Water & Flame (Witches of the Elements Series Book 1)

by Alejandra Vega

  Abigail felt herself flush. No, don’t go red now, she thought. It will give me away. “What are you talking about?” There, her voice hardly quivered. She wanted to say more, but refrained.

  “Oh, come on Abigail. Anyone with one eye could see there’s something there. Plus, I have heard things. It’s a big estate, but it can be a small world sometimes.”

  “Arianna, what is the point of this? What do you want from me?”

  “Want?” the other woman said. “What do I want?” She put her hand to her chest and widened her eyes as if she didn’t understand what Abigail was saying. “I want nothing but to help a fellow staff member. I just want to try to keep you from getting your heart broken.”

  Abigail narrowed her eyes and searched the other woman’s face. She had to hand it to Arianna, she was a good actress. Abbie couldn’t pick up anything in her expression that told her what was going on. “And how, exactly, are you going to keep my heart from being broken?”

  “Abigail, dear, why are you so suspicious? I’m trying to help you out. I heard some things, as I said, and I want to let you know. That’s all.”

  “You heard some things,” Abigail repeated flatly. “Okay, tell me these important things so my heart does not get broken.”

  “Very well. I’ll just come right out and say it. I overheard Master Mason talking with Lucas. You know Lucas, his driver and manservant?” She waited for Abigail’s nod, as if she needed it. Everyone knew Lucas. The estate wasn’t that big.

  Arianna continued, “They were talking, and Master Mason said, ‘I need to find a way out of this engagement.’ Lucas said, ‘It’s too bad you’re not already married.’ Master Mason jumped on that idea and said, ‘Lucas, you’re a genius. That’s what I’ll do. I’ll get married before my mother has a chance to marry me off to Penelope.’”

  “I know this, Arianna,” Abigail said.

  “Hear me out. I’m almost finished. So, Lucas said, ‘And who are you going to marry to make this thing work?’ And Ben said, ‘I’ll marry Abbie. She’s just a maid, so she’ll be happy to marry me.’” When Abbie flinched, a small smile crept onto Arianna’s face before she smoothed it away.

  “Lucas asked what would happen when Ms. Huntsman found out, and Master Mason agreed that she would be livid that he had married such a commoner, a low-class maid. They talked about it for a while, making plans and deciding exactly how it would be done. I just wanted to let you know that he’s using you to escape the situation he is in and that he will most likely ditch you as soon as the coast is clear.”

  “I…” Abigail said, “…you heard them say exactly that? ‘Just a maid’ and all the rest of it?”

  “I’m afraid so,” Arianna said, her mouth turning down into a frown. “I wanted to let you know. I’m sure you already know how all the rich people feel about those of us who work for a living. I just wanted you to know what Benjamin is really up to. If you planned on using him for his money, then it’s all fine and good, but if you thought he really cared about you, well, I just wanted to set you straight. We ‘little people’ need to stick together, right?”

  Abigail hardly heard that last part. She was reviewing in her head all the conversations she had with Ben, the different times he had said things about “little people” and how he—one of the rich folks—was different than what he assumed she was used to. Could it be true? She would have to take some time to think about this.

  “Abigail?” Arianna said, false sincerity flowing through her voice as if they were close friends. “Are you okay? You didn’t know that then, did you? I’m sorry to be the one to break it to you, but it’s better that you found out now, before it’s too late. You know, in case you wanted to change your plans.”

  “Yes,” Abigail said. “Yes, it is better. Thank you, Arianna. I’ll think about what you said.”

  Arianna Cox turned her head and coughed softly into her hand. “Okay, then. I’ll see you later. Good luck.” As she left, Arianna added, “Honestly, I’m surprised he hasn’t had you fired yet to get you out of the way, now that the Penelope crisis is over. Ms. Huntsman has called off the wedding. I guess you can count that as luck.”

  Abigail didn’t have an answer for that.

  “Did you tell her just as we discussed?” Margaret Huntsman said to Arianna a half an hour after the woman had talked to Abigail.

  “Yes, Ms. Huntsman, just like we talked about.”

  “And?”

  “Well, ma’am,” Arianna said, “she seemed upset. She covered it quickly, but she got a sour expression and turned a little pale.”

  “Did she confirm anything, give you any more information than what we already had?”

  “No, ma’am. She just acted like it didn’t matter.” The laundress wrung her hands, unable to meet Margaret’s eyes. “It affected her, though. It definitely did.”

  “We will see,” Margaret Huntsman said. “Thank you, Arianna. Let me know if you overhear anything else useful.”

  Arianna didn’t move to leave. She raised her gaze to look at Margaret’s face, if not her eyes. “Ma’am?”

  “Yes, what is it?”

  “This won’t get Master Mason in trouble or anything, will it? He has always been kind to me and all the other staff. I would hate for him to be in trouble.”

  Margaret’s mouth quirked into a small smile. “No, Arianna. He is not in trouble. You have helped me so I can talk to him about that woman trying to take advantage of him. You saved him from making a serious mistake. You have done well. Now be off with you. I have work to do.”

  Arianna curtsied and then quickly turned and left the room.

  “Really?” a voice preceded the woman who entered the room from a hidden side door. “‘You saved him from making a serious mistake’?”

  “That might be the truth,” Margaret said. “If we take care of this now, then yes, this one—” she nodded her head toward where Arianna had been—“has possibly just saved his life.”

  “Do you think it will be that easy?” Helen asked.

  “I certainly hope so,” Margaret answered. “If not, I might have to take more drastic action. People have been known to disappear before.”

  “Yes,” Helen smiled. “They certainly have.”

  “So you see,” Margaret Huntsman said to Abigail less than an hour later, “we have found your work to be sub-standard, and so you are to be relieved.” She waved an envelope at the girl. “I am paying you for the rest of the week, but you will leave immediately.”

  “I don’t know what to say,” Abigail said. “I worked hard and Mrs. Roberts didn’t seem to have any complaints.”

  “Mrs. Roberts works for me. Remember that. You are fired. Take your check, pack your things, and leave. Don’t make me have to call security. Harper will assist you in departing with the least disturbance. Enjoy your day.”

  With that, Abigail was dismissed from Margaret’s presence, and from her employment. Harper hustled her to the servants’ quarters and watched as Abbie packed her things.

  “Change out of the uniform,” the shrew said. “That does not belong to you.”

  She did so, still dazed by what had happened. She was soon in her car and heading out the main driveway. The lights of the estate shrank in her rear view mirror, and they soon quivered and took on a watery appearance. Abbie pulled to the side of the road and sat there, weeping.

  What had just happened? Was it as Arianna said? Did Ben no longer have need of her, so he had his mother fire her? She couldn’t believe it. She would ask him, right out. She couldn’t have misjudged him that much, could she?

  She picked up her phone and selected his number. The distinctive tone sounded, followed by, “I’m sorry, the number you have dialed is no longer in service. Please try again.”

  Abbie held the phone out and stared at the screen. He had changed his number? Maybe it was true, then. She put her head on the steering wheel and tried to breathe. A crushing weight sat on her chest. It took five long minutes to regain her ability t
o breathe. Then she wiped her eyes, pulled out onto the road, and headed back to her home at Aqua Terra.

  She didn’t know what she would do, but whatever it was, she would do it at home, surrounded by people who loved her. Actually and sincerely loved her. The tears began again immediately as she headed down the darkened road.

  Chapter 27

  “Enough,” Ben said aloud to himself. “It has been long enough.” He realized he was talking to himself and looked around to see if anyone had noticed. It had been almost a week since he had talked to Abbie, and he had never memorized her phone number, just using it as a preset. He kicked himself for that. Without his contacts list on his phone, he couldn’t call her, hadn’t even caught sight of her in the halls. His patience was at an end, and he charged toward the servants’ quarters to talk to her.

  Ben gritted his teeth. When he had returned from Yellowstone, he couldn’t find his phone anywhere. He had been feeling out of sorts, but he had never misplaced it so badly. He finally gave up and figured he had dropped it somewhere in the park and went to the phone store to replace it.

  “What do you mean my account has been closed?” he said to the clerk. “I didn’t close my account.”

  The young woman behind the counter tapped out something on her iPad. “Yes, Mr. Mason, it says right here that your account was closed and locked.” Her eyes narrowed. “That’s strange.”

  “What’s strange?”

  “There were special instructions to delete all information connected to this account. I didn’t even know we could do that.”

  Ben scrubbed his hand through his hair. “Who authorized that? Does it say?”

  “I’m sorry, sir, but I’m not allowed to give you that information. It appears that the account is a business account, one for Huntsman Consolidated. Were you recently fired? That could be the reason.”

  It took every ounce of willpower not to yell at the woman. It wasn’t her fault, though. Obviously his mother was pulling his strings. He simply bought a new phone, this one under just his own name. That didn’t allow him to retrieve what he’d lost though, like Abbie’s phone number and the pictures he had taken of her. He would have to get her number—and memorize it this time—and take more pictures of her. It was strange not being able to see images of her anytime he wanted.

  Ben came around the corner in the main hallway and almost ran into a tall, slender, brown-haired woman carrying linens. He seemed to almost run into people in that particular part of the hallway quite a bit. They both skidded on the floor from their abrupt halts.

  “Oh, I’m sorry,” Ben said, noticing that the girl wore a maid’s uniform. “Pardon me.”

  “No, it was my fault,” she said. “I should have watched where I was going.”

  Ben looked into her hazel eyes and then scanned her face. “I don’t believe we have met. I’m Benjamin Mason.” He put his hand out but then noticed that hers were both full with the linens she was carrying. He let his hand drop. “Oh, sorry.”

  “It is a pleasure to meet you, Master Mason. I’m Candace Fuller. I’m the new maid. I just started yesterday.”

  “I see. I didn’t know we were adding to the staff. Welcome.”

  “I’m not so much an addition,” she said, “as a replacement for one of the maids who left.”

  “Really?” Ben was curious now. “Do you know who you are replacing?”

  “Yes, I believe her name was Abigail. She left abruptly, didn’t even give notice.” She wrinkled her nose and frowned to indicate what she thought of acting in such a way.

  “Abigail?” Ben said, his heart sinking into his stomach. “I hadn’t heard she left. Well, as I said, Candace, welcome. I hope you like it here.”

  Ben started off toward his room to lie down. Abigail was gone? He wondered if she went to the little house he had rented.

  It only took two steps before he changed his mind about going to his room. He did think he needed to lie down, but he needed answers more. And he thought he knew where he could get some, if answers were to be found anywhere.

  “Mrs. Roberts,” Ben said as he found the Housekeeper after searching for a half an hour. “I wonder if I could talk to you for a minute.”

  The squat gray-haired woman turned at Ben’s voice and a smile came across her face. She always had liked Ben. “Master Benjamin!” She could call him that because she basically raised him from infancy. “It’s a pleasure to see you. I haven’t had a chance to talk to you since you returned from your trip. Did you have a good time overseas?”

  “Uh, yes, it was fine, thank you. Mrs. Roberts, what happened to Abigail? I just found out she has been replaced.”

  The Housekeeper’s face fell. “Oh, Abigail. I’m not really sure. She has been acting strangely, as if she was mourning someone or heartbroken or something. Don’t misunderstand me, she did her work, and did it well, but she wasn’t her same happy self during the time that you were gone. A few weeks ago, though, she snapped out of it and was her normal perky, cheerful self. I didn’t ask her what was going on in her life. It was really none of my business. As long as it did not affect her work, I left her alone.

  “Like I said, I thought it was all done and over with, but then, just three days ago, something happened and she apparently went to Ms. Huntsman and quit. She didn’t give notice or a reason. I am really sorry to see her go and even more sorry that she’s having a rough time and couldn’t trust me to speak to me instead of Ms. Huntsman. I hope she gets through it okay.”

  “She was upset and just left?” Ben asked. “That doesn’t sound like her at all. She seemed so much more reliable than that.”

  “That was my opinion, too. It’s too bad, it really is. The new girl, Candace, seems to be a good worker, though, so don’t you worry about the work getting done. We will soldier on.” She smiled at Ben, and he forced a smile also. Turning on his heel, he headed toward his room. He felt a headache coming on and that was just fine. His heart already ached fiercely, so why shouldn’t his head, too?

  Chapter 28

  Margaret looked over her desk at Helen Shapiro, still so physically intimidating after all these years. Helen was just, well, large. She was not fat. In fact, she looked to be solid muscle. If Margaret wasn’t so powerful, so confident, in her own right, she might be a little intimidated herself. She had known Helen for more than thirty years—from even before she had met Henry Mason—and had worked with her closely. They were friends, but they were also business associates. Not just in the mundane business of making money, but also in all the business related to fire magic. They had been through a lot together.

  “I’m telling you, Margaret,” Helen said. “He’s more trouble than he’s worth. Why don’t you just arrange an accident? Things happen all the time. No one will be the wiser if it is done correctly.”

  It was an old argument, one that would continue until the subject of the discussion either threw his part in wholly with Margaret’s plans or defied her so strongly that she was forced to take action to eliminate him.

  “Oh, Helen, give it a rest. One would think you had a personal vendetta against the boy the way you are always calling for me to kill him.”

  “He will never come around. He has too much Boy Scout in him. Some people are not meant to be in control, they can’t make the tough decisions. He’s a lost cause.”

  “He is my heir,” Margaret said. “I still think I can get him under control. With a bit more patient work, he’ll come around.”

  “Are you going to use more of your mind control tricks, then? Will you finally squeeze him to force him to submit to your will?”

  Margaret sighed. “Helen, for someone as intelligent and clever as you, you seem to have trouble grasping the simple fact that my ‘mind control tricks’ are very delicate and dangerous to use. If I push too hard, too quickly, I can do damage to him—”

  “So what?”

  Margaret put her hand up to stop her friend from interrupting her again. “It is not just the damage I’m concerned
with. It’s the type of damage. The process is inexact. I could kill him.” She raised a finger toward Helen as the woman opened her mouth to interrupt again. “Or I could cause changes that would make him completely unpredictable, totally insane, or just aggressive and violent. If he displayed any of those things, don’t you think it would call attention to us? Don’t you?”

  Helen, for once, remained silent, looking abashed.

  “I am working on it,” Margaret continued. “I do not want to waste him. He has his definite uses and, honestly, I’m getting too old to start over with another adopted child. It would be at least twenty years before he or she is suitable for my plans. No, I will continue to work on Benjamin until it is clear he will turn on me. Rebellion is one thing, betrayal another. There is time yet. I have been exerting more control over him, using more of my power. As much as I can afford to use right now. His mood and focus are already being affected.”

  “But what about this marriage scheme of his, wanting to marry the maid to foil your plans with Penelope?”

  “That has been taken care of. The girl is gone, and he has no cards left to play. He will bluster and throw a tantrum, but he will marry the one of my choice. My plans will unfold as I have developed them.”

  “I don’t really think—” A knock at the door to Margaret’s study interrupted Helen.

  “That would be Benjamin,” Margaret said. “This will be delicate, so I would like you to leave through the hidden door. You can stay just inside the passageway and listen, if you like, but I think your presence will make the situation even more tense for him.”

  “I understand,” Helen said, moving behind the desk to the door hidden on the wall there. “Good luck. He is a stubborn one, I’ll give him that. Just like his father.”

  Margaret only nodded and showed her teeth. Whether in a smile or something else, her friend would have to decide for herself. As the secret door closed, she called out, “Come in.”