Erik chuckled. “Magick can be rather draining.” By the sparkle in his eye she could well imagine which magickal draining he was thinking of. “Any word on Charlotte?”
Lydia shook her head in denial. “Not really. They wanted to do blood tests before they let us see her. I know one of the nurses from high school. She said she’d come and get me if Charlotte woke up.”
“Niall,” Erik called, standing.
Lydia shoved the rest of the second chocolate bar into her mouth and looked up at Erik’s brother. With her mouth embarrassingly full, she couldn’t speak. Niall glanced at her but didn’t acknowledge her otherwise.
“It’s contained,” Niall said. “Since some prominent members of town were involved it was pretty easy to convince the doctors to report this as a case of accidental food poisoning versus mass hysteria caused by hallucinogenic mushrooms. I don’t know that they’ll even bother to test the casserole.”
“What about Charlotte?” Lydia pushed the pile of vending machine treasure off her lap and stood, forcing Niall to acknowledge her as part of the conversation.
“I put a veil over myself and slipped into her room. She’s alive. The doctors think she had an adverse reaction and slipped into a mini coma. Once the sleeping aid Euann gave her wears off, she’ll wake up fully.” He glanced at Erik.
“I know she’s alive,” Lydia said, slightly irritated with Niall’s dismissive manners. “And I know everything that happened so you can speak freely in front of me about it.”
Erik nodded that Niall should do so.
“There is something off about the woman. I can’t put my finger on it, but I think it has something to do with the potion she drank. It is my recommendation that we box her up and ship her to,” he studied Lydia, “the farm to be monitored.”
“What’s the farm?” she asked.
“A prison for clan trouble,” Erik answered.
Niall frowned at his brother and then gestured to Lydia. “Do ya want me to take her out back and erase her?”
Lydia reached for Erik’s arm, ready to use his magick to fight Niall off if he tried. “Don’t you dare touch me.”
“We’re getting married,” Erik inserted calmly.
“Omigod, you have to quit saying that to people!” Lydia exclaimed.
“But we are,” he answered assuredly.
“Oh, then welcome to the clan,” Niall answered, though his congratulations lacked the enthusiasm the others had shown. “Ma will be happy.”
Erik grinned. Lydia shook her head, not sure how to argue the point or if she even wanted to. Instead, she focused on her friend. “We’re not imprisoning Charlotte. We’re not erasing her. We’re not doing anything to her. If there are consequences to be dealt with then so be it. We deal.”
Niall hardly looked impressed by her decree. She had a feeling to him she would always be an outsider, a non-warlock.
“Find another way,” Lydia told Erik.
“We can watch her.” Erik patted the hand on his arm. She felt his magick warming her fingers and drawing up her arm to calm her. “We’ll move her into Lydia’s house. She’ll be safe there.”
“Charlotte loves her apartment. She calls it her sanctuary,” Lydia denied. She snatched her fingers away from Erik, not wanting him to magickally alter her feelings. “I have no problem letting Charlotte live with me, but—”
“We’ll move to the mansion,” Erik said. He paused as two nurses walked past. When they were out of hearing range, he continued, “Charlotte can take the house.”
“I’ll buy her apartment building and evict her. It’ll be easy enough to buy her out of her remaining lease, and we need living space for the clan anyway.” Niall reached for his phone and pressed a few buttons as he walked away. “Da, give me that realtor’s number. I need to buy a building today.”
Lydia felt a slow rage building inside her. Yes, she loved Erik. Yes, if he bothered to ask her properly she might do something crazy like jump into a marriage with a warlock who never aged. Yes, Charlotte would always be welcome in her home. No, she did not want to live in a house—no matter that it was the mansion she used to daydream about as a child—with a bunch of magick wielding warlocks pranking each other all the time. No, she didn’t want to open a factory tomorrow to expand her business. She wanted to expand Love Potions on her own. The house and the business were her legacy from her grandmother. She wanted time to think. And she definitely wanted to make her own decisions when it came to her future.
“There love, all settled.” Erik made a move to hold her.
Lydia pulled away. “No, love, not all settled.”
“What did we forget?”
“Since there is clearly no stopping your family from throwing your magick and your money around, I’m going to go tell Charlotte the doctors think she should live with me for the time being to make sure there are no residual effects. Then, when she is ready I’m telling her the truth.”
“Truth?” Erik sounded slightly worried.
“All of it.” Lydia scowled. She reached to the pile of junk food and began gathering the majority of it into her arms. “Now you go do whatever it is you do, and I’m going to eat and stare at Charlotte until she wakes up.”
“I can come with—”
“Alone.” Lydia strode away from him.
…
“Sweet! Free chips.” Euann reached down to a bag of potato chips Lydia had left behind and opened it. Grinning as he popped one into his mouth, he asked, “Where’s my new sister off to?”
Erik glanced at his brother, noting his bruised eye. “Banshee woke up, didn’t she?”
“Not to worry. Mission was accomplished.” Euann laughed. “And already messaged to every clan phone.”
“Malina’s going to kill ya for that,” Erik warned.
“She’ll try, but first she has to wash the color out of her hair. I enchanted it, so she’ll think it’s clean and then it will slowly start turning gray again until she washes it, rinse and repeat for about a month.” Euann ate another chip. “So, all settled here?”
“Aye.” Erik nodded. “But I think Lydia’s upset with me.”
“Ah, she’s a girl. Probably having her girlie time or something. It did look like she raided the vending machine for junk food. Just get her some chocolate and wait it out.” Euann motioned that Erik should come with him. “Da just called. He wants us to go look at some property downtown with Niall. Ya know our baby brother has no patience for business. He’ll offer a million dollars for it just to be done with negotiations. I’m on security and you’re on realtor duty. The elders’ orders.”
By elders Euann most likely meant Erik’s parents, as the uncles and aunts had yet to arrive in town.
“Aye, nothing more to do here.” Erik pulled his car keys out of his pocket. “Text me the address. I’ll meet ya there.”
…
“Lydia.”
Lydia stiffened at the Sheriff’s voice. She slowly turned, trying to calm the sudden thundering of her heart. Joe stood next to him. They wore street clothes and hospital bracelets. She automatically looked for Brad but didn’t see him.
“Hello,” she answered carefully, watching their faces to see what they might remember. Even knowing what she did, she couldn’t help the tremor of apprehension that wormed its way up her spine. They’d held her at gunpoint and kept her locked in a cell.
“Were you discharged as well?” Joe asked, eyeing her armful of candy. “Weird epidemic. I don’t even remember organizing a church potluck at the sheriff’s, but we’ve concluded that’s what must have happened.”
“No, I’m not sick. I was lucky,” Lydia said. “I’m here with Charlotte and to visit the rest of you, of course. Is everyone all right? No one was seriously hurt?”
“Few bumps and bruises, nothing too serious so far,” the sheriff answered. “I’m thankful my wife was out of town visiting her sister in Texas. She’s not going to be happy when she sees our yard.”
“I heard it was a con
taminated batch of mushrooms and that some altered memories or memory loss was a side effect,” Lydia lied. “I even heard a doctor say retrograde amnesia.”
“We’re not sure what it was,” Sheriff Johnson said. “I’m trying to keep panic down. It’s possible everyone caught a bad flu virus that caused dehydration. You should have the doctor check you out, just in case.”
“I’ll do that.” Lydia nodded. She walked away slowly, pretending to look at room numbers as she listened to the men.
“If it is hallucinogenic mushrooms,” Joe said, “I’ll bet it was those vandals, Brad Williams’s boys. That family has been trouble since they moved in. I tried to do the Christian thing and invite him to church when he first moved here. He actually spit on me. I haven’t talked to him since, but the whole town knows his sons are responsible for the spray paint. I wouldn’t put it past them to drop a few drugs in the town supermarket as a prank.”
Lydia stiffened, recalling one of the lidérc’s memories. It watched Joe and Brad interact outside a gas station and entered both of their minds at the moment of heightened irritation. That single display of negative emotions let the creature slip inside and make himself at home within the men. It was the same way the two creatures had taken over the rest of the town, slipping in while their human hosts were emotionally vulnerable.
She shivered, not liking the sensation of being inside the creature’s thoughts. Hopefully, the aftereffects of her pulling Erik’s magick away from the shadow would wear off in time. It would appear she’d taken in some of the creature when she did so.
“No one is happy about this. I’m already looking into the vandalism,” Sheriff Johnson assured him. “We can’t go accusing people without proof. The school is already aware the boys have behavioral issues, and they’re keeping an eye on them. Legally, I can’t arrest them for being misfits.”
The men walked down the hall, their words no longer detectable. Whatever the lidérc had done, it seemed its influences over Joe had worn off. That was a good sign. Maybe Erik was right that things in town were becoming normal again.
“Normal?” Lydia gave a dismissive laugh as she walked into Charlotte’s hospital room. “I’m in love with a hardheaded warlock. Nothing will ever be normal again.”
Chapter Seventeen
Lydia hated the blank look on Charlotte’s face as she drove her friend home from the hospital. The doctors had finally released her that morning into Lydia’s care. Their insistences that Charlotte not live alone for the foreseeable future felt an awful lot like a MacGregor spell and not real doctorly advice. They refused to let Charlotte leave until she agreed. Charlotte only agreed because she’d received a special delivery letter about her immediate eviction.
Erik pulled his car to a stop outside the old Victorian. Lydia had been trying her best to ignore him out of principle. He’d have to learn that she wasn’t going to submit to his will whenever he wanted. Ok, so she apparently would because they’d made love in his car outside the hospital. Lucky for them no one saw. A few charming words, that damned MacGregor accent, that handsome devilish smile, and she’d been drawn to him like Gramma Annabelle to moonshine.
“Wow. You really got the storm damage fixed fast,” Charlotte said, looking up at the house. Then, frowning, she said, “There was a storm right? I didn’t imagine that too?”
“There was a storm,” Lydia said, trying to hide the guilt she felt at not telling the whole truth. She wasn’t sure Charlotte could handle it. Her friend looked fragile, as if a stiff breeze might knock her over. “Erik and his brothers came and helped me. Malina helped me inside the house. Gramma’s old room is ready for you. I hope you don’t mind staying in there.”
Charlotte nodded and continued to look around the yard as if she was trying to recall something and couldn’t.
Lydia looked helplessly at Erik. He stepped around the car to take Charlotte’s elbow. “Iain and Rory will bring the rest of your things from your apartment later today.”
“I don’t want them in my house.” Charlotte pulled away from him.
“I went through and got anything that might be private,” Lydia said. “I promise I didn’t look, just put it all in boxes for you to go through when you’re up to it. They’re just bringing over the heavy stuff.”
Charlotte relaxed some and nodded. “I’m going to go rest.” She walked into the house.
When they were alone, Lydia said, “You should go. Charlotte needs me.”
“I don’t want to leave ya,” Erik said. “Ya have been at the hospital since we admitted her. Now that you’re home I want ya close. I need to know you’re safe.”
“I’m safe. You said it yourself, the threat is gone,” Lydia reasoned. “Charlotte needs me and your being here won’t help her relax. I have your number. I’ll call if I need you.”
Glancing over the Victorian, he said, “Yes, go and help her get settled. If ya get an idea of what you’d like to take up to the mansion I can have Rory and Iain help me grab the heavy stuff tonight and start moving ya in.”
Lydia could have argued, but she wasn’t sure it would do any good. Sighing, she said, “You really don’t hear me when I talk to you, do you?”
“What do ya mean, love?”
“Never mind. Just see if Malina will meet the guys here when they’re ready to drop off Charlotte’s stuff? I could use her help with a few things.”
Erik smiled. “It will be done.” He kissed her, and she felt his love and happiness pouring into her. It was hard to be mad at him when he was so free with his emotions toward her.
She waited on the drive as she watched him drive away. Then, going inside, she said, “Gramma, where’s the grimmie? We have protection spells to cast.”
“This house needs a good smudging.” Gramma Annabelle appeared. She looked around. “I don’t know who let all those little monsters in, but I think I’ve chased most of them away. Those field ghosts should just stay outside where they belong.”
“Field ghosts?” Lydia arched a brow.
“Don’t worry about them, dear. They died back in the Old West. You know in the 1800s they were always massacring each other or dying from pandemics.” Annabelle fluttered around the kitchen. “Violent deaths tend to keep the spirits around.”
“That’s comforting,” Lydia mumbled sarcastically.
“So who’s the handsome devil of a man who dropped you off?” Annabelle disappeared and reappeared beside the door.
“Erik MacGregor.”
“And why were you kissing Erik MacGregor?” Her grandmother shimmered, leaving the door to reappear in front of Lydia.
Gasping, Lydia stepped back as her grandmother surprised her. She covered her heart to still its rapid beating. “Apparently we’re engaged.”
“Really?” Gramma Annabelle clapped her hands. “Tell me everything. And don’t leave out a single detail.”
“Only if you help me re-cast all of your old protection spells while I talk,” Lydia said.
“Done,” Annabelle agreed. “So, who are we trying to keep out?”
“Erik MacGregor,” Lydia answered.
“Oh, intrigue! I can see I’m going to like this man of yours.” Her grandmother swept her way to the basement door. “Well, come on, let’s go get the book. You might want to grab your gardening gloves.”
…
“You want me to magickally help you carry Charlotte’s furniture upstairs so that my brothers don’t have to be invited into the house?” Malina looked from Lydia to Annabelle’s spirit. “Then you want me to help make sure your barrier spell is strong again because you plan on torturing Erik by keeping him out?”
“Well, not torture really, just give him a reality check until—” Lydia began.
“I’m in,” Malina interrupted.
“But I’m not going to hurt him,” Lydia insisted. “This is just to make him realize he can’t dictate the terms of our life together.”
“Yeah, torture him a bit, I’m in.” Malina nodded, rubbing her hand
s.
“Ah, dear,” Annabelle said, floating sideways over Malina’s head. “You know you look much too young to let your hair go gray. Hair color will take care of that. If you need help, Lydia will show you where you can buy box color. It’s not like your day. We have modern advances.”
“Gramma, this is her day,” Lydia said. “She was just born several hundred years ago.”
Malina frowned and marched into the living room to a small antique mirror they’d managed to magickally mend the day before. As she watched the color drain out of her hair to be replaced by banshee white, Malina growled. “Euann.”
“Gramma, go keep an eye on Charlotte. She should be sleeping,” Lydia said. “But don’t show yourself. She’s been through enough.”
“Malina, are you going to help me test the barrier? I did everything Gramma said, but I want to be sure the house is safe. Not just for me, but for Charlotte.”
“Yeah, coming,” Malina mumbled, glaring at her reflection.
…
Iain and Rory were not happy about being banned from the house. Erik and Niall had come down to join them. The men kept trying to find a way inside, as if it was a personal challenge between Malina and her male relatives. It didn’t help that Malina taunted them from the kitchen doorway.
Hearing the shuffle of footsteps, Lydia hissed, “Malina, stop. Charlotte’s up.”
“Charlotte,” Malina repeated. Rory lowered a glowing ball of light and Iain’s taunt died on his lips. As the magick settled, the lawn became darker in the evening light. Malina had assured her that Euann’s security kept people from the town from seeing the magickal glow. When Lydia gave Malina an insistent look, she said, “What? You wanted the barrier tested. It’s tested. They can’t get in.”
“I thought you’d do some kind of mumbo-jumbo spell sensing thing,” Lydia answered quietly, mindful of where Charlotte’s steps sounded on the top of the stairs.
Malina shrugged. “This way is more fun.”
“Charlotte,” Lydia called, instantly softening her voice and making it light and non-threatening. The lights were off so it was hard to see Charlotte’s face. “How did you sleep?”
Love Potions Page 20
