Cloaks and Daggers

by Annabel Chase

  Daniel frowned. “But we already live here. We’re not interested in selling.”

  “You don’t have to move,” Andrea said. “I only need to set up houses for our couple to view as though they might consider buying it. We have two homes on the market here already, but we need a third and yours would be perfect. Just from standing on the porch, I can tell you it’s my favorite.” She peered past us into the foyer. “I mean, everything about this place screams happy home. Our viewers would go nuts.”

  “Why don’t you come inside and we can talk?” I asked. Diana squirmed slightly and I jiggled her against my chest.

  Gareth materialized behind us. “Have you gone mad? You’re going to let this elf show the house as though it’s for sale?”

  I ignored him. “We have tea if you’d like a drink. Or lemon fizz.”

  “She gets nothing,” Gareth said.

  “My throat is parched,” Andrea said. “I’d love a fizz.”

  “The kitchen is this way,” I said. I watched with pleasure as Andrea digested the interior of the home.

  “I wish this place was on the market,” she said. “I’d snap it up myself. It’s pretty much my dream home.”

  I smiled at her. “Mine too. I was living in an apartment before this, so it’s definitely a step up.”

  “I’d say it’s more than one step up,” Andrea said. We entered the kitchen and she gasped. “Wow. This kitchen is fabulous. Look at the natural light.”

  “That’s because of the big windows,” I said. I couldn’t help but swell with pride, even though I played no role in constructing the house.

  “Why don’t you sit down with the baby and I’ll take care of the drinks?” Daniel offered.

  I gave him a quick peck on the cheek. “You’re always so thoughtful.”

  Andrea sighed. “And you’re an amazing couple to boot. Now I have complete life envy. It’s like stalking someone’s perfect social media account in real time and seeing that it’s completely authentic.” She shook her head. “I kind of hate you right now.”

  Gareth chuckled bitterly, having followed us into the kitchen. “You wouldn’t say that if you heard how they snore.”

  “We definitely had a few bumps in the road on the way to bliss,” I said, “but I can’t complain about the results. Our life here is truly amazing.”

  “I begged my producer to come here and film,” Andrea said, her blue eyes sparkling. “I read about Spellbound online and it sounded like the coolest place ever. I figure the homes here are worth a fortune now that the borders are open.”

  Daniel and I exchanged looks. “I haven’t really given it much thought,” I said. “I don’t see why.”

  “Are you kidding?” Andrea said. “This place is famous now. Paranormals would love to own a piece of historic real estate. The town has retained all of its charms. I can’t even get decent cell phone reception. It’s heavenly.” She eyed Daniel’s white wings. “I guess you would know all about that.”

  He gave his wings a little flap for good measure. “I do now.” He set the tray of glasses on the table between us and kissed the top of my head. “Would it be possible to watch one of your shows so that I know what we might be getting ourselves into?”

  Andrea brightened. “That’s an awesome idea. Yes.” She reached into her tote bag and pulled out a tablet. “I can show you a video of a recent episode. I have them all on here. It’s my job to make sure that we’re not too repetitive with our couples or the types of homes that we include.” She tapped the screen and pulled up a video entitled Season Three, Episode Four.

  Daniel gazed at the screen in amazement. “I’ll never get over watching moving images on that tiny rectangle. Fascinating.” He’d been mesmerized during our honeymoon and I’d had to remind him that we weren’t there to get acquainted with technology. To be fair, he hadn’t required much convincing.

  As I sipped my fizz and tried to avoid dripping on Diana’s head, we watched as a dwarf couple viewed each house. The wife seemed excited about the first house, whereas the husband seemed anxious to move on to the next offering.

  “Why did they bring suitcases?” I asked.

  “Oh, that’s part of what the show offers,” Andrea said. “The couple gets to spend the night in their favorite prospective home. The viewers love it. Sometimes the couples discover things about the house that they would never have noticed in the daytime, like the fact that the neighbor is a vampire and prefers to host barbecues in the middle of the night.” She flashed that blinding smile. “It really adds a new dimension to house hunting.”

  “I agree,” Gareth said. “Rather ingenious, actually.”

  Daniel joined us at the table. “So your couple would need to stay overnight in our house?”

  “That would be my preference,” Andrea said. “This would be the best choice for overnight filming.”

  “Won’t it depend on the couple’s preference though?” I asked.

  “It’ll be this one. I know it.” Andrea’s tone left no room for doubt.

  “How would it work?” I asked. “Presumably we need to be out of the way.”

  “That totally depends on you,” Andrea said. “Some families choose to stay in a hotel or with family members. Others decamp to another room for the night and stay out of sight until filming has been completed.”

  Diana began to suck on her tiny fingers. She made the most adorable sound when she did that.

  “I don’t know if it makes sense for us,” I said. “We have a new baby. I can’t control whether she decides to cry in the middle of the night. That could impact the experience.”

  Andrea waved me off. “We can do sound editing. It’s no problem. Besides, we only include footage from the nighttime if something interesting happens. You don’t have any ghosts, do you?” She laughed.

  I shot an awkward look in Gareth’s direction. “Why? Is that a problem?”

  “Heck no. That would be ratings gold. Everybody loves a good haunting.” She slapped her hands flat on the table. “Please tell me you have a ghost.”

  “We do,” Daniel said, beaming. I sort of wish he’d conferred with me before he let the vampire ghost out of the coffin but too late now.

  Andrea practically vibrated with excitement. “We have to film here. Please. We could really use the ratings.” She clasped her hands together in a pleading gesture.

  “What if the ghost doesn’t do anything?” I asked. “What if he just wanders around the house sulking all night and muttering to himself like a cranky old woman?”

  Her shoulders sagged. “You don’t think he would throw a few plates around? Maybe open and close a few drawers for funsies?”

  I glanced over her shoulder at Gareth, who shrugged noncommittally.

  “He could probably be persuaded,” I said.

  “I’m not a dancing monkey,” Gareth protested.

  Sedgwick’s face appeared at the window next to us. Andrea jumped as his beak knocked against the glass.

  “Daniel, would you mind opening the window for Sedgwick?”

  He leaned over and pushed up the glass pane. The owl moved into the kitchen and perched on the edge of the fruit bowl on the island. He fixed his owl eyes on Andrea.

  Is this a replacement, Your Highness? Sedgwick asked.

  Replacement for what? I asked.

  You know. One of those women who actually knows how to raise a baby. On second thought, she looks as clueless as you.

  I bristled. She’s not a nanny. She’s a TV producer.

  “You have an owl,” Andrea said with a note of approval. “Cool. We love quirky.”

  “It isn’t a quirk,” I said. “He’s my familiar.”

  “Familiar?” She scrutinized me. “I don’t get a witch vibe from you and I’m usually good at identification.”

  “She’s part sorceress and part demigod.” Daniel gave me a proud pat on the shoulder.

  “It’s not like we choose our genetics,” I said, somewhat embarrassed.

  Andrea g
azed at me in wide-eyed appreciation. “Stars and stones, this place is so awesome. If I had our equipment, I’d start filming right now.”

  Daniel looked at me. “What do you think? It might be fun to see our house on that little rectangle. Something Diana can watch when she’s older.”

  He looked so eager that I couldn’t bring myself to say no. I’d do anything for that face.

  “When would you need to film?” I asked.

  Andrea drank her fizz and wiped the bubbles from the tip of her sharp nose. “How about we start later this afternoon? My boss likes to stick to the schedule, but I know him well enough to know he’d prefer this house to the one we found on Drury Lane.”

  “I guess we’ll see you later then,” I said.

  Daniel squeezed my shoulder. “Your house is going to be famous.”

  “You mean my house,” Gareth muttered.

  Diana gurgled and I smoothed her dark hair. “You mean our house.”

  I’d already made arrangements to meet the former remedial witches in the secret lair to celebrate Laurel’s return from her family trip, so I left Gareth as he complained about the state of the house to Magpie and drove to the outskirts of town. Although I considered riding my broomstick, in the end, I decided not to torture myself with heights. Daniel and I had had a long talk the other night about facing our fears so that we didn’t pass our own neuroses on to Diana. As she was only an infant right now, I figured I had ample time to develop my nerve.

  The witches were all present and accounted for by the time I arrived. They were seated around the coffee table enjoying slices of werwitzer bread.

  Millie groaned as she noted the time. “Half an hour late? Is this the new normal now that you’re a mother?”

  “Yes,” I said without apology.

  “Cut her some slack,” Begonia said. “This is her zombie phase. All the books say so.”

  I flopped onto the sofa beside Begonia. “And our house is going to be full of strangers later. I had to tidy up before Gareth had a meltdown.”

  Millie launched an eyebrow. “Dare I ask?”

  I filled them in on Home Invaders. “It’s only one night, so we can manage. I don’t expect it will be too disruptive to the schedule.”

  Begonia clapped her hands. “That’s so fun. I’m glad you agreed to it. We can all watch the episode together on the magic mirror when it’s finished.” She gestured to the oversized mirror on the cave wall.

  “Any attractive crew members?” Millie asked. “Maybe I’ll stop by later.”

  “I haven’t met them yet,” I said. “Only Andrea, the associate producer.” My gaze alighted on the youngest of the former remedial witches. “Welcome back, traveler. How was it?”

  Laurel’s eyes shone with excitement. “Amazing. I knew it would be an interesting experience to leave Spellbound, but it was even better than I expected.”

  “That’s great, Laurel,” I said.

  “I feel like you’ve been gone forever,” Sophie said.

  “Not as long as the Grey sisters,” Begonia said. “Are they ever coming back?”

  “They sent me a message via Kassandra,” I said. The psychic was handy with receiving messages from far and wide because the sisters were too distant to send an owl. “They’re in New Zealand and having a grand time.”

  “Wow, when they said they were doing a world tour, they really meant it,” Sophie said.

  “I think it’s fantastic,” I said. “I’m a little jealous.”

  “Where’s the baby?” Laurel asked. She peered behind me as though I might have Diana strapped to my back like a crossbow.

  “She’s at home with proper supervision,” I said. “I’m being encouraged to take time for myself right from the start, so I don’t feel too bogged down. I even joined a new mom group. We’ll meet once a week at Brew-Ha-Ha with our babies.”

  Millie swallowed her bite of bread. “What do you need a group of new moms for when you have us? The only thing you have in common with them is that you got knocked up at the same time.”

  “Thanks, Millie. That’s such a nice way of framing it,” I said.

  “For one thing, they’ll be more understanding when she’s late because the baby refused to nap,” Sophie said pointedly.

  “That reminds me. I made you something.” Millie hurried to the basket and returned with a voodoo doll, which she thrust into my hands. “You’re welcome.”

  I studied the bald head and chubby body. “Is this a snowman?”

  Begonia burst into laughter. “No, silly. She made your baby.”

  My eyes bulged. “Oh.” I tried to mask my surprise. “It’s…she’s lovely.”

  “What do you expect her to do with a voodoo doll of her own baby?” Laurel asked. Clearly she hadn’t been involved with the project.

  “If she gets the spell right, Emma could use it to help the baby sleep when she needs to,” Millie explained. “I was thinking it might be particularly helpful when Emma goes back to work after maternity leave.”

  Tears pricked my eyes as I stared at the ugly doll. “Millie, I think this is the most thoughtful thing you’ve ever given me.”

  Millie squared her shoulders and lifted her chin a fraction. “I do what I can.”

  I surveyed the lair. “Does anyone know an appropriate spell to use on a voodoo baby doll?”

  Sophie wore a blank expression. “It never occurred to me that I might need something like this, although I guess if you’re stuck next to a crying baby in a restaurant, this could come in handy.”

  Begonia bit her lip. “I don’t think we should be hexing strange babies, only Emma’s.”

  I hugged the voodoo doll to my chest. “No one is hexing my baby except me.”

  “Fair enough,” Millie replied.

  “I’m sure I can find a list of potential spells,” Laurel said. “But first I think we should talk about the other information I found.” Her expression grew solemn and the others followed suit.

  I scanned their matching faces and knew instinctively that this information had something to do with me. “What is it?”

  “I took the liberty of digging into Calix research while I was in Rainbow’s End,” Laurel said. “They have incredible resources there and the librarian was very helpful.”

  My gut twisted as I pictured the demigod in my kitchen, enjoying his cup of tea. “And what did you find?”

  “He’s done some terrible things, Emma,” Sophie blurted. “He was known to have destroyed villages when he was displeased.”

  “He had his own army of the dead at his disposal,” Laurel added. “He was known as the dangerous and debonair demigod.”

  “Nice alliteration,” Begonia said.

  “I wouldn’t mind my own army of the dead,” Millie said. “Imagine what I could accomplish.”

  “Mayhem and destruction?” Laurel said. “No thanks. I’d rather not imagine it.”

  “I don’t even like you with access to voodoo dolls,” Begonia said. “I think an army of the dead might be overkill.”

  “Can we focus on the pertinent part of this information?” I asked. “Calix was at my house having tea and asking to meet his granddaughter. Are you telling me this is a bad idea?”

  “I’m telling you to be cautious,” Laurel said. “The information hasn’t been updated in a couple centuries, so it’s possible he’s turned over a new leaf.”

  “Or that the information is false,” I said. “That’s a possibility, right? That the stories are mere myths and legends?”

  “I hear that hopeful note in your voice,” Sophie said. “What was he like? Obviously he didn’t kill anyone or raze your house, so that’s a win.”

  “He was fine,” I said. “Polite. Interested.” I heaved a sigh. “I’m feeling confused.”

  Begonia patted my thigh. “That’s understandable. You don’t have to figure it out now. He only just showed up.”

  “He said he wants a relationship, to be a family,” I said. “The concept feels so foreign to me.
Here’s this stranger in my kitchen and I have half his DNA.” I drew my knees to my chest. “I already felt like I had my hands full with a new baby and now this.”

  “Set boundaries,” Laurel said. “If he means what he tells you, then he’ll respect that. He won’t want to scare you away.”

  “And if he doesn’t respect that, then it’s time to go full sorceress on his butt,” Millie said. “Like maybe your mom did.”

  “I’m definitely going to take it slowly,” I said, “although I see no reason to challenge him to a magical duel. He seems sincere.”

  “Of course he seems sincere,” Millie said. “If he came marching into Spellbound and demanded that you take your place as his daughter, pillaging and destroying towns, would you do it?”

  “Everyone is so full of doom and gloom,” I said. “Can’t I have a slice of bread and talk about Laurel’s trip?”

  Sophie held up the plate and I plucked a slice from the end. It smelled like a cross between cinnamon and ginger.

  “I brought it from Rainbow’s End,” Laurel said. “My mother bought five loaves and the recipe. She’s obsessed.”

  I let the flavors melt on my tongue. “I can see why. It’s delicious.” I sank against the cushion. “I feel much better now. Calm over chaos—that’s my new mantra.”

  Begonia snorted. “We’re talking about you, Emma. How long do you think it will last?”

  I relaxed and took another bite. “At least another hour.”

  Chapter Three

  I wasn’t wrong. Late afternoon was absolute chaos as unfamiliar paranormals swarmed the house. A nymph set up a camera downstairs while a brownie carried more equipment upstairs. Andrea strode through the house with a discerning eye, barking instructions as she went.

  “We need to move some of this decor,” she said. “It isn’t working for me.”

  I peered at her. “But I thought you said everyone would love it? That this is your dream home?”

  Andrea gave me a dismissive smile. “We say what we have to say to get a commitment. Don’t worry. Everything will go back the way it was before we leave. It’s part of the package.”

  I was beginning to think that Daniel and I should have taken Diana to the Minors’ house next door for the night. We’d considered the idea, but Daniel worried about spending the night in close proximity to the harpies. I wouldn’t put it past a Minor or two to try to slip into bed with him while I nursed Diana in a separate room. In the end, we decided it would be best to stay in our house and keep an eye on things. Now that I saw the number of paranormals here, I realized how many things could actually go wrong.