The Babet & Prosper Collection I: One Less Warlock, Magrat's Dagger, A Different Undead, and Bad Juju (6 page)

Her mother took the lead, and they followed
her car along the winding river road. Morgana wouldn’t lie on the
back seat this time. She stretched across the headrest, partially
on Babet’s shoulders, so that she could look out the windows. She
kept flicking her tongue to touch Babet’s cheek.

“Relax,” Babet finally told her. “I’m going
to do my best to stay alive.”

The snake only partially relaxed, nestling
her head against Babet’s neck.

For Babet’s part, she was too distracted to
link one thought after another.

Questions clattered in her mind. How had Mom
become involved with Dad? How long had they known each other before
they met Jaleel? Did Mom love Dad, miss him? Why didn’t he
return—even for short visits? Did he know he had a daughter? Did he
care? And would he come after Jaleel again? Would she meet him?

Prosper glanced her way, then reached across
the car seat and gave her hand a pat. “Hang in there, Babs. The
answers are starting to come.”

Babs. He only used the nickname to annoy
her…or distract her. She sighed. Waiting wasn’t one of her strong
points. But it’s not like she had a choice.

The settlement was near a swampy area. The
river flowed lazily within easy view of the brightly painted
houses. Each had a front porch.

Nadine’s house was pumpkin-colored with black
trim. A Halloween house. Morgana’s head bobbed excitedly as they
climbed the front steps. Nadine walked out to greet them.

Hennie gave a nod in greeting and got
straight to the point. “Is your daughter home?”

“She’s in the back garden. We’ve been
expecting you.” Nadine hesitated, looking at Morgana. “How are you,
old friend?”

The snake raised its chin, begging for her to
pet him.

With a laugh, Nadine shook her head. “You
haven’t changed. I’ll go find my child.”

As she disappeared around the side of the
house, Babet glanced at two rocking chairs sitting close together
with a small table between them. No stacks of wood or wax dolls
lying anywhere. Her shoulders relaxed.

Prosper glanced up and down the streets. Just
as before, a woman stood, arms crossed, on each porch, staring
their way. “Friendly place, isn’t it?”

Hennie followed his gaze. “They’ve learned
the hard way not to trust strangers. It’s nothing personal.”

It sure felt personal, though. Babet didn’t
want to stay in the settlement any longer than they had to. She
turned to Hennie. “How do you know these women? Do you come here to
see them?” Once she thought about it, Hennie was the one who’d told
her about Evangeline.

“I sell herbs. They visit my shop sometimes
when they have special needs.”

“I’ve never seen them there.” Babet would
notice their unique style of dressing—bright, flowing skirts and
blouses just as bright.

“I keep special hours for them.” So that was
it. Hennie snuck them into the shop when it was closed. Babet
wondered if she did that for others too.

Voices came from the side yard, and Babet
turned to see Nadine motion for her daughter to come forward.
“There’s no use in hiding. They know you’re here.”

The minute Evangeline rounded the house and
saw them, her face crumpled. “It was an accident. You have to
believe me.”

Nadine nodded. “She said a chant wrong. We
knew right away. Energy sparked all around us and black magic
swirled like a tornado.”

“Why me?” Evangeline asked. “Other people
have made mistakes when they’re learning, and Mom fixes them.”

“But there was no fixing this one,” Nadine
added.

“It’s because of your power, and because you
have witch and voodoo blood. Voodoo isn’t exactly white magic,” Mom
said, striving for tact.

“Why didn’t you call us?” Hennie asked.

Evangeline shrugged in a helpless gesture.
“Nothing came. It was all fireworks and no fire. A portal opened
and closed, but we didn’t see anything come through it. We thought
it was a false alarm until we heard about Yaya Tallow’s house.”

“Someone came here to tell you?” Babet could
almost watch Prosper’s mind working, trying to decide who it
was.

Nadine raised her hand. Mists wove in and out
of her fingers. A familiar face—the woman with the downturned lips
whom Babet had seen before—whispered something for Nadine’s ears
only. Nadine waved her away. “Manette loves to gossip. She flits in
and out of town, lets me know anything of interest.”

Prosper stared at Nadine’s hand. “This
Manette told you about Yaya’s fire?”

“Yes. That’s when we knew something must have
escaped the portal. Yaya had strong magic. It would take something
stronger to kill her.”

Evangeline made a quick movement to hide her
hands, putting them behind her back. But she wasn’t fast enough.
Babet saw the blood on them. “Were you performing rituals when we
came?”

Evangeline’s shoulders sagged in defeat.
“This is my third one. None of them have worked. Mom tried to help
me, but we can’t send whatever escaped back.”

“You summoned the demon, Jaleel. He must have
traveled as pure energy,” Mom said. “Then materialized when he knew
he was safe.”

That caught Prosper’s attention. “Safe from
them? Are they a threat to him?”

“In his first minutes, before he gathered his
power, yes. Now? No.” Mom narrowed her eyes, studying Evangeline.
“Your powers can hurt you if you don’t learn to control them. I
teach. I can help you.”

“Witch magic?” Nadine asked. “You’d be
willing to?”

“It would be safer for all of us.”

Nadine’s gaze went to the women, watching and
waiting on their front porches. “We don’t usually mix with other
kinds. Our magic is our own. But Evangeline has both magicks in her
blood. She should learn how to use them.”

Mom glanced at the women too, a frown pulling
her brows together. Babet found them to be every bit as
intimidating as a coven of witches. And they had a power all their
own. Mom turned to study Evangeline, and Babet could tell by the
thoughtful expression on her face that she was worrying about the
same things she herself had considered when she first met the girl.
What happened when you mixed witch spells with voodoo magic? Then
her mother’s gaze turned to her, and the questions in her mother’s
eyes surprised her. Was that why Mom had never told her about her
father? Was she worried that witch blood mixed with incubus powers
might produce something just as strange?

Babet turned to find Nadine staring at her
too. “What?”

“Have you trained yourself in your succubus
powers?”

“No.” They frightened her.

Nadine shook her head. “Power is power,
neither intrinsically bad nor good. It’s what you do with it. But
you have to learn what it is and how to control it.”

Mom cleared her throat. “We’ll start training
as soon as we survive this. Jaleel found and tried to destroy
Magrat’s dagger. Yaya Tallow worked to help him, but failed. He
burned down her house, with her in it, as punishment.”

“And temper,” Hennie said. “Jaleel’s temper
is legendary.”

“Can demons die?” Nadine asked.

“Yes, but they only stay dead if they’re
buried at a crossroads.” Hennie pointed to the intersection of two
streets. “Not easy to do. Our best bet is to send him back to where
he came from.”

“He won’t go willingly?” Evangeline’s tone
was hopeful.

“When he’s finally free and can stay here and
reek destruction? He won’t be able to resist much longer. He’ll
take his chances and unleash his powers.” Mom turned stern gazes on
Babet and Evangeline. “If we have to battle, I want you two to do
exactly what we tell you.”

Babet stiffened. “The dagger chose me. I’ve
been trained. I won’t hide.”

“The magic chose you?” Nadine tilted her
head, studying her. “Your aura is even stronger than the last time
I saw you. Your succubus powers are awakening. The dagger sensed
your new talents. Somehow, those are the talents that will save
you.”

Babet hugged herself. She’d always thought of
herself as a witch. Nothing more. She didn’t like to think of her
new powers, what they were or how they’d change her. How was she
supposed to use them when she didn’t understand them?

Her mother’s voice, sharp and icy, cut
through her thoughts. “Your father is Jaleel’s jailor. Guess who
the demon will try to kill first?”

“Jaleel knows?” Babet asked.

“He will soon enough. All he has to do is
look at you.”

“I look like my father? You said I had my
grandmother’s genes.”

Her mother looked uncomfortable. “You do…have
her witch genes, that is….but not her light-brown hair or blue
eyes.”

“You look like Grandma.”

Mom sighed. She nodded toward Evangeline.
“You two girls are more alike than you know.” One look at
Evangeline and everyone knew she was Emile’s daughter. “The
difference is, as far as I can tell, you wish you had no powers at
all.”

“She tries to hide from them,” Nadine agreed.
“Even her voodoo heritage. Part of this is my fault. I was making
her practice some of her witch energy, to see what it was and how
it worked.”

Dread crawled through Babet’s veins. She
understood Evangeline’s reluctance to master what intimidated her.
With Jaleel free, though, she wished she’d played with her newfound
talents a little more. She was no coward, but she wasn’t thrilled
to know she’d be the demon’s main target.

Her mother read the expression on her face.
“If we work together, we might not need you. Hopefully, we can keep
both of you girls safe.”

“Me?” Evangeline took a step closer to
Nadine. “Why would the demon care about me?”

“Because you summoned him,” Mom said. “The
last time he was called, the first people he destroyed were the
ones who held power over him—the ones who brought him here.”

“But I don’t want him!”

“Neither did the voodoo priest and the
warlock. They meant to call a minor demon. It didn’t matter. Jaleel
obeys no one. He’ll look for you.”

Hennie laced her fingers together, twisting
and untwisting them. “I don’t like having the girls in danger.”

Prosper didn’t look any happier about it. He
turned to Nadine. “Can you work your voodoo magic from here? Try to
drain Jaleel while we battle him somewhere else?”

“What do you mean we?” Babet asked. “You’re
staying out of this.”

“It’s my job to protect River….”

Hennie didn’t let him finish. “You’re a Were.
There’s nothing you can do against a demon.”

“We’ll battle him upstream at Settlers Park,”
Mom said. “Away from this settlement and away from mortals. You’ll
stay in the city, where you belong.”

Prosper’s fingers curled into fists. He
wasn’t used to taking orders, but he didn’t argue. He knew she was
right.

Nadine slid an arm through her daughter’s.
“We brought the demon here. We’ll do all we can to help send him
back.”

Evangeline’s gaze locked with Babet’s. “I’m
sorry. I’ve caused you trouble again. This time, I’ve put you in
danger. But we have to send him back, don’t we? If we lose,
everyone’s doomed.”

Babet nodded. “Defeat isn’t an option. This
time, defeat means death.”

Evangeline squared her shoulders. “For how
many?”

“Maybe everyone in River City, as starters,”
Mom said.

Silence surrounded them. Trained or
untrained, they didn’t really have a choice. Jaleel was here. He’d
kill with glee. They had to win this battle.

The return trip to the city was a silent one.
Prosper prickled the entire drive back, giving off foul energy.
Babet conjured one strategy after another in her mind, dismissing
each one. Mom and Hennie had fought Jaleel before. Hopefully, they
had better ideas than she did.

They met at Hennie’s shop. The front counter
greeted them when they walked through the door—a warm, cozy spot
with an old-fashioned cash register and stools lining an oak
countertop. Shelves lined the far walls with more shelves in the
center. Each held apothecary jars filled with dried herbs, seeds,
leaves, and roots, among other witchy ingredients. Not the stuff
for tourists. Serious supplies for spells and chants.

Mom pulled the stools into a circle and they
all sat, facing each other. Prosper balanced uncomfortably on his,
looking too large for the small, circle seat and cute, black, iron
legs. Morgana wrapped herself around Babet’s ankle, refusing to
separate from her.

“What now?” Prosper asked.

“Jaleel has to know we found Magrat’s dagger.
I’m surprised he hasn’t gone on a rampage by now,” Mom said.

“I’ve wondered about that, too,” Hennie
added. “I can’t think of any advantage for him if he waits.”

“Unless he has a different agenda this time.”
Prosper scowled at Babet. “Which would he enjoy more, destroying
people and cities or killing the daughter of the incubus who sent
him back to his pit?”

Mom’s hand went to her throat. She swallowed
hard. Hennie reached for her other hand, and they clung to each
other. “Jaleel nurses hatred like some people nurture dreams.”

Prosper nodded. “Would he know who Babet was
when he first got here?”

“No.”

Prosper leaned forward, and his stool almost
tipped. He put out a leg to brace himself. “Are you sure? Did Yaya
Tallow know Babet was Gazaar’s daughter?”

Mom licked her lips. “Only our coven knew, no
one else. We never speak about it.”

Babet stared. “That’s why you never told me,
why no one else in the coven breathed a word of it. All of you
wanted to keep me safe.” She was the newest member of her mother’s
coven, filling the one, empty spot they’d saved for her after
replacing Magrat and four of the others.

Her mother scooted closer to Hennie, in
obvious need of support. “Nadine made the same mistake with
Evangeline. We thought if you didn’t know, no one else would
either. Foolish, I guess.”