Page 7 of A Silenced Midlife

"Good," she beamed. "Now, down to business. Who's in for the silencing spell?"

Hands shot up around the room. I crossed my arms, watching the enthusiasm bubble over. There was never a dull moment here. And that's just how we liked it.

4

OLIVIA

The coven circled the cauldron on the coffee table, their shadows flickering against the walls as candle flames danced to an unseen rhythm. In the center of our circle stood Ava and Melody. Ava dropped a raven's feather into the bubbling potion. A plume of violet smoke spiraled upwards.

Melody spoke the incantation. We repeated each line she spoke.

"Let no word of magic be spoken to those who don't believe in it."

"Bound by will, sealed by silence."

With each line of the incantation, the potion's vapor grew denser, weaving through the room like a living thing. Ava sprinkled a pinch of powdered silence stone, which was really just a bit of slate, into the mix, and the potion turned a deep shade of indigo.

"As we command it, so mote it be," Melody commanded.

There was a palpable shift, a tightening like a drum's skin just before it sounds. The candles extinguished in unison, leaving us in darkness for a heartbeat before the lights flickered on.

"Did it work?" Ava whispered.

"Shh, listen," I said.

We stilled and listened.

Then the world turned to pure chaos.

"Everyone, stay calm!" Ava's voice somehow cut through the din in the living room, her hands raised in a commanding gesture.

I blinked and scanned the room. People were everywhere. Pressed against the walls, spilling down the stairs, jammed into corners. The house groaned, a low rumble of distress from Winston echoing through the close-packed bodies. Above, heavy footsteps thudded, a cacophony of confusion.

"Back up, please," I tried to say, but my words were swallowed by panicked chatter and cries for space.

"Quiet!" Ava shouted again, louder this time. Her yells were completely lost in the jostling sea of townspeople. "Listen to me!"

Nothing. The people were not having it, not one bit. They'd been transported into Ava's house, by the looks of it, every human in town was here. And they were not happy.

Lucifer's clap echoed through the cramped living room, a sharp sound that cut off every whisper and murmur. Sudden silence fell like a heavy blanket over the crowd.

"Thank you," Ava said, nodding at Lucifer. She turned to face the sea of bewildered faces. "Okay, folks. I know this is, well, a lot. We were trying to cast a gag order, a silencing spell. It was supposed to keep certain things secret."

"Like what?" someone called out from somewhere in the throng.

"Magic," Ava stated plainly. "It's real. And now, because of this mishap, you all know it. But you can't tell anyone else about it. That part is crucial."

"Magic?" the same person who just spoke scoffed. "You're joking."

"Not even a little bit," Ava replied earnestly. "The whole town didn’t see our founding fathers rise from their graves, but now you’re all here. So if you didn't know before, you do now."

Confusion twisted the faces around me into identical masks of disbelief. I composed myself and raised my hands.

"Hey, everyone. Olivia Thompson here. Many of you know me. Look, magic is not just card tricks and pulling rabbits out of hats. It's elemental, ancient. There are witches, fae?—"

"Like fairy tales?" someone interrupted.

"Sort of, but not quite," I continued. "There's more to the world than we've been taught." I didn't mention vampires. No need to go there yet.

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