Bittersweet Sixteen (A Dodie Jenks Novel) (8 page)

“I think we should have spaghetti for dinner. Do you like Italian, Leopold?”

“Sure.”

“Good. Dodie and I’ll cook tonight. All I need is for you to go down into the wine cellar and fetch a bottle of red to go with the meal. I’ll let you choose whatever you think would go best.”

“Okay,” he said and left the kitchen.

“Dodie, make a salad for us and then slice the loaf of bread I got at the store.”

I nodded, drying my hands on the dish towel, so glad she hadn’t come in a moment later.

Chapter Fourteen

Dinner Sunday evening was a little awkward, but nothing like chemistry class on Monday. I wasn’t certain if Leopold had been going to kiss me or not, but my mind ran away with the idea that he was and that made me feel strange around him. I couldn’t stop thinking about my conversation with Grandma either. What if Anson liked me? Yet I liked Leopold. So that made for another awkward situation. It was almost too much to handle on top of the curse. Life had been so much simpler for me before I learned about the curse. Maybe my parents should have kept quiet about it and let me blissfully die.

Leopold snapped his fingers. “Pay attention, Dodie.”

I jerked out of my thoughts and focused on the bubbling liquid he poured into the glass flask over the wickless alcohol lamp we used. Our chemistry setup was rudimentary compared to a real classroom’s, but it served the purpose and gave me more hands-on experience than I ever received in my high school class. Plus, Leopold was an excellent teacher and he took the time to explain and make sure I understood all the elements and procedures before we moved on to the next chapter in the textbook.

“What’s wrong?” he asked. “You’re a million miles away today. Did something happen earlier with your tutor?”

“No. Everything is fine. It’s just—”

“What?” He turned the burner off and removed his goggles.

I removed mine too. “I’m probably imagining things, but yesterday, before Grandma came into the kitchen I—I had the feeling—”

“You weren’t imagining anything, Dodie.” He reached for my hand and gave it a squeeze and I saw tenderness in his eyes that he wasn’t able to express with words. “But that was yesterday and we’ll discuss that later, but we’re in class now. You need to focus on your schoolwork. Can you do that?”

I took a deep breath and nodded. So I had been right. He had been about to kiss me. My first kiss. My heart swelled and I swallowed, putting my goggles back on before turning the page in my text book to the next step in the experiment.  When class ended we put away our supplies, sprayed and wiped down the counters with disinfectant before leaving the kitchen.

“Let’s go for that walk,” Leopold said, getting our coats from the hall closet.

He helped me put mine on and then opened the front door for us. I saw the black cat hunkered on the stoop and it hissed at me when I stepped onto the porch.

“Do you see the cat?” I whispered.

“No. Nothing is there, but you say it is always on the stoop?”

“Yes.”

He waved his right hand in a circular motion and chanted something I didn’t understand and the cat vanished into a puff of smoke.

“Whoa!”

“Someone is watching us and they sent that cat you saw to do it.”

“Really? Why?”

“I don’t know, but I will try to find out. Let me know if you see any other creatures hanging around.”

“Okay.”

He took my hand in his and we headed around to the side of the house and into the wooded area where I spend many of my afternoon walks exploring. We searched around the many trees for mushrooms, lichen and anything we could use in our chemistry class to inspect and do experiments on. By the time we finished exploring we had filled several specimen bags, which Leopold stuffed in his jacket pockets.

I climbed up on the fence that separated Grandma’s property from the Parker’s and sat down.

“That doesn’t look safe. You should come down from there,” Leopold advised, taking a step toward me like a protective parent.

“It may look rustic, but it’s sturdy. I do this all the time when I’m out walking. Come sit beside me and see for yourself.”

He shook his head and took a few steps backwards. “We should head back. We’ve been out longer than you think. It’s almost four. Anson will be home from school soon. I don’t think he’ll like seeing me here.”

“Why do you suppose he doesn’t like you?”

Leopold shrugged. “I’m not an easy person to like. I’m different and people can tell it.”

“I wouldn’t say that about you. I found you easy to like.”

“But I rubbed you the wrong way at first. Admit it. Last week when we started this you were ready to revolt when I started setting boundaries.”

“Well. Wouldn’t you if you just learned you were going to die and then you were being asked to refrain from having contact with other people?”

“When you put it like that I see your point.” He smiled but looked sad all at the same time. “Sorry. I tend to lack people skills. I guess you could say I’m like a doctor with a poor bedside manner. But it wasn’t easy for me to accelerate to college at an early age. I was seen as an oddity. And being a warlock on top of it all, I learned to keep to myself as much as possible and settle for not having friends.”

“What’s it like being a warlock?”

“What’s it like being a girl?”

I giggled.

“It’s who I am, Dodie. It’s all I’ve ever known…well…except for when I was in a coven. Then I was a male witch and I had fellowship with some of the most superior minds I’ve ever known.”

“Why aren’t you in a coven anymore?”

He kicked at a patch of fallen leaves and they scattered as if a gust of wind blew them away. And then in two long strides he was beside me, leaning against the fence. “I’m no longer in the coven because I chose to go to the university and further my education instead of studying under the elders.”

I tilted my head to the side and frowned. “I don’t get it. What was so wrong with that?”

He sighed. “A coven is like a close knit family. It was okay when I was a child to go to school because that is what is expected, but with my superior gifts, once I completed high school the elders wanted my formal education to end. They felt they were the ones who should teach me about chemistry, alchemy, and metaphysical properties to increase my powers rather than my pursuing an advanced degree from a university. And when I chose to study under a chef after college…well, that was even worse in their eyes.”

“But what is wrong with knowing how to cook?”

He grinned. “Nothing. Everyone likes to eat, but they felt I should be content with snapping my fingers and making a feast appear or casting a spell.”

“And what about your parents?”

“I lost my mother when I was a child and my father left the coven after I was exiled. I hear from him from time to time, but he’s enjoying being independent. And I don’t blame him.” He was quiet for a moment, and then he straightened up and looked at me. “You ready to head back?”

I nodded and he turned around, leaving me there. I watched him go for a moment before I jumped from my perch and hurried to catch up, linking my arm through his. “Has Grandma mentioned she’s throwing me a Sweet Sixteen birthday party?”

“No she didn’t.”

“She’s having it the night before so when the clock strikes midnight I’ll blow the candles out on my cake.”

“Do you think it wise to have a bunch of people here? What about the curse?”

“That was my reaction at first, but you’re going to break the curse so why shouldn’t we celebrate?”

“Hmmm. Who will you invite?”

“My folks and Brody who will probably bring his girlfriend Sasha. She’s a cheerleader, but she’s nice. You’ll like her. I do. My two friends Callie and Lisa for sure and I suppose a couple others from my old high school. Maybe the kids from the Episcopal Church I’ve met.”

“I suppose that means Anson?”

I sighed. “Yes. I can’t very well have a party and not include him. Brody will expect it.”

Leopold nodded as we rounded the corner of the house. “I think you should have a celebration.”

I smiled, glad he approved, but a frown crept to my face when I saw Anson sitting on the step of the porch waiting on us. He got to his feet and dusted the seat of his jeans off.

“Hey Dodie,” he called.

I stopped walking and braced myself for whatever he had to say. Surely he wouldn’t insult Leopold to his face. If he did I wasn’t sure what I’d do to him.

“Anson. What brings you by?” I unlinked my arm with Leopold’s and jammed my hands deep into my coat pockets.

“I wanted to apologize for my behavior yesterday. I didn’t mean to upset you. I don’t blame you for walking out on me.”

“I won’t tolerate you speaking like that again. If you want to be my friend you need to be more respectful of others.”

He nodded his head up and down. “I will. I promise. Do you forgive me?”

“Yes and I’m sorry for leaving you without paying for my part of the ticket. Can I pay you back?”

“Don’t worry about it. I asked you to go with us, didn’t I?”

“Well thanks. I appreciate it.”

“No problem.” He scuffed the toe of his shoe on the sidewalk. “I guess I’ll be going. I’ve got a test to study for. See you around. You too, Leopold.”

I smiled and turned as Leopold nodded in acknowledgement.

When Anson was gone we went into the house and sorted through the specimen bags, labeling them, before putting them in our cabinet for class.

“Do you have homework?” Leopold asked.

I shook my head.

“You want to help me fix dinner?”

“Sure. What’s on the menu?”

Before he could answer, the kitchen door swung in and Grandma appeared in her smock, a paint smear across her face. Her eyes were wide and her pallor was pale as if she’d seen a ghost.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“That—that black cat you said you saw on the stoop—”

Leopold pushed past me and pulled out a chair for her to sit in. “What about it?”

“It wrecked my studio. One minute I’m adding the last few strokes to my painting and the next I hear screeching and squalling like the poor animal was being killed and it dashes across my studio, knocking over my easel, my paint stand. It leaped clear over my head and perched itself on top of my supply cabinet, hissing and carrying on something fierce.”

I got a glass and filled it halfway with cold water from the refrigerator. “Here, drink this.”

She took the glass and gulped the water. “I don’t know where the cat came from or how it got into the house. But as quick as it appeared it was gone again.”

I looked at Leopold and he shrugged.

“I’ll go make sure there isn’t a window open in the studio.”

Grandma nodded. “Dodie, get me a wet paper towel and let me get this paint off my face before it dries. Is there any in my hair?”

“I don’t see any. Is there a bad mess in your studio?”

“Yes. But the floor is protected. For some reason I put down a drop cloth under my easel and paint stand today.”

“I’ll go help you straighten things up,” I told her.

“Thank you.”

When we got to the studio, Leopold was standing the easel up and he put the painting on it. He’d already restored the paint stand and removed the drop cloth from the floor. The room looked in order again and I couldn’t help but wonder if he used magic.

“I didn’t find any way for the cat to have gotten in here. Do you suppose Anson saw it and let it in the house thinking it was your cat?”

“Anson was here?” Grandma asked.

“He was waiting on the front step when Leopold and I came back from our walk.”

“Well, I didn’t know it. If he rang the bell I didn’t hear it.” Grandma took off her smock and hung it up on the peg near the door. “Thank you, Leopold, for picking things up. I don’t feel like hanging around the house tonight. Let’s go into Dover and have dinner. What do you say?”

“Okay.” He smiled at me.

“Great. I’ll go freshen up and we’ll go.”

Once we were alone, I closed the studio door and leaned against it. “What do you think that was all about? Did whoever sent the cat to spy get angry at us?”

Leopold nodded. “I think we’ve upset their apple cart which tells me I was right that we’re being watched. I put a protection spell over the house so your Grandma will not be bothered again by the cat or any other creature that might be sent our way.”

“But who could be doing it?”

“I don’t know, but I’m going to do a little investigating and I’ll let you know when I find out.” He walked to me and tucked a stray lock of hair behind my ear. “Don’t worry, Dodie. Everything is going to be okay.”

Easy for him to say, he didn’t have a curse on his head.

“I better go change. I have a whole wardrobe of clothes that I’m dying to wear.”

He grinned. “You look fine to me. But go on, have a little fun with the closet.”