Alchemy and Arson Read online

  “You wouldn’t do this to the vampires who we all know are more dangerous, so why are you punishing us werewolves like this?!” the man shouted.

  “Please, Mr. Romano, calm down,” Heath said. “I assure you, this is for everyone’s safety. Many magical species are affected by the Blood Moon, not merely werewolves.”

  “Don’t tell me to calm down! We don’t even have anyone up there representing us or who knows a thing about what it’s like to be a werewolf on a full moon and that’s clearly what this is all about! You witches are just afraid of what you don’t understand!” the man continued, and in seconds the gargoyles who served as the Council’s guards were on him.

  The man kicked and snarled as the gargoyles seized him, but he was no match for their strength. It happened in a flash, but I could’ve sworn I saw the man’s teeth sharpen and lengthen, and for a second I wondered if Heath was right to impose a curfew. The gargoyles dragged him through the Town Hall’s doors and that was the last I saw of Mr. Romano.

  “Please don’t be alarmed,” Heath said, though he looked shaken himself. “We must remain calm. So long as everyone follows the rules, we’ll all be safe and this night will pass uneventfully just like the rest.”

  Even I had trouble believing that. There was no such thing as an uneventful night in Moon Grove.

  “To that end, effective immediately, all citizens must be indoors by eight o’clock this evening. Patrols will make their rounds to ensure compliance and anyone caught in violation will be detained. Further, all evening activities, including classes at Veilside, are suspended until further notice,” Heath said.

  Wait, patrols? Wasn’t the police force made up of werewolves? If they were at risk of turning into killing machines with no control over themselves then who was going to keep the rest of us safe and how?

  More importantly, how was I supposed to sneak Elle into town without getting both of us torn to shreds by a rogue, rabid werewolf — or worse?

  At least school was canceled, right?

  Chapter Three

  Midnight couldn't come fast enough. Flora had gone to bed long ago and Luna, my talking black cat, had thankfully joined her.

  But I couldn't have slept even if I'd tried. All I could think about was Grandma Elle and how on Earth I was supposed to get her into Moon Grove without anyone seeing us — and without either of us getting mauled.

  Instead, I sat on the couch in the living room for hours staring out the window at Flora’s immaculately decorated garden and Moon Grove beyond it, my mind racing. Everything was bathed in a creepy red light from the Blood Moon.

  The clock hanging above the entrance to the kitchen ticked away the seconds torturously. Elle’s bus was scheduled to arrive at the Moon Grove town gates in less than half an hour and I still hadn't formulated a plan.

  “Zoe?” Flora asked, jolting me. She stood in the doorway to her bedroom holding Luna against her chest. “Are you okay?”

  “Yeah, I'm fine. I just can't sleep,” I muttered.

  “I don't need fairy intuition to know that's a lie,” Flora said as she came to sit next to me. Luna crawled into my lap.

  “She's right. You've never been a good liar,” Luna said.

  “And you've never been one to pull punches,” I said, and Flora laughed.

  “What can I say, I call things as I see them,” Luna said as she licked a paw and dragged it over the top of her head.

  “I take it this has to do with your grandmother?” Flora asked.

  “Yeah, obviously,” I sighed. “I have no idea what to do. I mean, I was already in hot water before they decided to implement this curfew. Now I’m totally out of luck.”

  “I wish there was something I could do to help,” Flora said. “But I wouldn’t dare step outside tonight.”

  “I don’t blame you. You’d be like a super snack for all the werewolves, vampires, and whatever else is out there looking for dinner,” I said.

  “Well, regardless, you can’t just leave your grandmother alone. What are you going to do?”

  “Good question. I don’t have a broom to fly on, so I guess I’ll have to do things the old-fashioned way,” I said. Now more than ever I wished I’d elected to take flying lessons at Veilside.

  “What does that mean?”

  “Sneaking around in the dark and praying I don’t get caught,” I said. “Sounds like a pretty foolproof plan, right?”

  “Aren’t there any spells you could cast on yourself? Something to make you invisible?” Flora asked.

  “Are you kidding? Even if there was, do you really think I could pull it off?” I asked as I pulled my wand out of my robes. There was something almost cruel about having a wand and not knowing how to use it. It was like giving a kid a Tolstoy novel.

  “Yeah, you might just end up hurting yourself if you tried,” Flora sighed.

  “Do you really think there’s anything dangerous out there? Or do you think the Council was trying to scare people into staying inside just in case?”

  “After that disturbing prediction from Hilda, I highly doubt they were just making things up to frighten us,” Flora said, and a chill ran down my spine at the memory. As much as I didn’t want to believe Flora, I knew she was right.

  “Have you looked outside? Everything looks so eerie,” I said, pointing out the window. I’d been staring at it for hours so it had mostly lost its impact, but there was no denying something strange was happening. All the bushes and flowers were covered in a blood-red glow.

  “I’ve tried not to, honestly,” Flora said. “The less I think about it, the less I have to worry about what’s going on out there.”

  “I don’t even understand what the point of the curfew is. How is that going to stop some mooned-up werewolf from barging into someone’s house?” I asked.

  “I’m trying not to think about that either,” Flora groaned.

  “Sorry, I wasn’t trying to upset you,” I said.

  “It’s okay, I know you weren’t. Besides, you’ve got much more to worry about than I do,” Flora said.

  “Well, if it’s any consolation, I’ve survived an attack from a murderous vampire, and I managed to keep myself alive when a crazy witch threw me out of a sixth-floor window, so I think I’ll be all right,” I said.

  Flora chuckled. “That’s one way to look at it.”

  “Anyway, I guess I’d better get moving. I don’t want Elle to be alone waiting for me. As dangerous as things are inside town tonight, I can’t imagine what it’s going to be like outside the gates,” I said.

  “I’m sure I don’t need to tell you this, but I’ll say it anyway: please be careful, Zoe,” Flora said.

  “I’ll do my best. No promises.”

  “That’s not funny,” Flora said as she leaned over to hug me like it was the last time she might have the chance.

  I choked up a little bit. We hadn’t been roommates for long, but I already felt like she was my best friend in the world.

  “At least I know Luna will have a home if I don’t make it back,” I said, scratching the top of Luna’s head.

  “That’s not funny either,” Flora said.

  I slipped my wand back into my robes and stood to stare out the window at the bizarre red world that waited for me outside. It felt like I’d taken a rocket ship to Mars. Despite the fact it was almost midnight, the light from the moon was so bright that it seemed like it was nearly noon, not midnight.

  But at least this way the werewolves and other creepy crawlies wouldn’t have any shadows to hide in.

  “Good luck,” Flora said as she walked me to the front door. Gulping, I turned the knob and stepped outside slowly, checking both sides to make sure nothing was waiting to grab me.

  When I was sure the coast was clear, I nodded to Flora and she closed the door, leaving me all on my own. Somewhere off in the distance, a long, high-pitched wolf’s howl tore through the air and brought every hair on my body to attention.

  This was crazy, completely crazy. But what
choice did I have? I couldn’t leave Elle alone at the gates with her luggage and whatever else was out there. The fact of the matter was I created this problem myself — if I’d had the courage to tell Grandma it wasn’t the right time to visit, none of this would’ve happened.

  Or the Council could’ve approved my request.

  The thought gave me the resolve to see things through, even if it wasn’t one of my better ideas. After all I’d done for the Council and for Moon Grove, the least they could do to repay me was allow Gram to come and visit.

  Now they didn’t have a choice.

  With my head held high, I stepped off down the path and turned left onto Swiftsage. Had it not been for the unsettling color and size of the moon that dominated the sky, and the nightmarish crimson shade it cast over everything, the street would’ve looked the same as it always did.

  Crouching to keep myself as low to the ground as possible — as if that would do anything to make me less conspicuous — I hurried down the street toward the intersection of Crescent and Swiftsage.

  Despite what Heath had said about there being patrols to make sure everyone complied with the curfew, I saw no evidence. Maybe even the people hired to patrol were too scared to do it. I wouldn’t blame them.

  Hugging the brush that lined Crescent Street, I hopped from cluster to cluster moving south toward the town gates. All the myriad shops and businesses that were normally lit up like Christmas trees were as dark inside as ink.

  I’d never seen Moon Grove so quiet and it was beyond scary. They say that there are certain cities that never sleep, and Moon Grove was definitely one of them, but even the oil lamps that normally kept the streets bathed in warm light were extinguished.

  I tried not to think about what that meant as I crept further south, my eyes and ears strained for any sight or sound of something other than human. At that point, I’d rather have gotten caught by one of the patrols than run into a shifted werewolf — especially after the way I’d seen Mr. Romano change earlier.

  Amazingly enough, I managed to make it to the gates without running into anyone or anything, not even an animal. It was almost alarming how easy it was to sneak across town; maybe my luck hadn’t run out after all.

  As I stood looking out through the open gate — there was no reason to lock it since it was magically protected to prevent anyone non-magical from entering — it occurred to me I wasn’t sure I’d be able to get back into town once I left.

  The first time I walked through the gates, Beau had dragged me while insisting I must’ve had some sort of magical blood. But from my perspective, the only thing I saw waiting for me on the other side of the gates was a rundown town.

  I strongly suspected Grandma Elle had some magic in her blood as well, but I wasn’t sure. What if she couldn’t enter the town at all? Then what would I do? I couldn’t put her back on the bus and send her home because the bus didn’t wait. Even if it did, she would never go for it.

  Just like every other part of my plan, it seemed I would have to make it up as I went. If I couldn’t get back into town, well, at least Elle wouldn’t be alone. And if she couldn’t walk through the gates, I would just have to figure something else out.

  My palms slick with sweat, and my eyes closed tight, I stepped through the gates and kept walking blindly until I knew I was well past the point of no return.

  My eyes fluttered open and I let out a sigh of relief as I realized I was out of the magical bounds of Moon Grove for the first time in more than a month — and I hadn’t burst into flames or anything as a result.

  The bad news was that Grandma Elle wasn’t there yet.

  I pulled my phone out of my robes to check the time only to find that, of course, the display was scrambled. In the same way that my human cell phone had gone haywire when I entered Moon Grove, my Paraphone had done the exact same thing upon leaving the magical boundaries of the town.

  Hopefully, that would fix itself once we got back inside. It was the least of my concerns.

  As if on cue, a sound like gunfire erupted and I shrieked as a gigantic silver bus appeared out of thin air in front of me. The screech of its brakes grated against my eardrums as the bus ground to a halt.

  The front door hissed open to reveal a vampire with long, greasy black hair giving me the worst kind of smile. It was Claude, the same vampire who’d driven the bus to Moon Grove when I came.

  “Zoe, ma chérie, you smell as fresh and delightful as I remember,” Claude said from the driver’s seat. In the blink of an eye, he was beside me sniffing me like a dog.

  “Thanks, Claude,” I said, ignoring him to peer into the bus for any sign of Elle. “It’s good to see you again too.” Nothing could have been further from the truth — Claude was as creepy and weird as ever, unfortunately.

  “When a frightened little old lady got on my bus, I knew right away she was related to you,” Claude said. “And here she comes.”

  “Zoe, are you there?” Grandma’s voice called from deep inside the bus. Just the sound of it made my heart lurch.

  “Yes, Gram! I’m here, get off the bus,” I said.

  A few moments passed in which I held my breath while I waited. Elle spilled off the bus with nothing but an oversized backpack slung over her shoulders. She recoiled as she passed Claude and threw her arms around me. Tears streamed down her face and wet my shoulder.

  “Oh, Sugar, I’m so glad to see you,” Grandma sobbed.

  “Are you okay? What’s wrong?” I asked.

  “You mean other than going through H-E-double-hockey-sticks to get here?” Grandma asked. “Good Lord in heaven, Zoe, what ungodly nonsense have you dragged me into?”

  “We can talk about it later, we need to get going. Come on,” I said, peeling her off me. She nodded and wiped the tears from her eyes.

  “Did you bring anything else with you?”

  Grandma shook her head.

  “I had no idea how long I’d be here or what I’d need or if you could just magic it up fer me or somethin’,” Grandma said and I had to bite back a laugh. If she thought I could impress her with magic, she was going to be sorely disappointed.

  “Don’t worry about it, we can get whatever you need in town,” I said, jabbing a finger over my shoulder at the gates.

  “You’re pullin’ my leg ain’t you? There ain’t nothing back there but busted shacks. Zoe, I rarely take the Lord’s name in vain, but I swear to God if you’re crankin’ my chain with all this Pagan hooplah—”

  “I’m not, I swear. You have to believe me, there’s more than meets the eye. You’ll see soon enough,” I said, though I didn’t know how true that would be. For all I knew, Grandma might not even be able to enter Moon Grove.

  “Regardless, I need you to pull yourself together. Things are a little, well, complicated right now so we need to be clear headed,” I said. I’d have to come clean with her about lying at some point, but now clearly wasn’t the time.

  “Complicated? Is that what y’all witches call this?” Grandma asked.

  “Come on, the sooner we get you to my place, the better,” I said.

  “I hope to the Lord above you’ve got an ice-cold glass of Southern Comfort waitin’ fer me,” Grandma sighed. “I reckon I’mma need it.”

  She wasn’t alone. So far I’d managed to get to her without an issue, but sneaking us both back to Flora’s house would be another matter entirely.

  “Enchantée, Madame,” Claude cooed as he bowed and practically teleported back into the driver’s seat of the bus. “Take care of yourself, Zoe.”

  “Yeah, you too. Stay out of the sun, it’s bad for your skin,” I said, and Claude smirked.

  I took Grandma’s hand in mine and walked toward the open gates, saying a silent prayer that everything would go as I hoped.

  “This might feel weird for a second,” I warned Grandma. Truthfully, I had no idea what was going to happen, but I had to prepare her somehow.

  “Can’t be any worse than what I just saw,” Grandma said. “
Ain’t no amount of church-goin’ gonna cure me of this.”

  “You might want to close your eyes,” I said.

  “Zoe, Sugar, you say that like they ain’t been closed the whole time,” Grandma said.

  With a deep breath and a renewed grip on Elle’s hand, I set off at a brisk pace through the gates. Amazingly, as the illusion of a shantytown melted away and the crimson-bathed scenery of the real Moon Grove appeared, nothing happened to Grandma.

  We stopped and I waited for Grandma to open her eyes. When she did, she let out a gasp and clapped a hand over her mouth.

  “What in the Lord’s name…?” she whispered as she looked around. Okay, so that answered that question: Grandma definitely had some sort of magic in her blood because she could see the real town.

  But the Blood Moon probably wasn’t helping her impression of things. There wasn’t anything I could do about that.

  “I told you things were complicated right now, but anyway, welcome to Moon Grove,” I said, shrugging.

  “Zoe, there’s someone coming,” Grandma said, pointing down Crescent Street. I whirled and saw my entire life flashing before me as Circe Woods came stomping down the street in our direction, her robes flowing, her wand pointed directly at me.

  Busted.

  “Zoe Clarke, I do hope this isn’t what it looks like!” Circe hissed as she jogged the rest of the way to me and Grandma, looking over her shoulder to make sure we were alone.

  “I reckon you know her?” Grandma whispered, but I shushed her.

  “Circe, I know this looks funny, but I swear, I can explain everything if you give me the chance,” I said.

  “You don’t need to explain. It’s crystal clear, and we can’t have this conversation here.”

  “Then where can we —”

  I never finished the sentence. My whole world turned into a twisted blur of colors and Grandma’s shrieks. The next thing I knew, my rear collided with the floor of a dark house I didn’t recognize, Grandma next to me. All the drapes were drawn and there wasn’t a single light on inside. Grandma clutched my arm and whimpered.