CHAPTER 8

C HAPTER 8

A s Mia walked out of the Lodge that evening, a black Land Rover was parked in the valet area. Isaac Adams leaned against it, smoking. When he saw her come out the front doors, he threw the cigarette on the ground and crushed it with his cowboy boot.

"Mia, I need to talk to you." He stepped forward to meet her.

"When did you start smoking?" Mia walked over and picked up the filter, carrying it toward the trash.

"I don't, not really. I bought a pack on my way up here. I was nervous." He followed her to the trash can.

She spun around on her heel, trying to put some physical distance between the two of them. "Why are you here, Isaac?"

"Like I said, I came to talk." He walked back and opened the passenger door of his SUV. "Can we go for a drive?"

"I have my car." She didn't point it out to him, since he'd probably make fun of the older Camry, but the car was paid for and got her where she needed to go. Those were the two most important criteria in Mia's world now. Not how much the car cost, which was Isaac's definition of a suitable vehicle.

"Mia, please?" The crack in Isaac's voice made her look at him.

Seeing the pain on his face, she gave in. "I can't be gone long. I'm expected for dinner."

"Just a few minutes. I need to apologize." He took her hand and helped her up into the passenger seat. The car was immaculately clean.

Mia wondered if she'd left something personal in the car and whether Isaac's cleaning crew would find it before Jessica did. But she wasn't playing games with the new girlfriend. Jessica was welcome to Isaac. Mia wouldn't repay the favor of sleeping with an engaged man. Not even if Jessica hadn't given her the same respect.

They drove without talking for a few minutes, then Isaac parked at an entrance to the greenbelt that ran along the river. It also ran past the school and her apartment. If she needed to walk home, she had a plan.

They didn't leave the car. Isaac turned to her. "Tell me I'm not making a mistake."

"I can't tell you that. You and Jessica have been together since before we broke up. You sleeping with her was the reason we broke up." She watched out the window and saw the river flowing past them. "We're like the river—history. The time for us has already floated by, and you can't just go back. I have no opinions on what you do with your life now."

"Don't be like that. I told you I made a mistake with Jessica. Then you moved up here with your grandmother. What was I supposed to do?" He held out his hands like they were clean of guilt. "I thought you'd come home."

"You were supposed to only sleep with me since we were living together and were going to get married. That's what you were supposed to do. I hope you at least can say that you fulfilled your responsibility to Jessica in that manner." She turned her head from looking outside to look at him. "You were supposed to be mine. Only mine. You threw that away. I'm not angry anymore. I just don't care."

"You don't have any feelings for me at all?" Isaac looked surprised by the announcement.

Mia was a little surprised herself. She had thought she was over him, but this certainty hadn't hit until just this moment. "Isaac, I hope you have a good life and a lovely marriage. I sent my present to Boise along with your sister. Please be nice to Christina. She's a good person and a close friend. Even though your mom tried to mold her into an Adams."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Isaac's eyes narrowed.

Mia got out of the car. She was done. "You're not going to bait me into a fight. We broke up because of you. You chose this life. You chose her. Now, go have a happy life and leave me alone. I'm working on my own happily-ever-after."

"With a grocery store clerk!" Isaac yelled at her as he turned on the engine and gunned it. Mia slammed the door. She heard his last words through the open window. "You had a good life with me."

As Isaac drove away and hopefully out of her life for good, Mia strolled down the greenbelt. The October sun felt hot on her back, and she took off the jacket she'd worn out of the building. She'd either walk to work tomorrow or ask for a ride. It didn't matter.

Isaac was off her heart. It had taken a while, but she didn't miss him anymore. She didn't think about what could have been. Instead, she thought of Trent and her life here in Magic Springs as she strolled home. When she came close to the school, she noticed Cerby out of the yard near the fence. He was digging at a piece of what looked like white cloth.

"Cerby, stop that. Come here." Mia leaned down and snapped her fingers. The little white Maltese hellhound came bounding at her and gave her kisses as she picked him up. "What are you doing out of the yard?"

She heard a rustle behind her and turned to see Trent coming around the greenbelt where it went by the school's parking lot. "He's hiding from me. I think your cat taught him how to magic a hole in the fence."

Mia leaned down to where she'd found Cerby. "I don't see a hole, but isn't this another potion bag?"

Trent leaned down and swore. He dug the bag out of the dirt with his pen knife and then shoved the knife into the top of the bag to allow him to pick it up without touching it. "I know Mom said these were focused on the contest participants, but I don't want this one to backfire like it did on Carla."

Mia held out her jacket. "Do you want to carry it in this?"

He glanced at her coat. "Is that real leather?"

She nodded. "Isaac bought it for me years ago. Real leather and pricey."

"And you want to use it as a potion carrying case?" He took the coat from her and dropped the bag in the middle, then folded the coat around it like it was a burrito. "Make sure Mom shows you how to clean the spell off this jacket before you wear it again. I don't want you getting hurt from a rebound."

"After today, I might just burn it." She fell in step with Trent as they went back to the parking lot and the gate that would let them into the backyard. "It's been a day."

"So, should I ask you why you were walking home from the opposite side of town where the Lodge is located?" Trent opened the gate with one hand and held it for her and Cerby to get inside.

She set the little dog down on the ground after Trent closed the gate. He ran directly to the kitchen door and sat to wait for them. "I guess he's excited about his find. He's found two potion bags so far. Maybe you should rent him out as a magic sniffer?"

" ‘Magic sniffer'? I'm not sure that's a real skill. But the little guy is good at finding these things." Trent paused at the table and chairs that were set near the garden. "Do we need to talk?"

"No, I'm fine. I just had a visit from Isaac that didn't end well. I'm not sure what he was expecting, but he's getting married this weekend. It's time for him to figure out I'm not sitting around waiting for him to come to his senses." She took a breath, then dropped into a chair. "Okay, so yes, I needed to talk."

"Wow. Not what I thought you'd say. He drove over two hours to profess his love for you so he could stand his fiancée up at the altar? The same woman that he broke your engagement over?" Trent set the coat-wrapped potion bag on the table and sat in the other chair. "What a loser."

"I feel bad for Jessica. At least a little. She was the one who started up with him knowing we were engaged. Maybe I don't feel that sorry for her." Mia glanced at the house. "Please tell me that Christina's already left."

"Christina has left the building. Levi met her for lunch in Twin, then she left for Boise. He's at the lumberyard picking up screws for the walkway. We should have it finished by midday Sunday. Mom says the contestants want to come by and see the setup again Sunday evening." He shook his head, leaning back on the loveseat with one arm wrapped around the back edge. "Mom thinks they're going to try to get you to open the staircase and second floor for the evening gown event."

"We've already set it up so they can use the staircase. What else do they want?" Mia glanced at her coat, which held a potential murder weapon. "I'm not changing the setup. And neither is your mom. Do you think we might have found all of these spell bags now?"

"If Carla was the one setting them, yes. She wasn't alone that much in the house." Trent didn't continue with his thought, but Mia had already guessed what he was about to say.

"Seriously? We don't think Carla did this now?" Mia rolled her shoulders as she stood. "Don't answer that. I don't want to know. Did your mom make dinner? I'm starving."

"Good, because Mom's been cooking all day. And your grandmother is here." He followed her to the door. "It's nice to have you home."

Mia leaned over and kissed him. "It's nice to be here. Oh, can you drive me to the Lodge tomorrow morning? My car's still there."

The downstairs kitchen was empty, but Mia could see that Abigail had been working. She went over and opened the walk-in. Several cakes sat on the racks, waiting to be frosted and decorated for the upcoming week. Mia's Morsels wasn't responsible for any full meals during the week—except for lunches for the contestants and the judges. The night events on Thursday and Friday had a social hour before the contest started, and they were doing a variety of desserts for those events.

The coven had hired a local bar to set up and serve the drinks, so that wasn't their responsibility. At least not adult drinks. Mia's Morsels would have coffee, hot apple cider, and several flavored waters available. So as long as Carla's death was an accident and Cerby stopped finding potion bags, Abigail had the event under control.

Mia couldn't worry about the contest until after she dealt with the baby shower for tomorrow. And made sure Saturday's food trucks were staffed. Then she could turn back into Mia for a few days and help Abigail.

She realized Trent was watching her. "Sorry, I'm going through the list of things we need to do for this event. Except I keep reminding myself that I'm not in charge. So the conversation keeps going back and forth in my head."

"That must be exhausting." He put his arm around her and moved her out of the kitchen. "Let's go upstairs and see what your grandmother wants to do with this so you can get your coat cleaned and back. The temperature is going to be chilly in the morning."

"And then it's warm in the afternoon, and I won't need the heavy coat." Mia followed him upstairs, checking to see that both Mr. Darcy and Cerby were on the stairs behind them. Mia was too busy and the school was too filled with people to have those two running around on their own. Especially outside the fence. She needed a way to corral them next week while the contest was going on as well. Maybe she should ask Grans to stay for the week as their pet sitter.

As soon as Mia sat down in the living room next to her grandmother, she knew the news wasn't good from the look on Grans's face. "You can't reverse the spell."

"Yet. I can't reverse it yet ." Her grandmother patted her hand. "Now, don't you worry on it. I'll figure out how to send Dorian packing soon. I promise. But this week, Abigail needs my help with the queen contest. Especially since Christina won't be back until Sunday. I'm glad that boy will be off the market soon, but the Adams family has a knack for picking the exactly wrong time to be in our lives."

Mia didn't want to mention Isaac's visit. Her grandmother hated him. Probably even more than Mia did at this moment. She decided to change the subject. "Cerby found another potion bag."

Trent brought over Mia's jacket and unwrapped it. The gauze of the potion bag glowed just a bit.

"Did you see that?" Mia asked as she pointed to the bag.

Her grandmother nodded and scooted closer. "That's interesting."

"It's weird," Mia clarified.

Her grandmother glanced over at Abigail, who nodded in agreement to some unspoken question. "Not weird, just active. The other two bags were inert. This one is actually set to go off. And if I'm not wrong, this is newer. Like it was made yesterday."

Trent frowned. "I thought you said Carla made the bags? Did someone else make this one?"

With a clearly muttered spell and a wave of Grans's hand, the bag glowed harder, then went out as they all watched. Grans took a deep breath and sank back into her place on the couch. "I've inactivated it. But no, this bag's maker is the same as the others. So no, Carla didn't make these."

Mia rolled her head back, not wanting to put the pieces together, but they flowed around her somewhat lackluster block. Finally, she opened her eyes. "Carla didn't die as a result of trying to manipulate the contest. Whoever is trying to do that killed Carla. So, who is going to tell Mark I was wrong?"

* * *

Friday morning, Trent came by to take her to work. He was drinking coffee with his mother in the kitchen when Mia came out of her bedroom. She hadn't slept well. Carla's death had kept rolling over in her head. She hadn't known the woman well, but when she'd been a victim of her own malfeasance, that seemed like justice. Now there was someone else to blame for her death. Someone who was walking around free right now since Mark Baldwin didn't believe in witchcraft. And the coroner had ruled it a natural death. And because Mia had told him that she'd killed herself. Now she had to go back on that story.

Abigail and Trent stopped talking as soon as she walked into the room.

"Good morning, Mia. Can I pour you some coffee?" Abigail didn't wait for an answer, just got up and went to the coffeepot, and before she knew it, Mia had a cup in her hand.

Mia sat down next to Trent. "I hope I didn't interrupt your conversation."

Trent leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. "Mom wasn't listening to reason anyway."

Abigail huffed at her son, then turned to Mia. "Just because I don't agree with what he's saying, he thinks I'm being unreasonable. His father is exactly the same way. If you know what you're doing, you'll run from this man—and as far as possible."

"Mom! Stop trying to turn Mia away from me. She already got enough of that yesterday from Isaac. Not to mention her date with Brad earlier this week." Trent framed his face with his hands. "Who could even think of breaking up with this sweet face?"

"You aren't all that, mister," Mia said, trying to hide the smile that had snuck onto her face. Abigail's words might have a string of truth in them since Trent was his father's son, but the woman loved both men with all her heart, even when she was furious with Thomas. "Did Grans go home or stay over?"

Mia had crashed early, probably tired from the energy she'd used fighting Isaac, and her grandmother had still been at the apartment then. She and Abigail were going through the coven files to get a feel for the shenanigans contestants had played with the competition in the past. Learning of all the deadly pranks made Mia realize that Thomas was in danger. And maybe, so were the rest of them.

Abigail sipped her coffee, then set her cup on the table. "She went home to gather some things. Like spell books, clothes, and Muffy." Muffy was Grans's elderly Shih Tzu. Muffy hated Mr. Darcy and Cerby, so naturally, the cat and puppy terrorized him. "Mia, I'm really sorry I got this contract. I should have realized that if we put in a bid, we'd get it. No matter what we'd charged. We have a unique perspective on any event with magical attendees, and this was just too big for them to take a chance on the Lodge messing it up."

"Like the ancestors' table at the first wake I did for the coven," Mia said dryly. "All we can do is learn to increase our prices on these special events and hope for the best. Besides, if we don't take the jobs, who will?"

"Maybe you could change the business name to Mia's Magical Morsels," Trent said.

Mia elbowed him, and his mother threw a napkin in his direction.

"And with that, I think I need to get busy working on the walkway. Levi should be here any moment." He stood and kissed Mia. "Just come get me when you're ready to go to work. I'll need a break, anyway."

Mia watched as he said goodbye to Cerby and then kissed his mother on the top of her head. After he'd left the apartment, she turned to Abigail. "I guess he's Team Thomas?"

Abigail shrugged one shoulder. "Kind of. He thinks it's better to have a united front in these types of situations. He's afraid we might miss something if his dad isn't part of the discussions."

"But you'd rather he stays away completely." Mia sipped her coffee. Relationships were hard. Normal ones or magical ones.

"Did you read some of the things that those overeager moms offered the judges? I don't think he'd cheat on me, but I'm sure every man has a price. And what if someone threatened me or one of the boys? He'd do anything to save us." Abigail stood and dumped her coffee down the drain. "No, it would be much better if he just stayed away."

"I don't think that's going to happen. Maybe we could use a spy in all of this?" Mia threw out the one thing that made sense. They needed Thomas's inside information to make sure no one else died. Judge or contestant.

Mia had to admit that Trent's plan made sense. Since they were all involved in this mess of an event, they all needed to be talking. She watched the security monitor as Levi's Jeep was followed into the parking lot by Grans's old sedan and finally, Thomas's black Ram. It was time to put Trent's plan into motion and put up a united front.

"Time for me to get ready for work. I'm doing a baby shower for Mrs. Davis. Do you know her?" Mia stood and washed out her own cup to put in the dishwasher.

"Of course, I know Faith. She asked me to make the cake for the shower. I'll have Trent bring it over no later than three." Abigail frowned as she checked the day's schedule. "I thought I'd told you that weeks ago."