Witchy Weddings: A Magic Witch Mystery Series: The complete Touch of Magic series

by Danielle Garrett

  “She’s choking!” I screamed, dropping my part of the Angel’s Light spell.

  Harmony continued blasting the shadow but Meryl’s face turned purple.

  “Let me go if you want her to live!” the sorcerer shouted as another shadow appeared at the other end of the room. Then another. And a fourth.

  We were surrounded.

  I saw the fear on the agent’s faces and the hair went up on the back of my neck as the sorcerer let out a peal of wild laughter. Without thinking, I dove to my knees and snatched the Heart of Poseidon from the floor. The manic laughter stopped, morphing into a string of curses, and all four shadow men turned their attention to me.

  Meryl crumpled to the floor, sucking in huge gulps of air.

  “Give it to me, Ana!” Caleb called, reaching for the necklace.

  I clenched the jewel in my hand and muttered a spell. I’d read it in one of Harmony’s spell books.

  She grinned when the words left my mouth.

  The jewel compacted in my hand, crunching down like a piece of soft rock, until tiny flecks of sapphire sifted through my fingers, falling to a pile before my knees.

  A howl echoed through the room, so piercing we all covered our ears and ducked against the barrage. I forced my eyes open against the gale of shrieking wind and saw the shadow men melt into ash and blow away, then, with horror, realized pieces of the sorcerer were flaking off in the same manner and dissolving into thin air.

  The wind stopped as suddenly as it started, leaving the chair empty, the magic bonds in a pool on the floor.

  He was gone.

  It was all gone.

  Chapter Eighteen

  “What in the Otherworld did you just do?”

  It was a good question. One that I, unfortunately, didn’t have the answer to.

  “It’s a compacting spell,” Harmony answered, coming to squat beside me. “You okay?”

  I nodded, still staring around the room, waiting for shadows to appear or an echo of the maniacal laughter to burst in through one of the narrow windows that peeked out above the ground to provide the basement a small amount of sunshine during the daytime. As it was, the only lights were the recessed lighting over our heads, and it wasn’t revealing anything but an empty room and a pile of sapphire dust.

  “We use it to crush cans and trash,” Harmony continued, twisting to look up at Caleb. A surprised bubble of laughter escaped her lips. “Although, what made you think to use it on the jewel is beyond me. Apparently, somewhere along the way you decided you had superhuman strength?”

  I shook my head and ran my fingers through the dust. “I wasn’t really thinking anything, to be honest. I just didn’t want him to get the stone back. There had to be a reason he’s so protective over it, and I don’t think it’s so he could live longer to help more little old ladies across the street or rescue kittens from high tree branches.”

  “No,” Harmony said, her voice nearly a whisper. “I don’t think so.”

  “But what does it mean?” Caleb asked aloud to no one in particular. He paced to the stairs and looked up. “Is he … gone? Where?”

  Meryl stooped to inspect what was left of the Heart of Poseidon. “If he bound himself to the stone, it stands to reason that with it destroyed, so is he.”

  “We’ll gather the remains and take them to headquarters,” Clark said helpfully. He produced an evidence bag from the inside pocket of his coat and we all gave him a strange look. He shrugged. “What? Can’t a guy be prepared?”

  “When we get back to the haven, remind me to call my cousin, Loretta,” Meryl said, pushing to her feet. “I think she’d like you.”

  Harmony’s brow furrowed and Meryl turned back to us, whispering, “She has a small vacuum in order to vacuum her other vacuum.”

  My eyebrows lifted and Harmony muffled a snort against her balled fist. “Oookie dokie.”

  “There’s one way to know whether or not he’s really gone,” I said. Harmony offered me a hand up and I took it.

  “What’s that?” Caleb asked. “And please don’t say mind magic,” he added, shooting a look at Harmony.

  She rolled her eyes.

  “We need to go to the hospital. Remember what he said about Aurelia? If he’s gone, dead or whatever, the hold he has on her will have broken and she’ll come out of the trance.”

  Caleb snapped his fingers and barked out a series of orders. He tried to tell Harmony and me to stay put but we both squashed that pretty quickly, pointing out that the safe house was no longer safe and that we’d all be better off staying together in a group. He muttered something about not being a pack of werewolves, but didn’t argue further.

  Twenty minutes later, we were on the road out of Unicorn Saddle Ridge. Harmony and I sat in the backseat, Peaches in the cat carrier wedged between us. Meryl, Clark, and the other female agent sat in the middle row, all on their phones, trying to reach various SPA departments. Caleb had called the hospital but the nurse at the desk told him he’d have to wait for a healer to call him back and to expect a wait thanks to a Shimmer Bus derailment. For a moment, I worried the sorcerer might have had something to do with the accident, but Caleb discarded that theory after listening to the radio and overhearing that the driver of the bus had fallen asleep at the wheel.

  “Well that’s not entirely a relief,” I said under my breath. “I ride the hexin’ thing every day.”

  Caleb’s fourth agent drove at top speeds but the drive still seemed to take a lot longer than it had on the way to the safe house and my fingers drummed on my thighs as Caleb sped through the Seattle Haven streets.

  “How did he even get into the house?” I asked when things quieted down. “I thought you said any tracking spells would redirect him to an SPA holding cell.”

  Caleb cleared his throat. “I was told the deterrents had been set up, but a tracking spell is the only thing that makes sense. These plans came together so quickly … it’s possible the request for the spell is still sitting on a supervisor’s desk.”

  Meryl coughed, concealing a grin. “Ah, bureaucracy. That’s the real killer here.”

  “I don’t know,” Harmony interjected, one hand resting on Peaches’s carrier. “The sorcerer said he had some connection to you, Stace. Because of the curse. He might not have needed a tracking spell. He already knew where you were.”

  “Maybe. But then why did he use one to send the flower delivery boy to my door?”

  Meryl leaned forward, poking her head in between the driver and passenger seats. “Ruiz, is it possible what you recalled was actually a location spell, not a tracking spell. It must be hard to tell the difference between the two after they’ve already faded.”

  Harmony frowned. “I’m not following.”

  Meryl sat back and then twisted in her seat to face us. “A location spell would be like GPS for witches. Lots of delivery places use them to make sure deliveries get where they’re supposed to go. It’s possible that delivery boy didn’t know the way to Ana’s building, and the shop owner used a location spell to help him. Whereas a tracking spell is much more in depth and follows a person, thanks to some kind of article of clothing or hair or whatever, and isn’t location-dependent.”

  Ruiz didn’t say anything for a long moment, but then quickly informed Caleb he’d follow up with the flower company in the morning to see if that was common practice for their deliveries.

  I sagged back against the seat. It wasn’t all that comforting to think that some shadow had followed me everywhere I’d gone since the attack at Aurelia’s. Somehow, the thought of a tracking spell was less invasive.

  Ruiz pulled into the hospital parking lot, and we all drew in a collective breath before disembarking the SUV. Caleb naturally took the lead and went to the desk to speak with Aurelia’s healer. After a few moments, he signaled for us to wait and then disappeared down the hall.

  No one said anything as we waited for news. Minutes ticked by, each one slower than the last. Finally, Caleb rounded the corridor, and
when he met my eyes, he burst into a wide smile. “She’s waking up!”

  A cry broke from me and I collapsed into his arms.

  He cradled the back of my head as I cried against his shoulder, all of the emotions flowing from me in blubbering sobs. “You did it, baby. You saved her.”

  Two weeks later, Caleb accompanied me to what was supposed to be CeeCee’s going-away party at the office, only to discover, upon entering Luna, that it was actually a surprise birthday party for me. Harmony had made the arrangements with CeeCee in secret and used CeeCee’s departure from the firm as the cover story for a big group gathering.

  Marcus, the managing partner of the chic eatery, had gone all out, helping with the decorations and even having his award-winning chef create a signature meal in my honor. Guy, Harmony’s bartender friend, created a truly inspired cocktail for the occasion that featured strawberries, chocolate, vodka, and a little splash of magic, and insisted we all drink.

  And while it might have been my birthday soiree, the real guest of honor was Aurelia. The curse had broken and she’d been able to return home less than forty-eight hours after the sorcerer had been defeated.

  In the week following the showdown at the SPA safe house, we’d learned that the sorcerer was named Earl Whittley, a thirty-three year old prodigy from the Chicago Haven. After speaking with his last roommate, Caleb learned that he’d been in Seattle for six months, searching down some rare tome to add to his collection. The roommate claimed not to know anything about the Heart of Poseidon, but did admit that often times he would find Earl bringing home stray animals only to never see them again.

  The SPA’s advanced dark magic team had worked tirelessly to figure out what he’d done to the sapphire, but had trouble as there was so little of it left, and whatever magic it contained appeared to have vanished. Some things about Earl would remain a mystery, but everyone agreed that he was good and truly gone, even if no one was quite sure where.

  “Since I thought this was your party, I do have a little something for you,” I told CeeCee when things had died down. A handful of guests remained behind, nursing Guy’s specialty cocktails and snacking on the leftover cake.

  “You didn’t have to do that,” she said, even as she made grabby hand motions at the gift bag I produced from under my seat at the table.

  She tore into the tissue paper with gusto and pulled out the custom travel mug I’d had made for her. It was white with aqua writing up the side that read “Boss Witch” in a bold font.

  “Shake it!” I told her.

  She did, and the lettering changed in a shower of gold sparkles, reading “And Don’t You Forget It!”

  She laughed and shook it again, changing it back. “I love it!”

  “I figure it’ll put a good amount of fear into your new underlings,” I teased.

  She cooed and clapped her hands together. “I have underlings!”

  We laughed together and ordered another round.

  “Are you excited?” I asked, fishing a strawberry from the bottom of my martini glass.

  “I am,” she said with a sharp nod before puckering up to take a long sip of her own drink. “And you know,” she said, leaning in conspiratorially, “I could get you a pretty sweet discount if you ever wanted to use the ballroom for, say, a wedding.”

  “Good to know. I’ll make a note—” I stopped mid-sentence, the full weight of her suggestion hitting me. Warmth spread over my cheeks even as my gaze found Caleb across the room, chatting with Patrick and Harmony.

  Aurelia appeared and sat on my other side, giving CeeCee a knowing smile. “What’s this about a wedding?”

  Oh, stars. Here we go.

  * * *

  ***

  * * *

  AUTHOR’S NOTE

  Thank you so much for reading Couture and Curses! I hope you enjoyed the story. Anastasia and Harmony’s adventures (and mishaps!) continue in Wedding Bells and Deadly Spells, the last book in this trio of magic mysteries.

  Thank you and happy reading!

  ~Danielle Garrett

  www.DanielleGarrettBooks.com

  Wedding Bells and Deadly Spells

  Introduction

  A drop of poison is all it takes to bring the biggest wedding of the season to its knees.

  * * *

  Anastasia Winters adheres to the adage that the show must go on, but when the groom of her latest wedding drops dead before “I do,” she’s left with no backup plan.

  * * *

  Things get even stickier when her friend and esteemed caterer, Francois, is named the top suspect.

  * * *

  Ana's loyalties are tested as the investigation turns into a vicious tug-of-war. She believes Francois is innocent, but holding the other side of the rope is the lead detective--her serious boyfriend--and the more she struggles, the more her own chance at happily ever after starts to unravel.

  * * *

  It’s up to Anastasia to find the killer, while gripping tightly to her relationships before they break and leave her with nothing.

  Chapter One

  Spring was in the air, and for a wedding planner witch, that could only mean one thing: wedding season was on the way! My day planner was rapidly filling up with rehearsal dinners, bridal showers, and pre-wedding pep talks. My days were long, and by the end of them, I’d arrive home with a tapped-out brain and aching feet. It was beyond me why some clever witch hadn’t come up with a magical solution to make heels more comfortable.

  Even with a full-to-the-brim schedule and the challenge of juggling multiple clients and events, I still wouldn’t have traded my life for anyone else’s. I loved my job and my clients.

  Well, most of them.

  The majority of my clients were flexible, reasonable, and easy to work with. Then there was Evan Stimpton and his bride-to-be, Charlene Fitzpatrick. The wizard and witch duo had begun their planning process six months ago, and every week something would inevitably come up, forcing me into a teeth-grinding phone call or in-person meeting. To say their expectations were high would be the understatement of the twenty-first century.

  Evan was the catalyst of the drama. He came from a wealthy family and still held fast to the silver spoon he’d been born with. Charlene was less vocal about her complaints, instead choosing to flash a variety of expressions at Evan, most of which resulted in him throwing a temper tantrum. He fancied himself somewhat of a visionary, and every detail had to pass his inspection and gain his approval. Two weeks ago, we’d had an hour-long meeting to discuss the reasons why the napkin rings I’d chosen were unacceptable.

  The unpleasant duo was set to tie the knot in two days and I had a mental countdown timer ticking in the back of my mind. My friends and family were just as sick of the obnoxious pair as I was, being forced to live the nightmare vicariously through my rants and ravings. With the wedding finally in sight, I’d arranged a celebration dinner at Luna, one of my favorite restaurants, to host everyone and thank them for doing their best to soothe my nerves and for putting up with my foul moods.

  As soon as the newly minted Mr. and Mrs. Stimpton exited their reception, swept away by—I kid you not— a pegasus-powered carriage, I’d race across the haven to join them all for a celebratory dinner, on me.

  All I had to do was plaster on a smile, keep everyone in time and in line, and swallow my frustration. Even if that meant choking on it.

  “Tell me this isn’t the only setting on the lights!”

  Every muscle tensed as I turned to address the shrill comment from my borderline-hysterical groom. I’d had plenty of bridezillas over the years, but Evan was officially my first groomzilla.

  I glanced up at the chandelier he was gesticulating at as though it had personally offended him. “I’m not sure,” I said, biting back my rising irritation. “I’ll ask if they can dim the lights. They probably have a filter.”

  “You don’t know?” Evan barked, one eyebrow lifting as his voice went an octave higher. I pulled in a deep, fortifying breath
and gave myself credit for not strangling him then and there.

  Charlene laced her arm through Evan’s and rolled her eyes, her overly plump lips sticking out like a platypus.

  I couldn’t tell if the eye roll was directed at me or Evan. It didn’t really matter.

  “I’ll make sure the lighting is softer for the reception,” I promised the pair.

  Evan folded his arms, shrugging away Charlene. “I’d like to see it now,” he demanded. “I don’t want to be surprised in the middle of our wedding!”

  My lips went into a thin line even as I forced a smile. “Of course. Give me five minutes. Why don’t you check the place-setting mock up and make sure it’s to your liking,” I suggested, already knowing he’d find half a dozen things wrong.

  Evan and Charlene exchanged a look and then haughtily stalked across the expansive ballroom to the table the venue had set up for them to approve. I’d never had clients attend the walk-through with me but Evan and Charlene had insisted they give final approval to every detail.

  Down to the wattage, apparently.

  Scowling, I stalked away in the opposite direction, off to find some poor soul who worked for the posh hotel in hopes we could somehow adjust the lighting on the antique-looking chandeliers.

  I drew in a slow breath and steeled myself for a barrage of complaints when I returned. “Thirty-six hours,” I muttered. “Thirty. Six. Hours.”

  Four hours and half a dozen problems later, the rehearsal was complete and the not-so-happy couple was on their way to a swanky restaurant across town to celebrate with their wedding party. I’d technically only worked a half day, but my nerves were as frayed as if I’d put in a full ten-hour day. As I boarded the Shimmer Bus, I regretted not having the forethought to slip a mini bar-sized bottle of wine in my purse.