Part 3 (1/2)
She didn't know what breaking a crystal ball signified, but it couldn't be a good thing. The carpet could be cleaned, but the green marble-topped table was an antique she'd saved for months to buy.
She glared at Jasper. ”Keep this up, fur face, and you'll be eating Cat Chow for the rest of your life.”
With a sigh, she went to the kitchen and got a sponge and a bucket of water. She wasn't much good at cleaning because she'd always used magic for that. Sponging up mousse from the carpet sounded disgusting, but for the time being, she had no choice.
She was still on her hands and knees when Lily used her key and came through the door. Anica had given her the key after renting the apartment, probably in some vain hope they'd grow closer. It hadn't happened. Apparently they were too different. Dropping the sponge into the bucket, Anica got up.
Dear Zeus, how she hated to let Lily see her in the middle of such a major screwup. She forced herself to be gracious. ”I appreciate you leaving work, Lil.”
”Are you kidding? I wouldn't have missed this for the world.” She glanced around and quickly took in the disasters. ”Whoa! Your boyfriend looks like s.h.i.+t. What's he been rolling in?” Lily took off her backpack and black leather jacket.
”Chocolate mousse from La Boheme.”
”Was that before or after the transformation?” She was wearing her bartending outfit-a low-cut black knit s.h.i.+rt and skinny black pants. Her dark hair was piled on top of her head in a loose arrangement. With that hairstyle and platform shoes, she was at least six feet tall. Anica was not pet.i.te at five-eight, but Lily was almost five-ten in her bare feet.
”After the transformation.”
Lily surveyed the living room. ”Uh-oh. Is that what's left of your crystal ball?”
” 'Fraid so. Do you know what happens when you break one?”
”No.” Lily crouched and picked up the two pieces. ”Do you?”
”Nope.”
”I'm thinking Super Glue might not be the answer.” She laid the pieces on the carpet again and stood.
”Probably not. I'll research it later. Right now, we have to deal with the cat situation. I'd rather the Wizard Council didn't find out.”
”I'll bet.” Lily's brown gaze was smug. ”Who would believe that my perfect older sister would one day break a rule. How does it feel, sis?”
”Not so good, if you must know. Can we get going here? I hope you brought your wand. My two don't seem to be working.”
”I always carry one in my backpack.” Lily walked over and unzipped a side pocket. ”But I have to ask, what sent you over the edge and made you zap this guy-what's his name?”
”Jasper Danes.”
Lily pulled out her wand, which was dyed deep purple and covered with glitter. ”He can understand everything we say, can't he? I mean, he's a cat on the outside but still a man on the inside, right?”
”I think so.” Anica glanced over at Jasper, who stared at her with accusing golden eyes. ”It's hard to tell since he can't talk.”
”That could be a plus. Want me to try and keep that feature in when I change him back?”
After the lies Jasper had told, Anica was tempted. But it would violate wizard law. ”Lily, we can't mess around with people.”
”Don't be all sanctimonious with me.” Lily pulled a reference book on spells out of her backpack. ”You're the one who turned a man into a p.u.s.s.y.”
From his perch on the bookshelf Jasper growled.
Lily glanced up at him and smiled. ”Yep, he can understand us, all right. You still haven't told me why you wanded him, sis.”
”I'd rather not go into it.”
”Was it because you discovered he has a teeny-tiny d.i.c.k?”
”No, it wasn't!”
Jasper hissed, which made Lily laugh.
Anica scowled at her. ”You're enjoying this way too much.”
”Yes, indeed I am. For all my twenty-six years, I've been the screwup in the family and you've been the model of perfection. I finally, finally have something to hold over your head. Unless you were planning to come clean with Mom and Dad.”
Anica thought of their highly respectable parents, who'd taken a year's sabbatical from their teaching positions at the International Magical Academy to research ancient herbal remedies in Peru. ”I'd rather not.”
”Good choice. My silence can be bought, but it's not cheap.”
”Lily! You're d.i.c.kering over terms while a man's existence hangs in the balance!”
”Who put him in that position, hmm?”
Lily had her there. Oh, how Anica regretted that split second when fury and frustration had wiped out years of discipline. ”You're right.” The words tasted like vinegar in her mouth.
”Music to my ears, big sis. Music to my ears. Okay, I found something that might work. Stand aside, and let the responsible sister take a shot. Oh, how I love saying that! It's never been true before, but looking at the mangy alley cat perched on your bookshelf, you have to admit it's true now.”
Anica closed her eyes and envisioned a lifetime of being blackmailed by her younger sister. ”Just do it so we can all go back to our regularly scheduled programs.”
”If you insist.” Lily sighed. ”I would love to stand here and poke fun at you for another hour or so, but-”
”Lily!”
”Okay, okay. I suppose there's some reward in that he'll appear naked. That could be fun. Did you want to get him a towel or something?”
”Yeah, hold on.” Anica hurried to the bathroom and pulled a towel off the rack. When she returned, Lily was waving her wand like a symphony conductor, but Jasper was still in cat form. Anica hadn't watched her sister do magic in some time and had no idea how she worked these days. ”You didn't start, did you?”
”No. I'm limbering up the wand. I like my men and my wands flexible.”
Anica groaned. If she hadn't been desperate for help she wouldn't have called Lily. But she hadn't been able to think of anyone else who could come at a moment's notice and could (she prayed) be trusted, or bribed, not to tell.
Lily cleared her throat. ”I've given up on the Latin chants. Too hard to remember. English works fine for me.”
”You can chant in Portuguese if it'll break this spell. Go.”
”I'm ready.” Lily raised her wand. ”Mangy tomcat, full of grime, tiny d.i.c.k your only crime-”
”That wasn't the problem, d.a.m.n it!”
Lily paused, took a breath and started over. ”Mangy tomcat, full of grime, flaccid d.i.c.k your only crime-”
”It had nothing to do with his d.i.c.k!”