Chapter 19
Chapter nineteen
Cosmo’s whiskers twitched as he supervised me when I was storing away the grimoire and the notebook in my suitcase. He circled them as I added a cloaking spell. A similar magic had worked for Fay, who was less adept than I was, and without a familiar to give her support.
I flopped onto the bed. We’d done all we could.
Genie had offered to take care of the food for tonight, so I decided to save our picnic basket for our return trip tomorrow and instead bring a bottle of champagne and an assortment of chocolate truffles. For Cosmo I had a tin of tuna.
I needn’t have bothered. Genie and Adriana had something much better for him, a fresh serving of rabbit.
“Our cat at home loves it,” Adriana said with so much longing in her voice that Cosmo stopped eating and flung himself at her feet.
Her face lit up when I brought out the champagne. “Giggle water!”
Genie grimaced. “Let’s at least wait until we’ve eaten.”
We’d found the perfect spot by the water to spread our blanket. Genie and I heaped our plates with sandwiches, nachos, and assorted dips. Soft music played in the background.
A crow circled over our heads. It dropped something from its beak. A piece of quartz landed next to me. It measured at least an inch. The crow landed on the blanket and cawed, with its gaze fixed first on me and then on Cosmo.
“It says thank you, and you’re to keep the gift,” Adriana whispered.
The crow took off again. I palmed the quartz. “Do you have any clue what that was about?”
“You saved one of theirs. Crows share information, and they act on it. Hurt one crow and you’re in trouble. Help one, and you might end up with a murder of new friends.” Cosmo sniffed at the quartz. “That’s a generous gift.”
“Pretend I’ve forgotten what its properties are.”
“Notice the golden hue. This is a spirit quartz. It’ll assist you with your spiritual growth, help protect you, and it will magnify your energy and good intentions.”
“Wow.” I stashed the quartz away in my purse.
“What about the giggle water?” Adriana asked. “And I want to dance.”
“Champagne’s coming up.” I uncorked the bottle and filled two tumblers, before the liquid could overflow.
Genie took one. “One drop, and one noseful,” she said to her great-great-aunt. She held out her glass.
“Don’t drip on me.” Cosmo nudged me. I hastened to hold my glass upright and took a sip. The champagne tickled my nose.
I took another sip. The sun sank behind the trees.
“Don’t dawdle,” Adriana admonished me.
“You better listen to her.” Genie held out her hand to pull me up. “Have you ever danced Charleston?”
I goggled at her.
“Just go with it and consider yourself lucky that you have an expert teacher.” She cranked up the volume, and sure enough, “Yes, We Have No Bananas” spurred Adriana into action. Genie fell in, kicking her legs, shuffling, twisting, and having a ball.
“What are you waiting for?” Cosmo curled up to watch, fascinated.
I allowed Genie to grab my hands and demonstrate the basic steps. A few minutes later, I found myself dancing Charleston with the wild abandon of a Ziegfeld girl, minus the grace and the period dress.
Adriana made more than up for that. Her one noseful of champagne had become a regular sniff between dances, until she was tipsy enough to float up onto a tree and swing from its highest branch.
Cosmo forgot his dignity and rolled around in the grass.
The moon shone bright in the sky, and the air had turned chilly, when we finally decided to finish our night out.
“You know what I’d do with the quartz the crow gave you?” Genie asked on our way back to town.
“Keep it safe.”
“I’d use it to create a pendant and pair of earrings, like a magical talisman that also looks pretty. A simple design would work great for you, long enough to be glimpsed through your blue hair, but nothing elaborate.”
“That’s an idea,” I said cautiously.
“I can draw it for you. Or make them and send you the finished jewelry.”
I had another, better idea. “If I send you photos of my girlfriends, would you be able to come up with four rings to suit us?”
“No problem.”
We arrived at the B&B. With a sleeping Cosmo in my arm, I climbed out.
Genie got out too. “I’d hug you but then I’d wake your kitty.” She pecked me on the cheek. “Thanks for everything. And send me the pictures.”
“I will. When are you leaving?”
“Directly after breakfast. So, this is goodbye.”
“Good luck with your search.”
She glanced at her car, where her still tipsy great-great-aunt crooned “I Get A Kick Out Of You”. “Have you ever wished for something and dreaded it at the same time?” she said in a soft voice.
“Why?”
“I don’t know what’s going to happen when we find that necklace.”
“I thought you said it might lead to solving Adriana’s murder.”
Genie sighed. “It might also make her disappear. She only materialized when I came back to Cobblewood Cove. She loves her afterlife, and I love having her around but --”
“You wonder if you’re enough?”
“She deserves to be happy. Yet that ghost crow really made me think about the fact that maybe I’m the selfish one and my great-great-aunt would be better off crossing over for good.”
Adriana belted out the chorus, in blissful oblivion.
No wonder Genie was torn. “The crow was trapped, and it fought against being misused. Your spunky ghost is nothing like that. Whatever happens, just make the most of your life with her while it lasts.” I pressed Cosmo closer. “Like I make the most of every day with him.”
A raindrop hit my nose. “I need to get him inside. Take care, I said.”
“You’re right. Bye, Bex. Bye, Cosmo Merlin de Beaufort.” She blew us a kiss.