Looking for Mr. Good Witch (24 page)

Rejoice,

The dark times are gone.

Rejoice at your life.

We waited. We weren't going anywhere without Dorothy. A healer was called in, and she took care of the cuts on Dorothy's hands and arms. Brian carefully climbed out of the coffin after Dorothy was lifted out by two security people.

“Hi, Molly. Elsie—you look great.” Brian, back to his usual self, grinned at us. “What are you doing here?”

“You were dead,” I reminded him. “We came to pay our respects.”

“That was nice. But I'm glad I'm not really dead. What happened? I remember opening the door to my apartment and someone was standing there. That's it.”

“It was the sea witch,” I explained. “She wanted to mate with you.”

“Was she hot?” he asked with a teasing expression on his face.

“When we last saw her, she looked like a big cucumber with spikes all over her and a green Brillo pad on her head,” Elsie said. “Not really your kind of date.”

“I think I'll pass on that.” He looked around. “Where did they take Dorothy?”

“Let's go somewhere more private,” Abdon said. “The others don't need to hear all this.”

But for my money, this was too good an opportunity to miss. “Excuse me, I think you're wrong.”

“What?” Abdon's scar on his cheek stood out purple against his skin. “You are a
guest
in my house.”

Frightened, but determined to say what needed to be said, I cleared my throat. “And you are on the Grand Council of Witches, which is supposed to protect all witches. We told you long before this about the danger facing Brian. The sea witch has taken the lives of twelve other young witches. Where was the council when that happened?”

“We sent the herald to inform you.”

“I believe you should have done more, and now all the council needs to hear what we have to say. Deny me if you like, but in the end, the council will pay the price for it.”

Abdon opened his mouth to rebut my words, but Makaleigh Veazy held out her hand. “I would be interested in what she has to say.”

I was grateful, and I managed to take a breath at her intervention. She reminded me of Whoopi Goldberg. Her dark hair was like a halo around her beatific countenance.

“The council shouldn't indulge one witch,” Joshua Bartleson said in a lofty tone. “I am certain it is against our principles.”

“Maybe it shouldn't be,” Makaleigh said. “We've gone too long without getting our hands dirty. Why are we here if not to help our fellow witches?”

She seemed to be the only council member interested in listening to me or helping defeat the sea witch. The rest left with Abdon and Brian's father. Yuriza stayed, casting a defiant look at her husband.

Brian showed us to a small room with a big fireplace that was carved from crystal. There was uncomfortable furniture
set on valuable Persian carpets. Crystal sconces lit the room. “You hash this out. I'm going to check on Dorothy.”

Makaleigh sat back like a queen in a large chair. “Tell me of this sea witch, Molly Addison. I knew your great-great-grandmother. I recognize her amulet around your throat.”

Elsie and I took turns explaining everything that had happened. I didn't include the Bone Man in this description, because I didn't want the council to know about the deal I'd made with him to protect Joe.

When we were finished, Yuriza nodded. “I am not part of the council, but you have my undying gratitude for saving my son. I don't know why Schadt and my father-in-law deem this to be of no merit. I promise to speak with them on your behalf.”

“What can I do for you, Molly?” Makaleigh asked.

“We need help capturing the sea witch. I believe it's the only way Brian and other young witches will be safe from her, the only way you can make sure justice is done.”

“Why capture what you could kill?”

“I'm not convinced we could kill her.” I kept the real answer to myself. “Can you help with that?”

“I grew up along the Nile many centuries ago. There were many such water creatures at that time. Let me consult the archives, and I will tell you if I find anything that might be useful to you.”

“Archives?” Elsie perked up. “I'd love to take a look at the archives.”

“It is forbidden for anyone not on the council,” Makaleigh said. “Perhaps someday you will sit beside us.”

“Thank you.” Elsie inclined her head with respect, but whispered to me, “Yeah. Right.”

“Is there any other grievance I might return to the council for you?”

I thought I might as well air one of the biggest grievances witches in the real world had with the council. “Would you
consider lifting the ban against non-magic spouses and their children knowing about witches?” It was a long shot, but if I didn't have to worry about Joe, I wouldn't have to figure out how to get the sea witch to the Bone Man's island.

Makaleigh's arresting face grew stern. “This can never be allowed, Molly. There is too much at risk. I lived through a time of torture and death for all witches. I never want to see that time return. Witches should marry witches. They should have children who are witches.”

“How would that happen every time?” Elsie asked.

“There are ways to tell if the child in the womb has magic. If not, the couple should try again.”

Elsie and I couldn't have been more horrified by her decree if she'd told us to go out and murder every person who wasn't a witch. The arrogance and self-righteousness of her statement took my breath away.

“I will talk with you again, Molly. As I will you, Elsie. You can be sure that I will keep you in my special sights from now on. Thank you for enlightening me.” Makaleigh swept from the room with Yuriza at her side.

Elsie and I put our arms around each other. “What have we done now?” she whispered. “I don't want that monster's special sights on me.”

“It won't take long for her to forget she ever met us,” I murmured. “I didn't think anyone could be worse than Abdon.”

Dorothy and Brian joined us in the smaller room. Dorothy still had blood all over her.

“But the red looks very nice with that black dress,” Elsie complimented. “I'm glad you're all right.”

“What made you
do
such a thing?” I hugged Dorothy. “If Brian had really been dead, your emotional magic might have brought him back anyway. There would have been a price to pay.”

“I know,” Dorothy said. “Elsie told me we can't resurrect
dead people. But in my heart, I knew he wasn't really dead. I could still feel him there.”

Brian kissed her cheek. “Lucky for me, or I'd have been buried looking like Prince Charming.” He glanced down at the jeans and T-shirt he'd changed into. “For future reference, before you put the torch on the wood, this is how I want to go out.”

“I like your spirit!” Elsie grinned.

“And I know I've been hedging about joining your coven.” Brian took Dorothy's hand. “But it's what I want to do. I like all of you—and love some of you. I want to help you.”

“And you might find that we can help you too.” I was thrilled that he'd finally made a commitment. I didn't care if it was because of Dorothy. There were no rules against lovers or spouses being part of the same coven. “Welcome, Brian. And I think we should go.”

“I won't argue with that,” he said. “The council is up in arms—which keeps my grandfather off my back for now. Let's go.”

“What about Mom?” Dorothy asked.

“Is Olivia
here
?” Brian questioned.

“She's hiding by the door,” Elsie said. “Maybe we could stop and make a plate of food before we leave too. I'm starving.”

“We'd better get Olivia out of here before we do anything else,” Brian said. “I don't want to think what could happen if someone from the council sees her.”

“I'm glad I had peanuts,” Elsie complained.

There were still dozens of people milling around the big ballroom. Many more had left, but it looked as though most of the council was still there. Abdon was arguing with Makaleigh near the dais.

Olivia peeked out from behind the heavy drape. “Are we ready to go yet? This is really boring and not at all what I had in mind. Brian! You're not dead. That's so wonderful.
Dorothy—what happened to you, honey? You've got blood all over your pretty dress and my diamond earrings.”

“Not really yours anymore,” Elsie remarked.

“We don't have time for this,” I told them. “Let's get you out of here, Olivia.”

“Can we just walk out the door with her?” Dorothy asked.

“I don't think so.” Brian nodded toward Abdon, who was coming our way.

“Quick.” Elsie emptied a hand-cream bottle into a nearby planter. “Get in here, Olivia. They won't know you're here.”

“Really?” Olivia whined. “I don't like the smell of that rose hand cream you use, Elsie.”

“It's that or nothing,” Dorothy told her. “Just do it, Mom.”

Olivia turned into a gray mist that squeezed into the tiny hand-cream bottle. Elsie put the top on it and dropped it in her bag.

“Where are you going, Brian?” Abdon only had eyes for his grandson.

“I'm going home with Dorothy. I'll talk to you later.”

“After all you've put this family through, young man, you're staying right
here
. The sea witch hasn't been captured yet. She won't give up until you're dead. We can protect you here.”

“I can help Molly, Elsie and Dorothy find a way to defeat her.”

“That's not your concern.”

“Yes, it is. I'm going. Wish me luck.” Brian grinned at him and put his arm around Dorothy as he started out the front door.

“We won't help you, you know,” Abdon called out after him. “If you're one of them, you're on your own.”

Brian turned. “I've been on my own most of my life. I finally have a family. We'll take care of the problem. Don't worry.
You're
safe.”

I grabbed Elsie's hand and we walked quickly out behind Dorothy and Brian. I didn't want to hang around to take the
brunt of Abdon's anger at his grandson. Once outside, the limousine we'd come in was waiting. We all jumped into the back and left the castle.

“That was close.” Elsie wiped her forehead with her handkerchief. “I managed to pick up a few sweet rolls and some grapes as we walked past the food table. Anyone want some?”

Dorothy was frowning as she sat beside Brian. “You should've stayed there. We all know the sea witch isn't going to be happy until you're dead. We don't know how to protect you. I'm scared.”

He hugged her and kissed her lingeringly on the lips. “Don't worry. We're gonna take care of this cucumber chick. All of us together—who can fight us?”

But his words were hollow. We all knew it. Dorothy was right. Unless Makaleigh came up with a plan to fight the sea witch, we didn't know what to do. I wished I could go to the Bone Man and ask him, but I knew he wanted her alive. If he did have the answer, he'd want to trade for it. I had nothing else I was willing to give. We'd have to face the sea witch on our own.

A witch's hat,

A cauldron blessed,

A sacred spell,

A night to test.

“We need to use me as bait,” Brian said when we got back to Smuggler's Arcane.

The limo driver had dropped off all of us. We had no cars, but I had already called Joe.

“That's crazy,” Dorothy said. “She'd take you for sure. There must be a better plan.”

“Her magic is really strong,” I cautioned. “She probably already knows that Brian is back. She won't wait long before she tries to take him again.”

“We'll have to keep him here with us,” Elsie said. “At least until we figure out what to do. We may not have the strongest magic in the world, but we might win through sheer numbers.”

“What about the Bone Man?” Brian asked. “Would he be willing to help?”

“He and I are in a complicated situation right now,” I explained. “I don't think we can count on him. I'm still working on my part of the bargain to find and deliver his wife.”

Elsie nodded. “Who, as we all know now, is the sea witch. I need some tea.”

While the kettle heated, we sat around the table in the shop and tried to figure out what to do with the sea witch. Elsie had taken out our individual cups—the goldfish cup for me, the flamingo for her, the star for Olivia and the tree for Dorothy.

“I hope you like your cup, Brian.” Elsie clapped her hands. “Call it a premonition that you'd be here with us eventually.”

Brian smiled when he saw it. “Thanks, Elsie. Do I have to drink tea to use it? I'm more a coffee man.”

“I'm sure we can conjure up a coffeepot.” Elsie waved her hand, and a can opener appeared on the counter. “
There
that is. I've been looking everywhere for it.”

“Allow me.” Brian took out his wand and concentrated. A small black coffeemaker was on the counter. “I've wanted to get a new one for the apartment anyway. Maybe now that there will be two of us, I'll have a reason to invest in one.”

Dorothy smiled and kissed him. Elsie also smiled and released Olivia from the hand cream bottle.

“It's not gonna happen!” Olivia sniffed and then frowned. “I'm covered in that stuff now. I wish I could take a shower.”

“Maybe he could move in with
us
,” Dorothy suggested. “We have lots of room in that big old house.”

“Think what you're saying,” Olivia demanded. “No man has
ever
lived in that house. It just hasn't been done.”

“But he has nowhere safe to go,” Dorothy argued. “The house is completely spelled, right? The only place he might be safer is here, and he can't stay here while all of us go home.”

Elsie poured tea for everyone—spiced chai—except for Brian, who ended up with green tea made in his coffeemaker. “Sorry, no coffee. Olivia, you might as well give in. Dorothy is right. He needs to be somewhere safe.”

Olivia put her hands on her ghostly hips. “Well, why don't you take him home with
you
, Elsie, and keep him safe?”

“That won't work. Aleese would think he's my new boyfriend. And what would Larry think?”

Olivia stared at me.

“I have enough problems with the Bone Man visiting me and Joe's ex-wife popping in for pizza. You're going to have to do this, Olivia. It's not forever. We'll catch the sea witch and then the three of you can argue about it.”

“It's just not fair,” Olivia complained. “Only the female members of my family have lived in that house. I'm not too sure a man won't be struck down by the protective runes.”

Elsie snorted. “You better get that changed before you have a grandson.”

“Grandson?” Olivia's tone was startled. “Dorothy isn't ready to have children. She's not even married.”

“Not like that stopped
you
,” Elsie reminded her.

“Oh, I really wish I could drink that tea,” Olivia whimpered. “And how am I supposed to get rid of this awful rose smell?”

“Olivia.” Brian grimaced when he tasted his tea. “It's not like you and I don't know each other.”

“Oh my lord!” Olivia screeched. “Did you really just
say
that? I wish I could turn you into a beetle!”

Elsie giggled and then the rest of us laughed at Olivia's indignation.

“It's settled, then,” Dorothy said. “Until we can get rid of the sea witch, Brian is staying with us.”

The two kissed, and Olivia blinked out of the room.

“This is going to be so much fun to watch.” Elsie rubbed her hands together. “So, what's the plan to catch the sea witch?”

There was no plan, of course. I thought we should wait a few days to hear from Makaleigh. She would know better than we did what to do. In the meantime, we started training again.

It was better, knowing that Brian wanted to be with us. He was more open and less filled with angst. We practiced
spells—beginning with another protective spell to keep the sea witch out of the cave and the shop. We got a chair for Brian and made room for him in our lives and our coven. He spent hours with us and then went home with Dorothy and Olivia.

There wasn't too much complaining from Olivia. She was sidetracked trying to train herself to be more solid. She kept practicing picking up paper and books around the shop. It was good to know she had a purpose again. Ghosts could be very powerful—sometimes more so than witches. Olivia probably wouldn't be one of those ghosts, not for a long time anyway.

A week had passed. Joe had gone back to work after I'd explained everything that had happened and how it had happened. We'd used the enchanted bubble—I was still afraid of the Bone Man deciding not to keep his end of the bargain. I was constantly on edge, worrying that he could show up at any time. He stayed away, though, and everything seemed almost normal.

Until the day we met at the shop and Brian had begun having dreams about the sea witch. “This is how it started last time.” He was already more pale, hollow-eyed and restless. “I dreamed about her all the time”

“What are you dreaming about her?” Dorothy asked.

“She's calling me. We're not finished yet. She knows that I'm alive and she still wants me to finish the spell to keep her alive.”

“You mean mate with her,” Elsie said.

“Yes.” He glanced at Dorothy. “I'm sorry. It's not what I want to do.”

“I think anyone could tell that much by the way you screamed out last night,” Olivia observed.

“I heard you too,” Dorothy admitted. “I didn't want to say anything, but I can hear you all the way down the hall.”

Elsie giggled. “I guess that answers
that
question.”

“What can we do? I don't think we can wait much longer,” Dorothy said. “We've got to stop her.”

I didn't like going it alone. We had no experience dealing
with a witch as powerful as this one. But we couldn't let her have Brian again.

“What's your plan, Molly?” Olivia asked. “I know you have one.”

“I sure hope it's better than the one we had to get Brian away from the sea witch. We're lucky to still be alive,” Elsie reminded us

“All we have to do is figure out how to catch a sea witch,” I said. “I'll bet Muriel knows the answer to that.”

Brian insisted that he was going along despite the rest of us disagreeing. “We're safer together. Protection spells on the shop or the house aren't as strong as our combined real-time magic.”

We finally agreed, and Elsie called Larry to make sure he was at his boat. Lucky for us it wasn't his time of the month.

Larry was cleaning his boat when we got to the docks. He was happy to take us to see Muriel again if it involved another boat ride with Elsie.

“What about the cream puffs?” Olivia asked. “Will she talk without cream puffs?”

I glanced at my watch. “We'll have to think of something else.”

Larry scratched his head. “I have some jelly donuts. Will that help?”

We decided to take a chance on it. Larry was a little nervous about taking Brian with us, since the sea witch was after him again. “It's possible she could attack the boat to get him back,” he reasoned. “She's bound to be more powerful on the water, just like you, Molly.”

But we'd already made that decision, and Elsie convinced Larry that it was safe.

My magic wasn't a match for the sea witch—I wasn't convinced all of us together could stand up to her. Knowing more about the amulet made me feel somewhat safer. I agreed with Brian that leaving him anywhere was risky. I
worried that she could compel him to come to her. We might need to fight him
and
her.

Larry's boat went slowly into the salt marshes near No-Name Island. He and Elsie had kissed and talked the whole way. Olivia and I tried to help Dorothy keep a positive outlook on our venture. Brian had a better chance of survival with our plan—whatever it was—than he would without it.

Brian stared off at the water where it met the horizon. Several times, when Dorothy had spoken to him, he hadn't heard her. I was afraid the sea witch was already eroding his will. Soon there wouldn't be any way to stop him from going to her. I was angry that I'd waited too long. I'd believed Makaleigh really meant to help. I had obviously been mistaken.

We found Muriel basking in the sun. She saw us coming and hid in the weeds.

“We need your help again,” I called to her. “Will you speak with us?”

I held out the jelly donuts that Larry had volunteered. Muriel peeked around a coarse bush and sniffed. “Those aren't cream puffs.”

“They aren't,” I agreed. “But they're really good. Look. Larry will eat one.”

He munched it down quickly and smacked his lips. “
Yum
. Try one. You might like it better than cream puffs.”

Muriel ventured from her hiding place and daintily picked up a donut with her ringed fingers. She chewed a bit and smiled. “These
are
good. What do you call them?”

“Jelly donuts.” I took another for her. “We found the sea witch.”

“Lucky you! She's a pistol, isn't she?”

“You could say that. We have something she wants. I don't want to kill her. How can we trap her?”

Her tiny feral eyes locked on my face. “I'm going to need something more than jelly donuts to give you information that will hurt her. If she isn't dead, she could come for me.”

Elsie offered her hat. Muriel turned it down. Dorothy offered her bag. Muriel didn't want that either. I rummaged around in my bag for something she might take.

She sniffed. “What's that? I smell magic.”

It was the spelled mirror. “Is this what you want?” I asked.

“Yes. Let me see it.”

I handed her the mirror. I only caught a glimpse of what she saw in it. The image was that of a beautiful, young
human
girl. I could see something in her face that resembled Muriel. Had the mermaid once been human? There were old stories that hinted at that possible transformation.

“I'll take it.” She clutched it to her bare bosom. “I know exactly how to capture the sea witch. I don't know how to kill her, unless she can't mate. Then she'll die. Once you get her, you'd better do something with her quickly or she'll escape and kill you. No sea creature likes a net.”

Elsie and I exchanged glances. “What kind of net?” I asked.

“You'll have to gather seaweed and weave it with witch's hair into a net. Then it must be blessed with your tears. The hearts of the makers must be emotionally involved with capturing the sea witch for the magic to work. That's all I know. Thanks for the donuts. Can I have the rest?”

I gave her the remaining jelly donuts, and we left the salt marsh.

“Sounds like a major project,” Olivia said. “Do we have time to weave a net? Maybe we could buy one and put seaweed on it. The sea witch probably won't know the difference.”