by Lauren Quick
“Looks like we’ll have to take the long way home,” Clover said.
“I think we can manage,” Henrietta said.
“Too bad you didn’t bring your brooms.” Clover smiled.
“Who said we didn’t bring our brooms? We never leave home without them.” Elsie slipped two long twigs from her sleeve and handed one to Henrietta. They both muttered a spell and the twigs grew into two sturdy wooden brooms with thatched bristles tightly woven to one end. With catlike grace, Elsie and Henrietta hopped on their brooms sidesaddle. “What are you two waiting for?” Elsie asked.
“We’ve got room for passengers,” Henrietta said with a cocky smile.
Clover’s and Vivi’s eyes widened. Honora threw her head back and cackled while lifting off the ground, basking in the glory of her persuasion. “Have fun, you two. It’s going to be a bumpy ride back to Willow Realm and the Meadowlands.” She waved and flew off into the sky.
Clover approached her mother to touch base with her before leaving. Elspeth gave her arm a reassuring squeeze. “Fly home with the aunties and get some rest tonight. I’ll take the portal in the woods back to Hex after I’ve done a sweep of the grounds.” The Darklander had already gone inside of his stronghold, but Elspeth’s gaze drifted over the house and garden before addressing Clover again. “We’ll meet up tomorrow morning at Nocturnes to talk about your father.”
“Right,” Clover said. “Like we’ll be able to get a wink of sleep.” Just the thought of that conversation made Clover’s stomach roll over, but it couldn’t be avoided any longer. They had to know everything about Charles Atticus and what happened all those years ago to make him leave them.
The ride home was both exhilarating and terrifying at the same time. Henrietta took Vivi home while Elsie returned to the Meadowlands with Clover. Derek stayed all night, waiting for them to return home safely and jerked up from the sofa the second Clover and Elsie walked through the door. She told him everything that had happened at the Darklander’s garden and rambled on about the fight and Hex Division taking Kat away and what it all meant for her and her family. Derek let her talk about her mother and father and what would happen now that they were reunited. Suddenly having a father again was confusing, overwhelming, and yet thrilling. Would they finally have the family that always eluded them growing up? Or would he disappear like a dream? Or, worst of all, would he be convicted of murder and thrown into The Banishment for life?
It was morning before Clover realized that she’d never gone to bed. She padded into the kitchen, rubbing her sticky, tired eyes. The aunties had long since gone to sleep and Clover could swear she heard the faint rumbles of snores coming from the bedrooms above. With a flick of his wand, Derek scrambled eggs, fried bacon, and toasted bread. She tore at the bread slathered with butter and shoved bacon in her mouth, suddenly starving. After she devoured breakfast, she took a shower and changed into clean clothes before heading to Willow Realm to meet with her sisters and mother.
Nocturnes was bustling with a healthy breakfast crowd. Tables were packed with yakking witches and wizards clamoring for cups of coffee and tea while wolfing down delectable breakfast offerings. Clover navigated the café, finding her sisters and mother had already arrived and were eating.
“Sorry. But we couldn’t wait before ordering,” Honora said, shoveling syrup-drenched pancakes into her mouth.
“No worries. I already ate,” Clover said, sliding into the booth. “I’ll just have a cup of tea,” she said to the waitress who stood waiting to take her order.
“Good,” Elspeth said. “Now that we’re all here I can finally tell you what I should have told you years ago.” A piece of dry toast sat barely touched on the plate in front of her. “I want to start by apologizing.”
“No. You don’t need to apologize,” Vivi said.
“Yes, she does. Let her speak,” Honora added and shot Vivi a look.
“I do and I am so sorry.” Elspeth stared at her plate not meeting their gaze. “When Charles left, I was terrified. I didn’t know how to handle it so I shut down, pretended he never existed, and that everything was fine. I put up a brave stubborn front.”
“You were in total denial,” Honora said.
“That’s understandable,” Clover interrupted Honora. “With family spread all over Everland, you had no one. Your own mother had died and you had to care for three young witches. Imagine how hard that must have been, Honora.”
“True,” Honora acknowledged.
“Tell us what really happened to our father the day he disappeared,” Vivi said.
A faint smile drifted across Elspeth’s face. “Charles and I were always running off whenever we had a spare moment and could find help with you three girls. We stole snatches of time in the forest behind our house, running through the trees, swimming in streams, staring up at the stars. But one day was different. We were supposed to meet after your father came home from a council meeting. Charles was getting more and more drawn into council matters, working all hours. I hardly saw him. I even suspected he was having an affair.”
Elspeth paused to take a drink of water. “I was so suspicious that one day I followed him into the woods on his way to the portal, but he didn’t go there. Acting strangely, your father raced down the path, past the portal, and into the woods. I tracked him, darting off the path and taking another trail.”
“Now I know where I get my investigating skills from,” Honora said.
“He stood in a clearing and then suddenly a storm of white ravens surrounded him and all I could do was watch. My legs were frozen with fear. I didn’t know what was happening. The ravens transformed into witches—six of them approached him. I’d never seen such powerful magic so I just hid in the brush and watched. I didn’t know what to do. I was so afraid, so young, so clueless to the ways of the world. I had no idea what was happening.”
Vivi gasped. “The white raven in my vision. It showed me things—the tea party, Charles Atticus, and the Red Queen.”
Clover sat on the edge of her seat. “Do you think it means something? Did the order somehow send a message to Vivi?”
Elspeth’s brow creased. “I don’t know. Maybe or maybe Vivi just tuned into her father’s impending arrival in Everland.”
Honora shifted in her seat. “I’d say that was more likely. Vivi’s magic has gotten stronger and stronger.”
Elspeth cleared her throat and continued. “I know now that those witches I saw were members of The Order of Hazel. I’ve since learned that they are a strange order. Secretive to the core. Their mission is to protect Everland from witches and wizards in the highest echelons from hurting our world. But back then I was too afraid to say anything.”
“What did they do to him?” Clover asked.
Elspeth’s brow creased. “I couldn’t hear the specifics, but they told him that he had to go away to help the order. They gave him a mission, but I don’t know to where or for what.”
“And he just did as they told him?” Vivi asked.
“Your father was distraught. He argued and argued, but when I almost got caught, I was too scared to stay, so I fled back home.” She shook her head, eyes welling with sorrow. “I thought it was a strange dream. Back then I hardly slept, raising three young girls. I doubted my own reason.”
“What happened next?” Honora asked. “Did you confront him?”
“I wanted to, but I never saw him again.”
“What?!” the sisters said in unison.
“He just up and left,” Clover said. Her sympathy for her lost father disintegrated.
Elspeth squeezed her balled-up napkin. “I received a letter. Saying he had to go on assignment for the council and that he would be back shortly. He promised he would see us all soon, but as the months went on, I received no word. I knew he was gone for good. I though he might have been kill
ed. My heart was broken. Then I reasoned it was my fault. That your father didn’t love me enough to stay with us. Over the years I’ve blamed everyone. But I’ve come to realize that sometimes events happen that are out of our control, and I let your father and his memory go.”
“I don’t think I can ever forgive him,” Honora said. “He’s nothing to me. Nothing to us. I hope he rots in that cell.”
“That’s harsh,” Vivi said.
“I felt the same way as Honora at first,” Elspeth said. “But I went away also, didn’t I? Who am I to judge him? Okay, I can judge him a little. I still want answers. But working with Hex has shown me things. The dangers of our world are real.”
“What are we going to do now?” Clover asked. “He’s been arrested for murder. Are you going to help him?” she asked her mother.
Elspeth shifted in her seat. “Yes. I’ve listened to the sheriff and seen the evidence against him. Hex believes he was set up, most likely by Kat Keene, and I agree.”
“Seeing as you want to get involved, now you just have to prove that? What do they have against him?” Clover asked.
Elspeth sighed. “A magical signature that matched Charles’ wand was found at the crime scene. A death curse killed Jack Rabbit.”
“That’s bad,” Honora said. “It takes a black-hearted witch to use a death curse.”
“But Charles doesn’t have his wand anymore. He said it was stolen,” Elspeth said. “The speculation is that Kat could have taken it when he was working undercover with the council and framed him.”
“How do we prove it?” Clover asked with slumped shoulders. “The only wizard who knows for sure if Charles Atticus murdered Jack Rabbit is Jack Rabbit.”
Honora snorted. “We just need to get a dead man to talk.”
“Well, we could always talk to his ghost,” Vivi said.
24
Over the next few days Vivi realized how much she respected her boyfriend, even though Lance was a stickler for the rules. He made no exceptions, not even for friends and family. Under Hex’s supervision, his investigation into Charles Atticus and the murder of Jack Rabbit was painfully thorough. He spent an entire week interviewing master woodcarver and wandsmith Wyeland Crane over at Wildwoods Wands and Woodwork investigating Charles’ wand, since it was a key piece of evidence against him. The testimony would be crucial in proving innocence or guilt and Lance loved an expert witness.
Vivi and her sisters bumped into the bulldog sheriff at the council building more than once because they were conducting their own investigation in case their father was brought to trial and they needed to mount a defense. Kat Keene was a smart and dedicated witch who let her magical ambition get the better of her. After a little digging, they discovered she’d been blackmailing numerous council members to gain greater and greater control, worming her way to the top, sights set on ruling the council within the next three years. Digging into Kat Keene’s life at the council and in her coven was enlightening and proved the importance of an organization like the Order of Hazel, though publicly Charles continued to claim the organization didn’t exist. Everland needed protection from witches like Kat Keene.
With Pepper’s approval, Vivi had suggested that Lance use the Ghost Potion to investigate the murder of Jack Rabbit. Who better to testify than the wizard who was murdered? Since the potion was registered for the potion-making contest, The Academy of Advanced Magic agreed to supervise Pepper’s and Sheriff Gardner’s attempt to contact Jack Rabbit using the potion. It would be a true test of viability.
Now they just needed to convince the council. Vivi attended the proceedings while Pepper and Lance where questioned by the council and Hex.
“How do we know the ghost of Jack Rabbit will tell the truth?” Elspeth asked as the council had to approve the testimony gathered by the sheriff. Vivi wasn’t surprised that her mother had attended the proceedings, which were open to the public in the name of transparency after Kat’s arrest.
Pepper shifted under the council’s sharp gaze. “The majority of ghosts aren’t vengeful nor are they evil. Though both wizards knew Kat Keene, Jack Rabbit didn’t know Charles Atticus. Wizard Rabbit would have no reason to accuse him of murder if he didn’t do it. In fact, from what I’ve learned from my limited testing of the potion, most ghosts want the truth about them and their lives to be known. I suspect Wizard Rabbit wants the real killer identified, so he can have justice and find peace.”
The head of the council, Wizard Crumb, spoke. “Your expertise still is based on speculation. But we also note that the potion is an innovative tool and could alter the course of law enforcement going forward. And it is an intriguing step forward in magical investigation.”
“I never thought of it like that,” Pepper said, beaming with pride. “I just wanted to talk to ghosts.”
After a brief discussion with the other members, the council wizard spoke, “If the potion works, you won’t be the only one talking to ghosts. The council approves the use of the potion by you and Sheriff Gardener to question the ghost of Jack Rabbit under the supervision of the Academy of Advanced Magic.” He nodded to Pepper. “It will be a magical feat if this works. Good luck to you both.”
Jack Rabbit had been murdered not far from the stream where Vivi and Priscilla had spoken to the nymphs. From what Priscilla reported when Vivi and Lance inquired about speaking to them about Jack Rabbit, the nymphs were livid. Jack’s ghost had been lurking around their stream ever since his untimely demise and the nymphs wanted him out. Even in spirit form, the wizard was creepy. They were more than happy to accommodate the sheriff’s department and the academy if it meant putting his spirit to rest. They arranged for a time to meet at the stream, hoping to speak with Jack Rabbit’s spirit.
Priscilla and Vivi sat in the viewing area that had been roped off by the sheriff’s department to keep onlookers from disturbing the proceedings. Since Blackberry Springs was public land, he couldn’t forbid witches and wizards from being there, but he could keep them at arm’s length. It was a good thing, since many of the onlookers had brought their own chairs.
“This is so exciting,” Priscilla said, holding a parchment pad on her lap. Being the local authority on the nymphs, she’d already given interviews to the sheriff’s department on how to approach them and to Witch World Daily.
Vivi’s fingers pulled at the hem of her shirt. “Exciting and a little nerve-wracking. I really want this to work out for both Pepper and Charles. This potion is really important.”
“I agree. And it’s all happening because of the nymphs’ cooperation. They were very relieved when the sheriff contacted them. Strange things have been happening at the stream.”
“Really? Like what?” Vivi asked.
“Mostly noises, a lot of moaning and groaning and rustling of leaves when there is no wind or animals nearby. The nymphs have been getting the feeling that someone is watching them or lurking in the bushes. Someone pulled Petal’s hair, but when she turned around, no one was there.”
“Creepy. Hopefully that will all stop very soon,” Vivi said. “It’s about to start.”
A hush fell over the watching crowd. The elder nymph, Daphne, stood tall and proud, her long gray hair pulled back under a crown of ivy. The three other nymphs Vivi had met stood back out of the way. Daphne motioned for the group of visitors to approach the stream. Lance and Pepper stepped forward. Both of their eyes glowed bright red from drinking the Ghost Potion. Three robed professors watched the proceedings intently. Their eyes were also red after having taken the potion, so they could observe the interaction between the sheriff, Pepper, and the ghost.
Unfortunately, Vivi and Priscilla couldn’t see the ghost. “This is so unfair,” Pricilla said.
“I know. I could use a swig of that potion right now. I’d love to get a look at Jack Rabbit and hear what he has to say,” Vivi said.
“How do we know if it’s working?” Priscilla asked.
“We’ll have to be patient and find out when it’s over.” Vivi grabbed Priscilla’s arm in excitement. “There they go. They’re moving toward the outcropping of rocks.”
Lance and Pepper both stood about two feet from the rock formation, staring and speaking with someone only they could see. Lance rested his hands on his belt like he always did and his relaxed yet confident demeanor brought a smile to Vivi’s face.
“They’re talking to someone,” Priscilla said, squinting.
“That’s a good sign.” Vivi cut her eyes to the group of professors, hoping to read something in their expressions, but they were detached observers.
“I wished I’d worn my nymph costume,” Priscilla said. “Then I could have slipped in with the rest of them and gotten a firsthand account.”
Vivi arched her brow. Why was she not surprised that Priscilla owned a nymph costume? No wonder she and Bear always looked so happy. She wondered what other costumes they had, but her focus shifted in a flash. “Something’s up,” Vivi said.
Totally out of character, Lance waved his arms, growing visibly agitated. Pepper put out her hand and tried to calm him. Her mouth was moving rapidly and suddenly she jabbed her finger in the air. Lance paced back and forth while Pepper crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head while continuing to speak. The professors talked amongst themselves.
“That doesn’t look good,” Priscilla said.
“Let’s just wait and hear them out.” But Vivi was worried.
After about another half hour of talking, Lance, Pepper, and the professors turned their attention to the nymphs. They spent a few minutes chatting and shaking hands before Pepper and Lance approached the crowd. The professors exited the scene quietly, not betraying an inch of emotion.
