Chapter 67
Hobson felt an unprecedented frustration clogging up his chest.
Next to him, Springer finished his transaction and successfully acquired the coveted Silence Charm he’d been after. Recalling Hobson’s recent debacle and their wager, a realization seemed to hit him.
“Dude, so you were in the middle of your shower when the water cut off, and nobody heard you yelling, so you bolted out…”
Before he could finish, Hobson’s hand clamped over his mouth. “Shut It!”
Winnie looked on, the picture of serenity, and repeated, “I won the bet.”
Hobson was a mask of sullen defeat.
Reluctantly, he conceded the point.
Winnie didn’t waste words. She stood up, saying. “For the next week, I don’t want to hear a peep. out of you.” She paused, then emphasized, “I trust you can be taken at his word, right?”
It didn’t matter if he couldn’t. She’d help him with her charms.
Despite his darkening expression, Hobson responded gruffly, “Relax, I keep my promises.”
Winnie tooked pleased, nodded, and left Springer’s room without another word.
As she walked away, the two men faintly heard her mutter, “I should have said a month of silence from him.”
Hobson was speechless.
Springer couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
Hobson glared at him. “What’s your deal, Springer? Why are you siding with the outsider?”
Springer bristled at that, “Outsider? She’s my cousin, and yours too! Keep talking smack, and I’ll take it up with Clifford!”
The absurdity of it all nearly made Hobson laugh.
“Only kids tattle.” he sneered. And who was it that had been so eager to challenge Winnie in the first place? Had Springer forgotten his actions?
“Hobson, you’ve seen what she can do. Don’t pick fights with her. If she gets pissed, taking you down would be as easy as flipping a switch,” Springer advised with uncharacteristic earnestness.
Hobson felt a shiver at the thought of those magical tricks with spirits, but he refused to show weakness.
“She wouldn’t dare! I’d tell Clifford!”
1/3
12:14
Springer was at a loss for words. Who was it that just said kids tattle?
Without another word, Hobson stormed out, heading back to his room.
Upstairs, Winnie returned to her room only to find her spectral charge, Ghost Baby, floating around with all the grace of a ghostly toddler.
Freed of its negative energy, Ghost Baby resembled a chubby little angel, legs kicking as it floated, irresistibly cute.
It tried several times to reach the window, only to be bounced back by the protective shield Winnie had set up in the room.
Although Ghost Baby had lost its vengeful spirit, it still instinctively sought its mother.
Pretty, finding the chase amusing, wagged its plump tail and pursued Ghost Baby, trying to nab it with its teeth, which sent the little spirit scurrying higher into the air.
Seeing Winnie return, Ghost Baby floated down to her shoulder, panting as if exhausted.
Though their time together had been brief, it knew this girl meant no harm. Plus, perching on her shoulder kept the little fox at bay.
Winnie softened her expression slightly at the sight of the palm–sized chubby tot on her shoulder.
Still, she instructed it, “Don’t wander off. If you behave, I’ll take you to see your mom before you reincarnate.”
The Ghost Baby seemed to understand and kicked it’s tiny legs as if to embrace her.
Winnie paid it no mind. She sat at her deskond carefully examined the millennium–old Rowan
Wood her master had left her.
The wood was blackened and charred, its surface etched with intricate patterns from where lightning had struck.
Winnie had once asked her master why she hadn’t turned the Rowan Wood into a talisman.
“It’s meant for you,” her master had said. “But you can’t have it just yet. Once you’re totally free from the Henderson family’s destiny, you can shape it into whatever you
wish.”
The Henderson family had used her fate for eighteen years to shield Kathryn from harm, and untangling herself from their influence wasn’t simple..
Surviving a car crash meant that Kathryn was repaying a favour.
Settling the Henderson family’s care with a lump sum was settling a debt.
Declaring her independence from the Henderson family was cutting ties.
Now, her debts paid, she held the Rowan Wood her master had promised.
Winnie sketched the shape she wanted on the wood with a pen.
גיג
12:14:
Crafting a talisman was no simple task.
The inscriptions had to follow the natural grain, with meticulous engraving, polishing, and consecration. Each step requires spiritual energy, not something achieved overnight.
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