Moon Hexed Read online

  Bella turned to Francine who looked positively green. Her assistant had looked like she was sick to her stomach all day. Belladonna was grateful that Franny had stuck it out, but she was worried the woman might have been coming down with something. What she didn’t know was that all Francine had was a case of overwhelming guilt with a touch of fear.

  “You look unwell. Maybe you should take tomorrow off.” Belladonna said as she locked up the cash drawer in the safe.

  “I think I’ll be fine.” Francine felt guilty for even letting her discomfort show.

  “Ben is picking me up. He needs me at the police station for something, so I’ve got to get going. Please just call me if you think you can’t make it tomorrow. It’s really okay if you need a sick day. I’ll pay you too. Don’t worry about that.”

  Franny had just smiled and nodded in return. Belladonna was worried about her friend, but she had to go. Ben was already out in front of the salon waiting for her as she locked the door to the salon. Franny took off towards her house once they were outside.

  “Call me if you need anything,” Bella called after her.

  Franny waved but didn’t turn around.

  As Belladonna got closer to the jail, she could feel the dark magic emanating from the man Ben held inside. If the police station had still been located in the temporary location at the town square, she would have felt the biting sting of the black magic needling her all day long.

  They pulled into the police station, and Ben shut off the ignition. He turned to Belladonna.

  “Are you sure you want to do this?”

  “Yes, sweetie. I can totally handle this. Please stop worrying so much about me.” Belladonna said and patted him on the thigh before exiting his car.

  Once they were inside, Ben led Belladonna to the holding cells. After crossing the threshold into the area, Bella looked around for the man she’d come to speak with. He was hunched over in the last cell on the right.

  “Don’t come any closer.” Alexander Ford said gruffly. “It’s not safe for you to be near me.”

  “I think I can handle it,” Belladonna said, but she stayed outside of arm’s reach. “Now, tell me everything.”

  Ford told her the story from the beginning and didn’t leave out one dirty detail. Belladonna just nodded her head and listened attentively as he spoke.

  “You’ve gotten yourself into quite a pickle, Mr. Ford,” Belladonna said when he’d finished telling her the story.

  “I know,” Ford said with his head hung low. “Can you help me?”

  Chapter Ten

  Even though Bella told her she didn’t have to, Franny still went into work the next morning. She wasn’t as early as usual and barely made it in time to get the pastry delivery from Jessie. Franny must have looked as bad as she felt because Jessie gave her a hug and told her to call if she needed anything.

  For about five seconds, Franny considered telling Jessie everything. She wasn’t sure if she could bring herself to say it Belladonna, but Jess was one of the sweetest people Franny knew. They could go to Bella together.

  But instead, Francine just told her thank you and watched her walk out the door. Her mind wouldn’t stop racing, and her hands were shaking, so Franny got out the broom and pushed it around the salon to keep herself busy.

  Belladonna arrived at work about twenty minutes before the first appointment, and she was so distracted that she almost missed how stricken Francine looked. Bella had been checking the bookings for the day so that she could be prepared for the first appointment, but when she looked up and saw Franny’s pale face, she stopped and walked over to her friend.

  “You look like you feel terrible,” Bella said as affectionately as she could because it was never pleasant, especially in her line of work, to tell people they looked awful. “I can manage things around here if you need to go home and rest. Really, Franny, it’s okay.”

  “Are you sure, Bella.” Franny practically whispered. “I hate to leave you in a lurch.”

  “I did run this place by myself before you came along,” Belladonna said with a chuckle, but then instantly felt bad when she realized how Franny might take it. “But, things are much easier and more fun with you around.”

  “See. I shouldn’t leave.” Francine already felt guilty for not telling Belladonna about Lexi’s visit, and going home to sulk seemed unimaginably selfish since she wasn’t really sick.

  “It’ll be okay. Oh, and stop by my house on your way home. I’ll have my Aunt Sumac whip you up a remedy.”

  “I don’t want to be any trouble.”

  “It’s no trouble. I’m sure she’d love to have something magical to do.”

  After they’d said their goodbyes and Franny left for the day, Belladonna called Aunt Sumac to give her a head’s up about Franny coming her way.

  “Oh, Belladonna. I was just about to call you.” Sumac said when she picked up the phone. “Granny and I will be out of your hair by the time you get home from work today. It’s time for you and that handsome husband of yours to start working on a visit from the stork.”

  “Aunt Sumac, Ben and I have been married for all of about five minutes. Let’s table that stork discussion for another day. I am glad I called, though. You guys can’t leave today. I need you for a ritual tonight.”

  Belladonna told her Aunt the story of Alexander Ford. She explained her idea for a ritual that would break his dark bond with the other witches.

  “You realize that means he’ll probably be bonded to us instead.” Aunt Sumac said matter-of-factly.

  “I’m hoping that’s not the case, but if it is, it’s better than being enslaved to a dark coven. It will at least give us time.” Bella said.

  “Anything for you.” Aunt Sumac said with a hint of mischief in her voice.

  “Whatever you’re thinking, no,” Bella said. “And if those thoughts were of turning Ford into your slave, forget about it.”

  “I was not thinking that.” Sumac said innocently. “Anyway, I got to go.”

  “Wait, Aunt Sumac, there is one more thing.”

  “What is it, dear?” Aunt sumac asked.

  “Franny hasn’t been feeling well. Could you whip her up something real quick?” Bella asked. “Something to help with ailments that are both sickness and supernatural. She’s on her way over now, so it’ll have to be something quick and easy.”

  “I can do that. I know just the thing. Oh, and don’t worry, Bella. Your Granny and I will stick around tonight. We’ll help you with your ritual.”

  “Thanks so much,” Belladonna said with a smile.

  The salon’s phone started to ring as soon as Belladonna hung up with her Aunt. Jimmy Kismit had scheduled a speech in the town square at the last minute and all of her morning appointments canceled. Everyone wanted to get there early to watch things get set up for the presentation, and they wanted to get the best seats.

  That left Belladonna with nothing to do, so she stood at the door to Bella Beauty Salon and watched the workmen across the road in the square set up the scaffolding for Jimmy.

  She watched him supervise and instruct the workers from her spot in the distance. Bella was surprised after about an hour when he began to make his way across the street towards her salon. She quickly ducked into the back room and grabbed a bottle of cleaning solution and a rag. The salon was already immaculately clean, but she’d wanted to look busy when he came in. For some reason, Bella felt embarrassed for having watched him work.

  “Hello, Belladonna,” Jimmy said as he came in the door. “Do you have time for a walk-in appointment?”

  Bella watched him survey the empty salon and then answered. “I do. Your speech induced all of my morning appointments to cancel.” She teased.

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to cause a disruption to your business. What can I do?”

  “Well, you can leave a generous tip, but other than that you don’t need to worry about it. I was just teasing.” She said cheerfully. “Pick any chair you like.”

/>   Jimmy looked around and pulled the chair nearest the door to the backroom. Bella watched him as he walked slowly to the seat and thought she noticed a limp. He hadn’t been injured the other night, so something must have happened recently.

  “I need a trim,” Kismit said as he sat down. “I have to make sure I look my best as I address the town.”

  “I can do that. Let me grab an apron from the back.”

  As she walked to the back room, Bella heard Jimmy begin to laugh uncontrollably, but when she turned around to look at him, he was still seated quietly in his chair.

  She shook it off and continued on her mission. When Bella returned with the smock, she could see that Jimmy was shaking and near tears.

  “What’s wrong?” Bella asked.

  Alarm bells went off in her head. Generally, she could pick up on a person’s life force and aura, but Jimmy’s was inexplicably closed off to her. She found it bizarre because before she’d gone in the back, everything about him, except the weird behavior, seemed okay.

  “I’ve seen the end.” He said gravely.

  “What?” Belladonna’s stomach clenched. “You’ve seen the end of what?”

  Jimmy shook his head and shoulders as if he was dislodging something that clung to the back of his neck. Then, he turned to Belladonna and smile sweetly.

  “Just a trim, okay. I like to keep it as long as I can get away with.”

  “Are you alright?” Belladonna asked as she put the smock over him.

  “I’m great. Why?” Jimmy asked.

  “Nothing. It’s nothing. Let’s get you ready for your speech.”

  Bella decided to let the episode go temporarily. Jimmy’s life signs and aura had returned to normal and the man appeared to have no knowledge of his episode. Belladonna figured she’d have to find a way to get to the bottom of the problem without scaring him. But first, she’d give him the haircut he’d requested.

  Right after she was finished, he’d gone back to the town square and given a rallying speech about how strong Winterfield was as a community. Jimmy had shown no signs of being in distress beyond those moments in her salon chair.

  For a moment, Bella wondered if she’d hallucinated the whole thing. The only evidence that Belladonna wasn’t losing her mind completely was the dark shadow she swore she saw clinging to the back of his neck immediately after the speech. It lasted only a second, but it was unmistakable.

  “Not in my town,” Belladonna whispered to herself.

  Before she could do anything about it, the bell above the salon door tinkled merrily as her first afternoon appointment arrived. It wasn’t over, though. Belladonna Nightshade decided it was time to clean house.

  Chapter Eleven

  After a busy afternoon, Belladonna was ready to go home and have a nice family dinner with her new husband, Aunt, and Granny. But, that wasn’t in the cards. The Nightshade coven had a ritual to perform and a man to save.

  The dark witches who controlled Alexander Ford had picked up on the fact that he’d managed to reach out for help, and they were on their way to retrieve their slave. The only way to stop them without starting a witch war was to break the bond before they got too close. If Belladonna and her family could liberate him from the bondage, they could hide his location and use a spell to send the dark witches on a wild goose chase.

  She could feel Linnea and her minions close in, and sensing them had tuned her into something else as well. There was a rat in the nest. Lexi must have used a powerful cloaking spell to hide from Belladonna, but the other dark witches were magnifying the black magic that now poured out of her.

  Belladonna didn’t even want to think about what Lexi had to sacrifice to use magic powerful enough to hide her from the Nightshades, but while she wouldn’t contemplate the evil deed, Bella would put an end to them. She told Granny Pepper, Aunt Sumac, and Murielle what she felt as soon as she got home.

  “They must not be together, then.” Aunt Sumac said. “If the other coven’s magic is working against Lexi, they probably don’t even know about each other.”

  “Thank goodness there is no loyalty in black magic,” Murielle added. “But, what did Lexi have to do to use a cloaking spell powerful enough to hide her from us?”

  “Let’s not speculate on that right now,” Bella said as gently as she could. “Let’s focus on bringing them all down. We’ll call a convention of the Elder Covens once we’ve caught her, and then Lexi will be tried for her crimes. But, we have to catch her first. Whatever she’s done, she’s grown more powerful. It’s got to stop.”

  “Agreed.” The other three witches said in unison.

  The women packed up what they would need for that evening’s spell casting, and then made their way up to the hill where the Tory mansion once stood. At the last minute, Belladonna decided to bring Sterling and Olwen along for the ride. She’d need her familiar for this magical work, and while Olwen the dog wasn’t a familiar, it never hurt to have more animals involved in rituals. Their spirits were strong, and a dog’s loyalty would help break the chains of forced magic slavery. Only real devotion could pierce the dark bonds wrapped around Alexander Ford's spirit.

  As they pulled the car into the driveway at the site of the former Tory mansion, Elsbeth’s spirit appeared. She wasn’t a part of the Nightshade coven in life, but in death, she’d become a sister to them all. As they set up for the ritual, a buzzing began as a low vibration in the back of their minds. Within minutes, it became so loud that the noise threatened to start an earthquake.

  When none of them thought they could bear one more moment of the sound, a great tearing noise replaced the buzz. A hole in the fabric of reality opened up in the middle of the circle they had been in the process of repairing, and Petunia popped out of it.

  “Mom!” Belladonna exclaimed. “You’re here!”

  Bella ran to her mother, and the witches embraced for a long while. After a few minutes, Belladonna pulled back and spoke again.

  “I’m sorry I couldn’t find a way to have you at my wedding. We wanted you there so much.” Bella said through tears.

  “Please don’t be sad.” Petunia said. “The powers that be let me watch. I wasn’t there in the room with you, but I saw everything. I saw my baby get married.” Petunia said with a smile. “Both weddings.”

  “You were there?”

  “I would have ripped a new hole in the space-time fabric if they hadn’t let me,” Petunia said with a mischievous smile. “Now, let’s get down to business because I did kinda rip a new hole in the fabric of space and time to be here for you now. It won’t be long before the elder gods and goddesses figure it out.”

  With that, they set to work completing the sacred circle they’d need to ensure their magical workings for the evening were a success. The moon was high in the sky as Aunt Sumac passed around purple candles to everyone who attended the ritual.

  Petunia used a flame spell to light each candle, and each of the witches took their place around the circle. They began to chant an ancient incantation designed to free someone from bondage.

  The sound of their voices reached high into the night sky, and as it ascended higher, the lady in the moon took notice and granted them a sliver of her power. This should have been enough to complete the ritual, but something dark and sinister hiding in the shadows took notice of the power granted to the witches. It skulked towards the women on all fours.

  The sacred circle the Nightshade Coven stood around was carved into the dirt and ash, and in the center, it contained a pentagram. The massive symbol glowed with silver energy, but as the fiend moved closer to the witches, the light coming from the earth turned a hellish shade of red.

  Just as the spell to free Alexander Ford was completed, the beast in the shadows grabbed Murielle by the hair. The sacred pentagram went from glowing red to spewing hellfire flames.

  Murielle screamed and fell to her knees just as Granny Pepper shot a lightning bolt from her hand towards the demon knocking it backward into the shadows fr
om which it came. It didn’t stop, though, and lept back into the center of the circle as it tried to steal the power granted to them by the lady of the moon.

  The witches quickly joined hands and surrounded it. Belladonna shouted a containment spell even as the fiend tried to rip them apart with dark magic.

  “We can’t hold it like this for a long,” Granny Pepper said.

  “What are we going to do? I’ve never seen anything like this, at least not roaming around free.” Said Aunt Sumac.

  Before anyone could answer, they all heard the sound of large wings flapping by the car. Belladonna cried out, “Oh Sterling, be careful.”

  To protect her mistress, Sterling had instantly transformed into her Dragon form. The demon inside the circle let out a cry of his own. Only it wasn’t a cry of joy or ferocity. No, the sound was the unmistakable noise that an animal makes when it is terrified of the predator.

  Sterling shot up into the night sky and disappeared from view. At first, Belladonna wondered what her familiar was doing, but then they heard what sounded like a missile hurtling towards the earth.

  The sonic boom caused by the diving dragon drowned out the shrieking of the fiend for a split second. The demon gave up because it knew that it would be consumed and blinked out of the visible dimension. Sterling managed to slow herself down enough to land gently in the center of the pentagram.

  As she shifted back into a cat, the light pouring out of the lines of the sacred circle turned back to silver. Sterling sat confidently and cleaned her paw as Olwen ran into the ring and licked her cat friend’s face enthusiastically.

  “What just happened?” Murielle asked breathlessly.

  “We need to go home and consult our library.” Aunt Sumac said resolutely. “I’ll call you when we have an answer.”

  Chapter Twelve

  Belladonna was able to get one last hug from her mother before Petunia got dragged back into the space-time rip. Someday, Bella was going to find a way to free her mother from the anomaly that kept her prisoner, but for now, she had to get to work. Franny had sent her a text message the night before and asked if Belladonna could come in early to talk.