Pearl (Jewels Cafe Book 8) Read online

  PEARL

  JEWELS CAFE SERIES

  TABITHA BARRET

  @ Copyright 2019 Heather Baker

  All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

  For copyright and publishing information, contact Tabitha Barret at her website http://www.tabithabarret.com.

  Cover by Josie Cluney

  Edited by Yvonne Graham.

  The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to persons real, living, or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

  “People often say that this or that person has not yet found himself. But the self is not something one finds, it is something one creates.” – Thomas Szasz

  Table of Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Epilogue

  Books in the Jewels Café Series

  Sneak Peek at the Next Book in the Jewels Series: Emerald

  Other Books Related to Pearl

  About the Author

  Acknowledgements

  First, I want to give a huge thank you to the organizers of this series, Mia Harlan and Eva Delaney, for including me in this unique experience. It’s not often that you get to work on your own book, while still being part of a larger world. This was a new experience for me and I had a lot of fun.

  Thank you to the other wonderful authors in this series. We created our own little world and encouraged each other. We ran for mayor of our town, and helped put out the fire. If you haven’t seen our FB group, you need to check it out.

  As always, thank you to my crew. My Alpha Readers and my Editor are very special people who keep me from falling into madness and make sure all the right words are on the page. It’s really a full time job most days.

  I hope that my readers enjoy this new book and explore the rest of the series to get the full experience of the Jewels Cafe world.

  Chapter 1

  I eyed the door handle as the car slowed for a red light. If I timed my jump right, I could roll out of the car, hit the ground running and reach the bus terminal in ten minutes.

  As I reached towards the handle to carry out my escape plan, I thought about his face. My fingers grazed the metal handle and I paused. I was insane to believe that this time would be different. Nothing had changed in the few months since I had left for school. I still didn’t have my magic. I still didn’t know how to talk to boys. Yet, deep down, I still held out hope that Benjamin Fitzroy would see me as someone other than the girl with pigtails and braces. I didn’t want to be his buddy or the girl next door. I wanted Benjamin to care about me as much as I cared about him.

  Fearing that I would make a fool of myself with Benjamin, I thought about hopping on the next plane to Hallowed Woods Academy and retreating to the quiet of my favorite library. I closed my eyes and saw his handsome face. His goofy smile melted my heart and gave me the courage to continue on my mission. It was time to stop hiding my feelings for Benjamin. I needed to know once and for all if we were meant to be together, even if it meant spending the Winter Solstice with my family.

  I gritted my teeth and stared at the welcome sign for Silver Springs, New York. For better or worse, I was home.

  “Pearl Dreger, sit up straight. I don’t know what that academy has been teaching you, but I will not spend good money to send you to a boarding school that doesn’t teach you proper posture. For heaven’s sake, put down your book for five minutes and talk to me. I haven’t seen you since you left in the fall. Tell me what you’ve learned.” My mother, Caroline Marjory Dreger, head of both the Black Hat and Broom Society and the Wands of Tomorrow Society, stared at me from across the limo, expecting me to answer. We had left the airport only 30 minutes ago, and already I could feel the familiar stress settling into my neck and shoulders.

  Snuggling into my wool coat, I watched the snow fall on the barren trees and the mounds of snow from the previous storms and sighed. I reminded myself that it was my decision to come home, not hers. Taking a deep breath, I settled into the seat and let her continue our one-way conversation. It was best not to answer until she let out all of the pent up mothering she had missed out on since the summer.

  She shifted in her seat and assessed me. “I assume you haven’t gotten your magic yet; otherwise, you would have mentioned something by now. I told Georgia that it was only a matter of time until you proved how adept you were at spell casting. I swear that woman believes you’re adopted. I know you have the potential to be one of the greatest casters in the world. Of course, she doesn’t believe me. Don’t worry Pearl, we’ll show them. They will have to apologize to me for all their gossiping.” She looked out the window to mutter to herself for a few more seconds before looking back at me.

  “Yes, mother. We’ll show them.”

  “I heard there was a witch who was thrown out of a conjuring school because her magic didn’t come in by senior year. They said she was better suited at a regular school. Oh, the embarrassment. I just don’t know what I would do if you were sent home from the academy next year. We would have to move. You have been trying to cast, haven’t you?”

  I cringed at her tone. She would be embarrassed. What a joke. I would have to live my life as the girl who was kicked out of school because I was the worst witch in history.

  “Yes, mother. I have been working with my tutor, Professor Stoica, every chance I get. I promise that I have been trying.” I glanced down at the book in my hands to avoid the look of dissatisfaction on her face. As one of the most prominent witches in town, she hated to admit to her friends that I was unable to cast or conjure. If only she knew how hard I was working to learn as many spells as possible so that whenever my stupid powers decided to show up, I could finally make her proud of me.

  She launched into her third speech about everything that was wrong with me as I pretended to ignore her. I resisted the urge for the hundredth time to remind her that I hated the name Pearl and preferred to use my middle name, Celeste. After all, who wanted to be named after a witch who single handedly saved her village from a fire-breathing dragon over 200 years ago? Sure, it was an honor to be named after my great, great something or other grandmother, but not when my magic hadn’t come in yet. As a late bloomer, I was a social pariah, despite my mother’s insistence that I would one day be worthy of the name Pearl.

  “I’m fine, by the way.” I pursed my lips, unable to take any more criticism.

  Her expression softened a bit when she looked back at me. “I’m sorry that we didn’t fly out when Headmistress Strudwick contacted us about the incident. She said that you were fine and no longer in danger. I’m glad they apprehended the guilty party. Your father will make sure that man never sees the light of day. Attacking children. How horrible do you have to be to harm children? I wanted to bring you back home, but Headmistress Strudwick insisted that you wanted to stay. I did leave messages for you to call me, though I admit we were traveling at the time so I might have missed them.”

  I shook my head. “I didn’t call. I knew you were busy and didn’t want to burden you. I wasn’t hurt.” In truth, I had been terrified of what had happened. I had accidentally set off a trap intended for my friend Sadie and was choked by a curse. Thankfully, the curse had been broken before any damage had been done.

 
; Yes, they had arrested the person responsible, but I had trouble sleeping after the incident. I should have called, but I feared that my mother would somehow blame me for what happened. If I had my abilities, I could have freed myself. At least, that’s how she would have seen it. Instead, I dealt with the aftermath alone.

  “I would’ve had you on the next flight home, but your father insisted on letting you stay. He had hoped that the incident would awaken a fighting spirit inside of you, causing your powers to manifest. I suppose that didn’t happen.” She sighed and looked down at the day planner perched across her plaid wool skirt and tapped it with her wand.

  “No, it didn’t.”

  I flipped through my book on how to deal with overbearing parents that was covered in my Advanced Alchemy dust jacket and stopped on the page that discussed how to side-step emotional blackmail. I tried not to laugh at how accurate the book was.

  “Look at you, Pearl! Don’t they have a decent salon near school? Your nails are chipped and your hair looks like a raven’s nest. Have you been wearing ponytails all this time? Well, don’t worry; you have an appointment with Fernando at noon. I was thinking that highlights would make your gorgeous brown eyes sparkle. Perhaps bangs would help. You need to be presentable for this afternoon’s planning meeting.”

  “I don’t like bangs, mother. And please call me Celeste.” I couldn’t stop myself from blurting out my preferred name after the bangs comment. I refused to relive the bangs disaster of ‘18 when Fernando had cut my hair into a bob with bangs and made me look like a boy.

  “Celeste is a stripper’s name, dear. I will not address you as such. I only agreed to give you that dreadful middle name to appease your father and that horrid woman.” She clicked her tongue at me and tapped her finger on her cheek. I almost laughed at her ongoing feud with great grandmother Celeste even though she had died six years ago.

  “What meeting are we going to?” I was surprised to hear that she was bringing me out into public so soon. I’d hoped to avoid any major interactions with her friends until I was settled in. I needed time to climb back into my life as Pearl Dreger, daughter of Vincent Dreger, billionaire, philanthropist and Guardian of the Casters of Silver Springs Coven.

  “I volunteered you to be the Ambassador to the YWWA and help with the Solstice Celebration preparations. Mrs. Foley’s daughter had a mishap at the local academy and well, let’s just say that it will take her until January to change her skin back to normal after turning it purple. It’s very unfortunate, but that’s what happens when you try to break into the headmaster’s liquor cabinet and set off a defensive spell.” Unsurprisingly, my mother didn’t sound too upset for poor Janice, especially since it gave her the chance to step in and “save the day” by offering me up to the vipers to help with their preparations.

  A part of me died inside when I thought about helping the local chapter of the Young Witches and Wizards Association, or the YWWA, an organization that tried to unify the various caster and conjurer covens. They were partly to blame for my decision to travel halfway across the country to attend school.

  Pulling onto Main Street, I looked around at the familiar stores to see if anything had changed. Though the stores were normal, for the most part, there were specialty stores, like Hex You, dedicated to the local supernatural community, who attempted to blend in with the non-sups and had wards in place so that we remained hidden. We passed the phone and computer repair store run by Parker Blue, a tech demon, and his human friends. Beyond it was the shoe store and of course, Vee, a popular bar.

  “Oh, we need to stop by Jewels Cafe later. I saw a sign saying that Pumpkin Spice Lattes would still be available during the winter season. I know they’re your favorite. The coven can’t stop raving about how wonderful the new cafe is. Of course, you need to watch your figure. You need to fit into your gown, so go easy on them.”

  I shook my head at the thought of “the gown”. While I had my own reasons for coming home to celebrate the Winter Solstice, my mother had other plans for me. The Winter Solstice celebration was the crown jewel in my mother’s social calendar. It was a weeklong series of events to end all social events, including the dreaded welcome luncheon, the charity Pike game, the Ice Carnival and Winter Solstice Pageant and Ball. I hadn’t seen my gown for the ball yet, but based on the previous year’s dress, I would hate this one too.

  My brain froze when I thought about walking into the ball and seeing Benjamin standing in his tux, looking handsome and poised. This year, I would not spill anything on him and I would figure out how to tell him how much I adore him, without throwing up on anyone. Why was it so hard to tell a boy that I’d known for most of my life that I liked him? Because, I was a loser. It was as simple as that.

  As we pulled into the long, winding driveway, my mother pointed at the Fitzroy house and frowned. “Dolores Fitzroy is having her own trouble with that son of hers. She is desperate to set him up with a new girl in town, Anika Klein. She’s starting to wonder if he prefers the company of boys.”

  I dropped my book, which tumbled out of my lap as I stared at the massive white colonial mansion situated next to our Victorian estate. I had no idea who Anika Klein was, but I made it my mission to find out before Benjamin, who was definitely not gay, gave in to his mother’s nagging and asked this Anika to the dance.

  Chapter 2

  “Miss Dreger, it’s wonderful to see you.” Andrew smiled politely and took my bags from my mother’s new driver as I stepped onto the plush red carpeting that ran through the entire first floor of the house. I cringed when my eyes took in all the dark wood paneling. I felt the life drain out of me as I crossed the threshold. I reminded myself that it was only a week until I could run back to school.

  “Andrew, it’s good to see you.” I smiled and hugged him, to my mother’s displeasure.

  “Your room is all made up. Please let me know if you need anything.” Andrew winked at me. It was his way of saying that he would provide a distraction if I needed to escape from the house. He had been my co-conspirator for years whenever my mother became too much to handle.

  He quickly pulled out his wand and flicked it at my coat pocket before anyone could see him. Later, when I reached inside, there would be homemade chocolate chip cookies.

  As he turned to take my bags upstairs, I lightly tapped his arm. I quickly checked to make sure that my mother was busy talking to her personal assistant Dani before whispering, “Who is Anika Klein?”

  Andrew looked around the staircase to make sure we were alone. “Her family arrived in town about a week after you left. Mrs. Klein has been clawing her way up the rungs of your mother’s society clubs and is eager for her daughter to be accepted into the right circles. There has been resistance due to some gossip about where their money comes from. I haven’t gotten all the details yet, but I’ve had my ear to the ground ever since I heard that Anika was interested in young Benjamin. I knew you would want to know everything.”

  I frowned and looked at the front door. “I appreciate your snooping. Keep up the good work. If my mother asks, tell her I went to bed because of the jetlag. I’m going to do my own spying.”

  “Yes, Miss Dreger.” He headed up the steps, making sure to hit my luggage against the step at the exact moment the front door closed behind me, aiding my escape.

  Pulling my faux phoenix scarf around my neck, I shivered in the cold air. I had to find a way to see Benjamin before the YWWA meeting, where he would no doubt be if his mother had any say in the matter. I needed time to talk to him alone.

  I headed across the recently shoveled walkway around the house and cut through the side garden, which was still in full bloom despite the four inches of snow on the ground. Sometimes it was nice to be part of a magical family.

  I touched the red roses and smiled as I remembered meeting Benjamin for the first time while standing on that very spot. His mother had been screaming at him not to get his pants dirty and his father was telling him not to run in the grass. Five seconds
after being introduced, we started commiserating about our overbearing parents and stole cookies from the pantry. After that, we played in the garden every day and ran around our massive houses while our parents partied every night. It felt like we were kindred spirits.

  Even at eight years old, he had a way of smiling at me that made me giggle. Little did I know that my feelings for him would grow until I couldn’t look at him without turning as red as the rose garden. We understood one another and supported each other, until the day he got his magic three years ago.

  His parents had been so proud of him and he was beyond excited. Mother; however, decided that we shouldn’t play together anymore because Benjamin, as it turned out, was a conjurer. Conjurers used their emotions combined with physical movements to do spells, instead of using wands to harness the natural elements around them. Casters, like my parents, tended to look down upon conjurers because they often lost control of their emotions and became dangerous. They were more likely to use black magic and create curses.

  Though it wasn’t Benjamin’s fault that he was a conjurer, my family didn’t like the idea of me playing with him. It broke my heart to close the gate that connected our properties and shun him.

  In public, I was allowed to interact with Benjamin and we tried to maintain our friendship, but my mother kept a close eye on us. Benjamin treated me the same way he always had, but understood that things had changed.

  Regardless of what my mother thought, I refused to waste any more time ignoring my feelings for the boy I yearned for. Consequences be damned, I was going to make sure that Benjamin knew how I felt and how much I hated this Anika Klein, before it was too late.

  Pressing further into the garden, I looked back at the house to make sure that I wasn’t being watched. Picking up a stone, I ran to the far edge of the gate and hurled the stone at his window, hoping that he was in his room.