Page 32 of Wicked Love
I had no idea how I was going to tell him about Zelda. Or my part in busting her out. And keeping her.
“What do you mean?”
“What is your darkest fear?”
“I—”
“Don’t give me that. I know you’ve been considering it. I know I have. What is it? This will be your life—no magic, no man, no happiness, no moving forward—until you face that fear.”
“I hope Thea falls in a bayou,” I muttered. “With gators.”
“Be that as it may, you’re wearing the curse. You’ll do so until you break it. It’s time to face your fear,” Zelda said.
Chapter Ten
Jasper
The past two weeks had been torture. Not only because every piece of bad luck—my momma would have said bad karma—I’d ever gathered had hit, but because I was keeping something from Melasina.
Two weeks ago, I’d gone to see Talia. She’d retired because she’d gone blind. She lived in a house near the library, and she had witches from our coven that came over and helped her. She might be blind, but she was still able and strong. She just couldn’t read, and she didn’t want others to read to her. She’d put herself into retirement.
We would have let her stay as long as she wanted.
A young witch, not yet at her majority, opened the door when I knocked.
“Is she up for visitors?” I asked the girl.
“I’m always up to see you, Jasper Thibodeaux,” I heard from further back in the house.
I smiled, and the witch let me pass. She followed me into the kitchen, where Talia sat at a small table, sipping a cup of tea.
“I’m going to do the shopping, Miz Dumond,” she said.
“You have the list?” Talia asked.
“Yes, ma’am,” the girl said.
“All right. I’ll see you when you get back. Jasper will be here while you’re gone.”
I waited until I heard the front door slam. “You don’t really need someone here all the time,” I said.
“No, but it makes the coven feel good to help, and it’s a good thing for the younger witches to do. We do some spell work, and some potion mixing.”
“You haven’t really retired,” I said with a smile.
She reached across the table and patted my hand, finding it easily without sight. “No, and I never shall. What brings you to me today?”
“You heard about Thea? Her curse at the annual ball?”
She nodded. “Were you there?”
“I heard it. I was knocked down by the force of it,” I admitted.
“How is it manifesting?”
“It’s different for everyone,” I said. “My magic is backwards. If I cast a spell the opposite thing will happen. Usually in the worst way possible,” I said.
“What else?”
