Magic & Mystery (Starry Hollow Witches Book 2)

by Annabel Chase

  “Dig up any new leads on FrogGate?" he asked, ignoring my comment.

  "Wow, a Watergate reference in Starry Hollow? Someone’s educated on human history." I plopped down in the chair next to him.

  "I have a keen interest in political news, human or otherwise," Bentley said. "You would, too, if you were a real journalist."

  Tanya fluttered over, ready to separate the two of us if the argument got out of hand. I didn’t envy her job.

  "Where's our fearless leader?" I asked. "I want to update him on my part of the story." In actual fact, I hadn’t seen him since the other night at Elixir and wanted to make sure I hadn’t said or done anything stupid. I distinctly remembered locking eyes with him near the restroom, but that was the extent of it.

  Bentley looked intrigued. "You have something to report?"

  I gave him a haughty look. "Not to you."

  Bentley scowled and returned to his screen.

  "You might not want to disturb him now," Tanya said. "He hasn’t come out of his office for hours."

  "Are you sure he's even in there?” I asked. The vampire was stealthy enough that he easily could have left the office without anyone realizing it.

  "Now that you mention it, I'm not sure," Tanya said. “I’ve been in and out myself. Had to fly over to the healer’s office to get my right wing checked. It’s been aching when I wake up in the morning.”

  “Is everything okay?” I asked.

  “Lyssa thinks I may have pulled a muscle where the wing connects to my back.” Tanya brightened. “That reminds me…”

  “No, no,” Bentley said. “I told you I’d take care of it.”

  I looked from Bentley to Tanya. “Take care of what?”

  Tanya shot the elf a disapproving look. “Now, Bentley, I’ll not play favorites.” She faced me. “While I was in the waiting area, I heard a pixie mention that Lyssa went out with Florian only two weeks ago.”

  “I don’t remember her name on the list,” I said.

  “It wasn’t,” Bentley confirmed. “So maybe there’s a reason.”

  “How about that? Someone slipped through Simon’s net,” I mused. “We should go talk to her now.”

  “I was just preparing my questions,” Bentley said.

  “Let me poke my head in to see Alec and then we’ll go,” I said. I wasn’t giving Bentley a chance to leave me behind. I strode to the back of the office and gave his door a gentle knock. No response.

  "Alec?" I leaned closer to the door and pressed my ear against it. "Alec, are you awake?" I didn't bother to ask if he was alive since I already knew he was undead.

  Still quiet. I decided to risk a reprimand and pushed open the door. There was no sign of Alec. Just a tidy desk with a small laptop, a neatly aligned stack of papers, and a few books. Then I spotted his phone on the floor.

  "That's odd," I said. As I crouched down to pick up the phone, something jumped out at me and I screamed. It took me a moment to pull myself together and realize there was a green frog hopping beside me.

  I squinted at the frog. "Alec?" The frog seemed irate. Tiny frog fangs poked out of his mouth and I knew for certain.

  As much as I hated to touch the slimy creature, I cupped the frog in my hands and prayed it didn’t pee on me.

  “Tanya,” I yelled. "I think you're going to want to come in here."

  She yelped upon entering the office. “Great sparkles! Is that…?”

  “I’m afraid so.”

  Bentley joined the fairy in the doorway of Alec’s office. “He still has fangs.”

  “Weird, right?” I set Alec the Frog on the desk. “We need to contain him until the sheriff arrives.” I didn’t want him disappearing in the middle of town. That would be much worse than the pond in the woods.

  Tanya whipped out her fairy wand. “I can help with that.” She scrunched her nose as she focused on the frog. “Super duper, frog-in-stupor.”

  The frog appeared to freeze on command, his eyes large and unblinking, as though he was too confused to move.

  “That’s pretty good,” I said.

  Tanya gave me a bashful smile. “Fairies and frogs are like witches and broomsticks.”

  I scratched my head. “You can fly on frogs?” Seemed a bit pointless when the fairies had wings.

  “No, silly goose. I mean that we learn how to do frog spells early on. It’s part of the basic curriculum.”

  “Why frogs and not—I don’t know—puppies?”

  Tanya tucked away her wand and pulled out her phone. “I don’t make the rules, dearie. Now let me get the sheriff over here before the spell wears off.”

  Sheriff Nash arrived within ten minutes, a look of pure pleasure on his unshaven face.

  "I don't think you're supposed to look happy about this," I pointed out.

  The sheriff quickly adjusted his features to reflect concern. “Who’s happy? These are my citizens being turned into frogs. Do you think I wear this gold star because it goes with my outfit?” He tapped the sheriff’s star pinned on his shirt.

  “I hope not because it completely clashes.”

  He glared at me. “No one saw anything?"

  "No," Tanya said. "He seemed fine this morning when he came in."

  The sheriff walked around Alec’s office, examining the surroundings. He stopped to poke through the pile of books on the desk. “He sure has written a lot of books.”

  My expression shifted to surprise. “Oh. These are his books?” I’d been meaning to grab one to read. I studied the first three titles—Glorious Soldier, Journey to B’zen, The Final Prophecy.

  “Which one would you recommend?” I asked.

  The sheriff chuckled. “You think I’ve read any of them? I don’t read fantasy. I like more grounded stories.”

  Fancy that. The werewolf sheriff preferred stories based in reality. What a world I lived in now.

  “The Final Prophecy is his most popular,” Tanya said. “And it features a kick-butt heroine with a flaming sword.”

  I whipped toward her. “Seriously?” I couldn’t imagine Alec writing about a kick-butt anything.

  “I enjoyed it,” Tanya added. “It’s a very clean read.”

  I picked up the book and began to leaf through the pages. “Clean? Like no swearing?”

  “And no s-e-x,” she whispered.

  “Well, that’s a disappointment.” I tucked the book under my arm. “But I’ll read it anyway.”

  “That might be evidence,” the sheriff said.

  My brow creased. “You just don’t want me to read it.”

  Sheriff Nash appeared horrified by the suggestion. “Do you think I would use the investigation to prevent you from reading a book you can easily borrow from the library?”

  “Yes,” Tanya and I answered in unison.

  The sheriff shook his unruly head. “Now that’s downright insulting.”

  “Still taking the book,” I said.

  “Whatever. You take the book and I’ll take Alec down to the station to join his friends."

  That gave me pause. I knew that Alec wouldn’t like being trapped in the sheriff’s office even in frog form, not with their hostile relationship.

  “Um, how about I take the frog, too?“ I said.

  The sheriff eyed me suspiciously. “You want to take home the book and the frog?”

  “Why not?” I asked. “It would only mean more work for you to keep him at the station. One more frog to monitor and feed.”

  “They’re not difficult to feed,” the sheriff replied.

  “Perfect,” I said. “Anyway, Marley has always wanted a frog for a pet. This is her chance to test the pond waters.”

  "Is it really wise to keep him in your house?” Sheriff Nash asked.

  "What do you think is going to happen? The frog’s going to jump on me in the middle of the night and suck my blood?"

  The sheriff shrugged. "I wouldn't put it past him."

  Tanya huffed. "Alec Hale would do nothing of the sort. Frog or not, you know pe
rfectly well what a gentleman he is. If Ember wants to keep him comfortable in his current state, I don't see why anyone should object." Her passionate reaction seemed to surprise the sheriff.

  "Fine," he said. "Just don't lose him. I don't need a vampire frog on the loose. It's bad enough that we have another frog at all."

  That was true. If word got out, people were going to start demanding action.

  "I'll tell you what," Bentley said, appearing in the doorway. "If you agree to share all your information with us, Sheriff, we’ll agree not to tell anyone about the most recent enchantment."

  Since the sheriff was already sharing information with me anyway, it wasn't much of a deal, but Bentley didn't seem to realize that.

  The sheriff grinned. "You strike a hard bargain, Bentley Smith.”

  Bentley wore a smug expression. "I almost went into law, but decided on journalism at the last minute."

  I rolled my eyes. Bentley didn’t even realize when he'd been had.

  “Good move, not telling the sheriff about Lyssa,” Bentley said.

  We’d stopped by the cottage to drop off Alec the Frog before heading to the healer’s office. On the way, Bentley informed me that Lyssa McTavish was an assistant healer who worked alongside Cephas, one of the druid healers in town.

  As we approached the entrance, Bentley leaned over and said, “Now, let me handle the bulk of the questions. From what I know, she's a fairy with an eye for the lads, so she’ll be more receptive to questions from me."

  "I believe you'll find she has an eye for the extremely good-looking lads," I said pointedly. "Not sure you'll get much more than a firm handshake."

  As we approached the reception desk, the squat man behind the window smiled in greeting. A dwarf. He slid the window aside. "Are you here for an appointment?"

  "No," Bentley said. "We work for Vox Populi and we’d like to speak with Lyssa. Is she available?"

  The dwarf frowned. "I'm afraid she’s busy with patients at the moment. She finishes work at six. I'm sure she’ll have time to speak with you then."

  "I think you must have misheard me," Bentley said. "I'm the associate editor for the weekly paper in Starry Hollow. Perhaps you’re a reader?"

  I could tell by the dwarf’s face that Bentley wasn’t going to get anywhere with his approach. I gently shoved him aside.

  "Hi there," I said. “My name is Ember Rose. My aunt owns the paper my esteemed colleague mentioned. Perhaps you’ve heard of Hyacinth Rose-Muldoon?”

  The dwarf examined me. "You're one of them, are you?"

  "I am," I replied, folding my arms expectantly.

  "Then why is your hair so dark? Shouldn't it be white-blond, like all those other Roses?"

  "I favor my mother," I said. "Or so I'm told."

  The dwarf set a clipboard up on the counter with blank forms. "The only way to see Lyssa McTavish during hours is if you’re here as a patient."

  Bentley and I exchanged looks.

  "You’re new in town," Bentley told me. "I bet you need a physical for something."

  I grabbed the clipboard off the counter. "Okay, fine. I'll do it." I scribbled in the information as quickly as I could. At least I had the necessary passport that allowed me access to medical care in town. The passport was basically the all-access pass to Starry Hollow.

  Bentley and I spent the next fifteen minutes in the waiting area arguing about whether the plural of dwarf should be dwarves or dwarfs. Thankfully, the glass was thick enough that the single dwarf behind it couldn’t hear us. By the time my name was called, I was ready to abandon Bentley in the waiting area, but he was a persistent elf and insisted on accompanying me.

  We sat in the exam room snooping around for any evidence of fairy foul play. Although I doubted very much that she’d leave anything obvious at the office, it was worth a look.

  Lyssa finally swept into the room, her purple wings sticking out of her white lab coat. I imagined there was a whole cottage industry for fairy clothing that accommodated wings.

  "Hello, I’m Lyssa McTavish, the assistant healer to Cephas. It says here that you’re a new patient, Miss Rose." She stopped and stared at the form. "Rose? Are you related to Florian?"

  "He's my cousin," I said. I waited to see whether she would reference his current amphibious state.

  “A shame about what happened,” Lyssa said. “It’s all my patients can talk about.”

  “I’m sure people are on edge,” I said. “Nobody wants to be the next victim.”

  Lyssa laughed. “I have a hard time thinking of Florian as a victim, even in frog form.”

  Bentley titled his head. “Why is that?”

  “Because he’s Florian Rose-Muldoon,” she replied. “His flies are probably fed to him on a silver spoon.”

  “Do you know Florian?” I asked.

  “More than I’d like to,” she said. “He’s been my patient here a few times, and pestered me to go out with him every time he came in. I think he may have even faked an illness to get an appointment with me.”

  Bentley and I exchanged glances.

  “Imagine that,” I said. “Someone faking a need for an appointment to talk to you.”

  “Crazy, right?” She laughed. “So, I finally relented.”

  “You went out with him?” I asked.

  “About two weeks ago. He wanted to have dinner, but I said drinks only.” She hesitated. “I always insist on drinks for a first date. It’s awful to suffer through a whole meal if you realize you don’t like your date.”

  “Did you like Florian?” I queried.

  “Hard not to, really,” Lyssa said. “He’s charming, hot, wealthy, and available. He ticks every box.”

  “But?” I prompted.

  “I felt like I was nothing more than a challenge to him,” she said. “Once he got me to go out with him, he seemed to shift into autopilot. He was very persuasive when he was coming by the office. In the bar, though, he struck me as…lazy.”

  Lazy. Yep, that pretty much summed up my cousin.

  “Were you annoyed?” Bentley asked. “Maybe annoyed enough to turn him into a frog?”

  Lyssa laughed. “I use my fairy magic to heal, not to harm, Mr….?”

  “Smith,” he finished for her.

  “And if I did want to get back at Florian,” she continued, “I’d certainly show more imagination than a frog curse from Fairy Spells for Beginners.”

  “There’s also a protection spell to keep other magic users from turning him back into a wizard,” Bentley pointed out.

  Lyssa shrugged. “Still remedial magic, as far as I’m concerned. I think I mastered both of those spells when I was a child.”

  Show-off. “So how did you leave things with Florian?” I asked.

  “I had one drink in the time he had two,” she said. “I went home straight from the bar. He didn’t seem interested in seeing me again, which was fine, because the feeling was mutual.”

  Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Bentley type something on his phone. Notes. He and Gardenia had something in common.

  “And you’re here for a physical?” Lyssa said to me. "Is this a requirement by your employer?"

  "It is," Bentley said. "I should know. I'm her employer."

  I gave him a sharp look, even though I really wanted to give him a sharp jab with my elbow.

  Lyssa fixed her attention on him. "Is it typical for you to accompany your employees to their physicals, Mr. Smith?”

  "It’s not typical, but Miss Rose hails from the human world and we’re keen to make sure that she doesn’t bring in any contagions to her new place of employment."

  Lyssa appeared skeptical. "What kind of contagions are you particularly concerned with?"

  Bentley struggled to come up with an answer. “The kind you find in New Jersey.”

  Lyssa snapped her fingers. “Right, you’ve lived in the human world your whole life, haven’t you?”

  I nodded. “I didn’t even know I was a witch until recently. I’m still catchi
ng up.”

  She whistled. “That’s a lot of catching up.”

  “My aunt is trying to introduce magic slowly,” I said.

  “That’s smart,” Lyssa agreed. “You don’t want to overwhelm your system. It’s a good thing you came in for a physical. Now we have a baseline to work from as your magic gets more advanced. We’ll be able to monitor you for signs of stress.”

  “No need to monitor me,” I said. “Signs of stress are whole bags of Doritos and chocolate. Very easy to spot.”

  She laughed again. “Why don’t you put on this gown and we’ll get started?”

  I shot a pained look at Bentley. I had to actually go through with the physical?

  “You heard Miss McTavish,” Bentley said, barely disguising his smirk. “It’s a good thing you came in.”

  “Mr. Smith,” Lyssa beckoned, “why don’t we give her privacy while she gets changed?”

  They left the exam room and I stared at the gown on my lap. The lengths I went to for a story…I guess I was becoming a real journalist, after all.

  Chapter 14

  The first thing Marley spotted after school was the new addition to the cottage. Alec the Frog sat in a portable dog crate that I’d bought for PP3.

  “Did you find Florian?” Marley asked, rushing to press her face against the side of the crate.

  “Not yet. This is Alec.”

  Marley stared at me. “Uh oh. Not another one. You’re keeping your boss in the dog carrier?”

  “What choice do I have? He’s a vampire frog. Check out his tiny fangs.”

  At the mention of ‘tiny fangs,’ the frog’s tongue lashed out and smacked the side of the crate before he sucked it back in.

  “I think I insulted him,” I said, suppressing a laugh.

  “I don’t think they can understand us in their frog forms,” Marley said. “Otherwise, Florian would’ve come back instead of hopping away at the pond.”

  PP3 began to sniff around the base of the crate. Although he disliked riding in it, he seemed annoyed to see it occupied by another animal. When the barking began, I knew it was time to move the frog to safety. I picked up the crate and headed for the stairs. The last thing I needed was to find my boss’s green legs hanging out of my Yorkie’s mouth.