Jinx & Tonic (The Magic & Mixology Mystery Series Book 3)

by Gina LaManna

  I looked down at the cover. The book was black—the outside slightly scuffed, as if it’d been made from charcoal. Ainsley was staring at her fingers with a confused expression.

  “You okay?” I asked. “What’s wrong?”

  “I don’t have a good feeling about that book,” she said. “I don’t like it at all. If you’re going to open it, I’m getting out of this room.”

  “Are you kidding? This is what we came here for!”

  “I came here to learn about magic and to protect you.” Ainsley crossed her arms. “I didn’t come here to dabble with black magic. I may be impulsive and stupid, but I know my limits.”

  I stared at the book’s cover, a slight haze surrounding it—as if its very existence was a figment of my imagination. “Go on, then, and leave. I’m reading it whether you’re here or not. I didn’t come here expecting to play with fairies and love spells, I expected the magic would be dark.”

  “Yes, but—”

  “You weren’t there,” I said, my voice more forceful than I’d intended. “You can’t understand what I saw, what we all went through watching one of the Candidates die on the pitch. Raymon is not coming back, Ainsley, don’t you understand? He’s dead!”

  “Look, I’m sorry.” Ainsley raised her hands, her face pale. “I’m not going to leave, Lily, I never would have left you. But I don’t like it. I am here to protect you, and I will do that until my last breath, but I will not touch that book again.”

  “I understand,” I said. “And you don’t need to stay here. I wouldn’t blame you if you left. Liam shouldn’t have asked you to come here in the first place.”

  Ainsley’s jawline was firm. “You’re stuck with me, boss.”

  I gave her a wry smile and reached for the book, hesitating just before I touched the edges. Swallowing hard, I debated pushing the book away, forgetting it ever existed. But I didn’t.

  We’d come here for a reason. If the Witch could’ve told us the answers she probably would have. Since she hadn’t, that left just me, Ainsley, and the books.

  As my fingers sank around the book’s spine, I understood Ainsley’s shock. Inky, invisible fingers of black magic seeped through my skin. The magic leaked into my veins, coursing through my body as I opened the nameless cover.

  The first page had no words on it.

  To my horror, there was a single droplet the color of rust on the yellowed page.

  Blood.

  “Lily, look down.” Ainsley said, her warning strangled. “You’re bleeding.”

  I glanced at my hands, surprised to find the tip of my right pointer finger pricked. The blood on the page was mine.

  When I’d opened the book, the edge must have given me a paper cut. It wasn’t painful, but it was enough to leave a mark.

  “Put it back,” Ainsley said in a shaky voice. “I don’t have a good feeling about this.”

  I considered listening to her. My entire body ached to be rid of this terrible, evil book. Before I could push it toward her, the image of Raymon falling from the tree flashed through my mind. I raised my eyes, held Ainsley’s gaze, and gave a single shake of my head.

  She didn’t argue when I flipped to the next page.

  The words there blurred before my eyes, but I pressed on, whispering them in low tones:

  “With this blood, you shall be mine.

  A single drop, and I’ll redefine

  Your hopes and dreams, your loves and fears,

  I’ll make you laugh, or shed your tears.

  And in exchange, my soul will break,

  A piece of me, for you to take. . . ”

  The rest of the words swam before my eyes. The spell continued. My lips might have moved, but I couldn’t control them any longer. I felt my body sway dangerously close to the table. I couldn’t move my arms, couldn’t brace my body as I fell to the cold stone floor.

  My head hit hard cement, the crack sharp, though I didn’t feel pain. Somewhere far away, deep in a vacuum, shouted a voice. Ainsley. I couldn’t tell what she wanted or what she was saying as the world turned into a fuzzy, soul-wrenching blackness that dissolved my mind until I couldn’t feel, couldn’t think. . .

  The next moment I was standing. I moved stiffly, as if watching a robotic version of myself from above. Ainsley lay at my feet, not moving. I didn’t know what happened, or how she got there. All I knew was that the look in her eyes was confused, hurt.

  Some force moved my feet forward. I stepped over Ainsley’s head. A tiny place in my soul wanted to help her, but I couldn’t—something prevented my heart from feeling, my mind from thinking. I marched forward, following orders from someone—something—else. Marching, marching, marching until I reached the edge of the cliff.

  I hated heights, but it didn’t matter to me now. I stood one inch from a thousand-foot drop, the water spraying in every direction. Mist hit my face, soaked my clothes, the lagoon looming hundreds and hundreds of feet below, the sky stretching upward to the heavens.

  Jump, the voice told me. Jump, Lily.

  I took one step forward.

  A different voice called even louder this time… it sounded like Ainsley, but I couldn’t be sure—she was interrupted by the louder, more persistent voices in my head telling me to jump.

  I took another step forward, wobbling over the edge.

  Do it now, the voice said.

  Somewhere inside, somewhere tucked deep in the safest recess of my heart, I wanted to stop. To go back, to find Ainsley and make sure she was okay. To be rid of the horrible book forever.

  Jump, one voice called, while Ainsley whispered for me to Stop!

  I reached a hand upward, my feet inching toward the edge of the waterfall. My hand landed on the necklace dangling over my chest, the heart locket from my mother. When I touched it, the voices in my head quieted, and I took a step back.

  Jump, the voice said, sounding more enraged. Now.

  I clasped the necklace tighter, and a third voice spoke—a new voice, made of the voices of everyone I’d ever cared about in this world. Ranger X, Poppy, Zin—Hettie. Ainsley. The image of their faces blinked into my memory ever so briefly, but it was enough.

  Ainsley called for me to stop, and this time, I did.

  My body collapsed to the floor, the blackness seeping out of my mind, leaving my head pounding and my body shaking with exhaustion. The black magic had sapped my strength.

  All at once, I realized that I’d experienced mind bending.

  Someone had controlled me with blood magic, and I’d nearly died because of it.

  I tried to roll to my feet, but my body was too weak. As I pulled myself to a sitting position I slipped, one leg swinging over the edge of the cliff.

  The wall, slick with spray from the waterfall, did nothing to stop my slide.

  The next thing I knew, I was falling, falling over the side.

  Ainsley reached for me, lunged, her eyes bright.

  But she was too late, and I fell anyway.

  CHAPTER 20

  My life didn’t flash before my eyes.

  Which was probably a good sign, because I hadn’t ended up dead. A soft, fluffy sort of thing had caught my fall. I patted the air some more, and then looked down, realizing that it was some sort of cloud-like material perched just on the other side of the cliff. If it hadn’t been there to catch me, I’d certainly have tumbled to my death.

  With all the caution in the world, I pulled myself upward, moving with painstaking slowness back to the edge of the cliff. Ainsley popped her head over the edge, her eyes wild. As soon as she saw me, her face changed.

  “Lily? You’re alive! What happened?”

  “Help?” I reached for her. My arms shook as she grasped them, pulling me over the edge. It wasn’t until I managed to roll my way far, far away from the cliff that I could find the breath to mutter a thank-you.

  “What was that?” Ainsley asked. “You were just reading the book, perfectly normal one minute, and then the next… it was like someone had
taken over your body. Your eyes got all black and empty, and when you spoke, it was in this weird intonation that wasn’t you.”

  “Blood magic,” I said. “I sliced my finger on the edge of the book, and then when I flipped to the spell and started reading it… I must have invoked the spell.”

  “You’ve survived your first, and hopefully only, experience with mind bending.” The Witch of the Woods spoke from a seat at the head of the table. “And I must say, I am tickled pink. You are… you are one of a kind, Lily Locke. A pure anomaly. I’ve never seen the likes of it before.”

  “Did you do this?” I stood, my hands resting against the wall of stone. “Why?”

  “It’s quite peculiar.” She ignored my question. “You should have jumped—they all do.”

  “Were you trying to kill her?” Ainsley moved toward the Witch, the aggression seeping from her very pores. “Are you insane?”

  “I’m well aware of my actions.” The Witch of the Woods didn’t seem the least bit bothered by the venom tinging Ainsley’s words. “This needed to happen.”

  I shook my head. “You could have warned me!”

  “I can’t teach about blood magic until you’ve experienced it for yourself.” The Witch of the Woods stood, her joints creaking in the echoing chambers. “Now that you know how powerful of a spell we’re dealing with, I will answer all of your questions. I needed you to know the horrors mind bending can bring—personally—so you will never be tempted to use it for your own gain.”

  “I almost died,” I said, my voice hoarse. “I almost leaped off that cliff.”

  “And I would’ve caught you,” she said. “Just like I did when you fell off—the cloud was there for a reason. The others who have jumped? None of them have died. It’s just to prove a point.”

  “Prove a point?”

  “The thing people want most is what?” The Witch asked, and then answered her own question. “To stay alive. By showing that mind bending can cause a person to take their own life—well, one doesn’t mess around with magic like that.”

  “But—”

  “You, Lily Locke, are the only person in my long, difficult life who I’ve seen fight off mind bending,” she said. “Especially without training.”

  “I hardly fought it off—I fell off the cliff anyway.”

  “You did,” she said. “If you hadn’t succeeded, you would have jumped. You fought off the spell, but not before your friend took a tumble.”

  “My friend took a tumble?” My voice came out weak. I turned to face Ainsley, my words hollow. “Did I hurt you? Is that why you were on the ground?”

  She averted her eyes, the action itself enough to send tendrils of pain through my stomach. My head ached as I remembered her lying on the ground, but I had no memory of how she’d gotten there.

  “It was nothing,” Ainsley said, speaking to her feet. “I’m fine.”

  “Look at me,” I instructed her. “Ainsley, I need to know.”

  She looked up, and for the first time, I noticed a slight rim of darkness around her eye. I stepped closer, horror spreading through my body as I realized she’d fallen because of me. What had I done?

  “I am so sorry,” I said, tears heavy in my eyes. “I never meant to, it wasn’t me, I’m so. . . I’m so sorry—”

  “I know, it’s okay.” Ainsley reached out and gave my shoulder a light tap with her fist. “Your right hook needs some work. You’re just lucky I slipped and fell, knocked myself pretty good on the head. If I’d been prepared, I would’ve had you in handcuffs in no time, boss.”

  A sob disguised as a laugh warbled in my throat, but it did nothing to help the sick feeling twisting in my stomach. The pain only escalated as I realized this sensation must be what Trent was feeling—but worse. Trent first, and then Camden. Now me.

  The most frightening thought hit me then. Who would be next?

  “I can read the fear on your face,” the Witch said. “I can assure you it’s in our best interest if we can move quickly. I don’t know if The Puppeteer will wait until the next Trial to attack or if the strike will happen sooner. Either way, we need to prepare you as much as possible.”

  “It’s late,” Ainsley said. “Are we going back through The Forest tonight, or can we stay here?”

  “You’ll go back when you’re ready,” The Witch of the Woods said with a tilt of her nose. “Now, take out a quill and write down everything I say. Let me start by explaining how The Puppeteer got her name.”

  CHAPTER 21

  Hours later, I scratched my head. “Sorry to be impatient, but when does The Puppeteer come into all of this?”

  Ainsley traced her quill loosely over the parchment before us. We sat at the long table in the Library of Secrets, the Witch of the Woods at the head of it. She folded her hands before her, a look of strained patience on her face. “I’m getting to that.”

  I sighed. “I’m sorry, it’s just—”

  “Knowledge cannot be rushed,” the Witch said. “If I give you bits and pieces, you’ll run around like a chicken without your head.”

  “Yes, but if I’m too late to help, no amount of knowledge will help at all.” We’d spent the past hour learning every teensy tiny detail about the history of mind bending. Details so insignificant, I couldn’t see how they’d ever help us. “We’re here to learn about The Puppeteer.”

  “Well, it’s dark outside, and I’m not risking The Forest tonight.” Ainsley tapped her fingers against the parchment. “So we’ve got until morning.”

  “The Puppeteer is a complicated woman,” The Witch said, leaving me to lean back in my chair and resume my doodling. “Quite tragic, if you ask me.”

  “No amount of tragedy is an excuse to kill someone,” I said. “Not like she did.”

  “She loves the power.” The Witch made eye contact with both Ainsley and me before continuing. “The control that comes with black magic.”

  “Which is why she’s created an army of voodoo dolls,” I said. “Liam said she has one for every person on The Isle.”

  “We do not use the term voodoo.” The Witch of the Woods raised a finger. “And that is but a rumor. Nobody has seen this collection, including Liam.”

  “So nobody knows the truth? Why is this woman so hard to catch?”

  The Witch’s eyes scanned me hungrily. “That is where you come in, Lily Locke.”

  I didn’t look up. Ainsley’s eyes bored into the side of my head as I stared at the papers, avoiding them both. “What exactly are you suggesting?”

  “Find The Puppeteer,” The Witch hissed. “And ask her. The truth can only come from the source.”

  I’d known the task was coming, but it didn’t make things any easier. “What is she like?”

  “She is a great beauty,” The Witch of the Woods spoke with hushed reverence. “Her hair is black, and they say it curls down her back like the ocean waves at midnight. She smiles with lips as red as blood, her skin pale as the moon. In her eyes are pieces of starlight.”

  “That sounds a little far-fetched,” Ainsley said. “Sort of sounds like one of Liam’s poems.”

  “Liam knows more than he’s letting on, so I’d watch what you say around him.” The Witch of the Woods smiled, a smile tinged with sadness. Behind that sadness was a secret that she wasn’t willing to divulge. “He is a valuable resource, and you’d do well not to speak ill of him. He, too, has had a difficult life.”

  Ainsley’s lips formed a tight line. “Of course, sorry.”

  “What happens when I find this collection?” I steered the subject away from Liam. “The dolls, I mean. She must have one for me, too, I suppose.”

  “No, you’ll not yet have a doll, Lily. You’re new to The Isle; anyone who arrived since she was locked in jail will be free… for now. And of course, The Puppeteer will not have a doll for Poppy—”

  “Poppy was born here,” I said. “Why wouldn’t she have one?”

  “Poppy is a vampire. Vampires are immune to blood magic.”

&n
bsp; “Anyone else?”

  “Liam,” she said. “I’m not sure there will be one for Liam.”

  “Why not?” Ainsley asked. “He’s not new—”

  “I’m ignoring your question because the answer is not mine to give,” she said shortly. “And Lily, one more thing.”

  I raised my eyebrows.

  “The spell you experienced today is a pale imitation of true mind bending. Blood magic, true blood magic, touches your soul. Today, this spell merely touched your mind.”

  “Like a hallucination?” Ainsley asked.

  “A strong one,” the Witch agreed. “Because I am not willing to give up a piece of my soul, and that—my dear, is the cost of blood magic.”

  “Why did The Puppeteer go to jail?” Ainsley asked. “I know it was for using blood magic, but I haven’t heard the full story.”

  “That is all the information I have to offer.” The Witch of the Woods folded her hands in front of her body. “I must take my leave. Have a safe journey home, girls. The Forest and I will assist you on your way.”

  “It’s the middle of the night!” I stepped back so quickly my stool tipped over. “You can’t send us on our way now.”

  “I said, The Forest will guide you.” The Witch blinked as if that explained everything. “You will be safe. Follow me, please. The Library of Secrets is closed.”

  The way down the stairs was much faster than the way up, but even so, my legs ached when we reached the pool of water at the bottom of the falls. The Witch turned to face us, peppy as ever, while Ainsley looked half-dead.

  “Good night, girls.” The Witch of the Woods smiled at us, her old face crinkling with the effort. “Come back to visit when this is all over.”

  “Fat chance,” Ainsley mumbled. “The only time I’m coming back to visit is when someone starts allowing broomsticks on this island. My legs are killing me.”

  I opened my mouth to agree, but I spluttered instead. A big bug had zoomed straight toward my mouth, and I’d nearly swallowed it. I coughed and waved a hand in front of my face, pausing only when a tiny voice began to scream profanities in my ear.