By the next day, we got word that Circe was expected to make a full recovery. I didn't know how long she'd be in the hospital, and I knew that this might be my only chance to free Lily and Balthazar. But I would need Natalie's help.
One of my sisters had the car, so I called Sam to pick me up and take me to Slim's. When she pulled up to my house and I walked out carrying the supplies for the spell, and Balthazar, she seemed surprised.
"I hope you don't mind if he rides with us," I said.
"I just hope Sean doesn't get jealous," she said, laughing as the pig hopped into the front passenger seat.
I spotted Natalie through the window of Slim's and we rushed inside.
"Are you going to be here for a while?" I asked her breathlessly.
"I'm just hanging out," she replied.
"I found everything we need to break the spell," I said. "I'll be right back." I could hear my voice shaking with excitement.
My heart jumped. I went to Sam's car and grabbed the library books, the pen, and the dress. It had been making me nervous carrying around the very items that might save Lil from her jukebox. It might not work, but it was the only shot we had.
Natalie went into the back kitchen and then came out a few minutes later. She turned the sign to Closed and locked the front door.
"Slim's hoping we can get this over with before we completely ruin his dinner rush," Natalie said. "But I asked him to close just for a little while so we could try the spell." She was waving her hands around as she spoke.
I grinned at her. "I couldn't help but notice that enormous sparkler on your hand," I said.
She grinned back. "Yep, Slim and I are engaged."
We talked wedding details for a few minutes but then got down to business.
I handed Natalie one of the books I'd checked out of the library. "I marked the page where it talks about halting the aging process," I said. "Do you think it will work?"
She opened to the page I had indicated and read quickly. She ran a finger down the page. "I have everything I need for the antiaging spell," she said. "But I think we need one more ingredient to break the enchantment."
"What are we going to do?" I asked.
"Let me make a call," she said.
She had a brief conversation with somebody and then hung up.
"Anyone hungry?" Slim asked. "I can make some snacks. Darling, what is appropriate to serve at a de-enchantment?"
Natalie chuckled. "Nachos, I think."
Slim went into the kitchen to whip up something to eat while the rest of us waited. An elderly couple who had been finishing their meal paid their bill and left.
Finally, there was a knock at the door and Natalie answered it. I couldn't see who was on the other side of the door, but Natalie came back carrying a small jar full of a pungent liquid.
"What is that horrid smell?" Sam asked.
"The bitterness of unrequited love," Natalie said. "I need just a drop."
"Any more and it'd be a ready-made stink bomb," Sam said.
"Are you ready?" Natalie asked me.
I nodded, but my stomach did a nervous little dance, and I prayed that I wouldn't be sick.
"Positive thoughts," Natalie reminded me. "Place the dress and the pen in the circle."
I did what she asked and then stepped back. "Now what?"
"Now I do my thing," she said. "First I'll embed the spell that will preserve Balthazar and Lily at the ages they were when they were first enchanted. Then, when I'm sure it's taken, I'll try to break the original spell."
The first thing she did was head to the kitchen to forage for ingredients. She came back with strawberries and honey. She pulled a long glass bottle out of her bag and added the strawberries and honey to the liquid. She shook it vigorously, took a sip, and then said, "Perfect."
She said a couple of words and then sprinkled a bit of the liquid in the air. It dissolved immediately but left a tantalizing fragrance.
"What was that in the bottle?" I asked.
"Yearning," she said.
Then Natalie got out an old pottery bowl that was decorated with moons and stars, carefully poured a dry green powder into it, and added a drop of tears.
There was a little puff of smoke when the ingredients combined, and then nothing.
"Did it work?" Sam leaned in to get a look.
"I don't think so," Natalie said. "I don't think we have the right items."
"Don't be sorry," I said. "Thanks for trying."
"Maybe I did something wrong," Natalie said. "Or maybe there's something missing."
Sam could tell I was disappointed and gave me a hug. "We'll figure it out."
"I think I managed to conceal the antiaging spell, so if Circe ever does change her mind about releasing them, she won't know that I added a little something," Natalie said.
"I'm sure this is the pen that Circe was talking about, but I'm not sure what item she used that belonged to Lily."
"I think it will work if you can figure out the other item," she said. She reached down and scratched Balthazar's nose. "What are you going to do with this little guy in the meantime?"
"I don't know," I admitted. "I don't really want to give him back to Circe."
"We can keep him at our place," she offered.
"What about your cat?" I asked. Natalie's familiar had never seemed that friendly to me, but cats seldom were.
"Oh, Fluffy loves company," she said.
A huge plate of nachos floated to the table, which meant my boss was back.
"Consolation nachos," Slim said.
Natalie reached over and snatched a chip. "I'm famished," she said.
"She's starving after she works her craft," Slim said.
"All magic has its price," Natalie said.
"What should we do about the pen?" I asked. "I don't think Circe knows I have it, but I don't want her to get her hands on it again."
"You can lock it in the safe in the office," Slim said.
"Do you think it will be safe there?" I asked.
"I'll make sure of it," Natalie said. "I'll add a little something so only the three of us can unlock it."
We trooped back to the office, and I put the pen in the safe. Then Natalie dug in her bag, sprinkled a dark-colored powder over the safe, and mumbled a few words.
"That should do it," she said.
As I was getting ready to leave, Natalie handed the book back to me. "I'm going to look for a copy of this," she said. "There are some great spells in there. Where did you get it?"
"Ms. Johns, the librarian, loaned it to me. It's part of her personal collection."
"Interesting," she commented. "It's not many librarians who would loan out a rare first edition."
"What? She told me it was published in 1960," I said. I felt myself turning pale. "I had it in my backpack. Don't tell me it's valuable."
"I won't," she said. "It's priceless."
"I've got to get it back to her before the library closes," I said. I said my goodbyes and then made it to the library just in time.
"I had no idea this was such a precious book or I would never have borrowed it," I told her when I found her in her office.
"Did it help?" she asked mildly. "Did you bring it back undamaged?"
"Yes to both questions," I said.
"Then it was a good decision," she said.
Just then, a thought occurred to me. "Do you have any books on the history of Nightshade?" I asked. "In the general collection, I mean." I remembered someone had said something about the Weres and the vampires being at peace for over fifty years. I wondered what life in Nightshade had been like prior to that time.
"We have a nice selection of books on local history," she replied. "I'll show you." I found a couple of likely-looking items and made it to the checkout line as the five-minute warning was announced over the loudspeaker, then went home to do an hour or two of light reading about the history of my hometown. Nightshade's history was a bloody one, involving years of hatred between the shifters and the vampires. I hoped my nighttime reading wouldn't give me nightmares.