Southern Karma

by Amy Boyles

  “You can do it,” Rufus whispered.

  Him. He kept telling me that every conceivable idea dwelled within my grasp to turn into reality. I just had to believe. Maybe it would work for the butterfly, too. If I believed I could catch it, perhaps that’s all I needed.

  I fisted my hands, bit down on my lip and ground my heels into the floor. The power flashed before me. With my mind I snatched, trapping it so that I could use it.

  I opened my eyes and stared at the throne—the wood and leather, noticing the shape of the antlers and the way the branches twisted at the base.

  Power buoyed in me, and the next thing I knew—swoosh!

  The chair was stone.

  King Billy Bob rose. He threw his hands together in a giant clap. “Well done! Well done.”

  He extended his hand. I grabbed a finger and shook. “Thank you.”

  “I have to admit, I didn’t think you had it in you, but you did it. How so, I don’t know, but you pulled it off.” He rubbed a hand over his jaw. “Only a gorgon can turn another gorgon to stone, but you might just prove that wrong.”

  He turned to his people. “Men, bring out the moonshine!”

  Rufus and Betty’s bonds were cut away, and suddenly thimbles of moonshine were pushed into our hands.

  I put mine down. “We really need to get going.”

  A hand clamped around my mouth. I shook it off and found Rufus beside me. “Don’t insult them.”

  I did a double take. Was Rufus Mayes telling me not to insult someone?

  “You’re kidding, right?”

  He gave a short shake of his head and took my thimble of moonshine. He pushed it into my hands. “Drink it. You’ve just saved our lives and proved you’ve got the goods. King Billy Bob is rewarding us. After all,” Rufus said, catching my gaze, “you promised to return the king’s sister to normal.”

  “I have an idea.”

  “Well it better be good.” Betty boobed herself between us. “Because if she doesn’t turn back, we won’t be able to stop the onslaught of giants that’ll rip through our town.”

  Five men sat on a platform and pulled out handmade instruments—a washboard, bango, spoons, jug and harmonica. They played bluegrass music giant-style—with lots of earth-rumbling foot slapping.

  “What? Those peaceful people rip our town apart?” I said sarcastically to Betty. “Never.”

  She cocked an eyebrow.

  “That’s why we need to leave. Get out of here,” I said.

  Rufus tipped his thimble to the king, who smiled back. “Not if we want to arrive with both our legs intact. Smile, look like you’re drinking, and have a great time. That’s how diplomacy works, Pepper.”

  “And you would know about diplomacy. You sold the king a tin crown.”

  He chuckled. “Honest mistake.”

  Then Rufus did the strangest thing. He draped an arm over my shoulder and tipped his thimble to the king. My initial reaction was to shrink away. This man wasn’t to be trusted. He was dangerous, and his ethical code was questionable.

  I figured his skin would feel serpentine, like a cold snake slithering over my flesh. But it didn’t.

  Rufus was warm. His skin felt normal, and the smell that drifted from him reminded me of the forest—woodsy.

  Up close and personal he wasn’t repulsive. He was supposed to be repulsive. He was supposed to make me vomit.

  But the man was almost soothing.

  Billy Bob caught my gaze and smiled. I raised the moonshine to my lips and took a small sip.

  Fire burned down my throat. I inhaled sharply, but the burn didn’t stop. Rufus touched my arm. The burning stopped.

  “Better?” he said.

  I nodded. “Better.” I leveled my gaze on him. Rufus glanced away. “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome. I suggest you pretend to drink. We’ll throw it in some bushes later.”

  A shout from Betty snagged my attention. She’d slipped away from us and was standing in the middle of a copse of giants, thimble raised high and dancing. She’d retrieved the spider from the shadows. Oh, I’d forgotten all about him. The arachnid was bobbing right and left. It looked like the creature was dancing, too.

  Would wonders never cease?

  My shotgun-toting grandmother danced with the spider. “That’s surprising.”

  “It’s the moonshine. It’s pretty strong stuff,” Rufus said.

  “Thanks for the heads-up.” Which meant I wouldn’t be drinking any more. My gaze swept the room until it landed on Axel. He was still in werewolf form, locked in the cage. I crossed to him, stopping a few feet away.

  He growled. I exhaled, defeated by him. It was no use. I could reach him. I could know his thoughts, but unless he let me in, it was pointless.

  Tears stung my eyes. I didn’t know why the heck I was crying. It was stupid and inconvenient. Here I was, in the middle of giants, feeling as much of a swindler as Rufus. After all, I didn’t know if I could turn Billy Bob’s sister back from stone. It was only an idea—an idea that needed a lot of other pieces to click into place before it would happen.

  Was I any better than Rufus? Honeysuckle wine, yes! I was. I didn’t try to turn people into vampires.

  But it was still so frustrating.

  I glared at the werewolf. “Why won’t you let me in? Why won’t you? You could take control of the beast. I know it. But you’re so darn stubborn. You, Axel Reign, are determined to be beaten by this stupid werewolf. Well, if that’s what you think, that’s what’s going to happen.”

  The werewolf cocked its head.

  “Don’t pretend you’re listening. I know you aren’t. You’re just like all men, stubborn.”

  Pepper.

  The word flashed in my brain. My jaw dropped. Axel?

  I’m sorry, he said in my head.

  There’s nothing to be sorry about. I just wish…I wish you would trust me.

  And I wish you’d believe me. I can’t…stay for long…

  I closed my eyes hard. So hard I didn’t want the tears to come. I thought…so much of me wanted to believe that Axel really wasn’t a complete beast inside all that fur and fangs. But the truth was, he was. The werewolf was as much a part of him as he was of it. It would never disappear. Not like I hoped or wished. The creature would always come through.

  It was time I accepted that. Axel was right. He was dangerous. A cold-blooded killer running purely on instinct. My wanting it to be different wouldn’t change that. I couldn’t wish for him to control the beast any more than I could wish to control Mother Nature. It simply wasn’t possible.

  I sighed. I stared into the werewolf’s yellow eyes. Axel, are you there?

  The beast snarled in reply.

  “Nope. I guess not.”

  “What you need is a little dancing.”

  Rufus stood to my right. “I’m okay,” I mumbled.

  “He’s a werewolf. You want Axel to be fully conscious inside.”

  I stayed silent.

  “That isn’t how it works. I should know.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Something dark lay in Rufus’s eyes. He dragged his gaze from Axel and leveled it on me. The hardness made my breath hitch. It was a purely human look on a man I deemed to be inhuman.

  “You think you’re the only person who’s ever loved a beast?”

  My lips parted. “What are you saying?”

  Rufus brought the thimble to his lips and drank deeply. When he was finished, he turned to me. “I know you think it’s impossible, but even I can love. I once fell in love with a werewolf.”

  “What happened?”

  “She died.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  His jaw clenched. “It wasn’t your fault. It wasn’t your fault that she was killed.”

  “For what? Why was she killed?”

  The words ground from his mouth like his teeth were grindstones. “Murder.”

  TWENTY

  Rufus and I sat on the outskirts of the cave.
I watched as Betty danced and sang. Hugo and Paige had come down and had joined the fun as well, though I’d made sure Paige stayed far, far away from the moonshine.

  Hugo, however…he’d taken a long drink and shot fire against the cave walls.

  The giants thought it was the best trick they’d seen all day. They laughed and hooted, getting my dragon to do it again.

  Flames flickered in front of me. I tipped my ear toward Rufus, listening.

  He studied me. “You think Axel is the first werewolf in Magnolia Cove?”

  “Um. I don’t… He’s part wizard, too.”

  “Let me rephrase it. Do you think Axel is the first half-blood to have lived there?”

  “I’m guessing no.”

  “We grew up together. Her name was Georgia. We were best friends. Inseparable.”

  “Did she know your mother used dark magic?”

  Rufus chuckled. “Always have to dig, don’t you?”

  I shrugged. “It’s a fact.”

  He turned. His gaze drilled into me. “This was before my mother taught me. Before I asked her to.”

  He stared at me so long I glanced away, back to Axel, who was still snarling and growling.

  “Go on.”

  “Georgia was the same as him—half witch, half werewolf. Thing is, no one knew that except for her mother, and her mother didn’t tell anyone.”

  “Why not?”

  He wiped a hand down his cheeks. “Prejudice, I imagine. She was a single mother raising a young witch. She locked Georgia away every night of the full moon except for one—the night Georgia got out and mauled a man to death. He was coming home late from his shop. Left a young widowed wife and a fatherless son.”

  The pain in his voice shredded my heart. I squeezed his shoulder.

  “I’m sorry,” I said.

  “She was young. Barely a teenager and my best friend. At that time the leadership in the town was different. Very cold people ran Magnolia Cove. When they realized what had happened and that Georgia’s mother had kept the truth from them, they sentenced both to death.”

  He paused. Rufus’s breathing staggered. “You wonder why I hate Magnolia Cove so much. Yes, the town turned its back to me, treated me like I was different. Well, I was.”

  Fire raged in his eyes. “I was different because of what they did to her. She was only a teenager. If her mother had told someone, things might’ve been different, but the hard hearts in Magnolia Cove got what they wanted, to get rid of a werewolf even though she was a child.”

  My heart twisted at his words. “But Betty…Betty was there then.”

  Rufus’s mouth tightened.

  “She watches Axel now. Makes sure he’s safe.”

  “She wasn’t the mayor, so I don’t know about the amount of pull she had. But if she’d wanted the girl to live, she should’ve yelled louder. I was the only one that did. I screamed at them. Told them Georgia was good, but no one listened to me.” He chuckled bitterly. “Not much has changed, has it? They still don’t listen.”

  My stomach convulsed. “I didn’t know this.”

  He hitched a shoulder. “Why would you have? No one talks about the town’s dirty secrets.” He picked up a stone and threw it. “Only those of us who remember do. Actually only I do. The rest of them just want to forget.”

  I watched the werewolf pace back and forth. “What about him?”

  “I think they realized what was done to Georgia was wrong, so they let him stay. But it’s a tenuous relationship, isn’t it?”

  I nibbled my bottom lip. It had gotten better, but people still stared when Axel and I entered a restaurant. Maybe Rufus was right—some people never forgot. Maybe they wanted to remember forever.

  I didn’t know. My stomach felt sour, raw. I liked the people of Magnolia Cove. I didn’t want to think that deep down they were bad. But no one was completely good, were they? You could try, but everyone made mistakes.

  It seemed that they were trying to make up for any mistakes by letting Axel live in town. But still, if he ever managed to hurt someone…I shuddered thinking about it.

  I yawned. I was tired. This whole day had been exhausting, and there was still a lot left to do—a potion to drink, a time watch to fix, and it all had to be done first thing in the morning.

  I settled down with my head against a rock.

  “Here,” Rufus said. He pulled off his jacket and tucked it under my head.

  “You don’t have to do that.”

  “I know, but I am because you’re uncomfortable and a lot is riding on you.”

  I scoffed. “If I can get this stupid gorgon eye thing resolved.” I pressed my head to the jacket. The cushion helped. A lot. “Thank you.”

  Rufus’s glance darted to the dancers. “Just don’t tell anyone.”

  A slow smile curled on my lips. “You have my word.” I closed my eyes. “Rufus?”

  “Yes?”

  “What if I can’t get rid of the gorgon eye?”

  “You’ll be able to.”

  I opened my eyelid a slit. “How can you be so sure?”

  He traced his thumb over the lip of the thimble. “Because of what you are.”

  “A head witch. You seem to think that means I can do anything.”

  “If only you’d believe me. You’d see. You could do anything.” He hooked his arm behind his head. “I’m sure your boyfriend has told you that.”

  The way he said the word boyfriend had bite to it. As if Rufus was jealous.

  I closed my eyes.

  “You could get rid of your gorgon eye anytime you wanted to. You’re afraid, Pepper Dunn; admit it. What would that sort of power mean? Would it be too much for you to be responsible for?”

  “No one should have that sort of power,” I said. It just spewed from my mouth. Was that what I really thought? “It would be too easy to be irresponsible. Look at you, for instance.”

  “Yes, why don’t we look at me.”

  His tone sounded like I’d knifed him in the ribs. “What would you do with that sort of power? Turn the world into a bunch of vampires?”

  “No, I’d live forever.”

  “To do good? Or try to steal things? You don’t have a great track record.”

  “Maybe because I’ve never been given a chance otherwise.”

  I scoffed. “You’ve been given chances, same as the rest of us. May I remind you that up until the past couple of days, every time I encountered you, you tried to steal my powers.”

  “So I could live forever. It’s a very noble pursuit.”

  “It’s silly, and what you did to me was to strike fear in my heart. I’m afraid of you. At least, I was until I saw you in that old hag costume.”

  He scratched his head. “That was pretty ridiculous.” Quiet blanketed the space between us. “I’m sorry for any fear I might’ve given you. You don’t deserve that.”

  “I know.”

  I snuggled back down onto his jacket and closed my eyes. “There’s a lot to do tomorrow.”

  As I drifted off to sleep, the sounds of music filling my ears, I was pretty sure I heard Rufus whisper, “Good night.”

  When I awoke, the cave was quiet. All the giants had disappeared. Betty lay on a cot. How the heck had she managed to get a cot when all I had was the floor? Rufus was beside me. My head was on his shoulder.

  Was I out of my mind?

  I jerked away and sat up. Paige was curled on Hugo. The dragon snored softly. The spider had made itself a web in a corner of the cave. Its eyes were shut.

  I rose and glanced in the cage. Axel lay in there, naked, but not quite like the day he was born. If you know what I mean.

  I moved to Betty and nudged her. “Time to wake up. We’ve got to get back to Magnolia Cove.”

  She stirred and shook her head. “What a night. And to think I considered bringing my shotgun.”

  “Lot of good it would’ve done against giants.”

  “You got that right, kid.” She glanced at Axel. “Think he want
s clothes?”

  “That would be my guess.”

  Betty snorted magic from her nose, and moment later Axel lay in the cage, fully clothed in jeans and a T-shirt. Betty tossed me a key chain. “Here you go.”

  I caught it one-handed and unlocked his cage. I crawled inside. The wooden boards creaked, and the metal rattled. I unlocked a cuff around his neck. The link fell heavily to the floor.

  Axel stirred. He blinked and stared at me for a moment before jumping to his feet and pulling me into a hug.

  “Pepper. I had a vision. A terrible image that I tried…that I almost…”

  “Hurt me?”

  He pinned my shoulders and studied me. I could almost see his soul, his blue eyes penetrated me so fiercely. “It wasn’t a dream, was it?”

  I bent my head and shook it. “No. But everything’s okay now. You’re okay. I’m okay.”

  He surveyed the cave. “Hillbilly Hill?”

  I nodded. He glanced around until his gaze settled on Rufus. He saw the jacket balled up next to him. Axel’s jaw clenched. I didn’t know what I was supposed to say. Nothing happened didn’t seem appropriate because nothing had even gotten anywhere close to happening.

  We were talking about Rufus Mayes. Gross.

  Axel kissed me long and deep. My knees weakened. When we parted, he slicked a hand over my hair. “I’m just glad you’re all right. That’s all that matters.”

  As he spoke, the rest of our group stirred. Axel straightened, glanced at the crew and said, “Now, who’s ready to go bring back time?”

  TWENTY-ONE

  Betty whisked all of us, including the spider, back out onto Bubbling Cauldron.

  There were still spiders and ghosts roaming through Magnolia Cove, but the scary quality had died down some. Or maybe it was just that everyone was tired.

  Let’s face it; we were on day three of Halloween. At some point folks and creatures needed rest.

  “Well at least the place has settled down,” Axel said.

  There was barely anyone out. It was so sparse I was surprised a tumbleweed didn’t roll down the street.