Witch in Charge: A Blair Wilkes Mystery Book 13 (Paperback)

Nobody told me he’d bring the dragon to work with him.

Of all the times for a baby dragon to get loose in the office, it had to happen at the very end of the last day of work, before I left town for a week. My co-workers and I surrounded the desk, forming a barrier around the reptilian creature in a desperate attempt to stop it from setting any of the records ablaze. When we’d accepted a client’s request to help him find an assistant with the skills to handle his rare magical beasts, we hadn’t expected him to actually bring one of them to our office. Even at Eldritch & Co, Fairy Falls’s only magical recruitment agency, this was a new one. 

Worse, in less than an hour, I was supposed to be meeting up with Rebecca, the Head Witch of the northwest of England, and at this rate, I’d be a no-show because I was too busy putting out fires—literally.

The dragon opened its maw. Bethan, the boss’s daughter, waved her wand and cast a protective spell on the four computers sitting on our shared office desk the instant before the dragon spat out a mouthful of fire. Lizzie leapt in, casting a bubble spell that doused the flames and left the desks untouched. The ends of her frizzy hair were singed from when she’d jumped in to save the printer from a close encounter with a fireball earlier. My own magic wasn’t exactly at its best while I was under stress, but it was Rob who was at a distinct disadvantage. The blond werewolf couldn’t use magic himself, but instead of retreating out of harm’s way, as we’d advised him to, he kept trying to talk soothingly to our scaly guest without much success. 

“Come on. You don’t want to stay here in the office,” he murmured to the dragon. “You want to go outside, right? If you get back in your cage, your owner will be able to get you out of here.”

The owner in question was helpfully hiding in the reception area with Callie, our exasperated werewolf receptionist and Rob’s cousin. I didn’t blame the dragon for looking sceptical and refusing to budge from the desk, but when it spat out another mouthful of flames, we had to move fast to prevent our books and papers from catching ablaze. I flicked my wand and conjured up a cloud of raindrops, accidentally drenching half the desk in the process.

“Oops.” I looked sheepishly at the damp pile of paperwork. “Sorry, everyone.”

“It’s okay. We can just print it again,” said Bethan. “I doubt he’s going back in that cage by choice. That leaves us with two options: use a sleeping spell or open the window.” 

“Why the window?” asked Lizzie, casting another shielding spell on the coffee machine before the dragon’s fire set it alight. “To let it outside?”

I raised a brow at Bethan. “You want to risk it flying away?”

“That would be its owner’s problem and not ours,” said Bethan. “He hasn’t exactly come to give us a hand, has he?”

“True.” I ducked under a stray fireball and waved my wand, accidentally making it rain glitter all over the desk. “Sleeping spells are harmless enough, so I think we should try that route first.”

Taking our target by surprise was easier said than done. Every time one of us pointed our wand at the dragon, another jet of flame appeared and forced us to pivot to protect our office from catching fire. The temptation seized me to just open the window and let the owner deal with the problem, but the beast wasn’t trained in the slightest, and it might throw a fireball at some innocent bystander if we let it outside. We couldn’t take the risk.

“I’ll cast the spell,” Bethan offered. “Lizzie and Blair, distract its attention. Rob… keep talking to it.” 

“I don’t think it’s a fan of my stories,” Rob remarked. “I’ll try, though.”

Lizzie and I moved to stand in front of the printer and the coffee machine and raised our wands, drawing the dragon’s attention, while Bethan slipped around the desk from behind. As Rob talked soothingly in the dragon’s ear, Bethan raised her wand and pointed it at her target.

The dragon reared up and unleashed a jet of flame, its biggest yet, spraying everything in the vicinity. Lizzie and I waved our wands, but we couldn’t stop a patch of carpet catching fire. I jumped to put it out, missing the moment when the sleeping spell hit the dragon from behind. It yelped, reared up again—and keeled over.

At that moment, my boss, Veronica, pushed open the office door. “Oh, good, you’ve got it under control.”

Bethan—who looked almost exactly like her mother except with brown hair instead of white—ran to catch the dragon’s unconscious body before it fell off the desk. “If you don’t count the fires.” 

“Yeah. Those.” I prodded the still-smoking piece of carpet out with my wand and allowed myself a moment of relief that I’d managed to spare most of our paperwork. “Is the owner ready to come back and collect his beastie?”

“I believe he ran outside.”

Bethan swore under her breath, lifted the dragon into its cage, and then closed the hatch. “Seriously? We’re not keeping this in the office.”

“I’m sure we’ll be able to convince him to come back,” said Veronica. “Then we might be able to find him an assistant.”

“Absolutely not.” Bethan lifted her head. “Do you think anyone in their right mind would want to work with that guy? Besides, we were supposed to go home ten minutes ago.”

Ten minutes? Oh no. I was already late to meet Rebecca.

Veronica wore a wistful expression. “It’s always a shame when a client doesn’t work out, isn’t it?”

The four of us exchanged raised eyebrows, taking in the slightly damp and singed office around us. Then I cleared my throat. “Ah, Veronica, I’m sorry to leave at a time like this, but I have a meeting at the witches’ headquarters—” 

“You can go, Blair,” she said. “I know you have a big day tomorrow.”

I felt bad for leaving the others to clean up the mess, but I might have another emergency on my hands if I didn’t make it to the witches’ headquarters before Rebecca picked up her exam results. Taking responsibility for a highly strung tween witch who also happened to be the most powerful witch in the region was not for the faint of heart. 

After waving goodbye to the others, I left work and sprinted down the road towards the witches’ headquarters. It gave me a jolt of mild horror to see none other than Madame Grey herself standing outside the tall oak doors to the grand house, waiting for me. The leader of the Meadowsweet Coven watched calmly as I stopped to catch my breath, looking as formidable as ever in her grey robes and silver-rimmed spectacles. Her hair, a brilliant shade of white, was pulled into a bun behind her head.

“Sorry,” I gasped out. “Had to deal with an emergency situation at work. I’m not too late, am I?”

“Rebecca already has her results.”

My heart dropped. “Oh.”

“Don’t look so worried.”

“It’s good news?” I lifted my head. “Please tell me it’s good news.”

“Ask her yourself,” she said. “In the meantime, I believe Veronica is in need of my assistance in finding the owner of a certain reptile.” 

She stepped aside to let me enter the witches’ headquarters, leaving me wondering how on earth she’d found out about that. Veronica must have called her, which at least meant my co-workers might actually get to go home tonight after all. That was one bit of good news already.

After pushing open the doors, I ran through the lobby of the witches’ headquarters towards the classroom we used for our magic lessons. Through the window, I saw Rebecca sitting at her usual desk near the front of the room, her cat familiar curled up at her feet. Our mutual tutor, Rita, raised her brows at me when I pushed open the classroom door. 

“Rebecca.” I halted in the doorway. “Sorry I’m late. A baby dragon nearly set my office on fire. How’d it go?”

The tall, slender young witch held up the paper in answer, beaming at me. My gaze danced all over the pace before it settled on her scores. Perfect. 

“I can’t believe it,” she said, lowering the paper. “Can you?”

“I can.” I grinned. “Told you it’d be fine.”

“You did,” she said. “Sorry I spent so much of our lesson time fretting.”

“Don’t apologise.” Rebecca had unexpectedly gained the title of Head Witch for the region at the age of only eleven, and I didn’t blame her for feeling under pressure to perform at her best in every way. She’d also had an extra challenge in that she’d had to learn to cast every spell with both her regular wand and her sceptre—a long, pointed stick that served as proof of her Head Witch status—which was currently propped against her chair next to her sleeping familiar.

“Blair, in case you’ve forgotten, you also have some exam results ready to collect.”

Oh boy.

In a jingle of bangles, Rita pushed another piece of paper into my hands, which showed my scores on the exams I’d taken the previous week. My gaze skimmed down the page—and then I stared at the numbers, disbelieving. I’d got full marks on my latest theory exam and the practical one too.

“How?” I blurted. “How did that happen?”

Had the examiner taken pity on me? No way. That wasn’t allowed, and besides, my exam papers had been marked by someone who hadn’t a clue who I was.

“How else?” asked Rita. “You worked hard and were rewarded for your efforts.”

I gaped at her, unable to believe that all the late nights of studying and juggling magic lessons with work and everything else in my madcap life had actually paid off. “I… wow. Thank you. Honestly, this is more on you than on me.”

Rita had tutored me from the very beginning of my induction into the magical world, and it was under her tuition that I’d gone from a clueless newbie witch who didn’t even know which hand to hold her wand in to passing my exams with flying colours. It seemed impossible, but the numbers on the page didn’t lie.

“Don’t be absurd,” she said. “This is a result of your hard work, make no mistake. Though, the real work will begin when you’re back from your meeting. That’s when we’ll start on Grade Five.”

That brought me back down to earth. Grade Five was the magical equivalent to secondary school, which meant that while Rebecca had officially caught up to witches of her own age, I had a long way to go before I reached the average skill of someone older than twelve.

“But… we’ve already been learning Grade Five spells, haven’t we?” Rebecca ventured.

“Yes, we have,” Rita agreed. “Unfortunately, there’s a limit to what can be taught in a classroom, especially when it comes to the types of magic a Head Witch might be required to have at her disposal.”

Rebecca’s smile faded. I understood why Rita had reminded her of the challenges still ahead of her, but it would have been nice to have the chance to celebrate her accomplishments first. 

“Regardless, you did well,” said Rita, as if sensing the dimming mood. “Both of you. Instead of a regular lesson today, I’m going to go through all the spells you might need on your trip to meet the other Head Witches.”

Despite her praise, Rita didn’t hold back in the slightest, as she had Rebecca and me run through all the useful defensive spells we’d been practising over the past few months. To my surprise, Rita had almost no complaints for either of us, but she had plenty of warnings about what we might face at the upcoming meeting.

One would have thought she expected us to get attacked by the other Head Witches—which, admittedly, wasn’t out of the realm of possibility. Every Head Witch who’d be at tomorrow’s meeting had countless years more experience than us, though I couldn’t help thinking that the most likely threat would be far subtler than someone openly challenging Rebecca for her title of Head Witch and her sceptre. 

When the lesson ended, Rebecca left the room with Toast, her familiar, on her heels. I caught up to her in the lobby, where I found her staring listlessly at the paper with her exam results, her expression preoccupied.

“What is it?” I asked.

“According to my exam results, I’m better than any witch my age, but it isn’t enough,” she mumbled. “I still don’t have as much training as the other Head Witches. They’re all so much more experienced than I am, and they’ve been preparing for years.” 

“We’ve been preparing too,” I said. “Besides, you aren’t going to be expected to make any major announcements. Most of the covens’ policy-related stuff is pretty much set in stone. All you have to do is smile, nod, and not start any fights.”

The Head Witches didn’t like change, though, and a tween witch who happened to be the daughter of a convicted criminal joining their ranks was disruptive enough that some of them might raise a fuss, even if Rebecca sat in the corner and said nothing. I wished there were a way to skip over this meeting altogether, but that might cause even more of a scandal. There was no winning with some people.

“They’re still more accomplished than I am,” she said. “One of them actually invented three new potions. Another cured a magical disease. What have I done?”

“Don’t forget the only requirement for the job is to be chosen by a sceptre,” I told her. “I doubt the sceptre looks at people’s exam results or achievements before picking someone. Not everyone will have a long list of accomplishments.”

“No, but they’ve had years of practise.”

“Even years of experience isn’t always enough to prove your capabilities,” I said. “I met a wizard today who was supposed to be an expert on magical beasts, and yet he still ran away when his pet baby dragon got loose in our office.” 

I wasn’t sure that would reassure her, but I was way out of my depth too. Without my having a sceptre, it’d be a miracle if I was even allowed into the meeting at all, but I’d do my best to keep any of the other witches from making trouble for her. Madame Grey would be there, too, but she had to keep up a public appearance as the head of our town’s witches and was therefore limited in her ways to intervene if things went south. That left it up to me, and I wasn’t a Head Witch or a coven leader, despite being the only living member of my birth coven. 

“I guess.” Rebecca lowered her gaze from the paper and followed me to the oak doors leading out of the witches’ headquarters.

“Blair.”

The sound of my name brought me to a startled halt. Blythe, Rebecca’s sister and my former co-worker, waited outside the building, wearing her usual expression of mild distaste.

“Blythe. This is a surprise.” I kept my tone polite. While Blythe and I weren’t mortal enemies any longer, and we’d had to join forces out of necessity against her scheming mother, that didn’t mean she was ever going to be my best friend. And the fact that she could sometimes read my thoughts made it impossible to hide. 

“I passed with top marks,” Rebecca told her sister before things could get any more awkward. “Is that what you wanted to ask me?”

“I’m coming,” Blythe announced, ignoring her sister’s announcement entirely, “to meet the other Head Witches.”

I frowned. “You are?”

She nodded. “Yes. I know I won’t be allowed into the actual meeting, but I want to keep an eye on things.”

“Oh.” I exchanged perplexed looks with Rebecca. “That’s why Madame Grey is going. And… well, me.” 

When Rebecca had been chosen as Head Witch, I’d been the one who’d offered to help her and not Blythe. I hadn’t thought Blythe was paying more than a superficial level of attention to her sister’s training.

“I’m her sister,” said Blythe. “Look, it doesn’t matter how many of us are there. The more, the better.”

“Why?” I asked. “I mean, is there a particular reason you think we’ll all be needed?” 

Their mother was in jail, under the highest possible security, for conspiring against the covens—but if any of the people at the meeting had been her allies, then Blythe would certainly know. Is there something she’s not telling us?

“No,” she said. “You can go home, Blair. I’ll see you tomorrow.” 

“But—” Maybe I was being paranoid. For all I knew, she wanted a sibling heart-to-heart that didn’t involve me. “If you’re sure. Bye, Rebecca.”

I did need to clear up a few things at home before I left town, but I started off by heading towards the woods instead. As a fairy, my dad wouldn’t be allowed near the meeting, so I’d promised to keep him updated. Despite the peaceful sounds of birdsong that greeted me upon entering the forest, my nerves jangled at the reminder of Blythe’s unexpected appearance. We both had good reason to be paranoid, but she was the one who’d grown up surrounded by her mother’s scheming. If she knew of anyone at the meeting who might be out to get us, she’d at least tell Madame Grey, right? 

Putting the thought out of mind, with difficulty, I found my way to the semi-transparent path that led from the regular woods into the slightly more otherworldly area where the fairies made their home. From there, I walked to my dad’s cottage, which sat in a clearing surrounded by bright flowers. He more than deserved to live in an idyllic setting like this after suffering years in jail for a crime he hadn’t committed. 

My dad answered the door when I knocked, his pointed face wearing an expression of concern. “How’d it go?”

“I don’t know how, but I passed with full marks. So did Rebecca.”

This was a novelty to me. At school, I’d always passed my exams, but I’d never been a high achiever. The same had held true when I’d entered the magical world, and the bumpy ride I’d endured since then sometimes made it hard to see how far I’d really come.

A relieved grin broke out on his face. “That’s great news. You’ve worked hard enough to deserve a win.”

“I guess I have,” I said. “I’m leaving first thing tomorrow for the meeting.”

“You think you’re ready?”

I shrugged. “Bit late if I’m not. Rebecca has more reason to be worried than I do.”

“I’m sure it’ll be fine,” he said. “I should let you go. You need to pack, don’t you? And say goodbye to your friends.”

Yeah. Alissa, my flatmate, would still be at work, but I had a date with Nathan at the local pub that evening. “I do. I’ll be back before you know it.” 

After I’d left my dad’s house, I walked straight to the Troll’s Tavern to meet Nathan. He bought me a specially themed cocktail to celebrate my results, though I firmly declined a glass of wine. Experience told me that wasn’t a good idea, and I had to be up early the next day.

“Blythe showed up?” His brows rose when I told him about my other surprise of the evening. “Really? She wants to come with you?”

“Yeah, and I can see why.” I sipped my cocktail, which tasted of fizzy orange juice mixed with marshberries. “Rebecca’s her little sister, after all.” 

“I suppose, but has Blythe ever shown up at council meetings before? Or helped Rebecca in her lessons?”

“I thought the same, but I’ve no idea how Blythe’s mind works.” As far as older siblings went, she wasn’t the most attentive. The large age gap between them was part of the reason, but most of it was Blythe’s less-than-sunny personality. I’d been taking lessons with Rebecca for nearly a year now, except for the private Head Witch lessons she took with Madame Grey, and Blythe rarely showed her face. Maybe it was for the best that she hadn’t sat in on our lessons and witnessed all my many failures, but I had to wonder why she’d chosen now to take an interest. “This is going to be awkward. Imagine a road trip with Me, Blythe, and Rebecca. Oh, and Madame Grey as well.”

“And me?” He leaned forward in his seat. “I was going to ask you, but I had to wait until I was sure I could get the time off work.” 

My heart skipped a beat. “You want to come with me?”

His brow arched. “If you don’t object.”

“Obviously not, but I thought your boss might take issue with you leaving town.”

“I’m head of security. This is a security issue. Besides, I have some holiday leave saved up.”

“I’m sure you were saving it for a nice trip to the seaside, not for this,” I pointed out. “This is not a holiday, by any stretch of the imagination. The scheming Head Witches will kind of ruin the mood, won’t they?”

“You won’t have to deal with them all the time.”

“I don’t know about that.” Even with Blythe and Madame Grey around, too, I didn’t believe for a minute that Rebecca wouldn’t need my help with whatever schemes the other witches came up with. “If you really want to come, though, I’m not going to object.”

Nathan and I had been together for nearly a year, though with everything we’d faced together since my arrival in town, it felt like much longer. I’d hoped for a holiday that didn’t involve scheming witches, but at this point, I’d take what I could get. 

He reached for my hand under the table. “Was that a yes? Or a no?”

“Sure.” I entwined my fingers with his. “I’d be more than happy for you to come with me.”

We rarely had time to spend together outside the dates we managed to squeeze into our busy schedules, and this might end up being a drama-free few days that could turn into a relaxing break. Hey, I could dream.