“Worth a try,” Glo said.
“I can manage on my own,” Clara said. “You guys go back to the store and see if you can get the spell reversed.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
We walked two blocks south and stopped in front of Glo’s spellbook store. Ye Olde Exotica Shoppe was written in gold script above the weather-beaten wood door. The sign in the grimy window said COME IN IF YOU DARE.
“Unh,” Shirley said.
My feelings exactly, but we went inside anyway. The store was small. The inventory was extensive. Every nook and cranny was crammed with who-the-heck-knows-what. Floor-to-ceiling shelves held jars labeled blue eyeballs, brown eyeballs, bullock nose hairs, rabbit gonads, milkweed pods, rotted monkey brain, pickled toes, gummy bears, Irish pixie dust, screech owl beaks, kosher salt, rat tails, beetle legs, pig ears, troll phlegm, candied earthworm.
Shirley stopped in front of the gummy bears. “Chewy snot gobbers!”
“Not now,” Glo told her, snagging her by the elbow, moving her to the back counter. “You can have all the snot gobbers you want after we talk to Nina. She owns the store, and she sold me the book of spells.”
Nina was in her early sixties. She had frizzed white hair that hung halfway down her back, her face looked like it had been dusted with cake flour, and her fingers were long and boney and loaded with rings. She was wearing a frothy white gown that I was sure was previously owned by Glinda the Good Witch from The Wizard of Oz. The gown had been accessorized with brown Birkenstock clogs and wool socks. In my mind, not a good fashion mix.
“So nice to see you again,” Nina said to Glo. “How are you getting along with Ripple’s spell book?”
“Actually I’ve been having some issues,” Glo said.
“It’s to be expected with a brand-new owner,” Nina said, “but practice makes perfect. You haven’t turned anyone into a roach, have you? I’ve been told the transformation spell on page 37 can sometimes go awry.”
“You’re kidding, right?” I said to Nina. “I mean, this is just a fun shop filled with tourist trinkets.”
Nina looked around her store. “Some of my merchandise is tourist-directed. They love the Harry Potter sorcerer’s wands and the pickled troll balls. But then, I stock other things that are historically important to Salem and necessary for brewing potions and stews. It used to be potions had fallen out of favor, what with needing
an iron cauldron and all, but it turns out a slow cooker works just fine. Just plug it in, and seven hours later, you’re in business. Of course, you need a good book of spells like Ripple’s.”
I cut my eyes to Nina. “I’m having a hard time believing the whole book of spells concept.”
“Well, a book of spells is nothing more than a cookbook. Over the years, recipes have evolved for sponge cake, lobster bisque, spontaneous combustion, cheese soufflé, levitation, enchantment. It’s really not rocket science. Needless to say, some recipes work better than others. Personally, I have a preference for Cooking Light.”
“I had a small mishap with a truth spell,” Glo said. “I did it perfectly, except for the powdered yak brain.”
Nina looked alarmed. “Oh dear. Don’t tell me you omitted the powdered yak brain!”
“It didn’t seem like a big deal,” Glo said. “The thing is, the spell partly worked, but not entirely. And now I’d like to reverse it, but I can’t find a reverse spell.”
“It isn’t that easy. If you left an ingredient out, you have an entirely different spell,” Nina said. “You have to find the appropriate spell before you can reverse it. What sort of spell did you cast?”
“Beggar ass diddle piddle pot,” Shirley said. “Icky bickham red cracker.”
“That’s a scramble spell,” Nina said. “There are many different kinds, and some are very powerful.”
“Prac,” Shirley said. “Rub a dub me.”
Glo bit into her lower lip. “I was hoping it would wear off all by itself.”
“Most temporary spells expire at twenty-four hours,” Nina said. “If the spell lasts beyond twenty-four hours, it’s likely to be permanent.”
“Maybe there’s a one-size-fits-all reverse spell,” I said. “Something generic.”
“I could look through The Big Book of Oaths and Potions,” Nina said. “It’s the definitive work. In the meantime, you can try to find the spell in Ripple’s.”
“One more thing,” Glo said. “I couldn’t fly.”
“Flying is tricky,” Nina told her. “You might want to add pixie dust to the base spell. I have some on sale.”