"Something like that," Isabel said. "I thought if he saw you struggling, he might finally be able to move on. He’d see that you were flawed too." She wiped at her eyes with the back of her hand, leaving a streak of mascara on her cheek. "I never meantfor anyone to get hurt. I just wanted him to love me as much as he loved you."
"Isabel," Deva said, her tone heavy with sadness. "You can't force someone to love you. Hurting others in the process is no way to earn their affection. And there's no way you cursed my store using Katie as a drain without expecting someone to get hurt."
I shifted in my seat, trying to find a comfortable position on the hard wooden chair. Isabel's shop was filled with an array of magical items, but somehow she couldn't conjure up a decent cushion for her guests. Go figure.
"Okay." Deva broke the silence that had settled over the room like a thick fog. "You've told us about your relationship with Harry. What does Katie have to do with all this?"
A tear rolled down Isabel's cheek. "When Katie came to me for a curse, she was so damn horrible. I mean, truly awful." She grimaced. "I thought, maybe, I could use her negative energy to fuel a curse against you, Deva. Two birds with one stone." She looked at Deva. "Technically, I cursed both your restaurant and Katie." Isabel's gaze lowered to her lap. "It was like... entangling your fates, making sure you both experienced bad luck. I didn't think it would last this long or cause so much damage, though, but I guess I didn’t fully understand just how miserable Katie was."
"Entangled?" I glared at her.
"So, let me get this straight," Carol said, her arms crossed and eyebrows raised. "You decided to curse Deva because of some twisted love triangle with her ex-husband and then threw Katie, who's a nightmare on her own, into the mix just for good measure?"
"Basically," Isabel said with a sigh. "Then everything spiraled out of control."
"Ya think?" I said under my breath, the familiar itch of Karma tingling at the tips of my fingers.
Deva sat back and blinked a couple of times before she said, "You need to fix this. You need to reverse the curse and make things right."
Isabel nodded, more tears escaping. "I will. I promise."
Deva wasn't one to hold grudges, but she wouldn't forget what had happened here today. Nor would Carol or Beth, both of whom were still glaring daggers at Isabel. As for me, my thoughts were a jumbled mess of anger, confusion, and something like pity for the woman who had brought this chaos upon us all.
Tears streamed down Isabel's cheeks. "Deva, I'm so sorry," she said, her voice breaking. "I never thought it would go this far.
"Look, Isabel," I said. "We appreciate the apology, really, but you can't just wave your hand and fix this with a few tears and an apology."
"Emma's right." Carol leaned forward. "You have to reverse the curse, plus do something to make up for all the harm you've caused."
Isabel wiped her tear-streaked face with the back of her hand and gathered herself. "I will. I promise I'll do whatever it takes to make this right."
"Good," Deva said softly. "Because I don't want anything like this to ever happen again."
I couldn't help but roll my eyes just a tiny bit at the whole dramatic exchange. Sure, it was important for everyone to air their grievances and make amends, but we still had a curse to reverse and a whole lot of cleanup to do. There'd be plenty of time for emotional heart-to-hearts later, when we weren't all standing around in a shop that smelled vaguely of burnt sage and regret.
I shot Isabel a warning glare. "Let's get a move on with this curse-reversal thing, okay? I'm starving and there's a pizza with my name on it somewhere out there."
Isabel began listing off the ingredients she'd need, lavender, rose petals, sage, a white candle, and a piece of paper with the original curse written down. We watched as she bustled around her shop, gathering everything while casting nervous glances our way.
"Here," she said, placing the items on a small wooden table near the back of her shop. The scent of lavender and rose filled the air. "Now, everyone needs to stand in a circle around the table."
“Is that right?” I asked Beth.
She nodded.
I just wanted to be sure. A few tears hadn’t made me suddenly trust this woman, but maybe realizing she’ll have to deal with the witches if this didn’t work gave her some motivation.
We formed a tight circle with Beth on my left and Carol on my right. My stomach churned with apprehension, but I trusted that we were doing the right thing.
"Okay." Isabel lit the white candle. Its flame flickered and danced, casting shadows across the room. She then lit the sage,allowing its cleansing smoke to billow around us. "Deva, please take the piece of paper with the curse and read it aloud."
Deva hesitated for a moment, her gaze glancing over the words. She swallowed hard before beginning to recite the curse. The words sounded foreign, like whispers from another realm.
"Done," Deva said. "What's next?"
"Place the paper in the candle flame," said Isabel. "Let it burn to ashes."
Deva did as she was told, and we watched as the cursed words were consumed by fire, disintegrating into nothingness.
