“None of this concerns me.” Hellcat hopped off the desk and sauntered away. “I may be gone for a few days.”

  “Gone for a few days?”

  He nodded. “Yes. Helen invited me to stay with her.”

  “Who is Helen?”

  “My paramour.”

  He explained how Helen was his newest flame who lived in town, but I couldn’t say I was paying that much attention. Instead, I kept staring at the screen, still in shock. I checked the times and dates of the reviews—all of them were regarding items I’d sold in the last week… Could it be that someone was swapping my goods for cursed objects? Or somehow cursing my items once they left my store? But, how would that even be possible?

  “I shall see you at the house,” Hellcat said and didn’t wait for my reply, but simply sauntered out the front door and started down Main Street, heading for the duplex. Luckily for him, it was maybe a half-mile away.

  Not able to stand reading the venom anymore, I jumped to my feet and hurried outside. It was at that moment that I spotted Poppy coming out of her store. I breathed out a sigh of relief—she was just the person I wanted to see, although I had to admit I was surprised to see her working on a Sunday, usually her day off.

  “Poppy, you have a minute?” I called out as I crossed the street.

  “Sure,” she answered with her usual megawatt smile. “What’s up and what are you doing here on the weekend?”

  “I was just checking something in the store. What are you doing here?”

  “I’m running a back-to-school special for children’s sickness cures. Finn is at a friend’s house for the day, so I was just putting the finishing touches on the display.” She inclined her head to one side and narrowed her eyes as she studied me. “Are you okay, Wanda? You look upset.”

  I drew in a shaky breath. “I have a problem, a big problem.”

  “What’s going on?” she asked, reaching out to take my hand. There was a time when I would have pulled away from her, but now I needed as much comfort as I could get.

  I poured out the whole story—Gemma’s wedding disaster, her threat to sue me, finding all these bad reviews on the web, Ronda’s mother being a shapeshifter, and now receiving emails full of refund demands in my inbox.

  “Holy smokes!” Poppy breathed. “That’s terrible! I’m so sorry.”

  “The thing is…” I began. “Gemma’s dress was dosed with a few curses, and I’m fairly sure those curses were potions.”

  Poppy gasped. “You don’t think…”

  I shook my head and interrupted her. “I know you didn’t do it. That’s not why I brought it up. I’m just thinking… whoever did this must have had some serious magic. They must be at least as good at potions brewing as you are.”

  “Who could it be? Do you have any ideas?” She paused for a moment. “Your mother?”

  I took a deep breath. “Celestine Depraysie might be a lot of things, but she wouldn’t be behind this. This would be a new low, even for her. And, besides, if Mother’s magic was responsible, I would have recognized it.” Every witch had a magical signature or imprint of sorts and I would have definitely recognized Mother’s—it was basically the same as mine, owing to our shared blood.

  “Then who could be responsible?”

  I shook my head. “I don’t know.” I took a deep breath and continued. “When Gemma first showed up at the duplex, I thought whoever cursed her dress was out to get her, but with all the additional backfiring of my own enchantments lately, I’m starting to wonder if the person who cursed her dress was actually out to get me…”

  “Well, don’t jump to conclusions yet. We don’t know enough facts at this point.” She chewed on her lower lip. “And that brings up a good point. Can you think of anyone who would be out to get you?”

  I shook my head again. “No.”

  “Hmm,” she said as she tapped her fingers against her chin. “So how are these curses being placed on your clothing?”

  “I think someone is reversing my enchantments after the items leave my store, just like what happened with Gemma’s dress.”

  “You’re absolutely certain the dress was fine before it left your store?” she asked. “There’s no chance our mysterious intruder broke in and messed with your enchantments, maybe adding something to the potions?”

  I shook my head. “The dress was fine when Gemma, er when Gail Montgomery, picked it up—I would have been able to feel the black magic added to it, but I couldn’t feel anything. And the last time the intruder broke in and made a mess of the place, the dress was hanging in my office. They could have sabotaged it then if they’d wanted to, but they never touched it.”

  “Which means the intruder is someone other than the person who is trying to destroy your reputation?”

  I covered my eyes. “I don’t know, but maybe.”

  She patted my shoulder. “Don’t worry. We’ll figure it out.”

  “Thanks,” I managed but I didn’t have a lot of faith in Poppy’s words.

  “What can I do?”

  “Well, I was hoping you could help Astrid and me try to figure out who cursed the dress through a reverse tracking spell? I’m thinking if we can find out who brewed the potion, it should lead us to the culprit.”

  Chapter Seventeen

  I parked the Escalade in front of my side of the duplex and Poppy pulled up right behind me. Once we walked inside, Astrid fluttered around me on my way to the living room. Lorcan was still asleep under the blanket and I couldn’t help but smile when I saw him—he just looked ridiculous with the thing pulled over his head. I half wondered if I should get a picture for posterity’s sake.

  “Can we start the reverse detection spells now?” Astrid chirped. “Can I do the scrying? Poppy showed me how. Can I please? I promise you won’t regret asking me to help.”

  “Can I make everyone lunch first?” Libby asked, poking her head out of the kitchen.

  “I’m not hungry,” Darla called from where she was sitting beside Lorcan and reading the latest edition of Vogue Magazine—her favorite.

  “Wanda, can I do the scrying?” Astrid repeated.

  “Who wants bologna and who wants an apple and cheese sandwich?” Libby sang out as I tried my best not to lose it on all of them.

  “Apples and cheese sound like they got no business being in the same sandwich,” Darla piped up from her spot beside Lorcan.

  Libby glared at her. “That just shows what you know! You’ve never lived until you’ve experienced one of my apple cheese sandwiches.”

  “I’d rather take a bite outta my own arm or get sent to the big house or something else that wouldn’t be no fun,” Darla continued, looking bored. Because she’d been killed in the 1920s (before I made her corporeal again), she had a colorful vocabulary. ‘The Big House’ was another term for prison.

  Libby apparently lost interest in trying to convince Darla of her culinary prowess and, instead, turned to face Astrid. “Astrid, it’s important you learn how to cook if you want to attract a man.” She reached out, grabbing Astrid’s arm, and then yanked Astrid into the kitchen. I noticed Libby had already laid out an apple, a bag of white bread, and the mayonnaise on the kitchen counter.

  “I’m only sixteen, Libby, I’m not really interested in attracting a man,” Astrid started, looking at me with wide, pleading eyes.

  But, Libby wasn’t listening. “First, you take a slice of white toast and you trim off the crust, then you spread both sides of the bread with mayonnaise, covered with a slice of American cheese, then an apple slice brushed with melted margarine and sprinkled with brown sugar.”

  “I think Wanda needs my help, Libby,” Astrid protested, trying to pull away from Libby but the zombie was holding her tight—Libby had extra-human strength which must have been a by-product of being a zombie. I hadn’t known any other zombies, though, so I wasn’t sure.

  “Leave the poor kid alone, Libby,” Darla called out. “An’ Astrid, don’t you be no patsy!”

  “I don’t even know what a ‘patsy’ is,” Astrid responded.

  “A patsy’s a chump or a fool,” Poppy answered—since living with Darla, Poppy made a good translator.

  Libby glared at Astrid, then Darla. “Finally, you add two slices of bacon and then place both pieces under a broiler until the cheese melts and the bacon crisps.”

  “Oh, that just sounds vile,” Darla grumbled.

  “No one asked you, you washed up ghost!” Libby yelled, finally losing her composure. Darla had a way of getting under her skin—usually their antics could be amusing but today they were just annoying.

  Actually, they were usually less on the amusing side and more on the annoying one.

  Darla dropped her magazine into her lap and faced the kitchen. “Says the stiff who’d be growing maggots if it weren’t for Poppy and her potions!”

  “Okay, you two,” Poppy scolded them both. “Play nice.”

  “Poppy, can I make you a sandwich?” Libby called out.

  “Sure, but I believe Wanda and I need Astrid to complete our spell.”

  “See?” Astrid said to Libby, pulling her arm away.

  “Fine,” Libby answered, nose in the air. “Off you go.”

  It was then that Poppy noticed the large lump on my couch. “What in the world is that?” she asked, pointing to it.

  I looked over at the vampire dentist without much ado. “Oh, that’s Lorcan.”

  Poppy frowned. “Is he okay?”

  “Other than the fact that he’s dead, you mean?”

  “Yeah.”

  “I guess so,” I answered, shrugging with little interest. I had more important things on which to focus at the moment.

  Poppy looked at me. “Wanda, what is Lorcan doing sitting on your couch, unmoving, with a blanket over his head?”

  “That’s a game vampires play,” Libby answered, causing Poppy to appear even more confused.

  “He’s sleeping off the daylight,” I informed her.

  “Oh,” she said, nodding. “What’s he doing here in the first place,” she started, but that was a conversation I didn’t want to get into.

  “Can we focus please?”

  I flopped on the other side of Lorcan and let my handbag drop at my feet. “This better work,” I sighed. “Or else I don’t know what I’m going to do.”

  “What do you mean?” Astrid asked as I realized I hadn’t told her about the nasty reviews I’d been getting lately. I took a deep breath.

  “I have a stack of terrible reviews and a bunch of nasty emails in my inbox,” I started as my eyes rested on Gemma’s soiled wedding dress where it lay over the corner of the armchair at the front of the room. I sighed. “And they all say the same thing—that the enchantments they purchased from me backfired, creating the exact opposite reaction they were supposed to. Gemma’s dress is just the first example that started the pattern.”

  “Everyone gets bad reviews sometimes, Wanda,” Poppy countered. “You can’t let them get you down.”

  I doubted Poppy had ever gotten a bad review in her life, but didn’t say as much. “This is much more than a few bad reviews. Take a look.” I pulled out my phone and tapped Wanda’s Witchery into Yelp. Instantly, the terrible reviews popped up and I couldn’t bear the thought of even looking at them.

  I handed the phone to her and her eyes widened when she read the first few. “Oh… my…”

  “That’s nothing compared to the emails.” I took the phone back and, in the process, tried to stop myself from looking at the reviews, but I ended up catching sight of them anyway. The percentages had tipped even farther toward the negative. This was bad, getting worse. “I don’t know what to do… maybe I’m going to have to close shop for a while.”

  “No!” Astrid said, shaking her head. “You can’t! Your store is the only thing keeping us independent from the coven.”

  I glanced up at her and frowned. “I don’t know what else to do—these reviews could do me in.”

  “But,” Astrid started, tears welling in her eyes. “But… that’s all you have. Without it…”

  “Right,” I interrupted. “Without it...” I couldn’t finish the sentence.

  “We will figure this out,” Poppy said, holding up her hands as she took a deep breath. “Whatever is going on here, it’s not your fault, Wanda, and we will get to the bottom of it.”

  I looked at Poppy. “Gemma is talking about a law suit… I might not have a choice but to close shop.”

  Poppy sank into an armchair across from the couch and appeared defeated, like she was out of ideas. “No matter what happens, we can’t throw the towel in. Not yet.”

  I wished I could share her optimism, but I couldn’t. I stood up and started to pace the living room, like I did when I was nervous. “If I could find out who keeps breaking into the store, that would at least give me a place to start. I figure if this person can get into the store without triggering the wards or Henner’s security system, they probably have enough magic to curse my products without me noticing.”

  “So what are you going to do?” Poppy asked.

  I took a deep breath. “I’m going to see if Mother knows anything.” I didn’t want to have to rely on her, but now it was looking like there might not be another way. “Maybe she knows about a witch going rogue or something… or maybe even a wizard. I’m not sure.”

  “A wizard!” Poppy responded, worry plaguing her expression. She knew how bad this situation was if we were dealing with a wizard.

  I held up my hands. “I’m not saying I think it’s a wizard—it’s just a wizard would have been able to hide her magical signature.”

  “I hope it’s not a wizard,” Astrid said.

  “Wanda,” Poppy started and worried her lower lip. “Are you sure it’s not your mother behind all of this?”

  I shook my head—this was the second time Poppy had broached the topic of Mother. “She’s not that evil,” I answered.

  “Celestine wouldn’t sink to this level,” Astrid agreed.

  Reaching for my phone, I dialed Mother’s number. It didn’t even ring. It switched straight to her voicemail. After the third failed attempt, I put the phone on speaker and tried Aunt Tabitha instead.

  She picked up immediately. “How delightful to hear from you, Wandellmellia.”

  “Cut the shit, Tabitha,” I snapped, not in the mood for anyone’s crap. Neither Mother nor Tabitha would consider it ‘delightful’ to hear from me. “Someone is out to trash my reputation and I think it might be a wizard. I need to talk to Mother.”

  “A wizard?!” Tabitha answered on a laugh. “Really, Wandellmelia, wizards are almost a thing of folklore.” She rode out the laugh for another second or so and then sighed. “I’m afraid your mother is indisposed at the moment.”

  “Indisposed how?”

  She sighed. “We’re dealing with a vanished witch, and until we find her, your mother won’t be able to straighten out your personal issues. And… might I remind you Celestine has gone well out of her way to help you, but you have consistently thrown her efforts back in her face.”

  “No,” I snarled. “Don’t remind me.” I took a breath as I returned to the only interesting morsel she’d managed to give me. “Who’s the missing witch?”

  “Olga Fischer.”

  “Olga Fischer?” I repeated. “That name doesn’t ring any bells.”

  “It wouldn’t,” Tabitha answered, sounding impatient, like she shouldn’t be bothered explaining this to me. “She hails from the High Coven of Germany and she’s been on probation for the last two hundred years.”

  Probation meant she was on the Isle of Banishment, not able to partake in coven affairs. That also meant Olga had been on probation from the time I was born, and all through my years in the coven. No wonder I didn’t know who she was.

  “Why was she on probation?” I asked.

  “Olga had an unfortunate tendency of taking men to her bed and then falling for them.”

  Ah, she was charged with the unspeakable crime of falling in love. If I were in a better state of mind, I might have even laughed.

  But, I wasn’t so I sighed. Olga wasn’t the person I was looking for. “She’s probably just holed up in some man’s house until she gets tired of her latest conquest.”

  “Yes, well….” Tabitha sniffed. “We are looking into that possibility, of course, but so far without success.”

  “Where was she last seen and with whom?”

  “Not that it’s any of your concern,” she started as I rolled my eyes. “But she was last seen leaving a potions course at the School and hasn’t been seen since.”

  I pricked up my ears. The School was a notorious reformatory for young, wayward witches and it was located in the Isle of Banishment. But, that wasn’t why I was interested. “A potions course? Was Olga particularly good at potions?”

  “She was teaching the course, Wandellmellia,” Tabitha sneered. “She wouldn’t have been in the Crescent Circle coven if she needed to take potions courses.”

  “Yeah. Whatever.” Aunt Tabitha usually got on my nerves within a minute and now we were at the four-minute point. “So when can Mother call me back?”

  “I really couldn’t say… probably not until after we locate Olga as your mother is quite entrenched with that subject currently. And since we have no leads on Olga’s whereabouts…”

  I hung up and hurled the phone at the couch in frustration but missed and nailed Lorcan right in the forehead. “Oh,” I said and winced.

  He didn’t stir though so I figured that was a good thing.

  “That’s gonna be one nasty shiner when he wakes up,” Darla said and reached over, to pat the spot where the phone had nailed him.

  “A witch is missing?” Poppy asked.

  I looked at her. “Yes, and because she’s missing, Tabitha says Mother won’t be available to call me back until they find the missing witch.”

  “Could this missing witch be the same one who’s sabotaging you?” Poppy continued.

  I shook my head. “No. She’s been banished for the last two hundred years and that means she wouldn’t even know who I am.” I took a deep breath. “Funny how Mother ranks my importance below a witch she hasn’t seen or spoken to in hundreds of years. Mother must truly hate me.”