Harems, Hexes, & Hairy Housewives: A midlife cozy fantasy by JC Blake

Author:JC Blake [Blake, JC]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Redbegga Publishing
Published: 2023-03-30T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eighteen

After reeling with shock, I gathered my senses, grabbed Priscilla’s horns and walked to the field where I left her in the care of Old Mawde and Hegelina Fekkit. After explaining exactly why the witch-hating woman had become a goat, I returned to the kitchen. The energy was fractious, and my aunts were bickering among themselves. Sparks hit the beams. Benny cawed from the curtain pole whilst Renweard and Bess pretended to be asleep by the fire.

All four turned their attention to me as I walked into the room. The air crackled.

“I’ve put her in the field,” I said.

They remained silent. The air was thick with disapproval.

“I ... it just happened! I didn’t think-”

Aunt Loveday held up a silencing hand. “It will teach the woman a lesson, in the meantime, we must discover who has hexed the village women. Only the strongest of hexes could have caused such hairy monstrosities. Whilst we’re doing that, we will have to think very carefully about how to deal with the villagers.”

“We should take a vacation from Haligern,” stated Aunt Thomasin.

Aunt Beatrice nodded. “It is time. I feel it in my bones.”

“A vacation?”

“Time away to allow the gossip to subside and lose itself in memory.”

“But that will take years,” I stated. “Decades!”

“They still celebrate Hetty’s burning.”

“Centuries!”

“And we do not want to join Hetty as part of their celebrations,” said Aunt Euphemia. “I think Loveday is right. It may be time to move elsewhere for a while.”

“How long for?”

“Several generations should do it. Until we are no longer part of living memory.”

“Eighty years,” suggested Aunt Beatrice.

“Ninety to be safe.”

Murmurs of agreement passed among my aunts.

“You can’t!” I stated. The implications of what they were suggesting were profound. We couldn’t leave Haligern!

“It’s what we witches do, when our presence becomes problematic, Livitha, and those men and women just watched you transmogrify one of their leaders into a goat. There can be no doubt now that we are indeed the witches they accuse us of being.”

“We’re not the witches they accuse us of being. We’re good! We only help.”

“And turn them into goats,” said Aunt Loveday. “Anyway, enough of this. Our priority must be to discover who has hexed the cream.”

“Although I agree that the women must be hexed,” said Aunt Thomasin, “I do not for one second believe that my cream is at fault.”

Aunts Beatrice and Euphemia exchanged doubting looks.

“I second Livitha’s earlier suggestion,” said Aunt Loveday. “We should test the cream for any sign of contaminant or ... overuse of magic.”

“Overuse of magic!” blurted Aunt Euphemia. “Those women have been hexed!”

“So, what is it exactly that you are suggesting, Loveday?” Aunt Thomasin said, hands placed firmly on her slender hips. “What exactly are you accusing me of?” Her pale skin had become flushed and there were flashes of anger in her eyes.

“Oh, Thomasin,” said Aunt Beatrice in a voice that sounded synthetically soothing, “I’m sure that Loveday is not accusing you of anything.”

“Quite the contrary, Beatrice, it sounds to me as though she is

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.