Joy of Witchcraft by Mindy Klasky Read Free Book Online Page B

“I’m sorry,” she said. “I know how much your collection means to you. I can only imagine how difficult it was to see Teresa Alison Sidney carry off one of your treasures.”
    “It wasn’t as bad as it could have been.”
    “I couldn’t see perfectly from where I was standing. But wasn’t that a first edition?” I raised my eyebrows in surprise, never expecting her to pay attention to a book’s credentials. “What?” she asked. “I’ve listened to you over the past few years. I’ve learned a bit. Not as much as a real librarian, but enough to know the value of that book.”
    “It was a first edition,” I agreed. “But it’s not the best specimen of the title in my collection. I have one signed by the author, a gift presentation to the founding Coven Mother of the Seattle coven.”
    “And Teresa Alison Sidney missed it?” She sounded incredulous.
    “She never saw it,” I said with satisfaction. “Last month, David and I had some renovations done on the basement. As long as we were investing in the work on the garage and the barn, we hired a couple of specialists for a more challenging…project. We converted David’s basement office into a climate-controlled vault for the most valuable books in the Osgood collection.”
    “Why didn’t Teresa Alison Sidney see it? What sort of shields did you put on it?” Clara’s voice ratcheted up in disbelief. She wasn’t the strongest witch in the world, but she was quite capable of sensing magical wards left lying around.
    “We didn’t add magical protection,” I said. “The house is already as secure as we could make it. The vault is state of the art. Climate-controlled, relative humidity of forty-seven percent, steady temperature of sixty-seven degrees. There are ultra-violet filters on the overhead lights, and high-efficiency air-handling filters. We installed mold- and mildew-resistant metal shelves coated in baked enamel. The whole thing is fire-proof.”
    Clara looked impressed. “It sounds like Fort Knox!”
    I shrugged. “My witchcraft collection is worth its weight in gold. More, maybe. But right about now, I’m glad we didn’t add any extra spells. Teresa would have detected them for sure. As it was, she never thought to ask if I had anything that wasn’t in plain sight.”
    “And if she’d asked…”
    “I would have been honor-bound to tell her the truth.” I might not be a member of the Washington Coven, but some rules went deeper than social clubs. Some rules went to the heart of being a witch.
    Clara sat back on the couch. “So you still have a copy of Warders’ Magic .”
    “Along with several other books that are worth a thousand times more. The precious stones on some of those bindings would pay for the vault several times over.”
    Clara shook her head. “You played a dangerous game, Jeanette.” She caught herself and shook her head. “Jane.”
    I nodded. “But we won this round. And now it’s time to go downstairs and reassure my students that victory was ours.”
    Clara stood as I did. “You go,” she said. “I’m heading home.”
    “Afraid of seeing David, after you ordered him to submit?” I couldn’t help but smile.
    “Not afraid,” she said. “Just being…practical. We should all get some sleep.”
    “Where are you staying, anyway?”
    “In DC. With Mother and George,” she said, like I should have known she was at Gran’s apartment all along. “I’m sharing your old room with Nuri.” I felt a flicker of pity for my grandmother’s familiar. That flicker swelled into a wave when Clara said, “The pink paint on the wall creates fascinating vibrations with my aura. I’m attuned to deeper power wells than I’ve sensed in years.”
    My mother and her auras… I was truly grateful for everything Clara had done that night, but I had to admit to a wave of relief when I watched the red eyes of her tail-lights turn onto the county road at the end of our driveway.
    Moderation in all things. And