Witch Spells Touble (Nightshade Paranormal Cozy Mystery Book 2)

by Lori Woods

  “Do we have enough time to eat before we have to be back in school?”

  “Yes, plenty of time.” Alfie stands up and hurries away.

  When I fly back to the pie shop, Snowball is grooming herself. She looks up when she sees me. “Where is Alfie?” she asks.

  “I don’t know. He said he had an errand to run.”

  “Meeting up with his little dwarf friend?” Snowball asks.

  I ignore her remark.

  “We were attacked in the park by those same faceless things that came after Red Sumac in Bellow Moor. I drove them off with fireballs,” I tell Snowball, who is listening intently.

  “If I’d been there, I would have scratched their eyes out!” Snowball hisses.

  “Yes, of course you would,” I agree with a smile as I take a seat. I hold up two fingers at the baker and he nods his head. Almost immediately, he hurries over with two steaming-hot duck berry pies. I glance around and see Alfie hurrying toward us from the direction of the park.

  “Right on time,” I say, pointing toward one of the pies as Alfie walks up to the table.

  Snowball arches her back as Alfie approaches. She hisses and spits.

  “Snowball, what’s wrong with you? It’s just Alfie.”

  “It isn’t Alfie.”

  “What are you talking about? Of course, it’s Alfie. Just look at him.”

  Alfie looks at Snowball. “I don’t understand why you’re acting this way,” he tells her.

  “Because you’re not Alfie.”

  “That’s ridiculous,” I say, beginning to get angry.

  “It’s not ridiculous,” Snowball says. She turns toward Alfie. “What have you done with the real Alfie?” she asks.

  “You’re acting like you have a screw loose,” Alfie says.

  “Not Alfie! Not Alfie! Not Alfie!” Snowball begins to chant.

  “That’s enough, Snowball. If you mean this to be a joke, you’re carrying it much too far.”

  Snowball jumps up on a chair across the table from Alfie. “I don’t see how you can think this is Alfie,” she says.

  “I’ve had enough of this, Snowball.”

  Snowball gives me a pitying look and starts to lick her favorite paw.

  “If you admit you’re being silly, I’ll buy you an extra saucer of unicorn milk.”

  “I can’t admit it,” she says. “And you know how much I love unicorn milk.”

  I’m worried. Could Snowball have had a mini stroke or something? Maybe that would explain her strange behavior. The thought makes me feel sorry for arguing with her. “Okay, Snowball, I’m convinced that you believe the other person here isn’t Alfie. But if you promise not to say anything about it, you can still have the unicorn milk.”

  She gives me a strange look. “If you say so,” she finally tells me.

  We have to hurry to finish in time to make it back to school before the final bell for classes. I tell Alfie we’ll meet him after school.

  “See you then,” he says.

  But when school is out for the day, Alfie doesn’t show up.

  “That’s strange,” I tell Snowball.

  “It’s because that wasn’t Alfie, and I’m worried,” she answers.

  “I thought we agreed not to talk about this again,” I tell her.

  “If you insist.”

  “Why do you think it’s not Alfie?”

  “You said you didn’t want to talk about it anymore.”

  “Sorry, but I’m just curious. I don’t understand since obviously it is Alfie.”

  “I know I have a better sense of smell than human beings, and he smells nothing like the real Alfie.”

  “So, you are basing your opinion that it’s not Alfie on his smell?”

  “Yes! I know he’s not Alfie!”

  “I promise, Snowball, I’ll take a closer look.” We have been standing outside Alfie’s school for ten minutes. No more students are coming out the door. In fact, the school looks deserted. “Okay,” I tell Snowball, “we’ll wait five more minutes. If Alfie’s not here by then, we’ll go home.”

  “I’m worried,” Snowball says.

  “We probably just missed him somehow.”

  Five minutes later, Alfie still hadn’t appeared. “Let’s go,” I tell Snowball. “Maybe he’s already gone back to the house.”

  Snowball stares at me for a couple of seconds and then turns away.

  I’m concerned. It isn’t at all like Alfie not to do as he says. “Let’s ride Broom Hilda,” I tell Snowball. “I want to get home as quickly as possible to see if he’s there and why he didn’t meet us after school.”

  In a few moments, we’re back at the house. I see Alfie just approaching the door. He doesn’t look any different. Okay, maybe his facial expression is a little different. But it might just be because he’s still unhappy about Jill nipping their relationship in the bud, or maybe he was hurt more than he let on when the ghouls attacked.

  “Alfie,” I call. He’s reaching for the doorknob when he hears me and turns.

  “What happened?” I ask

  He looks puzzled. “What do you mean?”

  “You didn’t wait for us after school. We stood at the bottom of the steps for about fifteen minutes.”

  At first he doesn’t answer. It’s as if he’s trying to think what to say. “I forgot,” he says.

  “Forgot?” Snowball says. “How can you forget? We meet every day at lunchtime and after school.”

  “I… I don’t know.” Then it’s as if he thinks of an explanation. “I guess I was distracted by everything that happened.”

  “With Jill?”

  “The headmistress, yeah, thinking about her too much.”

  “Of course, that’s it.” He doesn’t seem to know what I’m talking about. Maybe he was really whacked on the head during the attack. That could have caused a concussion and temporary memory lapse.

  “I’ll make you a nice cup of tea,” I tell him. “Chamomile. It’s very soothing, and you’ll be feeling fine in no time.”

  “I’m all right,” he protests. “I’m going to go inside and on upstairs.”

  “Be there in a minute,” I tell him.

  The entire time we’re talking, Snowball keeps trying to get my attention. I bend over to listen.

  “Can’t you see, Suzy?”

  “No, Snowball, all I see is Alfie. Come on; let go upstairs.”

  “I’m not going into the house. I’ll just stay out here as long as he’s going to be there.”

  “Nothing bad is going to happen. I don’t know why you’re so worried,” I tell her.

  “That’s what you think anyhow.”

  “Please, come inside Snowball. I don’t want you to stay outside by yourself. Lots of things could happen to you. You could be hit by a buggy, dogs could attack you. Please,” I beg.

  “Something could happen inside just as well, Suzy. You just can’t see it.”

  “Please.”

  “All right, I’ll come in. But you have to promise to watch the person you think is Alfie. I don’t want him to do anything to hurt either of us.”

  I’m exasperated that she won’t give up on this. “Okay, I promise.”

  As we go inside, I see Alfie sitting on the bottom step.

  He smiles. “Decided to wait for you,” he says. “Just don’t feel like talking to Malcolm.”

  “I thought the two of you were becoming friends,” I say.

  He seems surprised. “I guess we were.”

  “Well, come on then, let’s go upstairs.”

  When we reach the fourth floor, Alfie holds the door open for Snowball and me. Immediately, Malcolm pops out of the wall. He looks from me to Alfie. “Who’s the stranger?” he asks. “And where’s Alfie?”

  Now I feel a little frightened. It was easy to dismiss Snowball’s claim that the person with us isn’t Alfie. But when Malcolm says that same thing, it’s disturbing.

  I look at Alfie. He has a big frown on his face. Hmm. “It’s Alfie,” I sa
y to Malcolm. “Can’t you see that?”

  “You really think this is Alfie?” he asks.

  “Of course.”

  He bursts out laughing. “That’s a good one,” he says. “You think it’s Alfie.” He starts laughing all over again.

  As soon as Snowball hears what Malcolm says, she spits and hisses. Then she runs under the bed.

  Now I’m not only worried, I’m very, very frightened. If this isn’t Alfie, who is it and why does he look like him? I turn to Malcolm. “You’re sure it isn’t Alfie?” I ask, keeping a close eye on the dwarf.

  “Just as sure as I am that the rent hag isn’t my wife! Maybe they took him to the same place as they took my wife?”

  I almost believe him until he says that! Now I don’t know what to think. He looks like Alfie. He acts like Alfie. Suddenly the old saying pops into my mind—if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck . . .it’s a duck.

  Later, as I’m lying in bed, doubt creeps into my mind. Is it Alfie? All my senses tell me it’s him. But Snowball and Malcolm have heightened senses that I don’t have. I realize that I need advice. And the only one I trust to give me the correct advice is my Granny Maycomber.

  It’s time to visit Nightshade!

  Tomorrow, I’ll skip school and take Snowball and visit Nightshade. I get a warm feeling realizing that I’ll see Val again.

  Wow, I’ve missed him more than I thought!

  CHAPTER 11

  A s Broom Hilda flies over Granny Maycomber’s cottage, I feel an urge to dip down and look inside, but don’t. I am eager to confer with Granny Maycomber, well at least her spirit in the cup of life. I need answers to some very important questions, and I think Granny might have some of them.

  All night, Snowball and Malcolm’s accusation that someone is impersonating Alfie bore heavily on my mind. I kept asking myself, is that possible and if it is, how? Outwardly, Alfie seems the same old duck-berry-loving dwarf. Yet at times he seems to have lapses of memory about things he should know. Like this morning, he asked where the forks were kept. Little things like that. And if he isn’t the real Alfie, then where is the real one?

  Just thinking about the problem gives me an instant headache. But my spirits soar as I fly over Nightshade and spot the library building. I immediately feel a sense of calm that I am back home. More than that, I realize now that Nightshade is my real home, and not Potomac. And even if I learn the spell to open the gate at the cemetery, I’m no longer sure I want to return to that world.

  And of course, there’s Val. I can’t wait to see him before I leave Nightshade!

  I land in front of the library. As I walk up the steps, expecting to see Sprout’s ugly face, I remember that I changed him back to the way he used to look. He’s sitting at the reception desk as I enter. I see his quick smile and return it.

  “Suzy! How good to see you. Where’s the dwarf?” he asks.

  That’s the question I’ve been asking myself all morning. Where is Alfie?

  “Hey Sprout, you too. Alfie’s at home,” I say.

  “What brings the great sleuth back to Nightshade?”

  I glance behind me. “Oh, you mean me?”

  “Well, you did solve the murder of Rachel.”

  “I had lots of help. And, in fact, that’s why I’m here. I need to speak with Granny Maycomber’s spirit.” That sounds strange even to me. On the other side, they would question my sanity if I said something like that.

  “Come into the office. That’s where I keep the cup.” He smiles, “Since she is the librarian, I think it’s the proper place for her.”

  I feel a surge of nostalgia as I glance around the library. I remember my first time inside and going to the office to find Rachel to help me get back across the cemetery—only to find her strangled.

  “Sit down, Suzy,” Sprout says as he lifts the silver cup containing my grandmother’s spirit and brings it forward until I can look inside.

  I don’t see anything but my reflection in the liquid.

  “Let me wake her,” Sprout says as he shakes the cup slightly.

  I watch as the liquid forms small ripples, which subside quickly to reveal an image that is no longer mine, even though it is very similar. In fact, it’s like looking at an older version of myself.

  “Suzy! Suzy!” the tiny voice says. “I’m so glad to see you again. Wow, you are beautiful.”

  “I think I’m just a younger version of you, Granny. Is that your way of trying to get a compliment from me?”

  “An old woman needs all the compliments she can harvest,” Granny tells me, “but I’m sure you didn’t fly all the way from Hemlock to compare images.”

  “No, I came to seek some advice,” I say, turning serious.

  “Why? What has happened in Hemlock?”

  I take a deep breath. “Lots of strange things. First and foremost is the murder of a young girl named Polly. She was strangled in the basement of the Academy.”

  “It couldn’t be Night Shadow. I don’t think you are likely to see him again—at least hopefully not for a long time,” Granny says.

  “No, no. It’s not him. I do have a list of suspects. At the top of the list is a young warlock named Matt. I overheard someone say he planned on meeting the murdered girl in the basement the day she was strangled.”

  “Lover’s quarrel?”

  “No, I don’t think so. I think she was going to give him some information that would keep him from failing wand class. I’m pretty sure if I can figure out what she was going to tell him, I’ll be close to solving the murder,” I say, feeling the truth in what I’m saying.

  “Suzy, it appears as though you are doing just fine without me.”

  “I’ve been attacked by ghouls twice. Once in the library by a single ghoul, and then in the park a few blocks from the Academy.”

  “By ghouls?”

  “Yes, and what I don’t know is how the ghoul attacks fit into the puzzle.”

  “Suzy, I’ve never known ghouls to work together. That’s strange behavior for them.”

  I shrug, not knowing if Granny can see the gesture. “I don’t know how ghouls should behave. I hadn’t seen one before going to Hemlock.” Suddenly, I have a thought. “Do you have any books on magical creatures?”

  “Magical Beasts of the Realm!” the spirit in the cup calls out.

  Immediately, an ancient and moldy leather book flies in my direction and lands on Granny’s desk. It is thick but small. “Take this with you. It might help you recognize creatures that you haven’t seen before.”

  “Yes, I am sure it will help. Seems that every creature I run into is new to me,” I say and sigh. “Gosh, Granny, I have so much to learn. I don’t feel like I’m a real witch at all sometimes.”

  “Suzy, you come from a long line of powerful witches. And I think you will excel beyond any of them, including me.”

  “I knew that coming here would cheer me up. Maybe I just needed to get away from Hemlock for a while to clear my head,” I say. “Thanks for the book, Granny. I’m sorry you have to remain a spirit in the cup. I wish there was a way I could restore you.”

  “It’s better than being dead dead! And I have Sprout to take care of me. I regret not realizing what a wonderful man he is a long time ago.”

  “Granny, I wish I could stay all day and chat with you, but I need to get back home. Alfie is acting strange, and I have to figure out why.”

  “The last bit of advice I am going to give you, Suzy, is to follow your instincts! And keep digging even when you think there’s nothing left to uncover,” Granny says.

  “Yes, I want to revisit the crime scene when I get back to Hemlock. I think I’m overlooking something important,” I say as I wave my hand at the silver cup. My heart is heavy as I walk out of the office.

  “Val!” I exclaim! And suddenly I’m smiling.

  “Joe saw you flying over and came to tell me you’re back in Nightshade,” the handsome vampire says as his eyes bore through me as though he’s looking at m
y soul. “And, of course I hurried over,” he says as he takes my hand and lifts it to his lips. “I guess I can kiss your hand here in the library. Bo isn’t here to shout, no sucky vamp stuff!”

  I giggle like a schoolgirl as his cold lips touch the back of my hand and send a tingle down my spine.

  “Do you have time for a walk around the grounds of the library? Sprout has stopped planting poisonous plants. He now has a beautiful flower garden,” Val says.

  “I’ll make time.” I answer immediately as we both head for the door.

  “So, tell me what’s been happening over in Hemlock?”

  I quickly fill him in about the murder and the attacks on me. I end with telling him that I’m worried about Alfie as he’s different. And that Snowball and the ghost Malcolm are telling me that he isn’t Alfie.

  “Ghouls cooperating with one another? That’s a new one to me. But then I’m not an expert on all the creatures of the realm,” Val says. “I wish I could be of more help.” We turn the corner of the library, and I see the most splendid flower garden I have ever seen.

  “Wow, Sprout outdid himself.” I look at row after row of almost every flower I know. “I suspect he used magic,” I finally say.

  Val smiles. “Magic does have its uses in ordinary life.”

  I am so enthralled by the flower garden that I don’t realize Val has stepped close to me until I feel his arm around my shoulder. He pulls me slowly toward him. I don’t resist. Suddenly his pale, handsome face is moving toward mine. Our lips touch. I expect cold, dead lips; not the hot sensuous lips that first brush against mine teasingly.

  I lean into him. He presses his moist lips firmly against mine. Suddenly we are kissing passionately. He makes me feel like his kiss is my very first, and in a way it is, because never before have I felt this way kissing another man. I feel light-headed when he pulls his lips from my now-quivering lips.

  “Sorry, I couldn’t resist. I’ve been wanting to do that since I first saw you, Suzy.”

  “Talk about a kiss taking a girl’s breath away!” I mumble, my face flushed. “And now I deeply regret having to rush back to Hemlock, Val. Shame on you!”

  “I am only seconds away. If you need me, you only have to say my name three times and I will appear,” he says as he takes my hand and leads me back around to the front of the library.