Page 42 of Upside Down Magic

Brimstone, of all people in this town, believedI’dfix this.

Ifhe did, why didn’tI?

“Thosearound you are a mirror of what you project into the world; use it as a guide to see what to become.”

Istruggled into a sitting position.

“Okay,Hope.Youhad your cry, now it’s time to get things done.Becauseif you don’t, who will?”And, more importantly, “Grandmawould be so disappointed if you simply gave up.”

Thatwas enough to get me going.Iwasn’t sure my legs would be responsive, soIcalledIanfrom the floor and updated him onLilian’sissue.Shanewas indeed stuck in wolf form again, andIanhad smuggled him into the cemetery without anyone seeing.Evenif they had, they’d probably think it wasRufus.

“Whatdo you want to do now?” he asked.

“Ineed to talk withLilianagain.Shemight know what we’re up against.”

“I’llpick you up.”

“No, let’s meet at the bed and breakfast.Idon’t want you anywhere near the shop.”

“Fine,Iwon’t go in, butI’mpicking you up.”

SinceIwasn’t willing to waste more energy refusing,Iagreed and calledDoyleat theCouncilnext.Thiswasn’t somethingIshould keep secret from theCouncil.Thisinvolved several paranormals with a clear threat to their powers.TheCouncilneeded to be informed, even if it cost me the shop.

Thethought, now finally in the open, made me gasp for breath.Ithurt so much, like a serrated knife plunged into my chest and twisted with a snap.

Youhaven’t lost the shop,Hope.It’sstill here.Youcan still help fix this.

AndifIlost it, it wouldn’t be becauseIhadn’t tried my best.

“Hello,Hope,”Doylesaid through the phone. “It’sgood to hear from you.Everythinggood with the shop?”

Iflinched at the good-natured question. “I’mactually calling because of an incident.Icould use your advice,Ms.Doyle.”Iproceeded to explain the events, keepingBrimstone’sandShane’snames out of it—the magic happenings, my potion, the reprieve,Lilianfalling sick and my decision to close down the shop untilIfigured out what to do.

Doylelistened attentively, letting out small sounds of acknowledgment here and there asItold the tale. “Youdid good,Hope,” she said gravely afterIwas done talking. “Closingthe shop for now was the right thing to do.”

“Haveyou heard of anything similar happening before?”Shehadn’t, soIupdated her on the old case and stories aboutOlmeda’sdark coven.

“Iknow about the old coven, andIthink it’s worth pursuing that, but for now we should concentrate on figuring out how people are getting spelled and how to stop it.”

“Iagree,”Isaid. “Willyou send aCouncilwitch?I’mafraid we’ll need more power thanIcurrently have.”Noshame in admitting as much.

“Idon’t think it’s necessary at this stage.”

“No?”Iasked in surprise.Lasttime there had been dark magic issues, she’d insisted on sending a witch fromMontel.

“IfLilianValentiis already there,I’drather you two talk about the situation before we involve more people and muddy the waters.She’san expert in the field and nobody we send will be able to top her knowledge.Ihave faith you two can come up with a plan of action.Shemight have some ideas about how this spell works and stopping it from impacting more paranormals.”

Mychest filled with pride at the factDoyleconsidered me important enough to lead this investigation along withLilian.Ireminded myself thatIwas stillOlmeda’sofficial witch—of courseI’dtake co-lead in local matters.

“Onceyou two draw up plans,” she continued, “please call me immediately.I’dlike to keep a close eye on how the situation evolves.”

“Ofcourse.”

“I’llbe contacting the local bounty hunter as well, in case things escalate suddenly.”

“Agreed.”

“Besafe.AndHope?”

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