Third Time's a Charm (Halloween LaVeau) Read Online Free Page A

pointed at the grandfather clock.
    Finally, he said, “Only the true owner of the Book of Mystics can add a spell to the book. My mother added a spell to the book, and I can add one too. So you see, Nicolas’ mother stole the book. She was never the true leader because she was never able to add a spell to the book. Have you added a spell to the book?” he asked with a condescending smirk.
    It felt as if someone had knocked the air right out of me. No, I had not added a spell to the book. How the heck would I do something like that? I’d barely gotten the chance to read the book. The Book of Mystics that I’d found in my great -aunt’s attic had been written in a strange language. It had only appeared in English at times when I needed it the most. What would I say to this man? He was staring at me, waiting for an answer.
    Finally, I settled on, “I can’t give you that information. I’m the leader and I don’t have to discuss the book with you. It is a private matter. I am entrusted with holding this book and I plan on keeping it that way.”
    “I’ll take that as a no.” He smirked. “That’s why I wanted to see the book so that I could show you the spell that my mother added to the book, plus add a spell on my own. Once that’s done then you can hand over the book and this whole nasty misunderstanding will be over. And since you had nothing to do with the crime, I won’t hold you accountable.”
    Gee, that was awfully nice of him. Considering I really hadn’t done anything wrong.
    “Plus, I won’t do anything to Nicolas for his mother’s actions,” he said with a smile.
    He was proud of his noble acts. This guy had really rubbed me the wrong way this time.
    “Do you expect me to just take your word for it? Even if you can add a spell to the book, I’m going to need more proof that this is actually the law of the book. So I’m sure you’ll understand that I need more time to research this,” I said.
    He took a deep breath and released it. “Fine, but don’t take too long. I have to return home soon.”
    “Where is home?” I asked.
    “I live in Baton Rouge,” he said.
    Nicolas, Jon and Annabelle returned to the room. I supposed they were getting antsy and wanted to know what was happening. How would I ever explain this to them?
    Giovanni pushed to his feet. “I’ll be in touch very soon.” He nodded goodbye and walked toward the door. “I’ll see myself out, Ms. LaVeau.”
    With that, he was gone. And none too soon for me either. But I knew he would be back. I had to figure out if what he said was true. How would I do that? There had to be something in the Book of Mystics on this subject. If I wasn’t the owner of the book, then how the heck could I read what was on the pages ? Supposedly, only the true owner could read it.
    Wasn’t there some where that the basic laws of magical society were codified? The understanding of the laws was somehow dependent on one person being able to occasionally read snippets from an otherwise indecipherable book? Wouldn’t it be easier if they had just written this stuff down in plain English? If no one could read the book, how would they know the leader of the Underworld wasn’t lying to them? Heck, I could tell everyone whatever I wanted the book to say. Imagine if I pretended to read from the book that the laws of the Underworld stated that all witches must give me double chocolate chip cookies. Or endless amounts of cupcakes?
    Nicolas, Jon and Annabelle stared at me. “Well, what did he say?” Annabelle asked.
    “He said that the true owner of the Book of Mystics can add spells to the book. He claims that his mother added a spell and that Nicolas’ mother did not. He asked me if I’d added a spell to the book,” I said.
    Annabelle’s eyes widened. “Have you?”
    I think she knew me well enough to know that I definitely had not. I gave her the look and she nodded with understanding. “I only just figured out what the book says—well, what