by Lori Woods
Snowball sticks his head out from underneath the bed. “What’s wrong?” she asks.
“Wrong? Nothing’s wrong! Just come out and look at the cottage.”
“Holes,” Snowball says. “It’s full of holes.”
“No…it’s not…”
“It is.”
“You think so, do you? Well just come and look!”
“At what!” Snowball says, sauntering into the room.
“The ceiling. The doors.”
She looked around. “They’re not messed up.” The same is true of everything else—the walls…the windows—I can’t believe it. I watch in awe as every broken shard and brick rebuilds itself back into place.
“Interesting” Snowball says.
“Interesting? Is that all you can say.” My jaw is still hanging open at what I’m witnessing.
Snowball licks her paw and then rubs her face.
“Must be the spell,” I say.
“The spell?”
“The one that keeps the house spotless. It must also keep it repaired. This is…incredible.”
Now that we’re safe, my body and mind are screaming with exhaustion. I don’t think I can take anymore tonight so Snowball and I head to bed.
The following morning, I feel a lot better. I realize that this cottage makes me feel safe. As I’m sipping my tea, I look around and frown. “Snowball, I wonder who was controlling the werewolves last night?”
“Duh, Night Shadow.”
“Of course it was Night Shadow. I meant, who is Night Shadow? Maybe it’s the man from the gas station —Joe? I mean he is a werewolf. Who better to lead a pack of hounds?”
“The vet!”
“Why do you think that?”
“He growled at me!”
“Maybe you’re right. Anyhow, I’m going to go outside and look for clues.”
“Clues?”
“Maybe you and I could just look around.”
“I’m not going out there! Wolves, hounds!”
“I sent them away, remember?” I answer sarcastically.
“For how long?”
“You do have a point, but I don´t think they´ll come here during the day, even if they´re back in the woods. So come on. You can smell things out better than I can.” I walk to the door and open it.
Outside, there is no indication the cottage was practically destroyed last night. No shards of glass, no splinters from the door or shutters.
“See anything, Snowball?” I ask.
“Meow.”
“Okay, okay. We’ll go back inside, and then to the library.” Suddenly, something slightly sparkly catches my attention. I bend over. Is that a pinch of some kind of white powder? But there’s not enough to tell. I decide that maybe it’s just spores from a toadstool. “Okay, Snowball, let’s go. I’ll start the car.”
“No Broom Hilda?”
Val had invited me to go on a picnic with him after church. He said he’d bring all the food and drink. “There’s a problem if Val touches Broom Hilda. Don’t you remember?”
I find a nice dress in the closet that fits perfectly. It wasn’t my usual style, but with the nipped-in waist and flared skirt, the polka-dot dress suited me. I even take extra care to brush out my long dark hair, and put on a little eyeliner, which Snowball says makes my green eyes “pop.”
Once we arrive at the church, I caution Snowball to wait in the vestibule.
“What about while you’re inside?” Snowball asks, not at all pleased.
“Cats like to groom themselves, don’t they?”
“I’m clean already. I’m not like an alley cat.”
“Do it, as a big favor.”
“Meow.”
“Please stop being so difficult.”
Just then, one of the ushers comes to the door of the sanctuary. He’s a young man with red hair and a big smile. “You cat is welcome,” he tells me. “If we turned nonhuman beings away, we’d have a pretty small congregation…if you know what I mean.”
“It’s nice to meet someone who understands,” Snowball says.
I roll my eyes.
I don’t know what I expected, but the service is the same as in other churches I’ve attended. No blood at all! Well, I hadn’t actually expected any, but then again…
After the service, everyone welcomes Snowball and me and asks us to come again.
Maybe we would. It was a nice service. Val is a dynamic speaker; not the least bit boring like some droning preachers I’d endured. He’s charming and his handsome good looks just add to his appeal. Once the service is over, Val comes up to me and Snowball.
“Ready for that picnic?” he asks.
I give him a big smile. “So where are we going?”
“I have a picnic basket ready. Let me get it. It’s in the kitchen.”
“Okay.”
“Then we’re going to the city park, which borders a lake.”
“A lake?”
“You sound shocked.” He seems surprised at my reaction.
He shakes hands with members of the congregation as they pass by.
“Lakes and I don’t get along.”
“Shoot, I already rented a boat.”
“A boat…” I suddenly feel apprehensive.
Val leaves for a moment and comes back carrying a large wicker basket. “So,” he says, “I’d hoped we could take a rowboat out on the water. It’s very peaceful, and there’s a small island in the middle of the lake. I thought we might have our picnic there.”
“I suppose…but you have to promise me something.”
“What’s that?” he asks as he leads me outside and down the steps to the sidewalk.
“I’m deathly afraid of water.”
“Of water?”
“Lakes, ponds, swimming pools. In fact, I’ve never been in a bathtub my entire life—except maybe when I was a baby my parents or grandma bathed me in a baby tub.”
“Don’t worry, Suzy. I’ll look after you.”
He takes my arm and we head towards a silver car—long, almost like a limousine. Very expensive-looking. “Wow!”
“You like my car, huh?” He turns to me. “By the way, I notice you didn’t ride Broom Hilda.”
“Brought my car instead. You remember what happened the last time you and Broom Hilda met?”
He grins sheepishly. “I do, but I promise never to touch her again.”
I give him a smile.
“Where’s your car?” he asks.
“Church parking lot. Maybe if I’m lucky, someone will steal the old clunker.”
“You’re sure?”
I nod.
The ride is smooth, like floating on a gentle current of air; somewhat like riding Broom Hilda when everything is calm.
Val glances toward me. “So tell me why you’re afraid of water.”
I glance at him. “It’s silly.”
He gives me a puzzled look.
“Are you familiar with The Wizard of Oz?”
“L. Frank Baum. I loved his books.”
“I’m talking about the movie.”
“Judy Garland, right?”
“You saw it on this side?”
He takes a deep breath. “Anything the least bit supernatural or occult gets through. Just not regular movies and television shows.”
I’m ashamed to tell him what he wants to know. “Remember what happened to the wicked witch?”
“Dorothy threw water on her.”
“And she melted!”
“And that’s why water scares you?”
“I said it’s irrational. But—well, as a little girl, I must have had inklings that I was a witch.”
“But you never knew for sure.”
“Not till I arrived in Nightshade.”
“I don’t like water,” Snowball piped up. “It’s nasty.”
I laugh and then glance at Val. “So you have to promise me nothing bad is going to happen when we row out on the lake.”
“Done it many times, Suzy. Never h
ad a problem.”
Why don’t I believe him? I ask myself.
The park is beautiful, filled with shady trees, fieldstone walkways, and plenty of picnic tables. Here and there were shelters in case of rain. Val pulled into a near-empty parking lot.
“The lake’s that way,” he said pointing straight ahead.
Sun sparkled on clear water. It was a perfect day.
Val glanced at his watch. “It’s about twelve fifty, but I reserved the boat for one. So if you don’t mind, we’ll go and see about it. Then we’ll row out to the island.”
“Sounds nice,” I say, trying to summon up some enthusiasm.
“I hate water,” Snowball says. “I want to stay here. Not go to the island.”
“What if I promise to buy a bag of cat treats?”
“A big bag?” Snowball asks.
“And after we go home you can have as many as you want.”
“Water isn’t so bad,” Snowball replies.
I laugh. “Or else treats are very good!”
By now we have reached the boat rental concession. A pleasant-looking man in his sixties is manning the place. He unlocks the oars and turns a small rowboat over to Val, who leads me to it and helps me sit down. Then he picks up Snowball and hands her to me.
It is peaceful, I think. Now I’m glad that Val thought to come here.
“Ready?” he asks as he climbs in and sits down. Quickly, he rows away from the shore, the water lapping gently against the side of the boat.
I decide I might as well try to enjoy the afternoon. I lean back, letting the sun shine full on my face. It’s warm, while the breeze is cool. The gentle movement of the boat makes me sleepy. I am more relaxed that I’ve been in a long time—at least since I arrived in Nightshade.
Suddenly, the boat rolls violently to the side. I open my eyes to see an arm reaching toward me. It’s green and covered in fish-like scales. A head pops out of the water. It’s—I don’t know what it is—maybe the creature from the black lagoon.
Suddenly, the boat rolls the other way and a second creature with green arms and a human head with a fish-like mouth clutches the other side of the boat. He grabs Snowball and I scream. I have to save her. The first thing I think of is the picnic basket. I grab it and slam it into the creature’s face. I wish desperately Broom Hilda were here.
Before I realize it, green men are climbing all over the boat.
“Suzy,” Val shouts, “it’s mermen! I don’t know where they came from. We have to get out of here.” He pulls back on the oar hard. Then he starts to change. Fangs shoot out of his mouth and down over his lower lips. His skin turns deathly pale beneath the heavy sunscreen he wears.
“Val, the sun!” I scream. “It will kill you! Turn you to dust.” I’m particularly worried because he usually wears heavy makeup. Maybe he used the sunscreen today instead of the makeup because he knew we’d be right out in the early afternoon sun.
He glances at me momentarily. His eyes are strange looking; more like an animal’s than a man’s.
“Myth!” he shouts. “Not true.” All at once, he has superhuman strength. He grabs one of the mermen and tosses him away. He sails twenty feet or more before landing with a splash. Val picks up two more, one in each hand, and tosses them toward the first one.
Another merman grabs my arms and pulls me to the edge of the boat. I shriek. Suddenly Val moves at super speed, so fast my eyes can hardly follow. He grabs the merman who is holding Snowball. Placing his hands around the creature’s neck, he squeezes. The merman’s eyes seem ready to pop.
“Give back the cat. Now,” Val orders.
The merman doesn’t respond. “The cat!” Val jerks the merman completely out of the water.
“Take the stupid cat then!” His voice sounds like gurgling water. He drops Snowball into the bottom of the boat, leaps backwards, and disappears under the water.
The merman who grabbed me pulls my arms around to my back. He pushes me to the edge of the boat and tries to force me over the side. I brace myself. But then it’s too late. “Val!” I scream as the creature and I hit the water.
The merman pulls me underneath the surface. I’m terrified. I’m sure I’m going to die.
Suddenly Val is floating above me, but he looks different; his face animal-like. His head becomes that of a bat—a gigantic bat. He spreads leathery wings and swoops down so fast the movement is a blur. He slams into the merman, who yelps in pain and lets me go.
All the other mermen have fled. I’m trembling; my teeth are chattering. Then anger begins to build inside me. Why did Val bring me here! Why didn’t he warn me about the merman? I could have drowned. Snowball could have drowned.
Using his bat’s feet, Val pulls me from the water and gently sits me on the seat of the boat.
“Night Shadow,” he says. “He has to be responsible. Such beings were never here before; only in Shimmering Lake.”
Val didn’t know. He didn’t deliberately expose me to danger. As I look at him, I see the bat face and the bat body quickly morphing into the man I know.
“How…How can you change like that?” I ask. “I thought vampires could become bats only at night. I thought sunlight—”
“It’s okay, Suzy. It’s all right.” He reaches out and takes me in his arms. “We can change during the day in case of extreme emergencies, though it takes its toll.”
“What do you mean?”
“Remember that I told you I wasn’t celibate?”
“And then apologized? I remember.”
“Well, now I am celibate. At least for the next two weeks.”
13
“Trouble follows you like sh...”
“Don’t say it, Alfie!”
“ ...a stray dog, Suzy,” Alfie says, grabbing for a different word.
“Yeah, it’s like a monkey on my back.”
Alfie looks puzzled.
“Never mind, it’s a saying from the other side,” I tell him with a sigh.
“She gets confused in the morning, Alfie,” Snowball says as she cleans her favorite paw.
“Just in the morning?” Alfie asks.
“Alfie, go clean the chimney or something equally nasty,” I say.
“Need some drinking water?” Snowball pauses again to ask.
“No. Do you, Snowball?”
“No baths for a year. No baths!” she answers as she arches her back.
Gee, I drank half the lake yesterday. I’ve had enough water to do me a year. Val saved me… I still have some doubts about him. But he is so handsome, in a strange way.
“Suzy, look at this!” Alfie says holding up a copy of The Nightshade Gazette.
“What?”
“Witches’ Day competition starts tomorrow in Hemlock.”
“So?”
“Well, the librarian from Nightshade always competes. Rachel won the brewer-spell competition last year.”
“If making a black cloud of smoke will win it, then I’m ready!” I say.
“Yeah, right. So far as I can tell, you’re still at the bottom of that learning curve you keep talking about.”
“Yeah, well, I got rid of the hellhounds with a word spell,” I am quick to remind him.
“Yeah, she dynamited the cottage,” Snowball says.
“It saved us, didn’t it?”
“Yes,” Alfie says, “but killing all the competitors and spectators might not win it.”
“So why are you mentioning the competition?”
“I was thinking about the broomstick race. Rachel was great with spells, but her broomstick was…well, it would fly. That’s about all you can say for it.”
“Not as good as Broom Hilda, huh!”
Alfie rolls his eyes. “I bet there won’t be another Salem broomstick in the competition.” He glances at me expectantly. “So what do you say? For Nightshade?”
“Why’s the competition in Hemlock?”
“That’s where the Academy of Witchcraft is located. The students are mostly witches and war
locks, but there are a few wood dwarfs, werewolves, vampires, and other supernatural beings. But the competition is open only to witches on Witches’ Day. The Academy has other days for the minorities.”
“Broomstick race! Now that sounds like fun,” I say, perking up at the idea.
“Broom Hilda! Broom Hilda!” Snowball starts cheering.
“What do you think?” Alfie says. “You need to get out of Nightshade for a day. And if you win one of the events, you get free admission to the Hemlock Academy of Witchcraft for one year. And I think you could use some classes.”
“Lots of classes, lots,” Snowballs echoes.
“But I have all these books on spells,” I say, waving my hands around the library.
“And how’s that working out?” Snowball asks. “Let’s see. You brewed up black smoke and dynamited a cottage. Leaving anything out?”
I start to make a nasty comment to Snowball but don’t.
She’s right! I suck at being a witch! If it weren’t for Boom Hilda, I would have succumbed to Night Shadow on his very first attempt.
“Okay, I’ll enter the broomstick race. I mean what harm can it do? And flying down a racetrack sounds safe.”
“Yes,” Alfie says. “Safe it is,” he adds. But for some reason, I think he’s holding back a little bit of information.
“Okay,” I say, in spite of lingering doubts. “I’m in.”
“Whoopee. A long ride on Broom Hilda,” Snowball says.
“We have to go to Hemlock today,” Alfie says. “It’s the last day to register,”
“Where will we spend the night?” I ask.
“At the Witch’s Broom Inn! They serve great kidney pie and have the best ale in Hemlock,” Alfie exclaims, smacking his lips.
“Sounds like you’ve been there before?”
“Yeah, Rachel always took me with her,” Alfie says.
“But is it expensive?” I ask. I have a bag of silver coins in the drawer of the service desk but I haven’t got used to the monetary system in Nightshade enough to know the value of the coins.
“Oh you have coins to burn,” the dwarf says as he sees the large bag of silver coins I put on top of the service desk. “And we should leave as soon as possible or all the rooms at the inn will be taken.”