The Trouble with Witches

by Shirley Damsgaard

  I released her hand. “Do you feel better now?”

  “Yeah, except—” She cleared her throat, and I felt her squirm. “I drank too much tea this morning.”

  “Oh God, Darci,” I groaned. “Not now.”

  Thirty-three

  “I can’t help it. I—”

  A sound in the room outside caught my attention. “Shh.” I cocked my head and listened. I heard it again. “Do you hear that?”

  “Hear what—”

  We both jumped when we heard the clatter of chains hitting the floor outside the box.

  I sprang to my feet and shoved the door. It swung open easily, and the darkness was filled with blessed light. Shielding my eyes from the sudden brightness, I pulled Darci to her feet and turned to the door in time to see Walks Quietly move toward the boathouse door, a large gray dog at his side.

  Scrambling from the box, I tripped and fell face first on the dusty floor. “Wait,” I called after him, but he didn’t turn around. In a moment he was gone.

  “Did you see that?” I asked Darci as I scrambled to my feet.

  “What?”

  “There!” I pointed at the door. “Walks Quietly.”

  “Who cares who opened the door?” She tugged on my arm. “Let’s get out of here.”

  We rushed out of the boathouse and had made it to the bottom of the steps when I heard my name called. My eyes flew to the top of the hill, where Abby stood with Rick next to her. Relief flooded through me.

  Darci and I ran up the hill to the main house, and I threw my arms around Abby.

  “Brandi was here the whole time, in a box, in the boathouse.” The words poured out of me. “We have to stop Jason. He’s going to use Von Schuler’s spells. They’ve found the book—”

  “Slow down,” Rick said gently. “Do you know where Brandi is now?”

  I turned away from Abby. “No, I don’t know what Jason did to her, but I bet we can find him at the abandoned cabin. I don’t know about Juliet or Tink. Maybe he did something to them, too.” I clutched Abby’s sleeve. “Where’s Walks Quietly?”

  A perplexed look crossed her face. “Walks Quietly?”

  “Yeah.” I pointed down the hill. “He was—”

  “Hey,” Rick said, looking around. “Where did Darci go?”

  “I’m right here,” she said, walking toward us from the house. Her cheeks were tinged a faint pink.

  Abby stepped away from me and looked up at the sky. “If we’re going to the cabin, we’d better get going.”

  My eyes followed hers to the clouds above. Great dark thunderclouds tumbled against one another, and in the distance I saw a flash of lightning. If we didn’t hurry, we’d be caught in a downpour.

  “Which way is the cabin?” Rick called over his shoulder as his long strides put distance between us.

  “To the east,” I yelled after him. “But shouldn’t we call the sheriff?”

  “The phones in the house don’t work,” Abby replied as she trailed after Rick. “We’ve already tried.”

  I caught up with her. “What about cell phones?”

  Rick pivoted. “No service, and we don’t have time to drive back to your cabin.”

  “You said Jason has the spell book,” Abby said without breaking stride. “If we don’t stop him—” She shook her head. “What’s been held at bay all these years in that clearing is nothing compared to what he could unleash if he uses the book. He doesn’t have the skill to control it.”

  I shivered. “Do we?”

  Abby’s eyes hardened with determination. “We’ll find out.” She drew two pouches from her pocket, and as we walked, handed one to me and then the other to Darci. “Put these on. Walks Quietly gave them to me.”

  The pouches were made of supple leather and hung from a thin strip of rawhide. I slipped the talisman over my head and tucked it beneath my T-shirt. As I did, I felt the energy radiate from within the leather sack. Whatever the sack contained, I sensed its power. It expanded until the force seemed to settle around me like a cloak.

  Between Walks Quietly’s medicine and Abby’s magick, the four of us should be safe. I hoped.

  Our pace quickened as we neared the clearing. The storm was drawing closer, and a sense of urgency hung in the air. Tiny beads of sweat, either from nerves or from the heat, gathered on my lip. I wiped them away.

  “You okay?” Darci asked.

  I gave her a shaky smile and patted the hidden pouch. “We’ll be fine.”

  Abby put a finger to her mouth to silence us. We had reached the circle of cedar ringing the cabin.

  From our vantage point at the edge of the clearing, we could see the flickering light of candles shining through the broken panes. A figure moved in and out of the light, but we were too far away to see who it was.

  Rick motioned for Darci and me to move to the opposite side of the clearing and pointed to the porch.

  Got it. Darci and I would approach from one side of the porch, while he and Abby came in from the other side.

  I nodded and took the position Rick had indicated.

  He gave us a signal, and with a deep breath, I stepped across the cedar.

  Nothing. Nothing swirled around us with dark intensity like the last time. Were we too late? Had the evil already taken up residence in the cabin?

  Slowly, the four of us stole across the clearing and up onto the porch. I crouched and peeked into a window.

  Black candles with strange signs carved on them lit the room. And in their flickering light I saw someone hunkered down in the corner. The glow of the candles made the dirty orange hair shine dully. Brandi—we’d finally found her.

  Another figure, in a black robe, stood before the table. A figure whose face was hidden by the deep folds of the hood covering their head, just like in my dream. Only this time I knew it was Jason’s face beneath the hood. And in his hands he held Von Schuler’s book.

  The other figure from my dream was there, too. Tink, dressed in white, lay stretched out on the table. Bowls of smoking incense burned at her head and feet, filling the air with billows of smoke.

  Winnie was nowhere to be seen.

  Rick caught my eye from his side of the porch and held up one finger. With a shrug, I nodded. He moved slowly to the door. Darci and I gathered behind him. With a kick, he forced the door open, and we surged through.

  Jason dropped the book and whipped his head toward the opposite corner of the room, where Winnie sat huddled with the gun lying at her side.

  Whoops—I forgot to tell Rick about the gun.

  But before Winnie could grab it, Rick launched himself toward her, rolled, and came to his feet, gun in hand.

  Jason’s whole body shook with rage, and with a jerk he turned toward the three of us still standing in the doorway. And as he did, his hood fell back, revealing an angular face with hazel eyes. It wasn’t Jason after all. It was Juliet.

  With a howl, she bent and scrambled on the dirty floor until she found what she was looking for. She righted herself and stood, holding the book, now open, tightly in her hands. In a voice tinged with madness, strange words came rushing from her lips.

  Lightning flashed outside the windows, and for an instant the cabin was as bright as midday as the walls shook with the explosion of thunder. Winnie let out a shriek, while the rest of us stood transfixed, unable to move. The smell of ozone thickened the air.

  Tink seemed to be the only one capable of movement, and she rolled her head toward the three of us planted in the middle of the room. Tears ran down her cheeks, but her body seemed to glow in the shadowy light.

  Yes. She’s shielding, as Abby taught her.

  The lightning blazed again, and in the instant of light, I saw a murky mist gather in the corner behind Juliet. Long tendrils snaked out and wove their way toward where Tink lay vulnerable on the table. Fingers of black curled around the table legs, inching closer and closer to Tink. One thin wisp drifted toward the light she emanated, poking and prodding as if testing the strength of Tin
k’s shield.

  Tink felt the evil, and her face screwed in concentration while she fought to keep the black cloud at bay.

  Do something! Do something! A voice inside my head screeched, but I couldn’t move. Helplessly, my eyes sought Abby.

  Standing next to Darci, her head was bowed as she tried to send some of her strength to Tink. I felt it pulsing in the air around us, but it couldn’t make it past the barrier of darkness that threatened to surround Tink.

  The thunder roared again, and a voice called out, “Juliet, stop!”

  Jason stood in the open doorway, his face a map of sorrow.

  Juliet raised her eyes from the book, and the cloud ebbed. For a second her eyes lost their madness and her face softened. But the cloud surged and the madness flared in her eyes again.

  “Jason, I have to do this. It’s my destiny,” Juliet said in a wheedling voice.

  Jason took measured steps toward the table. “No,” he replied calmly.

  Her eyes widened and her voice dropped almost to a whisper. “Think of it, my love, unlimited power.” Her gaze fell on Tink. “We can use her. We can channel the power through her.”

  Jason inched closer to Juliet. “Frederick went mad.”

  A sly smile brightened her face. “I won’t go mad. Frederick didn’t understand the power and how to control it, but I do.” Her smile fell away. “I tried to explain this to Miranda, too. She laughed at me. Told me I was insane. Wouldn’t use her gift to help me.” A faraway expression filled her eyes, and she pulled the book close to her heart. “It’s not my fault she fell down the stairs.”

  Oh my God, she killed Tink’s mother, and then blamed it on Tink.

  Lightning flared again, and the sky opened, sending torrents of water, each drop sounding like pebbles hitting the roof. Jason used the sudden distraction to make a grab for Juliet.

  Startled, she raised her hands to push him away, and the book fell with a thud to the floor. She struggled against him while he fought to control her. And all the while, fed by the conflict and Juliet’s fury, the dark mist swirled at their feet.

  As if released from bonds, I took a step toward Tink, but Abby motioned for me to help Brandi. Darci and I rushed to the corner and hauled the half out of it girl to her feet, while Abby helped Tink.

  At the same time, Rick jerked Winnie up and urged her out the door.

  After both Brandi and Winnie were safe, away from the cabin, I rushed back to help Abby. As I ran toward the cabin, I thought I saw a shadow move swiftly through the trees on the other side. Not pausing to look, I flung myself through the door.

  The black cloud had almost completely engulfed the struggling couple, but Abby had freed Tink and was helping her off the table when it happened.

  Their struggles had tipped one of the candles over, and a thin line of fire twisted its way across the old wooden table. Busy helping Tink, Abby didn’t see the flame rushing toward her. I watched in horror as the fire caught the tail of the shirt Abby wore over her jeans, igniting it.

  “Abby!” I hurled myself at them.

  Before I could help her, Tink began beating the flames out with her bare hands.

  I ripped the shirt off Abby and flung it, still smoldering, to the floor, and with an arm around both Tink and Abby, I guided them to the door and out into the rain.

  Rick and Darci had moved Brandi and Winnie over to the shelter of trees, but when he saw me emerge from the cabin, he ran to me and scooped Tink up in his arms.

  As he set Tink on the ground, I eased Abby down next to Darci and Brandi. Crouching, I studied her face. “Are you all right?”

  “I’m fine—a little singed. The shirt was heavy, and Tink got the flames out before they burned through.” She scooted away from me and over to Tink. Gathering the girl in her arms, she rocked her slowly back and forth, crooning.

  Tink’s ragged coughs echoed with the thunder.

  A sudden crash drew our attention.

  The old cabin was going up like a torch, and part of the roof had already fallen in. Through the flames, we watched Jason stagger out of the cabin with Juliet over his shoulder.

  Rick ran to them and helped the couple to a spot under the trees.

  Then a howl rent the air, and the old cabin collapsed, sending sparks into the sky.

  Again I saw the shadow by the trees. I nudged Darci and pointed to them.

  In the illumination of the burning cabin, Walks Quietly stood just outside the circle of cedar. Motionless at his side was a wolf, its eyes glowing in the half-light. A badger growled at Walks Quietly’s feet. And on his arm perched a snow owl.

  “Humph,” I grunted. “Now he shows up to help.”

  A confused expression crossed Darci’s face. “Who?”

  “Walks Quietly,” I said, pointing back to the spot by the trees.

  Darci’s eyes traveled to where I pointed. “I think you better have a doctor check you out once we get out of here.” She shook her head. “You must have inhaled too much smoke.”

  “Look,” I said, and waved my arm toward Walks Quietly. “He’s standing right there. He’s got a wolf, a badger, and a snow owl with him.”

  Darci took my hand and squeezed it. “You’ll be okay. You’ve been under a lot of stress lately.” She stood and looked down at me. “Ophelia, I hate to tell you, but there’s no one there.”

  I watched in disbelief as Walks Quietly smiled and raised a hand in farewell. Then he disappeared like a puff of smoke.

  Thirty-four

  “Okay, let me get this straight.” I glanced over at Rick. “Juliet was behind all of this the whole time?”

  Darci, Abby, Rick, and I had stepped out of Tink’s room while the doctor checked her over. We sat in the waiting room, drinking what seemed our tenth cup of coffee. The sheriff had already taken our statements, and Brandi’s grateful parents had arrived. After spending the night at the hospital with Tink, I felt punchy and unable to comprehend the simplest of ideas. And God only knew, there had been nothing simple about the past few days.

  “That’s right. She held Brandi down in the boathouse, with the help of Winnie. Where, by the way, the sheriff found an axe with blood on it and some hair. They won’t know for sure until the forensics comes back, but they’re reasonably certain the axe was used to kill Duane Hobbs.”

  “Juliet?”

  He nodded. “Walks Quietly identified the axe as his. My guess is Juliet stole it and intended to frame him for it, but things happened too fast. She didn’t have time.”

  “Will they get fingerprints?” I asked.

  “Sure.”

  “And she killed her sister?”

  “Yeah. Tink still doesn’t remember that day clearly, but Jason has already talked to the sheriff about it. They’re going to reopen the investigation into the fire that killed Violet, and Mona, too.”

  My mouth dropped open. “You’re kidding me.”

  “Nope.” Rick scratched his beard. “The arson investigator always thought there was something not quite right about the fire, but couldn’t prove anything.”

  “But now they can?” I asked.

  “Maybe. It’s been a long time. We’ll see.” Rick let his head fall back against the couch. “Even if they don’t, Juliet’s going to be locked away for a long time. Either in a mental institution or prison,” he said, and closed his eyes.

  I zeroed in on Abby. “What do you think her plans for Brandi were?”

  “Human sacrifice—”

  Darci made a gargled sound.

  “Afraid so,” she said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “Evil demands evil.”

  “But it’s gone now, right?” I tried to keep the desperate note out of my voice.

  She smiled reassuringly and patted my knee. “This evil is, but there’s always more out there.”

  I didn’t like the sound of that.

  “Oh, don’t worry about it.” She wiggled back in her chair. “Whatever happens, we’ll deal with it.”

  Darci nudged Rick.
“Is the sheriff going to charge Jason?”

  “Don’t know,” Rick replied in a weary voice. “He’s in custody now. He swears he didn’t know what Juliet was doing, and he has proof he was in Brainerd yesterday afternoon. He did admit he knew Juliet wasn’t well, that she’d been acting strange. That’s why he disbanded the group a couple of nights ago and told them all to leave. The sheriff is rounding them up for questioning, too.” He exhaled slowly. “Too bad Winnie slipped away during all the commotion. She knows the answers to a lot of these questions.”

  I shuddered, remembering Winnie and her beady little eyes staring at me down the barrel of her gun. “I don’t care if they do find her. I certainly hope I never see her again.”

  A smile flickered across Abby’s face, and she patted my knee again.

  “What?” I narrowed my eyes at her. “Do you know something I don’t?”

  Abby radiated calm. “I said we’ll deal with it.”

  “Oh peachy,” I muttered to myself. “More circles to be closed.”

  Abby sat forward. “There’s one question you haven’t asked, Ophelia.”

  “What’s that?” I asked, puzzled.

  “What’s going to happen to Tink?”

  “Oh man,” I groaned. “Her guardians are both locked up. Will they put her in foster care?”

  “They’ll have to,” Rick said, his head still tipped back.

  Sadness squeezed my heart. “With people who don’t have a clue how to help her with her talents.”

  “We could help her,” Abby said in a soft voice.

  I jerked forward. “Us? Foster parents?”

  Abby chuckled. “Not me, dear, I’m too old. But you could do it. Take Tink back to Iowa; give her a real home, a real family.”

  Momentarily robbed of speech, I searched my mind for something, anything, to say. I thought about Brandi. From what Rick had told me at the beginning, Brandi never belonged, never fit in. And look where those feeling had led her. As Tink grew older, she’d feel the same way. Without those around her who understood her special gifts, she’d always be an outsider. I’d been lucky—I’d had Abby to help me. Could I help Tink?