Free Wanted: Hexed or Alive by Charity Parkerson

 
    WANTED : HEXED OR ALIVE
     
     
    Thunder rumbled in the distance, warning of the upcoming storm. Randall stared out of the front window of his shop, Cruz Apothecary, watching as his fellow business owners scrambled to haul their sidewalk fare indoors. 
    In New Orleans, it was impossible to predict the pop-up thunderstorms that accompanied the heat of the summer. Personally, he loved the sounds and smells of such a storm, but then again, as a wizard, he didn’t sell his goods outdoors.
    A flash of lightning lit up the sky, followed closely by a loud pop, almost as if someone had fired a pistol. The street plunged into darkness as the electricity failed against nature’s fury.
    With a sigh, Randall lit a few candles and gave up any hope of doing business today. The fire danced above the wax sticks and bounced off the rainbow-colored bottles that lined the shelves, causing a twinkling light display to play upon the walls.
    Randall allowed his mind to empty of all thought as he stared at the show. It wasn’t often that he was able to become one with his surroundings. 
    The bell jingled above the door, pulling him from his meditation, and his breath caught in his throat at the first sight of the beautiful woman.
    A soaked, red-haired goddess was dressed in a yellow sundress that fell to her knees. The wet material hugged her every generous curve. She fought to close the umbrella, which had only managed to keep her hair dry and nothing else. With a growl of frustration, she tossed it to the side.
    “Bloody thing,” she cursed, glowering at the still open umbrella, and causing him to smile.
    Her smooth foreign accent rolled over his skin. He couldn’t place the origin, but he loved it.
    “Are you in need of shelter from the rain?”
    At his question, she smoothed down the front of her dress as if attempting to remove invisible wrinkles, and only managed to draw his gaze to her hardened nipples. Tearing his eyes away, he made a valiant attempt to look her in the face.
    “No, actually, I’m looking for a potion. I’m Rowena, by the way,” she added as she moved to shake his hand.
    Randall found himself mesmerized by the way her lips shaped each accented word, and he tugged the lapels of his white lab coat closed with one hand to keep from embarrassing himself as he shook her outstretched hand with the other.
    “I’m sorry. What did you say you were looking for?”
    Her green eyes flashed with humor at his question as if she knew the effect she was having on him. “You know; a tonic, a brew, a remedy,” she expounded.
    “Ah, well,” he said, clearing his throat. “You’ve come to the right place.” He released her hand. “What concoction do you seek?” Randall asked, making his way over the laden shelves. “I have everything from pain relievers to protective spells.”
    “Pirate removal,” she answered with a decisive nod.
    “You wish to remove a pirate?” Randall asked, sounding like an idiot even to his own ears.
    Rowena’s curly hair bounced and her dangling gold earrings moved in time with her head as she nodded. “Um-hmm, that’s what I said.”
    “As in Blackbeard, sails unfurling, yo, ho, ho, and a bottle of rum?” Randall acted out his question with a bent elbow robot dance that ended with him standing like the captain on the front of his favorite brand of rum.
    Rowena followed his motions with her eyes as if patiently waiting for his mind to catch up with the situation.
    “Exactly,” she agreed. “I’m talking the whole ‘Where has all the rum gone?’, ‘scurvy dogs,’ and ‘argh,’” she said, ending with her finger curved like a hook.
    Realizing that he was still standing like he had a little captain in him, he dropped his foot and shrugged. “Sure, I have a spell for that, but you’d need a witch or wizard to perform it for you.”
    Randall took pride in his ability to spot another magical creature from a hundred feet away and he knew that this woman was no witch.
    “Tell