Page 67 of Shift of Morals
“On my way!” Sounded like she found something. I opened the door and peeked in, making sure it was safe to enter.
Hazel stood a few feet away from the table, her eyes glowing with power. A wide smile creased her face. “Got it!”
She wiggled her fingers. “Told you I’d get you.” Hazel’s cackle made me grin.
The bouquet looked even worse today. Several of the flowers had turned black, and the bottom oozed a dark liquid. Gross.
“Come closer,” Hazel urged. “I need to show you something.”
Hesitantly, I edged around the table, coming up beside Hazel. She waved her hand, and the lights dimmed. A strange blend of magic floated above the bouquet.
“One layer is some form of shifter magic. The other is disguised as a blessing, meant to trigger when your magic reacts to it under stress.” She tsked. “It’s a good thing you haven’t touched this in a few days.”
I grimaced. The last few days had turned me into a complete stress ball. I hadn’t used my Floromancy since Finn showed up. My muscles and magic still hurt, but I was much better today than yesterday. By tonight, I should be back to normal. Or whatever passed for normal these days.
“This was never about the bride. Whoever made this planned for it to be in your space. They knew you’d handle it and made the spell for you.” Hazel blew out a breath. “Whoever planned this was smart. Several things had to fall into place for this to wind up in your hands.”
Moira popped her head in, blinking several times as she stared at the bouquet. “Creepy.”
Hazel waved her in. “It’s safe.”
“Ish,” I said.
Moira came in, giving us a wide berth. “What’s going on with that thing?”
“Magical trap,” Hazel said. “Or a black magic spell. I can’t tell which yet.”
“Meant for Evie?”
“Looks that way,” Hazel said.
“Bully for me,” I muttered.
“We need to find out if the spells were planted before or after the wedding planner handled the flowers,” Moira said. “Caroline doesn’t seem like a criminal mastermind.”
“Doesn’t mean she doesn’t have a deeper involvement than she’s admitting to,” I said.
“Maybe we should take another look at her,” Hazel ventured.
My instincts nagged at me. “Maybe. But I think someone powerful orchestrated this. Not Caroline.”
Hazel shook her head. “You really managed to step into it this time, child.”
“I had nothing to do with this!” Shaking my head at her, I shooed them both away. “Go get lunch or something. I’ll close up the wards.”
Hazel winked. “Troublemaker.”
Moira laughed and held the door open for the witch.
If those two were getting along, things really were topsy-turvy.
Once they were gone, I stepped closer to the bouquet and peered down at the rapidly decomposing blooms. Sighing, I started to build the wards and was just about to close them up, when a bloom unfurled from the plant and snapped out at me.
I gasped and took a step back, magic ripping from my body in reaction.
Thorns burst from the stems, the other blooms unfurling and blackening over and over again. Gritting my teeth, I reached for my Floromancy, attempting to shut the surrounding wards, but the bouquet fought back, pushing against my magic.
It was no longer content with being contained.
