Broomsticks and Burials

by Lily Webb

  “Luna! What’s wrong?” I asked, bolting up onto my hands and knees. She froze, her stomach upright, and looked me in the eye.

  “Oh, nothing, I’m just having a violent reaction to how cheesy you two are,” Luna said. I glared at her.

  “Not funny. You know, I’m really starting to miss the days when you couldn’t talk,” I said. “I haven’t forgotten about that curse of yours, either. And now that your stomach’s exposed, maybe I’ll just pet it out of you.”

  Luna narrowed her eyes and flexed her claws at me.

  “You don’t really want to lose your wand hand before you get to use it, do you?” she asked. “I mean, I’d hate to maul you and ruin your big date with Mister Barks-A-Lot.”

  “You wouldn’t dare.”

  “Don’t forget, I know where you sleep,” Luna said.

  “Get out of here,” I said as I reached for her stomach, but she rolled and jumped off the bed before I got anywhere near her. I chased her into the living room, but she hopped up into Flora’s lap where she knew she was safe.

  “Goodness,” Flora laughed, stroking Luna’s head. “Were you trying to run away?”

  I wasn’t sure which of us she was asking.

  “Me? I would never,” Luna said through her purring.

  “Neither would I,” I said, and Flora beamed.

  Luna was right from the beginning — Moon Grove was my home now.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  As I walked Crescent Street arm in arm with Beau, it struck me how different things felt than they did when I arrived two weeks ago. For starters, I was on a date with the golden retriever shifter that’d nearly given me a heart attack on my first day in Moon Grove, and people pointed and whispered about me as we passed.

  For better or worse, I had a reputation around town — one that wasn’t helped by the latest edition of the Moon Grove Messenger, which featured a picture of my mug on the front page with the headline “Local Hero Stops Vampire Killer Dead in His Coffin.”

  “You’re awfully quiet. What are you thinking?” Beau asked, bringing me out of the clouds.

  “Oh, all kinds of things,” I laughed.

  “I can imagine. It’s been one heck of a week for you,” Beau said.

  “Honestly, it’s crazy to think about. When I first got here, I had no idea magic existed. Now here I am, the alleged descendant of the Prime Witch who put the King of the vampires in jail, and people know who I am. I don’t know how to handle that,” I said.

  “Baby steps,” Beau said. I laughed and shrugged.

  “Yeah, I guess that’s the only way to go about it, huh?” I asked.

  “It really is. You’ll get used to it eventually,” Beau said.

  “That’s easy for you to say, you’re a famous PV news anchor. You volunteered to have everyone know you,” I said.

  “So did you the second you decided you weren’t going to let Harper’s murder go unsolved,” Beau said. “No one forced you to do that.”

  “To be fair, I didn’t expect that to turn out the way it did,” I said.

  “Expectations are funny that way, aren’t they?” Beau asked. “It seems like no matter how much we think we know what’s going to happen, it never pans out that way.”

  “You’ve got that right. I mean, when I accepted the job at the Messenger, I thought I was going to be moving to a small town to work my way back up the totem pole at a tiny local paper. Boy, was I wrong,” I said. Beau smirked at me.

  “But sometimes not getting what we expect is exactly what we need, you know?” Beau asked.

  “Absolutely. I didn’t know I needed a shock to my system until I got it,” I said. “Back home, I was bored and complacent, but there’s no room at all for that around here.”

  “Yup, exactly. Predictions are hard to make, but if there’s one thing I know about this town, it’s that it’ll never stop surprising you,” Beau said. “I’ve lived here my entire life, and I still don’t feel like I know all its secrets.”

  “Is that even possible?”

  “Probably not, but I know I’ve never once wanted to leave,” Beau said.

  “Never? Really?”

  “No, never. Besides, my whole family lives here. Maybe you’ll get to meet them soon,” Beau said, blushing. “I mean if you want. I’m not trying to rush things.”

  “Yeah, I’d love to. Are they all golden retrievers too?” I asked. Beau chuckled and nodded.

  “They are.”

  “A family of golden retrievers. What’s not to love? Although, my cat might not be okay with that,” I said.

  “We can work on her, I’m sure,” Beau said.

  “You don’t know Luna. She’s stubborn.”

  “You know, they say that pets’ personalities reflect those of their owners,” Beau said.

  “What are you trying to say?”

  “Oh, nothing,” Beau said, though he winked at me.

  “I’ll let it slide this time. Where are we going anyway?” I asked.

  “Only the best restaurant in town. It’s called Nouvelle Lune, and I had to pull a lot of strings to get us a reservation tonight,” Beau said.

  “Wait, does that mean it’s run by vampires? Something tells me I might not be welcome there if it is,” I said.

  “Not all of them are upset about Valentine, you know,” Beau said.

  “That doesn’t surprise me at all, actually,” I said.

  “Then you know you don’t have anything to worry about. You’re kind of a big deal now, Zoe, no one’s going to say anything to you,” Beau said.

  “What if they do?”

  “They won’t. No one’s going to make a scene at a restaurant like this, trust me,” Beau said.

  “You know, the last time you asked me to trust you, you dragged me through a magical barrier into this town. Am I in for another shock?”

  “Not at all,” Beau said. We turned right on Cartier Street, firmly in the Vampire’s Quarter of town, and I spotted Nouvelle Lune right away.

  High, wide windows let light pour out onto the otherwise dark street, revealing immaculately set tables and people wearing clothes I’d never be able to afford — humans, vampires, werewolves, everyone.

  “Wow. I’m woefully underdressed for this,” I said, staring down at the basic cinched blue cocktail dress I’d worn.

  “Are you kidding? People are going to light up when they see you,” Beau said.

  “I don’t know if that’s a good or bad thing,” I groaned.

  “It’s good. You’ll be fine,” Beau said. Sighing, I let Beau lead me inside. A vampire Maître D’ in a crisp black suit and tie met us with a smile.

  “Bonsoir, Monsieur, Madame,” the vampire said. “Do you have a reservation?”

  “Yes, it should be under Beau Duncan,” Beau said. The vampire consulted a sheet of paper on the podium beside him and nodded.

  “Très bien. Follow me,” he said. He pulled two menus out of a pocket built into the side of the podium and set off toward the back of the restaurant, which was much larger inside than I would’ve guessed.

  A small table for two draped by an expensive white cloth waited for us. No one else was seated nearby, and I couldn’t help wondering if Beau had arranged it that way on purpose.

  Beau pulled my chair out for me, and I sat down with my face burning. This sort of place was way above my class; I didn’t think I’d ever set foot in a restaurant so fancy. Beau sat down across from me and straightened his shirt, smiling as the Maître D’ placed the menus on the table in front of us.

  “Merci beaucoup,” Beau said.

  “C’est mon plaisir, Monsieur,” the Maître D’ said. “Your server, Blaise, will be with you shortly. In the meantime, if you need anything, anything at all, my name is Marc, and I would be happy to help.”

  “Thank you, Marc,” I said.

  “Anything for you, Miss Clarke,” Marc said, smiling, and vanished.

  “See? I told you, some of the vampires think you’re a hero,” Beau said. />
  “No way. He’s just getting paid to be nice to me,” I said. Beau smirked and shook his head.

  “Always a skeptic. No wonder you became a journalist,” he said.

  “Trust no one, question everyone,” I said.

  “Does that still include me?” Beau asked.

  “I said everyone,” I said, smiling at Beau. He chuckled.

  While glancing over the menu, I realized I didn’t know what ninety percent of the items were, and I could pronounce the names of maybe five of them.

  “So, what’s good here? I’m not exactly familiar with French haute cuisine,” I said.

  “The steak tartare is delicious,” Beau said.

  “Wait, isn’t that raw beef?”

  “It is.”

  “I guess that fits,” I said. “If you can’t chow on humans, might as well—”

  “Zoe,” Beau interrupted as our waiter approached in a form-fitting tuxedo. My face caught fire.

  “Bonsoir. My name is Blaise, and it’s my pleasure to be your server this evening,” he introduced himself with a bow. His black hair was the shortest I’d seen on any vampire, and he wore it slicked back Dracula style. Appropriate.

  “May I start you off with something to drink? Perhaps one of our specialty wines?” Blaise asked. I looked at Beau, knowing I shouldn’t ask the question but unable to stop myself from wondering anyway.

  Blaise chuckled.

  “All our wines are made from grapes, no need to worry,” Blaise said, his deep red eyes twinkling in the soft lighting from above.

  “Sorry, no offense,” I said, my cheeks so hot they hurt.

  “None taken. You certainly aren’t the first to ask,” Blaise said.

  “I think I’ll just start with water,” I said.

  “Same for me,” Beau said.

  “Right away,” Blaise said and vanished into the kitchen.

  “Can you believe this?” I asked.

  “Believe what?”

  “That you and I are on a date at this super nice restaurant,” I said. “After the way we met, I never would’ve guessed.”

  “Stranger things have happened to you than this,” Beau said.

  “Yeah, fair enough,” I laughed.

  “I’m just glad we met in the first place. I mean, I’m sure we would’ve crossed paths at some point, but I’ve wondered how different things might be if I hadn’t decided to spy on you that first day,” Beau said.

  “So you were a spy?”

  “More or less. The Channel 666 execs heard Mitch hired a new reporter and they wanted me to scope you out,” Beau said. “Joke’s on them, right?”

  “You’re not going to get in trouble at work for seeing me, are you?”

  “Are you joking? For the amount of money I make for that network, they’d be crazy to say anything,” Beau said.

  He reached across the table to rest his hand on mine, and I thought I might squeal.

  “Is that okay?”

  “More than okay,” I said, beaming.

  “Voilà, two glasses of water,” Blaise said, appearing out of thin air. He set our glasses down on the table.

  “Are you ready to order?” he asked.

  “Honestly, we’ve barely looked at the menu. What do you suggest?” I asked.

  “The Poulet Chasseur is delectable, assuming you like chicken. The chicken is sautéed and served in a rich chasseur sauce made from a tomato base,” Blaise said.

  “That sounds amazing. I’ll try that,” I said.

  “Parfait. And for you, Monsieur?” Blaise asked, turning to Beau.

  “I think I’d like the Beef Bourguignon,” Beau said.

  “Excellent choices, both of you. It’ll be out shortly,” Blaise said as he collected our menus and disappeared again. Beau wore a giddy smile.

  “What are you all smiley about?” I asked.

  “I’m here with you. Has anyone ever told you there’s something special about you, Zoe?”

  “As a matter of fact, they have. My grandma’s told me that my entire life,” I said. “But now I’ve got you and Raina saying it too. I’m starting to feel like I’m some sort of prophesied golden child or something.”

  “Well, I dunno about all that, but I do know you’ve got your own kind of charm,” Beau said. “And speak of the devil, look who’s here!”

  He pointed toward the entrance, and I smiled when I saw Raina and Circe standing in matching amethyst robes at the Maître D’s podium.

  I waved to get their attention and signaled for them to sit near us. Marc led them to the table next to ours, but when he tried to seat them there, Raina refused.

  “No, no, I don’t want to impose too much on their date,” Raina said, winking at me.

  “Fancy meeting you here,” I said.

  “Sweet serendipity. I need to talk to you, young lady,” Raina said.

  “I know, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have hung up on you the other night, but I didn’t want you to worry about me or try to come after me—”

  “If the stories I’ve heard are true, what could I possibly have done that you didn’t do yourself?” Raina asked, smiling. Butterflies erupted in my stomach; a compliment about my magic from Raina was hard to beat.

  “No, dear, I haven’t come to scold you. In fact, the staff at Veilside and I have discussed it at length, and based on your stellar performance in our private lessons and the incredible work you’ve done bringing justice for Harper and Opal, I’d like to offer you a place at the Academy,” Raina said.

  My jaw hit the table.

  “What? There must be so many witches and warlocks who deserve it more than I do. Besides, I didn’t apply like everyone else did,” I said. “It doesn’t seem fair.”

  “Nothing in life is fair, dear. You’ve earned your place among your peers, I have no doubt of that,” Raina said.

  “But I’m so far behind everyone else, I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to catch up to them.”

  “Catch up? Zoe, you’ve already surpassed them. You’ll see,” Raina said.

  “And what about my job? I can’t quit that, even if I wanted to.”

  “Veilside offers an evening curriculum as well. As a matter of fact, I should think you’d find it much more interesting,” Raina said.

  “Why’s that?”

  “I suppose there’s only one way for you to find out, isn’t there?” Raina asked.

  “I can’t believe this. When would I start?”

  “Monday at seven,” Raina said.

  “But it’s Friday now.”

  “Then you’d better rest up this weekend,” Raina said, smiling. “You are coming on Monday, are you not?”

  “I wouldn’t dream of missing it. Thank you so much, Raina!” I said, jumping out of my chair to throw my arms around her. She squeezed me tight while Circe joined the hug.

  “No, dear, it’s us who should be thanking you. This is the least we can do to repay you for all you’ve done for us and for Moon Grove at large,” Circe said. “I only wish Harper could’ve met you. I think the two of you would’ve been great friends.”

  “Me too. I’ll do it for her, I’ll make you both proud,” I said. Circe’s eyes watered.

  “We’re already proud of you, Zoe,” Raina said. “You’re going to learn so much, more than you ever thought possible. But we’ve intruded enough, we should let you get back to your date. I’ll see you on Monday.”

  “Thank you again,” I said. The Woods sisters left in a swooshing of robes and I sat back down across from Beau struggling to find words.

  “See, I told you there was something special about you. I’ve always said I have a nose for talent,” Beau said, and I laughed. “But you’d better not keep making that face. I’d hate for it to get stuck that way for your first day at Veilside.”

  “What face?”

  “The one that makes it look like you’ve been sucking on a lemon,” Beau said. As goosebumps rippled down my spine, I reached for his hand.

  While I hadn’t quite
found my footing in Moon Grove, and though I had just as many questions as answers when it came to understanding magic and my family’s historical ties to it, I wasn’t worried about anything.

  Whatever else came my way, I was finally where I belonged.

  All the mysteries aren’t solved yet!

  Subscribe to my newsletter and I’ll send you a FREE bonus chapter, Kittens and Curses, which tells the story of how Luna the talking cat was cursed!

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  All the mysteries aren’t solved yet!

  How and why was Luna the cat cursed?

  * * *

  Subscribe to my newsletter and I’ll send you a FREE bonus chapter, Kittens and Curses, which tells the story of the curse that got Luna’s tongue!

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  Magic & Mystery Book Two

  Some spells are meant to be broken…

  * * *

  When Zoe Clarke’s new favorite professor at Veilside Academy of Magic is killed, all spell breaks loose—and Zoe’s caught in the crossfire.

  * * *

  Buy now or turn the page to read chapter one!

  Chapter 1

  Spellbooks and Stakings Excerpt

  I guess it’s natural for parents to get emotional on their kid’s first day of school but, you know, that usually happens when the kid’s five and starting kindergarten — not when they’re adults beginning magic school.

  I’m Zoe Clarke, I’m twenty-one, and until today I was a woefully untrained witch whose only living relative had no idea about any of it.

  “What in tarnation do you mean, you’re a witch?” Grandma Elle shouted into the phone.

  I hadn’t planned to turn our conversation into a supernatural coming out party when I called to catch up, but I was nervous about starting my first day at Veilside Academy of Magic and, well, things don’t always work out the way we plan, do they?