Page 6 of Spellbound & Speechless (Witches of Starbrook #2)

Aspen

Everything goes well at work over the next few days until…

“Can you stay late tonight?” Juniper asks.

I’ve been working the lunch shift. That’s probably the only reason my job is easier, and this could ruin it all.

“Um…” I tuck my hair behind my ear. “How long do you need me to stay?”

“Until close.” Juniper smiles at me—a special smile, the kind she only gives when she wants something.

“Fine.” I roll my eyes. “Only if you stop looking at me like that.”

I’m getting more confident about serving. Working late will be fine, even if it’s a Saturday night. I was lucky enough to skip out on Friday, but Saturday is supposed to be the busiest.

This is fine. Everything is fine.

Working with the customers is easy, and I’ve found that if I focus on that, everything else falls into place. On a busy night like tonight, that’s still my strategy. It goes about as well as expected .

Which is to say, it all goes horribly wrong.

I’m out of breath by the time I reach table two.

“Can you remind me?” I flash a big, nervous smile. “Did you want peach or strawberry flavoring for your bliss potion?”

“Strawberry.” This customer is kind, thank the gods. She matches my smile. “If you have it.”

“We do!” I scramble away, muttering under my breath. “Strawberry… strawberry…”

That should be easy to remember. Strawberry is the most popular flavor for the bliss potion, but one thing I’ve learned is that double-checking is better than bringing a customer the wrong order. It saves me a lot of embarrassment, too.

“Strawberry!” I arrive at the bar, leaning my weight onto it. “Strawberry bliss potion. Fast, please?—”

BANG!

A hush falls over the room. Someone lets out a loud cackle, louder than the music.

What is this? Some kind of dinner show?

No. It’s something sinister—a corrupt witch. I’ve heard stories of them and even met a few in the city, but never in Starbrook.

You can always tell when they’re corrupt. The circles under their eyes and darkened veins across their temples give them away before their rotten energy does.

A scream tears from the back of my throat. “Juni!”

Banned magic has to exist to keep our society in place, and corrupt magic is the most forbidden. Witches like these choose to feed on other magical beings and steal abilities. It’s inherently frowned upon.

“I’m here.” Juniper pushes through the crowd, seeming unafraid of the parasitic magic in the room .

The magic squeezes my throat and leeches the life from me.

“You’re not welcome here,” Juniper bellows. “Leave.”

The witch tilts her head to the side. Her irises turn black. “Or what?”

“Or we’ll have you escorted out.”

Juniper sounds more confident than I feel. I shake in my designer boots and cling to the bar. If only Laurel were here—or someone else. Anyone else. The only one behind the bar is a human, and she’s as shaky as I am.

Ozan, Juniper’s new boyfriend, moves to her side. I don’t know him well, but his protective stance makes me like him more.

It’s not as if the bar has security. His gigantic self is the closest we have. He usually has a soft nature, thanks to his teddy bear brown hair and warm eyes, but a hardened stare replaces his sweetness.

“I’m here for the weapon,” the corrupt witch says. “If you let me leave with it, I won’t return.”

If I’m supposed to know what the weapon is, I don’t. Useless pink magic sparks at my fingertips. It can’t do anything against the witch. There’s no way for me to protect myself or my family.

“There’s no weapon here. You have the wrong witches.” Ozan’s voice booms. “Leave. Now.”

The corrupt witch moves in a blur, grabbing for the nearest bystander with her clawed hands.

“ Isik !” Ozan yells louder than the scream I let out.

Blinding light fills the space.

The corrupt witch falls to the ground and lets out a horrible screech. The light does more than blind her; it attacks her corrupted magic. Life drains from her face…

Her eyes lock with mine, pleading .

It stirs something in me. I can’t tear my gaze away. There’s nothing I can do.

Rowan pushes through the room, holding a stone with a painted symbol—the symbol of Jupiter. Wind bursts from her hand, intense enough to shove the witch out the door and close it tight behind her.

Juniper scrambles for the lock and closes it, her chest heaving as she catches her breath. “Stay here while security sweeps the area, everyone. We’ll escort you to your rides when it’s safe.”

There is no security. There is no plan. Things like this don’t happen in Starbrook…

Unless they do—unless this is what happened to my mother. My sisters claim it was a demon attack, but the accident happened in the same building. It happened right here.

What weapon was this corrupt witch looking for? Did my mother have the answers?

Murmurs fill the room and grow louder, sounding closer to fear than curiosity.

A prominent figure moves closer, not as large as Ozan, but just as powerful. He’s clad in all black, with eyes that pierce even in the dark room.

Mac . I haven’t seen him since the dance we shared—not really. He’s been around, but he hasn’t bothered talking to me, and I am not the sort of person to make the first move.

“If you don’t mind”—Mac clears his throat—“I can probably answer some of your questions.”