Chili Cauldron Curse. Lynn Cahoon
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she could dear.” Grans looked over at the woman who stood by the door with Pricilla. “And her heart was in the right place.”
“I know. I’m tired. And grumpy. And starving. And all I want is a bath.” Mia sat the pasta on the shelf and looked at her grandmother. “What? I know that look. What did I say wrong? Don’t tell me you invited people over tonight.”
Grans took her arm and patted it as they walked. “Of course not. The party isn’t until Friday night. We’ve got too much to do before then. It’s just that you’re going to have to settle for a shower. My tub is filled with a potion I’m trying out.”
“You made a potion in your bathtub?” Mia rubbed the side of her face. She was almost afraid to go home with Grans. Who knew what other experiments she’d find growing in the house?
“Don’t look at me like that. It’s not one you ingest, it’s completely topical.” Grans rolled her eyes. “Sometimes dear, you treat me like I’m a senile old lady or something.”
Mia bit her lip, trying not to remind her grandmother that she might not be senile, but she was old. Instead, she changed the subject. “Thanks for letting me bring Mr. Darcy. He and Isaac just don’t get along.”
“Mr. Darcy is welcome anytime. It will be nice having a cat around the house. I’ve been lonely since Grey left last winter. I’ve been thinking of calling for another familiar, but I’m still heartbroken.” Grans sniffed. “It’s hard to replace someone who was in your life for over twenty years.”
“I know.” Mia decided that one thing she would do before she left was take Grans to the local shelter. If she saw a cat, she wouldn’t be able to stop herself from falling in love with it. And Mia didn’t like to think about Grans being alone up here.
“Stop worrying about me. I can feel it coming off you in waves. I’m surprised you didn’t bring Gloria.” Her grandmother paused when they reached the door.
Gloria was Mia’s kitchen witch doll that she’d had since she was a child. She felt the call of the doll across the miles as she thought about her. “I really wasn’t planning on doing any spells here. I didn’t think I’d need her.”
Her grandmother glanced around the warehouse, making it clear that she, too, knew exactly what magic Mia had performed.
Tasha interrupted the moment before Grans could say anything. “Thank you for coming today. I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t been here.”
Grans leaned over and kissed Tasha on the cheek. “Did Pricilla already leave? I didn’t even get to say goodbye.”
“You and Pricilla are only okay together in short spurts. I’m surprised no one sniped at the other since we were in the office for more than a few minutes.” Tasha leaned in and kissed Mia on the cheek. “Thanks for all you’ve done today. I hate to make you come back tomorrow.”
“You’re not making me. I want to come.” Mia smiled and nodded to the stacks. “I’ll be here at eight if that’s not too early.”
“Here’s the extra key.” Tasha handed Mia a single door key on a piece of yellow yarn. “You come and go whenever you like.”
“Thanks.” Mia moved toward the door, following Grans. “My—friend will be here tomorrow to help.”
When they got outside, Grans paused at her car door and looked at Mia. “You almost called Christina something else. Like your sister-in-law? Don’t tell me this thing with Isaac is actually serious.”
“I thought you liked him?” Mia stared at her, sadness almost overwhelming her. She was tired. That’s all. That’s why she felt like she was going to burst into tears at any moment.
“It’s time you accepted that Isaac isn’t the one. You’d be better off with a rodeo clown or a sanitation worker, or even a too-busy real estate mogul, not that there’s anything wrong with any of those professions. He’s just not your soul mate.” Grans climbed into her Mini Cooper. “I’ll see you at the house. I’ll make you a cup of tea so you can relax.”
Mia watched her grandmother’s car as it left the small parking lot. She’d never heard Grans say a bad word about Isaac. Now, he’s not the one? Shaking her head, she moved to her car. The distance between her and Isaac suddenly seemed even wider. If Grans didn’t believe in them, how could she ever expect them to make it?
She pushed the thoughts away as she climbed wearily into her car. All she needed right now was a bath. No, shower first, she corrected herself. Then food. Then sleep.
Tomorrow would be better.
Chapter 2
Mia left Mr. Darcy curled on her bed and Grans in her yoga studio. She’d called Isaac as soon as she’d gotten out of the shower but had to leave a message. So far, she hadn’t received a call back from him. After her grandmother’s pronouncement, Mia was getting a little nervous about the lack of contact. Especially since the restaurant was closed last night. She’d expected to find him home, watching pre-season football, but maybe he’d gone down to the local pub to watch with his buddies, taking advantage of the free night since she was out of town.
Or, she brightened, Isaac had probably been over at his mother’s, since Christina had come in from Vegas yesterday. Mia didn’t know the whys behind Christina dumping her college plans to try her luck as a dancer in the casino-heavy city, but she’d heard that the girl hadn’t been able to make it work. Coming home with her tail between her legs and having to listen to her mother tell her “I told you so” couldn’t be easy. Maybe Isaac had been there to support his sister.
And maybe not. Mia sighed as she opened the door. The smell was back. She’d either missed a box of rotting potatoes or her magic spell had only located one problem. Which was the problem with magic. The more focused a spell, the better its chances of actually working. But, you also could miss things. Today she’d find the problem the old-fashioned way. By following her nose.
It only took thirty minutes for her to find, bag, and clean the offending rotting produce. By the time she’d returned from her last dumpster drop, Tasha had arrived and was working in the office. Mia poked her head inside. “Sorry about the smell. I thought I’d gotten everything cleaned up yesterday.”
“It seems to happen a lot in the summer. I should be more careful about keeping tabs on when donations come in.” Tasha sank into her leather chair with a squeak. “I didn’t know you were here already. I thought I’d forgotten to lock the doors again. I’m getting so scatterbrained.”
“Nope, it was just me.” Mia paused at the doorway, studying the pale and gaunt woman. “Are you okay? You don’t look well.”
“I’m afraid I’m pushing myself too fast after the surgery. I just wanted the food bank open before the start of school next week. Sometimes what I provide is all the food in these kids’ house.” Now Tasha did look worn out.
“I know. I do a lot of work with the local soup kitchen in Boise as well as the food bank, and it seems like the need goes up every year. And the number of kids going hungry has tripled.” Mia glanced at her watch. “My friend should be here by ten and I’m thinking we’ll make a big dent in this today.”
“I’ve got people from Mary Alice’s organization coming in later today to help you. I hate to see you working by yourself so much. You’re such a lovely young woman.” Tasha picked up a card. “Here it is. Kev from the Magic Springs Society for Magical Realism called and said he and his group of volunteers will be here right after lunch. My, that sounds like one of those groups that get together to play that role-playing game, Ditches and Dragons?”
“Yes, yes it does.” Mia grimaced. Better for Tasha to think it was just nerds looking for a way to give back than know that the Society was the local coven. Magic Springs might be more open and welcoming to differences than most Idaho small towns, but they were still in a conservative part of the country. Even