Chapter 14
Chapter
Fourteen
Zachariah escorted me to my golf cart, despite my protestations. The necromancer was fascinated by the recent development.
“How do you intend to protect yourself against a shadow? Are there special weapons for that?”
“Lack of light,” I joked. “I did ward my cottage, so he won’t be able to attack me there.” I’d warded Ronald’s bedroom too. If I’d realized I’d become a target, I would’ve finished Ronald’s entire condo.
“What about your office?”
“I’ll do that later today.” But I wasn’t going to my office just yet. First, I wanted to finish what I’d started earlier.
I arrived home without incident and fixed myself a plate of scrambled eggs while I flipped through Gwen’s grimoire.
The old book was full of interesting spells, albeit nothing related to shadows.
If I weren’t so narrowly focused at the moment, I would’ve enjoyed lingering over them.
Another time, when the world was less stressful.
I laughed out loud at the thought, knowing no such world existed.
Sighing, I returned the grimoire to the bookshelf. I would’ve preferred to deal with Stephen’s shadow without assistance. Once again, I’d have to depend upon Meemaw’s magical generosity. For someone who abhorred asking for favors, I sure had to do a lot of it lately.
At least I knew Meemaw would jump at the opportunity to cast another spell.
Magic use was strictly limited on the island, much to the chagrin of many capable Neighbors.
Judd had been a strict constructionist when it came to HOA rules and regulations, whereas I was somewhat looser in my approach.
So loose, in fact, that I flat-out ignored them when I deemed it necessary, like today.
Judd would be rolling over in his grave right now.
I glanced skyward. “Sorry, boss. Desperate times call for desperate measures.”
I called Meemaw to make sure she was available.
“Come on over,” she said. “Bring snacks. I’m out of pretzels and chips.”
Chips I could handle. I raided my cupboard and found a family-size bag of unopened barbecue potato chips. I turned toward the door and looked down to see Jinx’s green eyes fixed on me.
I hugged the bag to my chest. “Don’t judge me. Family size was on sale.”
Jinx turned and walked away. The swish of her tail said she was definitely judging me.
I drove my golf cart to Magnolia and parked outside the building next to Meemaw’s. I didn’t want people to notice my visits and start questioning their frequency.
As I rapped on the door, I heard muffled chatter from inside. The door swung open.
“You didn’t mention you had company,” I said, presenting the bag of chips to Meemaw.
The crone shook the bag. “Why do you think I asked you to bring a snack?”
“I assumed you were hungry. Did you reschedule your Bookstabbers meetup?”
“No, we’re holding out for Martin. He sneezed and threw out his back.” She looked me up and down. “You seem to have all your limbs intact. What’s the emergency?”
I cast a hesitant glance at the others. “Remember that information I shared with you about Darlene?”
Her mouth formed a small O.
“I finally know whose shadow it is, and I need to find a way to capture it.”
She lifted an eyebrow. “Will the person be held responsible for the actions of his shadow?”
“That part isn’t up to me.” I wasn’t sure how I felt about it.
Stephen shouldn’t be completely off the hook.
After all, he created the monster that killed Darlene.
The old me would’ve reaped vengeance on Stephen.
No mercy. No extenuating circumstances. As far as I would’ve been concerned, Stephen’s own hands had done the foul deed.
I’d been a black-and-white thinker then, much like Stephen’s shadow.
But I wasn’t that person anymore.
“What are you two in cahoots about over there?” Margie shouted from the living room.
“It’s top secret,” Meemaw said.
“We’re your coven,” Catherine said. “There shouldn’t be any secrets between us.”
Meemaw tossed a glance over her shoulder. “Trust me, dearie. You don’t want to know everything I know.”
Same, I almost said, but managed to hold my tongue.
“What does Justine think of all this magic?” Meemaw asked, turning back to me. “She might want to consider amending the rules, make them less stringent.”
“I don’t think she’d be receptive to that. I’m using it to solve crimes. You know what Neighbors are like. Give them an inch and they’ll be using magic to turn their golf carts into hovercrafts.”
“Rightfully so. We’ve been promised hovercrafts for over a century. We’re tired of waiting.”
“Come on, Maya,” Margie said. “Share with the class. We promise not to tell anyone.”
I fought the urge to laugh. Their gossip muscle was the strongest one in their bodies because it got the most exercise.
The door opened and I spun toward it, as though expecting the shadow to appear. Louise squeezed through the opening, carrying a cardboard box, followed by Bernice and my neighbor, Edith.
“We’re here,” Louise announced in a singsong voice. “Let the plotting of Operation Decoration commence.”
I looked at the gathered ladies. “What’s Operation Decoration?”
Louise jerked her head toward me. “Maya, I didn’t see you there. You were in the wrong eye line.” She snapped her eye patch.
Meemaw nodded to the others. “Our cover’s blown. We may as well get the goods back out.”
Margie lifted the lid of the coffee table and the witches pulled out dozens of shiny colorful objects.
I was thoroughly confused. “What’s going on?”
“Euba Gardner filed a complaint with the HOA, claiming my decorations violated the garishness rule, and they issued me a fine,” Catherine said.
“So we’re exacting revenge.” Meemaw held up a rainbow pinwheel. “If Euba thinks colored fairy lights that blink are garish, she won’t be happy to see these all over the Neighborhood.”
“It’s guerrilla warfare,” Joan said. “We’re going out tonight and placing them everywhere we know Euba frequents. She’ll lose her mind.”
“Please don’t stop us,” Catherine said. “I haven’t been this excited to stay up past my bedtime since color TV was invented.”
I picked up one of the pinwheels and blew to make it turn. “I don’t see a security issue.”
“We trust you to keep our secret,” Margie said. “Why not trust us to keep yours?”
“Because mine is in my official capacity.”
Meemaw gestured to the gathering. “You need help, Maya, and you have an entire coven at your disposal. Take advantage of it.”
Edith raised her hand. “I’m a harpy.”
Meemaw rolled her eyes. “We know, Edith.”
Louise set the box on the floor. “Let us help, Maya. Whatever it is, you shouldn’t have to bear the burden alone.”
“Well, it’s my job, so technically I do.” I gazed at the pinwheel spinning in my hand. These women were willing to go the distance in support of their friend. Yes, they gossiped, but they also watched each other’s backs. Why shouldn’t I trust them, at least with this particular problem?
Meemaw pulled open the chip bag and emptied the contents into a large wooden bowl. “You’re welcome to join us for Operation Decoration.”
“We’re bringing adult juice boxes,” Catherine added.
“That means alcohol,” Edith translated for me.
“I figured.” I felt myself relenting. “If I share this information with you, I need you all to swear a blood oath that you won’t repeat it.”
“Can we swear on each other’s lives or something?” Catherine asked. “Blood makes me squeamish.”
Meemaw gave an exasperated sigh. “Everyone raise your hand and repeat after me: I solemnly swear that I will not divulge, without permission, in any form of communication whatsoever, the information Maya August is about to reveal.”
The women repeated the pledge in a garbled fashion, missing or changing a few of the words and speaking at different speeds. Still, I appreciated the effort.
I sat on the sofa between Joan and Margie and, without naming him, told them about Stephen’s shadow.
“And this thing killed Darlene?” Catherine asked, resting her hand against her chest in horror.
“Yes, and now it wants to kill me. Obviously, I’m trying to avoid that outcome.”
Louise toyed with a pinwheel. “The owner of the shadow—are we sure he hasn’t made some kind of deal with dark spirits?”
“Your mind would go directly there, wouldn’t it?”
“Maybe the shadow is the tool he uses to perform dark deeds. That way he gets to keep his distance and proclaim his innocence,” Louise said. “The men I knew never took accountability for any of their misdeeds.”
“You think he sold his soul, and now it’s out there committing murder for funsies?”
She gave me a pointed look. “Have you met men?”
I shook my head. “I don’t think that’s our situation.
He has no reason to sell his soul.” I felt confident Stephen was telling the truth about his experiments.
He was a wizard with time and curiosity on his side.
It made perfect sense that he’d want to push the boundaries of the known world while he was still capable of it. Plus, he was lonely.
“If you tell me who the owner is,” Meemaw said, “I’ll tell you whether I think this is a Jekyll and Hyde situation.”
“Nice try, Meemaw. That information is confidential until the matter is resolved. At this point, I’m less concerned with the ‘why’ and more concerned with the ‘how do we stop it?’”
“What will you do if you capture it?” Bernice asked. “You’d need to have a room warded and ready to contain it.”
I dismissed the idea of Stephen’s closet. That hadn’t worked well so far. “I don’t know. I haven’t gotten that far yet.”
“I don’t envy your job, Maya,” Edith said. “Seems like a lot of work for very little reward.”
“Your safety is my reward.”
Margie gave me a knowing look. “Seems to me your safety is your reward, at least this time.”
Joan spun the pinwheel in her hand. “I have a thought.”
We all turned to look at her.