Furever Enchanted, page 10
Someone grabbed her shirt from behind. She swung the bat, stopping just in time. Claudia. The bat stopped an inch from her face. She had almost bashed Claudia’s face in.
“Get back inside! Now,” Claudia demanded, turning toward the house. She pulled on Zuri’s shirt until they passed through the door. After sliding it shut, Claudia drew the curtains closed for good measure.
“Is everyone okay?” Julianna asked.
Zuri nodded. Her gaze focused on Gigi, who peeked her head through the curtain of the sliding door. Her tail swayed a few times as she gazed into the backyard.
“That was the same man from earlier,” Claudia stated definitively, crossing her arms over her chest.
“I didn’t get a good look at him. Are you sure?” Zuri moved away from the sliding door and sat on the couch, finally dropping the bat. She was so focused on hitting the intruder, she hadn’t taken the time to register what they looked like. It was all kind of a blur. Her hands shook, and she shoved them beneath her, hoping no one had noticed.
“Positive.” Claudia nodded. “He wasn’t wearing a mask. Same build, face, and hair.”
“Who do you think he is?” Zuri asked no one in particular.
“Violet said these coins were worth a lot of money. It must be someone who knows about Gigi and wants the coins. Let’s make a list. Who knows about Gigi and the coins?” Claudia moved to sit down in front of the coffee table. She pulled out her phone and opened her notes app.
“The three of us, Violet, and I guess any of the vet offices you went to, Zuri,” Julianna listed off before flopping down on the other side of the couch.
“Neither of you told anyone?” Zuri questioned. There had been little time for Claudia to tell anyone, but Julianna might have. She wouldn’t have blamed them if they had. She mostly questioned if the other person would have believed them. A gold pooping dog sounds as ridiculous as actual money growing on trees.
They both shook their heads.
“Which other vet offices did you visit?” Claudia frowned, annoyance written all over her face. Zuri could practically see the thought bubble appear over Claudia’s head. How dare she have gone to another clinic. How dare Zuri second-guess her opinion of Gigi’s health. She grinned and held back a laugh before listing off the other offices.
“The only person interested in the coins was the other vet at your office. Remember? She was really weird about it,” Zuri reminded them.
The doctor had barged into their appointment with Claudia twice to inquire about Gigi and the coins.
“Dr. Rachel Smith.” Claudia noted in her app.
“What if she heard us talking about going to Old Gold after leaving the clinic? She would have known that I might not be home, that Gigi might be alone.” Her eyebrows knit together. Her smile faded.
“What do you know about her?” Julianna made herself more comfortable on the couch, extending her legs and feet toward Zuri, though her feet didn’t quite reach her. Like her bed, she had opted for a large and comfortable couch. Both were a bit excessive for a single person, but she needed soft places to retreat into her blanket caves at the end of the day.
“Not much. She hasn’t been working at the clinic long. I don’t like to get too friendly with the other staff. Boundaries, you know?” Claudia shrugged.
Julianna laughed.
“Don’t start, Julianna,” Claudia warned.
Claudia turned to glare at her. Zuri looked between them.
“You’re at a client’s house now. And was Elizabeth not on staff?” Julianna said, ignoring Claudia.
“Who’s Elizabeth?” Zuri asked.
“Claudia’s ex-girlfriend, who was not only staff at the same clinic, but Claudia’s subordinate,” Julianna revealed.
Zuri couldn’t keep her jaw from dropping. Her eyes darted to Claudia, who looked like she might leap over the coffee table and smother Julianna with a pillow.
“That was a long time ago. I was young and stupid. I won’t make that mistake again. And this is different. This is an emergency. A magical emergency.”
“So, what happened?” She tried to ask casually, but she was interested. She couldn’t imagine Claudia doing something as scandalous as dating a subordinate. But then again, she’d just broken into a house with Zuri. She didn’t really know her that well.
“Shouldn’t we focus on figuring out who tried to kidnap Gigi?” Claudia questioned.
“Right.” She tried to refocus. Priorities. “Are we sure they were trying to get Gigi? My neighborhood has had a lot of robberies in the last few weeks.”
“It was definitely the same fake animal control officer, so yes, this was no normal robbery,” Claudia stated.
“Plus, why wake us up by coming into the bedroom? A normal robber would just start grabbing the most valuable things and book it,” Julianna agreed.
“Just trying to cover all explanations.” Zuri agreed it was likely someone who was out to get Gigi, but they really did need to explore all the angles.
“Rachel Smith is our best lead. You should try to feel her out, Claudia,” Julianna suggested.
Claudia groaned but nodded.
“One more thing, why do you have a baseball bat, Zuri? I thought you didn’t play any sports.” Julianna eyed the silver bat.
“I don’t. It’s a forget-me stick.” Zuri pointed to the decal that read just that on the bat’s side. “I was Megamind for an office Halloween party a few years ago. It’s supposed to be black, but I didn’t have time to paint it. Now I just keep it handy for situations like this.”
“Do you have any photos?” Julianna shot up, her trademark grin spread across her face.
“Yeah, somewhere in the cloud, probably.” She definitely had photos, but there was no way she was showing them. The costume had not come to life as well as she had hoped. It was embarrassing.
“We should definitely do a group Halloween costume.” Julianna brought the tips of their fingers together like she was a cartoon villain plotting their next evil scheme.
She looked up at the clock. It was 3 a.m. They had only slept for a few hours. “Should we try to get some more sleep?” she suggested.
“I’ll stay out here.” Julianna yawned. “I’m too tired to move. But leave the forget-me stick.”
She grabbed Julianna’s drool-stained pillow and a blanket from the bedroom and threw them on top of her. Hopefully, they would find more answers in the morning.
Chapter 19
Monday
Thud.
The Grimoire sat on the counter in front of Violet, whose eyebrows shot to her hairline.
“How did you get this?” Violet’s hands hovered over the thick cover.
“The less you know about that, the better.” Claudia crossed her arms over her chest.
“And that’s the dog?” Violet nodded at Gigi, who barked in return. This was only the third time Zuri had heard Gigi bark in the nearly two weeks since she’d gotten her. First at Dr. Smith, then at the robber, and now at Violet. As promised, she was otherwise a quiet and stoic dog.
“We searched for hours last night and this morning but found no spells about animals pooping gold.”
Technically, she should be at work, but it had been a late night. She’d asked her boss to flex and work four tens that week. Claudia normally had Mondays off. Julianna. . . She still wasn’t sure what Julianna did for a living, but as far as she could tell, Julianna hadn’t needed to report to anyone that she wouldn’t be in that day.
They’d brought Gigi with them, rather than risk her being stolen while she was alone. Gigi wouldn’t get any closer and she emitted a low growl upon seeing Violet at the counter. Zuri had to pick her up just to get her into the shop, which was no easy feat, despite Gigi having lost weight.
“Well, what Astrid was doing was illegal, so of course she wouldn’t put it out in the open.”
Violet walked out from behind the counter and locked the shop door. She flipped the open sign to closed and shut the curtains before motioning for them to follow her to the back of the shop. She opened a door to what appeared to be a coat closet, but actually hid a staircase leading downward, similar to the one they had found at Astrid’s place. The witch led the way down, with an excited Julianna at her heels and Claudia not far behind. Zuri hesitated, Gigi at her side.
She wasn’t sure if it was a good idea to follow a witch into her magic basement that shouldn’t even exist, especially after what they had seen in Astrid’s basement. So far, the only other witch they knew about was an evil one. Violet might want to keep Gigi and the Grimoire and get rid of the only three people who would know she had them. She hesitated, but it was their only chance to save Gigi. Or at least the only chance that they knew of. Hopefully, Violet wouldn’t turn them into frogs or use them for some kind of ritual sacrifice. She started down the stairs, followed by a reluctant Gigi. The door slammed shut behind them.
Unlike Astrid’s basement, Violet’s didn’t reek of decay and garbage. Instead, it smelled floral. The floors were clean. Instead of a crystal-like stone, the walls had cheerful wallpaper with violets printed on them. It was furnished with a comfortable looking, round, C-shaped black couch. An enormous cauldron sat in front of it, similar in size to Astrid’s, along with a stand, holding what must be Violet’s own Grimoire.
Julianna flopped down in the middle of the couch and Claudia, more gently, sat next to her. Gigi didn’t want to move farther into the room, so she dropped the leash and sat down at one end. With the door to the stairs shut, Gigi couldn’t go anywhere that Zuri wouldn’t be able to see her and seemed more interested in avoiding Violet than a confrontation with the witch. In the end, she followed Zuri to the couch and sat at her feet.
Violet waved a finger, and her Grimoire lifted off the stand and into the drawer of a desk that sat along one wall. She placed Astrid’s Grimoire on the stand before waving her hands over it and uttering some words under her breath. The book opened and pages turned in rapid succession before the book closed again. Violet muttered under her breath again, but this time, she only waved two fingers. Again, the book opened, every page fluttered, and the book slammed shut once more.
“Which one of you found the book?” Violet turned to them.
“I did.” Zuri raised a hand and immediately put it back down. What was she, in grade school?
“How did it happen?”
She wasn’t sure she could tell Violet without also telling her about breaking into Astrid’s house. Claudia had been clear when they came in that she didn’t think Violet needed to know about their tiny little misdemeanor adventure of breaking and entering. At least she hoped it was only a misdemeanor. Zuri wasn’t really the lawbreaking type, so she wasn’t sure. She glanced over at Claudia for permission to spill the details. Claudia sighed before nodding.
“We found a magic basement like this in Astrid’s house, although yours is much nicer,” she started.
“So much nicer,” Claudia mumbled under her breath.
“Anyway, the book floated toward me when I reached for it. I grabbed it and we left.”
“How did you get out of the basement?” Violet looked skeptical.
“We don’t know. The door disappeared and then it reappeared. Magic.” She made jazz hands in emphasis.
“Think harder. You had to have done something. A witch wouldn’t leave her workshop without wards to keep intruders out. Only another witch should’ve been able to find the workshop in the first place, and it would definitely take one to get out.” Violet stared at her.
It had only been the three of them, and only Claudia and Zuri had been in the basement.
“Zuri, you’re the one who found the door to the basement,” Julianna stated. “I didn’t even see that door until you opened it.”
“You’re also the one who opened the book last night,” Claudia reminded her.
“How did you get out of the basement?” Violet repeated.
Zuri shook her head again. “I don’t know. I was scared. I closed my eyes and just wished really hard that the door would come back and open. ”
Violet stared at her with wide eyes. The room was quiet. Zuri looked down at Gigi, but Gigi only looked back with a bored expression. She was no help.
“You’re a sprout.” Violet continued to stare at her. “Or you’ve got magic in your family.”
“What’s a sprout?” Claudia asked.
“New magic.” A smile lit up Violet’s face. It was the first time they had seen her looking this happy since they had mentioned Astrid’s death. It was scary.
“New magic?” She looked down at Gigi.
“You’re a wizard, Zuri!” Julianna yelled.
“Being around that enchanted dog might have activated your magic, though we’ll probably never know exactly what triggered it.” Violet looked confident, like she just knew Zuri was a witch. No questions. Zuri wasn’t so sure. It was one thing to have an enchanted dog, it was another thing to suddenly have magic powers.
“Look, can you explain this to us from the beginning, please? Other than what you already told us about the coins, we don’t know anything about witches or magic,” Claudia asked.
Violet took a seat on the couch, but it was obvious she was still having a hard time sitting still. She was excited. Hopefully, for a reason that was good for them and Gigi.
“It’s not that complicated. You’ve seen plenty of movies and books with magical worlds. Some hidden, and others blended with the regular human world. Where do you think the ideas came from?” Violet started.
“Our existences have always been intertwined with non-magical humans. To prevent both regular humans and overzealous witches from using our power for their own personal gain, we’ve long lived parallel but separate. We have our own societies and governments who make laws and rules to keep everyone safe.”
Violet waved her finger in circles, and steaming teacups and saucers appeared in the air in front of them. Trays of scones and shortbread cookies levitated within reach. This wasn’t like when she made books move or pages flip open without touching them. She made the food appear out of thin air.
“Sorry, all this talking is making me thirsty. Time for tea.” She took a sip from the delicate-looking teacup. The set was white with a floral pattern, more violets.
“Can I get some milk? And sugar.” Julianna grinned at her tea. Violet waved a finger, obliging.
“Magic runs in families, but every once in a while, it will choose to plant a seed of itself in someone new. That’s why we call it a sprout. Like a seed, the magic doesn’t always germinate. In your case, if indeed there is no one in your family who could have passed on magic to you, then you are a sprout.” Violet took another sip of tea.
“Would I know if someone in my family had magic? What if they just never told me?” Zuri stared at the floor, still not fully convinced of her magical abilities. It wasn’t like she was an orphan. She wasn’t close to her parents, at least not now, but she was pretty sure neither of them had an ounce of magic in them.
Her mom. . . Well, if her mom had magic, she would know. Her mother had lived a hard life, partially of her own making. If she had magic, she would have used it to make her life easier without a spare thought.
She didn’t know her father well. Her parents had separated before she even finished elementary school. Still, he’d been around long enough that she was sure she would remember if he’d ever used magic around the house. She remembered him being kind and him playing games with her outside, but definitely no magic.
Maybe having spent so much time with Gigi, Astrid’s wards and her Grimoire had gotten confused. Maybe some of Astrid’s power had simply been clinging to her. That seemed more logical than Zuri being a witch herself.
“Of course they would tell you. Magic runs in families. It’s the family’s responsibility to teach their children the basics.”
“Is it possible that it skipped a generation or two?” Zuri asked.
“Unlikely.” Violet finished her tea and pushed her cup and saucer away before standing and walking back to Astrid’s Grimoire. “Come here and open the book.”
“What? Why can’t you just do it?” Zuri asked. A wave of heat washed over her and her heart started pounding in her chest.
“If I could, I would have. You already unlocked Astrid’s wards once without knowing what you were doing. If you try, I’m sure you can unlock the ones hiding her illegal spells.”
“I don’t think—”
“Get over here and try,” Violet commanded, interrupting her.
She glanced over at the other women. Julianna was too invested in devouring an entire tray of cookies to offer any help. Claudia motioned for her to get up. She looked at Gigi, but the dog had laid down and closed her eyes. No one was going to save her. Typical. Reluctantly, she moved to stand next to Violet in front of the Grimoire.
“You said you wished really hard for the basement door to reappear, and it did. Try that with the Grimoire. Think really hard about unlocking the wards.” Violet motioned toward the book with an open palm.
“Shouldn’t we start with something easier? Assuming I even have any magic?” This didn’t seem like a good idea. Magic powers sounded fun in theory, but Zuri could think of 100 ways this could go wrong. She rubbed her now sweaty palms against her jeans.
“Give it a shot,” Violet urged. “While I’m here to help contain things, the worst thing that can happen is that nothing will happen.”
Zuri turned toward the Grimoire and closed her eyes. Crunch. She tried to focus on the book and whether the wards would look like locks. Crunch. She took a breath and tried to visualize the wards again. Crunch.
“Do you mind?” she shouted at Julianna, who held a cookie a few inches from her mouth while her other hand reached for a second one.
“Sorry.” Julianna sheepishly put both cookies down and brushed the crumbs off her fingers, sitting at attention.
