Chapter Six
Chapter Six
A s Sirena and Callie returned to the Caraway house, clutching their bags filled with their many purchases, one thing was clear: this year’s Harvest Festival lived up to the hype, with the rides, games, and food trucks. They’d returned from the festival talking about their plans to go back next Saturday and check out the hot apple cider truck.
“I’m glad we went together.” Callie gave Sirena a big smile. “I had fun.”
“So did I.” This day was pure nostalgia, with Sirena and Callie taking goofy pictures with a painted scarecrow and sharing a plate of sweet potato fries. Of course, she couldn’t forget Gus. She still had his coin. Its weight pulled down her cardigan pocket.
Callie lingered as if she wanted to add something.
“What’s up, sis?” Sirena said.
Callie stared at her. “I don’t want to bring down the mood, but I know things have been hard for you.”
Sirena clutched her tote bag to her chest, steadying herself for whatever Callie was going to say. Ah, of course. She was going to bring up the hard time. Last spring, Sirena finally found an investor looking for bold ideas and passionate chefs. Helena Kingsley, with her mermaid-beautiful hair, flawless skin, and designer clothes, spoke of how she had the perfect vision for Sirena’s restaurant. They picked out paint samples and made a whole concept board.
Helena even gifted her with a gold necklace.
For a while, Sirena believed that her wish was coming true and gave so much of herself in pursuit of that belief. She gave in to hope. In the end, Helena had not only taken Sirena’s money but had also stolen her idea book filled with her restaurant concepts.
Helena had disappeared with her hopes and dreams like a thief into the night. Everything was fake about Helena Kingsley; even the necklace was made of fool’s gold. Once Sirena confessed her financial situation to her family, everyone reacted differently, from Lucy’s fury to Ursula’s empathy to Alex’s support. Sirena heard nothing from Callie, who always had a sense of divining the future. The absence of her voice had added to Sirena’s uncertainty about herself, but she knew her sister was probably waiting for the best time to speak to her.
A strange, faintly eager look flashed in Callie’s eyes. “I have a good feeling. Things are going to get better.”
Sirena stood frozen once she heard those words. They stared at each other across the living room. Callie’s eyes clung to hers, gauging her reaction. Had her little sister detected the time spell, or was Sirena looking for someone to talk about her next steps?
Callie blinked and the look vanished. She lifted the heavier of the two bags. “These pumpkins aren’t going to bedazzle themselves. I’m in the kitchen if you need me.”
Sirena stood there for a moment, letting Callie’s words comfort her. Things were going to get better if she made better choices. If she fought against fate. It was research time. She went upstairs to her bedroom and settled with a large bag of kettle corn, a notepad, and a pen on her bed. She checked her phone one last time for any deliveries from Empty Fridge, then put it on silent. Sirena cued up Groundhog Day , the only time loop movie she could find on streaming. As Phil the weatherman kept repeating the same day and romancing his producer, Rita, Sirena scribbled down a few notes about her situation.
You are both in a time loop.
He’s repeating a day; you’re repeating the whole month.
Phil had many, many times to fix things.
You have one chance [as far as you know].
Sirena underlined the last line. If she was going to change her fate, then she had to make the best choices and stick to them. She laughed at Phil’s antics and repeated the iconic lines. When it came to the diner scene, where Phil pointed out everything he noticed about Rita, Sirena grew uncomfortable. She paused the movie once Phil finished his speech to his love interest. Had she ever known or loved a man so intimately that she knew his childhood fears, his dreams, and his plans? She racked her brain but couldn’t come up with a name.
Hmm. Had she ever been in love? Like, true end-of-the-storybook, happily-ever-after love?
Sirena mentally stopped herself from going down that rabbit hole. She had to focus on one issue at a time. Callie popped into her room.
“Si, have you seen the glitter? I ran out of rhinestones!”
Sirena flipped over the notepad to hide her list. “Check the craft drawer.”
Callie approached the bed. “Oooh, movie night! What are we watching? I love a good scary movie.” She watched the movie playing on the laptop for a beat. Her mouth twitched with humor. “Are you watching Groundhog Day in October?”
“Uh, I was in the mood for a fantasy romantic comedy,” she said.
“Okay. Why?”
Sirena’s other hand paused over the bag of kettle corn as she considered Callie’s inquiry. If she told Callie about the time loop, then she’d have to explain why she was in the loop in the first place, and she wasn’t ready to have that talk.
From what she could tell, Callie and Lucy had a great October the first time around, and Sirena didn’t want her brand-new wish to mess up their perfect lives. Her gut twisted in guilt about casting another wish spell without telling her witchy family, but she had to walk this path alone.
“I was in a fun mood,” she said.
Callie gave her an amused glance. “I’ll leave you alone. Enjoy your movie.”
She walked out, singing to herself. Sirena let out a sigh of relief and closed the movie window. She’d have to be a little more discreet with her time-loop investigation.
Maybe there was a note about time loops in the Caraway spellbook.
No one would question a kitchen witch looking at a spellbook. Sirena went downstairs and over to the bookshelf on the far wall. She took out a thick tome, which had a brown leather cover, two ribbon markers, and a symbol embossed on the front. Her fingers traced the cover’s etched symbol, and it glowed under her attention. She smiled fondly and recalled Nana’s stories about the casters and conjurers who came before them. Each heart represents our ancestors Lucinda Mae and Jacob’s four children—Jacob Junior, George, Daniel, and Lula, who were born free and blessed. They were her four heartbeats. She taught them her magic, they taught their children the magic, until it was passed down to us. Remember, my love, you are made of magic.
She brought the book over to the living room table. Carefully, she eased the spellbook open and searched through the pages, until she finally located the tea-stained page. It had a drawing of an hourglass that was never empty and filled with sand.
Neat writing outlined the rules behind time loops. Sirena scanned the page.
She read the words out loud to make sure she wasn’t missing anything.
Most time loops last the span of twenty-four hours; some loops can repeat an entire year. One can break or interrupt the loop by fulfilling the promise, wish, or purpose of the loop. Take care to learn from the past, or be bound to repeat it.
Uh, okay. Sirena became lost in thought, biting her thumbnail.
If she failed, would she be trapped to repeat October forever? Magic was unpredictable and didn’t always play by the rules. Cold alarm went through her body, threatening to steal her breath. Sirena might have liked pumpkin spice, but she liked drinking it once a year, not for an entire lifetime. She noticed a final line at the bottom of the page written in Nana’s distinct script.
Don’t wish away your time; carefully time your wishes.
She read that line over twice; the alarm morphed into a glow of hope. This loop was about making the most of the time she’d been gifted. She wasn’t going to spend this second chance grinding and hustling herself in the wrong direction. When was the last time she called off work and just let go? Sirena thought about everything she loved about this season. Walking around in an oversized cozy sweatshirt and leggings, listening to the leaves crunch under her boots. Eating a jumbo chocolate bar and drinking out of a pumpkin-decorated tumbler on the porch. Watching the ghosts and gnomes frolic in the Grove. Maybe, just maybe, she’d catch the eye of a handsome creature who wanted to spend the night together and keep away the dark.
It was time. Change those six events and change her fate.
First she had to leave Empty Fridge. Sirena pulled her phone from her pocket and held down her finger on the Empty Fridge app. A little menu popped up, and she clicked on the “Delete App” option. The logo vanished from the screen. Her stomach jumped in nervousness.
No Empty Fridge job, no rolled ankle, and no broken phone. She had a little money to help float her for the next few weeks, and she was going to focus on herself.
She was on hiatus from her life. What was she going to do this time around?
Open my heart to good things. Reclaim my kitchen magic. Have fun again.
Lately, she hadn’t felt like she was living up to her kitchen witch legacy. Nana had personally trained her to pick up the wooden spoon and even gifted her a notebook covered with woodland creatures. Nana taught her the kitchen witch rules, which she devotedly followed to this day. Sirena hadn’t picked up her spatula in a while, feeling bored whenever she thought about taking out her stock pot. She used to have fun stirring up a bubbling soup or creating a new dish with whatever she found in the pantry. That sense of dismay began to build within her, clouding her eyes with impending tears.
No. She mentally pushed that feeling down and wiped her eyes.
Sirena scanned down to Nana’s words.
“Time your wishes,” she said. Her voice had a new strength to it that she hadn’t heard in weeks. This time around, Sirena was going to come up with brand-new recipes and protect herself.
If Sirena had any chance at landing that Lighthouse job, then she needed to get her spark back and cook her behind off. She didn’t want to bother Lucy or Callie with her magically inclined problems, but she needed someone she could trust. Sirena looked over at Ember poking out of her tote bag on the couch. The plushie’s button eyes seemed to twinkle, reminding her of the cute magician who won her. A sudden thought jumped up from the back of Sirena’s mind.
What if you asked Gus to help you have fun?
She and Gus had a lot in common—they were both from magic-rooted families, were both water signs, and were relatively successful in their careers. Well, she used to be successful, while Gus, according to the Dearworth family’s website, was taking an extended hiatus from his performance career. Rumor had it that the Dearworths hid in plain sight, pretending their stage magic was fake when it was completely real. Sirena used to watch his family’s reality hit show, Dealing with the Dearworths , whenever she couldn’t sleep at night. There was something comforting about watching the dysfunctional, lovable family of magicians who entertained, loved, and feuded in Las Vegas. The Dearworths were no strangers to magical drama—but they were more glamorous. They were more outlandish. They were freaking fun.
The Caraways were no strangers to drama, either, but according to Nana, instead of hiding their skeletons, the witches invited them to tea and fed them coffee cake. She saw no point in keeping secrets from anyone or feeling shame for their beliefs.
People were going to dislike them whether they danced under the full moon or didn’t, so they might as well dance freely. A sting of frustration went through her as she tried to remember the last time she danced in the moonlight. Sirena couldn’t remember, and this thought didn’t just make her uncomfortable. It made her furious. She wanted to reclaim her sense of fun.
It was decided. She was going to ask Gus to help her get her magic mojo back, or at least get her creative, fun juices flowing. Besides, what was the worst that could happen? Her overactive mind answered with a quickness that left her thunderstruck. Well, you could accidentally trip and fall and make sweaty love to Gus, then cook him scrambled eggs.
She froze, momentarily stunned by her carnal thoughts. Huh. The worst thing she could think about sounded a little too appealing. Whatever. The man once had pet tigers. Sirena didn’t like when pigeons got too close to her.
She was probably too boring for someone as exciting as Gus.
No matter what, she was going to need a safe place to hold her thoughts, to-do lists, and goals while she was on this wild trip. Sirena went back up to her bedroom. She searched her bookshelf, looking through half-filled journals, sticky-note-covered cookbooks, and recipe cards. Wistfulness lifted her spirits with every old note and paper she unearthed, connecting the pieces of her discarded dreams together into a big pile. Eventually Sirena found the softcover notebook with the drawing of a fox dancing in a woody area. It was Nana’s last present to Sirena, and she’d been saving it for a special moment, yearning to fill it with her plans to return to New York. Years passed, and the notebook remained blank. She hesitated to open the gift, torn by conflicting emotions.
Sirena laughed. “You just traveled through time. That’s kind of special.”
She plucked a pen from her desk and opened to the This Book Belongs to inner page.
Doubt whispered in her head. You could fall on your face. You could do all this work and still fail. She pushed through those doubts and wrote her name in the blank space. If Sirena was going to fall, then she was going to have fun on the way down to the ground.