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“No,” he said firmly as he peeled her grip from his bicep. “Kay Knight is my witch.” He stood taller as if he’d regained some of his power back. “She’s always has been my witch.” His voice grew stronger. “I’ve known it since the first time I saw her. But I had to be worthy before she could see me.”
“No!” Jessie snarled. She turned away from Damon, walked over to the counter, and grabbed a glass.
“That’s our cue,”Celia said as Jessie threw the glass. The spirit whooshed into the kitchen and threw out a hand to make the glass stop its trajectory toward Damon. It ricocheted off her hand and flew into a corner where it shattered.
Kay quickly chanted her spell to break down the barrier. “A door tight is a door light. Let me into the room in sight.” She stepped forward with ease as the barrier disappeared, and centuries of the power of Knight witches swirled in her. It was time to deal with the mean girl once and for all.
Kay stalked toward the nasty woman. “Jessie Green, you’ve crossed the wrong witch.”
22
Kay
“Bring it,”Jessie said as a challenge to Kay as she put her hands on her hips. It was comical, because she was no match for a Knight woman on a bad day, even without the power of her Knight ancestors. But then the weaker witch swallowed hard giving herself away. She was terrified.
The anger Kay felt faded as empathy took over. She’d didn’t expect to see this side of Jessie. Kay would be well within the laws of their magical world to punish Jessie with a spell that would cause her physical pain for what she’d done. It was tempting to do, since the woman had tried to spell Damon to choose her over Kay.
She took a moment to look Jessie up and down as she decided what to do. She did understand that Jessie acted out because of her own insecurities, and she imagined it was a painful existence not feeling good enough in a world where you were the weakest of your kind. But Jessie had done well for herself despite her lack of power. The witch was clever, and Kay supposed charming to most as well. Jessie was clearly bright enough to run a successful business, too. One that Damon had wanted to utilize.
That fact was what sealed Kay’s decision to refrain from causing the woman harm. Damon wanted a business relationship with Jessie. Did Kay really want to burn that bridge for him? Besides, Jessie wasn’t really an enemy, Kay hadn’t even seen her since they were at camp. So no matter how great it might feel to get revenge in the short term, she knew the joy she’d feel wouldn’t last.
Jessie was shaking now as she tried hard to hold her ground. “Well? Are you just going to stand there and stare at me?”
Kay opted for compassion to deal with the situation. “I’m sure you’ve heard the Knight witches have a night of mischief planned for Night Meadow Island on Halloween. Would you like to join in on the fun?”
“Good girl,”Celia said before she floated up through the ceiling to leave.
Jessie tilted her head as her brow knit in confusion, and she tugged her robe tight around her body. “I’m sorry. What?”
Kay smiled. “I don’t want to be your enemy, Jessie. This silly thing between us needs to stay back in junior high, don’t you think?”
Jessie squinted with skepticism.
“Did you really believe your spell on Damon was going to work? I mean—” Kay waved at Damon, who was shaking his head as if he was trying to clear the fog and wake up from a deep sleep. Fighting the spell for the short time he had to defy Jessie had likely used a lot of his power, making him unable to keep his confusion at bay now. “How long would you have kept him spelled? A lifetime? Surely you want better for yourself.”
Jessie opened her mouth and then shut it as she let out a sigh. “I hadn’t thought much ahead of the spell. I was surprised I managed to get this far. I got caught up in my success, and once I got going I couldn’t stop.” She offered Kay a sheepish smile. “You’re really not going to punish me?”
“No,” Kay said. It was a common fault amongst witches to get so involved in the momentum of a spell they’d labored over that it was hard to know when to step back and assess the damage they were inflicting. It had been what had happened with the Brannigan boys on that fateful Halloween years ago, and it was something that had happened to Kay and her sisters a number of times. She’d be a hypocrite if she didn’t accept Jessie’s reasoning. Kay nodded at her. “I’ll take an apology instead. That’s probably painful enough.”
Jessie chuckled dryly. “I’m sorry I tried to steal your witch.”
“Apology accepted.” Kay looked at Damon, who was now slumped over in a chair with a silly grin on his face as if he were drunk. “Can you remove your spell from him, please?”
“Oh.” She shrugged. “I don’t have an antidote. But it should fade in an hour or so. Ithink.”
“Well.” Kay knew a thing or two about performing a spell without having an escape route. “I’m sure I can figure something out if it doesn’t.”
“I know. There aren’t many things you Knight witches can’t do.” Jessie said with disdain in her voice. “I really hate that about you. It’s not fair.”
Kay shook her head. “Don’t sell yourself short, Jessie. You’re practically a household name in the witch community.”
“Thanks. It’s been a lot of hard work.” Jessie attempted a smile. “Honestly, I’m not sure what came over me to pull this stunt. Jealousy, I suppose. When I saw Damon with you in the coffee shop it was clear how he felt about you, and any fantasies I had about him were crushed. It brought back memories of camp when you and Corinne waltzed in like celebrities and threatened to take away the popularity I’d worked so hard to achieve all the years I’d been there. I became fourteen all over again.”
Kay smiled. “If it helps, I felt the same way seeing you. That summer came rushing back for me, and I acted foolishly because of it.”
“I’m sorry about how I treated you back then. My ambition tends to get the best of me.” Jessie glanced over at Damon, who smiled at her dreamily. “The two of us together really would have been so good for my business.” She looked at Kay. “You know?”
“He still can be an asset for you. And you for him.” Kay said. “Damon would really like to work with you, Jessie. And if you promise to keep your love spells in check, I don’t see any reason why you two couldn’t create a powerful partnership.”
