Witch Fairy Tale (A Mackenzie Coven Mystery Book 8)

by Sonia Parin

  “They might have lured you here.”

  “We came because Rebel fell sick and Mrs. Ellsworth said she needed ingredients that can only be obtained from the Crone’s realm.” Had the gnome actually said that? No, she hadn’t. But Lexie had known the purest ingredients could only be sourced here. “We didn’t plan this trip. It just happened.” Who would go to so much trouble? The chain of events would have made it impossible to plan an ambush. Unless, someone had decided to take advantage of the opportunity. The gnomes had landed on her doorstep because Catherine’s forest had come under siege but only because all the creatures had fled Mirabelle’s home. Then Rebel had fallen sick.

  Had someone made Rebel sick?

  “What about the Crone. Can you trust her?” Jonathan asked.

  Lexie didn’t even think about it. “Yes.”

  Jonathan brushed his hand across his chin again. “Other forces might be at work.”

  Who would want her dead? She slammed her hands against her hips. Scowling, Lexie stared straight ahead. “If someone is after me, they must have wanted me to come here. What if they think they can only get to me in the Crone’s realm? I only came because I couldn’t get the ingredients anywhere else.” She’d known that because a while back the Crone had told her only the purest ingredients could be found in her realm. Had the trap been set up from the beginning?

  Lexie frowned at the strange thought.

  “If you can tap into your powers, then it won’t make a difference.”

  She looked down at her hands. Energy flowed through her. More intense than ever before. Had it always been there?

  She laughed softly. Even if someone had lured her here, they couldn’t do anything to her. Jonathan was busy grumbling under his breath so he missed her gasp. The thought had definitely startled Lexie.

  One hundred O’Rourke detectives hadn’t been able to contain her. When she’d died, something had happened to her. They wouldn’t stand a chance in hell now.

  She clicked her fingers and tried to remember what she had experienced when she’d died, but nothing came to her. Nothing but the certainty that something had happened.

  “Are you sure you can trust the Crone?” Jonathan asked.

  “Absolutely. Unless…” She raked her fingers over her face and groaned. “Unless the Crone isn’t the Crone.”

  “You think she might have been possessed?”

  Lexie nodded. “It’s a possibility. There could be others around like my mother’s evil twin sister.” She shook her head. “Forget I said that. I doubt anyone could ever possess the Crone. She’s too ancient and far too cantankerous.”

  “I suppose this is where you suggest changing your identity and moving to a remote island,” Jonathan said.

  Lexie’s shoulders lifted as she drew in a deep breath. “No, I’m done with all that. I guess I’m stuck being… whatever I am.”

  “You command the elements. You can produce fireballs. I’d say that makes you a powerful witch.”

  “I levitate when I meditate,” Lexie whispered. Crossing her feet, she lowered herself to the ground and closed her eyes.

  She could feel Jonathan standing nearby, watching her and probably wondering what she meant to do.

  Clearing her mind, she focused on her breathing and the beat of her heart. She usually meditated when she needed to find answers. What could she ask first? Where had she gone? What had happened to her? Why had it happened? How would they find their way home?

  “I see something approaching,” Jonathan said. “It looks like Luna.”

  Lexie didn’t need to open her eyes to see a small black shape bounding toward them.

  Relaxing, she prodded her mind, searching for a hint… anything that might give her an idea of where she had been when she had presumably died.

  She listened to the vast emptiness in her mind but nothing reached out to her.

  It didn’t mean anything.

  Her memory had already been wiped clean once before. For all she knew, she might have chosen to forget her experience in the afterlife.

  She opened her eyes and eased back down to the ground only then realizing she had levitated. As Luna drew closer, Lexie thought she saw something orange poking out of her mouth. “She must have caught up to the rabbit. I guess we get to go home now.”

  Luna came at them faster than Lexie had ever seen her running. When Luna came to a screeching halt, she rolled several times and finally landed on her back, her legs spread out, her tongue lolled out as she struggled to catch her breath. The carrot rolled out of her mouth and she heaved in a big breath.

  “What are you two doing here?” Luna asked.

  “We came through the rabbit hole.” Jonathan crouched down. “Are you all right?”

  “Tricky rabbit. It didn’t run in a straight line.” Luna gulped in a breath. “He kept zigging and zagging. When I finally wrangled the carrot out of its mouth, it chased me. I had no idea rabbits had such ferocious looking teeth.” Luna stopped to draw breath. “I might need a treadmill. I think I’m slightly out of shape.”

  “Did you try disappearing?” Lexie asked.

  Luna blinked up at her. “Oh, I forgot I can do that.”

  “Come on. I’ll carry you.” Lexie picked up the carrot and then scooped Luna up and cradled her limp body in her arms.

  Jonathan pointed up at the sky. “We sort of came from up there.”

  Lexie looked up. “There has to be another way out.”

  “Did I mention the cards?” Luna asked, her breath still heaving.

  “Huh? What cards?”

  Luna raised her head only to slump back down again. “Playing cards. You know. Hearts. Diamonds. Spades. Clubs.”

  “Where did you see them?”

  “Right after I caught up to the rabbit. They were shuffling around.”

  Jonathan squinted into the distance. “Did they have legs?”

  Luna nodded. “Legs. Arms. Heads. Clubs. Swords. Oh, and lances.”

  “Yes, I can see them.” Jonathan looked down at the ground. “Now I can feel them. They’re marching.” Jonathan grabbed Lexie’s arm. “It might be a good idea to start moving. They’re getting closer and I don’t like the look of them.”

  Yes, but which way should they go?

  “We should find another rabbit hole,” Luna suggested.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Ace up her sleeve

  Luna lifted her head. “Jonathan is right. The cards are marching toward us and they look battle ready.”

  “Luna?”

  “Yes?”

  Lexie’s voice filled with wariness as she asked, “Did you do something to them?”

  Luna blinked a couple of time before asking, “Could you be more specific?”

  “Did you taunt them? When you’re hungry you tend to get snarky.”

  Luna brushed her paw across her face. “Well… Remember when I said they were shuffling? That came after I sort of cannoned my way through and scattered them and that sort of got their attention.”

  “Did they say anything to you?” Lexie asked.

  “They weren’t happy. A group of them said they’d had a winning hand, whatever that means.” Luna rested her chin on Lexie’s arm. “When they saw me tussling the rabbit, they stopped shuffling and just stared. Maybe they’ve never seen a cat before.”

  Jonathan sidled up to Lexie. “How well do you know your fairy tales?”

  Lexie smiled. “Are you afraid of the Queen of Hearts?”

  “In Alice in Wonderland, she’s not exactly the easiest card to deal with,” he said.

  “They’re cards. Luna and I tackled a giant. What can a deck of cards do to us?”

  “I’d rather not find out,” Jonathan said under his breath. “In case you’re wondering, I’m right outside of my comfort zone. You have fireballs and a magical cat. I have nothing.”

  “Don’t worry. We’ll look after you.”

  Jonathan could not have looked more offended. “You’ve just scraped off a laye
r of my manhood, but I’m sure I’ll survive.”

  “That’s the spirit.” Lexie narrowed her gaze and tried to figure out what the cards were up to. In the last couple of minutes, they’d spread out and the flanks were advancing faster than the ones in the middle.

  Lexie stepped forward. As the cards drew closer, they increased in size and the ground beneath them shook. She could now see their legs and arms and… heads.

  “Okay, they might be more than mere cards,” Lexie admitted.

  “I don’t see any weapons now,” Luna said. “They might have other cards up their sleeves.”

  A trumpet sounded, followed by an announcement. “Make way for our Queens.”

  Lexie and Jonathan took a step to the side but the cards merely changed direction, making a beeline straight for them.

  “I think the cards are playing with you,” Luna said. “You should both relax. They’re made of cardboard and Lexie has fireballs. In case you didn’t realize it, you have an ace up your sleeve.”

  Lexie tried to count them. “How many cards in a deck?”

  “Fifty-two,” Jonathan said. “And I’ve counted more than that. They’re obviously playing with several decks of cards.”

  Luna snickered. “I think the decks are stacked against us. If you have to cross swords with them, I suggest challenging them to a game of poker. How’s your poker face?”

  “I’m not sure I have one,” Lexie admitted.

  “How about cheating?” Luna asked.

  “Silence!” one of the cards exclaimed.

  As the command echoed around them, the cards shuffled and spread out.

  Lexie swung around. “We’re surrounded.”

  “That’s an aggressive move,” Luna murmured. “Now would be a good time to show them some of your fire power.”

  A card approached.

  Luna sniffed the air. “That’s not a good sign. It’s the Joker.”

  The Joker came to a stop. “State your business and be slow about it, we have all day.”

  “We are travelers and we have lost our way,” Lexie said.

  The Joker leered at Lexie. “How did you come to be here?”

  “We… We fell through a rabbit hole.”

  “Then, you are here illegally. We shall have to prosecute you but first we will interrogate you and make sure you are telling the truth. Don’t bother pleading innocent. We know you’re guilty.”

  “What is this nonsense?” A voice rose from within the group of cards. “Why have we stopped marching?”

  The card approached. As it moved toward them, the other cards stepped aside.

  “It’s the Queen of Hearts,” Luna whispered. “Whatever you do, don’t answer her. She’s tricky and she’s a nutcase.”

  The Queen of Hearts stopped a breath away from Lexie and bellowed, “What did you say?”

  “I said you’re a nutcase,” Luna repeated.

  “Off with her head,” the Queen of Hearts demanded.

  Swords were unsheathed and pointed straight at Lexie. The cards advanced one cautious step at a time.

  The Joker leaned forward and whispered, “You might want to apologize right about now or even later but sooner would be better.”

  “The High Chair didn’t say anything,” Luna said in her most challenging voice, “I did.”

  “You? You? The cat’s mother?” the Queen of Heart spluttered.

  “I’m the High Chair’s trusted and loyal feline companion,” Luna muttered.

  “A cat? A cat?” the Queen of Hearts bellowed. “Are you telling me your cat talks?”

  Lexie tucked Luna inside her jacket. “What cat?”

  The Joker whispered, “Careful, Your Grace. She appears to be a shifty character. Do not trust this foreigner.”

  “State your business in my land,” the Queen of Hearts demanded.

  Lexie considered being upfront and saying they were on a rescue mission but she didn’t think the Queen of Hearts would sympathize.

  “As I said, we’re lost and we’d appreciate it if you could point us in the right direction. We’ll happily go on our way.”

  The Queen of Hearts scoffed, “Do I look like a tour guide to you? Well? Do I? Answer me.”

  Lexie bit the inside of her lip. She suspected the Queen of Hearts had already forgotten what she’d asked. In any case, she wouldn’t like any of her answers so Lexie asked a question. “Why are we here? Are you responsible? Did you force us to come?”

  The Queen of Hearts spluttered as she looked from one card to the next, her eyes wide with astonishment.

  “What is the meaning of this delay?” a voice hollered.

  Another card shoved its way to the front.

  The Queen of Spades.

  The two queens whispered among themselves. Then they both turned to face Lexie again, their eyebrows curved downward. Another card approached.

  “Are you two conspiring against me?” the Queen of Clubs demanded.

  “We are being invaded,” the Queen of Hearts declared.

  “By this riffraff?” The Queen of Clubs gave Lexie a head to toe sweep of her eyes and laughed. “Is it any wonder I always beat you both at your own game? You can’t see beyond your noses.”

  “I demand a trial,” the Queen of Hearts said.

  Lexie groaned under her breath. “With all due respect, we haven’t done anything wrong.”

  “You’d say that to save your own neck. I say, off with her head and be quick about it.”

  “She needs to be accused and tried first,” the Joker offered.

  “If they say to pick a card, any card,” Luna whispered, “choose the Queen of Diamonds. I think we should be able to bargain with her and we might stand a chance of walking away with some lovely sparkly diamonds.”

  “I sense the natives getting restless,” Jonathan whispered. “If you have any bright ideas, now would be a great time to implement them.”

  Another Joker approached and whispered into the Queen of Hearts’ ear.

  “Aha!” the queen exclaimed. “She is guilty.”

  “I object,” Luna called out.

  “To what?” the queen demanded.

  Luna poked her head out. “To the lack of evidence.”

  “We have plenty of it and if we don’t, we can fabricate it,” the queen claimed. “Case closed.”

  Luna growled. “We demand a retrial.”

  “You haven’t had one yet.”

  “Then, we demand legal representation,” Luna argued.

  “We have witnesses. It’s an open and shut case. They claim you chopped down a beanstalk.”

  Luna snarled. “There’s no crime against that.”

  “There is if the beanstalk then falls on the Gingerbread House.”

  “That was purely circumstantial and… and accidental. We were fleeing a giant and, if not for us, you would have been trampled on by him. You should be thanking us for saving your lives. Hailing us as heroes. Declaring this a public holiday and erecting a statue in honor of the High Chair and myself. Would you like me to show you my best pose?”

  The Queen of Hearts conferred with the other queens and then said, “Under the circumstances, we have decided to be lenient. The sentence has been commuted. I am kind-hearted, so I will show you clemency. You are to serve life imprisonment and become subservient to me.” The Queen pointed at Lexie. “You will carry my blue chips.” Looking at Luna, she declared, “You will use your tail to sweep the ground ahead of me.”

  Luna nearly choked on her words, “You have no jurisdiction.”

  “Are you being deliberately and perversely disagreeable and contrary?” the queen howled.

  “I am merely stating an undoubtable truth. The High Chair of the Mackenzie Coven is beyond the reach of your loopy court.” Luna leaned forward and, lowering her voice to a menacing tone, said, “She has fireballs.”

  All the cards took a step back.

  “You don’t scare us,” the queens chorused.

  Lexie looked from one queen to th
e other. They all stared back at her with one eyebrow raised.

  If she called on the elements, she could send all the cards flying. If she produced a fireball…

  “In our world,” Luna muttered, “you’d be standing in a street corner with your sandwich board body advertising happy hour.”

  The Queen of Hearts raged, “How dare you. Chop her head off and her tail.”

  “You already said that and nothing happened,” Luna said.

  Jonathan muttered, “Your cat is going to get us all killed.”

  The cards closed in, their swords and lances pointing straight at Lexie.

  Lexie stood her ground while Luna scurried inside her jacket. “I’d like to speak with the Queen of Diamonds.” Lexie looked over their heads and thought she caught sight of a crown sparkling with diamonds.

  “What makes you think she wishes to speak with you?” the Joker asked.

  Narrowing her eyes, Lexie saw the Queen of Diamonds flanked by four other cards. All kings.

  “Yes, I can see she’s busy.” Flirting, Lexie thought and wondered if she should create a diversion or discord among the ranks by pointing it out to the other queens. “Anyhow, we just want to get home so if you could point us in the right direction, we’d really appreciate it.”

  The Queen of Hearts sounded offended. “And why do you want to leave our kingdom?”

  “Because we’re on a quest and we must return home.”

  “Oh, that sounds important. Then you should hurry.”

  Really?

  The queens murmured among themselves. Then, the Queen of Spades spoke up.

  “She really should stand trial first.”

  “Not this again.” Luna poked her head out. “I believe they wish to make this difficult for you.”

  Lexie’s eyes rolled back and then she closed them. Home, there really is no place like home, she thought and wished she could be there right now. Drawing in a slow breath, she opened her eyes and glanced around.

  Luna rolled around inside Lexie’s jacket, “Did you really think wishful thinking would get us home?”

  “Honestly,” Lexie whispered, “if you don’t have anything useful to say, can you please keep quiet?”