A Witch Too Late

by Paula Lester

  Her mother had set this in motion.

  A sudden sharp pain brought Cas back to the moment. She looked down at her hand. Her palm was embedded with half-moons. She’d been digging her nails into the skin and hadn’t realized. This was beyond what Cas could’ve guessed. It was going to take some time to process.

  As Violette watched Cas’ face, she seemed to understand and gave a little nod. “Lavania and Oceane didn’t want to give up the stone, even after they saw the horrible effects their spells had. So I stole it. I took it to SunSprite and gave them instructions to deliver the package on your sixteenth birthday. I felt it was the only way to keep the others from being tempted to use the stone more and to protect you. If anyone got their hands on the stone, you’d be in danger. My sister agreed.”

  Violette shook her head. She stood and began to pace around the small room, agitated. “As you’ve probably noticed, we were able to get Violaine registered and licensed to leave the cemetery. Even I didn’t know how often she’s been checking up on you throughout the years. When you turned sixteen and didn’t get your package, we were both horrified. SunSprite has given us the runaround ever since. Those sprites are harder to nail down than a slippery serpent at Halloween time.” Her voice had a hard edge that had been absent before. “Somehow, they miraculously found the package a few days ago—more than thirty years late.”

  Violette stopped her pacing and went back to Cas. She bent over, grabbed both of Cas’ hands, and looked intently into her eyes. “I’m so sorry your life was so disrupted by our selfishness. We rationalized what we did as being good for you too, but it wasn’t. Now you’re fifty years old and trying to learn to deal with your immense powers. Forgive us. Forgive me.

  “But maybe I can be of help. I could mentor you, at least a little bit. I’m nowhere near your power level, but maybe I could start to teach you the basics anyway. If the council approves.”

  Cas wrapped her arms around herself. She couldn’t look the other woman in the eye. “Thank you for the offer. I’ll ask the council about it. And thank you for your honesty. I have to go now.”

  She headed for the door with Violette close behind. Cas put a hand on the doorknob but turned around. “I don’t know how to feel right now. The three of you changed my life in ways I can’t even imagine.” Cas paused to take a deep breath. “But thank you for trying to get the stone to me. You and Violaine.”

  Cas looked up at Violette. The other woman’s eyes brimmed with unshed tears. She stood a little taller, as if a weight had been removed from her shoulders. Cas said, “I have to get going, but perhaps I’ll visit you when I’m up for it. I’d love to hear more about my mom.”

  “Of course. Come anytime you’re ready,” Violette answered.

  Cas stepped outside and paused. “By the way, where is Violaine?” She looked over Violette’s shoulder back into the house.

  “Oh, she comes and goes. But ever since you’ve regained your abilities, I’ve been seeing her less. I think Violaine is more at peace now. I could summon her if you’d like to talk.”

  “No, that’s okay.” Cas couldn’t say no thanks fast enough. She didn’t know what summoning a ghost involved, but Cas didn’t have the mental capacity to handle much more. “Bye, Violette.”

  She got in her car and sat there for a minute, fiddling with the keys. Some of it was just too much to parse at the moment. Over the years, the details of Oceane’s face had faded in Cas’ mind. But right now, her mom’s image was clear and sharp. So sharp it stung. Cas wiped at her eyes.

  Instead of thinking of her mother, she ran through the entire conversation with Violette and tried to look at it through a critical lens of what was happening now—her being framed for Lavania’s murder.

  Cas backed out of the driveway. She didn’t have a destination in mind—her thoughts swirled around like clouds, wispy and just out of grasp. As she drove, she worked to pin down one of them to be examined.

  Lavania didn’t have an absence of enemies. First, there were her fellow sirens. Cas had seen firsthand how the Archsiren had no problem showering insults on them. Years of abuse could push anyone over the edge. And each of the other council members had the power to murder Lavania in the way she’d been killed.

  And what about the other citizens of Crystal Springs? There was that Dzovag man. He’d been raging all over town about how Lavania had blocked his lavish hotel plans. And Cas couldn’t forget that Bear guy at the newspaper. Though his wife seemed capable of calming him down.

  Sapphire, her half-sister’s assistant, had a bone to pick with Lavania too. But as Cas thought of the diminutive woman, it was hard to picture her having the magical oomph to accomplish murder. But what if she’d gotten her hands on some type of taboo thingamajig off the black market? Hadn’t the illegal dealing leprechaun, Seamus, been at the same convention? Could they have done a deal?

  Cas let loose an impatient huff. All this work and she was no closer to discovering the identity of Lavania’s killer. Maybe she should get each of the sirens alone and somehow encourage them to talk.

  Suddenly, something Violette said leaped into the forefront of her mind. Lavania had stolen the perpetuity stone, a very rare magical item, from Ranger, the previous Archsiren. A question stirred in Cas’ brain: Why did Ranger have the artifact in the first place?

  When Cas’ dousing amulet was destroyed, the sirens had ordered Dustin to dispose of it discretely because Shiloh had bought it off the magical black market. Didn’t the council say any items that tampered with a witch’s power were illegal? If so, why would an Archsiren need a perpetuity stone?

  If Ranger had somehow acquired one, he must have planned to use it for something.

  And what if the reappearance of the stone now was somehow connected to Lavania’s death?

  Cas’ attention snapped back to the present. She’d driven to the hot springs on auto-pilot. This wasn’t her first visit. Like many residents living close to Crystal Springs, Cas enjoyed the touristy spots too.

  She parked, got out of the car, and stretched her back. There were only two other cars in the parking lot. She grinned, amused at herself. Her subconscious mind must have known this would be a good spot to think.

  The springs were at the end of a short path that led through a copse of trees just off the parking lot. Cas took her time making her way down it, breathing in the forest scents and drinking in the nature sights. There had been a brief rain early that morning, and drops of water on the leaves and grass caused the colors to pop even more vividly.

  As the woods ended, Cas heard the sound of the river. The path opened up to reveal a large clearing filled with huge rocks surrounding a steaming pool of water. Cas shed her shoes and socks and climbed up to perch on a boulder. She could feel warm air billowing at her face from the hot spring and something else pulsing in the air too. It felt similar to the calm, compelling feeling Cas experienced when Tempeste had been nearby in the council chamber. This must be the power she’d heard was associated with the hot springs. She’d never noticed it before.

  As Tempeste crossed her mind, another thought hit her, and she gasped and sat up straighter, fully alert. Violette said that a witch of Tempeste’s power had visited Crystal Springs the year Cas was born. The year her mother and the others stole the perpetuity stone from Ranger. Had he planned to capture that visiting witch’s power in the stone and use it for something?

  Pieces of the puzzle clicked together more rapidly now. She could feel that she was close to the answer. Still, one big question remained, the answer to which might lead to Lavania’s killer.

  What type of spell had Archsiren Ranger wanted to cast with the magic harnessed from a powerful witch?

  She thought about the reasons Violette, Lavania, and Oceane wanted to cast webs. Could one of those be the same reason Ranger wanted to use the stone? He was already Archsiren, so it couldn’t be that. Did he want more power? More money? Maybe. She didn’t understand all the benefits that came with the position.

&n
bsp; As she questioned those two motives, Violette’s reason for casting a web floated into Cas’ mind and captured her attention: To help a family member.

  Had Ranger been desperate to help someone?

  Possibly. Actually, it seemed probable.

  But who had Ranger wanted to help? Cas thought it had to be someone in the man’s family. It seemed unlikely that he would risk a web spell’s backlash and negative consequences for a mere friend or acquaintance.

  Could any of that be connected to Lavania’s death? Cas didn’t know anything about Archsiren Ranger’s family, but she knew where to go to find out. She grabbed her shoes and headed back toward the parking lot. She moved much faster than earlier. She didn’t pause to take in the sights or sounds this time.

  When she got back to the edge of the lot, more vehicles had pulled in. Dzovag Livings was there. “This patch of trees will need to be taken down and the parking lot expanded to cover that area,” he said to another man, who nodded and scribbled on a yellow legal pad. “The main hotel building will go over there.” Dzovag pointed toward the river.

  The other man nodded again and then looked up from his pad. “And you have all the necessary permits for this, sir?”

  Dzovag’s face turned red. “I will,” he sputtered. “I have no doubt of that now. My obstacle has been removed.”

  Maybe it was the exasperation about her mom. Perhaps it was her mounting frustration about solving Lavania’s murder. But whatever the trigger, Cas couldn’t resist stepping up to them. “What do you mean by that?”

  Dzovag’s eyes were the first to respond. They snapped in Cas’ direction before his bulk followed. “I’ve heard of you. You’re that...well rumor says no one can figure out what you are. A freak of nature perhaps. But I guess I owe you a debt of gratitude.”

  Cas stood her ground. “I haven’t done anything to be thanked for.”

  “Nonsense. Lavania’s death has done this town a service.”

  “I didn’t kill her. What about you? Is that what you meant by an obstacle being removed? Lavania? Did you remove her?”

  Dzovag chuckled and flicked an invisible speck off his tie. “I’m more of a lover and business man than fighter.”

  Cas stepped back and made a show of looking the man over from head to toe. She titled her head to one side. “I doubt that. The lover part, I mean.”

  The man with the pad stifled a laugh. Dzovag’s eyes swiveled to him and back to Cas. He took a step forward, close enough to invade Cas’ personal space. “You need be careful. I’m not a man to be treated carelessly.”

  “And if the rumors you heard are true, you should know threatening me is a bad idea. I might lose control.” Cas waggled her fingers in his face.

  Dzovag jerked away and blustered. “Go away. We have business.”

  “My pleasure. I have to get to the Courthouse anyway.”

  Cas pivoted, feeling surprised by her outburst. Yet, it had felt satisfying too. Speaking her mind had been long overdue. Though maybe telling a potential killer her next location hadn’t been a good idea. Oh well. It was too late to worry about that. She hopped into her car, started it, and left the parking lot.

  Cas glanced at the clock on the dashboard and was shocked to see that it was 6:00 pm. The day had flown by, and she hadn’t eaten anything other than a banana before she left the house. Her stomach growled.

  Her cell rang. It was Graham. Echo had come to his place looking for her. Cas filled him in and agreed to meet them outside the Courthouse to watch the Founder’s Day parade, but after they hung up, all she could think about was Ranger and what he might have been up to with the perpetuity stone.

  She had to park a few streets away from the Courthouse because traffic was barred from entering the mile-long area around what would be the parade route, including the street right in front of the building. A crowd had already gathered and started celebrating, and more people poured into the area every minute. Cas had to squeeze her way between revelers to make any headway in getting to the front door of the Courthouse.

  She tried not to bump into anyone, but it was impossible. She brushed against a passerby. “Oh, I’m sorry,” she murmured.

  The woman snorted in response and Cas looked at her face for the first time. She had jet black hair, cats-eye makeup, and three tiny horns protruding from her forehead. She scrunched up her nose and hissed at Cas. Her tongue was the same shade of black as her hair and had a fork like a snake’s.

  Cas raised her eyebrows and moved her head back as much as she could. Then she smiled. “I love your makeup. I wish that style looked good on me,” she said. The other woman’s lower jaw dropped down about an inch and Cas held her breath.

  Then the fork-tongued woman smiled back. It transformed her whole face. “I watch makeup tutorials on the internet for a couple hours every evening to unwind,” she said. “It helps with the anger issues that come along with being a lesser demon. Serpentine blood tends to run hot, ya know? But tonight I can leave my horns out and not disguise my tongue. Happy Founder’s Day!”

  Cas nodded and continued to press through the crowd, proud of herself for making a connection. Maybe she could get used to moving through the supernatural community after all.

  She made it to the Courthouse and tried the doors. Locked, of course. It was after hours and most people would be at the parade. But she was on to something, Cas could feel it. She moved back to let some parade-goers pass by and then fell in step behind them.

  At the corner of the Courthouse, she ducked out of the flow of foot-traffic. If the front doors were locked, why would the back be open? But there were residences somewhere in the huge building, so there must be a way in. Unless the people who lived here used some magical means to zap in or whatever. Well, trying wouldn’t hurt.

  It took her almost a full trip around the building, but Cas did find another entrance. A big ‘ol lobby with blazing lights and a sign that said Residences above it. It was just around the other side from the Courthouse entrance she usually used. She felt silly for never noticing it before.

  At least the lobby didn’t have a doorman. Cas walked in without being questioned. And right where she would’ve guessed it would be was an unmarked metal door. The knob turned without much effort. Cas peeked in and—jackpot—there was the cavernous vestibule of the Courthouse.

  The place looked deserted. She didn’t see anyone milling about on the main floor. Maybe this would be easy.

  She took the hover pad up to the level that housed the council chamber and moved down the hallway to the reception area. The door was unlocked, but neither Waverly nor Denzel manned the tall desk.

  The air was silent and still, as if there wasn’t a soul in the entire building. But she was technically breaking and entering. Was this really a good idea? Cas made her decision a split second later. She didn’t want to wait another day to get answers.

  Cas darted behind the reception desk and tested the door. It yielded under her hand, and she stuck her head into the hallway beyond. It was empty and quiet. Awesome.

  She crept down the hallway to the closed door leading to the council chamber. Cas glanced around one last time but still didn’t see or hear anyone. The biggest threat to being caught was Denzel. The ghost might be able to hear better than any humans in the vicinity. But then again, ghosts could like parades too, right? After all, lesser demons, sprites, and sirens did. She held her breath and twisted the chamber door’s knob.

  It didn’t open. She’d been afraid of that.

  Cas examined the lock. It was a simple, turning knob with a keyhole. Piece of cake. One credit card from her purse and a minute or two of stealthy finesse, and the latch opened with a soft pop.

  “Yes!” she whispered. All those times getting locked out the house and jimmying the back door had paid off.

  She slipped into the council chamber and closed the door. Cas crossed to the smooth wall where Dustin had pulled the witch lineage book from. The wall was smooth.

  Crap. She’d fo
rgotten about this part. Okay, okay. She could do this.

  Cas took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and thought back to what Dustin had done after the Table of Contents had flapped into the wall. She studied the entire scene in her mind’s eye. Just do what he did.

  The wall was totally blank and flat. Cas prayed this was a parlor trick anyone could do and not something that required powers. What if there was some type of magical protection or lock? Losing a finger was not on today’s agenda.

  Well, no pain, no gain or something like that. Cas gritted her teeth and swatted at the wall like it was a pesky gnat. It sucked her hand in up to the wrist, and she forced herself not to jump back.

  She couldn’t see her hand. But it tingled as if it had plunged into liquid twenty degrees colder than the rest of the room. Her fingers grazed something hard, and Cas gave it a hard yank.

  A book! She looked at the cover. It read, Magical Princes of Medieval Spain. Wrong one. She frowned, disappointed. But giving up wasn’t an option now. Not when she was this close.

  She set the book down on a shelf that had appeared when she’d pulled the book out. Cas moved half a step to her right and repeated the wall-grabbing motion. This time, when she withdrew her hand, it held a book she recognized. It was huge, and she needed two hands to balance the thing.

  Cas set it down and flipped open the cover, hoping for some kind of index to find the family history of Archsiren Ranger.

  Pain exploded in the back of her head, and before everything went dark, she thought, Wow, Denzel really hits hard for a ghost.

  Chapter 15

  Cas’ head felt like fire. No, not fire. Lava. It felt as if molten rock had been poured into her skull. With every second that consciousness returned, the burning pain ratcheted up a notch.