She shook her head. “Can we not talk about this anymore?”
I nodded, biting my bottom lip anxiously. “Yeah.”
“Oh, look, the potion is ready,” she said, changing the subject.
I peered down into the pot. The water had turned into a creamy white substance and the root was still intact. “So now what?”
“We light the candles in the circle,” she said.
The lab was equipped with a large open area with a circle and star painted on the floor for spells to take place. There was a short table with a little cloth covering it in the center of the circle. Gingerly, I placed the candles on the table. Alba looked at them, snapped her fingers and blew. The candle’s fire immediately sprang to life. “I love that trick,” I told Alba with a grin.
“Everyone does,” she admitted. “Ok, kneel down in front of the candles with the dog.”
I picked up Chesney and knelt down in front of the little center table and waited for Alba. Chesney licked my ear, causing me to giggle.
“We’re ready,” I told her.
“Coming,” she said as she grabbed cauldron and the spell book.
She handed me the spell book which was opened to the Animal Enchantment spell we’d been reading and sat the cauldron down in the center of the little table. She pulled the ginger root from the pot and handed it to me. “I can’t be in the circle for this,” she said as she left the circle.
“But you can stay in the room, right?” I asked her nervously. I was mildly afraid something would go wrong with the spell and I’d wind up with a tail or something.
“Yeah, I’ll just wait over here,” she said as she hopped up to sit on the counter top.
“Ok, so what do I do?”
“Use the root to smear the potion behind your ear and then Chesney’s ear. Then encircle both of your eyes with it and both of Chesney’s eyes and then encircle both your mouths and then do the chant.”
“Ok, here goes,” I said. My stomach was doing nervous flip flops as I used the root to do as Alba had instructed. Despite the fact that Chesney wanted to eat the root, I managed to get the potion in the correct spots on both of us.
“Now read the spell three times,” Alba instructed. “Make sure to insert Chesney’s name into the part at the end.”
Holding Chesney tightly, I looked down at the book in front of me and began to read, focusing my energy on the words of the spell.
“Bind our eyes and our mouths as well.
Hear me while I speak this spell.
Show me what he sees and hears
Bind our tongues, bind our ears.
When I speak this sacred vow,
Show me what he sees right now.
And when I cross my arms at night,
End the spell with solemn might.
Call it back with gentle force,
Say Chesney Enchantment, but of course.”
I chanted the spell two more times. Chesney studied my face closely as if I were hypnotizing him. When I finished, I gave him a hug, stood up and exited the circle.
“Now you just have to say ‘Chesney Enchantment’, to invoke the spell.”
“Do you think it worked?” I asked Alba.
“I guess we’ll find out!”
Alba took a deep breath and blew towards the flickering candles on the little table as she snapped her fingers. The candles flickered for a moment before shutting off as if someone had flipped a switch. “Let’s go,” she said.
We shut the door behind us and headed back up the stairs to our dorm room. We’d barely made it halfway up the stairs when Jax came tearing around the corner. “Mercy! There you are, omigosh, I’ve been looking for you everywhere!”
{ Chapter Fourteen}
My heart leapt into my throat. “Jax! Slow down, what’s going on? What happened? Are Sweets and Holly alright?” I asked her nervously.
“Yeah, they’re fine. Nothing’s wrong. Something just happened and it’s great!” she cooed and did a little pirouette on the top stair. “Reign just texted me. He wants to take me out on a date! I’m dying right now, ahh!”
“I’m glad you’re already dying so I don’t have to kill you,” Alba barked angrily. “You scared the crap out of me!”
“Me too, Jax!”
Jax looked down at her feet. “Oh, sorry. I was just so excited and I wanted to share it with someone. I can’t tell Holly because, well, I think she might have a crush on Reign too. Ahh! I can’t believe Sweets came through!”
Jax gave me a quick squeeze around the shoulders and then plucked Chesney out of my arms and flew away like the little pesky mosquito that she was.
I groaned inwardly.
“Sweets did this?”
“No, my brother did this.”
“Isn’t Jax a little young for him?” Alba asked.
“Of course she is! You tell her!” I complained.
Alba had barely turned the doorknob to her room when it burst open and Holly shot forward. “Finally!” she exclaimed. “I’ve been waiting forever for you to get back!”
My stomach flipped over. I could already guess what she was going to tell me.
“You’ll never guess what just happened!”
Alba rolled her eyes as she pushed Holly aside and strutted past her. She fell onto the bottom bunk with a thud and put her arms over her face.
“What’s her problem?” she asked me.
“I don’t know, she’s tired?” I offered.
“More like grumpy,” said Holly.
“She’s got ears,” hollered Alba.
“Then what’s your problem?”
“My problem is that I don’t care about whatever it is you’re about to say.”
Holly rolled her eyes and turned back to me. Her enthusiasm has been squashed slightly, but I could see her quickly rebounding.
“Reign asked me out on a date!” she cooed. “Sweets made it happen, I owe her something big!”
“I suppose you do,” I said flatly. I spun on my heel and headed back to my room leaving a long faced Holly with Alba.
I opened the door to my room and was thankful to discover that Jax wasn’t inside. I dropped onto my bed and threw an arm over my face. I couldn’t understand it. Harper’s murder was solved and yet it didn’t make me feel better. It just didn’t make sense. Something felt off.
I heard a noise at the window and quickly threw my arm off of my face and cranked around to see Sneaks sitting on my windowsill. I quickly stood up and went to her.
“Finally! It’s about time! What took you so long?” I ranted. “I have so much to tell you, I just don’t even know where to begin! First of all, your son, has asked out two of my girlfriends. Ugh! You need to talk to Reign, mom. Tell him he’s not allowed to date my friends!” I said to Sneaks while pacing back in forth on the carpet.
“Holly, Jax, and Sweets said I can’t call girl code because we didn’t grow up together. How dumb is that? And I just found out a major secret about Alba, but unfortunately, I can’t even tell you. Which totally stinks because this secret is going to eat me alive! And on top of all of that, this whole murder thing has got me totally on edge! I’m just freaking out right now, I’m so stressed, I can’t focus on classes. Ugh. Mom! Tell me what to do?” I begged.
I stopped talking and stared at Sneaks. She just looked at me blankly.
“Hello? Where’s all that unwanted advice now? I finally ask for your help and you’re speechless? Mark it on the calendar. The day my mom didn’t have any advice!”
I looked at Sneaks again. “Hello?” I asked, bending over to look her in the face.
“Meow,” she said plainly.
“Meow? Are you playing with me now?” I asked.
Sneaks began to purr and rubbed her body up against my face.
“Mom?”
“Meow,” said Sneaks.
“Ugh!” I groaned out loud. I threw myself back onto my bed and pounded the mattress with my balled fists. Why couldn’t my mother show up when I needed her? It
felt like days since I’d last talked to her and I felt like my world was spinning crazily around me. I felt fragile and abandoned.
Then a thought occurred to me. It had been a really long time since my mom had visited. What if something happened to her? I pulled out my cell phone and dialed my mom’s house, something I should have done earlier, but had been too busy. It rang six times before the answering machine picked up.
“This is Linda and this is Mercy. We’re not home right now, leave a message, beep…” The sound of my mom’s voice widened a tiny crack inside the hard outer layer around my heart. I suddenly felt hot tears on my cheek and before I knew it, I was crying myself to sleep.
***
Seeing Jax out of her witch uniform the next afternoon was a welcome change. I was starting to think the girl didn’t own any other clothes. Reign had suggested that she dress casually as they were just going to go for a jog together around the park and then go out for ice cream afterwards. The weather was unseasonably warm, so Jax had opted to wear only a sports bra, matching yoga capri pants and her jogging shoes. As usual, her petite waist and six-pack abs were on point. She looked positively adorable and almost like a normal person, aside from her hair which she had had Holly turn blue the night before with Holly’s new favorite beauty spell. If the whole witch thing didn’t work out for Holly I was sure she had a career as a cosmetologist waiting for her somewhere.
Jax still hadn’t told Holly that she and Reign were going out, and I was thankful that she hadn’t. Reign had put us all in a position that could potentially pit friends against friends and against his sister, so I wanted to stay as far away from that messapalooza as possible. If asked about any of their date plans, I planned to plead the 5th.
Sweets met Jax in our dorm as Jax was finishing her makeup. I was lying on my bed cuddled up with Chesney when she came to the room. She handed Jax a small box of confections tied up with a tiny pink ribbon.
“What’s this?” Jax asked excitedly.
“It’s your date potion,” Sweets told her reverently. “They’re chocolate truffles. You have to get him to eat one. Once he’s eaten his, then you can eat yours.”
Jax jumped up and down excitedly. “Eeee,” she squealed. “That’s all I have to do?”
Sweets winced. “Usually matchmaking spells work the best if they are sealed with a kiss.”
Jax’s eyes widened. “I have to kiss him?”
Sweets took a deep breath and sighed. “Typically that’s what seals the spell, but sometimes things happen.”
“Like what?”
“Mmm, like if you kiss him too soon, before the potion has had time to take effect, then he might never want to see you again.”
Jax’s mouth fell open. “That would be horrible! What happens if I kiss him too late?”
“Nothing. It’ll just be too late and the spell will have worn off and you’ll miss your opportunity for him to love you forever.”
“Well, how will I know when it’s the perfect time?” Jax asked confused.
Sweets put a finger to her chin. “Mmm, he’ll get a tickle in his throat. The minute he gets a tickle in his throat, that’s when you need to swoop in on him. Got it? Tickle – swoop.”
Jax nodded seriously. “Tickle – swoop. Yeah, I can remember that. Tickle – swoop.”
I rolled my eyes as I twirled Chesney’s soft fur around my fingers.
“Oh Sweets, you’re the best!” Jax gushed and threw her arms around Sweets’ wide middle.
Just then there was a knock at the door. Jax looked positively petrified, so Sweets answered the door for her. Reign was dressed, like Jax, in work-out gear. A black Nike t-shirt, athletic shorts, and trainers. His thick black hair was perfectly coiffed and he wore a pair of tinted sports sunglasses. “Hey Sweets, how ya doin’? Is Jax here?”
Reign poked his head into our room and when he saw me lying on the bed he came over to greet me. “Hey Mercy, it’s too nice to be inside today, you alright?” he asked. His deep voice sounded caring, but I didn’t truly feel like he cared about me.
“I’m fine,” I said cryptically. Chesney gave a little bark as Reign reached down to pet him.
“This little guy is pretty adorable. What’s his name again?”
“Chesney,” Jax answered from behind Sweets.
“Jax!” Reign said. He pulled his sunglasses off of his face so he could get a better look at her. “You look amazing. You work out?”
Jax nodded excitedly. “Yeah, I’m a little OCD about working out,” she admitted.
“I figured you would enjoy going for a jog, are you ready to go?”
Jax grabbed the little box of candy Sweets had given her. “Yeah, I’m ready!”
“What’s that?” he asked.
“Sweets made us a surprise, we’ll check it out when we get to the park,” Jax explained nervously bouncing around on her toes.
“You’re full of energy,” he noticed.
“She’s always full of energy,” I groaned from the bed.
“You want to come with us sis?” he asked.
“Don’t call me sis and no, I don’t want to come with. But you could take Chesney with you. I’m sure he’d like to go for a walk,” I suggested, crossing my fingers at my sides.
Jax nodded excitedly. “Oh, yeah, that’s a great idea. Do you mind Reign?”
My brother shook his head. “Not at all, does he have a leash?”
I had the leash by my side, ready to go. I reached it out immediately. “Here ya go!”
Reign laughed. “That was a little convenient. Trying to get rid of all of us? Have a hot date yourself?”
I chuckled nervously and avoided making eye contact with my brother as Jax scooped up Chesney. “No, of course not. I just – need to study,” I lied. “Now go, get out of here. I’ve got stuff to do. You too, Sweets.”
“Ok, well, have fun studying,” he said as he let Jax pull him out of the room. “Bye Sweets, thanks for the treat.”
“Bye Mercy,” Jax hollered without waiting for a reply.
Sweets was the last to leave. She eyed me suspiciously. “You’re up to something,” she said as she hovered near the door.
“As if you’re not?” I asked her pointedly.
Her eyes widened like a deer caught in the headlights and like that, she was gone.
When the coast was clear, I leapt off my bed and peered out my door, checking both sides of the hallway. With the exception of Sweets swaying down the hallway towards her room, the coast was clear. I shut my dorm room door and locked the deadbolt. My pulse throbbed ferociously in my ears.
I sat down cross-legged on the plush carpet and let my arms fall naturally to my knees. I took several deep breaths and shook out my shoulders in an attempt to relax my body. I focused all of my energy and spirit on the task at hand. Then I began to chant. “Chesney Enchantment, Chesney Enchantment, Chesney Enchantment….” And just like that, I was seeing out of the eyes of Chesney as I walked beside Jax and Reign’s feet. What a strange feeling it was to be all of eight inches off the ground and have four legs. It was as if I were inside of a virtual reality 3D video game. How cool is this?
I stumbled a bit on the cobblestone sidewalk as I tried to make Chesney’s front legs and back legs work together as they should and got drug by the leash about twelve steps before Jax realized that I wasn’t walking anymore. “Ow!” I hollered as the sidewalk scratched at my rump.
Jax and Reign immediately looked down at me curiously. “Did Chesney just say Ow?” Reign asked Jax.
Jax peered at me oddly and I panicked and immediately started howling to cover up my blunder. “Ow, ow, owwwwww.”
Jax laughed. “He was howling silly, he didn’t say ow.”
Reign laughed too and then put an arm around Jax’s shoulder. “You sure do look hot today,” he said and I watched as the hand on her shoulder gently slid down to her hip and teetered dangerously close to her butt. I put the brakes on, tugged at the leash, and began to whimper.
&nbs
p; “Aww, Ches, what’s the matter baby, are we walking too fast for you?” Jax asked, bending down to scoop me up and toss me over her shoulder.
I licked her face and squirmed about in her arms to show my appreciation. Reign put a hand on my head and I growled immediately at him, baring my teeth for extra effect. That should show him how I felt about him putting his hand on my friend’s butt. Don’t get too close, brother, I thought.
“So, tell me about yourself! Where are you from?” Jax asked him.
This vantage point was so much better from Jax’s shoulder. I could actually hear what they were talking about from up here.
“Oh, I –uh, grew up in a little town in Kansas. On a Christmas tree farm,” he told her.
My ears perked up. Liar!
“Oh, a Christmas tree farm! Isn’t that interesting!” Jax gushed.
Reign shrugged. “Not really. It was a lot of work and I was raised by a single dad, so that was tough.”
I was stunned by what I was hearing. This was not the story Reign had given me!
“You had a single dad? Oh my gosh, I had a single mom! I can totally relate,” Jax said and linked arms with him after finding out they had that in common. “Wasn’t that hard?”
Reign swung his eyes down to the ground, “Yeah, it really was.”
I wiggled around in Jax’s arms until I could squint at Reign angrily. I wanted to rip him apart limb from limb for lying to me. Or lying to Jax. Or heck, probably both of us! What a scoundrel! What a liar! I wonder what lame story he had given my mother? If he lied to her too, I was going to be furious.
“So, I was thinking…” he began, “we could go drive down to the Aspen Falls park and start our jog there? I’ve been wanting to explore the town, but with the murder investigation lingering over my head, I’d been hesitant to show my face around town. I know how small towns can be. I assumed everyone thought I was guilty.
Jax’s big blue eyes opened wide. “Oh, I never thought you were guilty. Not for a second! I’m just so glad we have proven your innocence.”
I nipped at Jax’s ear. She was making me want to vomit. “Oh, Chesney, stop,” she chirped.
Son of a Witch: A Witch Squad Cozy Mystery #2 Page 14