Abracastabra (Hex Falls Paranormal Cozy Mystery # 4) (Hex Falls Paranormal Cozy Mystery Series) Read online

  Abracastabra

  Hex Falls Paranormal Cozy Mystery

  Rachel Rivers

  Contents

  Introduction

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Afterword

  Reader Note:

  Since I value my readers I caution you to always look for updates on your kindle before reading. Sometimes I craft books until the eleventh hour, trying to get them just right for you, and thus, upload more recent copies after publication.

  That said, though my books are professionally edited, more than once, mistakes still happen. I find typos are like fleas. You don’t see them, until you see them. Pesky little things.

  So please, if you happend to spot one, be kind and drop a note to me here, and I will make the change.

  Otherwise, enjoy the read! And thank you.

  Sincerly, Rachel

  Chapter 1

  “We should have ousted the girl at the very beginning, when I first objected to her!” the shrieky voice of Elder Winnifred Rathburn—as I’ve come to know her—rings out above the rest. The old woman council member, who expressed how much she hated me at my first council meeting, and clearly still does. “I said she was too green to take over the post, and clearly I was right! She needs to go, and the sooner the better.”

  “Hear! Hear!” more members of the council shout.

  “And just who do you have in mind to take over her post? Hmmm?” Cousin Viv tuts, quelling the chaos, momentarily. “Who else among us has royal blood coursing through our veins?” I hear her long black council cloak scuffing the tops of the cloud floor, as she stalks toward her. “Anyone else come to mind?”

  That shuts her up, but not for long.

  I peer in, from where I stand, ankle deep in cloud, hiding in the hallway, outside the witch’s council room door. My witch’s council, who have all but turned on me.

  Especially Elder Rathburn.

  The old goat narrows her eyes and squares her jaw. “Have it your way,” she says to Cousin Viv. “But she is not, and never will be, who we need her to be, and you know it!”

  Ouch, that one hurt.

  “Blue blood may course through her veins,” the old woman continues, spinning around and preaching to the rest, “but she is not, and never will be, one of us!”

  “Bite your tongue, or I’ll bite it for you.” Cousin Viv snaps forward, defending me.

  I should step in now...but, I don’t. Coward that I am.

  “Need I remind you, if we’d only done as I requested in the first place, we wouldn’t be in this mess!” Elder Rathburn shakes her fist.

  “Need I remind you, you wouldn’t even be here any longer, after the last election, if I hadn’t cast a pity vote,” Cousin Viv retorts, igniting a small chorus of chuckles.

  “Joke if you wish, but this is a serious matter. The most serious matter this coven has ever faced!” Elder Rathburn shouts above their noise, pointing at the sky.

  “Yes, Elder Rathburn, and we are all taking it very seriously,” Cousin Viv shouts.

  I glance away, ashamed. The woman makes a good point on both counts. She is not wrong. This is all my fault. The reason my cousin is defending me so fiercely. I am the one who let the ex-Supreme Leader loose to wreak havoc on the world. It was me. I’m the screw up. I’ve done this.

  I shiver.

  I should have listened to Cousin Viv when she demanded I banish the former leader to Nothingness Island the second I overpowered him. Instead, I extended the man mercy while I took the time to ponder my decision overnight—allowing him a window of escape. What was I thinking? I clap my head with my palm. How could I have been so foolish as to show mercy to a man like that?

  A man who terrorized both myself and my mother throughout our lifetimes—a man who stole my rightful position. Not to mention, who put my coven in jeopardy and nearly cost poor Sheriff Jeremy his life.

  You’ve really done it this time, Violet.

  I pause, thinking about Jeremy up at the hospital right now, still recovering from the injuries he sustained in the blast. I cringe at the thought that the ex-Supreme Leader may have been responsible. And thus, me, for letting him loose.

  Sotherby was right. Sometimes bad people do deserve to come to bitter ends.

  I chew at a nail.

  “Her inability to act in a crisis may have cost this coven its future,” Elder Rathburn rails. “You can’t deny that. Not to mention, the future of the whole witching world!” She spears the air with an arthritic finger.

  “Hear! Hear!” the rest of the coven members shout, again.

  They can’t mean that.

  “I have to agree,” Elder Orville Shurgum speaks up now, a tall, rather portly man with jowls that bluster when he flusters. He has a crooked spine that causes his large head to dip below the tip of his spine. Surely, there’s some sort of spell to correct that. Why has no one ever helped him? “The girl has acted completely incompetently—”

  “Cowardly—”

  “Indecisively—”

  “Weakly—”

  “Spinelessly, you mean—”

  Four other members speak up.

  Wow, why don’t they just throw in stupidly while they’re at it. I shrink, both mentally and physically under the weight of their insults. These are the opinions of the members of the witch’s council—my witch’s council—of which I am their new, failed Supreme Leader. I sniff.

  “If nothing else, I think we’re all in agreement, she has proven she cannot be trusted,” Elder Rathburn barks.

  “Oh, come now, aren’t we getting a tad bit dramatic?” Cousin Viv jumps in to defend me.

  “Aren’t we being more than a tad bit complacent?” Elder Rathburn eyes her hard.

  I can’t help feeling Elder Rathburn is right not to trust me.

  I wouldn’t.

  Not after what I’ve done.

  I’ve had absolutely nothing to do with the coven until just recently, and then I come waltzing in with all my big new ideas and make the biggest mistake of my life. I may be a blue blood, the last of my kind, and the coven’s rightful Supreme Leader—but she’s right. I don’t know what I’m doing. I’m not a leader. I never have been.

  Hex, until a month ago, I didn’t even know I was a witch. Half-witch, I mean. I only found out in time to have that revelation dashed days later, when I learned the truth that I am not only half-witch, but a half-witch, half-demigod, for goodwitchsakes.

  I sniff.

  Elder Rathburn is correct. I am not one of them, and never will be.

  I have a lot to learn, and I will definitely have to earn back their trust.

 
But I’d like to be given the chance.

  I perch on my tiptoes and lean into the room, staring, my bottom lip quivering hard.

  “I’ll admit, she may be green,” Cousin Viv starts up again, “and she may have made a mistake right out of the gate, I’ll give you that. But she is not a danger and is completely trustworthy. And the rightful successor to our coven’s throne and you all know it!” she snaps.

  “Now, we need to stop all this bickering,” she pauses, turning to the rest, “and band together to support our new leader. To help her to succeed, not pit ourselves against her to tear her down. Is this the coven way?” She glowers at each one of them. “Besides,” she lowers her chin, “this is no time for dissension in the ranks, trust me.” She looks up again. “We have bigger fish to fry.”

  “And just what exactly is that supposed to mean?” Elder Rathburn stares up at her, her eyes growing wide then small again.

  “Yes. What are you talking about?” Elder Shurgum swoops closer, his jowls wobbling.

  “I know what it is,” Elder Rathburn says, shooting forward and staring deeply into Cousin Viv’s eyes. “You are referring to the last utterance of that dimwit town sheriff, aren’t you?” She points a wicked finger. “He’s not dead...that’s what he said...and you know what it means.”

  “I can say no more until our leader is among us,” Cousin Viv says, scrambling backward, away from her.

  Elder Rathburn stretches out her neck and studies her hard again. “He muttered that the fatal day of the explosion, before he collapsed into your Cousin Violet’s arms.”

  All heads turn Cousin Viv’s way.

  “You’ve discovered something. You’re holding out on us.”

  “I am not. I’m following protocol.”

  “Poppycock,” Rathburn seethes. “We have a right to know.”

  Of course, they’re referring to Jeremy’s cryptic message, spat from his lips, before he passed out in my arms the day of the near fatal fireball attack. The explosion was profound, his office building blown to bits...by whom, or what, we still don’t know.

  “You know what’s gone on, and you have an obligation to say!”

  “She’s right. Spit it out, Viv,” Elder Shurgum shouts.

  “I will say nothing more until our leader is present.” Cousin Viv gulps and backs away from the woman. But her eyes remain fixed on Cousin Viv’s, her pupils dilating wildly.

  Elder Rathburn must be both a Seer and Gleaner. A witch able to look into the eyes of another and read their minds.

  “If the coven is in danger, you must tell us.”

  “Yes, tell us what you know.” Both Rathburn and Shurgum corner her. Cousin Viv genuinely looks frightened. I’ve never seen her like this.

  No one ever gets the better of Cousin Viv. “All right! All right!” she says.

  “No need. I already know.” Elder Rathburn’s ancient eyes flash silver. There’s a strange glow about them like they’ve just discovered a truth. “You know who it is that ‘is not dead.’ You’ve affirmed it somehow.”

  “No.” Cousin Viv denies it, shaking her head. “You’ve got it wrong. I do not know. Not for sure—”

  Elder Rathburn’s eyes spin, turning a dark black, twirling like pots of coffee. “The double X.” She clutches her chest. “You’ve seen it.”

  The double X?

  “The sign of the enemy. You found it burned into the floorboards at the scene. At the office, beneath all the rubble!”

  The other coven members shoot back from her, shrieking.

  “Now, let’s not panic!” Cousin Viv shouts above them.

  My heart jumps in my chest, forming a thundering clap. What on earth are they talking about?

  Double X. Floorboards. Sign of the enemy. What is all this? What enemy?

  “That strange fireball, it was their doing, wasn’t it?” Elder Rathburn pursues her.

  “Whose doing?” Elder Shurgum blusters.

  “The Druens,” Elder Rathburn spits, whirling around on him—her eyes red as fire now. “They are upon us!” She throws up a hand, and the rest scream.

  Elder Shurgum’s eyes spring wide with horror. “The double ‘X’. The sign of the Druens.” He grabs the sides of his head, the wattle on his neck trembling. “The devils of the witching world!”

  Hysteria ensues.

  “We must strike now, before we are attacked!” Elder Rathburn shrieks.

  “No, wait! That is not your call to make!” Cousin Viv struggles to be heard above the madness. “You do not have the right, or the authority, or the power to make such a decision. Besides, we can’t even be sure yet!”

  “How can you not be sure?” Elder Rathburn shakes. “How much more evidence do you need? For a telltale fireball to fall on the coven and burn us all to death?”

  Shrieks rise up again.

  “Oh, no.” Rathburn shakes her head. “I will not stand around, allowing the mistakes of our rookie leader to annihilate four hundred years of history and me along with it!” she shouts, spinning and addressing the rest of the coven now. “Who is with me?”

  “Hear! Hear!” they shout.

  “Then we must prepare for battle!” She raises a boney fist and shakes it in the air.

  I’ve got to do something. I’ve got to stop this.

  “We’ll do no such thing without the approval of our rightful leader!” Cousin Viv hollers.

  “Speaking of, where is the little coward, anyway?” Elder Rathburn snarls.

  “Right here.” I step bravely over the threshold, into the witch’s nest. “Presuming it is me you are looking for.” I stare her right in the eye.

  The entire coven looks utterly shocked to see me, standing now in the center of the room. Elder Rathburn looks the most shocked of all. And so she should. What she’s been saying and doing is tantamount to treason. I could have her sent away if I wanted.

  She quickly lowers her head in respect, but it’s far too late.

  “Now,” I say, slowly turning. “Does someone want to explain to me what’s going on here? Who are the Druens? And why should we fear them?” I glare first at Elder Rathburn and then at the rest them, one by one.

  Chapter 2

  A staggering silence befalls the room.

  “Come on, I’ve asked you a question,” I say. “Who are the Druens? And why should we fear them?”

  Slowly, Elder Shurgum raises his eyes from the floor. “Only the worst band of witches ever to fly the skies,” he says.

  “A group of paranormal hooligans and hellions,” someone else adds.

  “Murderers, you mean,” another coven member mumbles.

  I turn around and stare at the woman. “Murderers?” I say.

  “She’s speaks the truth,” Cousin Viv says, joining me in the center of the room. “The Druens are, or were, the oldest-known witching order ever to exist. They were comprised of some of the smartest witches in all the world—a coven of highly respected adjudicators, lorekeepers, apothecarists, and political advisors. At one time. That was before they fell into ill repute,” Cousin Viv explains.

  “They’ve long been thought to be dead,” Elder Shurgum speaks up. “Their bloodlines were thought to have fizzled out; their coven eliminated over time. Until traces of their unique brand of magic started showing up around the universe again, about ten years back.”

  “And this is a bad thing, why?” I ask.

  Elder Shurgum clears his throat and starts again. “Seems, somewhere along the line, their descendants went rogue, switching to the dark side of things.”

  I frown.

  “It’s true, I’m afraid,” Cousin Viv says. “For reasons unknown, they began performing anti-venom magic, using their ancestors’ talents to wreak havoc all around the globe.”

  “And not just on witches,” another member clarifies. “But on mortals too.”

  “What do you mean?”

  The old woman wrings her hands. “They are thought to be responsible for a lot of the recent social and political unrest aro
und the world. They work to cause hatred and strife among the masses.”

  “They undermine the good in people and bring out the bad,” Cousin Viv clarifies. “That is the essence of anti-venom magic. Magic performed in direct contrast to everything their ancestors ever stood for. The descendants of the lorekeepers now twist truths, the apothecarists now mix poisons, while the political advisors work to undermine governments and promote global corruption around the world, and the adjudicators dabble in promoting atrocities against humanity.”

  “Throughout the witching world and the mortal one?” I ask.

  “That’s right,” she confirms.

  I’m so stunned, I can hardly form words. I had no idea such witching families existed. Let alone full covens.

  “Not to mention their recent history of genocidal attacks on other covens,” Elder Shurgum adds.

  “What?” I say, whirling around to face him, my heart beating like a pair of startled bird wings.

  “Many a great coven has fallen prey to their evil grasp,” he says. “It is how they recruit new members. By stealing others. One agrees to join them, in their unrighteous crusade, or one is simply annihilated.”

  “No.” I swallow.

  “Yes, I’m afraid.”

  “But I thought it was against the witch’s code to kill one another.”

  Elder Shurgum shudders with fear. “So are all the rest of the things they do.”

  “Then why hasn’t someone stopped them?” I say to Shurgum, then turn to the rest.

  “Because, none of us has had the power to.” He hangs his head. “Until perhaps, now.”