“Or, he’s finally found his mate and was serious about us being dead to him last night. I told you that your plan would backfire and cause more harm than good. You should have listened to me,” the Angel said in a voice filled with sarcasm and pity.
Who was right? Brittney thought. All of this doubt was not only confusing, but also giving her one helluva migraine. Goddess, she needed a drink. But first, she needed more information from her psychotic cousin.
Serena knew the minute the words had left her mouth that she had hit Brittney below the belt. Her cousin was a good kid for the most part, but she grated on her last nerve. The fact that she was cute, perky, busty, and all the men lusted after her only made it worse. Why she had set her sights on a loser like Jasper was beyond her. She deserved so much better.
‘Serena,” Brittney snapped. “Did you hear what I said? How do you know all of this?”
“I know all of this dear cousin because I saw it with my own two eyes when I was spying on the witch earlier.”
“Wait! Why were you spying on Sophie if you had already cursed Alec?”
“Because I had a sneaky suspicion that he would enlist her help. I have no idea how he did it, but I assure you, he’s going to pay dearly for his betrayal and indiscretion.”
Realizing her cousin had fallen off her rocker, Brittney held her hands up in surrender and said, “You know what, I think I’m going to bail. I don’t want Baba Yo Mama on my ass when she finds out what you’ve done. I mean, let’s face it, the odds aren’t in your favor.”
“Are you doubting my powers, little cousin?” Serena asked in a deadly voice.
“Um. No. I am just concerned for your safety because Sophie is being protected by three of the most powerful sisters in the universe.”
“You forget that with this Dark Magic coursing through my veins, I’m their equal. I no longer fear anyone.”
“Then you’re a fool,” Brittney mumbled under her breath.
“What did you say?” Serena asked, as she glared at her cousin.
“What? Oh. I said that’s really cool. Good luck!” Brittney quickly responded, as she plastered a fake, mega-watt smile on her face. The last thing she needed was for her psychotic cousin to direct her anger and Dark Magic toward her. She had enough problems of her own and none of them involved a heart broken witch who’d lost her ever-loving mind.
Brittney watched as her cousin ignored her last comment and started gathering items to put her new plan into action. She watched in fear as the cloud of Dark Magic swirling above her cousin’s head picked up speed. She wanted to leave, but her feet wouldn’t move. She continued to watch in horror, as the kitchen window opened and Serena sent the cloud of Dark Magic in the direction of the farmhouse to do her bidding. What had her cousin just done? More importantly, what had she gotten herself into?
* * *
Claire was grateful that the spell had worked, but her senses told her it was only temporary. The witch was pissed and determined to seek her revenge. Time was of the essence and she needed to release some of the tension in the room. Not only was Jasper being a total ass, but he almost cursed everyone in the house. How could he have thought only a witch could cast a spell, or in this case a curse? Did the moron lack common sense? Granted, he was just answering their questions, but seriously. Even Shifters in training knew that repeating the spell would curse everyone in the vicinity. If she hadn’t stopped him, they would all be screwed right now. She didn’t have time to be stuck in limbo, losing sleep. She had a store and a life to get back to. She also didn’t have time to drool over how good he looked in protective mode. When his eyes weren’t demanding her attention, his body was staking a claim. The hunger in his eyes and the way he licked his lips as he perused her body up and down almost made her orgasm on the spot. Thank goodness Cole’s confusion had regained everyone’s attention about the curse and Chez Parée Deux.
“Wait! You’re telling me that when Sophie bought the house, she inherited the curse?” Cole asked, still confused.
“Yes,” Sarah replied with a smug smile.
“I don’t understand why our spell didn’t reverse the curse on the house,” Cole replied.
“Before Chez Parée Deux found its new home in Sophie’s closet, it resided in New Orleans. In my vision, I saw an article that briefly mentioned how the gentleman’s club and all of its inhabitants had suddenly disappeared. There was no investigation because part of the curse involved wiping the memory of its existence. Since the witch eventually took her own life, the spell was never released, which is the reason Armand and Iggy are once again humans, but everyone else still remains stuck in Chez Parée Deux,” Claire replied solemnly.
“Are you telling me there’s an entire club full of people still stuck in her closet?” Jasper asked, anger rolling off him in waves. He was so tired of witches using their powers for evil that he wanted to strangle someone. What in the hell gave them the right to play with peoples’ lives like this. The occupants of Chez Parée Deux were flesh and blood humans with feelings and family who had to have missed them dearly. Oh wait! The evil witch erased the memory of them. The more he thought about the injustice of it all, the more his wolf wanted to rip something to shreds. His anger was so out of control that he almost missed Claire’s calm, soothing voice. His wolf was the first to calm down, which was another reason he knew she was the one. What in the hell was he going to do? He couldn’t risk his heart again, only for it to be stomped on until there was nothing left. He wouldn’t survive the disappointment or loneliness this time.
“I’m afraid so,” Claire responded in a calming voice, hoping to counteract some of the Beta’s anger and frustration. She’d hate to meet him in a dark alley when he was this riled up. Yet, his anger did restore some of her faith in him. He was obviously outraged on his new friends’ behalf and he barely knew them. In her book, that said a lot about a man.
“Then what are we going to do about it?” he finally asked.
“Call in reinforcements,” Cole said, matter of fact, right before he excused himself from the table to make a phone call.
Before Claire could tell Cole there was no time, a cloud of Dark Magic whooshed through the window. One minute they were strategizing at Sophie’s table and the next, they were standing in front of Chez Parée Deux—as mice. It was obvious her and Sophie’s feeble attempt to counteract Serena’s latest attack had been an epic fail. Alec was livid and the anger surrounding Jasper looked like a tsunami. If she didn’t come up with a plan and quick, all Hell was going to break loose—again. It was the third time today Claire had wondered what Alec and Jasper had seen in these crazy cousins. Well, at least Serena. Brittney had yet to show her face, which she found rather odd. Was the woman all bluster and no action? Unfortunately, she couldn’t’ say the same for her cousin.
“What in the Hades is going on? Why are we in front of Chez Parée Deux, again?” Alec hissed. Although he knew the answer, his mind wanted to remain in denial for as long as possible.
“The Wicked Witch of the West has struck again,” Jasper groused. It was sort of funny when Alec had been turned into a mouse, but not so much now that the roles were reversed. He was going to strangle Serena when he got his hands on her.
“We had hoped to once again reverse Serena’s spell and aim it toward her, but she infused it with Dark Magic and made sure no harm came to her,” Sophie replied.
“It sounds like there’s not much we can do, but wait until Cole and Sarah contact the sisters for help. So until then, why don’t we go inside and enjoy the entertainment,” Roger suggested in a soothing, yet excited voice.
Jasper had to admit that he was curious about Chez Parée Deux, as well. Once he had calmed down and realized nothing could be done until Cole and Sarah came up with a plan, Roger was correct in that they should go inside and enjoy the entertainment. He’d never been in a gentleman’s club, so it would definitely be a first for him. He just hoped it was classier than Don Juan’s. Hell, that wouldn’t be
hard given Don Juan’s was a barn that had been converted into a bar.
The moment they entered the club, Jasper was in Heaven. The buxom blonde working the pole like a pro had gained his full attention. He would have switched places with it in a heartbeat given the way she was grinding and swaying her hips. She had definitely made it her bitch. He loved a woman who owned her sexuality—body, heart and soul.
“She’s magnificent,” Roger whispered, obviously mesmerized by Lola’s beauty and stamina.
“Tell me about it,” Jasper concurred, ignoring the scathing glare Claire sent him over her shoulder.
I should have known he was a womanizing jerk, Claire thought as she continued to shoot daggers Jasper’s way. If he drooled anymore over the sultry blonde, they’d need to get him a damn bib—or a bucket. Yet, from the look on Iggy’s face, Jasper and Roger were each going to need a couple of steaks after he finished beating their asses if she were a betting woman. It would serve them both right if Iggy exacted a little justice for ogling his woman. They didn’t even try to hide it, which only increased her level of disgust. She didn’t have time for this nonsense. She needed to get the hell out of Sophie’s closet, shut Serena down, and return to her calm, normal life that lacked all of this drama because it was definitely overrated.
Fifteen minutes later they were all sitting at the table enjoying some cool refreshments when Claire received her first vision. It almost took her breath away, but she forged ahead, trying her best to gather as many details as possible. It looked like Cole and Sarah had called in reinforcements. Thank the Goddess, she thought. Returning her focus to the vision, she closed her eyes and began mouthing the spell they would need to return home. To most, it would simply look like she was meditating. People had confused her visions with meditation before, which didn’t bother her one way or another. In fact, it became a tool she often used when her gift would take over outside of the magical community. The moment she opened her eyes and serenely smiled at Alec, who had been obviously watching her intently, he pounced.
“You saw something. Tell me,” he demanded.
“Sarah and Cole have enlisted the help of the sisters and the entire magical community. They are working on a spell that will allow Sophie and me to counteract Serena’s spell, so we can go home.”
“I knew Zelda, Zoe, Zara and the rest of the magical community wouldn’t let us down,” Alec said with a shit-eating grin.
“I’m sorry. You misunderstand. Zelda’s not there. She’s busy trying to locate the Lurking Fucking Evil in order to save all of Magic. Let’s just say she’s going to be preoccupied for a while,” Claire said with a knowing smile.
“Then why are you smiling,” Alec hissed. “We won’t be able to fight Serena without Zelda because no one else possesses Dark Magic.”
“It seems as though that’s not truly the case. Someone by the name of Phoebe has come to our aid,” Claire replied.
Alec quickly turned to Sophie to see if she was okay when he heard her gasp. “Little One. What’s wrong?”
“Did you say, Phoebe?” Sophie hesitantly asked.
“Yes,” Claire quickly replied, curious as to why Sophie looked like she wanted to faint.
“Who in the hell is Phoebe?” Alec asked, preparing to do battle to protect his mate.
“Phoebe is Sarah’s mother. I had no idea she was able to harness Dark Magic, but it all makes sense now,” Sophie replied with an inquisitive look on her face.
“What makes sense?” Alec asked, still confused.
“The reason my father kept her alive. If he couldn’t steal her immortality, he must have been trying to steal her Dark Magic. I wonder how she outsmarted him,” Sophie asked, more to herself than anyone sitting at the table.
“I don’t know, but we need to prepare ourselves. When the time is right, we need to combine our powers and repeat the spell Phoebe, Zoe and Zara have crafted in order to get back home,” Claire instructed. “Armand. Do you have any candles around here? Preferably red, green and black. We’re going to need one of each.”
“I’ll check and see. If not, I’m sure Little Lola has some. She’s always burning candles. Anything else?”
“Yes. We’ll need some salt, water, and a glass,” Claire said.
“Got it!” Armand said as he scurried away to do their bidding.
“How will we know when the time is right,” Jasper asked.
“From what I could see in my vision, Magic is quickly waning all over the world, which we need to use to our advantage. There’s supposed to be a full moon tonight. When the clock strikes midnight and the moon is at its peak, we need to start chanting the spell because that’s when the veil between our two worlds is the weakest. It will also be when Serena’s Dark Magic is the most vulnerable,” Claire replied.
“Then let’s divide and conquer,” Alec said, feeling a sense of hope for the first time since they had returned to Chez Parée Deux.
* * *
Claire thanked the Goddess for her photographic memory. Once her mind had cleared from the vision, she quickly wrote down the spell Phoebe, Zoe and Zara had come up with in its entirety for everyone to memorize. She was a little worried because they were running out of time. Magic was waning and if they missed their window of opportunity, they would be stuck in Sophie’s closet forever. It was enough to make a girl run out of the building like her hair was on fire. She couldn’t—no—wouldn’t panic. Sophie needed her to remain calm and provide guidance, which is exactly what she would do.
When she took in a deep breath and turned to look at Jasper, he mouthed you’ve got this. The damn man was driving her crazy. One minute, he was an overzealous jerk who acted as if he didn’t have a care in the world. The next minute, he turned into a fearless Shifter who was willing to take on two crazy witches and a curse to help his friends, even if it meant cursing himself. She was still trying to figure out exactly who the real Jasper was because he completely boggled her mind.
Gently shaking her head, she turned to Sophie and gave her the signal she needed to understand it was time for them to begin. Once the circle was formed, Claire settled in and clasped her hand with Sophie and to her surprise Jasper. She had to admit that his touch was a combination of calming and electrifying. Clearing her mind, she refocused on the task at hand and began the chant with Sophie.
I call upon the Goddess and Fates,
To reverse this spell that's been cast on my mate,
He hides under the skin of a rat bastard man,
So only you can extend him a healing hand.
Our friends have been swept up in an evil witch's curse,
I beg you to release it with this simple verse.
Our fates are on the line because Dark Magic is at play,
Overpower it with your love so we can see the light of day.
Three times three, I command you to reverse the hex on thee,
As this is not the fate, the Ancient Ones have chosen for me.
So mote it be!
The longer they chanted the spell, the more the wind kicked up to the point they could barely hear themselves, but no one stopped. When the Dark Magic started swirling around them trying to take over, she felt Sophie squeeze her hand a little harder. Claire knew this wouldn’t be easy for the young woman, especially given everyone’s life depended on her strength and their success in returning home. It was a hefty burden to bear, but she had every confidence that they would succeed—that Sophie would succeed. She was stronger than she realized, she just needed to embrace her destiny.
Although it felt like they had been in the circle fighting Serena’s Dark Magic for hours, Claire knew it had only been about fifteen minutes. When she opened her eyes to see how they were truly fairing, it broke her heart to see the tears streaming down Sophie’s face. A few minutes later, she watched in fascination as Sophie let out a deafening scream that released a bolt of power the equivalent of an electromagnetic pulse. Not only had it obliterated the Dark Magic, but also knocked everyone on their a
sses and broke the circle. When they materialized at the farmhouse, Claire let out the breath she had been holding since this whole ordeal had begun.
* * *
Serena knew the instant her spell had been broken. “I’m going to make that mouse of a witch pay once and for all. I’m going to make them all pay for betraying me,” she swore, as her eyes transitioned from a vibrant amber color to jet black, as she began harnessing the Dark Magic coursing through her veins.
It felt good to finally unleash the beast in all its glory. Her once beautiful, blonde hair was now an oily black and looked like it was being controlled by electricity the way it sprouted out in multiple directions atop her head. Her fingernails had grown long and deadly, as they too were covered in what looked like jet black fingernail polish. Her sultry lips were covered in black lipstick and her golden skin was now a pale white. In a nanosecond, she had transitioned from a wanna be sexy, California beach blonde to a Goth like Edward Scissorhands.
The small cottage she lived in literally shook from her rage, but she didn’t care. She had a score to settle with a meddling witch, who was going to wish she had never been born by the time she was done claiming her revenge. The power coursing through her veins was addictive and when this was all over, she would be feared and revered by everyone in the magical community, which was just fine with her. It was time for a change in leadership and she knew just the candidate.
* * *
No sooner had Jasper took Claire’s hand to help her up, another vision occurred in her head. The rage rolling off of Serena almost made her nauseous. The witch was pissed and had finally allowed the Dark Magic to take over. She was out for blood and would destroy anyone who got in her way. She had to let them know. Once her vision subsided, she opened her eyes, looked into Jasper’s beautiful blue eyes and simply said, “She’s coming.”
The moment the wolves began to howl, Claire realized that Sophie knew their nemesis had arrived for her pound of flesh. The windows shattered and the doors of the old farmhouse were blown off their hinges, but that didn’t deter either of them. When the women in the inner circle made eye contact with Phoebe, who possessed the most Dark Magic in the room, they began the chant.
Magic and Mayhem: Witchin' Up A Spell (Kindle Worlds Novella) (Magick & Chaos Book 5) Page 4