A Charmed Cauldron

by Rose Pressey

  The sound of a car caught my attention. Someone was here. I moved to the front, shuffling along the roof toward the other side. Once I made it to the other side I made eye contact with my mother immediately.

  “Halloween, get down from there right now. I thought you stopped climbing things years ago.”

  One time she’d caught me trying to climb an oak tree and she’d never let me live that down. Now I feared that my mother was in danger. I held my index finger up to my lips, indicating that she should be quiet.

  “What are you trying to say? I can’t hear you,” she said.

  Did she have to talk so loud? I motioned toward the door.

  “You want me to go inside?” she asked.

  I shook my head.

  “The werewolves are here,” I said.

  Her eyes widened. I had to cast that spell and get down now. At least I would have her help with the spell. That was if her loud voice didn’t alert them.

  Chapter 34

  I moved closer to the edge of the roof.

  “Oh, you are making me nervous,” my mother said with a wave of her hands.

  “We have to do a spell so that I can get down from here. The werewolves are in the house. They’re looking for the book. Soon they will see you out here. If I can get down, then we can cast a spell on them. I used all my energy just getting out from the restraints.”

  “They tied you up?” my mother asked with narrowed eyes. “No one messes with my baby.”

  “They’re going to mess with both of us if I don’t get down from here soon.”

  My mother frowned.

  “What’s wrong?” I asked.

  “I don’t understand what we’re casting a spell for right now.”

  “We need to cast a spell that will turn that gutter into a ladder.”

  She stared at me in confusion. “Why can’t I just get the ladder from the shed?”

  “Okay, yes, that would probably be a better idea,” I said with a wave of my hand.

  I blamed the stress for clouding my judgment.

  “Wait right there,” my mother said.

  “I plan on it,” I said.

  My mother disappeared around the corner. My anxiety spiked now that she was out of my sight.

  The shed was a good distance away from the house. Plus, the ladder was giant, and I wondered if she’d be able to get it over here by herself. Surely someone inside the manor would hear the noise. Especially when she put the ladder against the house and I started climbing down. My legs were still shaking and my head was swimming a bit. The longer I waited the more nervous I became.

  The faint rattle of the ladder came from the side of the house. I would have walked over to the other edge of the roof and watched for her, but it was even more sloped over there, so I didn’t want to risk it. A few seconds later my mother appeared from around the corner. She was dragging the ladder across the ground. How would she get the thing up on the side of the house? Once in front of the house she paused and peered down at the ladder.

  She placed her hands on her hips. “This thing is heavy.”

  “I don’t think you’ll be able to lift the ladder onto the house,” I said.

  “Oh, don’t tell your mother she can’t do something.”

  It was true. If anyone told her my mother couldn’t do something she’d be even more determined to do it. I supposed I had gotten the trait from her. As I watched her, wondering about her next move, she started waving her hands in the air. She was chanting words. The branches on the trees whipped wildly.

  “Not too strong, Mom, or you’ll blow me off the roof.”

  The ladder lifted from the ground as if by unseen hands and moved over to the house. Slowly it eased onto the house without a sound.

  “Wow, that was an impressive spell,” I said. “Why didn’t you do that when you brought the ladder over here instead of carrying it?”

  “So I wouldn’t use all my energy.” She shook her head.

  “Right. Okay, I suppose it’s time for me to come down.”

  This was just as scary as when I’d climbed out the window. I inhaled and exhaled. Okay, if I just did it then I’d be on the ground again. I had to get it over with. I eased one leg over onto the rung and then the next.

  “Easy does it,” my mother said as she held the bottom of the ladder. “Just be extra careful when you come down from there.”

  “What? Like I’m not going to be careful?” I said. “You’re making me nervous with all the chatter.”

  “Don’t sass me,” she said.

  I missed one of the rungs and slipped. My mother screamed. She might as well have gone in their and announced to the werewolves that we were outside. Somehow I managed to grab hold again with my hands, even though I had the reflexes of a slug. Now I was hanging on, but my legs dangled against the ladder. All that was keeping me from falling to the ground was my shaky grip on the metal.

  “Oh, my word, I can’t breathe,” my mother said.

  “Just calm down,” I said breathlessly. “I’ll be fine.”

  I wiggled my legs around until I finally stepped on the metal again.

  “I’m all right. Everything’s fine. Crisis averted,” I said.

  “You’re not at the bottom yet,” she called out. “Don’t get too confident.”

  “At this stage of my life, trust me, I’m not too confident about anything.”

  It seemed as if I had been moving down the ladder forever. I finally reached the bottom and released a pent-up breath.

  “Thank goodness you’re down from there. Don’t do that again,” my mother said while shaking her finger.

  “I hope I don’t ever have to do that again.”

  “What do we do now with the werewolves?” she asked. “How many are in there?”

  “I lost count,” I said, pushing the hair out of my eyes.

  “That’s not good,” she said.

  “Let me think of a plan,” I said.

  My mother’s eyes widened. She was peering over my shoulder and I knew this couldn’t be good.

  “They’re behind me, aren’t they?” I asked.

  She nodded. Slowly I turned around to see all of the werewolves. They had us surrounded now. It was just the two of us against all of them.

  “That was pretty clever,” Daniel said.

  “Glad you enjoyed it,” I said.

  “Okay, back you go into the house. This time you’ll really get the book,” Jessica said.

  Were we going to play this game again? Did they think I’d just go in and get it for them? I’d just do the same thing all over again. Though I didn’t like the idea of ending up on the roof again.

  The look in Jessica’s eyes had changed. She stepped closer to me. A little too close for my liking. She lunged at me and we fell back onto the ground. The wind had been knocked out of my lungs for a moment. Her face was right in front of mine, but it seemed distorted. She was shifting and soon I’d be in a battle with a creature much stronger than me. She’d attacked so quickly that I hadn’t even had time to plan for a spell.

  “Halloween,” my mother yelled out. The panic in her voice was horrific.

  “Get off me, you filthy beast,” I said as I tried to shove Jessica away.

  Within seconds my mother had jumped onto Jessica’s back. I’d never seen my mother this wild before. I guessed she’d meant it when she said no one messed with her Halloween. She gave me a hard time sometimes. Sometimes she was a pain in the butt. However, she was the best mother I could have ever hoped for. Other werewolves rushed over and were grabbing at my mother. Rage rushed through every vein in my body. I pushed Jessica with every ounce of my strength.

  I wouldn’t let her keep me down when my mother needed me. The werewolves had my mother now. Where were they taking her? They held her.

  “Now we have her. If you want her back then you will turn over the book.”

  Okay, I should have seen that coming. There was nothing to do now. I had to give them the book. I didn’t thi
nk my magic could take on all the werewolves. I was already drained. I would give it a shot, but I really didn’t know if I could do this alone.

  The roar of an engine captured my attention. When I looked down the driveway I spotted Liam’s car headed this way. Thank goodness he was here. Though I worried about his safety too. The car rolled to a stop in front of the manor. Liam and Nicolas rushed out. I was shocked to see that Nicolas had returned.

  “What’s going on here?” Liam asked.

  “They have my mother and want the Book of Mystics in exchange for her,” I said.

  “Don’t give them the book, Halloween,” my mother said.

  They held her by the arms and as she struggled to break free.

  I couldn’t stand to see them with her like that.

  “She’s not giving you the book,” Nicolas said.

  He stepped forward and Liam moved with him. Daniel moved forward and I figured there would be a colossal fight any moment now. I stepped beside Liam and Nicolas. We exchanged a look with each other. Somehow, I read their minds. We had to do a spell now. It was the only way to put a stop to this. We held hands. Daniel and Jessica looked at each other. They smirked, but I knew deep down they were worried. As they should be.

  A few of the werewolves started to drag my mother away. They were taking her toward the wooded area beside the manor. If they got her there I might never see her again. We recited the words and a massive gust of wind swept across the area. This had to work. It was our only way of holding off the werewolves. The wind grew stronger and the clouds turned black. The werewolves peered up at the sky. They tried to rush forward to attack us, but they were met with an invisible wall. They fell backward onto the ground. A look of terror flashed in their eyes.

  The werewolves stopped with my mother. I raised my arm and pointed it in their direction. They released their grip on her. She ran toward us. My mother had no problem breaking through our barrier. It was working just as I’d hoped it would. The werewolves scrambled up from the ground. After a few moments of staring at us as if they might actually try something again, they turned and ran away.

  They disappeared into the wooded area. The wind stopped as quickly as it had started, and the clouds faded into the distance. I didn’t know if this would be the last that I saw of them, but I hoped so. I wouldn’t put it past them to try and come back again. I figured the word would have gotten out by now. Don’t mess with me, my friends or my family. That was when I remembered Mrs. Whitmore. I hadn’t seen her outside since any of this started.

  “Where is Mrs. Whitmore?” I asked.

  “Who?” my mother asked.

  “The next-door neighbor, Mrs. Whitmore. She was here too,” I said.

  “Why was she here?”

  “She was the one who got the werewolves through the spell barrier. They paid her,” I said.

  Chapter 35

  “We need to find Mrs. Whitmore,” I said, motioning for everyone to follow me.

  Liam, Nicolas, and my mother followed me into the manor. Mrs. Whitmore wasn’t in the foyer. I knew she hadn’t gone outside. Unless she had slipped out the back door, which was indeed possible. Noise sounded from the back of the manor.

  “I think someone’s in the kitchen,” I whispered.

  We tiptoed through the house. The closer we got to the kitchen the louder the sound became. What if there was another werewolf in the house? Or maybe more than one? When we reached the kitchen, I pushed the swinging door. Mrs. Whitmore was in front of one of the cabinets. She was taking everything out and putting it on the counter. At least she wasn’t tossing it onto the floor and breaking everything.

  “What do you think you’re doing?” my mother asked.

  Mrs. Whitmore jumped and clutched her chest. “Oh, don’t scare an old woman like that.”

  “Mrs. Whitmore, are you looking for the Book of Mystics?” I asked.

  She stared at me for a second and then said, “Yes, as a matter of fact, I am looking for the book.”

  “Mrs. Whitmore, you need to tell me what you’re doing,” I said, placing my hands on my hips. “You know you can’t take the book. Plus, the werewolves are gone now. It’s over.”

  She blew the hair out of her eyes. “I have to find the book.”

  “You remember that it’s mine, right? Even if you found it, I couldn’t let you have it.”

  What part of that didn’t she understand?

  “If I find it then they must give me the money,” she said.

  I shook my head. “No, honey, it’s over now.”

  “Has she lost her marbles?” my mother asked.

  Liam and Nicolas were looking at me with a confused look.

  “They told Mrs. Whitmore they would pay her for helping get the book,” I said.

  Liam nodded. “Well, that’s kind of cruel of them to do that.”

  “It is a bad thing to do.”

  My mother waved her hand. “Oh, she’s not so innocent. She knew what she was doing.”

  Mrs. Whitmore glared at my mother. “Well, I never.”

  “I’ve heard about your schemes before,” my mother said.

  I’d never heard of Mrs. Whitmore’s schemes. I’d have to ask my mother for more details later.

  She released a big breath. “But I didn’t get my money.”

  “You were willing to do something illegal just to get a few dollars?” I asked.

  She looked away. “Well, it was a nice sum of money. I thought I’d take a vacation.”

  “You should be ashamed of yourself,” my mother said. “You already have money for a vacation.”

  She shrugged. “So I wanted more. If they were willing to give it then I was willing to take it.”

  I wasn’t sure I liked being neighbors with Mrs. Whitmore anymore. I knew she didn’t like me, but this took it to an all-new level.

  Mrs. Whitmore tossed her hands up. “Fine, I won’t look for the book. Are you happy now?”

  “Actually, yes,” I said.

  “Are you going to put the things away that you took out of the cabinets?” my mother asked.

  “I don’t have time,” Mrs. Whitmore said as she breezed past us.

  We followed her out of the kitchen and through the house. I wanted to make sure she left. I didn’t trust her. She marched toward the front door and out onto the porch.

  “How did she get here?” Liam asked.

  “I guess Daniel gave her a ride or she just walked over,” I said. “That’s a pretty good walk. Kind of a long way.”

  “Yes, it is,” Liam said.

  “What happened with you two?” I asked. “I wasn’t expecting you all to show up.”

  Liam and Nicolas exchanged a look.

  “Well, I caught up with him,” Liam said.

  “Yes, I gathered that much,” I said.

  “How did you two end up back here in the same car?” I asked.

  “I followed him until he finally stopped the car. We fought some more and then I guess we realized it was a bad idea. I explained everything that happened.”

  “So Nicolas had time to think rationally?” I asked.

  Nicolas nodded. “Yes, I guess I jumped to conclusions. After being gone for some time, I guess I worried that Liam had won you over.”

  I didn’t even look at Liam when Nicolas said that.

  “Did he explain why he went in the first place?” I asked Liam.

  “You’ll have to ask him that.” Liam looked at Nicolas.

  “I hope someone explains,” my mother said. “You all are giving me a headache.”

  I saw her point. I was getting annoyed with us too. I turned my attention to Nicolas. I wouldn’t let him get by without talking this time.

  I crossed my arms in front of my chest. “I’m waiting for you to explain everything to me.”

  “While he explains this, I’m going to give Mrs. Whitmore a ride home,” Liam said.

  My mother frowned. “After what she did?”

  “It is a long way over there,
” I said. “Just be careful, Liam. I don’t trust her.”

  Liam nodded. “I think I can handle myself. She’s eighty-five and weighs ninety pounds.”

  “You’d be surprised,” I said. “Mrs. Whitmore smacked me and almost knocked me out of the chair.”

  My mother gasped. “She did that? I should let her have it.”

  “Mother, she’s eighty-five.”

  My mother sighed. “Fine.”

  After Liam left, I focused my attention on Nicolas. “You want to explain what’s been going on with you?”

  I’d waited long enough for answers.

  “I went to find Daniel because I overheard he had plans to come to Enchantment Pointe. I met him a number of years ago when he tried to take the Book of Mystics from my mother. That’s why I took off for Colorado. I thought I could stop him before he got here,” Nicolas said.

  “Why didn’t you tell me this?” I asked.

  “I thought I could handle this by myself. I didn’t want to worry you,” Nicolas said.

  “You know that makes me upset. You can’t ever do that again,” I said.

  “I realize that now. I would have been here sooner, but I kind of got caught up while there.”

  “What do you mean?” I asked.

  “A couple witches kidnapped me. I managed to get free.” His voice was steady and calm as if this was no cause for alarm.

  I held my hands up. “Whoa. What do you mean? Someone kidnapped you and you didn’t tell me? I have to find the witches who did this.”

  “I planned on telling you as soon as I got back and now I am.” He smiled.

  “That smile isn’t going to stop me from being upset with you. Why did the witches kidnap you? Did they say?”