Jingle Grinch: A Mackenzie Coven Mystery by Sonia Parin

Author:Sonia Parin [Parin, Sonia]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2024-12-24T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 6

“In case I forget, we’ve decided the missing fairies are not here and they did not leave voluntarily.”

An outpost on the edge of the Crone’s realm

“Can you tell if anyone’s noticed us?” Lexie asked. They were walking along what appeared to be a busy street. A man pushing a cart full of walnuts stopped to wipe his brow. Lexie tried to make eye contact but the man averted her gaze. And, when she looked over her shoulder, everyone who’d walked past them had stopped, almost as if they’d stepped out of the frame and no longer needed to pretend to be going about their business.

“Try poking someone,” Luna suggested.

“That could be perceived as provocative,” Rebel warned. “Oh, look at that pretty window display. So many sparkly things.”

Luna tried to ignore Rebel but she had a weakness for sparkly things. “Oh, look. A gilded cage, just like the one we saw this morning.” Luna bounced on Lexie’s shoulder. “Please, please, can we go look at it. I only want to press my nose to the window and admire it. Please. Please.”

Rebel jumped up and down on Lexie’s shoulder. “Oh… Look. Over there, across the street. Blueberries. A whole table full of blueberry punnets. Go this way.”

“No, head over to the shop, I want to see the gilded cage,” Luna urged.

Lexie stilled and tried to block out the barrage of demands from Luna and Rebel.

This all sounded like a choreographed disruption to deter Lexie from heading straight to the pub.

Jonathan grabbed her arm and pulled her along. “This way.”

“Huh?”

“The pub.”

Relieved to realize Jonathan hadn’t been charmed by something sparkly or juicy, Lexie picked up her pace.

They rushed across the street and Jonathan pushed open the door. Pulling Lexie inside, he slammed the door shut.

“That was a close call,” he said. “Did you notice?”

“Notice what? The lure of sparkly and juicy things?”

“Yep. Those. Were you drawn to anything?”

Lexie shook her head.

“Neither was I. I guess it only works if you’re feeble-minded.”

Luna growled. “I heard that.” Lowering her head, she added, “But you might be right. Rebel is feeble-minded.”

Before Rebel could defend herself, Lexie piped in, “Your weaknesses were targeted. Luna loves sparkly things and Rebel will never say no to gorging on blueberries.”

Jonathan nodded. “Someone or something is trying to slow us down again.”

“Luna.”

Luna whimpered.

Glancing at her, Lexie saw Luna casting a woeful eye in the direction of the shop with the sparkly cage. Never mind that Jonathan had closed the door and the shop was out of sight.

“Luna!” Lexie snapped.

“What,” Luna wailed.

“You’ve been charmed. As in, someone or something cast a spell on you to distract us.”

“Why do you always have to be so suspicious?” Luna grumbled. “You know how much I like sparkly things. I don’t need a spell to be attracted to lovely things, things you should consider getting for me.”

True. But Luna’s focus had been unnatural. She could be obsessive about things, but she always snapped out of it.

Looking at Rebel, Lexie saw the same woeful expression on her little face.

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