“London, could I speak with you for a moment?” She called out.
“Yes, Miss Enchanter?”
“I noticed that the wallpaper underneath the pictures is quite a different shade of red than the rest. The pictures must have been hanging there for a very long time. I am thinking about having the entire Spa either painted, or redone with new wallpaper. Do you know if we have a vendor’s file I could consult for prices?”
“After you decide what you want to do in the way of renovations, we have a couple of young men in the town who would be doing the work. Sebastian, who was at one time Thelma’s grounds keeper, and a young man named Tom. They actually work very well together and do a good job.” London told her.
“I wonder what lead time they would require.” Ophelia said.
“Excuse me?” London asked.
“I was just wondering out loud how long it would take them to be able to get the work started, once I decide. If there are only the two of them, I wonder how many other customers they might have ahead of us.” Ophelia said.
“There is no, what you called Lead Time, Miss Enchanter. Whatever you need done would be done immediately. After all, this is the Village of Enchanted.” London said.
Ophelia wasn’t sure she liked the tone of London’s voice. It was snarky without being at first obvious. She wasn’t sure she liked this lady, although she did like not having to wait for any repairs she might want to make. Ophelia said “Thank you, London, I will let you know when to contact them.” She noticed that London had started walking away from her after the thank you part of what Ophelia was saying.
Ophelia was not about to let London ruin her good mood. London had been the only person she had encountered here in Enchanted who seemed to have a chip on her shoulder. If London did not perform any of the services for the customers herself, then Ophelia might rethink the decision to keep her on. She did not expect people to treat her like some sort of a queen or anything, but she did not like the tinge of disrespect that London seemed to be exhibiting towards her either.
Ophelia spent the rest of her day there making notes on various color schemes and she even picked out a couple of alternative names, although she very much preferred Scarlett’s Spa. She could not think of a catchy name that included her own.
Chapter 8
When Ophelia left The Spa, she decided to stop in at the department store at the end of the street. She wanted to pick up samples of all the colors she could have The Spa redone in. Not that she had made up her mind what colors to choose yet, she still preferred the red, but thought perhaps the color stripes would give her inspiration. Perhaps a mix of wallpaper and paint.
At this early stage, she did not know if she should renovate in the same style, which was very beautiful, or if she should give it a much more modern look and feel. She wanted her own personality to shine through, but also wanted to keep most of the old drawings and pictures of the old country.
Ophelia was looking through the various shades of reds and green paints when the sales lady walked up to her. “Hello, can I help you find something?”
“Oh, hi, I am just looking at the different colors you have. I am thinking of redoing a few rooms, but I haven’t made up my mind which shade to choose yet.” Ophelia smiled at the young woman. “Do you also carry wallpaper here?”
“There is a store in town that carries just wallpaper and other decorating items, you might find what you want there. The name of the store is Focal Point and it is only a few blocks west of here.” The young woman looked as if she wanted to say something else, but wasn’t sure if she should or not.
“Thank you, I might stop in there tomorrow, for now it looks as if it might start snowing again and it has been a long day as it is.” Ophelia said.
“We don’t usually allow pets into the store.” The woman said and for an instant, Ophelia panicked and looked behind her to see if she had a tail or something showing although that seemed impossible. She had spent too long as Snowball the cat with Mrs. Johnson to not consider the possibility that she might have some kitten appendage poking out somewhere.
“Excuse me?” She said after making sure she was 100% non-feline.
“Your cat, we don’t usually allow pets in the store. She sure is a strange looking little thing.” The sales lady told Ophelia.
Ophelia turned around and there indeed sat a cat on one of the shelves leveled to about her waist. The cat was just sitting there watching the two young ladies, her bushy tail wrapped around herself as if for warmth.
“Well, hello there kitty.” She said, and then turned to the sales lady “She is very unique looking, but she is not mine.”
“I’ve never seen her before and she walked in with you.” The sales lady said, as if she were insisting that Ophelia was somehow responsible for the appearance of the animal.
Ophelia just shrugged and turned her attention back to the various paint colors and left the saleslady to deal with the unwanted visitor. Ophelia picked out a few strips of colors and then decided she needed to get back home since they were meeting with Luna tonight for dinner. She left the department store and was walking towards the hill when she heard “meow” and looked down.
“You again?” Ophelia said, and then picked up the cat and looked it right in the eyes. “Are you a real cat, or are you someone in hiding? Because you don’t have to hide from me, I spent a long time as one of you.” She said.
The orange cat with the black noes and white tail just looked down. ”Meow.”
“You sure are a funny looking kitty, but go on. Ophelia said, putting down the cat. “I am going home and you need to go to your home as well.” The orange cat followed Ophelia almost all the way up to the hill, but disappeared when Ophelia rang the bell to summon her wagon ride back to Thelma’s house.
The big wagon with the covered roof was a welcome sight for the wind had picked up and the snow began to fall. Ophelia was familiar with Caramel the horse that had regularly pulled the wagon, and one of the other horses had come to get her, she think that one was named Zippy, but this one she did not remember seeing before. “Hello, I hope you know the way to Thelma’s house.” Ophelia said. The miniature pony turned its head and looked at her with big brown eyes before trotting off after Ophelia had boarded.
Ophelia could only imagine how beautiful the area would be in the summer months, because it was postcard picture perfect today. There was snow and ice on the ground and snow in the trees that looked as if it had been placed there. Decorated by an expensive designer. Not unlike ice icicles on a Christmas tree. Ophelia knew she had spent time there as a child, but why could she not remember? It was a long ride from the hill to Thelma’s house, but Ophelia did not mind a bit, she was lost in her own thoughts.
Thelma met Ophelia at the door. “How was your visit to the Village today?” She asked.
“It was good. I can’t say I have a very good impression of London, but I also can’t say I really know her well enough to judge at this point. Has she been around here very long?” Ophelia asked, walking up to the fireplace to warm her hands before taking off her coat.
“London has been in Enchanted for a while, but she won’t be here permanently. She does not warm up to people easily, I believe she has had issues with Janet. Janet is an excellent employee and she is here for the long haul. Have you decided what you want to do with The Spa yet?”
“Other than redecorate it, no, not really. What is that delicious smell coming from the kitchen? I didn’t realize how hungry I am until I got a whiff of that.”
“It is beef stew. Luna should be here shortly and we can eat then. I also have homemade bread for us. I picked it up today in the Village. Isabel made the bread. She still makes the chocolates for the Shop and bakes bread for the local restaurants and stores as well, even though she lived a few miles further out now.”
“And wine?” Ophelia asked hopefully. “Do we have any wine left?
“Of course, although you look like you could use something hot ab
out now.”
“That is the plan, I’m going to take a hot bath, or is Luna coming right away?”
“Take your bath, dear, there is no rush.’ Thelma said as Ophelia walked to her bedroom. She ran a hot bubble bath and soon was enjoying the warmth of the water and the smell of vanilla and almonds of the bath salts.
When she emerged from her bedroom she was wearing pajamas and a robe although it was just barely dark outside. She felt very comfortable and was looking forward to some of that stew Thelma had on the stove. She was happy to see Luna had already arrived. “Hello, Luna, doesn’t that stew smell wonderful? I can hardly wait to chow down!”
“Hello, Ophelia.” Luna said, putting the butter and jam on the table and sitting down while Thelma dished out big bowls of the beef stew. They ate their meal and made small talk in-between chews. Ophelia could not believe how good everything tasted. After they were finished, each took a mug of hot chocolate and sat by the fireplace in the living room.
Ophelia tucked her feet under her and covered up with a big throw blanket and took a sip of her hot chocolate. “Tell me more about the old country and about my mother.” She said to her cousins. “I hadn’t seen my mother in all the years I was stuck with Mrs. Johnson, I can never be able to thank you enough for finding me and bringing me here, Thelma. I just wish my mother could have known that I would have gone back to her if it had been possible.”
“I am sure she knows, dear.” Luna said and then clarified “The way all mothers know what is happening with their children, you just feel it in your heart.”
“Neither you, nor Thelma had children?” Ophelia asked.
“That is correct.”
“Didn’t you and Hugo ever want to have children?” Ophelia asked Luna.
Luna took a moment to sip on her hot chocolate and appeared to be trying to choose her words carefully. “It was different with Hugo and me. We have known each other for a very long time. Do you remember me mentioning the king’s second cousin who also lived in the Palace?” Luna asked Ophelia.
“Yes, you said that she had powers and she married and had a son and that no one knew that she wasn’t a mortal. I don’t think you mentioned her name though.”
“Her name was Julia. She married a man whom she loved, but this man served the King and did his bidding. The King ordered this man to head the purification of the forest as the King called it, to rid it of any entities that were not there to obey and serve the Crown. When he left with the King on his travels a specialist was called in, he was the Great Evil we told you about.”
“You are speaking of him trying to get rid of our family, right?” Ophelia asked.
“Our family and others. Up until then everyone coexisted without fear of being harmed or persecuted. With the arrival of the newly formed huntsmen came great harm and changes to our world. People were afraid of their neighbors and would do anything to keep suspicion off of their clan. One woman argued with a peddler over some sort of fasteners and he later had a stroke and died. That was enough for some people to say that she killed the peddler and declare her a witch.”
Ophelia went into the kitchen and came back with glasses and the bottle of wine. “I think I am ready for wine, would you ladies like to join me?” Both Thelma and Luna said yes and Ophelia poured them all a glass of the grape wine. She then asked what happened to the lady who argued with the peddler.
“She was put to death,” Thelma said. “She was stoned.”
“How horrible! I am so glad that our family was able to leave that awful place.” Ophelia said.
Thelma put another log onto the fire and then turned to her younger cousin. “It was not an awful place, but there were some powerful and evil people there.”
“So what happened to Julia, the King’s second cousin?”
She was happy in her pregnancy and overlooked a lot of what her husband, his name was Matthew, was assigned to do. She overlooked or just did not want to know much of what was taking place outside of the Palace gates. She was good friends with your mother, but neither of them up until that point had confided in the other anything regarding their powers.”
“You told me about my mother and the Great Evil and how he attacked her, did my mother leave the Palace after that happened? Did she at least tell Julia about it?”
“Your mother wanted to leave the Palace, but thought it would be safer to stay. That is not to say that she did not start to formulate a plan though. When Julia’s baby was born, a young man and his wife were brought in to help Julia. The girl was to help with the baby and her husband was assigned the duty of driving them to wherever in the kingdom they wished to go.” Luna explained.
“I am surprised they let Julia go anywhere if they thought that the people of the forest might harm them.” Ophelia said.
“Julia was not a Queen, she was merely the King’s second cousin and as such did not warrant the King’s full attention. As for Matthew, her husband, he was very political and spent most of his time away from the Palace.” Luna said, taking a drink of her wine.
“One day when Julia was in the nursery with her newborn son she saw him trying to reach for a toy, I believe it was some sort of a rattler, a gift from someone on their staff. The rattler was out of the little boy’s reach so the baby sat up and the rattler lifted up and floated over to the baby.”
“Did his mother see that happen?” Ophelia asked, her eyes wide.
“Yes, and also a young woman who was there to gather the soiled crib bedding to be washed.”
“My mother?”
“Yes, Ophelia, it was your mother. Of course Julia was shocked and was terrified that your mother would report her and her son to the King and that her own husband would hear and very possibly put them both to death.”
“Your mother told Julia not to be afraid and that her son was to be celebrated, not feared. The two young women bonded that day. They became very close friends and confidants. There was no queen and no other women of royalty in the Palace. The King and Julia’s husband Matthew spent months away from the Palace traveling and Julia had a rather lonely life.”
“Sounds like it was a good thing that her husband and cousin were not around much. Otherwise they would have been there to witness the little boy’s powers.” Ophelia said.
“Yes, but little boys grow into toddlers and Julia was terrified that he would be found out and put to death, as would she. The Great Evil was still at the Palace and although he paid no attention to her or to her son, Julia kept her son close to her.” Luna said.
“Why was the Great Evil there in the first place if the King and that Matthew were not even there?” Ophelia asked.
“He was on his mission to seek out and destroy those who were not like him. He had not known that the King was traveling. He stayed long enough to ride through the forest and ask everyone questions about their neighbors. He was a dangerous man who wanted people to be afraid of him and they were. When he saw an old woman on the path while he was hunting in the forest, he ran her over before she could move out of his way.” Thelma told her.
“Your mother was in a terrible predicament. She wanted to be there for Julia and protect her and her son, and yet her mere presence in the Palace put herself in harm’s way. The young woman and her husband who worked and lived in the palace became very attached to Julia and her son. They knew that the little boy was not a mortal and did everything they could to protect him.”
“Weren’t they afraid of the King or The Great Evil? What were their names?” Ophelia asked, wanting to make sure she kept everyone in her mind straight.
“The young lady’s name was Cynthia and her husband was Ash.” Thelma told her. “And yes, they were worried about what would happen once the King and Matthew came back. Keeping the baby away from the Great Evil wasn’t hard with Cynthia and Ash’s help. The Great Evil had no interest in babies, but they all knew that they had to leave before the King and Matthew returned if they wanted to live.”
“Did the Great Evil ever bothe
r my mother again?” Ophelia was almost afraid to ask.
“Only once more. Your mother, with the help of Julia, Cynthia and Ash, were mostly successful in keeping her distance from him. But one day when Julia and her son were in the garden, the baby was about three months old by then, your mother’s good luck ran out. Julia had her son on her lap and was singing to him. The baby started singing the same song that his mother was. The Great Evil happen to be walking by and heard the baby singing with his mother.”
“Oh no! How horrible! What did they do?” Ophelia cried.
“They did not see him approaching, but your mother, who was nearby, did. She quickly started to sing herself and that drew The Great Evil’s attention away from the mother and child and towards your mother. Your mother sacrificed herself that morning to save Julia and her son, but they all knew the time had come to leave. They knew that even if The Great Evil left, that the King and Matthew would be returning soon.” Luna told her.
“My poor mother! How did they get away?”
A knock on the door caused Thelma to jump and Ophelia to let out a screech. “It’s me, Sebastian! The snow is picking up so I wanted to bring over the rest of your supplies tonight before it gets any worse outside. Hello, Ophelia, Catherine said she enjoyed meeting you today.”
“Come in, Sebastian.” Thelma said as the women jumped up to help him carry in what appeared to Ophelia to be a year’s supply of groceries. Luna then went into the kitchen to help and to pour Sebastian a mug of hot chocolate.
When the groceries were all brought inside and the refrigerator full, Sebastian sat down at the kitchen table with the women and drank his hot chocolate. “I understand you want to remodel The Spa, Ophelia. Tom and I will be happy to make whatever changes or repairs you have in mind. Just let us know when.” He said.
“Oh, that project is just in the thinking stages. I am not sure what I want to do. I understand that the Chocolate Shop was opened years after The Spa was built?”
Miss Enchanter - Ophelia's Story Page 5