Page 59

And I was very much looking forward to finding out for sure.

15

CELESTE

“All right, here we go,” I said with more confidence than I felt. I took the different ingredients for the spell that Goody Albright had given me out of the basket and arranged them on the stone table right by the head of Garrik’s body.

It felt kind of strange to see him lying there while his spirit stood beside me, looking over my shoulder but I tried to push the weird feeling away and get on with it.

After adding the special ingredients to a silver chalice and filling it halfway with wine—both supplied by Goody Albright of course—I took a sip from the tart-sweet liquid.

“With this sip, I bring the powers that be into myself,” I intoned, just as the instructions said I should. “And with that power, I begin this spell.”

Reaching into the basket, I found some candles that Goody Albright had also given me. I put one at each corner of the stone table—these were important for calling the corners which was something I only knew about because Natalie had made us all watch the movie “The Craft” at a prior year’s Halloween party.

After that, I pulled the Whisper dust out of my shopping bag and sprinkled a generous amount around the base of each candle. Hopefully it would magnify my power, just as if I had a whole coven behind me.

Then I went back to the head of the table and unfolded the spell pages Goody Albright had given me. I read over the instructions one more time and then began the spell.

“Hail to the Guardians of the Watchtowers of the North,” I intoned. “Powers of Wind and Weather. I call upon you now to lend me your strength and power.”

As I spoke, I could hear what sounded like the whispers of many other voices, repeating my words and magnifying my intent. A rush of power came over me, and it felt like every tiny hair on my body was standing on end. At the same time, the candle to my left, on the far corner of the stone table flared to life.

“By the Ancients,” I heard Garrik breathe. “You’re actually doing it, woman!”

“Yes, I’m trying,” I murmured. “Let me go on before I lose my concentration.” I cleared my throat and spoke again. “Hail to the Guardians of the Watchtowers of the East,” I said. “Powers of Air and Invention. I call upon you now to lend me your strength and wisdom.”

As I spoke, I felt another rush of power and the second candle lit.

This time, Garrik said nothing. He simply stood there, watching as I continued casting the spell.

Even as I called the last two corners—Guardians of the Watchtowers of the West and the South, I couldn’t believe I was actually doing this. I had never dreamed I had any kind of magical power inside me but now I felt it flowing through me like an electrical current—it was exhilarating and terrifying at the same time.

At last all four candles were lit, and it was time to do what the spell commanded.

“And now,” I said, hoping desperately that this would work. “True Love’s Kiss.”

Then I leaned over to kiss the lips of Garrik’s body…only I couldn’t reach him. The stone table the body was lying on was too high and broad and I was too short.

Feeling incredibly self-conscious, I attempted to climb up onto the table—but I couldn’t manage it.

I expected Garrik to make a sarcastic remark, but he and Bartleby were just watching silently. I tried once more to get onto the table and failed—the green dress I was still wearing wasn’t meant for climbing onto slippery stone tables—before he finally spoke.

“Would you allow me to assist you?” he murmured, raising his eyebrows.

“Er, yes. That would be acceptable,” I said, trying to retain as much dignity as I could.

Garrik reached for me and the moment his hands touched my waist, they turned solid. Then, with hardly any apparent effort, he lifted me onto the stone table so that I was now kneeling beside his body.

“Thank you,” I said and got back to the business of doing magic.

I was at the top of the table, leaning over the body’s head, which was kind of awkward. Because even though it was still warm and the cheeks were pink and not gray, Garrik’s body looked…well…it looked kind of dead. Maybe because the chest wasn’t rising and falling and I knew it had no pulse. I felt really weird kissing it.

But there was nothing to do but get on with the spell.

“True Love’s Kiss,” I said again. Then, leaning over the body, I lowered my face and pressed my lips to its mouth.

I felt a faint tingling shoot through me, but nothing happened at first. Then the body twitched.