Spell Found (Blackmoore Sisters Cozy Mysteries Book 7)

  Spell Found

  Leighann Dobbs

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  A Note From The Author

  About the Author

  1

  Crystals and gemstones of all shapes and sizes glittered in a dazzling array of color from atop their black velvet cushions inside the countertop display case. The sheer assortment would have made it difficult for most people to single out one stone in particular, but Fiona Blackmoore knew exactly which one she was interested in. That stone was an odd rectangular shape, smaller at the bottom than at the top, and it glowed in a rainbow of red and purple hues.

  Mesmerized by its beauty, Fiona pushed a long tendril of her curly red hair behind her shoulder as she bent down to get a closer look at the unusual stone. A slight breeze caressed her face. The melodic tinkling of wind chimes and a whiff of jasmine-scented incense reminded her of where she was—inside a small shop called Eye of Newt in Freeport, Maine.

  Outside, tourists strolled past the shop, colorful bags dangling from their arms, round sunglasses perched on their noses, some of them wearing wide-brimmed hats to shield them from the harsh June sun.

  Inside, the shop was quiet. No other customers browsed among the colorful tarot cards, mystical statues, essential oils, candles and crystals. That was just as well since Fiona and her sister Morgan weren’t there to shop like tourists. They had an important job to do.

  Fiona pointed at the gemstone, causing the other stones and crystals in the case to brighten as her hand passed over them. “This is the stone, the one we’ve been looking for. No wonder you had a feeling we should come here.”

  Though the girls owned their own shop, Sticks and Stones, In Noquitt, Maine, where Morgan mixed up potent herbal remedies and Fiona designed healing crystal jewelry, they sometimes worked assignments for a paranormal security agency. They suspected their employers were actually a secret department in Homeland Security. They’d been called into service some years earlier after The Agency discovered the girls' unique paranormal gifts, gifts that The Agency convinced them were important weapons in the fight to quell the rising tide of negative and dark energy in the world.

  After receiving a cryptic note from The Agency a few months earlier, Fiona, Morgan and their two sisters had been on the hunt for an unusual gemstone. They’d spent countless hours scouring antique shops and mystical shops as well as following up on leads. When Morgan’s intuition—her unique paranormal gift the girls had learned to respect and value highly—had led them to Eye of Newt, Fiona suspected they might be on to something.

  Morgan’s long, jet-black hair brushed the top of the case as she bent over to get a closer look. “Well, it sure is acting special.” Morgan narrowed her ice blue eyes and moved her face closer to the case. “But it’s not shaped like a key.”

  “Not the kind of key you open a door with, but a keystone. You know, the wedge-shaped stone at the top of a stone archway. I guess we made an erroneous assumption about the shape when we read the note.”

  “Meow!”

  A fluffy black cat hopped silently onto the top of the display case and sashayed down its length, flicking her luxurious tail in Morgan's then Fiona’s face.

  “I think we need to buy this.” Fiona scratched the cat behind the ears, then bent down to feline eye level. “Go get your human. We have a purchase to make.”

  The cat regarded Fiona suspiciously through slitted, golden eyes.

  “Where is the shop owner, anyway?” Morgan glanced at a black curtain hanging in a doorway at the back of the shop.

  “Meow!” The cat hopped down from the case and disappeared behind the curtain.

  A second later, the curtain parted and a woman came out. Fiona judged her to be in her late twenties, about the same age as Fiona and Morgan. The woman was an exotic beauty with a flawless olive complexion and a wavy cascade of long, mink brown hair that fell to her waist.

  “Welcome to Eye of Newt. I’m Cassiopeia. Can I help you?” Her golden brown eyes seemed to glow as they skipped past Fiona and Morgan and came to rest on the crystals and gemstones in the case. Her eyes widened slightly as she noticed the crystal nearest Fiona pulsing with vibrant color. “Ah, you are interested in the crystals.”

  “Just one gemstone, actually.” Fiona pointed at the largest one. Its color pulsed rapidly from purple to red to brown.

  “The alexandrite.” The woman glided behind the length of the case and came to a stop opposite them. She slid the door in the back of the case open and with long, blue-glittered fingernails she plucked the stone out. She laid it on a black velvet pillow and pushed it across the top of the case towards them. “Alexandrite is a stone of prosperity and longevity. It balances the mind and emotions and pacifies the soul. It promotes spiritual growth. The owners of this stone may be surprised at what it adds to their lives.”

  Fiona cocked a brow at the woman. “Surprised? What do you mean?”

  Cassiopeia shrugged. “Just that it will add interesting depth and dimension. It’s a beauty, isn’t it?”

  “It certainly is.” Fiona picked up the stone and angled it this way and that, watching it glow with a kaleidoscope of purple and red hues.

  “This one has an extraordinary cut. See how it reflects a rainbow of colors depending on how you hold it to the light?” Cassiopeia asked.

  “Emerald by day and ruby by night,” Fiona quoted from the cryptic note that had sent the sisters on their quest. She walked to the window, angling the alexandrite into the sunlight. The stone glowed with a palette of blues and greens.

  “Amazing, isn’t it?” Cassiopeia looked at Fiona knowingly. “It reflects different colors in natural light than it does in incandescent light.”

  Fiona walked back and handed it to Morgan, who placed the stone in her palm then held it up to eye level. “It’s fascinating. How did you come by it?” Fiona asked.

  “That particular stone comes from a unique collection. A renowned gemologist from Salem, Massachusetts, recently passed and her estate sold off most of the collection. I was lucky enough to procure it.” Cassiopeia spread her hands to indicate the contents of the case.

  “Would you happen to know the person’s name?” Fiona asked.

  “Of course. It was Amity Jones. Have you heard of her?”

  Morgan and Fiona exchanged a look. They hadn’t heard of her, but it was obvious the stone was the one they were looking for.

  “No, but we’ll take the stone.” Fiona nestled the gemstone back onto the black velvet pillow. She glanced into the case at its price tag of one hundred dollars. “Would you let it go for ninety?”

  Cassiopeia smiled a warm smile that crinkled the corners of her eyes slightly. “I suppose I could let it go for that. I can see it’s going to a good home.”

  “That it is.” Fiona pulled a wad of cash out of her pocket.

  Cassiopeia rang up the purchase then put the stone into a velvet covered jewelry box which she slid into a metallic fabric drawstring-bag. She handed the bag to Fiona. “I hope to see you again soon,” she
called after them as they exited to the street.

  * * *

  As Fiona and Morgan left the shop, a dark-haired man in a black leather jacket came from behind the black curtain. He joined Cassiopeia at the window where she watched the sisters walking down the street. The man was no stranger to the Blackmoore sisters. In fact, he’d been watching out for them for years now, helping them and guiding them, though the sisters would never know how much. His job of keeping them safe and out of trouble was not an easy one and he took it seriously.

  “Their powers are getting stronger, but they are still not fully developed.” Cassiopeia turned concerned eyes on Mateo. “Do you think they're ready?”

  Mateo's handsome face creased with worry. His velvety brown eyes remained on the two sisters until they disappeared out of sight. “They will have to be ready.”

  Cassiopeia sighed and turned away from the window. “I don’t know why we have to use all the subterfuge. You could have just given them the stone.”

  Mateo shook his head. “It’s what was written by the ancient energy masters. They needed to seek it out for themselves.”

  Cassiopeia waved her hand. “I suppose. Sometimes those ancient energy masters and their mystifying rules can be so tedious. I’m just glad to get rid of the darn thing, I didn’t like the idea of having it here in the shop where any old paranormal could come in and take notice of it.”

  Cassiopeia had purchased the crystals from Amity Jones for more than just shop inventory. They needed a safe place for the keystone, one where Fiona would be likely to find it, but also where they could keep it away from their enemies. Cassiopeia could easily have hidden the stone if she sensed an enemy paranormal about to enter the shop. And since the items which were purchased from the estate, as well as the names of those who purchased them, were kept private, no one who knew Amity Jones had possessed the special stone would be able to find out where it had gone.

  The paranormal guild had hoped they could rely on Morgan’s intuition to bring the girls to the shop. That had proven true today.

  “Luckily, you didn’t have to keep it for long. I knew my girls would come through.” Mateo pulled out a black motorcycle helmet from under the counter.

  Cassiopeia clutched at his arm as he turned to leave. “Remember, your role is to guide only.”

  “I remember.” His eyes drifted out the window again. “But they may need some help and I intend to be there when they do.”

  “They’ll have all the help they need if they learn to accept the spells. The spells will make them more powerful.”

  “Right. But they're stubborn. It’s taken a long time for them to accept the powers they have.” Mateo grimaced. “I don’t know if they’ll readily accept using spells.”

  “They’ll have to if they want to get the relic back.”

  “Maybe. Maybe they can get it back with just the powers they have.”

  Cassiopeia cast a doubtful glance back out the window even though Morgan and Fiona were now well out of sight. “I’m not sure about those two. What about the younger one, Jolene? I heard she is much stronger.”

  “She is the most powerful and the one that is coming along the fastest with her gifts.”

  Cassiopeia turned a quizzical eye on Mateo. “Do I detect a hint of something more than professional interest? You know that can never happen. The bloodlines can't mingle—at least not without some powerful … and dangerous … magic. ”

  Mateo arched a brow and flashed the handsome smile that even after all these years still caught Cassiopeia off guard.

  He kissed the top of her head, put the helmet on and started toward the door. “Never say never, sweetheart. Never say never.”

  * * *

  The sun slanted through the windshield of Fiona’s large black pickup truck, heating the inside to sweltering. Morgan and Fiona slid in and Fiona blasted the air conditioning then cracked the windows to let the hot air out. Fiona fanned herself with her hand as she watched the tourists walk under the colorful striped canopies that shaded the old storefronts along the brick-paved sidewalk.

  The smell of fried seafood made her stomach grumble. A little boy trotted by with an ice cream cone clutched in his right hand while his left hand was firmly clasped in that of his mother. His short legs worked overtime to keep up with his parent as the mound of ice cream wobbled precariously on top of the cone.

  Fiona licked her lips, thinking an ice cream would taste pretty good right now. It was just about lunchtime, too. Maybe she would have ice cream for lunch if Morgan didn’t insist on heading home too quickly. A rustling sound from the seat beside her brought her attention back to the matter at hand.

  Morgan lifted the velvet covered box out of the bag, snapped it open and retrieved the stone. She placed it in the palm of her hand. “Darn thing doesn’t glow like it does when you hold it. Do you really think this is the stone in the note?”

  “Yes. It makes perfect sense now. I know we were looking for a stone shaped like a key but have you ever seen a gemstone in that shape?” Fiona asked.

  Morgan shook her head.

  “Me, either. It would be incredibly difficult to cut one shaped like an actual key, so this must be it. And your intuition did lead us here…” Fiona let her voice trail off.

  Fiona, Morgan and their two sisters, Celeste and Jolene, each had special paranormal gifts. Fiona’s gift had to do with crystals and gemstones. Her energy meshed with the energy inside them and made them more powerful. She was able to amplify the mystical properties of them and had recently started to hone that gift to be able to use them for other purposes, like defending themselves against other paranormals.

  Morgan’s gift was intuition. The eldest Blackmoore sister had once told Fiona that she always thought she was just a little more observant than the average person. Turns out it was a true gift, and that gift had led them to this very store one hour away from their seaside home in Noquitt, Maine.

  They’d been searching for the stone in various shops and estate sales for months when Morgan had suddenly gotten the urge to come here. Good thing they’d followed up on it, since it appeared that the stone had been waiting for them here the whole time.

  Fiona knew it had to be the stone they were looking for by the way it practically pulled them into the shop. As soon as Fiona had parked the car here, Morgan had honed in on the Eye of Newt like a dowsing rod finding an underground spring.

  It was about time they found the darn thing. She knew its discovery meant they would have to embark on a mission to find the relic. The stone was just the first part of that, according to the note.

  This past winter they'd spent a week in a remote part of Costa Rica on a false lead that Dorian Hall, the head of the paranormal agency, had given them over Thanksgiving. When that didn't pan out, the trail went cold. Then this note surfaced. Fiona was glad the trail was closer to home.

  They were paid handsomely for these adventures, but the girls didn’t do it for the money. They did it to make sure the ancient relics stayed away from those who would use them for evil. Like Dr. Bly who had held their mother hostage for seven years, draining her of her paranormal abilities and nearly killing her in the process. Fiona and her sisters would work for free if it meant keeping these important relics from him, but there was no sense telling Dorian that. If she wanted to pay them for it, that just sweetened the pot.

  “At least now the message makes a little more sense,” Morgan said.

  Fiona recited the message from heart: “The key stone that is emerald by day and ruby by night will unlock the path to viewing the future - at the source of the stone you will find the first clue.”

  “I wondered how a stone could be emerald during the day and ruby at night. I hadn’t considered alexandrite,” Fiona admitted.

  Morgan frowned down at the stone. “How does it do that?”

  “It’s in the way the minerals absorb the light,” Fiona explained as she eyed the ice cream shop down the street. “Different types of light cause it
to reflect differently and your eye sees a different color.”

  “So what do you think ‘at the source of the stone you will find the first clue’ means?”

  “That’s why I asked where she got the stone. I assume that’s the source.”

  “Or the store we just bought it from could be the source.”

  “Or where the stone was originally mined from could be the source.” Fiona studied Morgan. “But what does your gut instinct tell you?”

  “It tells me it has something to do with this Amity Jones person. I felt it as soon as she said the name. But I also feel like we could be walking into a heap load of trouble.”

  Fiona's attention was on a pair of middle-aged women coming out of the ice cream shop holding double dip cones. “When aren’t we walking into a heap load of trouble?”

  “True, and at least we have a lot of practice fighting off the bad guys, so trouble isn’t that big of a problem anymore.”

  “Right, as long as we keep our skills honed … and watch out for Celeste.”

  Worry over Celeste stole Fiona's attention from the ice cream. She feared for her sister whenever they came up against a paranormal enemy. Celeste’s gift was seeing ghosts. Unfortunately, that didn’t help defend her against paranormal attacks. Sure, she was a top-notch karate expert, but she wasn’t able to singe people with hot rocks like Fiona, or zap them with streams of energy like Jolene or even use her intuition to anticipate their next move like Morgan. Sometimes the opponent’s spirit could help her out by pointing out weak spots, but that was only if the spirit appeared—which didn’t always happen. For the most part, she was defenseless.

  “But at least we have Jolene. She makes up for it.”

  “And you’ve got some pretty good skills with your rocks now,” Morgan added.

  Fiona had recently perfected the skill of turning small stones into blazing hot projectiles that she could fling at an enemy, inflicting them with hot, searing pain, which usually made them turn and run. It had come in handy quite a few times, already.