Ivy waved her hand in front of her face as the thick swirl of purple mist dispersed around the store. Spike gave a whimpering growl and ducked behind the counter.
“Hello, Aunt Lilith,” said Bryony.
“You always like to make impressive entrances,” said Ivy.
Aunt Lilith stood in the middle of the store, dressed in a floor length scarlet gown, her hair transformed to a brilliant sapphire shade. “This is how I always transport. Your mother sent me.”
“We told her not to,” said Bryony. “We’ve got things under control.”
“Clearly not if somebody is trying to poison one of you,” said Aunt Lilith. “Tell me what happened.”
Bryony exchanged a glance with Ivy. “Nothing dramatic. We were in the store with Belinda and Gabriel.”
“That do-gooder from the Charm Police?” asked Aunt Lilith. “Is he still interested in you?” Her dark gaze focused on Bryony.
“Not like that,” said Bryony swiftly. “We’re friends.”
Aunt Lilith waved a hand in the air. “Continue. What was Belinda doing here?”
“She needed help with a problem. One of her fingers turned black, just like Josie Spicer’s,” said Bryony.
Aunt Lilith swiped her fingers through her long hair. “Two customers with the same problem. And you think it’s a poisoner in Old Sarum? It has been a while since we’ve had any problems of that nature.”
“Who could it be?” asked Ivy.
“None of the poisoners I have encountered have lived to tell the tale,” said Aunt Lilith. “There must be someone new in the village or perhaps it's a resident with powers they have previously repressed.”
“Have you ever been poisoned?” asked Ivy.
“Only a dozen times or so,” said Aunt Lilith.
“A dozen times!” said Bryony. “How have you survived so much poison?”
“As if you even need to ask, child,” said Aunt Lilith with a sly smile.
“Did any of your fingers turn black when you were poisoned?” asked Ivy.
“There were occasions when my skin changed color. But never black.”
“Where’s the best place to start looking for information on this poison?” asked Bryony.
“Gather up the Poisoners' Almanacs,” said Aunt Lilith. “They are a solid source of information. And Digby’s Guide to Magical Malaise should also be inspected.”
“We’ve got them on our shelves.” Bryony dashed over to the bookshelf and extracted five large volumes.
“That will take us weeks to read through.” Ivy groaned and slumped onto the sofa. “Can’t we just go and interrogate anybody we think used this magic?”
“We will if the almanacs don’t reveal useful information,” said Aunt Lilith. “It sounds like a creeping ailment spell could also have been used. Mix in something fatal and link it to this slow acting magic, and you have your spell.”
“Would it help if you inspected the poisoned rose?” Bryony looked over to the corner of the store where the rose still lay. The petals were tinged with black.
“Yes, bring it to me,” said Aunt Lilith. “But handle it carefully. There may still be some poison residue.”
Ivy pushed Bryony out of the way. “Let me get it. Don’t want you accidentally poisoning yourself.”
“As if I would,” said Bryony.
Ivy raised an eyebrow at her sister, before scooping the rose in the hem of her skirt. She returned it to her aunt and placed it on the coffee table.
Aunt Lilith settled on the sofa and Ivy and Bryony joined her. She bent over the rose and inhaled deeply before passing her hands over the top of it several times.
“Are you sensing anything?” asked Bryony.
“Darkness. This spell is dangerous magic.”
“Is there still poison attached to the rose?” asked Bryony.
“It is more than poison,” said Aunt Lilith. “There is power trapped within this rose.”
“There’s more poison in there?” asked Ivy.
“Look in the first almanac under information on slow acting poison spells that repeat,” said Aunt Lilith.
Bryony grabbed the book and flicked through the pages. “There’s something here on a poison that rots its victims from the inside out.”
“No, that’s not what we’re looking for,” said Aunt Lilith. “Look for something darker.”
“That seems dark to me,” said Bryony.
Aunt Lilith dabbed her finger against the rose and pulled back sharply. “Look at the blended spells section. There’s not only poison at work here.”
“There’s more magic hidden inside the rose?” Ivy toed the rose with the tip of her pointed boot.
Aunt Lilith slapped her foot away. “Yes, and you’d be wise not to activate it.”
“You just touched the rose,” said Ivy.
“That is because I do not have much care for my own safety,” said Aunt Lilith. “And I am more powerful than you. However, I know your mother would be most aggrieved if you came to any harm under my watch.”
Bryony shared a smile with Ivy. That was the closest Aunt Lilith came to saying she cared about them.
Spike stalked over from behind the counter, took one sniff of the rose, turned tail and disappeared.
“It must be bad if a demon dog doesn’t like it,” said Bryony.
“He knows not to mess with something more dangerous than he is,” said Aunt Lilith.
Bryony returned to flicking through the almanac. “The blended spells section outlines different combinations of powerful spells that can be mixed. There’s reference to love potions and devotion, envy and jealousy, hatred and revenge. Here’s something on poison. There are several options; blood poisoning and eyesight loss; poisoning and sickness.”
“Keep going.” Aunt Lilith prodded the rose again with a fingernail. “There’s something else here, but it’s hidden from me. It’s most vexing.”
“You could cut it,” said Ivy. “Maybe whatever is hidden inside the rose will reveal itself when the flower is pulled open.”
“Get me a sharp knife.” Aunt Lilith plucked off one of the petals and held it up to the light in the store. “The discoloration on the rose suggests the magic is still active.”
Ivy returned from the kitchen with a knife and handed it to her aunt.
Aunt Lilith slid the knife along the length of the rose, puncturing its tough stem. A thin stream of black mist hissed out and foul smelling black droplets of liquid dribbled onto the coffee table.
“That doesn’t look good,” said Bryony.
“Stay back, girls,” said Aunt Lilith.
Ivy couldn’t resist leaning forward and inspecting the rose. Aunt Lilith swatted the back of her head. “Idiot girl. You don’t want to inhale what’s coming out of the rose.”
“I can handle it.” Ivy rubbed the back of her head as she moved away from the sofa.
“I’m sure you can,” said Aunt Lilith. “But we don’t know what we’re dealing with here, other than the fact it’s unpleasant magic.”
“We should turn the rose over to the Charm Police,” said Bryony. “Gabriel wanted to take it away when he was here, but Ivy wouldn’t let him. We did promise him we would take it to the station.”
“I didn’t want him to have it because it’s our rose,” said Ivy. “And I want to find out why someone thought it was a fun idea to send a poisoned rose. Then I can elicit my own form of punishment without the Charm Police’s interference.”
“Good thinking,” said Aunt Lilith. “We need to find out who is trying to harm our family and make them pay.”
The rose gave an involuntary leap and the black mist seeping out of it increased.
“Maybe now is a good time to seal it into something.” Bryony hopped up off the sofa and out of the way of the mist. “Whatever that is, it’s giving me a headache.”
“I have aggravated the magic in the rose by cutting into it,” said Aunt Lilith. “Find a sturdy box to place it in.”
Bryony ran to the back of the store and returned with a small wooden box, lined with red velvet. “Will this do?”
“That’s fine.” Aunt Lilith placed the box on the table.
The rose gave another buck and fell to the floor. It began to emit a low pitched whistling sound.
“We should leave the store and let the rose calm down.” Aunt Lilith jumped to her feet.
“What’s it going to do?” asked Ivy.
Bryony, Ivy, and Aunt Lilith fell to the ground as a flash of light filled the store, accompanied by a burst of purple flame.