Chapter 38
Gideon almost winced as Sabrina’s fingers tightened over his. He’d never realized she had such a grip.
“You didn’t,” Amelia breathed out.
He nodded, more than willing to take the full force of her anger if it meant protecting Sabrina. “I did.”
She closed her mouth and stared at him. He couldn’t tell if she was about to cry or destroy him with magic. The woman was inscrutable.
Then she tipped her head back and laughed.
Laughed.
He checked on Sabrina, who had a terrified, deer-in-headlights look about her.
Amelia sipped her tea. “My dear boy, that is remarkable.”
“It is?” He honestly had no idea what was going on.
“I purchased that music box for the sole purpose of releasing the sprite, but all the research I did led me to believe that wouldn’t be possible until the box was fully restored. The fact that you already did it is wonderful. Honestly, I’m impressed.”
That was not at all what he’d been expecting. “Then you should probably know I just lied to you. Sabrina freed the sprite, not me. I just didn’t want her to get into trouble for it.”
Amelia’s smile widened. “Aren’t you the chivalrous gentleman?” She nodded at Sabrina. “Thank you for releasing the sprite. Was he all right? Was he very angry? I suppose I would have been after all those years.”
“He was a bit mad,” Sabrina said. “But we’ve been helping him experience the world. We had ice cream and went to that little jazz club on Fiddler Street and—well, you probably don’t want to hear all of that.”
“No, I do,” Amelia assured her. “Ever since my Pasqual was released from his own enchantment, I’ve had a soft spot in my heart for such things. Tell me more.”
Sabrina gave Gideon a quick look, then went on. “His name is Korrin. He’s a little mischievous—”
“Sprites usually are,” Amelia said with a chuckle.
“He loves Western TV shows and riding my cat around like a horse, and we took him to meet Seymour—”
“Oh, Seymour,” Amelia exclaimed. “How is he? I must get out there to visit him. It’s been ages. And Thoreau loves a good swim.”
“He’s good. Really nice. I promised him I’d bring him some pie, which I really need to do. We also gave Korrin a birthday party since he’d never had one.”
Amelia reached out and put her hand on Sabrina’s knee. “What a kind soul you are. Thank you for doing all of that for him.”
“You’re welcome.”
Amelia sat back. “He’ll need a place to stay and a way to support himself. I’ll reach out to a few people I know and see what I can do.”
Sabrina shrugged. “He’s welcome to stay with me. And he can work for me, too. He’s really good at fixing things. I can’t pay him what he’s worth yet, but I don’t mind giving him free room and board.”
“You’d do that?”
Sabrina nodded. “If he’s interested. He’s staying with Gideon at the moment. Korrin got a little mad at me when he thought I was trying to get him back in the box. I wasn’t, I swear, but he thought that’s what was going on.”
“I see. Well, if you need—why can’t you pay him what he’s worth?”
That erased the happiness right off Sabrina’s face. “My shop doesn’t get a lot of business yet. I just put an ad in the Vale Messenger, and that’s helping, so I’m sure things will change soon.”
“That’s good to hear. Also reminds me that I need to pay you. Beckett?”
The butler came in with another silver tray. This one held an ivory envelope. He held it out to Sabrina. She took it.
“You’ll find it’s all there,” Amelia said.
“Thank you.” Sabrina tucked the envelope into the tote.
“Is there anything else I can do for you?” Amelia asked.
Gideon squeezed Sabrina’s hand, hoping she understood by his nudge that they should leave while things were good.
Sabrina let go of his hand. “There is one thing I need some advice about.”
Amelia’s face became all business. “If I can help, I will. What is it?”
“What do you know about removing a curse?”
Gideon froze. In that moment, he wished he could disappear. “It’s fine,” he whispered, hoping only Sabrina had heard him.
“What kind of curse?” Amelia asked. “There are many in this town and not much my magic can do about them, unfortunately.”
“This one was placed on a family, the men in particular, but it’s attached to an object. It’s been passed down through the generations and creates unbelievably bad luck for the people it affects. Sometimes to the point of injury or seriously dangerous situations.”
“That does sound dreadful. You’re sure the curse is attached to the object?”
“Yes,” Sabrina said. “I can sense broken or damaged things. The curse is in the object. I’d bet my life on it.”
“Well,” Amelia said. “We can’t have that.” She picked up her cup and sipped her tea, reminding Gideon that he had coffee waiting on him.
He drank it while Amelia thought. Behind her, the fire crackled and the tiger snored.
At last, she set her cup down. “Curses attached to objects, especially for any length of time, are stubborn things. The curse seeps into the object, often making them inseparable. With enough time, the curse and the object essentially become one.”
He sighed. He’d been so hoping to save the clock. Not because he wanted it for himself. He was more than happy to get rid of it. But the clock was valuable. He could easily sell it to a collector and send the money to his mother. Or fund some more ads for Sabrina. Or even help Korrin out.
Amelia tented her fingers in front of her chest. “I believe your best bet would be to locate the book within the Enchanted Forest and write down the name of the person affected by this curse. That’s the only way to pull the curse from the object.
Remove its focus, and the curse will vanish.
” She held one hand up. “I know the book is difficult to find, but it can be done. Sometimes with the help of friends.”
He wasn’t sure what that meant. He didn’t have any friends, outside of Sabrina. He frowned. “I’ve looked for the book before. The curse makes it nearly impossible.”
Amelia’s mouth bent in an enigmatic smile. “Have you looked with friends or alone?”
“Alone.” He wouldn’t dare subject anyone else to such a thing.
“Then you know what you need to do.”
He was about to argue he had no idea what he needed to do when the tiger sat up and blinked in his direction.
Amelia looked at the beast and smiled. “Ready for your breakfast, Thoreau?”
Beckett returned. “Ma’am, Pasqual is awake and will be down shortly.”
“Let Cook know.” Amelia stood. “Thank you for your work on the music box, both of you. I wish you the best of luck in your search for the book.”
Beckett stood at the sitting room door, waiting.
Sabrina and Gideon made their way out, neither of them speaking again until they were in her car.
Gideon snorted. “The best of luck. If I had any kind of luck, I wouldn’t be dealing with this curse. How on earth does she think I’m going to be able to find that book? I’ve been out there, several times. None of them fruitful. Obviously.”
“I’ll help you look.” Sabrina pulled out of the driveway and got back onto the street. “That’s basically what she was telling us to do. To look together.”
“My trips to the Enchanted Forest have resulted in insect stings, plant rashes, and two broken ribs. You really don’t want to go with me.”
“Yes, I do. None of that sounds fun, but if we can find that book, it’ll be worth it. We can’t ignore the advice Amelia gave us. She wouldn’t have told us what to do if it wasn’t going to work.”
“You have more faith than I do.”
“I’m also less cranky than you.” She grinned. “Do I get points for that?”
“You get points for being willing to let the sprite live with you, I’ll say that.”
“He might not want to. He seems pretty content at your place.”
“He won’t be when he finds out I don’t have cable.”
Sabrina made a face. “No Westerns, huh? He won’t like that. Maybe we should stop by your place and tell him the news.”
Gideon could only imagine the havoc that creature could wreak in the short time he’d been alone. “I’m fine with that.”
She turned toward his house. “I know you’re unhappy about the outcome, but please let’s try to find the book.”
He sighed. He didn’t like the idea of that at all.
“Please,” she repeated. “And you have to promise me you’re not going to disappear on me, either.”
Moving still felt mostly like the right thing. But getting rid of his curse would be life-changing. “I’ll think about it.”
“Don’t you mean you’ll think about both of those things?”
She was persistent, he’d give her that. “I’ll think about both of them.”
“Thinking is good. Better than a flat-out no.”
A few minutes later she pulled into his driveway. Smoke trickled out of the kitchen window.