AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“A rival?” Could Faron have stepped on some hearts when he began to see me? Did I have an unknown rival for the wolf king’s affections? I frowned, leaning back in my chair. “What kind of a rival? Maybe some woman who’s in love with Faron?”
May turned up the next two cards—the ones that had stuck together. They were the Ace of Pentacles and the Queen of Cups. “Well, this is interesting. The Ace of Pentacles is a money card—a card of career and ideas. Those ‘aha’ moments when you, out of the blue, think of something that’s going to work stupendously well. It’s the primal source of career and all things monetary. It can also represent new business endeavors, like your shop. As for the Queen of Cups, it’s reversed. I believe this represents an actual person. A woman, perhaps over-emotional, buried under the weight of her emotions. I feel like she’s drowning in her feelings, surrounded by a misty view of the world that may not be true vision. She’s…I’d say she’s somewhat delusional.”
I frowned. “Maybe I’m right. It could be that some woman has the hots for Faron and is angry at me. But she has to either be a witch or she bought a spell or has a friend who was able to break my wards.”
“Shifters don’t tend to use magic,” Bran said.
“True enough.” I pondered the cards. There were three more cards to go.
May turned over the fourth card. It was the Tower. “Dissolution. Failure, paving the way for new beginnings. Crash-and-burn situations. Something is crashing down in your life but it may pave the way for something new. Not all disasters are for the worst.”
Disaster? I didn’t want to hear that word. Was it about Faron’s condition? Or was this about my cousin Owen? But though I loved Owen, his death wouldn’t fundamentally change my life. Faron…that could be it. Which way Faron’s condition went could easily change my future.
“Do you think…I don’t know what to ask. What’s the advice card?”
May turned over the fifth card. “The Magician. The sooner you repair the grid, the safer you’ll be. And don’t just use simple kitchen magic. You need to formally go in and work on this. I can help, but my magic’s geared towards garden-based. I think you should call your great-grandmother to help you.”
I nodded. “You’re probably right. She’s the most powerful witch I’ve met. I didn’t expect her to still be so strong, given her age.”
“You know that magic grows with age and experience. All right, let’s see the outcome card, if you take my advice and rebuild those wards.” She flipped over the last card. “The Moon.” She didn’t look happy.
“That’s not encouraging,” I said. I knew the cards, and I knew that the Moon was as nebulous as the night—difficult to travel through, obscuring all sorts of things in the shadows. Even things right in front of us could be hidden in the dark. “What do you think?”
“You’re right—it’s a nebulous outcome. I think…there are too many variables that we can’t see, that will affect the outcome of the reading. I’m trying to connect all the cards, but there are pieces of the puzzle missing. I don’t have all the information. The cards aren’t telling me everything—and I think, if I did another reading, it would be the same. This may be something you just have to walk through.”
I thought about it. “I’ll fix and reinforce the protection grid again, and then maybe we can do another reading and the situation will be clearer?”
“It can’t hurt to try,” she said, as she shuffled the cards again and slid them back into their box. “Okay, at least we know that somebody’s angry at you. For what, I don’t know. If I were you, I wouldn’t jump to conclusions as to why they’re mad. Not until we know more. But the first step is to beef up your wards.”
I thanked her, then we settled down in the living room to watch an episode of Witch Island—a reality show where Otherkin with magical blood schemed their way through a month of living on an island, with nothing but their magical powers to help them survive. It was a huge hit, though somebody always ended up hurt and medevacked out. After that, Bran walked Fancypants and me home, through the woods, and he stayed till I was safely inside.
CHAPTER FOUR
Morning came and I debated closing the shop until the wards were up. As Fancypants and I made breakfast—I decided waffles would be good, along with bacon and lots of steaming hot coffee—a rare glimpse of sun broke through outside the kitchen window. I opened the window on the kitchen door, letting the chill tang of autumn pour in, along with the distant smell of woodsmoke. It was one of those last-gasp days where the deep dark of autumn lurked right around the corner, threatening to gobble up the sun.
The morning was bright and cool, but I could smell rain coming in. Storms came through all the time during the autumn and winter, and I loved the way they quickened the air, bringing with them a sense of alertness and the vivid fiery colors of burgundy and bronze and mottled yellow among the leaves that were beginning to fall.
As the kitchen began to chill, I closed the window again, grateful for the brisk blast of air that cleared my head. I brought out my phone to put in a call to Grams.
“Hey, Grams,” I said as she answered. “Is this a good time to talk?”
“Of course. I’m always here for you,” Grams said, her no-nonsense tone setting me at ease.
“Can you come down here today? I need to repair my wards and wondered if you would help me? There’s something going on. Someone compromised my protection grid.” I told her about the reading and that I’d had two customers in a row who had been incredibly irritated and unhappy. “There’s nothing to say that my grid being compromised has anything to do with their dissatisfaction, but it was unusual.”
“That is odd. All right, dear. I’ll call my car. Will two o’clock work?”
Grateful that she was willing to carve out time for me, I let out a long sigh. “Thank you. Bring an overnight case and stay for a couple days, please.” I paused, then said, “That is, if Ciara doesn’t need you.”
“Your aunt doesn’t know me that well. Your mother’s helping her?—”
I snorted. “Right, depending on what you consider help. Is my aunt okay? I asked my mother but I can’t bank on her giving me an unbiased opinion.”
“Your aunt is doing the best she can. It’s hard to lose a child. No parent should outlive their children. It’s not the natural order.” She paused, then added, “I know. I’ve lost both a child and a grandchild, too soon. Your father and your grandfather…they both went too soon.”
“I know, Grams,” I said. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t worry yourself. I’ve survived worse. At my age, you get used to losing people. It’s all tied to the Wheel. Now, let me go so I can call my driver and pack.”
