’ll go cause a ruckus.”
Nathalie was grateful. She didn’t want them to see her and humiliate her in public. She didn’t want to give them the satisfaction of seeing her upset. Wayman looked at her worriedly from the barn, but he was stuck.
Luke turned to leave, but she remembered something. “Oh, by the way, I asked Dean to ask you, but I’m sure he didn’t get around to it. Can you get me a list of the families who were vandalized on Sunday night?”
Luke hesitated for a moment, worry over Sadie’s possible involvement setting off alarm bells in his head. “I think so. Why?”
“I’m just curious since Dean’s family was one of the houses.”
“Sure.”
“And how’s Sadie?”
“Oh Nathalie, she’s awesome!” Luke gushed with true obsessive enthusiasm but then stopped and there was an awkward silence.
“Oh, for God’s sake, Luke! I still care about other things! Anyway, I’m glad you finally got the girl you love…you big nerd.”
Luke grabbed her and hugged her tightly. “Me too, Nat. Have faith,” Luke said before disappearing into the crowd.
She watched Luke go and thought about what he’d said. Why wasn’t she surprised? Disbelieving? Hexes and spells in modern day Barrington? That was Barrington history, not reality. Yet…something clicked inside her. The idea wasn’t farfetched. It seemed…believable, normal. Something was going on in this town. She’d never seen so many strangers at the fair, so many odd people selling odd things. The blood markings…now a hex…all at the same time. It was weird.
Thursday, August 8
Factory & Fairgrounds
The next morning Nathalie arrived at the candy factory hours before anyone else. She searched Dean’s desk everywhere but couldn’t find anything out of the ordinary. She left a message for the receptionist that she’d be late, and when she knew Taline would be there, she headed to the fairgrounds to find her.
Taline looked at Nathalie and smiled, giving her a hug. “Great timing! I just finished setting up and was about to go grab a coffee and a piece of Nettie’s berry pie at the bake table.”
It was still very early. The sun was casting dappled shadows around the grounds and it was muggy. It was going to be a hot day.
“Did you find anything?” she asked softly.
“No. I couldn’t find anything odd at his desk,” Nathalie confided desperately as they walked towards the eating area. She had updated Taline last night after speaking with Luke.
“Couldn’t hurt to check it out, sweetie,” Taline said matter of factly.
Nettie was busy bustling around the bake tables. Nathalie knew Nettie had been up since the crack of dawn, baking and preparing for today’s fair. There had been a record number of people visiting and buying her baked goods. She was a hit and the town’s bakery was making a fortune. Nathalie felt her heart jerk when Nettie looked at her with her beaming smile, dressed in her sweet white apron. She just loved that woman.
“Hello lassies!” she yelled. She looked at Taline and then Nathalie. She reached to touch Nathalie’s cheek and frowned slightly. “Something the matter, little one?”
She was so observant. Nothing got by her. “Just a little heart trouble, Nettie,” Nathalie said sadly.
“Ah, trouble with your young man,” she said, nodding.
Nathalie bowed her head. She was aching. Did she still have a young man? She didn’t want to know what happened last night between Dean and Beth, and she didn’t want to see them at the office.
“Yes, very suddenly and completely out of character,” Taline said, with a significant look at Nettie. She took her pie, which Nettie had sliced into large pieces and put onto plates for them, and handed the other one to Nathalie.
“Sometimes things aren’t as they seem, child,” Nettie mused, a worried look on her face. Then she looked sharply at Taline, who shrugged helplessly.
“I certainly hope so,” Nathalie said, eating her pie.
Limerick Candy Factory
After breakfast Nathalie headed back to work. By lunchtime Dean hadn’t come to see her, and she was angry. She walked to the window and could see Beth and Dean holding hands and heading to the woods for a walk. She clenched her teeth and balled her fists as anguish stabbed her heart. She wanted to hurt Beth.
“Tough break,” Emma said quietly, appearing beside Nathalie. Irritated, Nathalie glanced at her and was shocked.
“Emma, you look terrible!” She really did. Her hair wasn’t brushed, her makeup was smudged, and her clothes were crumpled. She had dark circles around her eyes.
“Slept under a tree in Town Circle last night. I think I passed out.” Emma laughed. “I can’t really remember.”
Nathalie was aghast. “You slept outside? Emma, you co
uld have been hurt!” She looked around. “Why on earth didn’t your boss send you home? You’re in no condition to work. Doesn’t she mind that—” She stopped before she put her foot in her mouth. Emma was looking at her and blinking sleepily. What was she going to say? Doesn’t your boss mind that you look like a rumpled street-walking bum and smell like an old shoe?
Emma smiled. “She’s not in. We were together last night. I think she went home with Pete Donovan.”
Nathalie looked at her in astonishment. Eww! “Go home Emma,” Nathalie said sternly. “If anyone asks, I’ll tell them you took a sick day.”
Although somehow she didn’t think anyone would ask. Emma nodded and tottered off.
Nathalie heard her name being called. When she turned she saw Nettie holding a big bag of food. It smelled delicious as she sped over and put it on Nathalie’s desk. Nathalie wanted to cry. What a wonderful gesture. Nathalie noticed that a few of her coworkers had drifted over, attracted by the smell. They all looked a little worse for wear. It must have been some party last night, Nathalie thought.
They eyed her bag hungrily, but Nettie drove them back. “Touch this bag and ye all shall suffer my wrath! I can promise you that,” she said threateningly with a wink at Nathalie. They shot her mean looks and dispersed. There certainly wasn’t going to be a lot of work done today. Where was Shaemus?
Nettie glanced outside, tsked, and pulled Nathalie away from the window. “You eat, honey. Then I thought I’d take a gander at your young man’s desk and see if I can spot anything odd-like.”
Nathalie ate while Nettie exclaimed over all the “interesting baubles” on Nathalie’s desk.
“That’s a stapler,” Nathalie said with a laugh as Nettie picked it up and stared at it.
“What does it do?”
“It staples paper together!” Nathalie exclaimed.
“Well, no need to set your britches on fire. Show me how to use it.”
With mild disbelief, Nathalie stapled some paper together.
“My, that’s just genius. Gotta love human ingenuity.”
Nathalie laughed and finished her sandwich. “You are so funny Nettie.”
“What? I’m a baker and a scribe. I’m no administrator. These instruments are new to me.”
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