Magic & Murder; Magic & Mystery; Magic & Mischief, page 31
part #1 of Starry Hollow Witches Series
“It’s a good start, though, isn’t it?” Artemis said.
I ignored her remark. I had zero romantic interest in Ben cute-as-a-button Witherspoon and no one could convince me otherwise.
“I think we should start down here,” I said, surveying the main floor. This would definitely be a multiple-day job.
"I'll have Jefferson bring us some tea first,” Artemis said. “Give us our strength. And what about for you, young lady? A glass of milk?"
"If you throw a little chocolate in there, I'm sure that will do the trick," I said.
Artemis smiled. "That can be arranged."
I'd warned Marley about the witch’s rotting teeth before our arrival. I hadn't wanted her to react to the gruesome sight. To her credit, Marley’s face remained expressionless.
Marley couldn't hide her pleasure when the tray floated into the room and a tall glass of chocolate milk found its way into her eager hand.
"Thank you, Jefferson," Marley said, glancing awkwardly around the room.
"He's over by the hutch," Artemis said, with a flick of her bony fingers.
Marley focused her attention on the hutch. "Thank you," she said again.
“Artemis can't see him," I said. "But she can sense him. Not just his location, but his emotions, too, isn't that right?"
She nodded. "Our connection has grown stronger over time. It took me many years to develop such a keen sense of him. He and Clementine are my only company most days, unless I have a customer.”
At the mention of her name, Clementine ambled into the room. I imagined her as a kitten at one time, tearing through the house and clinging to the heavy drapes by her claws. Marley, of course, wasn't the least bit bothered by the sorry state of the cat. She approached her with the same excitement as she would a beautiful Abyssinian kitten.
“Hi, Clementine,” she said. “Look at you, pretty girl.”
Clementine approached her cautiously, sniffing the air around her. I watched nervously as Clementine lowered her head, allowing Marley to touch her.
"Well, that's a huge endorsement," Artemis said. "You are most certainly welcome here, young lady. Clementine isn't a moody cat, but she is very particular."
Marley beamed.
"Marley has always had a special way with cats,” I said. "Except Fanta. It took years for Marley to win her over."
"That was our neighbor's cat," Marley explained. "She finally let me pet her without biting me, and then we ended up having to escape to here the same day.”
Artemis shot me a quizzical look. "What does she mean by that? Why did you have to escape to here?"
I relayed our story about Jimmy the Lighter and the Rose-Muldoon cousins coming to save us.
"And I thought my story was interesting," Artemis said, folding her arms. "Color me impressed."
After tea, we set to work, pulling down the heavy drapes and replacing them with sheer curtains to let in the sunlight. Marley dusted every item within reach.
I used Linnea’s old wand to perform basic cleaning tasks. Grow my magic muscle. I watched with satisfaction as a mop moved back and forth across the wooden floors. I only managed to finish the foyer before I felt myself losing energy. That was less ground than I’d hoped to cover.
“Why doesn’t Jefferson clean?” Marley asked, as she dusted between the spindles of the banister.
“That’s not his role,” Artemis said. “And I haven’t been bothered enough by the mess to do anything about it.”
“Because you’ve been too busy wallowing in self-pity?” I asked.
Her eyes popped. “My, my. You are direct, aren’t you?”
I shrugged. “Listen, nobody does you any favors by pretending your living quarters are acceptable. People must be desperate to come here for matchmaking, given the state of the place.” And the state of you, I thought.
Artemis inhaled deeply and focused on the mop. “I’m not telekinetic, but I used to know a good many spells for moving objects.” She twisted her index and middle fingers and muttered a phrase I didn’t recognize. The mop began to glide across the floor again.
“Great,” I said. “You should probably do the living room next. The foyer’s pretty much done.”
The mop floated through the room until it reached its destination.
“What else is on your list?” Artemis asked.
“You.” I held up my cosmetics bag. “Where’s your bedroom? I need to see what else is in your closet besides that tattered dress you insist on wearing. I’m no historian, but I’m pretty sure it went out of fashion in the 1850s.”
Artemis suppressed a smile. “Upstairs. First door on the right.”
“You hang out here with Marley and I’ll see what I can find.” I took the stairs two at a time and was surprised to see Clementine keeping pace with me. She was probably concerned I was moving in on her territory.
The master bedroom looked like something out of Southern Belle Magazine, if such a thing existed. The room smelled musty and stale, and I choked back a cough. I was assaulted by frills and lace in every direction. Standing in the room was like hiding under a hoop skirt.
Before I could reach the closet door, an unseen hand opened it for me.
“Um, thanks,” I said. Although I couldn’t see Jefferson, I had to assume he was responsible.
An apricot-colored dress floated out of the closet. “That’s your choice, huh? It looks good as new.”
I watched as the dress floated to the bed. The floor-length dress was tasteful and pretty for a woman of any age. I wondered how old it actually was.
“She’s thin as a beanpole, so I guess it will still fit,” I mused.
From the down the hallway, I heard the sound of running water. I followed the noise until I reached a grand bathroom with a candlelit chandelier and a deep, clawfoot tub. The water was slowly rising in the tub and I realized what Jefferson was doing.
“Good idea, but I draw the line at bathing her,” I said. “Feel free to lend a transparent hand. Make sure you wash behind her ears.”
A bottle of scented body wash floated down from the shelf. It appeared full and unopened. Maybe a thoughtful gift from a grateful customer.
“I’ll let her know you’ve drawn her bath,” I said, exiting the bathroom.
What an old witch and a ghostly manservant got up to in the privacy of their own bathroom was their business.
When I returned downstairs, Marley and Artemis were playing a game on the coffee table.
I gave Marley a pointed look. “You’ve abandoned your chores already?”
“It was time for a rest,” Artemis said. “No need to accomplish everything in one visit.”
Very wily, old witch. She wanted a reason for us to come back.
“Is this chess?” I asked, observing the board.
Marley grinned from ear to ear. “It’s a special coven chessboard.”
“It belonged to my father,” Artemis said. “Marley was kind enough to dust off the pieces.”
The board itself looked normal enough, but the chess pieces were different from the ones I’d seen in the human world. The figures were witches, wizards, elves, dragons, and some fat guys that may have been trolls. The game was like the love child of Dungeons & Dragons and chess.
“They move across the board for you,” Marley said. “You just tell them where to go and they do it.”
“Amazing,” I said. “Imagine if children were as obedient as these chess pieces.”
Marley stuck out her tongue. “You’re lucky and you know it.”
“Jefferson is running your bath,” I said. “And there’s a clean dress on your bed.”
Artemis looked at me in disbelief. “You were serious about the makeover, weren’t you?”
“As serious as a vampire’s fangs,” I replied. If that wasn’t already an expression here, I was making it one.
“Mom brought a cosmetics bag, too,” Marley said. “There’s a new toothbrush and toothpaste in there. Bubble gum flavor.”
“Bubble gum flavor,” Artemis repeated. “Well, I do declare. I shall have to try that.”
“It’s my favorite,” Marley said.
Clementine appeared at the foot of the chair, mewing at Artemis.
“It seems my bath is ready,” Artemis said. “Miss Marley, can we continue this game another time?”
Marley looked at me for approval and I nodded.
“Yes, please,” Marley replied.
“I’ll have Jefferson keep the board intact,” Artemis said, rising to her feet.
“You keep the cosmetics bag and experiment with the colors,” I said. “Choose whatever you like.”
“I will,” she said. “Thank you, my sweet.”
“See you later, Miss Haverford,” Marley said with a cheerful wave.
I plucked my phone from my pocket and called the driver to come and get us. We gathered our cleaning supplies and headed for the door.
“Thanks for letting me come, Mom,” Marley said. “I had a lot of fun.”
Only my child would express enjoyment over a visit to an old witch’s haunted house where she dusted furniture and played chess. She was weird, but she was mine.
“Come back soon,” Artemis called. “Next time we’ll tackle the kitchen.”
Sweet baby Elvis. The kitchen was probably a disaster zone. I glanced at Marley and sighed.
“We’re going to need a bigger mop.”
Chapter Fifteen
In Aster’s perfectly managed schedule, the ideal time to introduce me to the Wish Market fell between one o’clock and three o’clock on Friday. As long as I was finished before the middle school day ended, it suited me fine. Naturally, Bentley gave me the stink eye when Aster turned up at the office to drag me away.
“Just because the boss is a frog doesn’t mean you’re free to do as you like,” he said under his breath. He wasn’t foolish enough to be overheard by Aster.
“She wants to show me the Wish Market,” I said. “I haven’t been.”
“It is impressive,” he admitted.
“What do you care?” I asked. “The less I’m here working, the more likely you are to win the bet.”
Bentley rubbed his chin. “I hadn’t thought of it that way.” His narrow face brightened. “Go on, Ember. What are you waiting for? All sorts of goodies at the market.”
I followed Aster out the door and we walked the two blocks over to where the outdoor market was located.
The Wish Market defied belief. The walls of the outdoor market stretched as high as the eye could see. It almost seemed like an optical illusion. Wicker baskets were stacked at the entrance and Aster plucked one off the pile and handed it to me.
“You’ll definitely be needing one of these,” she said.
“I don’t know where to look first,” I said.
My eyes darted from the jars of exotic spices to the lanterns to the brass hospitality stars that adorned many of the gates around town. Food, textiles, hats, trinkets. Anything you could imagine seemed to be available within the confines of the market.
“Take your time,” Aster said. “It’s easy to get overwhelmed.”
“Why is it called the Wish Market?” I asked. “Because everything you could possibly wish for is here?”
“Not quite,” she replied. “If you see something you like, you wish for it in your mind and it appears in your basket. Take that hat, for example.” She pointed to a wide-brimmed sunhat high above us on a floating pedestal. “If I decide I want it, I simply picture it in my basket and voila.”
I glanced down to see the hat in my wicker basket. “Sweet baby…what is it you guys say here? Stars and rocks?”
“Stars and stones,” Aster said with a smile. She was incredibly beautiful, but even more so when she flashed those pearly whites.
“Stars and stones,” I repeated. “I just walk around and look? What if I accidentally picture something in my basket that I shouldn’t have?”
“Returns are simple,” she said. “You picture it back where it came from.”
“Is that a boogie board?” I asked, pointing to a stall to the left. One of my favorite childhood memories was crashing through the waves on the Jersey shore with my flamingo-covered boogie board. My father had loved the beach, probably because it had reminded him of home.
“Not just any boogie board,” Aster replied.
I studied the green board featuring a large silhouette of a black cat. “Let me guess. A magic one?”
She shrugged. “What else?”
“What does it do?”
“Buy one and see for yourself.”
“Marley would love it,” I said. “How can I get it to fit in my basket?”
“Easy as an incubus,” Aster said. “Just wish it smaller in your mind. Then when you get it home, wish it back to its usual size.”
“The wishing will work once it’s out of the market?”
“Yes, because you bought it here. Or you can simply wish it back to your cottage. That way you don’t need to carry it if you don’t want to.”
My brow creased. “Doesn’t that encourage stealing?”
“Not here,” Aster said. “The market knows when and how an item leaves the premises. You’ll be charged before you leave the market’s border.”
“Very cool, and yet kinda creepy,” I said.
Aster nodded toward the board. “Go ahead and try it.”
I pictured the boogie board in my head and then imagined it appearing in the living room of the cottage. I leaned it against the side of the sofa.
“Done?” Aster asked.
“I think so,” I said, and then noticed that the boogie board in the market was gone. “Okay, I guess I know so.”
“Anything else you’d like? Something for the cottage?”
“Not for my place, but I’d like something for Artemis.”
Aster balked. “Artemis Haverford? Whatever for?”
“I’m pretty sure she hasn’t updated her decor since the Civil War,” I said. “The house needs a touch of something modern.” I wasn’t a big shopper, but even I recognized the need to spruce up your environment once in a century or two.
“Well, if we head down this lane, we can browse home interiors.” She hesitated. “You might not want to mention to Mother that you’re taking an interest in Artemis.”
“Why not?” What could Aunt Hyacinth possibly have against the elderly matchmaker?
Aster remained vague. “Trust me, Ember. Mother won’t approve.”
“The list of things your mother approves of is short and sweet, isn’t it?”
“It’s all about standards, darling,” Aster said, in a perfect imitation of her mother.
After a few rows of crystal and brass hospitality stars, I spotted a sundial for the wall with the image of a cat in the middle.
“That one,” I said, gesturing to the wall.
“That?” Aster wrinkled her nose. “Are you sure?”
“Don’t worry, Aster. It’s not for you.” I couldn’t imagine an item like the cat sundial as part of Aster’s white Pottery Barn-style decor.
She looked relieved. “If you think Artemis would like it…”
“I do.”
She shrugged. “Then wish it wherever you’d like it to go.”
“Can I send it directly to her house?”
“You can,” Aster said. “Imagine it with a note from you.”
“Seriously?” Take that, UPS. I closed my eyes and imagined a note to Artemis, along with the sundial. When I opened my eyes, the sundial on the wall was gone.
Aster linked her arm through mine. “You’re getting the hang of this, cousin. You shop like a true Rose.”
“I should probably get going,” I said. “I need to pick up Marley from school. If the weather stays nice, maybe I’ll take her to the beach to try out her new present.” Her new present. I couldn’t remember the last time I bought Marley a present for no reason. Probably never. How our lives had changed so drastically in such a short time. Holy crap, I was grateful.
“The weather will stay nice,” Aster said. “This is Starry Hollow, after all.”
Marley and I strolled down to Balefire Beach so that she could try out the new magical boogie board. I had no idea what to expect, but I was pleased that Marley was willing to try something new. Then again, what ten-year-old wouldn’t want to try out a boogie board?
“How fast do you think it goes?” she asked. She stood at the water’s edge, clutching the top end of the board.
“Apparently, as fast as you want it to go,” I said. “So don’t go overboard.”
Marley groaned. “Mom joke alert.”
“That one was unintentional.”
I set up my beach chair and umbrella and settled down to watch Marley embrace her inner daredevil. She dipped a careful toe into the water before deciding it was warm enough and calm enough to proceed. The sand was smooth and soft, without the numerous broken shells and seaweed that populated Jersey beaches.
“The water’s so clear,” she called over her shoulder.
“Go ahead,” I encouraged her. “I want to see that magic board in action.” I cracked open The Final Prophecy and began to read.
I only made it through the first few pages when a shadow passed over me. “I see you managed to get your hands on one of his books.”
I shielded my eyes from the sun and peered up at Ben. “Hey there. Fancy meeting you here.”
“This is one of my favorite spots,” he said, dropping down in the sand beside me. “It’s never very crowded.”
“I’m so used to being around a lot of people,” I said. “In apartments, in cars, in stores. Moving here is like being on a permanent vacation.”
“Except you need to work and continue your same responsibilities,” he said.
I shrugged. “Trust me. I’m busy, but it’s a good busy. Even though I’m still wrapping my head around this whole new life, it’s still a hundred times better than where I was.”
I clapped loudly as Marley grabbed her first wave. The board skimmed the top and inched slowly toward the shore. Even the roll of the wave seemed to slow in order to accommodate her comfort level.
