The Wizard Returns: Book Three of the Wizard Born Series (23 page)

Rollie crossed his arms and tilted his head to one side. “So much for keeping a low profile.”

Jamie threw his hands in the air. “I couldn’t help it! I couldn’t just let it burn.”

Evelyn put her hand on his shoulder and gave him a reassuring smile. “You did the right thing, Jamie.”

“I sure hope so. But if another sorcerer didn’t already know we’re here, he’ll soon find out.” He stared thoughtfully at the ground for a moment. “Um...Mrs. Tully? If that farmer doesn’t have enough money for a new barn, maybe we can give him some.”

She gave him a questioning look and he continued, “The money in the closet. We can give him some of that can’t we? I mean...that’s like giving it to charity, isn’t it?”

“It is your money, and you can do with it as you please. But if you give it to him directly, you will never get any peace. You will be flooded with supplicants, all with their own problems and their palms out.”

“I could give it to him for you,” Brinna said.

Mrs. Tully eyed her daughter sternly. “And where will you tell him
you
got it?”

“I can tell him we took up a collection. We’ve done that before.”

“That sounds like a good solution,” Evelyn said and patted Jamie’s shoulder. “By the way, you need to pay the groundskeeper.”

“There’s a groundskeeper?”

“Yes, Mr. Kennerly, and he needs to be paid.”

“Oh, sure. Somebody tell him to come by.” Jamie sighed. “Anything else?”

“Yes,” Fred said, wrinkling her nose. “You need a shower. You smell like a forest fire.”

Jamie wore his robe and flip flops and carried his shower caddy in one hand as he held the back door open for Fred. They stepped from the kitchen out onto the pathway, wide flat stones set into the grass, leading away from the house. It split in two a few yards out, one path going to the outhouse on the right and the other to the well on the left. “Fred, are you sure you don’t want to go first?”

“I already told you, I showered this morning. Everybody did but you.” She poked his ribs playfully and fingered her magic pendant with her other hand. “Do you need me to keep you safe from the bad ol’ wizards?”

“That’s not something to joke about. I’m vulnerable while I’m in the shower, and probably even more so now that people know I’m here.”

“You didn’t
have
to go flying off to put out that fire.”

“Yes I did, and you know it. Now I need you to stand guard while I bathe. If anybody shows up, stun them with your pendant.”

The blue portable shower stood twenty feet from the back of the house, its door facing them. Fred eyed the tall box and said, “Looks like something from a Doctor Who episode.”

“It does!” Jamie grinned. “It’s the Tardis.”

A green garden hose stretched away from it, all the way to the river, and a round hand pump was inserted in the last few feet of the narrow tube before it snaked into the top of the shower.

Jamie opened the door and they both looked inside. It was simple and smelled strongly of plastic that had been left in the sun. A white shower curtain covered one side and a couple of narrow plastic shelves were built into the other. Jamie opened the valve on the shower head and felt the water as it streamed out. “It works. Still cold, though.” He held his hand up to the tank for a few seconds and concentrated, his fingers barely glowing, then he released more water and tested it again. He nodded his approval and said. “That’s warm enough.”

He took off his flip flops, stepped inside with his shower caddy and closed the door. Then he slipped out of his terry cloth robe, opened the door a crack and held it out to Fred. “Will you hold this for me?” He felt her take it from his hand and then he held the towel out. “This too. I don’t want to get it wet.”

“What’s the shower curtain for?”

“I dunno.” He pulled it aside and saw two plastic coat hooks fastened to the wall. “I guess it’s to keep your towel and clothes dry.”

“You can use those next time. I’ll hold your stuff for now.”

Jamie opened the valve and let water splash on his hair until he was soaked, then he shut it off and poured some shampoo on his head. While he worked it in he said, “There’s not much water pressure, but it’s okay. I don’t think you’ll be able to take your usual long shower, though. The tank doesn’t hold enough.”

He rinsed his hair and heard Fred say through the door, “That’s okay. You can fill the tank twice for me.”

He squirted some liquid bath soap on his wash cloth and began lathering his body. “You can get by on one tank.”

“Unh unh. It’s bad enough having to use the outhouse. I’m not giving up all my creature comforts.”

Jamie finished washing himself, opened the valve again and rinsed off. “This isn’t exactly roughing it, Fred. In fact, this isn’t bad at all.” He shut off the water and said, “I’m done. Will you hand me my towel, please?”

“Why don’t you come out here and get it,” she said in a sing-song voice.

“What? Don’t fool around. Just give me the towel.”

“Nope. You have to get it yourself.”

“Doggone it, Fred!” He opened the door a crack and peered out, and saw her standing a few feet away, dangling the towel mischievously in one hand.

“I’m — waiting,” she sang again.

Jamie clenched his jaw and narrowed his eyes.
Well, you just keep waiting, Fred
. He focused his will on the towel, and with a tiny gesture of his finger, translocated it to his hand.

“Hey!” Fred shouted. “That’s cheating.”

He began drying his hair as he talked. “So is trying to make me open this door when I don’t have any clothes on.” He toweled off his body, and flicked his finger again. The robe appeared in his other hand and he put in on.

“Hmph. You’re no fun.”

Jamie opened the door, put on his flip flops, and picked up his shower caddy. “How would you like it if I did that to you?”

They walked toward the back door and Fred shrugged. “I wouldn’t mind. It might be kinda fun.”

“You are so bad!”

“No I’m not. You’re a prude.”

He pulled the door open and said, “No, I’m just —” He stopped in midsentence when he saw his grandmother and Mrs. Tully standing side-by-side in the kitchen. His grandmother was chopping vegetables, and Mrs. Tully was kneading some dough on a floured board, and they both turned and looked at him.

He stood there with his mouth open until his grandmother said, “You’re just what?”

Fred stepped inside and closed the door behind them. “He’s just glad that you’re cooking dinner. He knows it’ll be good. Right, Jamie?” She gave him a wink and walked past him.

He swallowed hard and said, “Yeah, uh, it’ll be great, I bet. What are you making?”

His grandmother gestured at the vegetables with her knife. “Mutton stew, so I’m told. I’m just the assistant today. It’s Mrs. Tully’s show.”

“The butcher had a nice cut of meat this morning, so I bought it,” Mrs. Tully said. “I’m making bread, too.”

“When you get dressed, we need for you to bring in a load of firewood for the stove,” his grandmother said. “And will you light it, too, please?”

“Sure.”

He started to walk away and his grandmother called after him, “And don’t throw your things on the floor! Hang your towel on the wooden peg on the wall of your room. I don’t want to wash towels everyday...and leave your washcloth by your dirty clothes basket. I’ll take care of it later.”

Jamie put on some clean clothes and fetched an armload of firewood from out back. After he put it in the stove and ignited it with his magic, he went to the main room to join Fred and Rollie, who were sprawled in the sitting area, browsing through magic books. “What stack did you start from?” Jamie asked.

“The first one by the front door,” Rollie said without looking up.

“Find anything?”

“Not about demons,” Fred muttered. “Interesting stuff, though.”

Jamie grabbed a book of his own and looked around. “Where’s Brinna?”

“She had to go.”

“She’s not eating with us?”

“Nope. Neither is her mom.”

“Why?”

“She says it’s not her place to do that.”

“Huh? But she lives alone. She’ll have to go home and cook again, I bet.” Jamie dropped the book in the chair next to Rollie and went into the kitchen, where he found Mrs. Tully setting a large cast iron pot on the stove. His grandmother leaned against the counter, watching her.

“Mrs. Tully,” Jamie said, “why aren’t you staying for dinner?”

“It’s not my place to eat with the master of the house.”

He looked at his grandmother, who shrugged and said, “I tried to convince her that she should. She said she’ll wait until we’re through eating, and then she’ll wash the dishes and clean up.”

“Well....” Jamie fumbled for some convincing logic, and had an idea. “We’ll do the dishes...I like to do them.” He nodded. “So do Fred and Rollie. It...it helps us relax.” He nodded again as if he’d made an indisputable point.

Mrs. Tully picked up a wooden bucket from beside the stove and poured some water from it into the pot. “In that case, I’ll serve your dinner and then I’ll take my leave.”

“Um....” He glanced at his grandmother again, but she offered no help. Then he had another idea. “I want you to eat with us. Um...I expect you to...it’s the way things are done where we come from. As master of the house, I say you should. We have enough food to go around, don’t we?”

He glanced at his grandmother again, who gave him a little wink.

Mrs. Tully set the bucket down and faced him. “I will eat with you if you insist.”

He stared back at the stern, sturdy woman. “I insist.”

She returned to her task, picking up a wooden cutting board full of chopped potatoes and scraping them into the pot.

“What about Brinna, Mrs. Tully? What does she do about dinner?”

“She eats with me sometimes. Usually, she stops at the market on her way home and cooks for herself.”

“And she eats alone, too? Well, that’s not right. Tell her...no,
ask
her if she’ll join us tomorrow night. Maybe she can talk to John Paul on the laptop then.” He looked at his grandmother. “Will we have enough food?”

“We should. I might have to stretch a meal to make it.”

“I have food put up in the cellar, in jars,” Mrs. Tully said. “Beans and squash...some fruit. But I will go to the market every day while you are staying here.”

Jamie nodded again. “You must have to buy fresh food all the time if there’s no refrigerator.” His brow furrowed and he scratched absentmindedly at one cheek. “Um...so what did you do about feeding Renn? If he just popped in out of the blue without any warning?”

“I prepared a meal for him every day.”

“Whether he came home or not?”

“I had no way of knowing, and he expected a hot meal when he arrived. He liked everything just so.”

“So for the last six months, you’ve been cooking for nothing?” She didn’t answer, and he realized she wasn’t cooking for nothing. She probably ate it herself when Renn didn’t show up.
Now she can’t do that because we’re here
. He imagined the hardworking woman trudging home in the dark after caring for the house all day, still facing the task of getting her own dinner.
With no microwave. How does she do it?

Jamie gave his head a little shake, almost a shiver, and said, “I hate to ask, but how did you pay for the food? With credit?” She nodded and Jamie exchanged a meaningful glance with his grandmother.

“I’ll go to the market with you, Mrs. Tully,” his grandmother said.

“That would not be proper.”

“She needs to go to settle up the household’s account,” Jamie said. “Because I sure don’t want to go. She will act on my behalf.”
That sounds like something the master of the house would say
.

He looked at his grandmother again to back him up, and she said, “We’ll need more money, Jamie. I doubt they’ll take my credit card.”

“I think there’s plenty in the closet.”

Mrs. Tully dropped some chopped carrots into the pot. “You will need to pay Mr. Kennerly tomorrow, too.”

“The groundskeeper? Okay. And money for Mr. Darby’s roof. Whew!” He rubbed the back of his neck and twisted his mouth up sideways. “Is there a jar or something I can use to keep some money in? I don’t want to keep digging in that big chest every time somebody needs some.”

She opened the cabinet next to the stove and pulled out a large bowl-shaped ceramic vase. “Will this do?”

“Perfect. Now we’re set. Anything else?”

“The rope on the well needs to be replaced soon. Mr. Kennerly can do it, but he will need money for the rope. And this last window in here will not open all the way. It’s binding up. The weather will be warm soon, and this kitchen can get hot without the windows all the way up.” She nodded firmly to make her point, as if Jamie might not believe her.

“Okay. Rope. Window. Got it.” He pushed the fingers of one hand through his blond, curly hair. “This master of the house business is a pain.” He looked at his grandmother. “You wouldn’t want a house, would you? I’ve got one you can have, cheap.”

“No thanks. I already have a condo.”

Jamie looked up from the magic book he was investigating when he heard his mother’s voice coming from the laptop behind the table. “Jamie? Anybody? Can you hear me?”

Fred and Rollie looked up from their books, too, as Jamie stood and went to the corner. His mother was onscreen, sitting at the computer in their family room. He scooted a chair in front of the laptop and sat down. “We’re still here, Mom.”

“Did you find anything yet?”

“No, but I put out a fire.”

“You did what?”

Fred called from the padded bench seat across the room, “He flew over the town and used his magic to stop a barn from burning down. Now everybody knows he’s a sorcerer.”

Rachel’s eyebrows drew down sharply. “I thought you wanted to be inconspicuous. Have you felt anybody else’s magic?”

“No, but I’m really nervous. I can hardly study at all.”

“How many books have you gone through?”

“I don’t know.” He turned in his seat and looked at Rollie, sitting across from Fred. “How many, you think?”

Rollie counted the pile of books on the floor beside him. “Maybe twenty.”