Miss Fortune: Veronica Benoit The Miss Series, #2

By CG Powell

Jumping feet first into magic might not be the best idea, but when Veronica realizes how much she needs to learn, that's exactly what happens. She's just discovered that she comes from a long line of witches. . .and has werewolves in her family tree, too. Since her parents kept her in the dark about their heritage for so long, Veronica has a lot of catching up to do. Her best friend Tango, who's just found out is also her familiar, is supposed to be teaching her about magic. But he's gone for the summer, working offshore, leaving Veronica to take lessons from Minette, witch-cousin of their friend Remy. To further complicate matters, Veronica and Remy are bound to each other. While that's just fine with Remy, Veronica needs some time to get used to the idea, even if she is attracted to the hot werewolf.

When trouble arrives, it comes in a group of three: first, Tango needs help raising money for college, so Veronica and her friends open a voodoo shop to make some quick cash selling spells and charms. Second, someone in Remy's family of weres is trying to destroy the bond between Remy and Veronica, forcing them to be apart for most of the summer. And then there's the little matter of the odd vampire who insists on Veronica telling her fortune. . .and who just might not like what she hears.

Veronica's going to learn that magic can come with a side of misfortune.

• Language: English
• Publisher: CG Powell
• Release date: Feb 9, 2015
• ISBN: 9781507041598

Book preview

It hadn’t even been two weeks since I found out I was a witch.  It was hard for me to believe that in my head bounced the knowledge of a long line of Benoit females who were lucky enough to have cosmic powers coursing through their blood.  Things might have been easier to accept had it not been for the facts that my parents tried to keep it from me, I got bonded with a Roux-ga-roux, a werewolf for all of you non-Cajun people, and my best friend is really my dead Mawmaw’s cat. 

Now you would think with all of this power, I would be able to do something cool like make people fall in love, or in my case out of love—stupid Roux-ga-roux’s and their bonding.  Or give the cheerleaders a case of the itchies.  But nooo—it appears that the powers of the universe don’t work that way.  The knowledge might have been in my head, but my body had no idea how to actually use any of that spectacular mojo.  Not that ignorance ever stopped me from doing anything—it was just a matter of learning. 

This is a bad idea.  You don’t even know how to control the energy around you.  How do you expect to call on the energy of time?  Tango sat on a stool in the shed next to what I now referred to as my potion table.

Dad felt I needed my own space, especially after the whole kitchen fire fiasco.  One wrong ingredient and kaboom—green flames everywhere.  Not that Mom had complained about getting a brand new kitchen out of it.  But after having contractors in and out of the house and not being able to use the kitchen for almost two weeks, nerves were starting to run thin.

Shut up, Tango.  I’m going to get this, if you would just stop interrupting.  I concentrated on the bowl of water in front of me and recited the spell from my mawmaw’s spell book.

Matter pulling, bending light, fold the universe in space and time.  Ghosts of past, connect the string, and show me what the future brings.  The water bubbled beneath my hands and glowed with white light.  I leaned over the bowl and focused on the large crystal at the bottom.  The light brightened beneath my hands.  I squinted my eyes and tried to make out the patterns in the crystal.  Just as the water settled, a black haze poured out of the bowl and flowed along the floor like dense fog.  I concentrated harder on the crystal and ignored the darkness that crawled up my leg.

Tango jumped from his seat and tackled me to the ground.  He pushed the dark fog away with his hand he chanted, Intar ish, intar sa, intar sin.  The darkness crawled its way back into the bowl and disappeared under the water.

Holy crap, Ronnie, that is why you need to leave this spell alone.  Beads of sweat dotted his brow.  He stood and helped me off the floor.

Did you really have to go all linebacker on me? I complained and rubbed the spot on the side of my hip where I was sure to bruise from his supposed chivalry.  What the hell was that anyway?

That was a dark sprit.  They’re like a cross between a human ghost and a demon.  Another five seconds, and it would have possessed you.

A chill ran up my spine.  I shivered at the thought of my body taken over by a demon.  Not cool.

You have no idea.  Your magic is stronger than you realize.  The size of the portal was so large it would have been nearly impossible to close had a more powerful sprit let itself through.   He grabbed the bowl and dumped the contents on the lawn.  Using a piece of silk, he carefully picked up and wrapped the now darkened crystal being careful not to touch it directly.  He put it in a leather pouch and tied the top with several knots, then let out the breath he’d been holding.

Now what?  For some reason, when Tango said fortune telling was a dangerous business, I’d thought he was being sarcastic.  Well, there goes my future career at the Physic Pal’s Network.

Now we have to soak the crystal in holy water, lemon and sage and set it out in the sun for a few days.  Until I can get to church for holy water, it has to stay wrapped.  Tango threw the pouch on the potion table and sat back on the stool.  Are you done with this nonsense?  You’re supposed to be practicing energy solidification before Minette gets here this weekend.  That way she can show you how to shield yourself.

Boring...I slumped my shoulders, rolled my eyes, and sighed. Turning energy into a solid had to be one of my least favorite tasks at the moment.  My excitement about learning magic had waned the moment I’d realized it was more scientific than mystical.  Ugh, I could think of a thousand other ways to spend my summer.  On the other hand, it’d turned out to be a great way to avoid shopping for a new cotillion dress.  I hated cotillion, even more than I hated science.  If not for my mom’s insistence, I would’ve have avoided the social hypocrisy all together.  There was nothing more infuriating than a pretty girl in a pretty dress trying to disguise all the ugly on the inside.  At least most of them had learned the social graces to keep it to themselves during the cotillion season, but as soon as it was over the claws come back out.

I think I’m done for the day.  I slammed the spell book closed and tucked it under my arm.  Tango grabbed the pouch and followed me out of the shed and into the house. 

Mom was in the kitchen, laying white takeout containers on the counter.  The spicy smell of General Tao’s chicken hung on the air.  I reached around my mom’s waist for the wax paper pouch containing what was sure to be crab Rangoon—my favorite.  But my hand was swiftly swatted, and I dropped the bag back on the counter.

Where are your manners, Veronica?  You should never help yourself before asking your company to join you.  The wrinkles on Mom’s forehead deepened.

Geez, Mom, it’s just Tango.  He practically lives here, I argued.  Why the fuss?  She’d never made me treat Tango like a guest.  Then it hit me—this wasn’t about Tango, this is about cotillion...grrr.  In three months, I would begin my last year of high school and my last season of cotillion.  This would be her final chance to brow beat some manners into me—like that ever worked before.

I turned to Tango.  Staying for dinner?

I would love to say, but I have some business to take care of, he said holding up the leather pouch in his hand.  Maybe tomorrow, Mrs. Benoit.  Later, Ronnie.

Tango showed himself out.  As soon as the door shut, I let out a relieved breath, glad that Mom didn’t question Tango about his business and the bag in his hand.  She already hated the idea that I was a witch, and today’s debacle only would’ve added to her over-bearing concern.

I saw Remy today at China on Wheels.  He wants to know when he can see you.

Have you ever had something you wished for so hard and for so long, that when it finally comes true, you think it’s just a dream?  Well my dream turned out to be one big furry nightmare with fangs.  I’d fawned over Remy for most of my life, even dreamed about being his girlfriend one day.  Kind of funny how being stuck with someone for life changes the way you look at things.  It’s like wanting a Tesla Roadster, finally getting one, and then being told you can never smell the leather seats in another car ever again.  I was too young to commit to just one car.  What if I needed more than two seats, or something to pull the boat with?  What happens when the paint starts to chip and leather seats crack—would I still want it?  It was all too much for me, so I did what I do best.  I avoid the problem and hoped it would just go away.

I sat at the table and frowned.  Mom gave me a smile and tossed me the bag of crab Rangoon.  As if she had just read my mind, she said, No matter how long you avoid him, he’s never going to go away.

My shoulders slumped as I looked at the floor and whispered, I know. I plopped down in one of the chairs at the kitchen table.

Mom sat next to me with a container of egg drop soup and some sweet and sour chicken.  She gave me a squeeze and passed me the sweet and sour sauce.  I dipped the crab and cream cheese triangle into the sauce and devoured it.  Sauce dripped down the corner of my mouth, so I licked sticky sweetness off my lips and sat back in the chair.  No amount of savory goodness was going to change the fact that my own mother was offering me up to wolves.  My dad was just glad that I had his family’s powers, and my brothers found the whole ordeal entertaining.  I wanted to bury my head in the sand, even though I knew Mom was right.  I couldn’t avoid him forever.  Remy was still my cotillion escort—stupid cotillion.

I’ll call him tomorrow, I groaned.  Where’s Dad?

He said there was something he had to look at in Dulac before he headed home.  I raised my brow at Mom’s cryptic smile.

We finished our dinner and put the rest in the fridge.  The spell I’d attempted earlier had left me drained, so I grabbed the spell book and went to my room.  Cross-legged, I sat on the bed and thumbed through the pages.  Most of the spells were in rune like glyphs, and until my brain formed the connection from the part that contained the book’s knowledge and the part that could decipher it, I was lost.  Unlike Percy Jackson, my brain wasn’t hardwired for ancient anything.  I had to learn things the hard way—hours of lessons with a feisty familiar and witch who was still learning herself.  Occasionally my dad would help out with the lessons, but the only thing he wanted to teach me was how to defend myself from vampires and werewolves.  Honestly, the Fae folk scared me more, with their power over elements and mischievous nature—they struck without rhyme or reason, like a mean girl in gym class.

I turned from page to page and looked for spells I could understand.  After today’s near demonic possession, I’d come to the conclusion that just because I could read it didn’t mean it was a low-level spell.  There was a lot more to casting than chanting pretty words.  I needed to know how to make the energy do what the spell mapped out in words; the spell itself was nothing more than instructions.  Tango was right, I needed to learn how to control the energy around me before attempting to bend space.

A few pages from the back, there was a basic glamor spell to change eye color.  I whispered the words to myself as I read them.  Change eye color to (state color).  Simple, right?  Below the spell scribbled in my mawmaw’s hand writing was the outline of the energy manipulation for the spell.  The whole premise was that a person could see the colors that were reflected off an object.  By changing the energy around said object to absorb a different frequency, I could change the perception of the color it reflected.  So the breakdown of the words were: Change – concentrate on how to move the energy.  Eye – the location (note: this can be anything you want to change the color of).  Color to – the frequency that is needed to reflect the desired color.  See chart on inside cover for absorption frequencies.

I read over the directions several times.  Ugh—I’m never going to get this.  Throwing myself back on the pillows, I stared at the ceiling and huffed, Simple spell, my ass.

Why did magic have to read like a technical manual for the International Space Station?  Two weeks in, and the only thing I’d managed to do is start a kitchen fire and let a dark sprit loose.  I hugged Toby, my moose pillow pet, and sighed.

So much for studying magic.  Might as well call Remy and get the remainder of bad ideas done with. As if on cue, my cell rang—it was Remy.

Hello, Remy, I sang.

I know you want your space, but before you hang-up on me, just hear me out, he rattled off at break-neck speed.

It’s okay.  I was just about to call you. 

I could hear him let out a big breath, as if he had been holding it.  Check your snail mail.

What?

I just got my acceptance letter for LSU.  Remy sounded like a kid who was just told he was going to Disney.

My heart raced as I dashed for the mailbox.  I stood there for a moment with my fingers on the handle, too nervous to look.  No one had ever accused me of being a brainiac, and my grades were less than stellar, but my dad insisted I attend his alma mater, so I applied.  Curiosity got the best of me, and I took a deep breath and opened the box.  Cell phone wedged between my ear and shoulder, I fingered through the mail as I walked back in the house.

There towards the back of stack was the letter I was looking for.  I tossed the rest of the mail on the kitchen counter and tore open the envelope.  In the left hand corner embossed in purple was an academic building and LSU in big letters. My hands shook as I scanned the words below.

Dear Veronica,

Congratulations! You have been admitted to Louisiana State University. 

My stomach tied itself in a knot and my voice cracked.  Oh my god, they let me in.

I’m so relieved you’re in.  I couldn’t even think about going without you, Remy said in a single breath.

I was so nervous about the letter, I totally forgotten I was on the phone with Remy.  Yay, me, I replied sarcastically once it all started to sink in.

Well, I’ll let you go, so you can call your parents.  I’m sure your dad will be over the moon.  Bye, Ronnie.

Yeah, I guess I should tell them.  Oh, by the way.  Dinner tomorrow, my place, 7 PM—Mom’s making Mexican.

Okay, I’ll be there. Love you.

Whatever.  Bye.  I hung-up my phone and eyed the letter once more.  Seconds later, my phone rang again—this time, it was Tango.

What’s up? I answered.

I just got a letter from LSU—I’m in.  Tango sounded more matter-of-fact than excited.

That’s awesome.  I’m in, too.

Really?  Surprise laced his voice. They must be letting everyone in this year, he teased.

Haha.  I have my good qualities, like...um. 

Tango laughed at my inability to name anything. 

Shut up, I barked.

Ronnie, you know I’m just kidding.  LSU should be proud to have such an upstanding student in their midst.  He continued to poke fun.

I stuck my tongue out as if he could see me.  I’m glad you were accepted.  I can’t imagine going without you.

Well, there’s a problem.  I don’t know if my parents can afford for me to go.  I already had grant money lined up for Nicholls State, and there is no way I can make enough over the next two summers to pay even the first semester at LSU.

"You are not going to abandon me, Tango.  We’re going to make this work.  You and I will sit down tomorrow and