“I don’t want to do that either,” Jax agreed. “Why can’t we give Mercy’s plan a try?”
“Because it’s freezing out there!” said Holly.
“A small price to pay for having a nice Christmas,” said Jax fearlessly.
Holly sighed. “Whatever. If that’s what you guys want to do.”
Sweets nibbled on her fingernails nervously. “I don’t know. What if the wind and snow make me fall off?”
“Sweets. You don’t have to fly high in the sky. You just need to get there. You can fly close to the ground,” I rationalized.
“Visibility is going to be better higher in the sky, though,” Alba countered, shrugging her shoulders.
“But she doesn’t have to fly higher in the sky if she doesn’t want to,” I argued.
“It’s up to her. Alright. We shouldn’t just stand around here. We need to go if we’re going.”
Holly let out a choked sound. “We don’t even have time to warm up?”
Alba looked around. “Where are we supposed to warm up, Cosmo? It’s an icebox in here.”
Holly looked hurt. “How long are we going to be over there?”
“The cafeteria is closed until Christmas break is over,” said Jax.
That caught Sweets’ attention. “Three weeks?! The cafeteria is closed for three weeks?!”
I nodded.
Sweets walked towards the door. “Then what are we waiting around here for? We need to get to Habernackle’s.”
“Shouldn’t we pack stuff to bring?” Holly asked, looking around the room.
“Where exactly are we supposed to put our things on our broomsticks?” Alba asked her. “They don’t come equipped with trunks.”
“I don’t know,” she said sadly. “We could put stuff in our backpacks. Or wear extra clothes.”
“Layering up is a good idea anyway,” I said with a nod. “Good thinking, Holly. We’ll wear whatever we can put on, and then we can each bring whatever personal effects will fit in our backpacks. Everyone has exactly ten minutes to fit whatever you can in a suitcase or on your body.”
Alba looked at Holly. “Did you hear that, Cosmo? Ten minutes. We’re leaving you here if you’re not ready to go in ten minutes!”
Holly shot Alba an annoyed glare. “I have ears, Alba. I heard her.”
“Don’t make us late like you made us late leaving for the airport.”
“I didn’t make us late for the airport!”
“If you’d been ready to leave the minute breakfast was over, we’d be in Pittsburgh waiting for our plane right now.”
“You don’t know that!”
I looked down at my Batman watch. “You have nine minutes now. If you two keep using your minutes for complaining you won’t have any clothes or personal items.”
Holly shot forth. “Sweets, is your car unlocked? I need to go get my suitcase back!”
7
Ten minutes later the five of us looked like wrapped marshmallows in our multi-layers of clothing with our backpacks slung on our backs. I wore mine on my chest, as Jax was going to ride behind me on my broomstick. Holly, Alba, Sweets, and I all had our broomsticks, and we’d each found some type of glasses to put on to protect our eyes, we’d pulled hats down over our ears, wrapped scarves around our necks, and covered our hands with mittens and gloves. Alba had gone scouting and found several long lengths of rope in the janitor’s closet. We were ready.
“You have the key to the b&b, Red?” Alba asked.
“Yeah. I have it,” I assured her.
She nodded, pulling her hat down further. “Alright then, we should go.”
“Everyone ready?” I asked.
Holly and Sweets nodded trepidatiously as I began to tie a length of rope to the end of each of their broomsticks.
“I’ll lead the way,” Alba said pointedly as she tied her stick to Sweets’ stick. “Sweets. I think you should try and fly higher. You’ll be fine, and you’ll be able to see better from up higher.”
“O-okay,” Sweets reluctantly agreed. “Can we stop if I get scared?”
“No,” Alba said matter-of-factly.
I rolled my eyes as I tied the other end of Holly’s rope to my broomstick. “Yes, Sweets. We can stop. Holler at Alba, and she’ll stop.”
Alba groaned but didn’t refute my response.
“Ok. Everyone is tied together. We’ll go out one at a time. The minute Alba pushes off, Sweets, you only have one second to push off behind her. Don’t forget everything you’ve learned about flying. You have to call your broomstick to get it to go. And then you have to focus. Lean into it. Squeeze your knees together. Use your core for balance.”
“We don’t have time for this, Red,” Alba grumbled.
“We don’t have time for anyone to get hurt either,” I told Alba civilly. I turned to Jax. “Jax. You hold on to me. I don’t want you to fall off. Make sure you’re keeping your balance, or we’ll both fall off. Got it?”
Jax nodded nervously. By the size of her eyes, I could tell she was scared, but she didn’t say anything.
“Alright, we’re leaving now,” Alba said, putting a hand on the front door.
“Eee!” Sweets squealed nervously. “I’m so freaked out right now!”
Alba pushed open the front door with all of her strength. The cold biting wind whipped inside, stinging our cheeks immediately. “No hesitation,” she called back to us as she stepped out into the snow. The rest of us followed her out the door, and when all five of us were standing on the sidewalk, she wasted no time in calling to her broomstick. “Uber, don’t let me fall!” she hollered into the white sky as she pushed off, taking off into the air.
Immediately afterwards, Sweets called out to her broomstick. “Truffles, don’t let me fall!” She pushed off, following Alba into the air.
Holly followed Sweets. “Handsome, don’t let me fall!”
Finally, with Jax glued to my back, I called to mine. “Batman, don’t let me fall!” I felt my broomstick lurch to attention, and suddenly, Jax and I were flying into the sky, gaining altitude with each second that passed. Before I could utter another word, we were high above the building.
The snow was coming down in sheets, blowing up from the building below and falling down from the sky. The snow shower blurred my vision, but my broomstick was being pulled along by Holly’s, so it didn’t matter that I couldn’t see. I just needed to hang on. I only hoped that Alba’s vantage point was better than mine. Even if I wanted to call ahead to her to ask if she could see where she was going, I wouldn’t have been able to. The sound of the wind howling around me was deafening.
When I heard Jax talking behind me, I couldn’t make out what she was saying. I turned my head to look over my shoulder at her. She had her head buried in my back. “I can’t hear you, Jax. Just hang on!” I hollered.
Up and down we went, riding on the current of the wind, like waves in an ocean. The bitter wind burned my cheeks, and the fast moving snow stung my nose. Silently I prayed that my mother and Reign were ok. I hoped they were safe and sound somewhere and not trying to battle this storm. Then my thoughts turned to Hugh. I hadn’t even texted him to tell him what was happening. I didn’t want him to feel guilty for the change in weather. I crossed my fingers and hoped that he had gotten to Texas safely.
I tried to keep my eyes focused straight ahead. I wanted to close them and just open them when we landed at Habernackle’s, but I knew closing my eyes might throw my balance off and I needed to keep focused and alert. At one point on our journey, I peered over the edge of my broomstick to the ground below. All I could see was a flurry of white beneath me. I couldn’t tell if we were two feet off the ground or a hundred. The realization that I didn’t know my elevation made my heart jump in my chest. I felt my body tense.
Jax must have felt my body stiffen through my layer of clothes. She peered her head over my shoulder. “Are you alright?” she hollered in my ear.
I nodded and turned my head to yell back. “Yeah, I
’m fine. I can’t see where we are.”
“How can Alba see?” she asked.
“I don’t know!”
We continued along the path we were on until finally, I felt my body shifting forward, alerting me that we were descending quickly. The speed of the snow hitting my glasses, made me squint as we flew downwards and I had to hold my breath so the cold wind wouldn’t steal it from me. Finally, I was able to make out the dark outline of something below coming at us quickly. I held my feet out. “Feet out, Jax!” I hollered.
Just in time, we both got our landing gear down. When our feet touched the ground, I let out the breath I’d been holding. “Oh my gosh, that was a wild ride!” I exclaimed.
“That was so scary!” Jax agreed.
“Hang onto my coat,” I yelled through the wind at her. I was still unable to see Alba, Holly, or Sweets, even though I knew they had to be close by.
Together, Jax and I followed our length of rope until we met back up with the rest of the Witch Squad. “Where are we?” I asked Alba.
Alba looked around. I could tell by the look on her face that she wasn’t even sure.
“Do you know?” I hollered over the wind.
“I headed south. We have to be in Aspen Falls somewhere,” she responded.
“Maybe we should walk a little while?”
Alba shook her head. “Walking through these drifts? We can’t. We will fly again, but we’re just going to hover above the drifts until we get to a building and I can figure out where we are.”
“Ok. That sounds like a plan. Is everyone alright?” I asked, looking specifically at Sweets and Holly.
“My face is cold,” Holly grumbled. “My makeup is going to be so messed up.”
Alba rolled her eyes.
“Sweets. Are you having any problems flying?”
Sweets shook her head. “I’m keeping up. It’s scary, but I’m fine. We can keep going.”
“Ok, let’s get back in line,” Alba said watching as we all lined up. “Be ready to launch fast. Don’t push off too hard. We’re staying low to the ground, just above the drifts. And we don’t want to go too fast. I want to be able to figure out where we are so we can maneuver through town.”
She pushed off again, followed by Sweets, then Holly, then Jax and I launched behind them all. We rose all of five to six feet off the ground and flew for what seemed to be several hundred yards until we met with a brick wall. Following each other more closely this time and with the aid of the wall shielding snow from one direction, I was able to see Alba reaching out and touching the building with her left hand as we followed it, slowly creeping forward. When it ended, she turned the corner, following the building closely. I looked up as I flew around the corner. The brick wall expanded up into the sky. Alba’s altitude climbed. We followed closely behind her, until looking up, I could clearly make out a bell near the top of the building. That was all it took. I recognized that bell. I’d seen it on many a trip into Aspen Falls. We were at a church at the north end of Main Street.
When Alba’s speed picked up, I knew she knew where we were too. Together we zipped around the buildings, up and down the block, turning corners, feeling our way along brick walls and between street lamps and stop signs. Every once in awhile, I glimpsed a landmark that I recognized, giving me hope that we were getting closer and we’d be warm and dry soon. The wind and snow continued to redden our noses and bite at our cheeks. My eyes watered as the stinging wind found its way behind my glasses.
Finally, Alba’s speed slowed as we turned a corner and I recognized the block we were on. We made it! We were finally at Habernackle’s! I wanted to whoop and holler, but I knew if I opened my mouth the wind would have stolen my breath away. I continued to bite my lips shut and tilt my head into the wind until we were at the front door of Habernackle’s.
We all landed, but our feet were far from touching the pavement through the three-foot snow drift that had blown in against the side of the building in front of the door. With snow around my hips, I pulled the key out of my coat pocket and unlocked the front door. I turned the handle, and the wind threw it open and blew the five of us inside along with a pile of snow.
“Hurry!” I yelled. “Close the door!”
Alba, Sweets, and I piled on the door, pushing against the wind with all of our might. Finally, getting it shut and locked behind us, we were able to let out the breath we’d been collectively holding.
“Oh my gosh! I can’t believe we made it here without dying!” Sweets cried, out of breath.
Holly took off her glasses. Her mascara and eyeliner were smeared all down her cheeks. “That was horrible!”
As relief flooded my body, the sight of her smeared black makeup caused me to laugh out loud inadvertently. “Your makeup, Holly,” I began.
“Shut up. I told you it was going to be messed up,” she snarled at me.
I raised both hands up in defense. “Sorry, I was just letting you know!”
“Brr,” Jax said, shivering. “It’s cold in here. Can we get the heat on?”
“Yeah, I’ll find it.”
Jax looked around. “Where’s Chesney?”
I shrugged as I walked to the wall behind the bar, and adjusted the temperature. The furnace kicked on almost instantly. “They must have taken him with them.”
“Have you heard from your mom or Reign?” Sweets asked as she unloaded her backpack onto a table and began stripping off the first of her layers of clothing.
“The last time I heard they were almost to Akron and they hadn’t seen any of the storm yet. I’ll text them again and see what’s going on now.” I pulled my cell phone out of my coat pocket and woke it from its slumber. “Oh, good. I have a message from Reign.” I scrolled through the screens until I got to his text.
“Where are they?” Jax asked excitedly.
I groaned. “Ugh. They are stuck in Pittsburgh. He said the storm is really bad there and the radio says not to go anywhere,” I said with disappointment. “They aren’t going to make it home for Christmas!”
Jax’s shoulders slumped forwards. “No Aunt Linda or Reign for Christmas? This totally sucks!” she cried.
Alba rolled her eyes. “You actually thought they were going to be able to make it through that storm?”
Jax shrugged dejectedly. “I don’t know. I thought maybe this would clear up tomorrow and they’d be able to make it here in the morning.”
“Not happening. Red and her cowboy messed up everyone’s Christmas this year. Might as well get used to it,” Alba told her gruffly.
I put a hand on my hip. “Hey! It’s not my fault. You can’t keep blaming me! Hugh didn’t tell me that by keeping the weather warm the minute he left we’d get a massive blizzard. He probably didn’t even know that would happen. It doesn’t snow in Texas so it probably never happened to him before.”
Jax nodded. “Mercy’s right. That’s not fair to blame her. Besides, if it wasn’t for her, we’d be stuck in the dorms right now, and we wouldn’t have this whole place to ourselves for Christmas.”
I looked around. Mom had already begun the decorating. She’d purchased some decorations at the thrift store down the street, and she had up a tree and some lights, but it had been a last minute decision to go back to Dubbsburg to get the rest of her Christmas decorations that she hadn’t had time to finish putting up the tree or hanging the stockings. She had several boxes of decorations left to put up.
Sweets nodded. “I agree. We can make this work. Let’s unpack and then we’ll finish decorating for Linda.”
Holly looked around glumly. “I’m taking a shower first and re-doing my hair and makeup. You guys can decorate without me.”
“I’m going to call Tony and explain what’s going on. He’s not going to be happy. Decorate without me too.”
“I’ll help you decorate, Sweets,” Jax offered brightly.
I sighed. I was exhausted. The entire day had been one big long, exhausting pile of garbage. “There are enough bedrooms ups
tairs for everyone to have their own. Help yourselves. I’ll take my mom’s room. I’m going to go text Hugh and see if he made it to Texas and then I’m going to take a nap.”
8
What felt like hours later, as I lay in my warm, cozy bed, with hand sewn quilts piled on top of me, something seemed to jar me awake. The sound of the winter storm raging outside had lulled me to sleep, but something else had managed to wake me up. I pulled my eyes open. From bed, I could see out my window. It was starting to get darker, but I could still see the snow outside swirling around in wispy gusts. The sight of the cold wind caused my skin to bristle.
I heard a quick rapping at the door.
“Mercy?” I heard Jax’s voice call excitedly.
I let out a deep sigh without a sound. I wasn’t ready to let her know I was awake just yet. She just sucked up too much of my energy, and I silently hoped she’d go away. I wasn’t in the mood for Jax’s youthful exuberance.
“Mercy? Are you awake?”
I pushed myself backwards into my big feather pillows, trying to disappear. I held my breath.
“Mercy!” she called again. “Do you wanna help me decorate? I found the stockings!”
I rolled my eyes. The last thing I felt like doing was going downstairs and hanging up stockings for Santa like I was six-years-old.
I heard her face press against the door. “Or we don’t have to do stockings. We could play board games and have cocoa.”
I groaned. “Go away, Jax.”
The door thumped as she backed her body away from it. Through the door, I heard her audibly sigh. “Oh. Okay, bye.”
The sadness in her voice made me feel guilty for only the briefest of moments. I rolled my eyes to myself. It suddenly annoyed me that Jax could make me feel guilty for not playing with her. Under the covers, I balled my hands and pounded them into the mattress and groaned to myself.
I let out a heavy sigh and suddenly realized now that I was fully awake, I could smell something warm and delicious wafting through my door. My stomach churned eagerly. The thought of an actual meal interested me enough to get me to toss back the covers. Immediately I regretted that decision – the room was frigid. The cold winter wind had obviously proven to be a challenge to our heater. I grabbed my hooded sweatshirt from the chair next to the bed and quickly pulled it over my head, slipped my glasses on my face, and my feet into my black Converse hi-tops. Without hesitation, I dashed downstairs where I hoped that it was warmer.
A Very Mercy Christmas: A Witch Squad Holiday Special (A Witch Squad Cozy Mystery Book 5) Page 4
