Spelled by Betsy Schow Page B

dare say a word to the wizard,” Griz informed Crow, her back to me. “I’ve seen him skulking around, and I won’t give him the chance to double-cross me again. He’s always had a soft spot for those infernal Emerald girls.” By the time she finished the statement, her voice had turned from thoughtful to bitter.
    â€œWhat’s so important about them?”
    â€œNone of your concern. Just keep our little transaction confidential. It’s imperative that this blasted girl stays here and away from anything even remotely associated with Oz.” Griz walked to the door and pushed the heavy woman out of the way. “That meddling fool has a tendency to pop up where you least expect him.”
    Oz? I thought his name was Mick. Oz must be his magical specialty…or where he lived in his Ivory Tower. I never did catch what he was the wizard of…
    My thoughts froze when I caught a glimpse of something that changed everything.
    Before rushing out the front door, Griz grabbed a staff from the kitchen. An emerald staff.
    Verte’s emerald staff.
    Verte wasn’t coming. She would never be coming.

“At the end of the day, it’s all about having the newest, latest, and greatest. Save your business today by spicing up old products with fresh ingredients.”
    â€”Orbes Magical Business Magazine
14
Put a Spell on You
    With Griz gone, Black Crow headed back our way. Quickly, I shut my eyes.
    â€œNo need to fuss on my account,” Crow clucked. “I can see from the tears on your face that you’re awake.”
    Since my hands were tied behind my back, I couldn’t wipe them off. Didn’t want to anyway. I reopened my eyes and glared at Black Crow, imagining what would happen if looks really could kill.
    â€œSo, what’s on the agenda now? Painful death or more of your awful singing that makes me long for painful death?”
    Snark is a fabulous defense mechanism.
    Black Crow looked genuinely surprised and wounded at my comments. “You don’t have to be mean. I’m not evil or anything. I’ve been nice to you—fed you, took you in. I even used silk ropes.”
    â€œWhich you used to gift wrap me for Griz.” I pulled on the ropes to give her a little demonstration. “Very thoughtful of you.”
    â€œOh, you’re not a gift,” she said matter-of-factly, completely missing the point. “You’re merchandise.”
    And that was so much better.
    â€œI figure you owed me compensation for the loss of my business,” she continued, fidgeting with the pink ribbon on her dress.
    â€œHow do you figure? I’ve never even met you,” I protested.
    â€œTrue, but your little wish has thrown off the balance of magic. None of my potions work correctly anymore. Forgetting hexes bring eternal knowledge. Glamour salves make the skin curdle like milk. You’ve ruined my reputation,” she sniffed.
    â€œHow inconsiderate of me,” I said drily.
    â€œI know. So glad you understand.” Crow apparently wasn’t too familiar with sarcasm. She also seemed to unequivocally believe what she said: that she wasn’t being a bad person for handing me over to the mother of all evil. She was just conducting a simple business transaction. Righting a wrong. Since it was my wrong, I had to pay. In a delusional sort of way, it kind of made sense.
    Evil is tough to override, because it’s ingrained in the soul. Nutcases, however, I could work with, and this lady was off her toadstool. I changed my facial expression to one that I hoped looked honest and repentant. “I am so very sorry I have inconvenienced you, but surely we can resolve this. Isn’t there some other way I can repay you?”
    Black Crow appeared to give this a bit of thought. All at once, her face lit up and she scurried off to the kitchen.
    Did I miss something? I glanced over at Kato, still sitting on his pillow, looking as clueless as