Page 40 of Seven Secret Spellcasters (Kitchen Witch Mysteries #7)

M ia sat and thought for a few minutes, then wrote Trent Majors and familiar reports to the national office on the page.

As she set down her pen, one piece of paper materialized on the table.

She tentatively pulled it toward her and read the paragraph.

She wrote down the date and the person who filed the report, Marsha Fieldstone, coven familiar coordinator , then tried to summarize the report.

It confirmed what she and Trent had assumed.

The Goddess had sent Trent, listed as inactive, a familiar named Cerby, whose breed was listed as Maltese, followed by a question mark.

Mia glanced at the back of the page, but there was nothing else there. She took the paper and pen that Cleo had given her. It was now blank. “Okay, then, more specific.”

She wrote, An investigation request into Trent Majors into why a familiar was provided to an inactive witch . Maybe using their terminology would give her more information. She set the pen down. She’d been right. This time four more pages appeared.

Mia took her pen and wrote a number one on the report she’d read, then numbered the others consecutively.

She picked up the page she’d labeled with a two.

It was also from Ms. Fieldstone. Cerby, Trent Majors’s familiar, has been invited to hellhound training with McMann Hellhound Training and Boarding.

She questioned why the Goddess would send a hellhound to an inactive member of the coven.

Again, Ms. Fieldstone’s report had been short and factual.

The next request came from Brandon Marshall.

As the board president, it made sense that he would have asked for an investigation.

He probably read all of Ms. Fieldstone’s reports.

Or he had someone in his office read them.

The request was short and to the point. It requested an investigator to establish whether Cerby had been placed correctly and determine the possibility of a delivery error.

That made Mia blink. Even if Cerby should have been sent to Levi, there would be no way Trent would give up the little guy willingly. He loved his pocket puppy.

She wrote down Brandon’s name and the date of the request in her notebook. This wasn’t telling her anything she couldn’t have guessed herself.

Finally, she read the correspondence she’d marked as number five. The investigator will arrive next week.

One line. No signature. The header said, The Department of Magical Creatures, Familiar Division.

It was maddening. She wrote down the date and the information from the header in her notebook. As she thought about asking the archives another question, a new page emerged. She picked it up and wrote a number six on the top. It was dated today and had a time stamp of 8:15.

She read the missive aloud. “The investigator we sent has passed on to another life. There will be no replacement. The situation is too chaotic to risk more personnel. The request is closed.”

Mia heard the door open behind her. She’d wanted to ask one more question about her own skills and her test score, but Cleo was already waiting to walk her to the front door. She tucked the responses and her notebook into her tote, then stood. “Thanks for making time for me.”

“Anytime, my dear. Please tell Gloria I said hello.” She glanced at her watch. “You’d better hurry or you’ll miss your staff meeting. I suppose Blake is challenging to work for.”

Mia smiled as she opened the door. “You should have met my last boss. He was horrible to work with. Blake’s a breeze.”

As she went through her day, Mia thought about the reports she’d read. Brandon had instigated the investigation, but he hadn’t seemed that worried about it. It was more like he was passing on the question from the familiar coordinator.

She closed her office door and called Grans.

“What’s wrong?” her grandmother asked as she answered.

Direct and to the point. Mia had to smile. “Nothing. I’m wondering if you know a Marsha Fieldstone.”

“Yes, and you do as well. She runs the coffee shop here in town. Magic Brews? She’s the tall woman with her hair in a bun?”

Mia tried to picture her and came up with a vague image. “Oh, okay.”

“She kind of blends into her surroundings. One of her talents. She should color her hair. It’s been gray since she turned thirty. An unfortunate encounter with a rogue hellhound she was trying to round up.”

That made sense as to why she was focused on Cerby. Maybe she thought Trent couldn’t handle him. She decided to go talk to her after work.

“Sorry, dear, I need to run. I’m making up a batch of love potions for a neighbor. She’s looking for a new husband. If you let it burn, the potion will curdle and ruin. And so will the relationship.”

Mia heard the line disconnect in her ear, and she set down her phone. She hoped Grans hadn’t used a love potion to catch Robert. Or worse, one on her to catch Trent’s eye. But she wouldn’t put it past her.

She finished up the last few emails. The big event on Wednesday had mostly been handled by Mother Adams already.

Jeani would be coming tomorrow to decorate the ballroom at the lodge.

And Abigail was handling the food. All Mia needed to do was keep all the balls in the air.

And maybe help with the cooking on Wednesday.

She didn’t want Christina to have to prepare the appetizers for her own engagement party.

She checked her project management spreadsheet, sent off a few emails, and decided to call it a day. Maybe she’d do some baking tonight to get ahead of the game. And get out of her own head.

First, instead of heading home, she went to get a coffee and talk to Marsha Fieldstone. When she got to Magic Brews, the coffee shop was almost empty. Two booths had people working on laptops, and one person was in line in front of her, waiting for a to-go coffee.

She studied the menu. Something sweet would be great. Maybe a Mountain Goat Caramel Mocha. As long as it didn’t have goat milk. Two-percent regular dairy would be fine.

She stepped up to the counter, and a woman came to take her order.

Mia had been lucky. Marsha was the name on her apron, and she looked like the woman Grans had described.

She asked about the milk source and then ordered the large, to-go specialty drink.

Then she met the woman’s gaze as she handed her a credit card.

“Marsha, can we talk for a minute? I’ll even buy you a coffee? ”

The woman glanced at her card, then handed it back to her without charging her for the coffee. “Sure, Mia, let me get your drink and one for myself. I’ll buy. It’s one of the few perks of owning your own business, free coffee, right?”

Mia took a seat across the shop from the laptop owners and waited. She wasn’t sure what she wanted to ask. She might be poking the bear, but she thought maybe the woman cared about animals and simply needed to know that Cerby was well taken care of by Trent. Well, Trent and their village.

Like they said, it took a village to raise a child, or in this case, a hellhound and a dragon.

Marsha came over with a tray holding the coffee as well as a plate with two dog-shaped cookies.

“I thought you might need a little pick-me-up. I know you were busy last week. Congratulations on the exam. You’re all anyone wants to talk about.

And you want to talk to me? I think I can guess what the subject matter is.

A small white dog with a big personality? ”

Mia laughed as she took her coffee. “That’s a good description of Cerby. He’s such a sweetheart. I understand you were concerned about his placement?”

“I was until your scores came out. Then the Goddess’s plans seemed a little more apparent. He’s here as a bodyguard, right? It’s horrible that we’re still dealing with these things at this time, but what are you going to do? All you can affect is your little corner of the world.”

Mia sipped her coffee. She could let Marsha think that she’d stumbled onto why the Goddess had sent Cerby, but that might not be the whole story.

“I’m actually not sure why Cerby is here.

But I wanted you to know that he’s well cared for and loved by many people in our family. He’ll never be a problem to others.”

Marsha rubbed her neck, and Mia saw a faint scar.

“I appreciate your concern. His appearance indeed gave me a bit of a fright. Especially here in Magic Springs. The werewolves being close by make me a little nervous as well. But mostly, it’s a good town with good people.

” She pushed the cookies closer. “Try one.”

Mia held up her hand. “Sorry. I’ve put myself on a strict no-sweets diet. At least until the sugar from Halloween drains from my body. Marsha, I wanted to ask about the investigation request to the National Office on Cerby. Did you ask Brandon to make it? Because of your concern?”

Marsha shook her head. “I didn’t ask him to do that. When I filed the report, he called me and asked my professional opinion of Cerby’s arrival. Well, my unofficial opinion. He already had my report.”

“Brandon initiated the contact?”

“I didn’t know that Alfred Howard was here until my book showed him arriving on Tuesday.

” She smiled at Mia’s confused look. “I also monitor the book that shows every magical creature and their arrival and departure from Magic Springs. Like your friend, Christina. I knew she’d come back for her engagement parties before anyone else even knew she was coming. Besides you, that is.”

Another piece of magic that Mia had known nothing about. Or maybe it was only a need-to-know type of thing. She stood and adjusted her purse over her shoulder. “Thanks for the coffee. I need to get home and start baking for the party. You should come. We’re going to have a lot of fun.”

“Thanks, but I’m running the coffee shop on Wednesday. It’s nice to be invited, though.” Marsha stood and walked back to the counter. As soon as she did, the door opened, and a customer stepped inside.