Page 87 of Enchant the Dawn

Ava heaved an aggravated sigh. “I should have just killed him.”

“Why didn’t you?”

“Because you wouldn’t have approved,” Ava admitted. “If Claret took Jasper with her . . .” Her voice trailed off and she shook her head. “Jasper has the devil’s own luck. No matter what predicament he gets himself into, he always manages to see the better side of it.”

“What do you think he’ll do now?”

“I can’t imagine. If the Elder Knight is still in New Orleans, maybe we should go back and confront him, put an end to this once and for all.”

“If Dominic defeated him, would that be the end of it?”

“Sadly, no. The Brotherhood would just find a new Elder Knight. I’m not sure anything, short of wiping them out completely, will ever stop them.”

“There must be something you can do. A truce of some kind?”

“A truce,” Ava murmured. She stared into the distance. Or a spell. One that would erase their inherent protocol to destroy the Hungarian vampires and replace it with a new directive. Perhaps one that would set them against the Transylvanian vampires, who were, after all, a far greater threat to humanity than Dominic’s people had ever been. The ability to impregnate human females was in no way a danger to the population. The number of Hungarian vampires who had married human females over the centuries was nothing compared to the number of mortals killed by Claret’s kind.

Would it be possible to concoct a spell that powerful? One that would last indefinitely and affect every member of the Brotherhood? Her breakfast forgotten, she hurried up to the third floor.

Maddy stared after her. She had called Ava’s name three times and gotten no response. Had Ava gone into some kind of trance?

Puzzled by the witch’s odd behavior, she finished her orange juice and cleared the table. So, what to do with the rest of the day? Ava would likely be upstairs for who knew how long. Dominic was at rest, most likely until late afternoon.

Grabbing a book, she read for an hour. Practiced a new spell Ava had taught her. Watched an old comedy on Netflix. And it was only noon. Picking up Ava’s grimoire from the coffee table, Maddy wandered out into the backyard. And almost stepped on Jasper.

She was surprised when the toad followed her to a wooden bench set under a tree. When she sat down, the toad squatted at her feet.

“I guess you’re bored, too. And probably tired of being a frog.” She couldn’t help feeling sorry for him. It was beyond cruel to leave him as he was. Maybe she could turn him into something less odious—a dog or a cat perhaps. “Well, let’s look in Ava’s book and see what we can come up with.”

Chapter 36

Maddy had just fixed a fresh pot of coffee when Ava entered the kitchen. “Smells good,” she said appreciatively.

“I’ll fix you a cup,” Maddy offered. She pulled two cups from a shelf, filled them, and handed one to Ava before taking the seat across from her. She had hardly seen Dominic’s great-grandmother since she’d hurried up to the attic hours before.

Ava let out a sigh of sheer pleasure as she picked up her cup and took a sip. “Just what I needed. So, you found Jasper again,” she said with her customary prescience. “Did you have any luck removing the spell?”

Maddy shook her head. “I tried several of the spells I found in your grimoire, but none of them worked.”

“Perhaps it’s time to make you that wand,” Ava said. “Let me get a refill and some clippers and then we’ll go out back and you can find a branch that pleases you.”

Maddy felt a rush of excitement. A wand of her own. Maybe she would feel more like a real witch if she had one.

* * *

Outside, Maddy looked at the apple tree. Was it a coincidence that Ava had chosen an apple tree for her when summoning an apple was the first bit of magic she had ever done? She moved beneath the tree and looked up, wondering which branch to use.

“It will work better if you can find a small branch that’s fallen from the tree. If not, you need to ask the tree’s permission before you take one.”

“Oh? Why?”

“It’s the polite thing to do,” Ava said with a grin. “Seriously, it’s believed that a branch taken without permission will not be effective.”

“How do I ask a tree for permission?” Maddy asked.

“Simply close your eyes and mentally make your request. If you feel peace afterward, you’re good to go.”

Feeling a little foolish, Maddy closed her eyes. Apple tree, may I please use one of your branches? She waited for several moments and then, to her astonishment, she knew in her heart it was all right.

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