by Amy Boyles
“No. Yes. I don’t know. I just realized something I’d forgotten.”
“Whatever could that be?”
I rubbed my forehead, trying to make the image as clear as possible. “There was something in a vision I received. Something just out of reach.”
Then it hit me what the image was. But was I right? Ugh. There was only one way to find out.
“Peaches?”
The cat rolled over on his back and blinked at me. “Yes?”
“How’re you doing?”
“Besides the fact that you should have called the police on CJ and Della, fine.”
I kicked at a sock I’d tossed onto the floor. “There was no reason to call them. I might remind you that you ran in and started attacking. They hadn’t even said anything really good.”
“Oh no? The man admitted Mr. Albod was afraid of him. Why would he have been afraid unless CJ was going to kill him?”
“I don’t know, but since CJ didn’t say that, we don’t exactly have proof that it’s true. But listen, I was wondering if you could help me with something?”
“I don’t know.” He rolled onto his stomach and faced away from me. “The last time I tried to help you, I messed everything up. At least according to you.”
“Oh, cat, don’t be ridiculous. This might be your chance to make things right.”
Peaches’s ear twitched in my direction. I had to be on the right path to convincing him.
“Look,” I said soothingly, “I know what happened earlier wasn’t good, but I don’t blame you. You’ve been convinced that Mr. Albod was kidnapped. Worse, you were trapped in the critterling for months waiting to get out so that you could find him. When you were freed, it took a while for us to find the evidence that Mr. Albod was kidnapped. He was dead to the entire town.”
Peaches still wasn’t moving, so I pushed on. “Worse, you haven’t been wandering around looking for him probably because of me. I never told you I’d follow you wherever you want to go, and I never said I wanted to start barging into people’s houses to search for him mainly because, well, that’s not always my style.”
Mattie coughed. I shot her a scathing look.
“But now, Peaches, now I think I might have an idea of a place we need to check out. I can’t promise we’ll find Mr. Albod, but we can at least mark it off our list.”
I inhaled a deep breath. “So what do you say? Do you want to come with me? Will you help me find Mr. Albod? Or at least help me narrow the window of where he’s being kept?”
Peaches sat for a long time. His tail twitched up and down as he thought. Finally after what felt like several minutes, the cat rose and padded his way over to me.
The feline sat at my feet. “So you’d like me to come with you.”
“Yes, and you can do whatever it is you need to do. I won’t stop you. Frankly, after tonight and my run-in with the person outside, I’m hoping you help me.”
Mattie sat up. “You ain’t going alone, are you, sugar?”
“I’ll call Axel,” I said.
“Good. ’Cause I don’t want nothin’ happenin’ to you.”
“It won’t. At least I doubt it.” I smiled broadly at Peaches. “So. Are you in?”
The cat nodded. “I’m in.”
TWENTY-THREE
Peaches and I headed out of my room. When I reached the downstairs, I found Cordelia sitting in the recliner reading.
She took one look at my purse, jacket and ghost-cat and narrowed her eyes. “Where are you going?”
“Out.”
“Do you think that’s such a good idea?”
“Yes.”
Cordelia closed her book and laid it on the armrest. “How exactly do you figure that? Someone considered climbing into your bedroom with a knife.”
“Betty placed more protection spells on the house. There’s no way anyone can get in with her magic tying up the home.”
Cordelia threaded her fingers through her hair and stared at me. “That doesn’t mean I’m going to let you out of this house alone.”
I nodded to the cat. “Who says I’m alone?”
“Does Axel know what you’re doing?”
“I called him, but I guess he’s asleep. No answer.”
My cousin sighed and heaved herself from the recliner. “So I guess it’s just you and me.”
I balked. “You’re coming?”
“Of course.” She grabbed her jacket from a peg, slid it on and fluffed her hair out. “What else are sweet tea witches for? I can’t exactly abandon you. What if you get hurt? I’d feel horrible.”
I smiled widely. “Great. Grab your skillet.”
Cordelia, Peaches and I sailed through the night sky. We passed a handful of witches doing nightly group rides. Riding under the moonlight was a pastime in Magnolia Cove. It was a sight to see, let me tell you.
The silvery tops of the trees and the pools of moonlight made the experience magical.
I landed us a little ways from our target. Cordelia shortened her skillet to pocket-size and stuffed it in her jacket.
“Wow. I wish someone would teach me that.”
She rolled her eyes. “It’s not hard. Want me to do it for you?”
“I’d rather you show me.”
She rubbed her arms and glanced around at the trees lining both sides of the road. “I’d rather not. This place gives me the creeps.”
“I agree,” Peaches said.
I placed the skillet against a tree for safekeeping. “What do you have to be afraid of? You’re dead.”
The cat’s tail twitched in agitation. “Just because I’m dead doesn’t mean I can’t find a place unsavory.”
Cordelia clicked her tongue. “He’s got a good point. Next thing you know, Betty’s secret admirer will jump out and ask us about her.”
I laughed nervously. “Yeah. That’s bound to happen.”
Cordelia walked beside me in silence.
“You okay? You seem kind of glum.”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. I’m getting kind of tired of the inn. There are so many personalities there, and I don’t get along with all of them.”
“You not get along with them?” I joked. “I don’t believe it.”
She elbowed my ribs. “Very funny. But I’m thinking about moving on. Moving into a job that will use my skills as a witch better.”
I narrowed my eyes. “Your skills as a witch? Or do you mean your skills as a genie?”
She glowered. “You got me. Sheesh. Can’t keep a secret from you, can I?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. It seems like you haven’t been as angry with your father lately and have been spending more time with him. It’s a natural progression.”
“I guess so.” She kicked a pebble down the path. “When he first returned, I was so angry. So mad at him for leaving. But when I cooled down and realized my father left for my own safety, that changed things. Don’t tell Amelia, but I had him unlock my genie powers.”
She raised her palm in a stop gesture. “There’s still a lot I don’t know, so please don’t make any wishes, but I’m excited to see where things will go and to see him open the wishing store.”
And for once Cordelia smiled. She was excited. There wasn’t the usual sarcasm to her words. It made me happy to see my cousin excited about something other than making smart jabs at Amelia.
I wrapped my hand around hers. “I’m excited for you, too. I can’t wait to see the store. You’ll have to tell me all about it.”
She rubbed her hands. “It’s pretty awesome.” Cordelia stopped. “Oh. Is this it?”
I glanced at the small cottage on the outskirts of town. “Yep. This is it.”
Neville Mabury’s house sat nestled under a big oak. Shadows cut deep across the front yard.
“Peaches, can you go in and see if Neville’s dog will come out of the doggie door and talk to us?”
Peaches walked stiffly toward the house mumbling, “I’m not a servant.”
I shook my h
ead.
“Good thing that cat’s already dead,” Cordelia murmured. “He’s murder material.”
I nudged her ribs but laughed. It was true. That feline was something else.
A few moments later Neville Mabury’s little terrier strutted out, growling low. As soon as the dog saw me, however, he stopped.
I knelt beside the fence and extended my hand for him to sniff.
“Hey there, little guy. I have a question for you.”
He cocked his head.
“The other day, when your wizard mentioned that you’ve been barking a lot at night, why are you doing that?”
Someone walks. Every night. They walk past the house.
“Who is it?”
I don’t know, but if I did, I’d bite their leg. This is my territory. My place.
Well, he certainly had a little dog’s attitude, didn’t he?
“Where are they going?”
To the shed.
“Are you sure?”
Yes. I hear the door open. I hear voices.
I rose. “Thank you. That’s all I needed to know.”
The dog strolled back inside.
“Well?” Cordelia asked. “What’d he say?”
“He said what I suspected. Someone’s been going to the shed, and there’s someone else out there.”
“You think it’s Frederick?” Peaches asked, his voice full of excitement.
“I don’t know.” I tightened my purse strap. “But let’s find out.”
TWENTY-FOUR
The three of us tiptoed out to the shed. The wooden-framed square was no bigger than Mother Hubbard’s shoe and had its own distinct aroma.
“Ew,” Cordelia whispered, “what is that smell?”
My nose crinkled. “I think it’s the sewer.”
“Does that place house it?” she said.
I bit back a laugh. “I don’t know, but I don’t want to open my mouth for fear that stench will get in and never leave.”
Cordelia nodded in reply.
It was rank. Seriously, if this place needed a security system, that stench was it. No wonder the place was abandoned. If anyone lived here, the smell alone would kill them.
I lifted my collar over my nose. It didn’t completely erase the nastiness, but it muffled it somewhat.
A mass of vines covered the shed.
“You sure someone’s in here?” Cordelia said from underneath her collar.
“No, but we need to check it out.”
We finally reached it.
“I’m going around,” Peaches said.
The cat was lucky. If he hadn’t already been dead, the stench of sewer might’ve killed him.
Soft and crumbling wooden boards held up a corrugated steel roof. Vines entwined the square, looking to suck out whatever life was left in the place.
“Is there a window?” Cordelia said.
“Over here,” Peaches called.
We tromped over weeds and barbs to the other side of the shack. The place was no bigger than a postage stamp, so the other side was about five feet away.
But on that other side was a window. Peaches, paws up, stared inside.
“He’s there! Mr. Albod is in there!”
I stomped on a root that had snared my foot and growled at it. “Not now, root.”
Cordelia reached the window before me. “Where?” She craned her neck up and down as she peered into the window.
“Right there,” Peaches said. “Don’t you see him?”
She shot me a confused look. “Pepper?”
I finally reached the window and placed one hand on the crumbling sewer pit. Realizing that was a terrible decision, I swiped my hand on my jacket and hoped the stink didn’t stick.
I peered inside the window but saw nothing but a single candle and a chair.
“Don’t you see him?” Peaches said.
I grimaced. “No, I don’t. Peaches, are you feeling okay? Is the smell affecting you?”
Without another word Peaches slipped through the structure and inside.
Cordelia nibbled her bottom lip. “It could be a spell.”
My eyebrows shot to peaks. “One that makes him invisible from the outside?”
She nodded. “We need to get in there to see if it’s true.”
“Let’s find a door.”
We found it. The darned thing was padlocked from the outside.
“I’ll fix that,” Cordelia said.
One tap of her finger against the metal and the lock snapped open.
Awe filled my voice. “That is a cool trick.”
Cordelia blew on her finger. “Yep. Stick with me and you’ll see all kinds of cool things.”
I pressed on the door, but it was stuck. “Give me a hand.”
The two of us shoved our shoulders against the crumbling wood. The door suddenly gave, and we tumbled inside, sliding across the floor.
“Oh!” My elbow hit the floor hard. A knifelike pain pierced my bicep. “Ow.”
I rubbed it as I took a moment to glance around. Peaches sat beside the chair. The cat’s gaze drifted up to the seat beside him.
Sitting in the chair was a frail old man. White wisps of hair crossed his head. His hands and knees were knobby like branches, and his nose was long and curved. Beady eyes full of mischief glimmered down at the two of us.
“And who do we have here?” he said.
Peaches’s tail flickered. “Cordelia, Pepper, meet Frederick Albod.”
Mr. Albod tipped his head. “How do you do?”
“See?” Peaches sniffed. “I told you he was alive.”
He certainly had.
TWENTY-FIVE
I brushed dirt off my pants and rose. I took a deep inhale and noticed the place wasn’t stinky on the inside like it was on the outside.
“Mr. Albod, we’ve got to get you out of here.”
“What’s the hurry?” He motioned to an old black cook stove, the kind that ate wood. “Sit and have a cup of coffee. It’s got chickory in it.”
My gaze darted to Cordelia. She shrugged.
Peaches cleared his throat. “Mr. Albod doesn’t have much memory. I think he’s being drugged.”
I sized up Mr. Albod. He was maybe six-two, one hundred and forty or fifty pounds. If Cordelia and I held him shoulder and feet, we might be able to get him out of the shack. If Mr. Albod was gone long enough, he’d remember who did this to him.
Right?
“Cordelia, we’ve got to get him out of here.”
She nodded. “I’m on it. I think I can create a circle of magic that will transport the three of us out of here.” She glanced at Peaches. “You’ll just have to meet us back at the house. Can you do that?”
“What’s the hurry?” Mr. Albod asked again. “We have so much time. I haven’t had a visitor in ages.”
“Whoever did this to him could return at any moment,” I said. “We’ve got to get going.”
Cordelia motioned for me to take position at Mr. Albod’s right. She stood on his left and we linked arms.
“Mr. Albod, this might tingle a bit, but hold on. Everything will be fine.”
“Uh-oh,” Peaches said. “I don’t think you were fast enough.”
“Why?”
Peaches nodded to the still-open door. The black hooded figure stood there, the cowl pulled down over his face, masking his features.
“Hurry, Cordelia!”
Cordelia lifted her arms. The figure lifted his hand.
Magic pooled up around us—Cordelia’s magic.
A black ball of powder fell to the floor and shattered, enveloping us in ebony smoke.
The smoke filled my lungs, suffocating me. My knees weakened, and I fell to the floor, choking.
The last thing I heard before everything went black was Mr. Albod.
“What’s your hurry? Why don’t you stay awhile?”
TWENTY-SIX
My legs were moving. I was moving. I think that’s what woke me up. I blinked and found myself walk
ing through the forest.
My legs moved of their own volition. I shook the fog from my brain and glanced over at Cordelia. Her head hung low, and her legs moved as well. Moved on their own.
What sort of witchcraft was this? Never had I seen anything like it.
I blinked several times, and more blur filtered out of my sight. I glanced in front of me and saw the dark cloaked figure. Ropes ran from his hands back to me and Cordelia.
I peered over my shoulder but didn’t see Peaches anywhere. But I did see Mr. Albod behind me. He didn’t have a rope tied to him. He walked along, happy as could be.
“So you’re awake,” came the voice from the hood.
It wasn’t a man’s voice. It was a woman.
Everything hit me as if I’d been struck by a thousand thunderbolts. The image from the trees, the one I’d seen days ago, came to me.
I glanced at the trees and realized I was in the forest—the same forest where I’d had a crow’s nest view of the scene unfolding.
The cloaked figure, the person being led with ropes. I’d thought I was looking at a glimpse of the past, at what had happened ages ago.
But I’d seen the future. I’d been offered a snapshot of what was to be. It was my own future, and it wasn’t pretty.
Anger burned in my veins. If I’d known I was looking at the future, would there have been a way to stop it? Would there have been a way to change anything?
I gritted my teeth. “Who are you?”
A maniacal laugh escaped the cloaked figure. She turned around and yanked the hood down to her shoulders.
I gasped. “Ingrid!”
Her skin glimmered in the moonlight. “I had it all planned. I needed to kill you in your bedroom, and then I’d have control of the critterling. But then you surprised me trying to climb into your room. I thought my plan was ruined. Ruined. But then you turned up in the shack and I caught you! Now all I have to do is have you turn over the vessel, and everything will be done.”
“How did you do it? How’d you fool everyone?” I have to admit, the whole thing bewildered me. How had Ingrid managed to hoodwink everyone? And kidnap Mr. Albod?
