Bewitched, Bedeviled and Bewildered (Sister Witchcraft Book 1) Page 4

  He looked up and gave me the squinty cat love eyes. I laughed and shook my head. “Oh Kashmir, we are going to have some adventures together, you and I.”

  I was going to talk to Sybil and tell her that I couldn’t keep my promise. I was going to have to use magic, cast a few spells. There was no way around it. We were up against some pretty strong and wily opponents here in Lafay. I would try to keep it low key. I would do my darndest not to embarrass her or her little girls. But some things just couldn’t be avoided.

  I looked at Kashmir. He gave me a long, loud meow, as if to say, “Ready when you are, boss!” I grinned.

  “Kashmir, I think this will be the start of a beautiful relationship.”

  He went back to washing himself and I tried to remember some simple spells I might use to protect myself from those awful women. I had a feeling I might be in for a very long learning curve on this one—that and some extra work on my imagination. The best way to defend yourself from witchcraft was to see it coming and prepare avoidance spells. That would take a lot of thinking and even more study. But I was ready to do whatever it was going to take.

  “Thank you, Grand-Mere,” I whispered as I gazed around the pretty shop. “Thank you for giving me a life.”

  Kashmir meowed, nodding his head, and I could have sworn he knew exactly what he was doing.

  Chapter 4

  And so, we weren’t dead in the water quite yet. Still, all this emphasis on intrigue and underhanded attacks meant that the dream of living here and running this tea shop without resorting to witchy magic was down the tubes. This was a plain and desperate case of survival.

  If they were so eager to come against me with spells and magic, the only way I could fight back was with the same. My resources would be hard pressed in any case. I hadn’t done a lot of magic for the last few years and sometimes the talent shriveled up like an unused muscle. I would have to bring it back, air it out, put it in the sun and see if it could be revived.

  Of course, I was going to have to face Sybil about it. After all, I’d promised. And I wasn’t going to be able to keep that promise. Not and stay in this town.

  My whole family had always had a tenuous relationship with the supernatural in all its spooky glory. Grand-Mere was one who played it right down the line. She was a witch, born and raised, and she was proud of it.

  Her daughter, my mother, considered herself a modern woman and she had no time for such nonsense. She looked at the fact that she’d been born into a witchy family the same as she would have regarded having a father who served in World War II or a mother who had been a co-worker of Rosie the Riveter. Interesting in a historical sense, but nothing to do with her real life. And Sybil was just like her.

  I, on the other hand, had always been fascinated by witches and their paranormal goings-on. As a twelve year old, I’d read everything I could get my hands on about that world. Once in high school I got brave enough to ask Grand-Mere about it. At first she was hesitant to talk, knowing my mother would have a fit if she knew, but once I’d convinced her that Mother would never hear a thing about it from my lips, she began to teach me things. Our parents were killed and our life revolved even more around Grand-Mere. We learned so much-or at least, I did. For a couple of years, I reveled in the power it could give me. And then, of course, I went too far, got caught, got grounded for life, which actually lasted almost eight months, and then went off to college where I was too busy to have much time for all that drama.

  But that was years ago, and once settled in to my grandmother’s tea shop, I had a feeling the old ways would come back to me in a flood. I only wished I still had Grand-Mere to teach me how to do it right.

  Needless to say, Sybil was not understanding that evening after dinner when we were doing dishes and I happened to mention that my promise was going to have to be null and void.

  “But you swore with your hand over your heart!” she cried, almost stamping her foot in her anger.

  You might think I would be angry with her, but I wasn’t. I understood her position. Still, there wasn’t much I could do about it.

  “I made that promise when I thought this was just a normal town with normal, well-meaning people. It turned out I had enemies before I even started. Enemies who are willing to use their magic arsenal against me. Those ladies have had years to perfect their magic tricks and I’m such a noob at it. And I have to defend myself.”

  “Why can’t you just get a normal job? If you weren’t threatening their income by starting up a tea shop a stone’s throw away, I’m sure they wouldn’t give two figs what you were doing.” She groaned. “I would never have let you move back here if I’d known you would turn on me this way.”

  “Uh, Sybil? It wasn’t exactly up to you. Grand-Mere left the shop to all of us but you know very well she meant for me to run it.”

  “Shhh.” She put a finger to her lips and looked around to get a fix on where her husband was. “Don’t you breathe a word of this around Gary.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Syb, don’t you think Gary has figured it out for himself? I mean, he must have known about Grand-Mere, so …”

  “No! He doesn’t know a thing. And he would have a fit if he found out. And…!” She glared at me fiercely. “It goes without saying that you will leave my girls out of all this. Right?”

  Sybil’s girls were the cutest things you’ve ever seen and I loved them dearly. Cathy was eight years old, going on sixteen—a handful already, a girl who idolized Gwen Stefani and combed her hair in an almost exact copy of how that beautiful lady did it. Six year old Molly was blond with huge blue eyes and an earnest way of talking that pulled you in even when you couldn’t understand half the words she was saying. They were my nieces and I treasured them both.

  I swore up and down that I would make every effort to keep the girls from even hearing the word “magic” and I meant it with all my heart. At the same time, I knew I was going to have to start preparing to renovate Grand-Mere’s old house. Lucy and I weren’t going to feel comfortable until we had our own place. Luckily, the money left by Grand-Mere would help there.

  Sybil was still steaming. “Every time I think of them sending those mice in I get so angry.”

  “You see? Deep in your heart, you even know it. We’ve got to fight back.” I could see it in her eyes and it warmed my heart. She was ready to back me up if she had to. So I felt I owed her a strong commitment. “I swear to you, I will do my best never to let any more people know about anything witchy I get into than I have to. I want to keep your girls out of it as much as you do.”

  “And what about Lucy?”

  “Lucy?” I cringed a little, wishing I could make promises there as well but knowing I had very little control over our wayward baby sister. But before I had a chance to mention that, Lucy herself came swinging into the kitchen and had obviously overheard the tail end of our conversation at least.

  “Who me?” she chirped happily. “Too late for that. Everyone already knows about me and where I come from. Do you really think it’s a secret?”

  Sybil and I both stared at her. She smiled.

  “I don’t know how you thought we could keep it to ourselves anyway. Everyone I meet seems to know that Grand-Mere was a witch.”

  Gary was on his way into the kitchen with his dessert plate. Sybil and I both tried to shush Lucy but she was off and running.

  “So grin and bear it, my sweet sisters,” she said with a lilt as she performed a graceful pirouette in the middle of the room. “Unless you want us all to move to another town where no one knows us. Hey, maybe we oughta’. Incognito! What fun!”

  Gary frowned, looking puzzled. “Who’s going incognito?” he grumbled. “That’s a form of cheating, isn’t it? I think it’s probably inappropriate.”

  We all looked at each other and laughed, then ganged up and gave Gary a big bear hug, all three of us. Poor guy was still bewildered, but somewhat gratified. At least there seemed to be plenty of love to go around.

  The
morning of our Grand Opening dawned clear and warm and I was excited as I unlocked the doors and got ready to put the finishing touches on our decorating and other preparations. Sybil was picking up the special pastries from the bakery, Lucy was collecting the prepared fruit I’d ordered from a farm stand in the valley, and I had the finger sandwiches to make and clotted cream to prepare in little tubs.

  A quick glance around the room reassured me that no one had tried any funny business during the night. Kashmir was there waiting for me. I’d found a cat door for him in a secret place at the back of a cupboard so that he could come and go at will without leaving anything open and vulnerable. With him keeping watch, I felt pretty confident we could hold off the witches, at least for the time being.

  “Hello, beautiful boy,” I said, stroking his back and listening to his purr. “I’m so glad to see that we have no mice today.”

  I turned to the counter and began taking some of the supplies I’d brought out of the big canvas bag I used for that, and I distinctly heard a rather elegant voice behind me. It made me jump.

  “Now that I’m back inside where I belong, I’ll be able to guard against things like that happening again.”

  I turned and looked quickly around the room. Was I going crazy? There was no one there.

  I looked at the black cat, my witchy senses suddenly aquiver. “Who said that?” I whispered, now afraid of what I was going to get for an answer. Shivers began to scamper up and down my spine.

  The black cat yawned. I stared at him.

  “You didn’t. No, that can’t be you.” I looked around a bit wildly, thinking of a ventriloquist, or maybe someone with a secret speaker system held up to my window. Of course, the possibility that I was going insane was still in the mix as well.

  “Who’s in here?” I demanded.

  The black cat rolled his golden eyes. I’d never seen a cat do that before and it was pretty spectacular. He licked his tiny kitty lips and sighed, looking at me with an almost pitying expression.

  “Well, I wasn’t going to speak,” he said.

  I gasped, clutching at my throat. There was no doubt. The words were coming right out of that little black face.

  “I mean there’s no point in getting your hopes up. I’m not a shifter or anything like that.”

  “Oh.” I sat down rather hard, considering. At least I didn’t miss the chair. “Well…. I’m grateful for small blessings. I…I guess.”

  I wasn’t very coherent, but I wasn’t used to engaging in conversation with small animals. Not reciprocated conversation, at any rate. It took some effort to stay calm.

  “Yes, yes,” he said dismissively, licking his paw. “I know just how disconcerting it is when a cat just suddenly starts talking to you. But I think I’ve had enough opportunity to see into who you really are. And I’ve decided that you can be trusted.”

  “I’m to be trusted?” I was trying to catch my breath. “How about you?”

  His tail lashed a couple of times and he frowned at me. “Well, obviously I know myself much better than I know you. And I have complete confidence in me. Ask anyone.”

  “Do you? Well….” I choked. “I…uh…gee, thanks. I think.”

  “The one thing I have to warn you about is this. Don’t tell anyone else.”

  “Oh no.” For some reason, that was the very thing I dreaded most. I’d been befriended by a talking cat and I couldn’t tell my sisters? How was I going to manage that? It might just slip out at some point and then what? This was too hard.

  He gave me a quelling stare, as though he knew just what I was thinking. “I will never speak where anyone else can hear me. If you tell someone, they won’t believe you. They’ll think you’re delusional. Because they will never see or hear the evidence confirmed.”

  “Oh.” I was getting control of myself at last. “I see. That’s kind of smart, I guess. Keeps things under control.” I grimaced. “But it will be so hard!”

  He nodded. “Just the way I see it.” He smiled and yawned at the same time. “Grand-Mere told me that you would be the one. So far, I’d say that I think she was right.”

  And so our strange relationship really began. There were to be a thousand times I would be thankful for that darn cat, and another thousand I would curse the day I ever saw him. But I had to admit, he’d been handy with protecting the property for the opening. And that was what mattered most right now.

  But I had no time to contemplate tomorrow—there was too much to do today. And only a few hours left to do it in. I had to turn into a whirling dervish, moving without thought or hesitation. And once the place was deemed presentable, at least by my estimation, there was the food to think of.

  Luckily, the refrigeration was holding out. I say luckily, because I knew those two women down the street, lying in wait like black widow spiders in their coffee shop lair, had considered plans to cut off my electricity, or whatever else it took to ruin this day for me.

  How did I know this? Easy. That would be what I would be planning if I was an evil witch like they are.

  But no, the fridge was humming and the food was cooling nicely. Kashmir watched approvingly as I took out the clotted cream, but I didn’t offer him any.

  “Later,” I told him when he hinted at how yummy it looked to him. “Right now I’ve got to finish these finger sandwiches.”

  “Ugh,” Kashmir said with a frown. “Deboned?”

  “Deboned?” I looked at him and then realized what he meant. “Ugh is right! No, finger sandwiches are not made out of fingers, you gruesome cat. Now get out of here, I’ve got work to do.”

  Lucy arrived with the fruit and cucumbers, and I began slicing the latter, going like crazy, ready to place each slice on a prepared, crustless piece of bread. I looked at the clock. Time seemed to be racing by.

  Kashmir found a reason to interrupt me once more. He came into the kitchen, tail high, and rubbed against my legs until I was ready to pay attention to him.

  “What is it you crazy cat?” I asked in exasperation.

  “One thing. There is a spell manual. You must have it with you at all times.”

  “Great. Where is it?”

  “I’m not sure.”

  “Kashmir!”

  “No, it’s important. You must find it and put it in your purse. I have a strong feeling that it is going to be necessary very soon. You must do it now.”

  I grumbled but I could tell he was serious, so I’d better be too. “Give me a hint. Where should I look?”

  He looked toward the cupboard. “In there.”

  I frowned. “I’ve cleaned that thing out a hundred times by now, and I haven’t seen any manual.”

  “Do it again.”

  “Oh, alright.”

  I pulled open a low cabinet and bent down to look inside. Sure enough, there was the manual. I pulled it out and looked at it. The pages were made of fine vellum but the cover was faded velvet, probably hundreds of years old. It looked too big to go in my purse, but when I tried to put it inside, to my surprise, it slipped in easily.

  “Alright,” I said to Kashmir. “I’ve got it.”

  “Good. Read it from cover to cover as soon as you have the time,” he advised. “You’ll be glad you did.”

  “You got it. Now let me concentrate on what we’re about to do here.”

  A few people stopped by, friends from the old days when I’d been growing up here in town, to wish us luck. And then Cindy stopped by, the waitress from the coffee shop.

  She came in looking like a spy, wearing dark glasses and a hooded jacket.

  “Hi,” she said, sidling up to me. “I just wanted to come by and see if you needed anything. I know what a big job it is doing something like this. I can’t help you openly, but if there’s anything sneaky I can do for you, let me know.”

  We laughed. It was obvious she knew just how much her employers hated me and my tea shop, but we could still be friends. That left a warm spot in my heart.

  “You know, Cindy,” I said. �
��If I get this place off the ground, I’ll be looking for employees. Do you think maybe you might apply?”

  She had a huge grin. “Maybe. You know, I have some great ideas for a place like this.”

  “What kind of ideas?”

  “Smoothie drinks. And packaging. I can put things together in the cutest packages you ever saw. I’m a whiz at it, really.”

  I laughed. “Sounds good. Make me more of those cookie packages and I’ll consider it your resume.”

  “Done!” She gave me a thumbs up and headed back out into the courtyard.

  A few minutes later, Martin Tanner stopped in, carrying a big bouquet of flowers, just for us. “Here you go,” he said, grinning at me. “I thought you needed something to help you on your launch, and what’s better than roses?”

  “These are gorgeous,” I told him, hurrying to find a vase to put them in.

  “I thought they would look nice in the pictures for the paper.”

  I blinked at him. “What pictures for the paper?”

  “Hasn’t Max called you?”

  My eyes narrowed. “Who is Max?” I asked, though I was pretty sure I knew who he meant.

  “Max Ransom. The editor of the paper. He told me he was coming by to do a feature on your grand opening.”

  I humphed. “He hasn’t asked me if he could.”

  Martin grinned. “No, he wouldn’t. He’s a free spirit, that boy.”

  I was about to say something not so nice about free spirits, but I forced it back. What was the point, after all? It was Grand Opening Day, and I wanted everything to go well. Maybe Max Ransom would be a plus, not a minus. You never could tell.

  “Thanks so much for the flowers,” I told Martin with a smile. “I’ll save you a tea shop feast for your lunch hour enjoyment.”

  “Great. I’ll come by to collect on that once things die down.”

  Die down? They hadn’t even begun, and I had no guarantee that we were going to get more than a handful of customers. In fact, there was a flutter in my heart, a little voice that was whispering, “No one will come. You’ll be a failure. What are you thinking, anyway? Who needs a tea shop when there’s a modern coffee shop just a few doors down?”