Spells A La Carte (Mystic Cafe Series Book 3) Read online

  “I was walking,” he said. Of course he offered no further explanation for his actions. I had to tell him what had happened.

  After sharing Henry’s account of what had happened, I wasn’t prepared for what Tom did next. He reached out and hugged me. At first I resisted because his actions had taken me so off guard.

  When he released me, I asked, “Why did you do that?”

  “You looked like you needed it.”

  I guessed he was right. I was sad and disappointed about what I had just discovered. I hadn’t thought Tom was the type to hug though. Not that I hadn’t enjoyed it. What would happen now? I knew that Tom would want to confront Rory. I wasn’t sure I wanted to be around for that.

  After opening the door and entering, I turned to face Tom. “So you didn’t tell me why you’re here. Did you come for breakfast?”

  “That’s not a bad idea, but no, that’s not why I came here,” he said.

  I didn’t like the sound of his voice. It was the tone I’d gotten every time he was giving me bad news. I walked over to the counter. “Maybe I should go ahead and have a seat now.” I plopped down on one of the stools.

  He gave me a pitying smile that said good idea.

  I released a deep breath and then said, “You might as well give me the news.”

  Tom moved behind the counter, grabbed a glass and poured water. I assumed he was getting himself a glass of water, but instead he placed the glass in front of me.

  “The news is that bad, huh?” I asked.

  He leaned back against the wall and crossed his arms in front of his chest. “No, you just looked like you might need a drink.”

  “I’ll probably need a drink, but it would need to be stronger than water.”

  Tom chuckled.

  “Okay, just give me the news. Let’s get it over with,” I said.

  He looked right at me and said, “The man I kicked out of here has been damaging other places in town.”

  “Wow, I can’t say that I’m surprised. But I was expecting much worse news.”

  His expression changed.

  “There’s more, isn’t there?” I asked.

  Tom nodded. “He claims that his behavior is because of you. He said you gave him a spell in the food he got here.”

  I snorted. My stomach twisted into a knot. “How did he know? I mean, what makes him think I gave him a spell?”

  Tom quirked a brow.

  “Oh, come on, Tom, it’s not a surprise that I’d give someone a spell, but I didn’t give him a bad one.”

  “I have to investigate his claim.”

  I frowned. “Well, that’s no surprise. Where is this man now? Has he been arrested?”

  I wanted to ask Tom if he had been caught with Rory. I hadn’t wanted to believe that I’d seen him get in Rory’s truck, but after what Henry had told me I couldn’t deny that it had likely been Rory’s truck.

  Tom didn’t take his eyes off me. “He vanished.”

  My eyes widened. “What do you mean?”

  “He vanished just like Reagan.”

  “Are you sure he didn’t just leave town?” I asked.

  “He left his belongings behind too,” Tom said.

  I couldn’t even wrap my mind around what was happening.

  “I can only give you one more warning,” Tom said.

  “What does that mean?” I asked.

  “The Organization is very suspicious of you since he disappeared after being in here and maybe getting a bad spell.”

  “They think I am giving people bad spells on purpose? If I ever give anyone something bad it is purely by accident,” I said.

  “Just please be careful.” Tom walked from around the counter.

  He stepped closer and placed his hand on my arm. For a moment, I wondered if he wanted to kiss me. But that would be strictly against the Organization’s rules.

  He stared into my eyes for a moment and then stepped back. “I’ll be back later. Remember, don’t get into any trouble until I get back.”

  I looked into his gorgeous eyes and nodded. “I’ll try my best.”

  It seemed as if trouble found me, so it was kind of hard to stay out of it. Tom walked out of the café and a noise sounded from the kitchen. I raced over and stormed through the door.

  Grandma Imelda dropped the bags she’d been holding. She clutched her chest. “Dear, I am entirely too old to scare like that.”

  I ran over and grabbed her arms. “Sorry, Grandma. Are you okay?”

  She waved off my concern. “I’m fine. Just help me with the bags.”

  I picked the bags from the floor and placed them on the counter. “I was worried that someone was breaking in to leave another book.”

  “Did I see Tom leaving?” she asked.

  Now I had to tell her about what had happened.

  ***

  Later that morning, we’d finished the rush of customers. That was when a woman walked in. I went right over to her table to get her order. She’d been limping when she walked in.

  She blew the hair out of her eyes. “I think I strained my ankle on the way in here.” She rubbed her ankle.

  Tom’s words ran through my mind. I knew I shouldn’t do a spell, but if it could ease her pain… What could go wrong with a spell for a sprained ankle? Of course I hadn’t thought anything would go wrong with the happy spell either. I still didn’t think that was my fault.

  She placed an order for soup and a sandwich. The whole time I was walking back to the kitchen I told myself that I wouldn’t do any magic. The next thing I knew I was adding a spell to her food. I told myself that everything would be fine. After all, Tom hadn’t said not to do any magic, just not to do any bad magic. I certainly had no plans of that. I placed the food in front of the woman and walked away.

  I tried not to watch her too much so she wouldn’t think I was bonkers. So far everything seemed to be fine. She’d even stopped rubbing her ankle. But not a few minutes later when I glanced over at her, she met my gaze. The look in her eyes said it all.

  I’d seen the look before. It was the same look in her eyes as the man last night. This was bad. Epic proportions bad. I had no idea what to do now. I watched her to see what she would do next. So far she hadn’t broken the table or any chairs. I couldn’t afford for many more customers to get that mad. I wouldn’t have any furniture left.

  She stomped her way over to the register. At least her ankle seemed to be better. Why was my magic having such an effect on people? It had never happened before.

  She crossed her arms in front of her chest and stared at me. “I’m not paying for the food.” At least she was the only customer at the moment because I knew I was going to have a scene. “The food was bad.” She smirked. Obviously it wasn’t a good idea to argue with her.

  “Fine. I’m sorry the food was bad.”

  Grandma Imelda stepped out from the kitchen. “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing. I think the customer was just leaving.”

  The woman reached out and knocked the sugar container off the counter onto the floor. She stared me straight in the eyes as if she dared me to say anything.

  “Apparently she didn’t like the food,” I said to Grandma Imelda. We watched the woman, waiting for her to make the next move. I had a feeling she was going to start smashing chairs soon.

  Just then she reached for the chair behind her. With the chair in her hands, she hoisted it high in the air. She was just about to smash it to the ground when Tom walked through the door. “Put the chair down now.”

  She paused with the chair still in the air. Tom stared at her. Finally she lowered the chair to the ground.

  Thank goodness she had spared another piece of my furniture. Tom crossed the floor and to the woman. He grabbed her by the arm and escorted her to the door. Grandma Imelda and I raced over to the door. Tom took her outside. Grandma Imelda and I pressed our faces up next to the glass to watch what happened next.

  Tom led the woman over to a car. A few seconds of conv
ersation passed and then the woman stomped over to the driver side of the car and got in. Tom waited on the sidewalk as the woman drove away.

  I released a sigh of relief. Thank goodness she was gone. But what had happened was definitely not good. I knew that this was my final warning. Did that mean I still had one more shot? Or was the final warning really the final warning? I was about to find out.

  Tom turned toward the café. He spotted us at the window. We backed away as if we could pretend we hadn’t been watching. “What do you think will happen now?” I asked Grandma Imelda.

  “It’s probably not good, dear.” I could count on Grandma Imelda to always tell me like it was.

  As soon as Tom stepped back into the café his phone rang. We watched as he picked up the call. Grandma Imelda and I tried to listen to the conversation. I didn’t even care now if he knew that we were eavesdropping.

  Tom glanced my way several times. By the look on his face I knew the call wasn’t good and I could tell that the conversation was about me. My stomach was twisted into knots.

  Tom shoved the phone back into his pocket. “Sorry, Elly. There’s nothing I can do.”

  What was that supposed to mean?

  Chapter 13

  I soon found out what Tom had meant. Two women and two men dressed in professional attire filed into the café. They glanced over at me but didn’t speak. They immediately headed to the back of the café and into the kitchen.

  “What do they think they’re doing?” I demanded.

  Tom stopped me. “They’ve come to take the spellbooks.”

  My stomach sank. I glanced over at Grandma Imelda. I had never felt this low. I had let her down. Just when she thought she could trust me with the café, I let this happen.

  “They can’t do that,” I said.

  “After the last spell it has to happen. I’m sorry, Elly.” Tom looked as if he was sorry.

  “I don’t know what went wrong. I’m using the spells that I’ve always used. You believe me, right?” My voice wavered.

  “Of course he believes you,” Grandma Imelda said.

  I wanted to hear the words from Tom.

  “I’ll get to the bottom of this, Elly.”

  That wasn’t exactly what I had wanted to hear from him. But I really hoped he could find out what was going on. The men and women emerged from my kitchen with the books in their arms.

  One of the men looked at Tom. “You told her no more spells, right?”

  Tom nodded. “She’s aware.”

  What would happen if I did another spell? Not that I was going to try. I watched as the group took the books out of the café. As far as I knew the books had never left the café. All those years Grandma Imelda had kept the books and now they were gone because of me. I couldn’t let this happen.

  The men and women came back into the café. I had hoped they were gone. I didn’t even want to look at them as they went back into the kitchen.

  “What are they looking for now? Haven’t they taken enough?” I asked.

  “They’re just making sure they got all the books,” Tom said.

  After a few seconds, the group exited the kitchen in single file. One of the men summoned Tom over, away from me. Why couldn’t they just say whatever it was in front of me? Tom came back. The look on his face was even worse now.

  “What happened this time?” I asked.

  Tom shook his head as if he really didn’t want to tell me, but knew he had to. “They found something of Reagan’s.”

  I was completely confused. “What does that mean?”

  Tom showed me the small brown leather book. “It has her name on it. They found it in the kitchen.”

  “I don’t know how that got there. I’ve never seen it before. You believe me, right?” I knew my voice sounded panicked.

  His expression didn’t suggest that he believed me. Was Tom suspicious now? I guessed I couldn’t blame him. How many things could happen before he finally started to question whether I was being honest? I knew the truth and I had to convince him. Even Grandma Imelda might be suspicious of me now. I had no idea how the book had ended up in the kitchen. Reagan had never even been back there. What would happen to me now? What would happen to the café?

  “The Organization isn’t making the café close.”

  I pushed the hair behind my ear. “Well, that’s a surprise. What made them change their mind?”

  Tom glanced at Grandma Imelda.

  “Oh, I see. They won’t close the café because Imelda is here this time.”

  This was more than a little embarrassing. I wished that I could use magic to disappear right now. Even if I had a spell that would do it, I’d just get in trouble with the Organization. Honestly, I didn’t care what the Organization thought.

  The group moved closer to us. Tom motioned at them. “Elly, this is Carol McGuire, James Hannah, Evan Cross, and Julie King.”

  I nodded an acknowledgment, but didn’t speak. I had nothing to say to them. Apparently they took the hint because they moved toward the door. Tom stepped outside with the group. I hoped that was the last I saw of them.

  Again Grandma Imelda and I watched from the window. “I wish I could hear what they are saying,” I said.

  Grandma Imelda just looked at me.

  I sighed. “Okay, you’re right. Maybe it’s better that I don’t know.”

  After just a couple of minutes Tom headed back toward the café. Grandma Imelda and I hurried away from the window. When Tom stepped back inside we just stared at him. I knew he could tell that we weren’t happy.

  I crossed my arms in front of my waist. “Well, what did they say?”

  Tom paced across the floor before finally turning to face us. “You can’t make food. Like I said, they won’t make the café close, but you can’t cook either.”

  “I can’t believe this. That puts a huge burden on Grandma Imelda.” I placed my head in my hands. “I suppose we’ll have to find someone else to help.”

  I didn’t want Grandma Imelda to have to do all of this alone. One thing was for sure, I wouldn’t stand back and wait for Tom or the Organization to get to the bottom of this. I would have to solve this on my own.

  “I’ll do everything I can to help,” Tom said.

  “You will find out that my granddaughter had nothing to do with the woman’s disappearance, whoever she is. Plus, Elly had nothing to do with the missing spellbooks.” Grandma Imelda used her stern voice. The one she used when she was extremely unhappy with someone. Like when the neighbor kid had mowed over her daylilies thinking they were dandelions.

  Right now I knew she was angry with Tom. I knew he was just doing his job.

  He studied my face. “Are you okay?”

  “I’m peachy. If I were any peachier I’d be a cobbler.”

  He chuckled. “Call me if anything changes.”

  I nodded. “You got it.”

  Tom turned and walked out the door. Grandma Imelda and I sat there for several minutes in silence.

  Finally, she said, “Well, at least I can still do magic.”

  “You don’t have any of the spellbooks.”

  She waved her hand. “I have all the spells I need memorized.”

  I leaned back in the chair. “Yes, I guess you would have after this many years.”

  The bell over the door jingled and we looked up to see Mary Jane entering. “Sorry I wasn’t here sooner.” She stopped in her tracks. “Wow, what happened? Why the sad faces? Wait. Don’t tell me yet.” She hurried over and pulled out a chair. “Okay, now I can listen.”

  “It’s just that I can’t do any magic right now. I gave someone a spell this morning and she went crazy like that man did earlier.”

  Mary Jane frowned. “How does this keep happening?”

  I tapped my fingers against the table. “I don’t know, but I plan on finding out right now.” I pushed to my feet. “Before it gets busy again, I’m going to talk with Rory. I am not calling. I want to see him in person. Are you coming with me?�
� I looked to Mary Jane.

  She nodded. “I’ll go with you.”

  Grandma Imelda stood and walked over to the door. She turned the sign in the window to Closed. “I’ll stay here and get ready for the next wave of customers.”

  After grabbing my purse from the back, I said, “We’ll be back soon, Grandma Imelda.”

  Mary Jane and I got into her car which was parked the nearest to the front door.

  “Where to first?” she asked as we pulled away.

  “We’ll go to the farm. I think that’s where he’ll be.”

  We hadn’t even gotten out of town yet until I spotted what I thought was for sure his truck.

  “I think that’s him.” I pointed.

  Mary Jane sped up. “Do you want me to follow him?” She glanced over. “Silly question. Of course you want me to follow him.”

  Mary Jane kept back a good distance so that he wouldn’t see us.

  “Where do you think he’s going?” she asked.

  “I don’t know. This isn’t the way to the farm. I feel bad doing this, but with his strange behavior I don’t think I have a choice.”

  “With the way things have been, I don’t think you do,” Mary Jane said.

  He turned left up ahead and Mary Jane made the same turn.

  We followed him a short distance until he pulled into the driveway of a big white house.

  “Who lives here?” Mary Jane asked.

  We watched as he went to the door. Meredith opened the door and Rory walked in.

  “That’s who lives here,” I said.

  “I’m going up there to confront him.”

  “Not without me, you’re not.” Mary Jane shoved the car into park and turned off the ignition.

  We got out and headed toward the front door.

  “What are you going to say?” Mary Jane asked

  “I’m going to just ask him about the books. I want to see what he says to my face.”

  My hand shook as I rang the doorbell. Within a couple seconds, Meredith opened the door.

  She scowled. “What do you want?”

  “I came to see Rory,” I said.

  “He’s not here.”

  Mary Jane snorted. “We just saw him walk in.”

  “I don’t know what to tell you,” she said. “You’re welcome to come inside and look for him. He’s not here. Or would you prefer that I left so you can break into my house and look around?”