Witchcraft

by Katie M John

  “I think they might be looking for a child but I’m not certain. I’m running alongside them but I’m not sure why I’m there. Then I stop because my foot makes contact with something. It’s a doll, just a normal doll; the kind any little girl might have, but it’s all battered up and spattered in mud. There is a bandage around its eyes.”

  “Woah, that is freaky!”

  “Yeah, well, what is freakier is in the older vision, the one set in the daytime, there is also a doll.”

  “No way!”

  “It’s an old fashioned doll; wooden. The kind a father might make for his daughter. It’s got a simple white cotton dress and around its eyes is also a bandage, only this time, as I’m holding it, blood starts to seep through the bandage where…”

  You’ve done it now! You’ve let slip about the eyes. He’s not stupid, he’ll easily connect the dots, the internal says snappily.

  Will waited patiently for Fox to finish. She became aware of her mouth hanging open rather unattractively and snapped it shut. Thankfully, Tony came to the table and cleared the plates whilst having a lengthy exchange with Will about their meal. Fox used the time to work out a verbal escape plan but the best she came up with was the hope that by the time Tony stopped chattering on, Will might have forgotten exactly what they were talking about. Fox cursed internally when she heard Will agree to coffee. That was a lot of time for them to fill with conversation. As soon as Tony turned his back, Will leaned forward ready to listen to her ending.

  “Dolls freak me out! I’ve never understood what girls see in them,” he said reaching for the sugar sachet and giving it a shake. “Do you think we should go to the police?”

  Fox startled. That was the last thing she expected him to say. “The police! What? Tell them your friend has had a dream about Martha Paisley; she hasn’t got any idea where she is, or what has happened or who…” She stopped and breathed. She was over-reacting to his suggestion and it was making her sound skittish, as if maybe she had something to hide, which she did. She did know who was involved.

  No, you think you know, she thought. A policeman would laugh you out the station if you walked in and said you’ve got a hunch the Ravenheart sisters are marauding around the countryside ritualistically murdering virgins.

  “Well… what if we took a drive around to see if we could see the place your visions are set and then we could…” Will shrugged. “I don’t know – maybe leave an anonymous letter at the station.”

  “Look, I know that all seems really simple but I’m not sure.”

  Tony placed the coffee down and was about to start up his friendly, jolly banter when he realised he was interrupting. He threw his hands up with apology and returned to his regulars at the bar.

  “Come on, it could be an adventure!” Will said.

  “No, Will, this isn’t a T.V drama. Martha has really gone missing and it’s quite possible she’ll turn up murdered, which means we’re living with monsters. I think it is best if we leave well alone and let the police do their thing.”

  “But what if your visions are…?”

  “What? True!” Fox snapped.

  Will fidgeted in his seat. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you.”

  “No, I understand, you were just being thoughtless!”

  Silence settled between them but Fox could sense there was something else Will wanted to say. She waited, and then waited some more. Well this relationship is certainly volatile! the internal teased. Sexual tension or what?

  “What if your visions could help the police save Martha?” Will asked as he poured the sugar into his coffee.

  Fox stared at him. She felt an inexplicable rising anger. Despite the internal telling her it wasn’t Will’s fault he’d asked the obvious, Fox still felt the urge to slap him across the face. Her grip tightened on her coffee cup. He’s only asked what you’ve been thinking yourself, the internal reasoned.

  “If I have any more visions, and I learn something definite, I promise I will think of a way to go to the police. At the minute, I’m more likely to confuse matters.” Fox didn’t think Will was convinced, so she dealt the killer blow. “Maybe they’re on to it and if I rock up with my hocus-pocus it might throw them off the scent.” She paused and eyeballed Will into submission. “Imagine how terrible it would be if our meddling caused them to go off on the wrong track!”

  By the time they’d finished lunch and made it back to Heargton, it was the same time Fox would have returned from college. In order to keep up the pretense everything was normal, she waved goodbye to Will at the road junction and walked the rest of the way to the family shop. Swan was already behind the counter wrapping a set of tarot cards for a customer. Swan was as surprised to see Fox as she was of Swan (they’d both hoped the shop would be safe ground away from each other). They greeted each other with a challenging stare, not yet over the incident earlier that day on the netball court. Fox was keen to know what had set her off with Thalia. She wanted to warn Swan to be careful. If her visions were right, Thalia was a lot more dangerous than your average school bitch.

  Fox watched Swan work her magic with the customer and by the time the lady had left, she had not only purchased the tarot set, but an expensive crystal threaded dream catcher and a pot of their mother’s famous anti-aging night cream. Swan’s gift was certainly a lot more profitable than her own, she thought grumpily.

  When the shop doorbell stopped jingling and the coast was clear, Fox pounced. “And where did you go?”

  “Me!” Swan snapped. “What about you?”

  “What do you mean?” Fox replied defensively.

  “Jeez, Fox. You’ve got no idea the scandal you’ve caused; breaking William Harrington out from Geography and driving off together into the sunset!”

  Fox felt warm heat flush over her. The internal was corpsed with laughter. “How…?”

  “Don’t be so naive Fox! You didn’t honestly think you could hook up with Will and keep it a secret. Everyone of those short-skirted-nail-polished-Barbie-dolls has got their talons out for you!”

  Fox stood desperately wanting to retaliate but her mouth had gone on strike. Swan hadn’t finished. “You’ve made a total idiot of yourself!” She sealed her diatribe with a tut and a roll of the eyes.

  Fox let out a low whistle and raised her eyebrow. “Wow, Swan, tell it like it is, why don’t you!”

  “Just thought you should know before you head into college tomorrow - that is if you’re going in tomorrow and not bunking off to spend your day getting your rocks off with Will Harrington.”

  “Jeez, Thalia really did switch on your bitch button, didn’t she?”

  Swan flashed a look that sent a clear warning signal. It was a look Fox could not remember ever seeing in her usually placid and loving sister. Whatever had happened between Swan and Thalia, it had caused a complete personality transplant.

  “That’s none of your business!”

  “Oh, and I suppose what I’m up to with Will Harrington is yours?”

  Swan shuffled the tissue paper on the sales counter. “Touché!” she snapped, pressing her mouth together in a hard line.

  The anger was palpable between them, to the extent several of the lotion bottles on the counter started to vibrate under the force of their energy. Wren came in carrying three cups of tea.

  “I sensed you were here, Fox,” she said by way of explanation, then stopped in her tracks, looking from one daughter to the other. “I think I might take mine and drink it out back if you two can manage the shop for five minutes. I’ve got a stock order to process.” She placed the cups on the counter and made a hasty retreat from the bad vibes flooding the place.

  “So?” Fox asked.

  “So what?”

  “What has Thalia done to upset you so much?”

  Fox could see Swan was reluctant to talk about it, and normally Fox would have respected her privacy but not today, and not when it involved her sister making enemies with a Ravenheart.

  “It’s nothing,
” she said, shaking her head. “Just a misunderstanding.”

  “About what?”

  “It doesn’t matter.”

  Swan’s mobile beeped, and keen to escape her sister’s interrogation, she answered it. It was Fred and he was also on the end of her bad mood. Fox tried not to listen – tidying the books on the shelf by the counter in a bid to distract herself from the conversation. However, her nature won out and as the conversation went on, Fox saw images of Fred and Thalia in a dark room. Fox shook her head, either to clarify the image or to shake it away. Music played in the background – it was a party and Thalia was driving Fred into a wall, her eyes full of promise. Thalia’s made a play for Fred! the internal concluded.

  “… that’s not the point! No, I don’t want to talk about it. No, don’t come over. Maybe. Yep!” Swan switched off her phone.

  Fox waited for Swan to explain but Swan had always been secretive about boys. Fox wasn’t even sure if Swan and Fred were more than friends; well, she hadn’t been until now. There was only one approach and that was to ask her directly; it wasn’t as if Swan wasn’t already in a bad mood.

  “Did something happen between Fred and …?”

  “What’s it to do with you?” Swan cut in before Fox could finish her sentence.

  “Well if you want to know about me and Will Harrington, then it’s only fair to share!”

  Swan looked at her over the edge of her teacup. She was assessing the odds of this sharing being weighted in her favour. Unable to be entirely in a bad mood for long, Swan smirked and wrinkled her nose. “So there is a you and Will?”

  Fox shrugged. “We’re just friends. He’s a nice guy. I think he likes me.”

  “Will Harrington! Mr. look-at-my-sparkly-white-teeth-and-my-rippling-six-pack-Harrington!” Swan said, collapsing into a breathless giggle.

  Fox felt herself blushing. “I’m sure it’s nothing; he’s just being friendly – I think.” Fox’s forehead crumpled in confusion.

  “I’ve seen the way he looks at you when he thinks you’re not looking!” Swan said softly. “I think he more than likes you, Fox.”

  Fox heard the undertone of hurt in her sister’s voice. Fox had never understood the thing between Swan and Fred. They’d been close since primary school and he was loyal to a point of fault when it came to Swan. In the summer, he’d taken a total beating when he had fought one of the Year Twelve boys for calling her a freak. He’d gained a broken nose and a suspension for it. If Swan and Fred were just friends then it was a very intense and complicated friendship. Fox understood when it came to Fred, it wasn’t something to idly gossip about. She was about to leave it when Swan blurted out,

  “Fred screwed Thalia at Maria’s party.”

  Fox shook her head, her worst fears confirmed. “No! That can’t… it’s got to be just playground gossip. Fred wouldn’t…” Her protests sounded hollow – she’d seen exactly what went on between Fred and Thalia.

  Swan’s eyes were full of tears but she was too proud to let them free. “It was Fred who told me.” She twiddled the ends of her hair, a gesture she did when she wanted to fade away.

  “Are you and Fred …?” Fox didn’t know how to finish.

  Swan nodded. “I thought so. We’ve never actually said we were. We’ve never tried to define who we are to one another but I didn’t think…” she sighed heavily and her whole fae-like frame shuddered. “I never thought he’d betray me – especially not with a Ravenheart Witch.”

  “Does he know about the covens?” Fox asked, surprised. It was an unwritten rule that they never spoke of their Witch lives with outsiders.

  “He’s known for years; since we were children. He’s the only one who truly knows me. I thought…” she stopped, unable to hold her tears back any longer, they slid down her cheek. “I hoped I was the only one who would know him … but I’m not, and it can never be undone. He’s given himself to a Ravenheart and now it means we can never be together.”

  Fox screwed up her forehead. She understood the whole betrayal thing, but she didn’t understand what Swan was exactly saying; why could they never be together? Surely it could be worked out over time?

  Swan saw her confusion; Fox had no idea about the curse of her particular gift. “You don’t know about the…?” she stopped, not sure if she was breaking some code or other.

  “What? What don’t I know?”

  “My gifts suggest I’m a Vestal. I can only ever be with someone who is pure of soul. Vestals…” she paused, searching for the right phrase. She was blushing. “Vestals mate for life.”

  Fox managed to swallow the laugh erupting from her chest. “I’m sorry, pardon, what?”

  Swan’s blush deepened.

  “I’m really sorry,” Fox offered. “I’m having a hard time understanding what you are talking about.”

  “My emerging ability to control the elements probably means my powers are Vestal powers and if they aren’t kept pure then things can get … dark.”

  This was the first Fox had heard about her sister’s elemental powers and she wondered what other secrets were floating around their family. “How long have you had these… gifts?”

  “They started a couple of months back. There was a downpour of rain and I’d forgotten my coat. I wished it to stop raining – and it did – instantly, just as if someone had turned the tap off. After that, there were several other things – like when I was angry at Bunny and a strike of lightening suddenly forked out of the sky and hit the ground right next to her.”

  Fox let out a low whistle. “Cooool! Shame you didn’t strike Thalia down,” Fox said smiling.

  “Yeah, well it’s not funny. The elemental powers take a lot of controlling – it’s quite exhausting.”

  “And Fred? Do you think he was the one – you know, who you were going to …?”

  Swan nodded and bit down hard on her lip. “Now, that’s out of the question.”

  “Does Fred really know what he’s done?”

  She laughed bitterly, “No, of course not. I’ve not told him any of what I’ve just told you. There’s only so much freak I like to reveal at a time.”

  “Do you think Thalia knew?”

  Swan studied Fox hard. “I don’t know. I don’t see how she could possibly know about me being a Vestal, but I wouldn’t rule it out.”

  “Do you think maybe she bewitched him?” Fox asked.

  “I don’t know. It’s possible she did,” she said wiping her eyes, “but it doesn’t matter, he should have been strong enough; his feelings for me should have been his shield.”

  “You know it’s not as easy as that. The Ravenheart’s bewitchment powers have been notorious for generations. It wasn’t a failing in him if he came under a spell, Swan. Surely you can’t be that hard on him.”

  “Why? Why did she do it?” Swan asked, sadly.

  Fox mulled the question over in her head. They want to weaken you! she thought, but she said, “I don’t know. Who knows what makes the Ravenhearts tick?”

  Sex, kidnapping, murder, and torture for a start, the internal offered.

  Swan let out a tight smile indicating the conversation was no longer open. Fox drained the rest of her tea and went to the kitchen, passing Wren on the way. She was on the phone. Fox made the unusual effort to wash her cup but it was only in order to listen in on her mum’s phone call; not something she’d normally do but it sounded like she was talking to one of the cousins at Bramble Cottage.

  “I’m really sorry, Violet. I’ll talk to her about it. Yes, I understand. I’ve been so snowed under that I’ve probably taken my eye off them a bit. Okay. Yes. Pass my love on to Rose and … and to Prim. See you tomorrow. Be blessed.”

  Fox let out a curse under her breath. You’re in for it now! the internal warned. You’ve sent Prim on a loopy-loop! Fox considered her options, she could play it innocent and walk right by as if she’d heard nothing and then spend the evening avoiding her mother (probably impossible) or she could hover about and look all meek and
apologetic. She decided on option one. Waiting for exactly the opportune moment, when her mother was rifling through a pile of papers at the back of her desk, Fox picked up speed and dashed by with a cheery, “See you later - got loads of homework on!”

  By the time her mother had realised her daughter was there, Fox was gone. “Fox by name, Fox by nature!” Wren said, sighing.

  Back home, in the relative safety of her room, Fox flicked on her laptop and waited for her e-mail to upload. She’d given Jeremiah her e-mail address so that they could start their project remotely – which was exactly how Fox would prefer to do the entire thing. She didn’t think that was going to be the case. Jeremiah was playing the part of the diligent student – not that his facade fooled Fox. He was clearly out to impress – or fool. She suspected all Jeremiah was really doing was biding his time until he could find some trouble. A boy that handsome doesn’t need to abide by the rules! the internal said wisely. So why would he? Fox let her mind wander over her knowledge of Jeremiah Chase, from his silly (but weirdly attractive) dress sense, to his stubble (clearly more man than boy), to the wicked sparkle in his eyes (obviously knows how it all works). There was something about Jeremiah that made Fox’s skin do weird things. She wasn’t sure if it was creeping or tingling. The confusion was irritating. Swan would know him immediately; she had the knack of being able to read a person’s soul. There was no hiding with Swan. Which is why Fred had to tell her about Thalia – he knew she’d find out anyway.

  “What’s your story, Mr. Chase?” Fox asked the empty air.

  Suddenly, her fingers were tapping out, “The Chase Family, Heargton, Lancashire” into the search bar. “Just a little curiosity. Knowledge is power!” she said, pre-empting the internal’s predictable backlash.

  “Wow, impressive!” she said as she saw the very long list of links. She started with the E-pedia page, which was surprisingly lengthy, “Boy, you’re almost famous!”