Red Witch: Book Two of the Wizard Born Series (12 page)

“Lighten up, Larry,” Lisa said. “Jamie’s known he’s a sorcerer most of his life, and he’s handled it just fine. Admirably, I think, considering what he went through with that evil sorcerer trying to kill him and all.”

Larry shook his head. “But this is
Fred
we’re talking about…our little girl…my daughter.”

“Don’t worry too much about it, Mr. Callahan,” Jamie said. “I can help her.”

Larry stared at him, a conflicted look in his eyes, and took a long breath through his nose. “Okay.” He nodded and his mouth gave a little twitch. “Just don’t get her any spell books or anything.”

“I don’t need ’em, Daddy,” Fred said, holding up her little finger. “I’ve already got Jamie wrapped around this.”

Lisa looked at Fred and then at Jamie. “You don’t think…was Fred using magic on you when she was trying…I mean, before you two….?”

“Fell in love?” Fred said. “I don’t know.” She looked at Jamie and cocked her head slightly. “What do you think? Was I?”

Jamie opened his mouth but no words came out.
Maybe she was and I didn’t know it. She didn’t know it, either. I need to be careful what I say right now.
“It doesn’t matter, Mrs. Callahan. I’m under her spell for good now, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.” He felt relieved when he saw the little smile cross Fred’s face. “In fact, I think I’ve been under it for a long time.”

“Since before we were born,” Fred added.

Lisa’s face brightened, and Jamie remembered that she liked to say that.
There may be something to it.
Larry didn’t seem as worried, either.

Larry gave a quick nod and blew a gust of air from the side of his mouth. “Okay.” He stood and offered Jamie his hand. “Thanks, Jamie. I feel better.”

Jamie took his hand and stood, too. “I’m glad I could help. Don’t worry about Fred. I’ll make sure she doesn’t get into any trouble with this.”

“Yeah.” He chuckled. “She’s still Fred, after all. How much trouble could she get in to?”

* * *

Jamie became aware of Fred’s presence beside him and felt the rope against his back.
We’re on a hammock
, he realized.
In a dream
. Palm trees stood at the edge of the patio around them, their dark green fronds swishing softly in a breeze that smelled faintly of the sea.

“Hey,” Jamie said.

“Hey yourself,” Fred said. She wore a long yellow beach shirt, and she was barefoot. Jamie looked down to see that he had on a white T-shirt and shorts, and he was barefoot, too.

“Are we at the house in Ponte Vedra?” Jamie said.

“I must’ve thought about it right before I went to sleep. Pretty good dream, huh?”

“I’ll say.” He inhaled deeply through his nose. “I can even smell you. You smell a little like sun tan lotion.” He hooked his fingers through the rope of the hammock. “I can feel things, almost like I’m awake. How do you do that?”

Fred shook her head. “It seems like the more I do this, the more detailed the dreams get, and I’m not really trying. It just comes out that way.”

“You and I must have some kind of link that’s even stronger than we imagined, if you can influence my sensations like that.”

“Is that the most romantic way you can describe that?” she said flatly.

“Oh. Um…well, we —”

“Never mind, Geek Boy.” She rolled onto her side and pressed her fingertip gently into his cheek. “You can make it up to me by telling me why I’m so much like the Dream Fairy.”

“I can do that,” he said, remembering how his mother used to describe the Dream Fairy to him when he was young, a little story she’d tell him to help him go to sleep. He recalled her exact words. “She’s got long, lovely, red hair — just like yours — emerald-green eyes,” —he looked closely into Fred’s eyes — “just like yours, and she has a face like an angel.” He reached over with one hand and caressed her cheek. “Like yours. I’ve never seen a real angel, but I don’t have to, because I’ve seen you.”

“Bravo! That was beautiful.” She kissed his cheek. “I knew you could do it.”

“Do you have your fairy earrings?”

“Hold on.” Fred closed her eyes for a moment and then opened her hand. Two tiny glass figures lay in her palm. “I do now.”

Jamie shook his head. “That’s incredible that you have so much control over this.”

“I want you to make them fly again, just like when we were kids.” She held them out, her palm flat, the two figures lying on their sides.

“I don’t think I can. It’s your dream.” He touched each fairy anyway, and they began to glow.

“See there? You can.”

“I didn’t do it. You did. I didn’t feel any magic.”

Fred gestured with her other hand and the fairies stood, then their wings began to flutter; they rose in the air and began to circle them. “I guess I am doing it.”

“Do you think you can make anything you want to in this dream?”

“How about a monster?” Fred gestured again, and an enormous purple figure rose nearby as the two fairies flew away and hid behind her. Long, hairy, orangutan-like arms sporting six-fingered hands with vicious claws waved about menacingly. The beast’s boulder-sized head was dominated by a gaping maw; wicked fangs oozed saliva that dribbled down its chin.

It took a step ponderous toward them and Jamie said, “Uh, Fred….”

Fred flicked her fingers on one hand and the monster exploded into thousands of purple confetti-like bits. Jamie covered his face with his arm and Fred said, “Don’t worry. I won’t let the mean monster hurt my baby.” She wiggled her fingers and the fairies returned, orbiting over them like two tiny satellites.

“That was pretty real looking. You can probably do anything, Fred.”

“That’s ’cause I’m the Dream Fairy.”

“The Dream Fairy flies around.”

Fred sat up, her face set in concentration, and a pair of wings sprouted from her back, growing rapidly. Jamie had to move to keep from getting poked in the face by one of them as they unfurled. Fred was a butterfly, emerging from a cocoon, opening her wings for the first time.

“That’s okay, Fred, I get the idea!”

The wings vanished as Fred laughed and lay back down.

“Can you put us anyplace that you want to now, or does it still have to be someplace you’re familiar with?”

“Where do you want to go?”

He tried to think of some place exotic, but ended up saying the first thing that popped into his head. “How about your couch?”

Fred winked and they reappeared in her living room. Jamie was lying down with his head in her lap. He had to blink several times to get oriented. “Wow. That’s great! Now we can make out here without your dad bothering us.”

“Before we do,” Fred said, touching his chin and running her finger sensually around his jaw, “there’s a favor I need to ask.”

“Anything for you.”

“There are two, actually.” She put her hand on his cheek and bent her head closer, eyes locked on his. “I want to have Melanie take the oath so we can tell her about our magic.”

“Anything but that,” he said quickly.

Her eyes narrowed and she sat up straight. “Why not?”

“I think the question we should be asking is why should we?”

“Because she and I have gotten to be really good friends and I think it’s better to tell her than let her find out by accident.”

“Are we gonna tell
everybody
? How about Bryce? How about Tom, Dick, and Harry?”

“You might want to tell Bryce, if you two really are such good buddies. If we slip up around them and say something we’re not supposed to, we’re in a heap of trouble. Word could get around fast, and then where would we be?”

“People might not believe it.”

“Are you willing to take that chance? I don’t want to go hide out in a cave. Maybe that was fine for Eddan, but I like the comforts of home.”

Jamie blew out a long gust of air and looked into Fred’s determined eyes.
I don’t think she’s going to let this go.
“Okay, but not until we talk to our parents first.”

“Why? We’re not babies, Jamie. We can make decisions for ourselves.”

“We’re only seventeen, and this decision affects more than just us.”

“Hmph.” She stroked his chin again. “Well, getting to my second favor. Will you take us to the mall on Sunday?”

“You and Melanie? Why?”

“Her car’s in the shop, and my parents need both of theirs. Melanie can get a ride to my house so we don’t have to pick her up.”

“Can I just drop you off and pick you up later?”

“I guess.” She caressed his cheek. “You should come with us. You need some new clothes.”

“Shop at the mall? I’d rather be tied to a post and whipped with barbed wire.”

“That can be arranged.” A burly, shirtless man with a black-leather mask appeared near the opening to the front hall. He held a coil of silver barbed wire in one hand and tattoos covered his massive bare arms.

Jamie ground his teeth for a moment before saying, “Fred, I don’t like being manipulated this way. I’m not so sure that I like it that you have power, all of a sudden.”

The burly man vanished and Fred said, “Oh, so it’s okay if
you
have power, but not me?”

He sat up. “That’s not what I meant.”

Her eyes grew stormy and threatened lightning strikes. “You’re just mad because we’re on more
equal footing
now.”

“I’ve never thought of us as being anything
but
equal,” he said without hesitation.

Her face became thoughtful, softer. “Do you mean that?” He nodded and she said, “Well, how about you promise to go shopping with us if I promise to make out with you right now?”

“You’d do that anyway.” She gave him a long, steady look and he said, “Okay. I’ll go shopping with you if you make sure your dad doesn’t appear in this dream. I want total privacy.”

“Deal.” She leaned closer, put her arms around his neck and pulled his face to hers.

Chapter 12

Evelyn looked over her shoulder again, and Connie patted her twin sister’s hand. “They’ll be here, Evelyn. Relax.” They were in Asheville in the Thomas Wolfe Auditorium, sitting in the floor section, more than twenty rows back from the stage.

“Wish we’d have gotten here sooner,” Evelyn said. “We could’ve gotten better seats.” She turned and looked at the balcony that ran along both sides and the rear of the hall; it was full. The only open seats were in the very back.

“These are fine. We can see the stage perfectly,” Connie said.

Evelyn had saved the two seats on her right for Rachel and Carl. Lisa and Larry sat on the other side of those next to the aisle. Connie was on Evelyn’s left, Ray was next to her, and Gina and Cory were last on the row. Gina leaned forward and said, “This is so exciting, Aunt Evelyn! Do you know I’ve never seen Jamie perform before? At least not live. Just the videos you showed me.” She looked up and waved. “Oh! Look who’s finally here.”

Evelyn turned again to see Rachel and Carl walking down the aisle toward them, their coats draped over their arms, Rachel with the program in one hand. They waved back and joined them; Rachel eased into the red cushioned seat next to Evelyn and said, “We had trouble finding a parking spot.”

“What time did Jamie get here?” Connie asked.

“He left with Fred and Rollie about two o’clock. They had to get here early for a dress rehearsal and makeup and stuff.”

“Makeup? Even the boys?”

Carl pointed to a large camera on the balcony to their right. “They might be on television. We talked to another camera operator in the back, and he said it’ll probably be on the TriSouth Network.”

“Never heard of it,” Ray said.

“I don’t think our cable company carries it.”

“So how do we watch it?”

“Maybe Jamie can find it online.”

A blonde-haired girl sitting several rows ahead of them turned and waved, flashing a dimpled smile.

“Who’s that?” Evelyn asked.

Lisa waved back at the girl and said, “That’s Melanie. She’s one of Fred’s friends.”

“That’s the girl who kissed Jamie, Mom,” Rachel said.

“Oh my,” Evelyn said. “I can see why Fred was jealous. She’s pretty.”

Ray looked at Rachel and said, “Jamie could probably win this contest hands down if he wanted to, couldn’t he?”

A well-dressed couple in the row ahead of them, a man and a woman in their early forties, turned and glared at Ray. Ray glared back at them and said, “Well, he
could
.”

“Right,” the well-dressed man said. “Everybody thinks that about their child.”

“Oh, I suppose you have a kid in this contest?”

“Abigail Moore,” the woman replied. “She’s a ballet dancer. She’s going to try out for a New York dance company next year.”

“Oh, ballet.” Ray, never one to waste time reading Miss Manners, pretended to yawn.

“And this Jamie fellow? I suppose you’re related to him somehow.” The woman said in a dry tone.

“He’s my great-nephew, Jamie Sikes. He’s a magician, and he’s fantastic. He goes on right before intermission.”

“Oh, magic,” she said. “How…interesting.” But her eyes said otherwise. She obviously wanted them to know that she was too polite to say how she really felt.

“At least we won’t fall asleep during
his
show.”

The couple sniffed as one and turned their heads away to face the stage. Evelyn had to clamp her jaws tightly to keep from smiling.

Connie whispered to Evelyn, “He
could
win, couldn’t he?”

Evelyn whispered back, “If Jamie flew around the auditorium and made a doorway to transport this whole audience to another world, I think there would be no doubt.”

“But he won’t, will he?”

“He wants Fred and Rollie to win. Plus, it would be a little hard to explain.” The lights flickered twice and she said, “It’s starting.”

The first act was a juggler named Edgar Silverman. He was anything but boring.

Connie whispered to Evelyn halfway through his performance, “He’s going to be tough to beat.”

Evelyn nodded but didn’t say anything. They next act was a singer, and Evelyn was not impressed with her. The classical pianist who followed was talented, but the applause from the audience was subdued. She was followed by another singer, a boy, who looked too scared to win. Evelyn found herself counting the performers on the program —
sixteen. Eight now, and then intermission. That leaves only three more until it’s Jamie’s turn.