Fur Magic Boxed Set: Talisman, Sage, Fawn, Lola: Paranormal Romantic Comedy (6 page)

Chapter 10

“No one’s seen her.”

I found that a little hard to believe. Ever since Fawn had been called back that night by her imposing father, Stag, and chastised, she’d been a
wealth
of information. Not.

Worse than that, my new girlfriend, Lola, had insisted she needed to come along and get the ‘lay of the land’. She was holding us up with her whining about the temperature, and the distance and the tiny rocks prickling her pampered paws. I was going to have to toughen her up if she wanted to roll with me. Sage was pissed at her and didn’t hold it in. I gave her the benefit of the doubt, because I couldn’t imagine what it would be like to lose your owner and have your whole life completely turned upside down with uncertainty. I was sure she could use a … friend.

Insert diabolical laugh here.

“I told you this would be a waste of our time, Talisman,” Sage chastised. “Let’s move along. Since we got a late start tonight, dawn will be breaking in a couple of hours and we need to be home before then so we don’t arouse any suspicion.”

Sage turned his back and flew to a branch high above the others so he could serve as lookout. Lola sat on the shoulder licking her tender feet, leaving me and Fawn alone for the first time.

“I know you know something, Fawn,” I whispered. “Please tell me if Amelia or Penelope are in any kind of danger. I promise I won’t rat you out to your dad.”

“Who’s the new girl?” Fawn asked, and then it hit me. I knew Fawn had a crush on me, but when Lola had asked to come along, I hadn’t been able to say no to her. Probably the first in a long line of indulgences I’d give in to where miss fancy pants was concerned.

“That’s Lola,” I answered. “Her mom died and the surviving relatives are allergic. Dr. Luke just dropped her off at the shelter before we left, so Sage and I didn’t want to leave her alone.” I hoped that explanation would fly because I really needed Fawn to be straight with me.

“Oh, I thought she was your girlfriend,” Fawn commented. “She’s really pretty.”

“I hadn’t really noticed,” I replied, hoping the lie had flown off my lips and into the deer’s ears without detection. I didn’t want to encourage her school girl infatuation but I didn’t want to offend her either. A relationship between a young deer and a cat that was hundreds of years her senior could never work, and in her heart, she had to know it.

“Do you have any idea about where Amelia could be?” I asked, not knowing how much time we had before her dad would come bursting through the brush like a runaway locomotive.

“I saw her yesterday at the library, Tali,” Fawn said. “She was carrying a book. A really big, scary book. Then she took the book to her car and put it in the trunk.”

“A scary book?” I asked. I couldn’t imagine anything at the Shadowkeep public library being that big or that scary. Knowing Amelia, she was just doing research for her job as the local article writer for the Shadowkeep Gazette. I knew she was trying to keep the residents of the small town informed about the local activities.

“Yes, scary,” Fawn said as she shivered. “A book about …
witchcraft
.”

Amelia had probably been looking out for Elias Stout and his lawyerly bullshit and not even realized that the animals might be watching her comings and goings. No one outside of the witch community even knew that animals could have special powers. Now, I had to talk Fawn down from the ledge. She knew something, but it wasn’t important to our search for Amelia. Unless, Damian or Bianca had seen Ami carrying around a book about the dark side.

“I bet she was just doing research, Fawn,” I explained. “Ami just told Penelope the other day that she was working on a fun article about love spells for the Valentine’s Day issue.”

“Oh,” Fawn replied. “That makes sense. After she got in her car, she drove away and I haven’t seen her since. Has anyone checked her apartment?”

“We’re going there now,” I said. “Penelope wanted to go there today but she was completely wrapped up in the adoption event at the shelter and it got too late for a visit. She thinks that Ami just dropped her phone or it’s dead. Ami can be pretty scatterbrained. It’s probably nothing.”

“Okay,” Fawn said. “I’m really glad you stopped by tonight, Tali. I’m sorry my dad was rude to you and Sage the other night. I don’t have many friends.”

“Fawn,” I promised. “You and I are most definitely friends, and we always will be. I’m going to grab Lola and head home, and Sage is going to fly on to Ami’s to check on her. Have a great night. And watch yourself out there. You never know when danger lurks.”

Or Damian lurks.

She turned back to me before disappearing in to the brush with a look of longing, like she wanted to stay. “You too.”

****

“Tell me about her.”

We were alone. Lola sat on Pen’s office chair and licked her silky fur free of the dirt and foliage that had accumulated like lint to tape on our outing. She didn’t like any stray objects in her fur. I’d found that out when she’d complained about it on the walk home. We had a few minutes to chat before I needed to crawl in to bed with Pen. For the first time in a long time, I was actually interested in the getting to know you conversation with a newcomer.

“Edith was a wonderful woman,” she said, her huge, blue eyes welling up with kitty tears. “I’m going to miss her horribly. Every day, she fed me my favorite food, gave me treats and brushed my fur during the entire episode of The Young and the Restless.”

Lola sighed and stopped licking to look in to my eyes.

“Will I be okay here?” she asked.

“I can guarantee with one hundred percent certainty that you will be more than okay,” I promised. “Penelope is the nicest, most caring witch … woman you will ever meet. She will make it her mission to find you a home that is just as good as the one you had, if not better.”

Holy smokes, the allure of her compelling eyes had almost caused me to spew some privileged information out of my smitten, black mouth. I couldn’t do that yet. I didn’t know if I could trust Lola. She seemed okay, but you just never knew. Maybe Damian or Bianca had sent her for espionage, knowing that eye candy was my one and only weakness. I wouldn’t put something that diabolical past either one of them.

“How long have you been here? With Penelope?” she asked.

That was a loaded question and I wasn’t quite sure how to respond. I couldn’t tell her the truth, that I was over three hundred years old and had been with the DeLaCroix family, watching out for their women back before old Rupert DeLaCroix had tried to mine for gold back in the early seventeen hundreds.

“As long as I can remember,” I went with the safe and evasive answer. “I really like it here, and you will, too. But as beautiful as you are, you’ll find a home right away. Most likely in the morning with Jessie Plunks.”

“Who’s that?” she asked.

“She’s a really nice older lady,” I replied. “You’ll like her. She makes really great apple pie and has a really pillowy bosom that is great for sleeping when you’re in a pinch.”

Dear God. Did I just
say
that? This woman threw me seriously off my game.

“Talisman, I’m afraid.”

Okay, that threw me even more off my game. Now, she wasn’t just a beautiful woman. She was a beautiful woman in distress and afraid who wanted me to comfort her.

“Don’t be afraid, Lola,” I soothed. “Everything is going to be fine.” I used the moment to inch closer and drink in my first breath of her feminine scent.

“But I don’t want to be adopted by another older person,” she cried. “What if Jessie loves me and I love Jessie and then she dies too.”

We’re all going to die. Except me, of course. I had to admit it. Because, I was the suave and debonair, player type, I’d never taken much emotional investment in my women over the years, but Lola was leading me to some tender feelings, long buried. Not since Miss Josephine, a witty Siamese from the prohibition era. I wasn’t sure if I liked it or not.

“Jessie’s not going to die,” I assured her. “At least not anytime soon. When you meet her you’ll know why. Feisty is an understatement.”

Of course, I left out the part about Harry. And Walter. That curly haired mutt would be offensive to this dainty lady’s sensibilities. Who knew what might happen there in regards to marriage and cohabitation.

Lola stared deep in to my eyes, searching to see if I was for real. She had that look. You know the one that says she can get anything she wants and that she deserves it. The one that spoke of power and passion. Now, that look was turned on me, and I didn’t know if I could get past it.

“Goodnight, Talisman,” she said and broke the spell. “Thanks for everything.”

“Goodnight, Lola,” I said as I left her there and trotted off toward the house and Pen’s bed. I was exhausted and the mattress and down comforter were calling my name.

I slid through the crack in the door between the house and the shelter without making a sound. Up the stairs and down the hallway I went. Right before I got to Pen’s bedroom, the hairs stood up on the back of my neck. I spotted something dancing on the wall outside the room. I had to stop being so uptight; it was just my own shadow. Damn, Lola and all her talk of being afraid.

I snuggled next to Pen who lay on her back with her hair a complete mess again. A light snore escaped her full lips, and I knew she had no idea that I’d even been gone. Exhaustion had her out like a light. After a few minutes, I fell into a light sleep until I was pulled from sleep by the sound of a woman’s shrill scream.

I lifted my head to find out what all the fuss was about and hissed in shock and terror. A dark figure stood next to the bed and stared at me with yellow, lifeless eyes.

***

SAGE

Fur Magic – Book 2

By

Colleen Charles

Chapter 1

“It was the scariest thing I’ve ever seen in my life.” Penelope’s hands flew through the air as she explained to Amelia about the dark figure in the bedroom just minutes before.

It turned out that Ami’s phone had gone missing. Missing as in she spilled Oprah’s Chai blend all over it so she hadn’t been able to check in with Pen all day. Ami said that her new phone had just finished charging when Pen’s frantic call had come through and she’d picked up. Pen wasn’t known for late night calls unless there was an emergency.

“It can’t be real, can it?” Ami asked, her eyes wide with dilated pupils. Like she’d been the one who’d seen a ghost and not us.

Pen stood in her living room holding the book of spells explaining True Love’s Kiss. She had it open to a page about Shadow Watchers. Turns out, the evil witch stealing the powers of others for her own purposes had sent the creature. A spell cast by another witch to watch Penelope as well as make her magic weaker. That witch was Lucinda Chokecherry. And if it wasn’t, I’d hack up my own hairball and eat it for breakfast.

Pen had yelled at the apparition “Who sent you?” multiple times but that damn thing hadn’t shown any signs of life. No communication, no gestures, nothing. Of course, it was dead. Or undead.

Then, the spectre had disappeared. Poof. Gone.

“No, it wasn’t real,” Penelope answered as she sighed. Still upset and concerned about our paranormal threesome. Without the pleasure usually associated with that type of human activity. “But, Ami, it was still scary. Really scary. I don’t want to see any more of them if I can help it.”

“No doubt,” Ami replied. “I hope I never see one in the entire course of my life. I’ve seen enough strange and scary happenings since I’ve been your friend and found out about your supernatural abilities.”

I trotted towards the sofa and jumped in to Pen’s lap so I could see for myself. I had to be sure they weren’t missing anything so I read over her shoulder. Sure enough. A Shadow Watcher was a ghost sent to spy on other people. Or witches in this case. I guess we should be happy The Ghost of Christmas Past hadn’t had a propensity toward violence.

“I’m just happy it’s over,” Pen leaned back into the comfort of the sofa and tucked her legs underneath her. “At times like this, I really miss Nana. She would know exactly what to do, you know? How to find this other witch that wants to thwart me.”

Ami nodded. Then, she became distracted by the screen on Pen’s iPhone sitting on the table front of her, lit up with an unread text message. I gave a mental kitty high-five because the name read Dr. Collier. Luke. Jeez, they’d had a midnight rendezvous in the shelter. If I heard her address him formally again, I might lose it.

“Pen, are you and Dr. Luke going to the movie at the museum this weekend?” Ami said, her voice soft with teasing. “You have a date.”

“It’s not a date,” Pen argued.

It’s a date.

“He likes you and you like him. You’re going out. What else would you call it?”

Pen scrunched her face up as she contemplated which evasive answer to pick. “It’s just two friends enjoying an evening together.”

Ami snorted. “That’s semantics. Regardless, I can’t wait to hear all about it. You better call me on the way home with every detail.”

“Of course I will,” Pen said as she blushed ten shades of pink. “As my BFF, you could hardly avoid the conversation, even if you wanted to.”

“What should we do about this shadow catcher thingy?” Ami asked, some of the fear finally leaving her wide eyes.

“Watcher.”

“What?” Amelia’s face knit up in confusion.

Pen sighed in frustration and pointed down at the book. “It’s a Shadow
Watcher
.”

Seriously, my friends. Is it any wonder I have to do everything around here? Someone has got to take charge, especially of these two. I sent some mental questions to my favorite British royal. God Save the Queen.

Sage, are you in the vicinity?

Yes, whisker licker. What can I help you with?

When can we go out and try to find out more information about Lucinda Chokecherry? I think it’s her. She’s the one doing the dirty work around here.

I’m in agreement. I saw the Shadow Watcher float over the house but it was in the bedroom and Miss Penelope was wailing before I could get to you. Get rid of Miss Amelia so we can get on with it. We’ll start here in the yard, with Mr. Oats.

I’m on it.

I trotted over to Pen’s leg and started pawing at her in the universal symbol to be lifted up. As soon as she had me safely in her arms, I went limp and played dead.

“What’s wrong with Tali,” Ami asked.

“He does this when he’s tired and he wants to go to bed.”

Ami chuckled. “It’s cute. But … I guess that’s my cue to leave. I promise I won’t pour anything liquid over my phone again.” She paused to throw a hand up in the air in a fake oath. “And if I do, I’ll find another way to get in touch. Especially, since that toad, Elias Stout, is sticking his beak, where it doesn’t belong.”

Pen sucked in a breath which caused me to lift my head from my Oscar-worthy theatrical performance and stare into her face. Something was coming that Ami wouldn’t like.

“Amy, about Elias …” Pen’s voice trailed off.

“What about him? No one can stand the man.”

Pen tried to smile and ended up just looking constipated. “That’s just it. No one can stand him but I don’t think it’s clear the other way around.”

Ami threw her hands on her hips and tilted her head to the side. “Pen, I’m not following.”

Neither was I. What was she getting at?

“Sabrina Scuttleworth had a conversation with Elias about the Canyon Towhee the night of the adoption event,” Pen explained, a look of concern on her face. “She called me the next day because Elias said some things.”

“What kind of things?” Ami asked.

“Things … about you.”

“What? That doesn’t make any sense,” Ami said in a rush of words. Defensive much? “I make it obvious I don’t like him. That he makes my skin crawl.”
Pen wrinkled her lips into a grimace and took a stiff posture. “I’m not sure he’s getting it.”

Ami pursed her lips and raised her voice. “What exactly are you trying to spit out, Penelope DeLacroix?”

“Elias … he’s … he’s …”

“He’s what?”

“Ami, Elias is sweet on you.”

What the hell? That was about the most disgusting thing I’d heard since Walter had eaten poop out of the litter box. Elias Stout was forty if he was a day. What was he doing thinking about a twenty-five-year-old young lady in that way. George Clooney he wasn’t. Gross.

Ami must have agreed because she stuck two fingers in her mouth and pretended to gag herself. “That’s repulsive. Remind me never to speak to him again. That must be what all that stuff about the library was the other day? Him trying to get in good with me?”

Pen nodded. “I guess. Apparently, he had a long conversation about Shakespeare’s Sonnet’s with Sabrina and he’s chomping at the bit to see which one is ‘Miss Amelia’s favorite’.”

“Well, Sabrina or anyone else can tell him my favorite poem is ‘The Marriage of Heaven and Hell’ by William Blake.”

Yeah, hell. Anyone married to Elias would be the bride in a union from Hades.

Penelope laughed outright. That glorious sound that made every human being and animal within hearing distance stop to listen.

“Unfortunately, I think you’re going to have to tell him that. Something is being lost in translation where Elias is concerned.”

“Do you really think that crusty oldster has a thing for me?” Ami asked. “You know, he could just be playing a game to get to you since he knows we’ve been besties for almost twenty years.”

I jumped out of Pen’s arms and laid down between the two of them. This conversation was starting to get good. I might glean some important Intel before my sojourn with Sage later.

“I admit, I’ve thought of that,” Pen said as she twirled a lock of her long, black hair around her finger. “Not that you’re not worthy of some serious male adoration. It’s just that … when it comes to anything involving Elias. I don’t know. I don’t trust him and I never have.”

“Me either,” Ami replied, but then she got a thoughtful look on her face. The one that scares the living Meow Mix out of me. The one she sports right before she’s going to get herself or Pen in a load of trouble that I’m going to have to morph to get them out of.

“Ami, you look like you’re plotting,” Pen said.

Right on, sister.

“I think it might be a good idea to get a little closer to Elias, if you catch my drift,” Ami explained. “You know what they say about keeping your friends close but your enemies closer.”
Pen stuck her tongue out. “Oh, Ami … no. That’s just disgusting and I don’t want you letting Elias anywhere near you. Even for me. Even if it would help us figure out who’s siphoning off my powers.”

“But, Pen,” Ami countered. “We need to get more information on Lucinda. What if Elias knows something? And that’s why he’s been nosing around more than usual.”

“Ami, if you spent time with him, there’s an off chance you might find out information. But there’s an even greater chance you might blab something important that would be detrimental to us. You’ve never been good at watching your tongue, especially when you’re nervous.”

“What if I promise to be completely mum except to ask him questions? I promise, the only words that will come out of my mouth are who, what, where, why and how.” She gave Pen an expectant look.

I should do something. Something to stop this runaway train that was about to pull out of the station. But, I admit it. I couldn’t look away from the impending disaster. Like said train was about to derail and leave the tracks littered with mangled bodies. Besides, Elias might actually know something. He might be in on the whole damn thing with the Chokecherrys. I wouldn’t put anything past him. Including coming on to a feisty, albeit somewhat naïve, young woman for his own evil gains.

“Ami,” Pen lamented. “There is no way you could keep your words to only interrogatories. You know how much you love to talk. Even to him.”

“Pen, I really need to do this,” Ami continued.

That settled it. The only way I could condone this hair-brained scheme is if I went with her. In that moment, I vowed to always remain within earshot of Amelia any time she was within earshot of Elias Stout. Then, if something happened, I could morph to help her. There was no way that any woman under my watch would be placed in harm’s way without a savior nearby.

“And you promise to only use a few words?” Pen asked. “You could always put a rubber band on your wrist and snap it every time you feel yourself starting to babble.”

“I’ll probably just bite my tongue until I draw blood,” Ami joked.

“Well … I guess it’s okay. If you’re sure. But only under one final condition. You can’t be alone with him. You can only go out with him if you go to the museum to see the volcano movie this Friday night with me and Dr. Collier.”

“Luke.”

“Right.”

Ami scrunched her lips together as she pondered Pen’s final requirement, then she held out her hand to shake Pen’s. “It’s a date. A double date.”