Shadow Magic

by Kitty Wells

  Bang! All the girls jumped at the noise. Chloe yanked her earplugs out, staring at the book in confusion. “Oh, sorry – it must have dropped out somehow.”

  But Gemma had already picked it up with a grin. “Hey, I love this author! Have you read any of her other stuff?”

  Chloe looked startled as she took the book back. “Um – well, yes, loads of it, actually.”

  “Me too!” exclaimed Gemma. “Which is your favourite?”

  “Gem! We were just going to the library, remember?” said the tall blonde girl as she and the other girl stood up. “Would you like to come?” she asked Chloe politely.

  Maddy held her breath. Her cousin shoved the book back into her bag, her cheeks reddening. “Uh, no – that’s OK,” she mumbled.

  Gemma looked disappointed. Reaching for her own bag, she pulled out a tiny notebook and wrote something down. “Listen, here’s my mobile number,” she said, handing a piece of paper to Chloe. “Why don’t you text me sometime? We could talk about other authors we like, or something.”

  Maddy punched the air invisibly as Gemma left with her friends. Hurrah! Gemma really seemed to want to be friends with Chloe. Their plan was going to work!

  “Wait,” whispered Nibs. “We’re not there yet.”

  Maddy’s smile died as she saw the disbelieving grimace on Chloe’s face. “Yeah, right,” her cousin muttered. “She’d probably laugh at me if I actually texted her.”

  Crumpling up the bit of paper, Chloe shoved it into her empty sandwich packet. Maddy could have shrieked with frustration. When Chloe wasn’t looking, she quickly rescued the mobile number – but her heart felt heavy.

  Chloe seemed determined not to make any friends … and that meant that Maddy had no idea how to stop her from running away.

  “Don’t worry, we’ll think of something else,” said Nibs that evening.

  Maddy sighed. She was sitting beside the doll’s house, with Nibs perched on the tiny chimney as usual.

  “What, though?” she said gloomily.

  “Something will come up,” promised the cat. “It always does.” She cocked her tiny head to one side as she reflected. “Well … usually.”

  Maddy made a face. Though Mum hadn’t suspected anything when she’d picked her up in front of the primary school that afternoon, Maddy knew that she daren’t try such a trick again. She’d been lucky to get away with it once!

  Chloe had barely spoken at all on the way home. She’d just stared out of the car window, listening to her iPod.

  Remembering, Maddy felt an anxious pang. She had the uncomfortable feeling that her cousin was just as keen to run away as before. She hadn’t helped her at all.

  Maddy looked down. “I suppose – I suppose you really wish that our plan had worked,” she said haltingly. “I mean … I know you’re in a hurry to have the problem over with.” She didn’t add, Even though we’ve only barely got to know each other.

  Nibs gave Maddy a keen look, as if she had spoken the unsaid words after all. “Lift me up,” she said.

  Maddy did so, feeling Nibs’s slight furry weight as the little cat stepped onto her palm. Slowly she raised her hand to her face.

  “Now, then,” said Nibs when she was at eye-level. “You must understand that the three of us are always anxious to solve whatever problem we’re faced with. It’s the only way we can reach our ultimate goal, which is very important to us.”

  “What goal?” whispered Maddy. Nibs’s eyes staring into hers looked very serious.

  Nibs shook her head. “I’ve said enough. But, Maddy, if you and I didn’t have a task to complete, I’d be very happy to stay here with you. You’re a nice girl – even if you do need to be kept away from handkerchiefs!” she added with a feline chuckle.

  Maddy smiled. “Oh, Nibs, may I stroke you?” she burst out.

  “Of course,” purred Nibs, swishing her tail against Maddy’s palm. “I’d be delighted!”

  Chapter Eight

  The rest of that week passed without Maddy and Nibs coming any closer to solving the problem. Though terribly worried about her cousin, Maddy enjoyed spending time with Nibs. The little cat often rode around the house on her shoulder now, safely hidden by her hair. And, as Maddy found out, she loved to have her chin scratched! She would close her eyes dreamily, her purrs sounding like a pigeon cooing.

  But all the time, Maddy was uncomfortably aware that Saturday was approaching. And if Nibs was right, that was when Chloe would try to run away.

  “Mum, can I go shopping today?” Chloe asked on Saturday morning.

  Maddy looked up from her breakfast sharply. Suddenly the toast she was chewing tasted like sawdust. The shopping centre was right beside the train station!

  A surprised smile lit Aunt Lily’s face. “Yes, I suppose so,” she said. “Is there something special that you—”

  “Can I go too?” blurted out Maddy.

  Chloe’s face darkened. “No,” she said.

  Aunt Lily shook her head. “Chloe, what’s got into you lately? Of course Maddy can go if she wants to!”

  Chloe slumped down in her seat, scowling. Reaching her hand into her pocket, Maddy touched Nibs’s cool ceramic form. This was it, she was sure of it! No matter what happened today, she’d have to stick to her cousin like glue.

  When Mum drove them to the shops an hour later, Maddy wasn’t surprised to see that Chloe had her large purple and silver bag with her – and that it looked very fat, as if it were packed full.

  Maddy nibbled her thumb as she stared anxiously at the bag. If only she could knock it over somehow, so that Mum and Aunt Lily could see what was inside! But her cousin had it on her lap, gripping it tightly.

  “What do you want to buy, Chloe?” asked Aunt Lily, turning round to look at her.

  Chloe jumped. “Oh! Nothing – I just want to look around,” she said.

  To Maddy’s amazement, once they got to the shops Chloe seemed friendlier than she had been all week. “Can Maddy and I go off on our own together for a bit?” she asked. She shot Maddy a smile.

  Maddy stared at her. Why was she acting so nice all of a sudden?

  Mum hardly looked up from the rack of dresses that she and Aunt Lily were flipping through. “Yes, if you stay together. Why don’t you meet us at McDonald’s at one o’clock, and we’ll all get some lunch?”

  “OK …” Chloe hesitated, looking at her mother. “Um … bye, Mum,” she said.

  Aunt Lily glanced up in surprise. “Bye, honey. Have fun!”

  Chloe nodded. For a moment Maddy thought her cousin looked uncertain, as if she might be changing her mind … and then she linked her arm through Maddy’s. “Come on, cuz.”

  Once they were out of sight of their mothers, Chloe dropped her arm. “Why don’t you go to the toy store or something?” she said flatly. “I want to be on my own for a bit.”

  Maddy swallowed. “But—”

  Before she could get any further, Chloe had gone striding off. Maddy raced to catch up with her. “Wait!” she gasped, skipping round in front of her cousin. “Mum said to stick together, remember?”

  Chloe’s blonde eyebrows drew together in a scowl. “So?” she said, trying to dodge round Maddy.

  Maddy stood her ground. “So – so I think that’s what we should do,” she said desperately. “Can’t I go with you?”

  Chloe pushed her firmly to one side. “Maddy, I’m serious – I want to be alone for a while! Now, don’t follow me, or you’ll be sorry. Understand?”

  Maddy watched in alarm as Chloe hurried off. Quickly she ducked into a bookshop and crouched behind a tall display of bestsellers. Shadow magic, conceal me! she thought feverishly, touching the ceramic cat in her pocket.

  The tingling feeling flowed through her. Alive again, Nibs bounded invisibly up to her shoulder. “Hurry!” she yowled in Maddy’s ear. “We have to catch her!”

  Maddy ran after Chloe, darting in and out of crowds of unsuspecting shoppers. Nibs clung to her jumper, neatly balancing herself with h
er tail. “Oh! Did you feel that breeze?” Maddy heard one woman exclaim.

  Suddenly she skidded to a stop as she spotted Chloe. She was standing in front of a large map of the shopping centre, studying it intently. A moment later she set off again, this time with Maddy close behind.

  She walked straight to the train station.

  Though Maddy had expected it, her heart twisted anxiously. She followed Chloe up the concrete steps from the street. Once inside the station, her cousin faltered. With a nervous glance at the ticket counter, she headed instead for the automatic machines.

  Maddy hovered invisibly next to Chloe as she started pressing buttons. DESTINATION? asked the screen.

  There was a keyboard on the machine. Chloe started to type. Leaning over quickly, Maddy began jabbing keys at random. LOLLOPLOPLOP appeared on the screen.

  NO SUCH DESTINATION FOUND, flashed the machine.

  Chloe’s jaw dropped. “Huh?” She tried again.

  MOOOOOOOOO, typed Maddy.

  Chloe swallowed, and backed away a step. “O-kay …” she muttered. “Maybe – maybe I’ll try a different machine.”

  At the next machine she stood close to the keyboard, guarding it as she typed. Standing helplessly to one side, Maddy gritted her teeth in frustration – and then her cousin took several notes out of her wallet. Of course!

  Gazing down at the machine, Chloe started to feed in the notes, one by one. As she did so, Maddy carefully eased a ten-pound note out of Chloe’s hand, quickly slipping it into her own pocket.

  “Excellent!” whispered Nibs warmly.

  AMOUNT REMAINING: £10, flashed the screen.

  “What?” Chloe peered into her wallet again. “But – I know I had the right amount!” she gasped. She stared wildly at the floor around her, dropping to her knees and searching all around the machine.

  “Have you lost something?” asked a woman at the next machine.

  “Ten pounds!” burst out Chloe. She looked close to tears. “It was part of my birthday money, and I need the rest of it to catch a bus!”

  The woman frowned doubtfully. “Are you travelling alone, dear?” she asked.

  Chloe’s cheeks turned bright red. She scrambled to her feet. “Uh – no,” she muttered, hitting CANCEL on the machine. “I’m just … buying it for my mother.” Taking her remaining notes out of the machine again, she hastily left the station.

  Hurrah! thought Maddy, hurrying after Chloe as she jogged down the station steps. They had done it … at least, for now. But they still needed to make Chloe happy about staying, somehow, or else she’d just try again.

  Maddy looked down at the little cat on her shoulder. “Nibs, how long do you think we have before—”

  “Watch out!” hissed Nibs.

  “Oof!” exclaimed Maddy as she crashed full-speed into Chloe’s back. The invisibility left her. Chloe spun round with a shriek – and then anger came over her face like a thundercloud.

  “You’ve been following me!” she shouted.

  “No, I haven’t,” mumbled Maddy. She could feel the ceramic Nibs about to topple off her shoulder, and she hastily caught the little cat.

  “You have,” insisted Chloe. She shook Maddy’s arm. “What did you see? Tell me! Now!”

  “All right!” Maddy burst out. “I – I saw you go into the train station and try to buy a ticket. Oh, Chloe, you can’t run away – it’s really dangerous! Please, please, promise me you won’t!” Her throat felt tight with tears.

  Chloe was staring at her. “It wasn’t you who …” she started, and then shook her head. “No, it couldn’t have been! Now listen, Maddy. If you tell anyone about this, I will never, ever speak to you again. Got it?”

  She looked so furious that Maddy felt frightened. She nodded mutely.

  “Good,” snapped Chloe. She turned and stalked away.

  Maddy struggled to keep up with her. “But – but, Chloe, you haven’t said that you won’t—”

  “Drop it!” snarled Chloe.

  Maddy fell silent, disheartened. Clearly she hadn’t changed her cousin’s mind at all. Chloe was still determined to run away.

  Chapter Nine

  That afternoon Maddy curled up on the sofa with a book, trying to keep an eye on Chloe without her cousin noticing. Though Chloe had put on a bright face once they were back with their mothers, she hadn’t said a single word to Maddy since the scene at the train station.

  Maddy stared down at the pages, pretending to read. She looked up quickly as her cousin came into the lounge. Dad, Jack and Uncle Greg were in there as well, watching a football match on TV.

  “Dad?” said Chloe, standing in front of Uncle Greg.

  “Hmm?” He craned his head round her, trying to see the screen.

  “Dad, there was this top that I really liked at the shops,” said Chloe, shifting from foot to foot. “Only … it was ten pounds more than I had. Do you think I could borrow the money?”

  No! Maddy wanted to shout. She sat there frozen, unable to say a word. On the TV one of the teams scored a goal, and Dad, Uncle Greg and Jack cheered.

  “Dad,” urged Chloe. “Can I? It’s important. I mean, I really want to buy it.”

  “What’s that? Ten pounds?” Without taking his eyes off the screen, Uncle Greg reached for his wallet and fished out a ten-pound note. “There you go, love.”

  Chloe’s face shone with relief. “Thanks, Dad!” Her eyes met Maddy’s, and she gave her a hard look. Maddy went cold. She knew the look meant, Don’t you dare tell, or else!

  Chloe went back into the study. Maddy stared after her, her thoughts spinning. Would her cousin still try to run away today? They didn’t live that far from the train station – her cousin could easily walk it if she wanted to.

  What was she going to do? She couldn’t just let Chloe leave, but if she said anything, her cousin would never speak to her again! Even if they weren’t really friends any more, the thought was still very painful.

  Maddy felt a warm wriggle as Nibs came to life in her pocket. With everyone’s eyes glued to the TV, she sneakily placed the tiny cat on her shoulder, pulling her long hair in front to hide her.

  Nibs tickled her whiskers against Maddy’s ear, comforting her. “It’s not over yet, you know,” she whispered. “Last-minute successes are my speciality!”

  Maddy suppressed a grin. At least she was friends with Nibs now. That was something, at least. Suddenly she went very still. What was it Nibs had said? Sometimes one friend is all you need.

  Gemma! The thought sizzled through Maddy like lightning. Perhaps Chloe wasn’t going to text Gemma – but Maddy could, if only it wasn’t too late! Scrambling off the sofa, she pounded up the stairs to her room.

  “What is it?” demanded Nibs, clinging tightly to her shoulder.

  Maddy quickly explained her idea as she rummaged through her school bag. Nibs’s green eyes gleamed. She hopped over and peered into the bag, swishing her tail for balance. “Now, that’s the sort of thinking I like!”

  Oh, where was it? Maddy was sure she’d put the little piece of paper in her bag … there! Maddy grabbed it in relief. “Come on,” she said to Nibs. “We’ve no time to lose!”

  Going shadowy almost felt like second nature now. Ghost-like, Maddy slipped down the stairs again – though her father, brother and uncle were all making so much noise that she wasn’t sure why she worried about keeping quiet!

  Luckily the study door was open. As Maddy peeped inside, her heart seemed to leap into her throat. Chloe was gone! Then she saw the purple and silver bag on the desk, and relaxed. Her cousin must have just gone to the loo.

  Spotting a mobile lying beside the bag, Maddy hurried over and flipped it open. “Better hide, in case she comes back,” advised Nibs. “You’re invisible – but the phone isn’t.”

  “Oh, right,” whispered Maddy. She darted behind the sofa – and then on impulse took Chloe’s bag with her as well, shoving it out of sight behind the curtains.

  HI, she typed into Chloe’s phone.
I’M CHLOE, THE NEW GIRL WHO LIKES READING FANTASY TOO! WHY DON’T U COME ROUND THIS AFTERNOON? I’M STAYING AT 12 WILLOW STREET, JUST ACROSS THE MEADOW FROM U!

  Just as Maddy hit SEND, she heard Chloe come back into the study. “Hey, where’s my bag?” said her cousin.

  Hiding the phone underneath the sofa, Maddy quietly stood up and saw Chloe looking around in confusion.

  “Jack, did you take my bag?” she asked loudly.

  “Why would I want your stupid bag?” he called back from the lounge.

  “I bet Maddy did it, then,” exclaimed Chloe grimly, clenching her fists. Suddenly Maddy was extremely glad that she was invisible!

  “No, she went upstairs a while ago,” said Uncle Greg’s voice. “You’ve probably just misplaced it—Yes!” He broke off as the TV commentator went wild.

  Chloe spent ages searching for the bag, grumbling to herself as she looked under the desk and in the cupboard. Finally she flipped the curtains aside, and let out a cry of relief. “There it is! Jack, you did hide it here, didn’t you?”

  “NO!” bellowed Jack from the next room.

  Near Maddy’s foot, the mobile beeped loudly as a text arrived. Chloe looked at the desk, and her face went slack with astonishment. “Huh? I’m sure I left it right there …”

  As she went over to the desk, Maddy squatted down and flipped open the phone. A message from Gemma!

  OK, I’LL ASK MY MUM. SEE U SOON MAYBE!

  Maddy bit her lip. Oh, why couldn’t Gemma have said for sure?

  Chloe was searching on the desk, shoving things aside. “Now my phone’s missing,” she shouted. “Seriously, Jack, if you or Maddy are doing this, I don’t think it’s funny!”

  “Be quiet, we’re watching the game!” replied Jack.

  Deleting both texts, Maddy hid the phone again. The longer Chloe was delayed looking for it, the better!

  But this time she found it quickly, pulling it out from under the sofa in just a few minutes. She stared at the screen in confusion, obviously wondering where the new text was.