Love Spell: Book 2 of The Grimm Laws Read Free Page A

know what you know. Something is happening to me—something I don’t understand. Mirrors don’t repair themselves, and reflections don’t smirk back. And words don’t magically appear on a page,” she finished.
    Adele looked at the ceiling. “Oh, drats! Do you see the predicament you’ve put me in? She’s confused, and I can hardly blame her!”
    Elle narrowed her eyes. She was tired of her aunt’s silly games. “Who are you talking to?” She glared up at the ceiling. “There’s no one there!”
    “Okay, let’s cut through the chase , as you kids say. Go ahead and eat the white truffle, and I’ll get Bree.”
    “Who’s Bree?”
    “Eat the white truffle, dear.”
    Elle crossed her arms tightly over her chest as a scowl formed on her face. “Not until you tell me the truth.”
    Adele gave her a challenging look. “Eat the truffle.”
    “No,” she said stubbornly.
    Her voice became gentle. “Have I ever done anything to hurt you?”
    There was a look of exasperation on her face that caused Elle to feel a spark of guilt, and she almost ate the truffle just to appease Adele. Her aunt had been nothing but kind to her. Still, she was keeping things from her, and she needed to know what those things were. “I’ll eat the truffle when you tell me the truth,” Elle said firmly.
    “I’m too old for this nonsense,” she muttered and then waved her hand. “Eat the truffle.”
    Elle’s hand seemed to have a mind of its own. She looked down in shock as she reached out, took the truffle, and placed it in her mouth.
    “Now chew and swallow,” Adele commanded.
    She complied, even though her mind was screaming for her to do the opposite. She barely noticed the smooth, delectable taste as the truffle slid down her throat.
    “There,” Adele said, “that wasn’t so terrible, was it?”
    Elle only glared at her. She watched as Adele walked over to the oil painting of the mother and daughter, resting on a red velvet settee. Adele removed the painting, revealing a safe. She opened it and retrieved a thick leather book that looked ancient. She sat down in the chair facing Elle.
    “You keep that book in a locked safe?” She made a face. “What? Are you afraid it’s going to jump up and run off?” she finished sarcastically.
    Adele laughed. “We’ve had this conversation before, dear.”
    “We have? I don’t remember.”
    “I know you don’t. Tell me about the gold key,” she said unceremoniously.
    “So, I’m supposed to answer all of your questions, but you won’t answer a single one of mine?”
    “No need to act like a sour puss, dear. I’m only trying to help. Answering my questions will help you gain the answers you seek. I promise.”
    She blew out a breath. Arguing with Adele was futile. “For a split second, I thought I saw a gold key. But before I could tell for sure, it vanished.”
    Adele frowned. “You don’t have it?”
    “No, I only saw it for a second, and then it disappeared.”
    Adele leaned forward and caught Elle’s arm. She looked furtively over her shoulder and then lowered her voice. “I want you to listen to me. You will not remember anything else about our conversation today, but I need you to remember this.”
    “Whoa! Wait a minute! I won’t remember anything about this conversation? What’re you talking about?”
    “The milk chocolate truffle will make you forget,” Adele said impatiently.
    Elle looked at the truffle in horror. “Then I won’t eat it.” Even as she spoke the words, she realized that she wouldn’t have a choice. Adele would make her eat it, just as she’d made her eat the white chocolate truffle. She shook her head. “If the milk chocolate makes me forget, then what does the white chocolate do?”
    “It will help you remember.”
    “Remember?” she said dubiously. “Remember what?”
    Adele waved the comment away. “We’ll get to that. First, we need to talk about the key.” She looked into Elle’s eyes. “Do not tell anyone you saw