First Helen said her spell, ending with a dramatic, “Foop!” Then Matilda whispered hers and finished with, “Zam sha!” Not quite backward but close.
Helen pointed to the huge oval mirror over the sink. “Look into that mirror, then open the scroll and recite the words written.” She pulled the fancy chair away from the table and turned it sideways. “Once you’ve recited the words, sit here with your eyes closed for at least ten minutes.”
“How will I know when ten minutes has gone by?”
She picked up a small rectangular device from the table. “Here. I’ll set this alarm for fifteen minutes. That should give you enough time to do what’s needed. Whatever you do, don’t open your eyes until this alarm goes off. Do you have any questions?”
“How will I know if it worked or not?”
Helen frowned. “Well, when you are done, come back out to the parlor and you can decide if you still love and want to marry Miss Hart. That should be proof enough, right?”
Max nodded. “Okay. See you in a few minutes.”
“Just make sure you keep your eyes closed for at least ten minutes. I can’t control exactly what happens if you don’t.”
“Got it.”
Max stood in front of the mirror, stared at himself for a few seconds and then opened the scroll. “Hither and there. Dither and yawn. Please make me just like I was, not Don Wan.”
He dropped into the chair and closed his eyes, waiting for some sort of magical feeling to encompass him.
Max felt a brush of air and squeezed his eyes shut to keep from looking. Probably a vent had started pushing air into the room from the air-conditioning system. He was sure no one had stepped from behind the shower curtain to get him.
Almost sure.
The thought that a monster had come out from behind the crimson curtain made him want to open his eyes to ensure a boogieman wasn’t about to slay him where he sat. Instead, one of his heels lifted and came down onto the tile in the bathroom without a sound. Nothing happened, so he tapped his heel as if the sound of his restless leg shaking out a beat would keep any and all monsters at bay while he waited endlessly for the sound of the alarm and a spell he wasn’t sure he wanted gone to…well, leave.
Fifteen minutes was certainly longer than expected.
The sudden pain in his head was very unexpected. He wondered why they hadn’t warned him it would hurt, but Max kept his eyes slammed shut, teeth gritting through the throbbing ache.
Chapter Fourteen
Ruby squirmed on the sofa, unable to sit still during the reversal spell. Fifteen minutes seemed an endless amount of time to sit still. She jumped up and paced the floor after the first five minutes.
“Why so jumpy, dearie?” Helen asked.
“I’m not jumpy. I just want him to be okay.” She started to walk toward the hallway, but the older witches shot to their feet and physically restrained her. “He must follow the letter of the spell. Don’t disrupt him or else he could suffer worse consequences. You don’t want that to happen, do you?”
“No. I guess I’m not as good at waiting as I thought I was.”Lie. My whole job is usually about waiting. Why am I so fidgety now?
“Would you like a cup of tea, dearie?”
“Sure. That would be great.”
“Come into the kitchen.”
“What about Max?”
“We won’t be gone long, dearie. And besides, keeping you from thwarting the spell reversal is more important.”
Probably true.“Good point. Okay.” She followed Helen and Matilda into the kitchen, which was right next to the parlor. If Max came back, they would surely hear him.
To keep her occupied, the two women showed her a large floor-to-ceiling shelf with their collection of fancy teacups beside their kitchen table. Next to the sink was a smaller counter-to-ceiling shelf with a collection of fancy spoons. On the other side of the sink was yet another shelf, only this one had hundreds of thimbles. There were a variety of ceramic, wooden and metal ones, decoratively painted, from many different places all around the world.
The sound of a distant and muffled alarm came from the direction where Matilda, Helen and Max had gone earlier.
