Maudlin's Mayhem (Bewitching Bedlam #2)(26)

“I learned at…yeah, I can.” He smiled, then headed out of the room. “I’m going to clean all the rooms and get them done, just in case you’re able to take in guests again before the end of the day. Think positive, and all that.”

“So how do I go about this? I’m sick over Bubba.” I followed Sandy’s suit, even though I wasn’t that hungry. As I bit into a piece of bacon, I felt just how tired I was. “I’m so exhausted. I need more sleep.”

“Take care of business and then take a nap this afternoon.” She pursed her lips. “Since you’re the coven’s High Priestess, we can’t very well go consult her about the issue. What about talking to Auntie Tautau? She might be able to give you some advice.”

Auntie Tautau…that made sense. If anybody would be able to help, it would be her.

The Aunties were a group of incredibly powerful witches. They were aligned to no coven, no circle or group. They were, in fact, often regarded as harbingers of fate. Nobody quite knew what made a witch an Auntie, or how they came to be, but Auntie Tautau knew how to arrange things. The question was, would she agree to help? If she didn’t, no force on Earth could push her into offering a hand.

“I’ll go see her after I talk to Delia. You want to come with me?”

Sandy frowned. “I wish I could, but I have a board meeting this morning that I can’t miss. My ex will be there, and you know Bart. He’s a by-the-book type of guy. At least when it comes to business. And I need to check on Mr. Peabody. But I think you should go talk to her, at least. The worst she can do is say no.”

“True that.” I stabbed half-heartedly at my pancake. “All right, I’ll go talk to Delia, then stop off at Dr. Farrows, and then go see Auntie Tautau. I also need to put Aegis’s check in the bank. As much as I hate borrowing money, I want a cushion in there.”

We finished breakfast, and then, leaving the Bewitching Bedlam in Thornton’s capable hands, were off for the day.





MY MEETING WITH Delia went all right—she was even more concerned after hearing about Bubba, and she promised to check around to see if any strange vamps had been spotted in the area. I didn’t tell her why. I didn’t want to tell anybody about the Arcānus Nocturni yet. But I warned her to be cautious if she did find any new vampire activity around town. In turn, she cautioned me to leave Essie alone and let her check in with the vampire queen.

Essie Vanderbilt was the Queen of the Pacific Northwest Vampires. She had started out as a Voudou priestess, born in 1844, and when she was turned, she retained some of her powers.

The vampire nation was divided into regions, and each region was ruled autonomously. We weren’t sure if there were any shadow puppets governing the vamps, other than the distant influence of the Arcānus Nocturni. But Essie didn’t like anybody dipping their fingers in her pie, so I rather doubted she’d be willing to allow any outside elements into her rule.

What we knew about Essie wasn’t a lot, but we did suspect her of attempting to gain traction in Bedlam, outside of the Moonrise Coven’s influence. The coven dictated how vampires could interact on the island, but Essie was always seeking ways around our rules. Any new vamps in the area were supposed to check in with her, and she was supposed to cooperate with us, but we had learned the hard way that was only for show.

After leaving the sheriff’s office, I headed over to see Dr. Farrows and Bubba. All the way, I fretted about what to do if something had gone wrong, but as his receptionist guided me back to his office and he came out, smiling, I tried to relax.

“Bubba. Is he okay?”

“Yes, Bubba is fine. I’m doing my best to figure out what kind of hex he’s under. Here, let me take you to see him. He won’t know you’re here, but it will put your mind at ease.”

He led me to a back room that could only be entered via a code-lock. He punched in the code and, as we entered the room, I felt the hush descend over my magic. The doctor was right—there would be no magical use here.

“Why doesn’t the cloaking shield negate the curse?”

“Oh, it does, but only in here. Look.” He led me over to a bed where a big orange tabby was curled up asleep.

“Bubba! He’s back to his normal form.”

“Only in here. Unless I can figure out what hexed him and how to break it, in two weeks we’ll have to bring him out of stasis and the moment he walks out of this room, he’ll be back in human form.” Dr. Farrows frowned, leaning against the bed. “I’ve been testing his blood and so far I’ve ruled out standard transmogrification spells. So we know that over-the-counter hex-breakers won’t take care of this. I’ll have another go this afternoon after I see patients.”

I stroked Bubba’s fur, burying my nose in his side. He was breathing rhythmically, and I wished for all the world that I could just scoop him up and take him home. After one last kiss on his tummy, I turned to the doctor.

“Find out what’s wrong with him, please? He’s been with me over three hundred years. I can’t…” As tears filled my throat, I stopped talking.

“I know, Maddy. I know. Come on, let’s leave him be.” He escorted me out of the room. “I’ve only had the pleasure of treating one other cjinn, but they are lovely beings. And they’re loyal, you know. You win the trust of a cjinn and they’ll stick by you forever.”