Chapter 17
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
When I awoke the following morning, it was to the gentle tugging of my hair.
“Leave me alone,” I murmured groggily, swatting at Narcissa. “I’ll feed you in ten minutes.”
This only made the tugging more insistent, and I opened my eyes, ready to issue a sharp rebuke.
But rather than staring up into the amused eyes of a black cat who thought the biggest offense in the world was food arriving late, I found a rotting face breathing foul miasma into my hair, as Xander eagerly gummed my scalp.
I may have screamed, but it was a justified reaction to finding a zombie chomping merrily away on one’s body.
“You’re going to scare him,” Therese accused, frowning.
I shoved myself away from Xander and stared at the dead-eyed man, mouth hanging open, drool leaking in thick puddles from his mouth.
I was bewildered by the encounter but paused after I’d regained my wits.
Did Xander have … pink ribbons in his hair?
Each tuft of hair clinging to his head had been carefully tied up so that it looked like he was covered in spikes. He also had … rouge on his cheeks?
“Xander cannot eat your brains,” Therese reminded me. “He’s just being silly. He doesn’t have teeth.”
“Yes, silly,” I said, running a hand down my face. A trickle of liquid ran down onto my forehead and I wrinkled my nose in disgust as I swiped it away. I would need to hold my head in a boiling cauldron for at least ten minutes before I felt clean.
“What is it?” Erik asked, charging into the room with a candlestick he brandished like a weapon.
He frowned when he noticed Xander ambling across the room and stepped out of the zombie’s way.
Xander walked headfirst into the door frame, then slunk out the door.
Erik lifted an eyebrow at me. “I was going to say you screamed loud enough to wake the dead, but it looks like there was no need. The dead was already up and about.”
“Ha-ha,” I said, crossing my arms. I turned to inform Therese, “You could have woken me.”
“Oh, he was being so good and still,” Therese said, hopping to the floor, her little frog legs propelling her to impressive heights. “But did you see? Did you see?”
“See what?” I asked.
“Xander’s makeover! I did it myself.” Her throat bobbed proudly as she settled near the door.
“It was lovely,” I assured her. “Really brings out his eyes.”
Erik frowned. “He barely has eyes.”
“Then clearly you were so busy admiring Therese’s makeover that you didn’t notice them.”
Lexi walked into the room, looking back up the hall, preoccupied. “Did you notice anything different about Xander this morning?” she asked.
“I think he did something with his hair,” I said, and Therese giggled. I looked beyond her, into the hallway. “How is Freya doing?”
Lexi sighed. “The damage to her arm was extensive. As much as I would like to, I can’t give life where there is none.”
I winced. “She lost the arm?”
“She did.”
“A shame,” Erik sniffed. “Good thing she has a spare.”
I looked at him. “You are … why are you still here? Shouldn’t you be scuttling into the shadows like a cockroach?”
“You wound me,” Erik said sarcastically, placing a hand over his heart. “I merely wanted to give you this.” He handed me a slip of paper with an address and a name.
“What is it?” I asked, frowning down at the note.
“The address of a ship in the docks that will take you to America. I’m a very affluent man, Callum. A good person to have on your side, and I always pay my debts.”
I doubted that very much, but I was happy to have a ship to take us to our destination. “Thank you,” I said, waiting for the catch.
But Erik only nodded. “I’ll be off then. Perhaps we’ll run into each other again one day. Perhaps very soon.”
“Let’s hope not,” I said, grinning. I put out a hand and shook his, nevertheless. He had done me a favor, after all. “Safe travels.”
“To you as well,” he said. He nodded to Lexi. “Thank you for the bed. It was only mildly lumpy.” He walked out of the room, whistling under his breath.
Lexi tilted her head as we watched him go. “It was odd having a man who deals death under my roof.”
“I’m sorry to have imposed on you.”
She put a hand on my arm. “No, no. It’s never any trouble hosting you and your friends. I’m only sorry I couldn’t do more for Freya. But her wound is healed, and she’s nearly recovered.”
“Thank you,” I said, placing a hand over hers.
“Of course.” Her eyes flicked to mine. “And you?”
“Good as new. I hope Auggie isn’t too tired from all the energy you’ve been siphoning from him.”
Lexi waved a dismissive hand. “He had a good night’s rest. He’ll be fine.”
“And his ankle?”
She hesitated. “I strengthened it, but a magical wound like that will take time to completely heal. He might still have some trouble, but I’m certain it’s free of any toxins. He just needs to remain careful on it.”
“Thank you, Lexi. I know you’re doing your best.”
“I’m not a miracle worker. Gods know you’ve put me to the test.”
We descended to the first floor, and Lexi left me to see to Freya.
It was early yet, but since I felt refreshed, I took the opportunity to step outside to meditate in Lexi’s garden and refill the magic stores in my orb.
I closed the door behind me, then paused as I noted Narcissa slinking up the walk ahead of me.
“And where were you while my brain was nearly gummed straight out of my head?” I asked, hands on hips.
Narcissa sat back and cocked her head. “Oh, I would have liked to see that.”
“I’m sure you would have.”
Narcissa’s tail swished behind her. “But, if you must know, I was being a very resourceful familiar.”
I lifted an eyebrow. “Go on.”
Rather than say more, she turned tail, and I followed her up the path and around the garden, before she stopped at an old tree. She leapt over to a thick branch that had fallen to the ground, resting in a bed of leaves.
I sighed. “You found a nest of squirrels? That’s more a cat thing than a familiar thing.”
Narcissa sounded exasperated, “No. This branch is perfect for you to construct a new broom.”
I blinked. “A new … broom?”
A deep sigh escaped Narcissa. “Must I think of everything? You need a new one, or you leave yourself vulnerable.” Her eyes darted to Lexi’s house. “And I think we’ve been vulnerable enough, don’t you? We need every advantage to see this through.”
The branch did appear thick and sturdy. I would need oil of bamboo and …
well, blood of a virgin. I supposed I could have Narcissa use a portal to teleport back to the shop to retrieve some goblin bowels.
I nodded. “Right, then.” I wasn’t confident that I could do this on such short notice and so unprepared, but Narcissa was correct. I needed any advantage I could get.
And so, I spent the day behind Lexi’s toolshed, singing to the branch as I whittled it down to the appropriate size and shape.
When Lexi realized what I was doing, she tracked down some tough straw for the end.
Once I had the base of the broom to my liking, I began to oil it with the potion, pouring my energy into it as I sang, bonding with the broom so that it would recognize me and my commands.
By the time I was through, I was exhausted.
I’d had to meditate multiple times to refill my energy, but at least I had a broom again.
I stared at the handle; oil had turned the wood reddish.
I didn’t have time for anything fancy. No sparkling colors.
I did take the time to give it a coat of invisibility beneath it however, just in case.
Every advantage, after all. But it was an …
ugly thing. A little lopsided, with rough grain work. But it was done.
I smiled lightly as I held it up and inspected it.
“It’s rather hideous,” Narcissa said.
I sighed, then nodded my agreement. It was also a little on the small side too, but I hadn’t had the time to plan it out more.
I still felt a kinship with it and felt its pull toward me.
It would be a good broom, nonetheless. I would like to think my parents might be proud of this, as shoddy as it was.
This was the first I’d completed without their supervision.
After a good night’s sleep, I decided that a bit of normalcy would do me some good given the past few harried days.
My body had clearly needed to rest, so after sleeping in until past noon, I made my way downstairs.
I dumped out the pot of tea that Xander made as soon as he shambled from the kitchen and gave the kettle a good scrubbing before I remade one myself.
Then I took a seat at the dining room table.
Sunshine poured into the room. I closed my eyes, basking in the start of the day.
I could almost imagine the trying days I’d endured were nothing but a dream.
At least after yesterday, I felt at full strength again, with my pod restored and a broom back in hand.
“Good afternoon.”
My heart did a somersault in my chest as I looked up to find Auggie standing in the doorway of the dining room, looking anywhere but at me.
“Come join me,” I said, standing. “I made tea.”
He squinted at the tea tray. “You made it?”
I put a hand over my heart. “The zombie was nowhere near it.”
“Oh, good. Then I would love a cup.”
He took a seat beside me, and I poured the tea into a porcelain teacup, the scent of jasmine and blood orange rising with the steam. I watched him take a sip, his eyebrows lifting. “It’s very good,” he said.
“Why do you sound surprised?” I asked, snorting. “I run a potion shop, you know. I handle herbs all day long.”
He shifted. “That’s the thing. I know so little about you, and what little you have told me has been lies and half-truths.”