Grimoires, Spas & Chocolate Straws Read online

  He didn't take his eyes off the water below. "I—Horace wanted me to get to know you better."

  I mulled that over. "Why? He knows I'm never going to join the Badlands Army, right?"

  Hank, on my other side, cleared his throat. "Is the army even relevant anymore? With my fath— With the king's secrets exposed, hasn't the Badlands Army achieved its goals?"

  Leo let out a heavy sigh. "That is for Horace to determine."

  Hank's eyes darted to Leo. "I bet Horace is having a hell of a time figuring out life as a civilian." He shrugged. "I know. It's been a challenge, honestly, having so much that defined my identity stripped away." He reached over and took my hand, a smile on his face. "Luckily, I still have the most important things."

  Leo eyed him, his expression unreadable. He worried his lip as another glowing manta took flight below us. "Horace exposed the truth. Now people have to believe it… and act on it." He sighed. "And yes, I suppose, determine what will become of the Badlands Army."

  I rested my chin on my knees and thought back to that night, six weeks ago, in the Bijou Mer palace. Horace had said he'd alerted the newspapers all over the kingdoms, that he had evidence and had sent it to them. Would that be enough to overturn a monarchy? To wrestle power from a tyrant's rigid grip?

  My stomach tightened as I realized how much work and risk it would take for people to do the right thing. And that even if they did, it might not be a match for King Roch's ruthlessness. Some part of me, all this time, had assumed someone, Amelia or the pirates maybe, would be coming for us, to take us home. But what if they never came? What if there was no home to return to? Or if we went back, would it be to a life sentence in Carclaustra?

  I shivered and turned to Leo. "Is Horace in the kingdoms right now? Is he still working to see justice done?" I sat up straighter. "Why hasn't he deployed you? The rest of the army to help? Does he have more mirrors? We need to get back to make sure—"

  Leo held up a hand and cut me off. He gave me a slow blink. "I can't answer all your questions, but I can tell you there are no more mirrors."

  "What?" Hank's voice held the same note of desperation that I felt.

  I frowned and shook my head. "There has to be more—Horace knows how to make them and—"

  "And he spent years building up a stockpile, planting twin mirrors all over the kingdoms to use as needed. But he's had to destroy them as he's gone along, to keep from being followed." His throat bobbed as he gazed out over the water. "The mirror you used to escape the palace—it was the last one."

  I gasped. "That means he's here then—on the island!" I gripped Leo's arm, but dropped it when he gave me a flat look. "Please—take us to him. I need to speak with him and—"

  Leo's face darkened and he practically growled at me. "Your brother's done as much as he can. He's given his entire life to this cause, to righting the wrongs of a man who doesn't deserve a moment of his time, much less all the years of his life." He shoved to his feet, and Hank sprang to his, ready to defend us.

  I whirled around. "What about you and the rest of his army, then? There are so many of you, you could be doing more! And we could help you! What if the people are losing the battle and King Roch is only going to get more oppressive and cruel? Horace took it so far—why abandon it now, at the end?"

  Leo froze, only a muscle in his jaw jumping. His voice grew deadly quiet. "Horace did not abandon anything… or anyone. It is up to them, the people of the kingdoms, to decide if they want to live under a murderous tyrant or to fight for their freedom." His chest heaved as he stared at me for several long moments. Then he jerked his head and turned. "Come on. Show's over."

  I jumped as the picnic blanket disappeared from under me.

  Iggy sniffed. "Testy testy."

  Leo showed us the way down, then promptly stalked off into the thick brush atop the cliff and disappeared into the night without another word.

  I rolled my eyes. "Well, fine. Goodnight to you, too."

  As I climbed onto Hank's back, he finally spoke. "I hate to admit it, but he has a point, you know. If Horace and his army were to come in, overthrow the government, and then what? Take over? That would only make them invaders. I think he was right—your brother's done all he could."

  I hugged my arms tight around his neck. "Huh. Does that mean you're coming around on ol' Horace a little?"

  He rolled his eyes. "A little… maybe."

  When we got back to the hotel, we were the first of our group to turn in—except for Yann, already tucked in in his bed in the corner. As I slipped under my comforter, I at first thought Yann was asleep… until I caught his shoulders shaking in the dim, colored light coming from the mantas outside. I heard him sniffle and my heart sank. Poor Yann. I snuggled in beside Hank and tapped his shoulder. He rolled over to face me.

  "Hank," I whispered.

  "Mm?"

  "I want to make sure we're right—about Miss Sara."

  Hank nodded. "I'm in. It's difficult to see Yann so sad."

  I smiled and he smiled back, and we nestled in together, my head in the crook of his shoulder. As I drifted off to sleep, I wished that everyone could find that special someone to be this comfortable with—especially someone as loveable as Yann.

  35

  Dragon's Den

  Late the next morning, the girls and I decided to sample the indoor spa facilities. Even Rhonda, who hadn't arrived back in the room from her night out with Francis until nine in the morning, when the rest of us were heading down to breakfast, decided to join in. Before we split from the guys, I asked Hank to try and cheer up the dejected Yann, and he promised to try. Poor guy had barely touched his breakfast—quite unlike Yann.

  We asked a green-uniformed worker for directions to the women's spa and took a spiraling wood staircase up to the third floor. Maple, Rhonda, Annie, and I looked at each other as we stepped up onto the small landing. The only way was forward, through the ornately carved golden doors that towered above us. Snaking dragons and flames formed the doors' intricate design, with two enormous, pointed teeth for handles.

  Rhonda rubbed her palms together. "I can already tell this is going to be good." She stepped forward and pushed against the teeth. The doors swung inward and a dense cloud of steam poured out, instantly plastering my bangs to my forehead.

  "Welcome, ladies," a melodic, ethereal voice said, "to the Dragon's Den."

  I gulped. Kind of an ominous name for a spa. We stepped inside and the white mist cleared a bit. Directly ahead, a beautiful woman with long, straight black hair peered down at us. She had her arms hooked over the edge of a clear glass tank and beamed, an enchanting smile that I found myself returning. Then I noticed her bottom half.

  Her waist morphed into the jet-black body of an octopus, her suckered legs curling through the tank's water, some hooked over the edge of the tank like her human arms.

  My jaw dropped, but Rhonda leaned over and spoke behind her hand. "She's a siren—specialized kind of mermaid, lovely voice, but"—she made a face—"weird legs if you ask me." She waggled her brows. "Only the best spas have them. I knew this would be good."

  I frowned and lowered my voice. "Why is she so special? Why do the best spas have sirens?"

  Annie glanced back at me. "Why, because she can control water, dear. You'll see."

  Maple clasped her hands together. "A real siren," she breathed. "I'm so excited."

  We stepped closer, and two women in thick fluffy bath robes passed in front of us. The siren smiled down on them. "Was the ice bath to your liking?"

  The older woman looked up. "It was perfect, thank you." She and her younger friend, maybe a daughter, bowed deeply to the siren, then moved off. Their slippered feet were silent over the slatted bamboo floor. Steam curled up toward the tall ceiling, and a golden tiled backdrop behind the siren's curving fish bowl tank came into view. Gold and brass levers lined the gold wall—there had to be a hundred of them—along with pulleys and wheels. A few of the siren's octopus legs snaked behind her, p
ulling a lever here, pushing a glowing green button there. I lifted my brows, impressed. She was quite a multitasker. I hoped Miss Sara paid her well.

  Thinking of Miss Sara, my stomach tightened. It was difficult to relax, knowing I might have upset a possible killer by interrupting her date with Yann last night. And here I was, about to be relaxed and vulnerable in her spa. My mouth went dry as I watched the siren's snaking eight legs. Eight—like a spider, like a black widow.

  Maple grinned at me and led the way forward. I gulped and followed—at least I had my friends around me. Strength in numbers, right?

  A spa worker rushed up to the side of the bowl. She wore an emerald green uniform: loose cotton capris and a cap-sleeved wrap top that cinched at the waist. Her long black hair was gathered into a sleek ponytail at the crown of her head. She gazed up at the siren. "Dream room's running low on bubbles." She raised her brows.

  In a flash, the siren swished her legs and zipped through the water to the side of the tank where the worker stood. Her suckers suctioned to the side of the glass, then peeled off with a pop! "Fizzy or dream bubbles, darling?"

  "Dream."

  The siren winked. "Coming right up." Her voice sounded somehow soothing and far away. One of her black legs shot out of the water, curled around a lever, and tugged down.

  The worker bowed deeply, then straightened and hurried off, disappearing into the thick white mist.

  The siren turned her attention to us. She cocked her beautiful head, and her shiny curtain of hair draped over her pale, slender shoulder. "You're new." She smiled a dazzling smile. "I always remember a face." She looked at each of us. "Especially four faces as lovely as yours."

  Rhonda winked and waved a hand. "Go on."

  I grinned up at her. What a charming lady. Man, I was a sucker for flattery.

  Maple's mouth hung open—she was practically drooling as she gazed up. "You're a pretty face."

  Maybe some of us were bigger suckers than others.

  The siren giggled, a tinkling sound, like chimes.

  I bumped Maple's shoulder with mine and startled her out of her trance. She looked at me and blinked, her eyes clouded.

  Rhonda pushed between us and threw a heavy arm over each of our shoulders. "Don't be embarrassed. She's a siren—she enchants, it's what she does."

  The siren gestured to our right with one of her human arms and one of her tentacles. "Please leave your clothes and personal items in one of the clams to your right. I assure you, they are completely secure and will open again in your presence."

  "Ooh." Annie lit up. "Enchanted clams, never in all my years."

  The siren swept another arm and tentacle to the left. "Then proceed into the heart of the spa. Anything you desire to feel either relaxed or invigorated is at your disposal. In keeping with the dragon theme, we have over fifteen treatment rooms, ranging from the dragon's den, where you can experience enlightening bubble treatments, smoothing volcanic scrubs, and enriching gold baths, to the dragon’s breath room, with our deep fire cleansing, detoxing ash baths, and slow burn sauna." She smiled. "Workers are plentiful if you'd care to schedule a massage with either a witch or an enchanted wind, or perhaps an ogre. They're great at pummeling, just say the word."

  My head spun. "Ogre?" I looked to Maple for clarification but she was gazing up at the siren again, all gooey-eyed.

  One of the black tentacles curled around a mallet hanging from a giant golden gong. "And every hour, on the hour, I serenade our guests with a song. When you hear the gong, make sure you're outside the treatment rooms, in the mist, if you'd care to listen."

  I leaned around the near comatose Maple and spoke behind my hand to Annie. Her gray hair had gone wavy in the humidity. "Do we want to listen to her song?"

  Annie bared her teeth and squinted. "Well—"

  Rhonda interrupted. "Oh yeah, you do. You want the trip of your life? Siren's song is where it's at."

  I lifted a brow.

  Rhonda lifted her hands with their brightly colored nails and spread them apart, painting a picture. "A siren's song can make you believe you're anywhere in the world, experiencing anything she wants you to experience."

  I frowned at Maple, a trickle of drool in the corner of her mouth. "And… that's a good thing?"

  Rhonda widened her eyes at me, incredulous. "Uh, doi. You want to escape to a tropical island for a few minutes? Feel the sea breeze in your hair, hear the ocean waves? Done. You want to ride through the stars on a unicorn made of rainbows? She can do that. You want the deepest, most delicious sleep you've ever had?"

  I nodded. "All right. I get it—that sounds pretty amazing." And a little troubling. That seemed like a lot of power for one person to have.

  The siren gave a little finger wave. "Let me know if I can do anything to enhance your spa day." She beamed down at us as her eight tentacles worked on the lever and button wall behind her. "Enjoy!"

  36

  Girl Talk

  A couple of hours later (judging by the gong rings) my friends and I sat in the dragon's belly fire sauna. It was easy to lose track of time in this place; there was so much to look at and do. I couldn't help feeling like it was the Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory of spas.

  As soon as we'd left our clothes and shoes in the enormous enchanted clams and changed into our fluffy white robes and slippers, Rhonda had sprinted off like a kid in a candy shop. I resisted the urge to warn her not to fall into the chocolate river.

  Annie, Maple, and I had at first explored the misty world of the Dragon's Den together. I'd stifled a scream when the steam curled back to reveal several naked women lounging on enormous lily pads drifting across the surface of a pond. Crickets chirped from the tall reeds that bordered the water and frogs croaked. Though an indoor pond was certainly surprising, it was the tiny black bugs that swarmed over the women that'd made me yelp.

  I bit a finger and grimaced. "Do they need help?"

  Annie held the neck of her robe closed and bent over, peering at a wooden placard. "It says they're magical water mites that eat away all your dead skin, leaving you with a healthy glow."

  My stomach turned, and Maple made a face, but Annie straightened and shrugged. "Sounds good to me."

  I tugged on the soft sleeve of her robe. "Come on—I don't think I could get the image out of my head if I saw you covered in flesh-eating insects."

  We passed black smoke spirits breathing flames around sweating women, a snowy indoor mountain with a slide into a pool of ice-blue water, chunks of glaciers floating on the surface, and a doorway shaped like the gaping maw of a dragon, a red mist glowing beyond the teeth.

  Maple read the sign beside it aloud. "Hellfire for your down below area." She frowned. "Is that—do they mean—?"

  I shook my head and moved on. "I don't even want to know."

  We lost Annie when she caught sight of the eight-foot-tall ogre with four arms pounding away at a woman on a massage table. I winced. Was he tenderizing her for dinner?

  But Annie let out a wistful sigh. "Oh, I have this knot in my shoulder that just won't go away." She shook a finger at us. "You young things should remember this—take care of yourselves, or all that bending over your pies and kneading dough will catch up to you." She grinned up at the ogre and raised a hand. "I'm next!"

  The huge thing with the massive underbite grunted back. She settled into a comfy-looking armchair with carved, gilded legs and waved us on. "You two have fun!"

  Maple and I had tried the bubble room next. We'd gone with invigorating bubbles, as opposed to dreamy, for a boost. We'd stepped into a stories-tall glass chamber with a few other women, and then the worker outside had pulled a lever and released a cloud of bubbles. Some ballooned to the size of a car, others were small, effervescent, and tingly.

  They filled the room until they lifted us up, floating above the ground. We bounced among them, feeling weightless and elated. I found myself giggling madly with the headiness of it.

  After that, we'd soaked in the gold coin b
ath, and I'd had a flashback to my childhood and cartoons of Scrooge McDuck diving into his vault. The weight of them had felt comforting, secure, and the enchanted coins had also had the benefit of brightening our skin, leaving us looking as polished as they were.

  Hours and many treatments later, we'd wandered past the dragon’s belly fire sauna. The white smoke was so thick it was impossible to see inside, especially since the red room was closed from view except for the small round window in the door.

  But we'd heard Rhonda's stuffed-up voice, muffled from inside, and then Annie's belly laugh, and popped inside to chat with our friends. When we'd first entered, I'd almost turned right back around and left. The steam was so hot, my throat and lungs burned when I breathed, and Maple devolved into a coughing fit. The bamboo floor burned my bare feet and even after ladling some water onto a towel to place under me, I could barely stand to sit on the hot wooden bench.

  "Hurry in. You're letting all the steam out," Annie had chided.

  I looked at her (or in the direction of her voice, since I could barely see my own hands through the mist) like she was crazy.

  But now that we'd been in there for a few minutes, I was beginning to relax. I could feel the tension melting out of my muscles, and my sinuses had never felt more open. Open flames ringed the room, except for the doorway, and golden buckets of water with ladles resting inside were scattered about for pouring on the magical flames to create steam.

  Rhonda stretched out on her back, her hands behind her head, robe open. "So then I say, 'I'm on pons and needles'!"

  Annie threw her head back and laughed. I merely raised a brow.

  Rhonda sniffed. "You wouldn't get it. Mah jong pun."

  Annie nodded. "You girls should come with us sometime. The game is fun—and those women are surprisingly cutthroat." She leaned forward, the steam curling around her face. "Which makes it even more fun when you beat them."