Melony drew closer but remained a couple steps back.“I couldn’t hear, but the two of them took off together.”
“They’re going to warn the others. That means we don’t have much time,” the man said. “We have to finish this now. We might never get the chance again.”
I swallowed hard.
Whatever came next, I knew it wouldn’t be good.
28
“Why are you doing this?” I shouted, but my words got lost in the thick pile of the carpet. “What do you want?” I tried again, forcing the question from the side of my mouth.
“You think we wanted my stupid aunt’s town magic? Please,” Melony spat as she bound my wrists behind my back.“We’ve got much bigger fish to fry.”
Well, at least she was keeping with the established metaphor, even if she hadn’t exactly been let in on the whole thing.
“Melony, hush,” the fake Parker scolded from where he was tying my ankles together.
She pulled back for a second before applying herself with even more vigor.“Sorry, Grandpa.”
Oh, no. The family bond. This was exactly what Greta and the others had wanted to avoid.
Panic wrapped around my chest even tighter than my bonds.“Where’s Parker? What did you do to him?” I mumbled again.
“He’s dead,” the Parker clone said with a laugh. “And soon you will be, too.”
Oh, no.Were we really too late?
If they’d been able to kill Parker with his double dose of magic, then I didn’t stand a chance. I was just one normal magic-less person up against two very magical people with an amplified family bond. I couldn’t even get my hands or feet free to try to fight my way out of this or to make a run for it.
Would the other members of the board be able to defeat this villainous pair, or was the town of Beech Grove now doomed—and the entire region of Peach Plains right along with it?
A crash sounded from downstairs. Had my help finally arrived?
“Stay here,” the fake Parker—Melony’s grandfather—said. “I’ll go investigate.”
“Why are you doing this?” I asked the girl when the two of us were alone. “Is your life really so bad?”
“I don’t have to answer that.” She crossed her arms over her chest but remained standing sentinel over me.
“Is this even something you want? Seems to me like your grandpa is the one calling all the shots. What makes you think he’s going to share any of the magic he gains with you?” If I found the right words, perhaps I could sway Melony to my side. She’d had the chance to defeat me and Greta earlier, but she’d chosen not to. There had to be good in there somewhere.
She glowered at me.“Hush up. You don’t know anything. Grandpa promised that if I help him with his plan, he’ll make sure I take up my rightful place as Town Witch.”
“If you say so,” I responded casually.
She dug a heel into my back, but the armor of light held up, keeping me from feeling any of the pain. Okay, so maybe she was capable of inflicting some pain—but murder?
Everyone believed she’d come to town in order to kill her aunt, but what if they were wrong? What if Melony was after something else?
As we waited alone in that room, I turned Melony’s last statement over and over in my mind. Her grandfather had said he’d make sure she became Town Witch.
As in future tense… As in it hadn’t happened yet…
Which meant Melonydidn’t already have the town magic. Her grandfather wouldn’t have killed Parker himself if he’d promised the magic to Melony. I still didn’t know what they were after, but it was clearly something much bigger than the Beech Grove town magic.
They weren’t after Parker. Perhaps they’d never been.
Chances were he was still alive.
Bigger fish to fry,Melony had said before her grandfather cut her off. Could I trick her into revealing more?
“What are you going to do with me?” I asked, turning slightly so it was easier to speak.
Melony’s eyes met mine, and she flinched.
Perhaps she would have offered an answer, but I never got the chance to find out.
A strained cry rose from downstairs, silencing both of us.
Melony crept toward the door, and I remained on the floor, unable to do more than wriggle in place.
The next thing I heard was fake Parker shouting,“You’re not going anywhere. Now march.”
Melony ran out of the room to help, and I was able to move myself into a position that afforded me a better view of the doorway.
A minute later, the two of them strode in, pushing a burned and bloody Greta into the room before them. Without her angel armor to protect her, she’d been badly wounded by grandpa Haberdash’s magical blows. She was barely conscious as they pushed her into the floor and tied her up as well.
She’d come to save me but had ended up in the line of fire herself.
Parker was missing, and the two of us had been captured. That left Fluffikins, Connie from Commerce, the old guy, and the slightly younger one who headed up Agriculture.
Would they be enough to stop Melony and her grandfather before they got their hands on whatever they were after?
Think, Tawny. Think!
If I couldn’t unravel their plan, maybe I could still put a few chinks into it.
I didn’t know how the family bond worked, but maybe I could still find a way to sever it.
Maybe I could still save the day.
No magic required.
29
“Where are the others?” Grandpa Haberdash kicked and barked at Greta, but his latest blow had rendered her unconscious and unable to answer. I hated seeing him use Parker’s likeness to hurt us. No matter what happened after today, I knew I’d never be able to shake the image from my mind.
“They’re coming. I just know it,” Melony said, then worried her lip as she waited for her grandfather’s acknowledgment.
He cracked his knuckles and scowled, not even looking at Melony as he said,“Stay put, and make sure these two don’t cause any trouble. And do not under any circumstances leave this house. Do you hear me?”
Melony bobbed her head enthusiastically.“Yes, Grandpa.”
And with that, her grandfather charged out of the room and down the long staircase. I listened but couldn’t hear the door downstairs open or shut. My guess was that he had remained inside, lying in wait and ready to ambush whoever arrived next.
“So…” I wiggled onto my side so I could see Melony as I spoke. Perhaps her face would reveal something her words would not. I was fighting for my life here and had to use everything I had at my disposal. “Since we’re both stuck here, want to tell me your master plan? I’m sure it’s super smart.”
She crossed her arms and looked away.“No.”
Hmmm. If I couldn’t appeal to her vanity, perhaps I could poke at her insecurities. I tried to shrug, but that didn’t quite work considering my bonds. “I understand. I mean, we’re both useless anyway. Might as well let the tough guys fight it out and tell us about it later.”
Melony scoffed.“You may be useless, normie, but I’m not.”
“Hey, why are you calling me anormie?” I tried to look hurt as I asked this. Vanity and insecurity hadn’t worked, so what about humanity?
She rolled her eyes.“Because you don’t have any magic, duh.”
“Don’t I, though? I’m the Town Witch.”
She studied me for a moment, then shook her head.“No, the guy who killed my great aunt is.”
“Maybe he’s the official Town Witch, but as a temp for the PTA, I have an exact replica of the magic right here.” I struggled against my bonds, then sighed.
She glanced back to me, uncertain.“Right where?”
“Well, I was instructed to keep the magic vessel close to my heart so that it would work best.”
Melony took a step closer.“Where is it? Give it to me.”
“I put it in my bra,” I said with a grunt.
“That’s gross.”
“Well, do you want it or not?” I asked casually, trying to convey that it didn’t matter to me if she accepted my help. A plan had started to form in my mind, though, and if I could get Melony to do her part, then Greta and I just might have a chance here. “I bet you’d be even more powerful than your grandpa if you had this extra jolt of magic. He wouldn’t leave you on daycare duty then.”