The Chancellor Fairy Tales Boxed Set: Books 1-3

by Poppy Lawless

  Yes. But what if?

  Chapter 5: Rayne

  When I got home later that afternoon, I was surprised to find a VW van in my driveway, the owner sitting on my front porch.

  I parked my truck, grabbing the empty wooden crates from the back, then climbed the steps of the porch to my old farm house.

  “Hi, Cassidy,” I said apprehensively. Cassidy, the other faerie who lived in Chancellor, had stripped off her sneakers and was rocking back and forth on the porch swing while blowing an enormous bubble. She’d pulled her long red hair into a pony tail.

  “Great view. How’d you get these digs?”

  I shrugged. “Luck.”

  “Leprechaun help you?”

  I shook my head. “I don’t deal with them. Sneaky buggers.”

  “Yeah. There’s that. So, we’re invited for dinner.”

  Uh-oh. “Really?” I asked, trying to shake off my obvious apprehension.

  “Yep,” she said, slipping her shoes back on.

  “Do I need to change?”

  She shook her head. “No, just the usual fare. Nothing fancy.”

  “Then I guess we’d better go?”

  Cassidy shrugged. “Want me to drive?”

  Hardly. Last time she drove, we almost died five or six times, but I wasn’t about to remind her. “That’s okay. I’ve got a full tank.”

  I set the wooden crates down by the front door then headed back down the stairs.

  “Someone call you?” I asked Cassidy.

  “Text.”

  I pulled out my phone. Nothing. Sometimes faerie etiquette puzzled me. After all this time with humans, couldn’t we adopt a few of their better traits? I slid back into the truck and started the engine, Cassidy popping into the seat beside me.

  “What’s all this?” she asked then, picking through the box I’d picked up at the antique shop.

  “Mostly knickknacks. I spotted some tools I wanted at an auction, but I had to buy the box to get them.”

  “Cute,” she said, lifting some sort of figurine that looked like a cross between a troll and Santa.

  “It’s all yours.”

  She laughed. “Thanks,” she said as she continued digging.

  “I didn’t even look. Anything useful in there?”

  “Hum. Let’s see. An old pot, some painted Easter eggs, chopsticks, some weird kind of vase, and this,” she said, lifting a metal contraption. “What the hell is this?”

  “An apple peeler, I think.”

  “Shoe box,” she said, opening the lid to look. “Too small for me. Pretty though. Oh, here we go,” she said, pulling out a little Hawaiian hula girl which she suction-cupped to my dashboard. “Perfect.”

  I laughed. Guiding the truck down the back roads, the hula girl dancing in tune with the potholes, I finally reached Route 5 which trailed alongside Lake Erie.

  “So which one of us is in trouble?” Cassidy asked.

  “Not sure. The bees say I’m getting close, but I’m still not there yet. How about you?”

  “Um, yeah, she got into college but still no prom date.”

  “So…both of us?” I asked with a laugh, which Cassidy joined.

  “Yeah, probably. I’m just going to focus on the onion rings. The diner has great onion rings.”

  I grinned. She was right. At least there was that.

  We pulled into Fairway Diner about half an hour later. The little restaurant, which sat along the lakeshore, was a landmark go-to place for college students to study…and sober up. The neon sign above the teal and chrome building buzzed as Cassidy and I passed underneath.

  “Two?” the hostess asked. “We got a booth in the back.”

  Cassidy shook her head and glanced around. “No. We’re with some people.”

  The hostess sized us up. “There?” she asked, pointing to the couple sitting near the back of the diner.

  Great. Not only were they faerie elders, but it was Ziggy and Skyla, the elders who kept watch over the entire faerie community in the northeast. Cleary, one of us was in for a scolding.

  “Crap,” Cassidy whispered under her breath.

  “Yep,” I agreed. “That’s them,” I told the hostess who was smiling at me.

  “Thought so. So, are you from around here or just passing through?” she asked me as she led us back to the table.

  Distracted, I hadn’t been paying attention to the glamour I was casting. In the presence of other faeries, my twinkly glow was buzzing so loudly that a few other women in the room looked up as I passed.

  “Oh, no. My girlfriend and I are just here on vacation,” I replied.

  The hostess frowned.

  Cassidy laughed.

  “That’s too bad,” the woman said, clearly dejected, as she set our menus at the edge of the table. “Here you go. Waitress will be over in a minute.” As the hostess walked away, I saw her frown sharply and shake her head, clearly chiding herself for the sudden flirtatious behavior that had swept over her.

  Ziggy smiled at us as we slid into across the teal-colored vinyl seat, the upholstery groaning and crackling. The gold and silver flecked Formica table must have been freshly wiped down; it held the scent of bleach and dirty dish water.

  “Rayne and Cassidy,” Ziggy exclaimed happily. “We haven’t ordered yet. Pick something. Dinner is on us.”

  I eyed the faerie elder. He looked, as always, like he’d just stepped out of the sixties. His long silver hair fell in loose locks all around his shoulders. The swirling designs of his multi-colored tie-dyed shirt accented the silver of his hair. He wore rings on every finger and strings of beads around his neck.

  “Starving,” Cassidy said. “They still have those onion rings?”

  “I was going to get those too,” Ziggy said then turned to Skyla. “What about you, Peaseblossom?”

  “Salad,” she said flatly then set down her menu.

  Ziggy frowned. “Just salad? Who knows when we’ll be back this way again? It’s not like we get many problems from Chancellor.”

  “Okay, okay, salad and poutine.”

  “What’s poutine?” Cassidy asked.

  “Fries topped with gravy and cheese. It’s a Canadian thing.”

  “Oh! I want that. I still need to get over to the falls. You two get over there much?” Cassidy replied. She was making small talk, but I noticed the tremor of worry under her nonchalant tone. Why, exactly, were we here again?

  “From time to time. Rayne, you’re quiet. Hungry, my boy?” Ziggy asked.

  “I can eat. Alice filled me up at lunch, but I always have room for diner food.”

  “I took Twyla and her friends down to the bagel shop last week. They complained that I took them for carbs, but they ate all the same and have been raving about it since,” Cassidy said, referring to her assignment, a teenaged girl name Twyla.

  I smiled weakly then glanced at Skyla who was looking closely at me. Though she appeared to be around sixty in human years, her hair was a youthful sunflower yellow color. Her yellow curls tumbled over her shoulders. She was wearing a sundress with a sweater over it. Like Ziggy, she wore lots of jewelry. All faeries seemed to love shiny baubles. I couldn’t help but notice, however, that she was wearing her infamous mirror amulet. While it looked like a simple piece of adornment, it was anything but. All faeries had their ways of keeping up with their work. The bees and I had our own routine, but everyone knew that Skyla could see quite a lot in that little mirror. I suddenly felt nervous. What had she seen?

  Skyla opened her mouth to say something to me, but then the waitress arrived so she left the words unspoken.

  “Ready to order?”

  I waited patiently while Ziggy ordered for himself and Skyla, and Cassidy ordered just about every fried item on the menu.

  “Sweet tea and fried pickles, please?” I said, not looking directly at the woman. This time, I was trying to make a conscious effort not to get her attention.

  “Oh! Fried pickles. I missed that,” Cassidy said. “An order of those
for me too.”

  The waitress chuckled. “Sure thing, though I don’t know where you’re going to put it all.”

  “My boyfriend will help,” she said, nudging me playfully in the ribs.

  The woman laughed, shook her head, and walked off.

  “Sorry about that, earlier, I mean,” I told Cassidy.

  She winked at me. “No problem.”

  “So,” Ziggy began with a smile. “I bet you’re both wondering why you’re here.”

  I inclined my head and waited.

  Cassidy, who was sitting lotus style on the booth seat, fiddled nervously with the laces of her sneakers.

  “We’ve been keeping an eye on your progress…both of you,” Skyla said, her voice sounding a little annoyed. “And the lack thereof. Cassidy, a prom date might seem like a small thing, but I have seen that it will have ripple effects on Twyla’s life. You need to get a move on.”

  Cassidy nodded. “I totally agree. It’s just the boys around her are just that…boys. I don’t want her to spend all night trying to pry someone’s hands off her butt. I can’t seem to find—”

  “I’ve seen someone…near the studio. In another wing in the same business complex. There’s someone there,” Skyla said, referring to the dance and yoga studio where Cassidy worked.

  “The new fencing school, I’d bet. I’ll start there. Thanks, Skyla.”

  She nodded.

  “Rayne, we’ve seen your bees. Busy, busy, busy,” Ziggy said.

  I nodded. “I cast a strong enchantment this morning, and the bees think they are on to something. Someone is coming. I know it. I’m getting there.”

  Ziggy smiled. “We like Alice. Someone has been with that girl since she was just a mite. Hard nut to crack. She resists her fate at every turn. Stay on her.”

  “And don’t get distracted,” Skyla said, lifting her little mirror.

  “Well, at least not until the work is done,” Ziggy said, setting his hand on his wife’s arm. “Right?”

  The gesture seemed to soften her a bit. Skyla looked at me, smiling sympathetically. “I have seen your struggle,” she said, looking from the small mirror to me once more. “All things have their season. Just see your work through. Remember your job. Your duty comes before any personal interests.”

  “And when you’ve got Alice all settled, we can see what to do with you next,” Ziggy added.

  “I hoped to stay in Chancellor.”

  Ziggy smiled. “You wouldn’t be the first to stay there. Wasn’t there a faerie who got mixed up with the Chancellor coven back in the sixties?”

  Skyla nodded. “What a mess.”

  “Oh, that witch got him, but I don’t think he minded much.”

  “Speaking of,” Skyla said then, looking at me once more. “That friend of yours, Miss Dayton, is very observant. Be careful what you eat around her. She’s got mischief in her mind. She’s got a good heart, and the best intentions, just bad timing.”

  I grinned. Skyla was referring to Julie Dayton, the town’s new baker, and Horatio Hunter’s girlfriend. Her new shop, and especially her baked goods, were taking Chancellor by storm. What most of Chancellor’s residents didn’t know, however, was that her baking always had an extra special—even magical—ingredient. And I had already sensed that Julie had me in her sights. “You’re right about that,” I told Skyla. “Duly noted.”

  The faerie woman softened. “We know your work is challenging. Our assignments, however, need us. Some people come by their fates naturally, some need extra help. The young ladies in your care need you. If they didn’t, you’d never be assigned to them in the first place. Do your best.”

  “Like I said,” Ziggy added, turning back to his wife. “We rarely have issues in Chancellor. They’ll sort it out. Right, kids?”

  Cassidy relaxed. “Of course.”

  I nodded.

  “Here we go,” the waitress said, returning once more with a heaping tray, most of which she set down in front of Cassidy.

  Skyla smiled. “I didn’t think yoga teachers were supposed to eat so much fried food,” she told Cassidy.

  Cassidy grinned as she lifted an onion ring large enough to wear as a bracelet. “What? I eat when I’m stressed.”

  “Not a good way to cope,” Skyla said. “Macrobiotic will clear out the stress faster.”

  “Or brownies,” Ziggy added with a wink that made Cassidy laugh.

  I smiled and sipped my drink. No distractions. They were right. Until I got Alice where she needed to be, I had to set Viola out of my mind.

  Easier said than done.

  Chapter 6: Viola

  “Night, Miss Hunter,” John, one of the dishwashers, called as he left for the evening. “All finished in the back. Billy will take care of the last load.”

  From my position perched at the end of the bar, I waved to him. “Goodnight. Thanks for keeping us rolling at rush hour. Great job.”

  John smiled abashedly. “Thanks,” he said then headed out.

  I glanced at my phone. An hour left until closing. For a week night, Falling Waters had been busy. It was spring. Were the tourists on the move already?

  I took one final bite of my lobster ravioli in brown butter sauce, scooping up the last langoustine on my plate. Perfection. One great thing about living near a college with a culinary arts programs was that we were never at a loss for amazing chefs. The dish had looked as pretty as it had tasted. Artfully arranged green and white asparagus, hand-made ravioli, sweet langoustines with lemon garlic butter, and a vibrant purple orchid, I wished I’d snapped a picture to post online, but I’d been too hungry. It had almost looked too pretty to eat. Almost.

  “Sure you don’t want a drink?” Rick, the bartender, asked me, and not for the first time.

  I glanced up at him. With his wavy black hair, brown eyes, and a chiseled jawline that made Tatem Channing look like Jack Black, I’d be stupid if I missed the obvious signals he’d been sending me for the last month. But there were two problems. First, he was an employee. And second, he wasn’t…what I wanted right now.

  I shifted on the stool and slid my chemistry book in front of me once more. “I’m already so bleary-eyed that I can barely read. How about some coffee instead?”

  “You’re going to work yourself to death. Don’t you ever take a night off?”

  I smiled but cringed inside. It was coming. I knew it. “I’ll take time off when the semester is over.”

  Rick nodded. “Then maybe when the semester is over, you’ll come down to the marina and check out my boat?”

  If I said yes, he’d think I was interested. If I said no, he wasn’t going to let me study. I smiled. “Yeah, let’s see how things go. I might take summer classes.” Dodge. Avoid. I’d come up with another excuse later.

  Rick smiled optimistically. “Okay, well, hope you can stop by. Let me put some coffee on for you.”

  I nodded appreciatively then turned back to my book. I swore I’d read the same page five times but still had no idea what it said.

  “No, the bar is fine. We just want dessert,” I heard a familiar voice say from behind me. Rayne?

  I turned around to see Rayne enter with a red-headed girl I recognized but didn’t know.

  “Evening,” Rayne said playfully. He helped his guest slide onto one the bar stools then slipped onto the seat next to me. “What’s the subject tonight, my illustrious mad scientist?”

  “Chemistry,” I said, giving him an inquisitive look. What was he doing here and who was that girl?

  “A subject you seem well-versed in.”

  “Oh really?” I replied with a laugh, shaking my head. “Ugh. This class is making potions with Professor Snape look like kindergarten.”

  Rayne grinned. “How about introductions?” he said, leaning back, “Cassidy, this is my friend, Viola. Viola, this is Cassidy. Cassidy is a family friend.”

  Cassidy, I noticed, chuckled.

  “You have a family?” I asked Rayne with mock confusion. Truth be told, I kne
w nothing about where Rayne had come from. I always imagined his family lived on a commune or owned an organic salad dressing company or something. I had never actually met anyone from Rayne’s world before. And now, his acquaintance was very….pretty.

  “Hi,” I said to Cassidy, reaching out to shake her hand. “You look familiar. Do you live here in Chancellor?”

  She nodded. “I teach at the studio over by the high school.”

  I studied her. Her eyes, much like Rayne’s, had a sort of odd sparkle. Was I right or was it just the dim restaurant lighting? She was very attractive. She had long, straight red hair, a smattering of freckles on her nose, and a lithe dancer’s body. Yes, definitely pretty. And pretty familiar with my friend, from what I could see, as she settled in close alongside him. Her familiar nearness to Rayne set my nerves on edge. Easy, Viola.

  “What can I get for you?” Rick asked them.

  “Dessert!” Cassidy said excitedly. “I’m dying for something sweet. Rayne said you have the best desserts.”

  “And coffee?” Rayne asked.

  Rick nodded. “Desserts. Tonight the chef has four dishes. We have a brandied cherry clafouti, which is brandied cherries inside a French custard, plantain mock-scallops with drizzled Belgian dark chocolate, a traditional crème brulee kicked up with lemon zest and lavender, and vegan cashew cheesecake with warmed brown sugar peaches served over the top.”

  “You’re buying, right?” Cassidy asked Rayne, setting her hand playfully on his arm.

  The muscles in my stomach tightened as an annoyed and jealous feeling sweeping over me.

  Rayne shrugged. “Apparently.”

  “I’ll try them all,” Cassidy told Rick.

  Rick smiled at Cassidy. Apparently I wasn’t the only one who noticed her sparkle. “So, can I make you a drink?” he asked.

  She shook her head. “Just coffee for me too.”

  “You’re in luck. I’ve got a fresh pot brewing,” Rick said then winked at me. With that he headed back into the kitchen to give the order.

  I frowned and looked down at my book. Who in the hell was this girl? And why were both Rayne and Rick suddenly looking at her and not…well, not me. Enough, Viola. Don’t act like a spoiled brat. Not five minutes ago you were trying to think of a way to shake Rick. And Rayne is your friend. Don’t be that kind of bitch.