CHAPTER 12

C HAPTER 12

A t about three, the group took a break. Together. The atmosphere was tense. Abigail didn't say much to Thomas, focusing instead on Mia or Trent. Mia, on the other hand, avoided talking to Trent. Trent and his father, sensing the tension, tried not to say much about anything. But at least they were all in the same room. Grans seemed oblivious to any tension and chatted nonstop.

When they finished the cookies and iced tea, Thomas and Trent took off to finish the walkways. The backyard would be done, with the walkways ready to stain by the end of the day. Levi would be back to help with the staining tomorrow. And Mia's backyard would be ready for the event as soon as it dried.

Mia told Abigail the prep room was ready for furniture and that Jeani had left a sketch. She asked Abigail if she'd deal with the rental company. Then she turned to her grandmother. "What about the new potion bag?"

Abigail gasped. "There's another one?"

"Yes. And we didn't even talk about using this room before Carla was killed, so someone else is definitely making and hiding these." Mia was beginning to get a headache. The best thing she could do at that moment was cook. She thought better when she was mixing up dough or baking cookies.

Grans sighed. "I can't determine who made these. They put a glamour on when they were spelling them so the bags all think Carla made them. It's brilliant, but it makes it hard for us to know who the problem child is really."

"Remind me next year that we don't want this event, even if they offer to pay us three times the going rate." Mia groaned while Abigail laughed.

"Honey, I bid it at ten times the going rate, and they still chose us. We're going to have to either figure out a way to keep the shenanigans down or just accept we're going to make a boatload of money on this and maybe that will get you freed from working the Lodge job." Abigail hugged Mia. "I'll handle the rental company. My to-do list is on the table next to yours. I don't think we need both of us cooking today, but tomorrow, it's all hands on deck as soon as Christina gets back."

"Maybe it's Isaac's wedding that's messing with my head." Mia took a long breath. "But tomorrow he'll be on his honeymoon and out of the country. That should clear the air around here."

"We'll get through this." Grans squeezed Mia's arm. "But if you start feeling worse, come upstairs. I want to make sure one of the potion bags didn't get under your skin."

"Great. Now I have to worry about stress and being poisoned while I'm trying to run my business."

"The lists will keep for a few minutes while you take some painkillers." Abigail snapped her fingers. "Muffy, Cerby, let's go outside."

After they'd left the apartment, Grans handed Mia a cup of tea. "Drink this. It will help with a headache and ward off any random spells."

Mia smelled the orange in the tea. "What would I do without you?"

"Well, I wanted to talk to you about that, but now's not the time." Grans squeezed her hand. "I would like to see you and Trent make it official soon."

"You're really on that bandwagon recently. Is there something wrong? Something I should know?" Mia sipped her tea and looked at her grandmother's face. Sometimes she could see a lie forming; other times, not. But it was worth trying.

"I've been having dreams about a break in the coven. Something that's going to affect your relationship with Trent. If you're committed, you'll weather the storm. If not, I can't see the answer there. All I know is when I see you two after the storm passes, you have a ring on your finger. When the bad dreams come, you don't."

Mia smiled as she finished her tea. "So, Trent's going to save me? I think I learned that lesson with Isaac. I make my own destiny. I love Trent, and if he loves me, we'll take that step. I'm just not sure an impending emergency is a great reason to push the timeline."

Grans lifted her hand off Mia's. Then she stood and walked to the hallway. She turned back and said, "I'm not trying to sell you off to the highest bidder. All I can tell you is what I'm seeing in my dreams. If you choose not to act on it, I can't force you."

Mia spent a few minutes alone in the kitchen. Gloria, her connection with the Goddess, was silent. Grans's forecast had quieted even the doll's giggle. Mia stood and took her cup to the sink. First, she'd get this contest done. Then she'd worry about the future with Trent. She'd tell him about Grans's prediction and see what he thought.

It wasn't a conversation they needed to have today.

As she made her way downstairs, she heard a noise in the prep room. Had the rental company guys already arrived? But when Mia opened the door, two girls stood there.

One of them turned toward Mia, and she recognized her. Melody Sellers. "Hey, Melody, what are you doing here?"

"I think I'm the butt of a practical joke. Crissy said everyone was meeting here at three, but I'm the only one here." Melody glanced at the other girl. "You'd think they would show up just to laugh at me, if nothing else. Oh, this is my friend Tera."

"Oh honey, I'm sorry." Mia stepped toward Melody, then stopped. What was she going to do? Give the girl a hug? "Sometimes kids are cruel."

"All the time," Melody corrected her. "I'm used to it. Mom died right after she had me, so I was the kid who didn't have parents. I never knew my dad. Thank goodness Grandma wanted me. She said I was her blessing. I'm fine. I'm not sure why I'm telling you my life story."

Tera shrugged. "Crissy is horrible. I don't understand why most people, including Dakota Marks, don't see her true colors."

"Dakota just sees her body and pretty hair." Melody laughed with her friend.

"It's been that kind of day around here, believe me. Hey, I've got some chocolate-chip cookies I made this morning. Do you want some with a soda or milk?" Mia glanced out the window and saw Trent and Thomas laughing. The school needed more laughter right now.

"That sounds great if it's not a bother. When did you know you wanted to be a chef? Tera's thinking about going to culinary school next year. I'm focusing on a four-year program, especially if I can get in somewhere far away from Idaho." Melody and Tera followed Mia out of the prep room, chatting as they made their way downstairs.

Abigail joined them for cookies and milk until the rental company arrived, and soon after, Melody and Tera stood to leave. "Thanks for being such a good sport. I'm sure that's not the last trick Crissy has up her sleeve for me this week."

Tera nodded, still chewing on a cookie.

"You're the one who seems strangely okay with being teased like this. I'm sure you had something else to do today," Mia said as she walked the girls to the door.

"Not really. I was reading. I'm pretty caught up at school, so I read a lot. That's one of the reasons my grandmother wanted me to participate in the contest. To get me out of my room. But she doesn't get it. I don't fit in with the rest of the kids, and they make sure I know it. Well, besides Tera. I'm just waiting for college to have a life outside school." She rubbed Cerby's head as she stood in the doorway. "I know, pathetic."

Tera shrugged. "College is going to be amazing."

"Sometimes you have slower periods in your life. But you're in charge of what you do and who you want to do it with. Don't wait for someone to knock on your door to start experiencing life." Mia leaned on the door frame. "Maybe you should start taking AP classes. Or get an early admission to Boise State."

"Actually, my counselor was saying something about a new program." She put earbuds in her ears and took out her phone. "I'll check into that. See you Monday evening."

Mia watched the girls stroll down the hill and take the sidewalk into town. Melody was obviously smart, if not driven. Maybe that wasn't a bad thing. Mia had only known one speed—fast. Get high school done, graduate college, get a great job, and keep climbing the ladder. It had taken her breaking up with Isaac to realize that she wasn't living; she'd been on a treadmill.

Voices from the stairs made her turn back inside. Three men were coming down with Abigail. She made eye contact with Abigail. "Hey, how's it going?"

"We're all done. The hallway is cleared of the desks as well. I think the girls and their folks are going to love this setup. Especially when I saw what Jeani was planning to do to dress it up." Abigail signed a form that one of the men had on a clipboard. "Thanks for coming, guys. The room looks great."

The one with the clipboard bowed low. "You are most welcome. Good luck in choosing this year's harvest queen."

As Mia and Abigail went inside, Mia glanced at her watch. "Why don't we finish up the sauces and then call it a day? I'll order pizza for dinner."

Abigail glanced out toward the backyard. Toward Thomas. "Sounds good. Although I may not be feeling sociable when dinner comes around."

"You still haven't resolved it?" Mia asked as they moved toward the kitchen.

Abigail shook her head. "He's being stubborn. He doesn't realize how dangerous being a judge can be. One year, all the judges wound up in the hospital with food poisoning. Luckily, the decision had already been made on the queen announcement before they got sick."

"Maybe he's trying to be more involved in your life." Mia studied her to-do list. It was a lot for tomorrow, but she was sure they could make it. A lot of the prep work had been done for some of it today.

"If he's dead like Carla, he's not going to be involved at all, now, is he?" Abigail finished washing her hands and put on a new apron. "Not to change the subject, but why were Melody and that other girl here?"

Mia told her about the prank Crissy had played. "She seemed okay with it, though. Like she had been expecting it."

"As long as Crissy doesn't rig up some pig blood dousing if Melody wins."

Mia stared at Abigail. "Do you think she'd really do that?"

"It's a scene from that movie where the girl has powers?" Abigail shrugged. "Thomas and I always joked that we were glad to raise boys rather than girls. Girls can be mean. Boys are just reckless."

Mia thought of Levi and his impromptu trip to Boise to be at Christina's side during the wedding. It was either going to be seen as a romantic gesture or a jealous one. Although Christina had asked him to attend and had been disappointed when he'd said no. Maybe Levi was growing up—a little. Mia just hoped the two would be on speaking terms when they got back home. One feuding couple in the Majors family was enough to deal with.

The next two hours went by fast, and as Mia was putting the now-cooled sauce away in the fridge, the back door opened, and Trent came inside. "Hey, how's the walkway going?"

"It's all ready to stain tomorrow. I think Dad and I will have it done long before Levi arrives. He called, by the way. He said Christina was excited to see him, but the rest of the family, not so much. Isaac looks really mad about something."

"I don't really care what Isaac is mad about. I'm glad Christina is happy. I was getting tired of her moping around the house the last two weeks." Mia glanced around the kitchen. Abigail was finishing the dishes, and all they needed to do was wash off the prep tables and put a load of laundry into the washer. "How's pizza for dinner?"

"It would be amazing, but Dad just asked me to go to the Lodge with him." He glanced over to his mother. "I'll tell him about the offer, but . . ."

"Yeah, we can have one or the other." Mia grabbed a washcloth and rinsed it in the soapy water, standing next to Abigail. She poked her friend. "I bet he'd stay for pizza if you asked."

"I told you . . ."

Mia held up her hand. "Just kidding. Trent, have a nice dinner, and thank your dad. We'll get him paid for his help."

Trent paused at the door. "So, I'll see you tomorrow morning?"

"Bright and shiny." Mia set the wet cloth on a dirty table and went over to him, drying her hands on her apron as she went. She kissed him, holding her hands on his cheeks. "Thank you for everything. I do appreciate you."

" ‘Appreciate,' that's the magic word every man wants to hear." He straightened her apron strap. "What are you doing Saturday after the event? Do you want to go to the festival with me? There's a parade at ten, then we can spend the rest of the day wandering the festival grounds."

She kissed him again. "It's a date. Let me try again. You're really sexy when you work on my lawn . . . Or maybe this: I love you as well as appreciate you."

"That's much better." He stepped back and waved at Abigail. "See you tomorrow, Mom."

"I love you, too," Abigail called out as she dried a large pot. "But I'm just the woman who brought you into this world. Changed your diapers. Kept you alive."

Mia laughed, then watched Trent through the window as he walked back to his dad. When he brought up the pizza, she saw the reaction in Thomas's face. The men would be eating at the Lodge. She locked the door and turned back to finish the cleanup. Not her problem, not her monkeys.

She had other monkeys to deal with. Like her grandmother. A quiet dinner for three would give Mia time to chat about what was going on with her. Besides the bad dreams about Mia's future.

Mia waited until she went upstairs to call in the pizza order. Sometimes Grans wanted a combo, sometimes Hawaiian. You never knew.

"I'll have whatever you're eating," Grans said as the three of them gathered in the kitchen, three glasses of iced tea on the table.

Both Mia and Abigail stared at her.

"What? Why are you both staring?" Grans waved their attention away. "I'm not much of a diva."

This time Mia changed the subject. "Okay, Abigail, what do you feel like? Garlic chicken or a full-out combo?"

"Let's go with the combo. I feel like I never get a slice when the guys are here. They wolf it down." Abigail laid her head on the table. "I'm so worn out, and it's not even Sunday."

"Combo's better than garlic chicken," Grans said, but then she saw the smile on Mia's face. "You just said that so I'd tell you what I wanted."

"Me? Trick you? I don't think so." Mia took her phone into the living room and called in an order. When she came back, the women were talking about past harvest festivals. "So, tell me about the coven connection. Have they always been involved in the queen contest? I know most towns have a harvest festival or a fair. They started as a way to express gratitude for the generous harvest each year, correct?"

"It's an old village tradition. Coming together. Celebrating the bounty. The Goddess used to be a large part of the celebration. Then the celebrations turned a little dark when the harvest wasn't good. For the record, here in Magic Springs, we've never sacrificed virgins, but the queen contest is a way of celebrating the bounty of our so-called human crop," Grans explained. "Or magical human crop."

"It sounds a little bit like putting the prize cow on sale." Mia laughed when the other women stared wide-eyed at her.

"Mia, I can't believe you said that." Abigail started laughing, and for a minute, the troubles they'd all felt that day were gone. "Thomas used to say the same thing. Like the coven was putting the girls up for display for the virgin sacrifice part of the festival, even though they didn't follow through."

"I don't know. I guess it's tradition, but I'm glad I wasn't part of the coven growing up. I have enough self-confidence issues without the comparison-itis that comes with pitting young girls against each other." Mia sipped her water.

"And you don't do that with all your best chef shows and awards?" Grans poked her in the arm. "How many times have I caught you watching those?"

An alarm sounded as Mia watched the security monitor as a car with a Pizza Place sign on the top pulled into the parking lot. "Saved by the bell. Maybe I was just raised in the participation-trophy era. I don't like being judged only on my looks."

"The contest also interviews to see what the girls know about current events," Abigail countered. "I'm sorry if this event is pushing buttons for you."

Mia stood and stopped at the apartment door before she went downstairs to get the pizza. "It's not. I'm excited to be participating in the harvest festival. I'm not sure about what my feelings are about beauty contests, but Carla shouldn't have died trying to give her daughter a step up in the contest. That's definite."

Mia brought the pizza upstairs after locking the front door and setting the alarm. Everyone who was staying tonight was already in the building. Trent had told her he was going home after dinner with his dad. Cerby was having a sleepover with Muffy here at the school. Mia liked spending time with Trent's little hellhound. He kept her on her toes.

When she got back upstairs, the table was set. Music played in the background. Abigail smiled as Mia came in with the pizza box. "We decided it was going to be a stress-free meal. No contest, no talking about the business or the Lodge, no talking about men."

Grans held her hand up. "I even had a report, but Abigail insisted."