The Trouble with Witches
Page 24
I sighed. “Even if I thought I could do it, Social Services wouldn’t let us take her out of state.”
Rick sat up. “I could put in a good word for you, and I can see if my editor might pull a few strings. Get you some recommendations they can’t ignore. He has friends in high places,” he said with a wink. “Stranger things have happened.”
I snorted. He had that right.
Moving my eyes from face to face, I looked at these wonderful people. Each one had a place in my heart, but for different reasons. Darci and Rick for their friendship in spite of my prickly ways. And my beloved grandmother, whose unconditional love I’d relied on all of my life. I knew I could count on them, anytime, anywhere. And deep inside, it felt right to want to give back some of that caring and love to a young girl as alone as Tink.
I lifted my chin and looked Abby square in the eye. “Let’s go for it.”
“I’m proud of you, Ophelia Jensen,” a voice behind me said.
I whipped around to see Walks Quietly standing in the corridor. “What do you mean?”
“I talked to your grandmother, and she said you want to take the little one home with you.”
A hot blush crept up my neck. “Yeah, I think Abby and I can help her.”
“I think she can help you, Ophelia. It is not right for people to be alone.”
“Oh yeah,” I said, cocking my head at him. “What about you? You’ve been alone.”
“You’re right.” He nodded, his brown eyes twinkling. “I might have to reconsider some things.”
I laid a hand on his arm. “Does that mean you might visit us in Iowa? You’re always welcome.”
He placed his hand on his heart and gave his head a slight bow. “Thank you. That will be one of the things I consider.”
He turned to walk away, but I stopped him.
“I do have one question for you. I saw you in the clearing yesterday, and you had a wolf, a badger, and a snow owl with you. I didn’t know you had any wild animals as pets.”
“I don’t. A wolf, a badger, and a snow owl are my spirit guides.”
“I saw you, and them,” I said, pointing a finger at him. “But Darci didn’t. How did that happen?”
He twitched his shoulder. “I wasn’t there.”
My eyes narrowed. “Yes, you were.”
A smile played at the corner of his mouth. “When you return home, Ophelia, read about spirit walks.” He turned on his heel and walked a few paces down the hallway. Turning around, he faced me again. “One last thing—when you are troubled, look to the sky and a hawk will guide you.”
I sat on the edge of Tink’s bed and watched her. She plucked at the blanket with her bandaged hands.
“Am I going to like Iowa?” she asked in a shy voice.
“I hope so. You’ll have Lady and Queenie around all the time—”
“And you,” she said with a shy glance at me.
I chuckled. “Yeah, and me. But there might be some people who would argue that’s not such a great deal.” I paused. “Listen, kid, I’ve never raised a child, so I don’t know much about being a parent. But I think we can both figure things out as we go along. Are you okay with that?”
“Sure.” She smiled. “This is going to be kind of cool. Since my mom died, I’ve never really had a family.” Her smile vanished. “With Juliet and Jason, I always felt like I was in their way. Hey,” she said, her face lightening, “can I have friends?”
“Sure,” I said with a grin. “Friends are a great thing to have. Just no wild parties, okay?”
She rolled her eyes. “Okay.”
“And,” I said, smoothing her hair, “I’ve already invited Walks Quietly to come to Iowa.”
She threw her arms around my neck. “You’re the best, Ophelia.”
“Yeah, well, we’ll see how long you think that,” I said with a smile, and hugged her back. Just like Abby had hugged me so many times when I was growing up.
This felt right. Everything was going to work out.
Setting Tink back against the pillows, I tucked her blankets around her. “When we get back, Darci’s going to take you shopping for clothes. No more white stuff. And—”
The door swung open and Abby stuck her head in the room. “Excuse me, but Mrs. Sanford from Social Services wants to talk with us, Ophelia. She’s waiting down the hall with Rick.”
A look of fear crossed Tink’s face.
“Don’t worry,” I said, standing. “Abby and I can be pretty persuasive. And with Rick there, too…” I threw my hand in the air. “He can charm the socks off somebody without even taking off their shoes.” I gave her a wink. “Mrs. Sanford doesn’t stand a chance.”
I moved to the door, but paused. Turning around, I looked at Tink. “One thing I should probably know, before I talk to her—just in case she asks. What kind of name is ‘Tink’?”
“It stands for Tinkes Belle,” she said with a grin.
Oh my God, her mother had named her Tinkes Belle. What kind of a name is that to stick on a poor kid?
She saw the shocked look on my face, and her grin turned to a smile. “It’s not my real name. It’s a nickname.”
“So what is your real name?”
Tink inched her way up in the bed. “I’ve always been small for my age, so my mom told me that she decided she’d have to call me something else till I grew into my wings.”
She folded her hands in her lap and lifted her head. A look of pride filled her incredible violet eyes, and I saw a glimpse of the woman she would one day be.
“My name is Titania.”
Of course. Her mother had named her well. I could think of no other for this child who, from the first moment I saw her, reminded me of a wood sprite.
Titania—Queen of the Fairies.
Acknowledgments
With the publication of Witch Way to Murder and Charmed to Death, the past year has been one of the most exciting years of my life. It’s given me the opportunity to meet people I never would have had the chance to meet, and their help in creating this latest adventure for Ophelia and Abby has been invaluable:
The late No Two Horns and my old friend, Bud Murphy, for their insight into the Native American culture. I’m sorry, No Two Horns, that you never saw the publication of this book. I only hope you would have liked the character you named, Walks Quietly.
Diana Abbott for the magick tips.
Ursula Bowler for sharing her stories with me. They fired my imagination, Urs!
Dr. Jerri McLemore and Paul Steinbach of the Iowa State Medical Examiner’s Office for, once again, answering endless questions on ways to get rid of hapless characters.
The readers I’ve met either in person or via e-mail. Because of your response to Darci, she won a trip to Minnesota!
Stacey Glick of Dystel and Goderich Literary Management, Sarah Durand, Jeremy Cesarec, Danielle Bartlett, and the staff at Avon Books—without you, there would be no Ophelia and Abby Mystery Series!
And of course, my family and friends. Without your understanding and support, I never would have had the courage to embark on my great adventure!
About the Author
Take a life-long interest in the paranormal and mix it with a vivid imagination. Let the potion simmer in a small Iowa town. And the result is the Ophelia and Abby mystery series written by Shirley Damsgaard.
Shirley, author of numerous published short stories, resides with her family in small-town Iowa, where she has served as Postmaster for the last twenty years. An Agatha Award nominee for Witch Way to Murder, she is currently working on the next Ophelia and Abby mystery, which again touches delightfully on the paranormal.
Visit www.AuthorTracker.com for exclusive information on your favorite HarperCollins author.
The Ophelia and Abby Mysteries
by Shirley Damsgaard
THE TROUBLE WITH WITCHES
CHARMED TO DEATH
WITCH WAY TO MURDER
Copyright
This book is a work of fiction. T
he characters, incidents, and dialogue are drawn from the author?s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
THE TROUBLE WITH WITCHES. Copyright © 2006 by Shirley Damsgaard. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
ePub edition May 2007 ISBN 9780061754807
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