A Charming Secret (Magical Cures Mystery Series Book 6)

by Tonya Kappes

  “Nice to meet you.” Peony stuck her hand out and they shook. “I didn’t realize you were engaged to the sheriff.”

  “She is.” Oscar informed her. He put his arm around my shoulder, giving me a squeeze.

  Mr. Prince Charming darted out the door before Oscar could close it behind him.

  “It’s getting really cold out there. Unseasonably cold.” Oscar did a shimmy shake. He removed his arm and blew into his hands before rubbing them together.

  “I guess I better bundle up then.” Peony headed to the door. “I will see you soon. And June,” she briefly paused, “I’m sorry about Amethyst. She really is a great friend to my sister.”

  “No big deal.” I waved it off. “I’m sure she’s very protective of her.”

  “Nice to meet you,” she and Oscar said in unison before she left the shop.

  “I’ve been waiting all day to do this.” I placed my hands on the back of his neck, pulling him to me. Our lips parted, greeting each other, moving in unison.

  It was like we were meant for each other. Our bodies responding to each other, his hands pulling me as close as we could get. There was a dreamy intimacy to our kiss I was sure no one had ever felt but us.

  “You are killing me,” he groaned. His eyes closed, his hands roamed. “Maybe we should skip dinner and go back to your place after the ceremony.”

  “That does sound better.” I tilted my head to the side, letting his lips sear down my neck.

  “Get a room,” a muffled Madame Torres spouted out from the depth of my bag. “I haven’t got all day and right now would be a great time to discuss the ever present danger to you, June Heal.”

  “Danger?” Oscar pulled me away. “What danger?” He dragged me by the hand toward the glowing bag.

  “You never know when to keep your mouth shut, do you?” I dug deep into the bag and pulled out my snarky crystal ball.

  “What good is having a cop for your man if you aren’t going to use him when needed?” She cocked her purple brow in the air. Her face stern. “You need to watch Petunia’s family and friend. They do not have her or your best interests at heart.”

  “Amethyst?” Oscar asked.

  “Yeah. We sort of mixed words today.” I hated to admit I had let her get my goat.

  “Colton said something about it. I figured it was a customer,” he muttered uneasily.

  “She isn’t a big fan of me because I had been the Village President before.” Suddenly I was regretting letting her get to me. “I probably should’ve walked away, but I had to defend myself.”

  “You don’t have to worry about them. They will all be gone tomorrow,” he assured me. “Now, what was Madame Torres saying about danger?”

  “June has been having nightmares again.” Madame Torres appeared. The blue water surrounding her became cloudy and images of me sleeping filled the ball. “She hasn’t been sleeping well and it’s affecting her on a daily basis.”

  “Madame Torres, since when did you become Oscar’s familiar?” I was a little pissed she just blurted out whatever she wanted.

  “Fine, but don’t forget the part about Mr. Prince Charming giving you a new charm.” Her ball went black.

  “Charm? What?” Oscar’s voice rose in surprise.

  I sucked in a deep breath and grabbed the lighter. If we didn’t get a move on, we were going to be late for the ceremony, then Amethyst would really be mean to me.

  “It’s nothing.”

  “Nothing?” He grabbed me by the arm to stop me from fiddling around. “Look at me,” he ordered me. His eyes held concern. “I saw you last night. You were freaked out. How long have the nightmares been going on?”

  “A month or so.” I shrugged and jerked out of his grip. I sprayed the cauldron with cleaner and decided to leave it sit overnight. “I know what you are going to say. If I would have addressed this a month ago, we wouldn’t be in this situation today.”

  “It obviously wasn’t going to go away by you ignoring it for a month,” he said the words that rang true. “They never just go away until they come true in some sort of way.”

  I listened to him rant and rave about all the other nightmares I had had and how they had come true. I grabbed generic potion bottles and began refilling the empty shelves from the day’s sales. There wasn’t going to be any time to make all the potions I needed to make.

  Nervously, I walked around all the small tables in the center of the room, running my hands over the tablecloths that covered them, making sure everything was in order for opening tomorrow.

  Smudging ceremonies were long and took a lot out of me, plus I was going to spend time with Oscar tonight, which meant I would be too tired to come in early to do all of the necessary things that needed to be done before I could open the shop.

  “You are right. I should have told you,” I said what he wanted to hear. “But I didn’t so let’s move on.” I nodded and grabbed my bag. I put Madame Torres in the bottom.

  Oscar grabbed my hand with my charm bracelet on my wrist.

  He snapped his wand off his belt, which to most people looked like a billy club, and tapped the charm. Wizard school was teaching them how to use their wands in many situations other than casting spells.

  “Third eye?” he questioned. “What is it you need clarification on? What is Mr. Prince Charming trying to protect you from?”

  “I don’t know.” I hated to tell him that, but it was the truth. “Bella wasn’t able to clarify for me. She said she felt it odd he picked the third eye. And I feel it.” I put my hand on my gut and closed my eyes. “I feel danger. I feel evil. I smell death.”

  Chapter Seven

  “Colton.” As Oscar spoke into his police walkie-talkie, which was attached to his uniform on his shoulder, we made our way up the hill to The Gathering Rock. “Keep a look out while the town is at Petunia’s inauguration. June feels evil is lurking.”

  “Got it,” Colton’s voice rang out of Oscar’s microphone.

  “Nothing to worry about.” Oscar put his arm around my shoulders helping keep the chill at bay.

  The Gathering Rock was up the hill near my cottage. It was a large rock and the gathering space where we held all of our ceremonies and celebrations.

  “What is going on with the teenagers tonight?” Isadora Solstice noticed the fireflies swarming around Peony.

  Isadora was the spiritualist who found Oscar and I in Locust Grove. She was the one who had brought us to Whispering Falls. She had always been so good to us. She was the Village President for a long time. The fireflies in the village were sweet souls of teenagers who had passed from the living world into the spiritual world. Just like the living teenager, they loved to come out at night and stay up, bugging you in the process. They were probably in love with Peony and her youthful spirit.

  “I’d like to wrap my fingers around her neck.” Isadora’s hazel eyes zeroed in on Gwendolyn who was silently standing beside Petunia. Her long lashes sweeping upward, she pushed her wavy blond hair from her face and straightened her shoulders.

  Izzy was always dressed so impeccably. Today she wore an A-line skirt with a spider print, black turtleneck, and her pointy laced-up boots to compliment the hunter green cloak.

  “She has made that impression on you too?” I asked.

  Oscar didn’t say anything. He knew we girls needed to gossip.

  “She had the nerve to come into my shop and tell me I was doing it all wrong.”

  Mystic Lights was filled with beautiful lighting elements. Anyone would be grateful to have her amazing designs. Her spiritual talent was crystal ball reading and all things aura, light and love. She had a truly magical spirit. As one of the oldest village members, she was smart and talented.

  Every time I looked at her, she reminded me of Meryl Streep, the actress. And she always held herself to the highest standards.

  “She’s a beast and I’m so glad they are leaving tomorrow.” She lowered her eyes. “This village isn’t big enough for the two of us.”
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  “Who are you talking about?” Raven Mortimer asked. She turned her head to the side; her black ponytail flung around whipping around her face. “Let me guess. Gwendolyn?”

  That was what I loved about Raven. She was fun, young and spoke her mind.

  “She’s the devil. It took everything I had not to throw a little something-something in that tart she’s eating.”

  We all looked at Gwendolyn who was now stuffing the tasty pastry in her mouth. And we all knew what Raven meant by a little something-something.

  “I couldn’t agree more.” Isadora rubbed her hands together. “I better take my seat.”

  “Are you feeling okay?” Constance Karima moseyed up to our little group.

  Patience stood behind her, both with a curious look in their eyes. “Sick. Someone’s gonna die.” Patience’s eyes grew with excitement.

  “No one is going to die,” I assured them.

  “Yes. Yes there is.” Constance rubbed her hands together with anticipation of the thought.

  “Yes there is,” Patience repeated and followed her sister to their seats in front of The Gathering Rock.

  Raven and I watched Isadora go where the Village Council sat during the ceremonies. Behind The Gathering Rock. Izzy sat next to Gerald and Petunia.

  “Gwendolyn had the nerve to tell me my tart was too . . .,” she pursed her lips and sucked in, “too tart! And she hated the June’s Gem Petunia bought for her this morning.”

  “I think she hates the June.” I pointed to myself. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Patience Karima sniffing everyone who walked by her. “Gwendolyn thinks people should go to the doctor and not try silly little cures.” I pounded my closed fist in my hand. “I wanted to knock her out. She even made fun of my shop. Colton had to step in.”

  “He did?” She gasped. “She’s a nasty woman. Thank God she doesn’t live here. She’d never make it.”

  “No joke.” My voice was flat.

  Raven and I quickly shut up when Gwendolyn passed by us. She didn’t bother looking our way. Instead she bolted back down the hill with the tart in her grasp, Peony close behind her.

  “IBS.” Peony laughed, batting away the fireflies from her face.

  “Excuse me?” I asked.

  “Gwenie has IBS. Irritable Bowel Syndrome.” She swatted more fireflies.

  “Come on.” I waved my hand in the air. “Let our guest be.” The fireflies buzzed off. “Teenagers.” I rolled my eyes. I turned to Raven. “How much time do we have?”

  “About ten minutes.” Her brows furrowed. “Why?”

  There was probably more time than that. Villagers were still making their way up the hill.

  “I’ll be right back.” I threw the edges of my cloak around my body to shield the cold as I darted back down the hill toward Gwenie.

  Chapter Eight

  “No, June!” Madame Torres yelled from the bottom of my bag. She flopped up and down like a rag doll with me running as fast as I could to get to Gwenie. If I got on her good side, maybe she could help me out with Amethyst.

  I was good at ignoring Madame Torres from the depths of the bag. She insisted she got “bag sick”, a sort of car sick. I had fell for her antics several times, but not tonight. I had Petunia’s cousin to win over and if she had a bad case of irritable bowel syndrome, I had the perfect cure for it.

  “June!” Madame Torres glowed a deep almost blood red.

  “What?” I asked very loudly and looked into the bag.

  Truth, potion, deceptive, manipulative. The words floated in her ball.

  “What do these words mean?” I asked her, trying to decipher her new way of communicating with me.

  “How do I know?” Her red lips appeared in the black liquid within the ball. “I’m just bringing you what I see, what I feel.” She was so dramatic. “You are the one who is supposed to know what they mean! How did I get such a dumb spiritualist?”

  “Watch it,” I warned and shut my bag up. I looked up and Gwenie was almost to town. “Gwendolyn!” I yelled down the hill and ignored my crystal ball. “Gwenie!”

  She stopped in front of A Cleansing Spirit Spa. Chandra Shango, owner and palm reader, had her key in the door of the shop and stood there with a dumbfounded look on her face. Chandra wasn’t going anywhere. She was a nosy as they come.

  “I think June Heal is trying to get your attention,” Chandra said to Gwendolyn in her warm and inviting voice.

  With curious eyes, Chandra watched intently while adjusting her orange and pink turban with the large purple feather sticking out of the back on her head.

  “I’m Chandra Shango, owner of A Cleansing Spirit Spa.” Chandra stuck her hand out for Gwendolyn to shake. Only Chandra flipped it over, getting a good glance at Gwendolyn’s palm, quickly dropping it. “Oh dear.” Chandra hurried off in the direction of The Gathering Rock. “I’m going to be late for the ceremony.” She grabbed me on my way over to Gwendolyn. “You come with me.”

  “No,” I pulled out of her grip, “I want to talk to Gwenie and I’ll be right there.”

  “I really think it’s best you come with me, June.” Chandra’s sweet voice was stern. Her hazel eyes hardened and she nervously picked at the edges of her raspberry hair; her nail color matched.

  “My close family and friends call me Gwenie. Not you.” Gwenie’s words shot at me like an arrow, her eyes glowed, and brows lifted. “What do you want to see me about?” she questioned.

  “It was brought to my attention your IBS is acting up and I wanted to extend an olive branch and offer you a special remedy passed down from spiritual generation to spiritual generation.” I pointed to my shop right next door. “It’s just right inside.”

  “I think we should go.” Chandra tugged on me again.

  “Fine.” Gwenie made the first step toward my shop. “But I think my stomach is gurgling from nerves of the opening of Full Moon, and Petunia’s ceremony. Not some silly little diagnosis with IBS.”

  “I will be right there.” I put my hands in front of Chandra to stop her from touching me. “It will only take a second. And the cure will help a nervous stomach.”

  “If you give me some sort of bad potion, you will regret the day you met me.” Gwenie had evil coming out of every pore.

  “If I had any sense, I would,” I whispered cocking a brow to Chandra.

  “I’m out of here.” Chandra gave me one last chance. “Come on with me. Deal with her later.”

  “No. I’m dealing with her now. She’s been nasty to everyone we love and maybe my little cure will bring relief to us all.” I waved her off and met Gwenie at the gate of A Charming Cure.

  “Is everything okay?” Petunia was now standing next to Chandra.

  “Fine.” I waved her off. “I’m going to help her feel better.” I smiled and turned back to Gwenie.

  Reluctantly, Chandra and Petunia turned to go up to The Gathering Rock.

  “I don’t know why are you trying to be nice to me. I’m leaving tomorrow.” Gwenie planted her hand on her hips. “I see no good coming from this. No good whatsoever. And after tomorrow, you will probably never see me again.”

  “Why would you say such a thing?” I asked and used my key to open the door.

  Once inside, I flipped on the lights. My shop reflected my pride; I had come a long way from the flea market booth and I was proud of what I had continued from my parents.

  Illuminated by the hanging chandeliers throughout the shop, the ornamental glass bottles glistened like magic in the dim light. Each display table in the middle of the room had a red tablecloth covering that fell to the floor. Romantic and beautiful. It truly took my breath away.

  “You have no idea of the family secrets held in any family other than yours.” Gwenie’s eyes dropped.

  “Every family has their own secrets.” My face softened. “Trust me, I know all about that.”

  I wasn’t going to waste the precious time I had, not to mention the few minutes, to go into detail how Oscar’s uncle
had been the evil force behind the death of my parents and Oscar’s. It was a secret better left buried.

  “We are lucky, you know.” I gave a sympathetic smile. She wasn’t going to spill about the family issues and I wasn’t going to push. “Magic isn’t seen by the untrained eye, but magic binds us together. We are blessed to share the bond.”

  “You are right. I’m so sorry I judged Whispering Falls. Our village isn’t so,” she paused. Her throat moved up and down as she gulped. “Isn’t so helpful. We have some really nasty, selfish citizens.”

  I gave her another sympathetic look. This was one time I was glad I didn’t have to deal with negative people. My life was good and I had a wonderful community to foster the goodness in all.

  “Now.” I hurried back to the counter for the special potion. I tapped each bottle, one by one, down the shelf. Nothing lit up. “Hmm.” Perplexed, I tapped down the line again.

  Nothing.

  “It has to be here somewhere,” I said. “It has all sorts of good homeopathic stuff in it. Slippery elm and aloe juice will help reduce any inflammation. Chamomile tea leaves crushed up in the mixture will soothe and help repair damage. Rosemary, peppermint, catnip, fennel, and green drinks are also excellent choices for colon health. So if you go by The Gathering Grove on your way home in the morning, I’m sure your cousin-in-law will fix you right up.”

  I glanced around for the bottle I knew I had made up. I specifically put it in a clear bottle with an ornamental wire wrapped around it. Plus the cork lid was gorgeous. There was nothing beautiful about bowel problems, so I wanted the lucky recipient to have a nice bottle to look at.

  “Oh!” I was excited to find the bottle. It was hidden behind the Lonely Heart Potion. I grabbed it, noticing it didn’t light up to my touch. The clock on the wall told me I didn’t have time to make a new potion, but I knew this one was it. “Here is it.”

  I brushed away any doubt and handed her the bottle.