Lacybourne Manor (Ghosts and Reincarnation #3)(106)
Author: Kristen Ashley

Mrs. Byrne moved forward with a glass vial in one hand that had a powder in it that looked like cinnamon, a common kitchen strainer in the other.

Marian moved directly toward Colin.

“This won’t hurt a bit,” she assured and lifted the vial and strainer over his head.

“What,” his voice was low and even and very, very frightening but not nearly as frightening as the hard, cold look on his face, a look and tone that froze Marian’s hands in mid air, “do you think you’re going to do with that?”

“Why, pour it over your head,” Marian explained as if it was the most normal thing in the world.

He lithely slid out of his chair, out from under the strainer and towered over her. “I think not.”

Marian’s face set resolutely. “My dear man –”

“Do me!” Sibyl interjected, finding herself in the role of peacemaker. If she didn’t step in, by the look on his face, Colin was likely to explode. “You can do me first, I don’t mind.”

Marian turned to Sibyl. “The most potent effects of the charm come in the first few sprinkles,” Marian explained, “and Colin –”

“By all means, shower away on Sibyl, especially if they are the most potent,” Colin cut in. He’d crossed his arms on his chest and now, instead of looking furious, he looked amused.

Sibyl made a face at him which caused him, to her great distress, to let out a sharp bark of laughter.

Marian sagely ignored him and muttered to Sibyl, “This won’t take even a minute, dear.”

And then she lifted the strainer over Sibyl’s head and poured the cinnamon concoction in and Sibyl waited to be dusted with its rusty, brown contents.

Instead, to her utter amazement, the minute the brown powder sifted through the strainer, it sparkled and glittered brightly, raining down on her like fairy dust, disappearing altogether the minute it touched her hair, her skin, her clothes.

“Oh… my… goddess,” Mags breathed.

Phoebe’s mouth gaped open and stayed that way.

Colin’s eyes narrowed.

“That’ll do.” Marian swiftly pulled the strainer and vial way.

“You see!” Sibyl, feeling hope for the first time, a witness to obvious magic (with pixie dust and all!), she shot out of her chair with excitement. “Oh Colin, this might possibly work!”

“Of course it’ll work,” Angie grumbled.

Colin did not appear, in any way, shape or form, to be convinced.

“I fail to see –” he began but she ran to him, flattening her palms against his abdomen, she leaned into him.

“Please do it, for me?” she begged, looking beseechingly into his doubting eyes.

He stared at her a moment and then, to her delight, gave in, though not at all gracefully.

And he did this by muttering, “For Christ’s sake,” before he sat down to get his sprinkling.

When all was done, Colin announced, “I need to make a few calls, I’ll be out front.” And he marched out of the magic room, the very picture of affronted male dignity and, if possible, Sibyl’s love for him deepened.

Oblivious to all of this, Angie chimed in happily, “Time for a cuppa,” and she herded a still stunned Phoebe and an excitedly chattering Mags into the kitchen.

Sibyl hung back with Mrs. Byrne who was cleaning her magical implements.

“Mrs. Byrne. You’ve done so much and at great personal cost –” Sibyl charged right in to begin work on her plan, time was of the essence.

“No cost at all, dear, it’s my pleasure, it’s my destiny.” Although still not fully back to herself, Mrs. Byrne was obviously in her element, enjoying every second of this.

Sibyl approached her and watched her working. “I need to ask you a favour.”

Marian threw her a smile and immediately replied, “Anything.”

Sibyl smiled back at her.

Then she asked, “If you can bring Royce forward, could you send me back?”

Marian’s hands stopped what they were doing and she turned to Sibyl with questioning eyes. “Of course, dear, it’s very basic magic, though a costly endeavour in time and energy but why would you want to do that?”

Sibyl quickly explained, “I’ve been waiting to have another dream memory but I haven’t had one in ages. I think now, if I went back, maybe he would recall me or I could get him to listen to me. If I go back, I can tell him what’s going to happen and he can be prepared for it, fight it, keep himself and Beatrice alive and…”

She trailed off when Mrs. Byrne turned back to her task while shaking her head.

“No, no. As much as I’d like to, you don’t mess with time. Never.” She paused thoughtfully, as if considering it. Then shook her head again, sadly and finished, “Ever.”

“But Marian, don’t you see? If we stop the curse before it starts –”

Marian set down the strainer which had been cleaned with some clear fluid in an oddly shaped, cork-topped bottle and she turned to Sibyl. “Sibyl, as lovely as it would be to allow their love to blossom and grow, if we change time and Royce and Beatrice lived, then the whole world could change. It could be good or it could be bad. We don’t know; we’d have no way of ever knowing. It could be that you or Colin or the both of you would never exist. Or me. Or my children. Or Japan could fall into the ocean. Anything could happen.”

“It couldn’t be that bad and if –”

Marian put her hand out to touch Sibyl’s cheek.

“No,” she said in a quiet voice, trying to soften the blow of her refusal.

Sibyl closed her eyes.

So much for Plan A, now she had to try Plan B.

“Okay, I have another idea.”

“I’m all ears,” Marian informed her and then went to sit down in a plush, worn, plum-coloured, velvet chair with a doily hanging on the back of it. Sibyl took a seat beside her, took a deep breath, pinned her hopes on her words and plunged ahead.

“You can give me the potion you gave Colin and give some to him. But more this time, so that Royce and Beatrice could come forward for long enough to consummate their love using our bodies.”

Marian’s eyes widened and she pulled in a swift breath. Sibyl found this encouraging and she forged ahead.

“The time before, it didn’t last long so it would have to last long enough for them to have time to, um… do it. They’d know each other immediately, I know it. Even though the time has changed, the place has changed and our hair has changed. I know they’d recognise each other. We could…” She stopped because she making up the entirety of the plan as she went along then she hit on it. “Write them a note! Tell them what to do. Then they could stop the curse and give Colin and me time, without this hanging over our heads, to…”