Tabitha rubbed her hands and bent down to warm them in front of the fire. She was still rubbing her hands as she started speaking. “Scarlett, could you please tell me precisely what you were doing in McMillan’s flat in the first place. Just how did you get involved? And can you please explain how you came to be in cahoots with another witch?”
Not for the first time whilst in her aunt’s company, Scarlett was made to feel like a naughty schoolgirl. “Well, it’s a complicated story, but if you’re asking me what I was doing there in the first place—”
“I am.”
“Then, I was just going to check out something the cleaner said in Costa.”
Tabitha furrowed her brow and shook her head, as if Scarlett was talking utter gibberish. “The cleaner at Costa, what the devil are you talking about?”
She remained composed, despite her aunt’s impatient tone of voice. “I was in there having a coffee with Amanda, when this woman burst in, screaming for someone to call the police. So I calmed her down and went to see what the problem was. Then I saw it.”
“The body you mean?”
“Yes, Aunt Tabitha, the body.”
“I’d already gathered there was a murder from all the questions the police were asking. Did you notice anything that might give a clue as to what happened?”
Scarlett nodded. “The body had a single stab wound in the abdomen. There was a phone in his hand and the entire building reeked of rotting flesh.”
Tabitha sighed. “And you just had to get involved, didn’t you?”
Scarlett hung her head.
Tabitha changed her line of questioning, and with it, her tone softened. “So how did you manage to work out who did it?”
“It started with Raven.”
“Raven?”
“Yes, Aunt Tabitha. She was trying to make a spell and got it wrong. She turned herself into a cat.”
“Oh, well it’s easily done when you’re learning the trade. That just goes to prove that magic should not be taken lightly, doesn’t it?”
“Yes, Aunt Tabitha, I suppose it does.”
“There’s no ‘suppose’ about it. So anyway, you were telling me about how you figured out who did it.”
“Oh yes. I found some things on the table in McMillan’s flat. A card and a box of chocolates. They were signed with a ‘V.’ The cleaner said the girlfriend’s name was some kind of bird, so I was, you know, trying to think of bird names beginning with V that were also a woman’s name.”
The whole lot of them plunged into deep thought for a minute as they tried to come up with a suggestion.
Cliff was the first to speak. “Bet you drew a blank with that one.”
Scarlett continued, talking to her aunt. “And then I thought maybe the card wasn’t from the girlfriend at all. Suddenly, it hit me! The girlfriend had to be our Raven!”
Tabitha nodded. “What did you do next?”
“I went ‘round her flat, found some flowers in a bin that were obviously from Robert, then I went into her bedroom and found a photo of her in human form. But most intriguing of all, in the living room, there was a bloodied knife on the table.”
“But how did you know it was the murder weapon?”
“Because,” she glanced at Tim, who shook his head, “I just had a gut feeling it was.”
“I see, and you acted on this, did you?”
“Yes, Aunt Tabitha. I determined it to be the best course of action.”
“So what happened then? It sounds to me like the evidence against Raven was pretty conclusive.”
The sound of Tim coughing interrupted them. “So sorry, something went down the wrong way. You know how it is.”
Tabitha nodded.
Scarlett knew that Tim was coughing strategically to tell her to be careful how much she revealed. “Well, Raven insisted that it wasn’t her, so that’s why we decided to perform the spell at McMillan’s flat, to know for sure, once and for all.”
Tabitha gave it some thought, before nodding her acceptance of the theory. “Sounds fair enough.”
Cliff sunk back in his chair and exhaled through his cheeks. “Well, thank goodness for that.”
Tabitha got to her feet. “Anyone for another drink?”
Everyone was keen to take her up on the offer and five minutes later, they were conversing like old friends about normal, everyday subjects.
Tabitha started laughing at something Cliff said, put her empty glass down on the carpeted floor and noticed Raven, curled up next to Scarlett. “Raven.” She held out her arms to her. “Come here, dear little friend.”
Raven got to her feet and scampered across the floor.
Tabitha lowered her head to look at Raven. “Us witches, we have to stick together, don’t we?”
Raven looked up, eyes shining.
“Don’t worry, these things happen to us all. It’s how we learn. You’re here now, that’s the main thing. I’ll have you back to yourself in no time. Just leave it to me.”
Tarquin looked at Tabitha. “Listen, why don’t I consult my books tomorrow? I might be able to find something to help.”
Tabitha reached down to pat Raven. “There you are. It’s going to be okay.” Tabitha stood up. “Tea and scones everyone? Scarlett, would you like to give me hand?”
“Of course.”
Waiting for her to catch her up, Tabitha leaned in and whispered, “I want a word with you.”
She followed her aunt into the kitchen.
Tabitha looked over her shoulder, past Scarlett. “Shut the door.”
Scarlett did as she was told and stepped tentatively across the kitchen. Once within roughly two feet of her aunt, she came to a halt and grinned, trying to make out she wasn’t in the slightest bit fearful.
Tabitha lowered her voice. “Scarlett, what did I tell you?”
She scoured her brain, trying to locate any kind of conversation to which her aunt might be referring. “About what?”
Tabitha looked incredulous. “About what? About dark magic, that’s what.”
Scarlett looked at the floor. “Oh, that.”
“Yes, that.”
“So what have you got to say for yourself?”
Scarlett pouted, in what she hoped was an endearing way. “But I haven’t—”
“Yes, you have. You listened to everything I had to say, then blatantly disregarded it. You promised me you’d stay away from all that.”
“But—”
“Do you want me to spell it out again to you? Did the message not get through last time, when I told you about my friend?” She took a deep breath and steadied herself on against the worktop. “They found her in a pool of her own blood, for heaven’s sake. Was that image not graphic enough for you?”
Noticing how just recounting the incident made her aunt turn pale, Scarlett felt overwhelmed with shame and guilt. “Yes, Aunt Tabitha.”
“Do you want me to tell you the story again?”
She felt her eyes well up. “No, Aunt Tabitha.”
“Are you sure about that?”
“Yes, Aunt Tabitha.”
Tabitha sighed. “Scarlett, it’s been a long hard day. I… I've had to go through it all, holding this in. I’ve had to stand up and be brave for everyone’s sake, but inside…” her voice wavered and she shook her head.
Scarlett’s lip started to tremble. “Are you disappointed with me?”
She softened. “No, I could never be disappointed with you, my girl.”
Scarlett smiled, her eyes still watery. “What then?”
“Fuming, dear. I’ve been fuming. All day long.”
She moved towards her aunt, arms open in front of her. “Oh, Aunt Tabitha, I’m so sorry.”
Tabitha raised a hand and took a step back. “No.”
“No?” Scarlett blinked, sending a torrent of tears streaming down her cheeks.
“Aunt Tabitha, I’m sorry. Please, you have to believe me.”
Tabitha stared at her for a moment, completely expressionles
s. “Oh, just go. Get out of my sight.” She pointed at the door.
Scarlett paused to wipe her eyes, before opening the door and re-joining the others, her head hung low.
A little while later, Tabitha burst in, carrying a tray of tea and scones. She sat down in the armchair and joined in the conversation like nothing had happened.
She had lost her appetite though. She sipped her tea and toyed with her scone. Ten minutes later, when everyone had finished, Scarlett had hardly even touched hers. She’d managed to drink her tea, but it had left a feeling of nausea in her gut.
Tarquin drained his mug, reached out to place it on the table and stood up. “Well, that’s me for the night. Think I’ll head off home.”
Cliff stood up. “Yeah, me too.”
Scarlett, Tim and Raven also rose to take their leave. Tabitha stroked Raven and said goodbye to Tim.
Noticing the way she’d been left out, she summoned a smile and said, “goodnight, Aunt Tabitha. I’ll miss you.”
Tabitha looked at her, flickered a smile and broke eye contact.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Friday Morning
Slater Residence, Bicester, England
Scarlett felt something soft jump up on her bed and move towards her head. Still half asleep, she shot out an arm to protect herself. “Oh, Raven,” she said, opening an eye. “Good morning, it’s so good to see you.”
Raven took a step back and hung her head to one side. “You okay? You look a bit—flustered.”
“What? Oh yes, you gave me a bit of a fright, that’s all. I had a bad dream.”
Raven relaxed on Scarlett’s midriff and maneuvered herself around so that they were facing each other. “What was it about?”
“Oh, about my aunt.” She paused. “There was blood and everything.”
Raven looked at her gravely. “Oh dear, don’t know what that means. You’ll have to get that one analyzed.”
Scarlett grinned. “Yeah, it could mean I’m about to win the lottery or something.”
“It could mean that, yes. I doubt it, but it could.”
They both laughed.
Raven extended her neck until their faces were only inches apart. “Tell you what. It’s been a wild few days, hasn’t it?”
“It certainly has. My aunt seemed to take a shine to you, though.”
“Yes. Some witches are like that. Members of the sisterhood and all that. But, she’s nice, I like her.”
“Yes.” She didn’t meet her eyes.
Raven furrowed her brow. “That’s it? You don’t sound very enthusiastic.”
“She is, I agree with you. She is very—nice.”
“So, what then?”
Scarlett let out a sigh. “Oh, let’s just drop it, eh? Some other time, maybe?”
Raven shrugged. “Okay, whatever you say.”
She rose from the bed to pull back the curtains and took a peek outside. “Lovely day.”
Raven used Scarlett as a stepping stone to get to the window. “Isn’t it just?”
“Could have all been so different. I tell you what, I was worried.”
Raven nodded. “I know. So was I.”
Scarlett laid down, resting against the headboard. “It all turned out okay in the end though. Thanks to Tabitha and Tarquin.”
“Yeah,” Raven agreed. “I know I was against the idea to begin with, but I have to admit it was a good thing that they showed up when they did.”
“I’ll second that.”
Raven resumed her place on Scarlett’s midriff. “So, it turned out the military uses some pretty underhanded techniques.”
“Not quite sure what you’re referring to.”
“I’m referring to them using some kind of radioactive poisoning to track their suspects.”
“Oh yes. The government kept that very hush-hush, didn’t they?” Scarlett found herself adopting a strangely disdainful tone of voice.
Raven grinned. “You’re getting bitter.”
Whilst she didn’t like hearing it, Scarlett feared that Raven might be right, so she took a minute to mull things over.
“I’m not bitter, thank you very much.”
“Yes, you are. Well, what would you call it then?”
“Enlightened. I’d call it enlightened. I know things now that I didn’t know before. I never thought that our own military would do something like that.” She shook her head.
Raven placed a paw on Scarlett’s collarbone. “It’s okay.”
She refused to be diverted from the matter at hand. “You want to know what’s worrying me?”
“What’s that?”
“Well, if they knew how to track you, they could have done the same thing to Ronnie. In which case, we’d all better be watching our backs. They could know about all of us, couldn’t they?”
“It’s unlikely, I’d say”
Scarlett felt a tad relieved. “You would, why’s that?”
“The radiation has a short half-life.”
“Oh, thank God for that.”
“But you make a valid point, though.”
Now she wished she’d kept her mouth shut. “I do?”
“Yes. We need to get everyone together and talk about it.”
Scarlett frowned. “Yes, we’d better.”
“We need to make them aware of the situation. Better safe than sorry and all that stuff.”
“You’re right.”
“Because, like you say, if they’re onto us, then they’ve probably got their beady eyes on us all the time.”
Scarlett let her mind drift for a moment. “Tell you what, though?”
“What?”
She sniggered, “Vixen.”
“Don’t mention that name to me.” Raven laughed. “What about her?”
“You have to hand it to her, don’t you? It was kind of clever, what she did.” Scarlett looked away and started humming to cover up the fact that she’d spoken without thinking.
Raven laughed. “It’s okay, I know what you mean. You mean the way she manipulated the military?”
“Okay, I admit it,” replied Scarlett. “Maybe she just knew the way things work.”
“Yeah, but now we’ve sussed things out too, so we’re even.” Raven sighed, her feline body slumping a little. “And, she’s a pretty talented shapeshifter.” It was clear that it pained her to say it.
“She is?” asked Scarlett, unable to keep the shock out of her voice.
“Yeah, she’s a shapeshifter witch, too. A fox to be exact.”
“Like you, you mean?”
Raven nodded. “Yeah, like me.”
Her inquisitive side sparked into life. “But she turns into a fox, you say?”
“Yeah, that’s right.” Raven sounded almost bored.
Scarlett’s eyes shone. “And you’re a cat, or can you do all types of animals?”
“We all have something that we prefer.”
“Oh, I get it. And she prefers a fox, because of her name?”
Raven nodded. “Exactly.”
Scarlett grinned.
Raven looked puzzled and resigned in equal measures. “What?”
“I was just thinking—”
“Oh, Lord help us.”
She slapped her hand on the bed and guffawed. “I’m not that bad, surely.”
Raven shrugged. “Go on then, enlighten me. What were you thinking about?”
“I was just thinking, that if Vixen is a fox because she’s called Vixen, then because you’re called Raven, you should be—well it’s like one of them aptitude tests, isn’t it? Vixen is to fox as Raven is to… ” She waited for Raven to make the connection instead.
“No, I don’t get it. I always struggled with those tests.”
“Bird. Vixen is to fox as Raven is to bird.”
“Oh, I get it now, silly me.”
“Well, I was just reasoning that’s all, that if Vixen is a fox, you should be a bird.”
“Yes, by that reasoning, I suppose your right.“
; Scarlett sank deep into thought for a minute before she continued. “And something else.”
Raven sighed. “Go on.”
“If Vixen can turn herself back into a witch after shifting to a fox, how come you can’t do the same thing? You know, change yourself back to human form after you’ve been a cat?”
“I’m not sure really. I was pretty worked up when I did the spell. Maybe that had something to do with it? Maybe I channeled all my emotions into it and made it too powerful.”
Scarlett nodded. “It’s a possibility.”
“I’d say it was more than that. I’d just concluded that my boyfriend was cheating on me. I felt betrayed. And as a cat, I have no way of replicating this feeling.”
Her mind got to work, exploring all the possibilities. “But if you did manage to replicate it, you know, being betrayed like that, do you think you might be able to turn yourself back?”
Raven looked pensive for a moment. “Maybe… but to be honest, I have no idea if that would work or not. I don’t seem to have any magical abilities in this form. I probably got something wrong when I did the spell.”
“Mmm. Maybe,” Scarlett said, still thinking.
“And if I was to give it a go, then I’ll likely need to rely on someone else’s magic, as well as my own.”
Out of nowhere, she had a flashback to the previous night. “Oh, wait a minute. What about Tarquin? Didn’t he say he was going to look in his books?”
Raven’s eyes lit up. “Yes, that’s right, he did.”
“Well, maybe he’ll find something. I’ll call in after work, see what he has to say.”
“Would you?”
She nodded. “Of course.”
Raven stretched and yawned. “I’m feeling sleepy all of a sudden. Think I’ll try and get some shut eye.” She stretched out over Scarlett.
Though she realized she wasn’t going to be able to move a muscle until Raven awoke, Scarlett nodded. “Sure, go ahead.”
She sat on her bed, listening to the sound of Raven’s snore and the occasional car passing by outside, until the pins and needles became too much to bear.
Raven scowled. “You woke me up. I was enjoying that little snooze.”
“Sorry. I… I wasn’t comfortable.”
“Oh, well never mind. I’ll cope.”
Raven (A Very British Witch Book 4) Page 19