Scars, Spells and Secrets

Chapter 19

Elizabeth slept well into the next morning, yawning and stretching languidly as she awoke. She felt incredibly well rested, having not woken up once during the night or even had any dreams that she could recall. The witch sat up slowly, reluctant to leave the warmth of her bed. She rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and finally forced herself to stand, eyes drawn to the flashing light on her cell phone. She picked it up, yawning again as she noted the message notification.

The first was from the night before, when Dimitri had sent a quick No problem to her gratitude.

The next was from Elena, asking Elizabeth to call her when she got the chance and offering to come and try to find a way to track the intruder from the night before by any traces that he may have left behind.

The third was from Charline.

It begged Elizabeth to go on the double date that she'd been trying to set up. Charline made sure to point out that it would be at Vine's, and that it would be a casual get-together. Friends having dinner with friends, or lunch if she'd rather-nothing more to put additional pressure on things. Charline even went so far as sending links to a few outfits that she had seen online.

Elizabeth sighed and sent a reply to Charline first. Really busy, sorry! Trying to get these paintings done in time for them to be for sale for the holidays. It wasn't a lie: she could definitely use the extra spending money on gifts, and she figured that she had a good chance of someone buying one for a present.

Elena she called, the half fae answering the phone after two rings.

"This is Elena. How may I help you, Elizabeth?"

The witch was a bit struck by how formal Elena sounded, but wasn't terribly shocked. Elizabeth took a moment to gather her thoughts before speaking. "Hello. I saw that you got my message. I would really appreciate if you could come and see if there's anything that you can do to try and find the person who was sneaking around last night."

There was a small silence on the other end of the line. When she spoke again, Elena sounded distracted. "Yes, yes, of course. I'll be over shortly. As always, stay inside until then."

It was only about a quarter of an hour before Elizabeth heard a knock on her door. She had thrown on a long blue dress and a silver shawl, hair still a bit of a mess. When she opened the door she saw Elena dressed immaculately, as always. She wore a fitted knit green dress that showed off her slender figure, the sleeves going to her mid-forearm and the hem of the dress going to her knees. The wide neck of the dress showed off the delicate emerald and diamond necklace resting over her collarbones. Her legs were covered in black tights and on her feet were a pair of knee high black leather boots with impossibly thin heels. Elizabeth briefly wondered how on earth she could even take a step without them snapping; they were no thicker than a chopstick.

Elizabeth stepped out of the doorway to welcome her in. "Thank you so much for coming."

Elena gave her a small nod and a smile. "Oh, of course. I want to help make sure that you're safe."

Elizabeth nodded and smiled at the half fae. "Thank you." She hesitated a moment and then gestured to the other woman. "I really love your dress. You always look so amazing."

Elena looked quite pleased, brushing her hands over the skirt of her dress. "Why thank you. I do try to dress nicely at all times. I never know who I am going to run into, after all."

The witch smiled and nodded. "You're right. I just can't wear heels like yours. I can't walk in them very well."

Elena seemed to preen, drawing herself up to her full height. "Well, it does take quite a bit of practice. Now... Where is the post that the man touched? I'll see if I can track him by that."