Safe Hex: A Hexy Witch Mystery (Womby's School for Wayward Witches Book 16) Read online

  Safe Hex

  WOMBY’S SCHOOL FOR WAYWARD WITCHES

  SARINA DORIE

  Copyright © 2019 Sarina Dorie

  All rights reserved.

  ISBN-13: 978-1798246283

  NOT-SO-COZY MYSTERIES

  IN THE womby’s school for wayward witches SERIES listed in order

  Tardy Bells and Witches’ Spells

  Hex-Ed

  Witches Gone Wicked

  A Handful of Hexes

  Hexes and Exes

  Reading, Writing and Necromancy

  Budget Cuts for the Dark Arts and Crafts

  My Crazy Hex-Boyfriend

  Spell It Out for Me

  Hex Crimes

  Of Curse You Will

  Cackles and Cauldrons

  Hex and the City

  Wedding Bells and Midnight Spells

  Hex Appeal

  Safe Hex

  The Joy of Hex

  Hedgewitchin’ in the Kitchen

  Other Titles to Be Announced

  Table of Contents

  NOT-SO-COZY MYSTERIES

  AUTHOR’S NOTE

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  The Joy of Hex

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  AUTHOR’S NOTE

  If you are reading this far in the Womby’s School for Wayward Witches series, I’m guessing you have read the other books as well. Whether you have stuck with the series because you love the quirky characters, you want to know if Clarissa will turn into a wicked witch like her mother, or you are waiting to see what happens with the potential love interests, I appreciate your enthusiasm.

  If you haven’t already signed up for my newsletter, I want to encourage you to do so. This helps me as an author connect to my readers, lets you know when books are being released, and gives me a way to gift you with free books and short stories.

  You can find the newsletter sign-up on my website: sarinadorie.com or you can go to: https://mailchi.mp/sarinadorie/authornewsletter

  Happy reading!

  CHAPTER ONE

  Fifty First Wakes

  The world was white and bright like heaven when I woke. The bed was made of the softest clouds. Everything shimmered with golden light. Birch trees woven into Celtic knotwork formed the bedposts of the canopy bed. The windows were cut in ornate shapes, edged with iridescent panels of stained glass. The room was so beautiful it hurt my eyes to look at it.

  Khaba, the dean of discipline at Womby’s School for Wayward Witches—and my friend—gazed down at me, his smile pleased. “How are you feeling, honey?” His hot-pink ensemble was a strange contrast to the heavenly surroundings.

  My best friend Josie came into focus next. She grinned like a madwoman, tears spilling down her cheeks from under her black-rimmed glasses. “You’re awake.” She hugged me like she’d never been so happy to see me.

  “What happened? Where am I?” I sat up, glancing around the room.

  “Easy now. Take it slow.” Khaba placed an arm under my shoulders and helped me sit up.

  “Are you hungry? Thirsty?” Josie asked. She was dressed in one of her usual bohemian dresses made of lavender lace that matched her witch hat.

  A wave of dizziness washed over me. I didn’t know what I felt other than the gnawing void inside my core. I doubted that sensation was a hunger for food.

  My eyes darted around my foreign surroundings. I wasn’t at Womby’s. I was in the Faerie Realm. Vega, my former roommate, stood in the corner talking to her fiancée, Prince Elric of the Silver Court, and Felix Thatch. I smiled at Thatch. He stared down at the floor, avoiding my gaze. Something about his hunched body language reminded me of a puppy who knew he shouldn’t have chewed on someone’s slippers and felt guilty about it.

  Elric strolled over. “There you are, love. Feeling better? It appears Mr. Khaba can even make a Fae’s wishes come true.”

  Khaba turned to face Elric, fists on his hips. “You shouldn’t need a djinn to wake Clarissa. It wasn’t a curse-induced coma.”

  Elric spread his palms face up. “I’m no longer a prince of the Silver Court. I haven’t the same advantages I once had.”

  “It’s more than that.” Khaba’s eyes narrowed. “I know a magical imbalance when I see one. What’s this about?”

  I was so tired I could barely think. “What do you mean by a ‘magical imbalance?’”

  Khaba strode around my bed toward Elric. “Someone owes Elric a debt, and he hasn’t collected. Now he’s been left too weak for powerful magic. That’s how it works.”

  “Is this true?” Vega asked. “Who owes you a debt?”

  Elric laughed, a little too loudly. “Mr. Khaba, you’re being ridiculous.”

  “Is it true that you’re in a weakened state?” Thatch demanded. “I thought you said we’d be safe here.”

  Everyone began to argue all at once.

  Khaba stalked closer to Elric. “Everyone on this estate, Clarissa included, is unsafe until you’ve replenished yourself by collecting all that people owe you.”

  Thatch shouted to be heard, each word coming out with precision. “It’s only a matter of time before the Raven Queen attacks again. We must be ready for her.”

  “It’s because you’re too generous,” Vega said. “It’s time you stopped thinking of everyone else and started thinking about me—and my safety.”

  “There is no imbalance,” Elric snapped. His face flushed pink. “Everything is fine.”

  It was rare to see him this angry. Khaba must have hit a tender wound.

  Their voices became lost in a cacophony of chaos.

  “What a freak show.” Josie sat on the bed beside me.

  I was so tired. The noise hurt my ears. Their chaos and commotion agitated my nerves. It was the last thing I wanted to listen to at the moment. I just wanted to get away from all of them.

  I pushed myself out of bed. My legs went limp underneath me, and I fell flat on my face. Pain blossomed in my cheek as I face-planted on the wood. The unpleasant sensation was sucked away by the hungry yearning in my core. Instead of fueling me, the energy in my belly churned into molten agony. The pain magnified by a hundred, and I curled in on myself.

  I felt gentle hands on my shoulders, but it was too late.

  I blacked out.

  When I next opened my eyes, faces crowded around my bed, closer than I would have liked. Vega, Elric, and Josie stood on one side. Khaba and Thatch stood on the other. I flinched back.

  “Why is everyone in my room?” I drew the blankets over my nightgown.

  Only this wasn’t my room. The walls glittered with crystals. Celtic knotwork decorated the wainscoting. A mixture of fabric and moss hung from the canopy bed. This was a Fae palace. I wasn’t at Womby’s, but I didn’t know why. I tried to think back, but my brain was foggy. I felt like I had dreamed of this room. A strange sense of déjà vu washed over me.

  “We’re here because
we love you,” Josie said, tears filling her eyes.

  “No. It’s because we wanted to see if you were dead,” Vega turned to Elric. “She’s not. Crisis averted. Let’s get ready for dinner.” She attempted to tug Elric away.

  He remained at my side. “How do you feel, love?”

  I tried to recall what had happened, but my memories were fuzzy. I thought I remembered my wedding shower, Vega handing out jobs for my ceremony like homework assignments, and wearing my mom’s wedding dress. Everything fragmented after that. I wanted to close my eyes again and fall asleep.

  “What happened?” I asked.

  I reached a hand out for Thatch. He stepped back, his expression gloomy as he turned away. He couldn’t have hurt me more if he’d slapped me. Had I done something wrong?

  Elric took my hand and kissed my knuckles. “How about you let your lady friends help you freshen up? Then we’ll have a little sit-down and talk about what happened. Will that make you happy?”

  “Um, yeah.” I watched as Thatch retreated without a word to me. Maybe I was mistaken, but he looked like he might have been limping.

  Vega and Josie argued about what I should wear. It didn’t matter to me whether I stayed in a nightgown for a while longer. My limbs felt stiff, but I managed to make my way to a table by the window without either of them assisting and helped myself to a bowl of soup. Josie was dressed in loose lavender lace that matched her witch hat. For once, Vega wasn’t wearing her usual flapper attire. Instead she wore a long muslin dress with a high waist that reminded me of something a Jane Austen character might wear. It was oddly unflattering to her lean figure, the empire waist puffing out just below her breasts. Maybe she was pregnant. If she were, she wasn’t very far along.

  I set down my spoon. “Why aren’t I at Womby’s?”

  “The school year is over.” Josie seated herself across from me.

  “We thought you’d be more comfortable here instead of Thatch’s moldy dungeon.” Vega grabbed hold of Josie’s chair, tilting it to the side so that Josie slid and stumbled out. A satisfied smile on her face, Vega claimed the empty seat for herself. “Plus, Elric had to use magic to heal you. You’re welcome.” She leaned in closer. “Don’t even think about thanking him.”

  “How can the school year be over? What month is it?” I searched my memory but couldn’t recall any of this. We’d been planning the wedding in May. I felt like more time had passed, but I wasn’t sure what had happened that I’d need healing. “Did the Raven Queen attack during our wedding?”

  Vega’s eyes narrowed.

  “Don’t you remember?” Josie asked. “Derrick crashed the wedding with airship pirates, and the Raven Queen demolished the school grounds.”

  I accidently knocked my spoon onto the floor. “What? Was anyone hurt?”

  “How can you not remember after all that work I put into making your wedding unforgettable?” Vega demanded. “That was a month before you were even cursed. You’re just saying this to vex me, aren’t you?”

  I ignored her.

  Josie picked up my spoon and placed it on the table. “Don’t worry about what happened at the wedding. We’re all fine now. Well, most of us are fine.” She rubbed my back.

  I didn’t miss that she said “most of us.”

  Vega crossed her arms, anger in her eyes. I couldn’t tell whether that anger was directed at me or Josie.

  “Who isn’t fine?” I asked. “When the Raven Queen attacked the wedding, did she curse me then? That’s why I’m here?” I felt like there was something I was missing.

  Vega leaned in closer. “No. You’re here because you’re an impulsive idiot who never learns. Coupled with that, Thatch is even more of a fucktard than I thought he was if he let you talk him into going to the Raven Court. If you ever do anything that stupid again, I will kill you myself.”

  My actions sounded rash and stupid the way Vega described them, but I wasn’t rash. Or stupid. Mostly. “Why would I go to the Raven Court?”

  The two women exchanged uneasy glances.

  “Elric wanted us to wait to discuss that. He thought you might recover more quickly if you ate and felt more yourself first,” Vega said.

  I looked to Josie, knowing she couldn’t keep a secret. “Why did I willingly go to the Raven Court?”

  Josie opened her mouth.

  Vega held up a finger at Josie. “Josephine Kimura. Hold your tongue.”

  The truth spilled from Josie. “It was because of your mom. The Raven Queen kidnapped her at your wedding. Thatch said you were gearing up to go rescue her. But right before finals week, you discovered the Raven Queen was going to do something bad to her, so you went in the middle of the night. But now she’s transformed into a tree. I’m so sorry, Clarissa.”

  “Ugh. No secret is safe from Miss Blabbermouth.” Vega grimaced.

  I stared at them in horror. The Raven Queen had my mom? She had transformed her into a tree? How could I not remember this? I wasn’t sure I wanted to remember this.

  Josie must have taken my silence as an invitation to go on. “Of course, that isn’t how you ended up here, is it? That was because the Raven Queen attacked you and Thatch when you went to rescue your mom. You must have been in pretty bad shape when Elric first brought you here. Elric and Professor Jerkface wouldn’t let anyone see you as you healed. I guess they tried to wake you up but couldn’t.”

  “Elric did wake you up. Twice,” Vega corrected. “But it only lasted for a few minutes, so you probably don’t remember.”

  She was right. I didn’t remember.

  Josie gushed on, filling me in on who had gotten hurt or died. Tears blurred my vision. I was so in shock, I could barely breathe. It felt as though someone had laced a corset around my ribs. The more she told me, the more my core ached. A bottomless pit of grief opened inside me. Little spasms of pain jolted through my affinity and into my limbs. I didn’t feel right.

  I stood, my legs unsteady under me. “I would like to speak with my husband.”

  Vega rose. “You aren’t well.” She grabbed me by the arm, her fingers digging into me like talons.

  A flash of memory—or a dream?—came to me. I saw another hand around by arm, long black nails digging into my flesh.

  I tore away, panic flooding through me. The churning pain in my belly sent fire into my limbs. I made it as far as the door before my legs gave out underneath me. I collapsed into darkness.

  I was ripped from the cozy embrace of sleep when a jolt of electricity tore through my body. Hot energy blazed through me, awakening my senses. White light blinded me. I felt like I was drinking from a fire hose, the magic so abundant I didn’t know how to control it. When the brightness passed, I found myself on a roof. For a moment I thought I was at Womby’s on the battlements, but I realized this roof was smaller.

  My ears rang. Cold wind tore at me. Thunder rumbled in the sky, but it was muffled by the fog in my ears. A piece of metal was duct-taped to my hand. It wasn’t singed, so it was probably magical duct tape. Vega stood above me, her hair frizzy and smoking.

  “No, don’t do it!” a man’s voice yelled above the wind and rain. It sounded like Elric.

  “Too late. I already did,” Vega said with a satisfied smile. “Being a Merlin-class Celestor, I succeeded where others failed.” She raised an eyebrow, eyeing me. “Feeling better?”

  I tried to make myself heard over the roar of wind. “Better than what?”

  Rain pelted me, chilling me to my core. I was absolutely miserable.

  “What happened?” My voice was hoarse.

  Vega offered me a hand and helped me to my feet. Wind whipped my hair into my face and rushed underneath my nightgown. I wanted to curl in on myself from the shock of sensations pummeling my body. With the way the wind blew against Vega’s dress and pressed against her belly, I saw what I had failed to notice right away. She was round with child. She must have been seven or eight months along.

  Elric and
Thatch ran to me, their expressions alarmed. Thatch asked me something, but I couldn’t take my eyes off Vega.

  I’d thought she had miscarried, but the more I thought about it, I was less certain when that might have happened. Was I wrong? I was so surprised by the size of her belly, I couldn’t think about anything else.

  “What were you thinking, Vega?” Elric asked.

  Vega snorted. “I was thinking that I’m the only person in this shack with the balls to do what needs to be done.”

  “You could have killed her!”

  The wind whipped Thatch’s hair around in the storm. I doubted he could see any better than I could as he guided me away from Vega and Elric. I leaned my weight against him, but I was weak and exhausted. My legs felt like jelly, and my feet were numb from the bitter cold. I stubbed my bare toe against a rock ledge. Pain blazed up in my foot.

  “What happened to me?” I tried not to focus on the throbbing in my toe. “Why did Vega just Frankenstein me back to life?”

  “Vega did not resurrect you. She only restored your health.” Thatch held his hair out of his eyes. “I was the one who used CPR to ‘resurrect’ you. Elric used Fae magic to restore your body.”

  I stared at him in horror. “So I died?” Just like in Baba Nata’s prophecy.

  “Only for a moment. It was the coma afterward that was the true malady. We still haven’t figure out what triggered it.” He circled an arm around my waist, sheltering me from the bitterness of the wind as it lashed against me. “It has something to do with your affinity.”

  The pain in my toe spread to my foot. I held on to the wall as we walked down the stairs. Each step grew more difficult than the last. Cold numbness spread up my legs. I caught Thatch’s sleeve as dizziness washed over me.

  “Merlin’s balls,” Thatch said. “Not again.”

  An immaculate orgasm was an unorthodox way to wake, but an effective alarm clock. I opened my eyes, finding myself in someone’s beautiful bedroom.