by Lily Webb
“Wow. How do you always look so good?” Beau asked.
“You don’t have to stroke my ego, Beau,” I said, my cheeks burning.
“I’m not. I’m stunned,” Beau said. Suddenly self-conscious, he fiddled with his matching light blue collared shirt. Was that an accident? It must’ve been.
“You don’t look so bad yourself,” I said.
“Please, I’m nothing compared to you,” he said. “You’re going to be the show stealer today, and for a good reason.”
“Then let’s get this show over with already. I’m melting,” I said, rubbing my palms against my legs. Beau stood to wrap his arms around me.
“You’ll have me there cheering you on the entire time,” Beau said.
“Then here’s hoping I don’t faint on stage and embarrass us both,” I said. Beau smirked and shook his head before offering me a hand. I took it and felt better right away.
“Flora, are you coming?” I asked.
“Of course. I wouldn’t miss this for anything,” Flora said as she gathered up her belongings. While I was getting ready, she’d dressed in a stunning white gown that flowed like silk.
Together, we left Flora’s house and headed to Veilside. I had no idea what to say, so I just kept quiet and tried to stay focused on the comforting feeling of Beau’s hand in mine as we walked side-by-side — all while hoping it didn’t gross him out how sweaty my palms were.
As Veilside’s ominous five towers loomed into view, my anxiety grew with each step. It wouldn’t have been half as bad if there’d been someone — anyone — on stage with me for the ceremony, but I guess my luck had run out long ago.
At the grand staircase that led into the school, Beau stopped me.
“What is it?” I asked. Beau’s eyes shifted left to right, and he laughed, but I didn’t see what was funny.
“You know, I’ve been thinking about something, and now seems like the perfect time to ask,” Beau said. As if my heart weren’t beating hard enough, it launched into overdrive.
“To ask what?”
“If you’d like to be my girlfriend,” Beau said. Flora clapped a hand over her mouth and squealed. I didn’t believe my ears.
“Are you sure?” I laughed.
“Absolutely. So, what do you say?”
“Of course,” I laughed as I threw my arms around his shoulders. Life just kept getting crazier by the minute.
When we’d broken up, the three of us strode into the school, and Raina was waiting for me in the entrance. She smiled at me so brightly it must’ve hurt.
“Zoe, dear. You look beautiful,” she said. “I’m so honored to be able to do this for you.”
“It’s me who should be honored,” I said.
“Nonsense. You’ve done so much for this community in such a short time. It only seems fair,” Raina said. “Come with me.”
“What about Beau and Flora? Can they enter the castle?” I asked. Raina nodded.
“The spells have been lifted for a special occasion,” she said. “Now hurry, or we’ll be late.”
Raina led us past the central tower of Veilside and out of a massive door on the opposite side of the school. We stepped out onto a vast field and the blinding sun.
Raising a hand to shield my eyes, I caught sight of what looked like a makeshift stage at the center of the field surrounded by thousands of bleacher-style seats that rose up in neat rows off the ground. Witches and warlocks on broomsticks zoomed overhead in some sort of air show.
Nearly all of the seats were already filled with witches, warlocks, and other beings, none of whom I recognized — until I spotted Mallory jumping up and down in the row nearest to the stage and waving at me. I wasn’t alone at all.
“Beau, you and Flora can take your seats next to Mallory,” Raina said, pointing to the empty chairs on either side of Mallory. “Zoe, come with me.”
Beau embraced me again.
“Don’t panic. You’ve got this,” he said. “If you get scared, just find me. I’m here for you.”
“Thank you,” I said, on the verge of tears as Raina tore me away from him. Using a hidden passageway, we walked between the bleachers until we arrived at a set of stairs that led to the main stage.
“How does this work?” I asked.
“Simple. I’ll start by introducing you to the crowd, and Head Warlock Highmore will bestow your wand upon you,” Raina said.
“Then what?”
“You give it a wave, of course,” Raina said, smiling. She glanced at her wristwatch and nodded. “It’s time. Are you ready?”
“As ready as I can be,” I said and gulped.
“Good. Wait here, I’ll call for you when I’m ready,” Raina said. She worked her way up the stairs and disappeared onto the stage. I held my breath as her voice carried magically across the grounds.
“Ladies and gentlemen, witches, warlocks, vampires, werewolves, and all,” Raina said, her words echoing. “Thank you for coming to honor our special student with us today. Before we get started, I understand Head Warlock Highmore has some words he’d like to say.”
Heath Highmore cleared his throat, which also bounced over everything.
“Thank you, Raina. It’s not often we’re able to perform a ceremony like this, and certainly not under such conditions,” Heath said. “But I’m proud to say that the student we’ve come together to honor today more than deserves the special treatment for bringing justice to my grandson, Seth Highmore, and our beloved Professor of Kinesis, Delia Frost. I think you’ll all agree. Raina?”
My face flushed. So much for maintaining a low profile.
“Thank you, Mr. Highmore. At this time, I’d like to introduce our guest of honor: Zoe Clarke!” Raina said, and cheers erupted as people stomped in their bleachers. Raina appeared above the stairs and motioned for me to come.
I ascended as slowly as I could, terrified of what I’d find when I stepped out — and I was right to do so because thousands of people stared back at me when I put both my feet on the stage and turned to look at them all. Raina and Heath stood with their wands raised to their throats.
In the center of the stage, a podium waited with a wand placed on its cushioned top. It was straight and free of wood knots, and I wondered how it was made.
“Please, step forward, Zoe,” Raina said, gesturing at the wand. I stood as close to it as I dared. I couldn’t tell for sure, but it seemed to be whispering to me, though I couldn’t make out the words.
“Many witches and warlocks look forward to this special day in their lives,” Heath said. “But Zoe hasn’t had the same experience as most of us, and she has more than proven herself worthy of wielding a wand. As such, the Council has decided to allow her to bypass the usual tests and receive her wand immediately.”
I wished he hadn’t said that, but there was nothing I could do about it.
“This wand, however, is similar to Zoe in that it’s unlike many others,” Heath said. “It’s been in the Veilside library for years, waiting for its next true owner to come along. The wand is rumored to have once belonged to Lilith herself.”
Was that why it was trying to communicate with me? If so, they hadn’t chosen this wand on accident.
“Zoe, place your right hand on the wand, please,” Raina said. I reached for it, and the whispering intensified. When my fingers wrapped around the base, my mind came alight with words, none of them in a language I understood.
“Repeat after me, please,” Raina said as Heath held his wand to my throat. I nodded.
“I, Zoe Clarke,” Raina said, and I repeated her words.
“Do solemnly swear to use this wand for good and nothing but good, so help me, Lilith,” Raina said. It was a mouthful, but I managed to get it out. After several more promises to protect the wand and to use it only when necessary, it was over.
Heath pointed his wand back at his throat.
“And with that, I, Head Warlock Heath Highmore, do bestow upon Zoe Clarke this wand,” Heath said to uproarious chee
rs.
“Go on, pick it up and wave it, dear,” Raina whispered in my ear. Reluctantly, I clenched my fist around the wood and flicked it in front of my face. A shower of sparks spewed from its tip, and the crowd cheered louder.
“Congratulations, Zoe,” Raina said.
“With a reaction like that, we might have the next Head Witch on our hands,” Heath said and winked at me.
“Don’t hold your breath,” I said, and Heath laughed.
“Give it another swing,” Raina said. This time, I held the wand up above my head and thrust it toward the sky. More of the sparks flew in a larger fountain, and I couldn’t fight the smile that grew on my face.
I only wished Grandma Elle could’ve been there to see it.
Book 3: When one of Moon Grove’s most prominent witches dies in a house fire, hysteria ignites—and Zoe Clarke finds herself standing in the ashes.
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Turn the page to read chapter one, or buy Alchemy and Arson now!
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Alchemy and Arson Excerpt
Chapter 1
All twelve members of the Moon Grove Council stared down at me from their high-backed chairs on a raised dais, each of them wearing a serious face — if I said having some of the most powerful witches and warlocks in the world scrutinizing me wasn't nerve-wracking, it would've been the understatement of the century.
“Zoe Clarke, at your request, you’ve come before the eighty-sixth Council of Moon Grove,” Heath Highmore, the Head Warlock, said with a warm smile. His salt and pepper hair glimmered in the sun streaming from the skylights above.
“What is it you'd like to speak to us about?” Heath asked.
I drummed my fingers against the table, unable to find words, which was a rarity. Why couldn't the Council have allowed someone to come up to the stand with me?
All I could do was stare at the empty seat next to Heath, the one that'd been vacant for more than a month since the previous Head Witch died. A lot had happened in Moon Grove since then, and not all of it was good.
Circe Woods, Councilwoman and one of my earliest friends in Moon Grove, caught my eyes and smiled at me.
“Zoe, dear, there's no need to be afraid,” she said in a motherly tone. “We're here to serve you. You're a citizen of Moon Grove now just like the rest of us, so please, tell us your concerns.”
“I-I know, I'm sorry. I'm just nervous,” I said and slipped my hands under the table to wipe my sweat-slicked palms on my robes. Though I'd done nothing wrong, I felt like I’d been put on trial — and after I asked what I needed to, the rest of Moon Grove might wish I had been.
“We understand,” Heath said. “Take your time.”
“But don't take too long,” a beautiful witch with flowing blonde hair at the left end of the row said, her face stern. “You aren't the only witch we’re scheduled to hear from today.”
She could only be Lorelei Riddle — the mother of Aurelia, who I'd recently gotten thrown in jail for murdering a teacher. I gulped at that realization. How on earth did I keep getting myself into these situations?
“Right, of course,” I said. I closed my eyes and took a deep, ragged breath to still my hammering heart. My Grandma Elle’s warm southern smile swam into my mind and the image gave me the courage to speak. Everything I was about to do was for her.
I cleared my throat and looked Heath square in the eyes.
“I came before you all today to ask a favor,” I said. “A very big one.”
The witches and warlocks of the Council exchanged curious looks. It probably wasn't every day that an average citizen asked their elected representatives for a favor, but then again I wasn't exactly average.
“What sort of favor might that be?” Heath asked.
“I know I'm the first outsider to be permitted into Moon Grove in a long time,” I started — and froze.
“That's true. Go on,” Circe encouraged me, still smiling. Did she already know what I wanted to ask?
“Well, I don't mean to wave my own wand or anything, but I think it's safe to say none of you regrets the decision to allow me in, right?” I asked.
Heath chuckled.
“I'm not so sure the families of those you've put behind bars in the short time you've been here would agree with that assessment, but I think I can speak for the majority of the Council when I say we made the right decision,” Heath said.
Lorelei Riddle glared at me, and though I did everything I could to avoid her gaze, I felt it burning on my face. Oh, if looks could kill…
“What are you getting at, Zoe?” Heath asked.
“Well, it's been awfully lonely for me since I got here. I had to leave my whole family behind,” I said, and Heath’s eyebrows crept up his forehead as he realized what I was trying to say.
“I see,” he said as he linked his fingers together under his chin. My heart rate doubled.
“So I was wondering if it might be okay for me to invite my grandmother here for a short visit,” I said as fast as I could — like it would take the shock out of the request.
No one said a word, and the deafening silence in the Town Hall was as telling as a collective gasp would've been. I felt like I'd farted at a funeral and everyone knew I was guilty.
Heath straightened in his chair.
“Zoe, while I can appreciate your loneliness, given everything that's gone on in town lately, I'm not sure this is the best time for visitors of any sort, magical or not,” Heath said.
Though I'd expected the response, his words still socked me in the gut.
“Is there really such a thing as the best time?” Circe asked, and my heart jumped into my throat where it lodged and continued to pound.
“That's a fair point,” Heath said.
“Don't you think Zoe has proven herself trustworthy? This is a small repayment for all the service she's done for Moon Grove,” Circe said.
“Agreed,” Grace Magnus, who'd only recently returned to work after a vampire attack, said from the right side of the dais. She beamed down at me.
“I owe Ms. Clarke my life. Nothing would make me happier than to welcome her family into Moon Grove,” Grace said.
“And let’s not forget there’s an excellent chance her family members are magical as well. We might miss an exceedingly rare opportunity to learn more about all witches as a group if we denied Zoe’s request,” Circe said directly to Heath. If I could’ve hugged her, I would’ve.
“Yes, but only if what your sister learned about Zoe descending from Lilith is true, which we’ve yet to verify,” Heath said. “Regardless, I still don’t think now is the best time. There are big things underway.”
“What things?” I interrupted, and again the chamber fell silent. Heath smiled at me, his eyes twinkling as if he were amused, and my face caught fire. Open mouth, insert foot.
“Oh, I’m sure you’ll find out soon enough, Ms. Clarke. Nothing seems to slip past you and the rest of the staff at The Messenger,” Heath said.
What did that mean? No one at the Moon Grove Messenger had anything at all interesting to report on lately. They obviously knew something we didn’t, and I didn’t know how to feel about that. Surprises from the Council were rarely good.
“Or perhaps Grave Times beat you to the scoop?” Heath asked. He had to be referring to the new vampire-run and vampire-staffed publication in town — and our biggest upstart competitor.
“It’s just my grandma who I’d like to have for a visit. It’s not like I’m trying to move my entire family here or anything,” I said.
“I understand. Regardless, I think it’s time we took a vote on your request,” Heath said. He glanced up and down the row at his fellow witches and warlocks. “All those in favor of permitting Zoe’s family to visit, raise your wands and say, ‘aye.’”
Circe
and Grace raised their wands, but no one else did. My heart dropped into my stomach.
“And all those opposed to the request, raise your wands and say, ‘nay,’” Heath said. Ten wands shot into the air along with their owners’ voices, all denying me. Heath gave me a soft, sad smile and rested his hands on the table.
Lorelei, however, looked absolutely triumphant as she stared down her nose at me from the dais. Maybe she felt like she’d gotten back at me for getting her daughter arrested. I didn’t have the spirit left to figure it out nor care.
“I’m sorry, dear, but the Council has voted not to approve a visit at this time. However, feel free to try again later when circumstances are less, well, unsettled,” Heath said.
I could only assume he was referring to all the trouble that’d gone on in Moon Grove lately — much of it made worse by my intervention.
“Right, yeah, okay. Can I, uh, can I go then?” I asked.
“If you have no other questions or concerns, of course,” Heath said. He was trying to be nice, which I appreciated, but all I wanted was to get out of the Town Hall and as far away from the Council as possible.
“No, that’s everything, thanks for hearing me out,” I said — though I’d gotten nothing out of it other than a mild case of depression.
“Then this meeting is adjourned,” Heath said. “The Council will break for five minutes before we move on to the next guest.”
I shoved back from the table, slung my bag over my shoulder, and tried my best not to meet eyes with any of the dozens of people who’d gathered to listen as I made a beeline for the door. Somehow, I doubted Lorelei was the only one happy to see me not get what I wanted for once.
A hand on my shoulder jolted me out of my racing thoughts and I whirled to find Circe smiling at me.
“Can we talk?” she asked, her loose auburn bun threatening to tumble off her head as she jerked it toward the hall that held her office.