The Silver Rose (12 page)

“Ecstatic?” Leonardo chuckled. “Mystified, more likely.”

Eleisha stepped back, grasped his lined face, and went up onto her toes to kiss both cheeks. “A wonderful sight for this Dragoness's eyes.”

Seeing one of his oldest friends tugged the strings of affection in Leonardo's heart, and his eyes misted. First his son and now his return to Marylebone — the centre of what had been his universe for so very, very long. Eleisha hooked her arm through his and began to tug him down the hall to the Dragons' Lair where Anton spent most of his time; where Leonardo too had once presided.

Eleisha was eager to show him off to Anton, but in the end it was a slow process, as there were many old friends to greet and a multitude of questions demanding answers.

Eleisha asked the most. “Where have you been? What brings you to Marylebone after all this time? You're sorely missed, you old rascal. And Sophia. How is she? Why didn't you bring her with you?”

“Sophia is well but she is busy feeding the family. Perhaps she will join me when next we meet.”

“So this visit isn't a one-off?” Eleisha's appeared hopeful although dissatisfaction filled her eyes. They reached the main doors of the Dragons' Lair. When Leonardo moved to open the doors, she stopped him. “Surely you will not leave it so long between visits next time.”

Leonardo recognised the sorrow in Eleisha's words. “I will send Sophia to you as soon as I return home. And you are free to visit us in the Enclave any time you wish.”

Eleisha's smile blossomed once more. Sophia had been one of her best friends, and it was clear she had been sorely missed. She grasped his hand with hers and squeezed it. “I thank you, Leo. Now let me open the door. I want to see Anton's face when I introduce you.”

Leonardo grinned. “Me too.” He nodded and allowed himself to be let in to the Dragon's Lair, the main meeting room for all visitors to Marylebone.

Eleisha pushed the door open with a wave of her hand and led the way in, every particle of her aura charged with anticipation. “Anton,” she shouted above the throng of activity in the great room. “Look what your Dragoness has brought you. Is she not the best wife in all the world?”

There was something about spring that never failed to soothe away Rosa's doubts and sadness. She sat on a white, wrought iron chair next to a small, matching table in Zelda's garden, her eyes closed, her face raised to the sun, relishing the quiet stillness as the warmth filtered through to her bones.

Zelda, her mother's lifelong friend, had descended upon Raven's Creek within hours of her parent's passing to guide her and her sisters through the long, agonizing days, weeks, and months of grief. Although there was no need to continue to remain in Raven's Creek, Zelda had purchased a small picture postcard cottage on the edge of Raven's Creek and spent all her spare time there.

Rosa knew she was Prime Wizardess. She knew she travelled extensively on magical business, but the old woman never divulged details and Rosa, although intensely curious, knew better than to ask. Zelda remained steadfast in her affection and love despite her many absences from Raven's Creek. Zelda was Rosa's rock and confidant.

“So what do you make of our new resident artist?” Zelda placed a plate of freshly made scones heavily laden with jam and cream on the table. She wasn't a woman to skirt issues. “He's a handsome so-and-so, isn't he?”

Rosa reached for a scone, wary and not sure she wanted to discuss Aden with Zelda. “Handsome doesn't even begin to describe him.” She bit into the scone. “These are delicious. I've been craving your baking for weeks.”

“Eat up, girl. You're too thin for my liking. I go away for a few weeks, and I come back to find you as thin as a wraith.”

“I'm eating plenty.” But her reply wasn't truthful, and Zelda possessed sharper eyes than most.

“Don't believe you. Eat up. I've more in the kitchen for your sisters.”

“I'm eating. I'm eating.” And she launched into her second scone. “Heaven.”

Zelda sliced her scone into quarters and pecked at one portion. “I'd say that about that Aden fellow. Not so sure it applies to my scones.”

Rosa laughed, but she wondered at Zelda's gentle prodding. “I wouldn't go that far.”

“I'm thinking you should snaffle him up.” Zelda chuckled. “He's perfectly scrumptious.”

And here she'd been hoping for a quiet morning in the sunshine. “Juicy delicious is what Alanna called him.”

Zelda hooted. “That girl. She's a treasure!”

Rosa's eyebrows raised and she nearly choked on her scone. “I did say Alanna.”

“I know you did, girl. She hides her true potential from you all. Mark my words, she'll surprise you one day.”

“Believe me, she surprises me every day.”

But Zelda appeared to be focused on Aden, and she rattled off a list of his attributes as she saw them. “Unmarried, rich, single. Girl, you've got to grab him before Alanna does.”

“Not you too!” Rosa had a good idea Alanna would be a lot like Zelda one day.

A satisfied gleam lit the old woman's eyes to a deep purple. “So others agree with me.”

“Not others. Alanna thinks he's perfect me too. And if I don't want him,” Rosa prevaricated, “she's happy to offer herself up in my place.”

“She would,” Zelda remarked and then asked the all-important question. “And are you going to let her have him?”

“No. Yes. No!” Rosa gave Zelda a pointed stare. “What's with your interest in my relationships? You've never tried to marry me off before.”

“I never mentioned marriage!” Zelda's eyes held a gleam of excitement. “We've never had anyone like him in the village before.” Zelda winked. “He likes you. You like him. It could work.”

Rosa nearly inhaled the cream from her scone as she realized her error in mentioning the word marriage. “How can you tell he likes me?”

“How do I know how to bake without reading a recipe? I just do.”

“He's only here for a few short weeks, and then he'll be off.”

“And is that all that's stopping you? You could follow him.”

“Follow him?” The thought had crossed her mind. “Absolutely not!” Her appetite lost, she placed the half-eaten scone down on her plate. Should she burden Zelda with her worries? Surely it was time to start making her own decisions.

Zelda's eyes lost some of their zeal, and concern crept into her voice. “Something else is bothering you. Better out than in.”

“My life has been turned upside-down and has wrung me inside-out.”

Zelda leaned forward and propped her elbows on the table on either side of her plate. “Tell me all.”

And before she could stop herself, Rosa spilled everything. “The Bells of Marylebone tolled for me last week. I wondered if you knew already with you being on the Supreme Council.”

“You know I can't discuss anything about the council with you, but I can tell you the Fates decide on the bells. They're a law unto themselves, and we have no control over them.” Zelda shivered. “They give me the heebie jeebies.”

“An apt description on how I feel about it all.”

“So you think Aden's the one?”

“Maybe. I don't know. He has huge potential. But I'm positive he's hiding magic.”

“And this is a problem because … ?”

“Why would he hide? What point would it serve? Plus I'm sure he attempted to bespell me the other day. He broke through all the security spells surrounding Gregori, and I was knocked unconscious. He tried to make me forget and told me I fainted. He thinks I don't remember but I do. I think it's because my magic is spiking and growing so uncontrollable that his spell didn't work on me.”

Zelda grasped Rosa's hands. “I would have felt a surge of magic if the spells around Gregori had been broken. I'm connected to you too.”

Rosa's memory was a jumbled mess of images but she was positive of one thing. Aden definitely had attempted to bespell her. She'd returned to check on Gregori early that morning specifically to investigate whether any of the spells surrounding him had been tampered with. She'd found nothing.

“I know I'm right. I just don't know why he would pretend to be a mortal without magic.”

“Maybe there are valid reasons. It's up to you to find out why Aden is hiding in plain sight. I want you alive, well, happy, and in control of your magic. It seems your future has come to meet you, and you must face it head on. Your power is growing, and has been recognized by Marylebone. You should be proud to be acknowledged by them. You must believe in yourself, Rosa. No one else can do this for you.”

“I'm not prepared.”

“When is anyone prepared for the unexpected? Life presents challenges. Overcoming them helps us grow. View this as an opportunity to learn more about yourself as a witch and as a woman. What would your mother tell you?”

Rosa had been thinking just that. “She would say, ‘Follow your heart, Rosa. Follow your heart.'”

“Well, then,” Zelda insisted. “Your mother was a very wise witch.”

Tears filled Rosa's eyes. “I miss her dearly.”

The old woman patted Rosa's hand, and moisture brimmed behind her spectacles. “As do I, Rosa. As do I.”

The following Monday, in a flurry of excitement and waving the local weekly newspaper, Super Sleuth Ruth burst into the Greenwood Gallery.

Rosa lifted her head from the necklace she was threading with the tiniest ruby crystal beads and removed the magnifying glasses she wore for such detailed work. Alanna was upstairs and Beth at home attempting to weave the wedding tapestry she had dreamed of for Rosa.

Flicking off the overhead light, Rosa rolled shoulders that ached intolerably. Her eyes smarted not so much from the close piecework but from a lack of sleep and an inordinate amount of worry.

“So what's got you so excited?” Good news she could welcome, even if it was tittle-tattle. It would lighten her mood. And it would take her mind off all the strange requests for dates she had received over the past few days. She had a horrible feeling Alanna was up to something.

For reasons unknown, men had begun knocking at her door at all times of the day. Every one of them single and holding a tincture of potential. Unfortunately, all so far lacked zing as far as she was concerned. Zing was an integral ingredient in a relationship. It signified mutual attraction, interest, and promise. So far, the only zing had been the end of each date when she uttered a swift good-bye and collapsed in relief against her solid kauri front door.

What possessed these men to come knocking and, more importantly, what compulsion possessed her to say yes to any of them in the first place?

Ruth's voice intruded on her thoughts. She hadn't heard a single word the woman had said.

“So is this you?” Ruth pointed to something in the local newspaper.

“Is what me?” Alarm filtered through to her tired brain. What on earth was Ruth talking about?

“This advert in the singles column.”

“Singles column!” Rosa's voice squeaked. Wondering at the calculated stare in Ruth's eyes when they met hers, she grabbed a corner of the paper so she could read what the woman was pointing at. And there it was. For the entire town to see. Emblazoned in bold, an advertisement stated:

Warlock Wanted! Desperate witch seeks handsome, fertile man with a view to marriage. Must not be averse to a little magic under a full moon. Leave a voice message at …

Rosa didn't recognize the mobile number, but only one person would have come up with a half-brained idea like that.

“I'm not a witch,” Rosa protested weakly. Feeling vulnerable and highly embarrassed, she took a deep breath and silently cursed her sister. She'd made a Witches' Promise not to interfere. “It's a joke! It must be. I don't recognize the phone number. It's certainly not mine, Beth's, or Alanna's for that matter.”

Ruth frantically flicked back to the front page and jabbed her finger at something else. “I suppose you know nothing about this, either.”

And to think she'd looked forward to a little harmless tittle-tattle. Who knew it was going to be about her! Rosa seriously considered the possibility of turning her sister into a toad.

Rosa wasn't sure she wanted to look. She turned her head away, but her eyes refused to follow. She winced, knowing that whatever it was, it was going to be bad.

“I don't know what you're talking about.”

Ruth was undeterred. “Mrs. Hollis tells me you're on the hunt for a husband. Mr. Albrecht is taking bets on your being married before summer is over.”

“For heaven's sake!” Rosa screeched as the full impact of what Ruth had been telling her sank into her overwhelmed brain. “What are you talking about?”

“This!” Ruth tapped madly at the paper like a frenzied woodpecker. Sharp, astute eyes framed by a pair of prescription lenses did nothing to hide the avid delight behind them. “Everyone in town has bought tickets. I heard old Jack Talbot from the Clip n' Snip purchased three, and Leanne clouted him with the back of the
Raven's Creek News
and accused him of being a randy old bastard!”

“Tickets? What tickets?” Maniac laughter threatened to erupt from Rosa's throat.

“Why, for the raffle of course. I hear Aden has bought three himself.”

Rosa was completely baffled. “What raffle?”

“This raffle!” Ruth pecked at the newspaper once again. “It's all here. Surely you know about it! I mean, you
are
first prize, after all!”

“First prize?” Surely the woman was delusional.

Rosa snatched the newspaper from Ruth. What she saw made her heart go flip-flop and land with a splat at her feet.

Raven's Creek Charity Gala Raffle. First Prize: Win an evening with Rosa Greenwood. Prize includes Dinner and Dancing on the Embankment on the evening of the Charity Gala plus a jade pendant crafted by Alanna Greenwood.