Chapter 23

23

Sadie sat in King's Jeep feeling as if she wanted to climb out of her own skin. Now that she knew she was cursed, she just felt tainted. Wrong. Dirty.

"We're going to figure this out," King said, reaching across the console to take her hand.

She stared at the connection and almost pulled away, afraid she'd taint him, too. But then she remembered the night they'd shared and decided it was way too late for that. So instead, she held on tight, clinging to him as if he were a lifeline.

"I'm sure the healer will have some answers for us." King pulled into a parking spot in front of the Keating Hollow healer's office.

Before Sadie could even get unbuckled, King was opening her door and holding his hand out to her.

"I'm not disabled, you know," she said with a tired smile.

"And people wonder why chivalry is dead," he joked.

Sadie took his hand, letting him help her climb out of the Jeep. "Thanks."

"Always." King kept a tight grip on her hand as they walked into the healer's office.

"Good afternoon," the vibrant, redheaded receptionist said with a friendly smile. "What brings you in today?"

"My mother cursed my girlfriend," King said. "We want to know if the healer can help."

Girlfriend? Sadie thought. When had he decided she was his girlfriend? Then she remembered what he'd said last night before they'd given themselves to each other. If we take this step, you're mine, Sadie Lewis. Her heart felt as if it was going to explode.

"Sadie?" King said, sounding as if it wasn't the first time he'd tried to get her attention while standing at the desk.

"Yeah?" she answered, glancing between him and the receptionist.

"Bethany has some questions," King said.

"Right." She turned her attention to the woman behind the desk.

Bethany went through a bunch of questions about her basic health and then had her fill out a questionnaire. Once Sadie was done, she watched the woman disappear into the back. She turned to King. "Do you really think there's anything they can do?"

"We're about to find out." He led her to the waiting area, but just as they were about to sit, Bethany was back.

"You're in luck. Healer Whipple is running ahead of schedule today and said she can squeeze you in now. Come with me." Bethany held the door open for them.

Sadie stood, but when King stayed seated, she blinked at him. "Aren't you coming?"

"If you want me to," he said. "I didn't want to assume anything."

She held her hand out. "I definitely want my boyfriend with me."

He smiled softly, took her hand, and followed her into the exam room.

"Healer Whipple will be here shortly." Bethany closed the door, leaving them in the white sterile room.

"So this is weird, right?" Sadie said, still feeling like an alien in her own skin.

"Less weird than my mother cursing you as a form of blackmail," he said darkly.

"Good point."

"Hello," Healer Whipple said as she glided into the room with a warm smile on her face. She had short gray hair and kind eyes. "Sadie, it's good to see you again."

"You, too," Sadie said. "I wish we were meeting under better circumstances."

"That's always the case, dear." She turned to King. "We haven't met. I'm Healer Whipple."

"King McGrath."

They shook hands and then the healer turned back to Sadie. "It says here you think you've been cursed. Can you tell me about that?"

Sadie took a few minutes to give her the details of everything they knew, including that they thought King's mom was the caster and the spell placed on unsuspecting listeners seemed to be temporary at best.

"Okay. Let's see what we're dealing with," Healer Whipple said, taking Sadie's hand in hers. She ran her fingertips over Sadie's palm and then up and down her forearm. The healer frowned and then muttered a word that sounded like Latin. Magic sparked from Healer Whipple's fingertips and skittered over Sadie's skin, engulfing her hand and forearm.

After a moment, Sadie's skin turned bright red from her hand up to just below her elbow.

The healer looked up. "There's definitely a curse here. You said this was the hand that King's mom touched just before you felt the magic?"

"Yes," Sadie said.

"Okay. Now that we know we're dealing with a curse, tell me a little more. It only affects other people when you sing?" the healer asked, making a note on the chart.

"Yes," Sadie said with a nod. "It's when I feel emotions most intensely, so I think that might be connected."

"Interesting." The healer tilted her head to the side as she contemplated something. "That means the curse might kick in at other times besides when you sing. I think it's possible this could happen if you're going through an emotional time, too. So that's something to watch out for."

"You can't be serious," Sadie said with a sinking heart. "You mean if I'm having a bad day, I could just be walking around casting spells on people without even knowing it?"

"Or a really good day," she said. "You're happy when singing, right?"

"Dammit." Sadie glanced at King and then felt a faint brush of his guilt prick her arms. "It's not your fault," she said. "Your mother is the only one to blame."

He pressed his lips into a thin line and glanced away briefly before giving her the tiniest of nods.

"She's right, you know," the healer said. "You are not responsible for how your parents behave. Now, let's see if we have anything that can counteract this curse." She got up and went to a leatherbound book that sat on a shelf above a computer. After flipping to the index, she found the page she wanted. A moment later, she snapped it shut and replaced it on the shelf. When she turned around, she said, "Hmm. I'm not sure this is exactly what we're looking for."

Sadie's chest tightened as tears stung her eyes. Finally, just when everything in her life was falling into place, she ended up cursed. If they didn't find a way to reverse it, what would happen to her singing career? And what would happen to her and King when he went out on the road to promote, but she was back in Keating Hollow, slinging beers. Bitterness set in, and she slumped back in her chair.

"Let's give a potion a try. If it doesn't work, I'll do some research and see if we can find something else that will reverse the effects," Whipple said.

"What if you can't find anything?" King asked.

She turned her attention to King, her expression serious. "The best way to neutralize a curse is to find the person who cast it and either get them to remove it or force them to. Unfortunately, most times it's nearly impossible to find someone who is willing to admit guilt for such a thing since it's a felony in this state. If they are caught, there is mandatory jail time depending on the severity of the curse."

"Jail." He nodded. "It's what they deserve."

"Indeed. I'll be right back." The healer left the room.

Sadie stared at King, her body numb with shock at his statement. Then her heart started to ache. She'd never understand what it was like to have a mother like Cindy. And it killed Sadie that Cindy had kicked King out of the house as a teenager and then pretended he didn't exist until he had something she wanted. No wonder he was resigned to seeing her jailed. Would Sadie have felt the same way about her father if he'd managed to steal her house?

Yes. Yes she would. And the thought nearly broke her.

"We'll find her either way, Sadie," King said. "Whether this potion works or not, I'm not letting her get away with this. It's beyond time that she faced the consequences of her actions."

"I know," Sadie said. He was right. This went beyond Cindy's heinous crime of cursing Sadie. She was also blackmailing King, and the sooner she was held accountable the better.

The door opened and Healer Whipple slipped back into the room. She was holding a quart of green-colored liquid. "This is the potion. The instructions are to drink half now and the other half first thing in the morning. Give it a full twenty-four hours for it to work. You should feel the curse detaching from your body by this time tomorrow. Once it's fully free, it will poof into a ball of smoke and your skin will go back to its normal color. If twenty-four hours pass and you don't feel anything different, we'll know it didn't work."

"How confident are you that this might clear the curse?" King asked.

"Honestly? Maybe 30%. I'll start researching after my last appointment today." Healer Whipple walked to the door. "Take your time. I know it's a lot to process. If you have questions, let Bethany know. She'll come find me. Otherwise, call tomorrow afternoon and update me on the status of your condition."

Condition , Sadie thought bitterly. That was one way to put it.

"Thank you," King said. "We appreciate your help."

"Oh, one more thing." She tapped the chart in her hand. "You're going to need to file a police report. Grab a copy of my diagnosis on the way out. The sheriff is going to need it."

"I will." Sadie straightened her shoulders, ready to file that police report. At least then she'd feel like she was doing something.

The healer nodded curtly and slipped out of the room.

King gestured to the potion in Sadie's hand. "Bottoms up."

Sadie swallowed the lump in her throat and then downed half the potion. It tasted like bitter sour apple, and when she swallowed the last of her dose, she grimaced and said, "I'm going to need ice cream. Or chocolate. Or pie. Now."

King chuckled softly as he placed his hand on the small of her back and led her out the door. "That I can handle."