Page 45 of Hex You

Mercy brushed away another tear. “Will you forgive me?”

Slowly, Hunter raised her gaze to her sister’s again. “Yes.”

“Will you seal it with a spell?”

Hunter’s lips did curve up then. “What, like a twin love spell or something?”

Mercy smiled through her tears. “Yeah, definitely.”

“Okay, I guess. Seems a good way to start the day,” Hunter said, her gaze flicking to Mercy’s spellwork basket. “I mean, you have the basket and everything.”

“Right? I’ll set it up. It’s a real quick spell.” Mercy moved aside some African violets she’d been propagating to make room on one of the tables. She set down the bottle of essential oils she’d already mixed, brought out two pink pillar candles, a velvet pouch filled with salt, and long, wooden ritual matches—and put everything on the table.

First, Mercy poured a salt pentagram and then began rubbing the essential oil mixture into the candles.

Hunter sniffed. “That smells like citrus with jojoba.” Her eyes widened. “That’s joy and laughter oil!”

Mercy grinned and nodded. “Yep. Sweet orange, lime, and pink grapefruit mixed with a jojoba oil base. Wanna anoint the other candle?”

“Yeah, sure.”

The twins worked companionably side by side and Mercy realized she hadn’t felt this content since before their mom died. She kept sneaking looks at her twin and thinking how good it was to just be with her without fighting.I’ll never let anything come between us again—ever!

When they were done anointing the identical pink pillars they placed them in the center of the salt pentagram. Mercy met her twin’s gaze. “Believe it or not, I couldn’t find a twin love spell in any grimoire.”

“Strange, right?” Hunter said with a grin.

“It’s a definite lack in our ancestors’ spellwork,” agreed Mercy.

“It’s weird that we’re the only Goode twins ever recorded, don’t you think?” Hunter asked.

“If by weird you mean cool and special—then yep,” Mercy said. “Anyway, let’s light the candles together. Then I made up a twin love spell for us. So, I’ll speak the words and then I’ll pull up some power from the ley lines and pour it into us. When we’re all warm and fuzzy we can blow out the candles together and—ta da!—twin lurve!”

Hunter snorted a laugh. “You’re a little wild, but okay.”

“Wild awesome, right?”

Hunter’s smile reached her turquoise-blue eyes. “Right, Mag.”

“Okay, let’s light the candles and focus our intention on never, ever fighting again.” Mercy handed her sister a long ritual match.

“Never, ever,” repeated Hunter.

Together, the sisters lit their matches and then touched the flame to the twin wicks, which lit easily. Then Mercy took the slip of prayer paper from her basket and spoke the little spell she’d written just moments before.

“When my twin and I fight cool it is not

It’s awful, it’s sad, it makes me sob and snot.

From today till forever we will not break up—we will not fight

We move forward together in love, always love—and light!”

Mercy closed her eyes and concentrated on the fat, green river of power that ran endlessly deep in the earth below them; she imagined pulling the ley line warmth up, up, up—into her. The energy responded immediately, and washed into her body through her feet. Mercy opened her eyes and held out her hand, which Hunter took.

“Washed new by ley line power

Like a twin lurve shower!”