Page 15 of Bewitched By the Headless Horseman (The Bewitching Hour #1)

Roxy rolled on the floor, playing with a ball of yarn like a baby kitten as Stevie looked at the list of items that were sold overnight from the apothecary.

Stevie stood over the cauldron in Lucia’s basement and tossed a few wilted petals into the spelled lavender liquid, then pricked her finger to add one drop of blood.

Once she stirred the contents, a sweet scent wafted through the air and the color changed from lavender to a light shade of blue.

With this particular spell, the magical brew could be used for several things. Hair color that lasted a year without roots ever showing—the one Stevie hands down would continue to always choose—a lie detector test for up to three questions, and one broom levitation.

Stevie poured the brew into containers before packaging them up, then worked on the other requests for crystals, candles, bat wings, chicken eyes, and wolf hair.

She took the last clove candle and would start on a fresh batch when she returned.

But she needed to swing by the apothecary since one of the jars was out of black crystals to complete the order.

She already needed to go in that area for her brother anyway.

The cauldron continued to bubble, its fire not hot to the touch even though it easily heated what was inside the iron.

Eventually, Lucia and Gideon were going to get a bigger place like Ginger’s since there wasn’t room to keep livestock that were necessary for certain spells.

Lucia wouldn’t want to spend forever running to her aunt’s house to fetch a fresh ingredient that she didn’t have lying around.

Roxy hopped in the passenger seat of the car beside Stevie, and they headed to her brother’s store first.

Gideon popped his head out from the back room. “Give me a few minutes. I didn’t know you were coming this early,” he grunted.

“You said the packages were literally ready.”

“I thought they would be, but you know how that is.” He shrugged, his hand skating down his beard.

Stevie rolled her eyes and found Roxy in the corner of the store beside Erik, her head resting on his leg. He pored over a comic and ran his fingers through the fox’s fur. Her chest tightened—she’d give anything if she could pet her sidekick.

“Have you still not spotted the Horseman anywhere?” Stevie had dropped by the store more frequently for Gideon and had asked Erik each time. He at least didn’t freak out from such a simple question as most of the other ghosts had. Besides the kid ghosts—they didn’t seem to care.

“No, he still hasn’t made his presence known from what I can tell. It’s odd, isn’t it?” It really was.

It had been two weeks since she’d seen or even heard Kit riding his horse down any streets. She’d assumed he would’ve slipped back into her life the day after he left, but he hadn’t. The soon he’d given her wasn’t very specific. Although he’d said he needed his head before the next new moon…

Ever since the idea of him being a seer had popped into her mind, she’d been anxious to confirm it.

And if he was a seer, then she wanted to know why he’d hidden it, why he’d told her he hadn’t seen anyone until after the Eye opened.

If there was a chance he really hadn’t seen the living before that, then why could the stallion still hear his whistle?

Too many questions and a lack of answers.

“What are you reading this time?” she asked, kneeling on the other side of Erik.

“Your brother just got a couple of these in,” he said with a smile and held up a Sleepy Hollow graphic novel.

Stevie squinted at the pumpkins surrounding the Headless Horseman on the front. “How is it?”

“Dreadful.” He chuckled, setting aside the graphic novel on top of his backpack. “I’m about to sift through the rest of the new stash.”

“Let me give you one to try.” Stevie grinned and stood. She scanned the letters until she got to the “S” category and fished out a 1990s issue. “See if you like this. I used to read the Sabrina comics all the time when I was younger.”

Erik took the comic and opened it to the first page. “This is taking me out of my comfort zone, you know.”

“That can be a good thing.” She laughed. “Just put it back when you’re finished or Gideon will flip out.”

He saluted her. “Yes, ma’am.”

“All right, the boxes are officially packed and ready,” Gideon called.

“I gotta go, but I’ll see you next time.” She gestured to Roxy. “Come on, girl.”

Stevie took the boxes and went out the back to load them into her trunk. Gideon had told her it would only be a couple when he should’ve said ten, but she stuffed them in.

As she entered the apothecary, the familiar scents of herbs surrounding her, Lucia looked up from the counter. “Still no word from the…” Her sister-in-law pretended to remove her head from her shoulders.

“Still zero word from him.” Each night, Stevie had wasted time and gas driving through Sleepy Hollow to search for Kit.

When she wasn’t doing that, she’d open her closet to see if he was there during the day since before the Eye opened he’d linger near his bones.

No sign of him had been there either. And then she was frustrated with herself for questioning that something might’ve happened to him.

She’d wondered if he’d found his head and passed on—she’d even tried one of Lucia’s contact the dead spells that only worked for Heaven.

There’d been no answer from up above. So it was either he was still a ghost or he’d ended up in the Hollow…

“Hmm. Well, if he found his head, you would know.” Lucia shrugged. “I don’t think he passed on.”

Stevie shrugged in return. “Maybe… But I need to talk to him. I’ve never met another seer before, and if he is one…”

“Then what? You share seer ghost stories? Just because I see another witch doesn’t really mean much.

But I get it. You want to know more about his story.

And hexed flames, I’m nosy enough to want to know too.

I don’t have anything of his to perform a spell where he would feel you calling him or I’d do it. ”

“I do.”

Lucia arched a brow. “What do you have of his?”

Stevie lifted a crystal from the counter and turned it over in her hand. “I have his bones. Some witch or warlock had them spelled at the abandoned house.”

“What?” Lucia hissed. “And you kept this from me?”

“I didn’t want you to tell Gideon.” She sighed. “We know what a big mouth he has and he’d blab it to my parents. I don’t want Mom stressed.” Her energy seemed fine after she’d gotten the new heart, but Stevie didn’t want her to worry.

“I don’t tell him everything .” She placed a hand on her hip. “Okay, well maybe a lot of things, but my lips are zipped on this. I’ll come by your place after work and see what I can do.”

“All right. I’ll see you then.” If it didn’t work, and Kit never slinked back into her life, what would she even do with his bones? Just take them back to the basement of the abandoned house?

Roxy had decided to stay at the shop with Lucia to watch her cast scheduled protection spells.

After Stevie added the black crystal to the customer’s package and shut the trunk, she noticed she’d missed a text from Reese.

I’m back in town and was checking to see if you wanted to come over tonight? Sorry the past few weeks have been insane.

Stevie smiled. What time?

Does 7 sound good?

Yep. See you then!

She’d been too busy with both her jobs and wondering where Kit had burrowed himself to think too much about Reese. He’d had to cancel their previous planned date because of a meeting in New York City.

Before Stevie opened her car door to leave, she caught a flutter of flowing white from her periphery. “Where in all of Sleepy Hollow have you been?” She paused when it wasn’t a cape billowing but a long bridal veil trailing across the pavement. “Oh, sorry, I thought you were someone else.”

The ghost halted and spun to face Stevie, tears streaming down her pale cheeks.

She was young, maybe nineteen, her hair long and curled to her waist, her gown silky with a lacy hem and matching sleeves.

It was the bride Stevie had seen pacing up and down the sidewalk for years now, usually lingering in front of the church near the end of the street.

Always crying and occasionally screeching like a banshee.

“Can you help me?” the ghost pleaded. “A little girl with balloons told me you might be able to.”

Stevie had passed the little girl each day she drove this way, once stopping to ask her about the Headless Horseman. “Possibly,” she said slowly, hesitant that she would need Stevie to dig up her bones too. There were only so many bones she could store at her house. “How can I help you?”

“I was supposed to meet my fiancé for our wedding, but I was running late,” she sobbed. “An envious old bittie murdered me. Cara was supposed to be my friend. I just need to tell him why I was late. My name is Joanie Wilcher.”

Stevie hadn’t heard of her before. “What’s his name?” she asked, lifting her phone to search.

“Don Worthington.”

Stevie’s brows shot up her forehead. “Don who runs the antique place right here?”

Joanie straightened, wiping the tears from her cheeks as her face brightened. “Maybe? He was a teacher when we were to be married. First year.”

“You know what, we’ll find out right now. Come on.” Stevie motioned a finger for Joanie to follow her toward the antique store nestled between Lucia and Gideon’s shops. As she opened the door, the scent of mothballs and peppermint clung to the air.

She weaved through the aisles and shelves filled with glass figurines, old cameras, tin cans, and other treasures.

Behind a small glass cabinet, near one of the side walls, sat Don in his leather recliner.

His glasses were perched on the edge of his nose while he read a car magazine.

Most of his gray hair was gone except for a smidge dipping down from the tops of his ears and around the back of his head.