Kitewell

by Fallton Havenstonne

  I’ll see you soon.

  Ester McCarthy

  Ester set the feather pen on the table, then picked up her wand. She waved it over the letter, whispering a spell. It vanished into thin air. She set the wand down and sighed. She drank her cup of tea until she finished it.

  A creak resounded from the porch. She got up and went to the front door. She opened it, but didn’t see a thing. It was completely dark. After a moment, she closed the door and turned off the lights. She went to bed.

  The morning brought a cool draft into the house. Had the window been left open? Ester didn’t remember leaving it open. It smelled like honeydew when she woke up. She heard a hissing sound somewhere as if it was right next to her. Her legs felt cold and slippery. She removed the covers and leaped back. She gaped at the dozen or so snakes slithering around her legs. They hissed as they made their way toward her torso.

  Ester screamed and reached for her wand.

  One of the snakes bit her on the calf and she writhed. She used her wand and sent all the snakes flying against the wall with a smack. She stood up and made a thrusting motion with the wand. The spell sent an invisible wave of bone-crushing force at the snakes. They instantly flattened. She dropped the wand to her side, and the snakes fell on the floor with a plop.

  The window shattered and the giant spider poked its head in. She couldn’t believe how big it was as it stared her down with eight black eyes. It shot a massive cobweb at her and she dodged it. It climbed in the through the window, and she raced out of the room in a flash. She slammed the door shut.

  The spider smashed into the door with a wham. It cracked the door in half. She used her wand to yank the bathroom door off its hinges. She sent it hurtling down the hallway to her bedroom door, reinforcing it.

  As the giant spider kept banging against the door, Ester ran downstairs. A swarm of crows blasted through the living room windows. They flew in and pecked at her face. She covered her head with her arms as they kept pecking her from head to toe. All she could see was a blur of black wings flapping. She muttered a spell quickly, and the crows turned to flies. She waved her wand and sent them hurling out the broken windows.

  Ester stepped on a broken piece of glass and winced. She lifted her foot up and carefully removed the shard. She hobbled to the kitchen to clean her bloody foot when she saw Malik standing by the sink.

  Ester froze.

  “Aren’t you happy to see me?” Malik said.

  Just as she raised her wand, he used the ruby ring and zapped a hot beam of light at it. It burnt her wand to a crisp. She grunted in pain and dropped the blackened wand to the floor, sizzling.

  “Isn’t it amazing what a new spirit-gem can do?”

  Ester limped backward out of the kitchen. The blood from her foot left a trail across the carpet. He followed her into the living room.

  “Did you really think you could walk into my town and stop me? Are you aware of what I’m capable of?”

  “You’re pure evil, Malik. I’m not going to let you kill everyone like you did before.”

  “Oh, I’ll come back to your world for more once I find the other spirit-gem,” he said with a devilish smile. “You don’t happen to know where it is, do you, Ester McCarthy? Aren’t you the granddaughter of that wretched man who put me away in a stone tomb?”

  She swallowed coarsely with an itch in the back of her throat. “He should’ve buried you under the sea. You’re never going to leave this world, Malik.”

  Ester bumped up against the wall of the living room. Malik stopped five feet from her.

  He smiled. “Goodbye, Ester McCarthy.”

  He made a fist and shot a giant fireball at her with the ruby ring.

  Chapter 29

  Mark closed the trunk of the car. It was packed with clothes and food—just in case they got lost on the road. It had happened before on his family’s last attempt to escape town.

  Linda helped Corey to the car as he hobbled from the front door. Hemlock had re-bandaged his neck that morning, which had turned a shade of blue. She knew he wouldn’t make it if he didn’t get to a hospital soon. The supplies at the clinic were running low. She didn’t know when they would magically restock as they did in the other stores. She knew her staff was going through them too fast with the sudden rise of new patients, but this couldn’t be helped.

  Mark got in the driver seat and started the ignition. He turned around to see Beanie sitting next to Linda, who sat in the middle seat.

  “Is everyone ready?” he asked.

  “Yes, Daddy.”

  “Ready,” Linda said.

  With half-open eyes, Corey said, “Sure, Mr. Sinclair. I’m ready.”

  “Call me, Mark,” he said.

  Mark faced the windshield and put the car in drive. They left the driveway and started down the road. In the distance, black smoke rose from one of the houses beyond the trees. None of them had seen that before in this town. Everything was starting to feel surreal.

  “Look,” Hemlock said. “Over there.”

  “I’m going to see whose house it is,” Mark said.

  Everyone else in the car agreed, although no one uttered a word.

  Mark drove in the direction of the smoke, and as soon as he turned on Lilac Drive, Beanie felt a chill crawl on her skin. She was afraid to face it—what Malik had done. She didn’t want to see, yet she needed to know. It nagged her mind the closer they got.

  Mark rolled up to the house passed the red fire truck. Firefighters held on tightly to the hose as water gushed a stream at the inferno. Everyone in the car watched in horror as the flames engulfed the house. The roof was a flaming ribbon. The porch burned ferociously, falling to pieces before their eyes.

  Tears rolled down Beanie’s cheeks. Her lips trembled. She couldn’t believe what Malik had done, how evil he really was. She knew this was the work of her ruby ring. Why had she given it to him? Why did she trust him? Was it worth the magic she learned?

  The neighbors stood on the street watching the firefighters put out the flames. They wondered what had happened to this town with the blights and now this. It had been so peaceful a few months ago. Everything changed so rapidly. It was like an evil force had awakened.

  “Who could’ve done this?” Hemlock gasped.

  “I don’t know. This is crazy,” Mark said. “What’s happening to Kitewell?”

  Linda and Corey were quiet. They didn’t know Ester, but they felt a sense of doom and dread from what they had seen. Beside them, Beanie sobbed uncontrollably.

  “It’s okay,” Hemlock said, caressing her daughter’s face. She wiped a tear away with her thumb.

  “I … I didn’t mean for this to happen,” Beanie said.

  “It’s not your fault, Bean-Bean.”

  “Yes, it is,” Beanie sniffled.

  Mark handed her a tissue. Beanie blew into it.

  Beanie started to cry louder.

  “Let’s get out of here,” Hemlock said to Mark. “This is too distressing for her.”

  He drove off while Beanie sobbed in the backseat. They got back on the road and Hemlock spoke to Beanie softly. She consoled her, telling her that everything would be all right.

  Beanie nodded, then clutched Nighthawk tightly in her arms. She reflected on everything that had happened. She wished she had never met Malik. She wished she had never given him the ruby ring. She hated him now, and regretted all the magic she had learned from him.

  After a few minutes, they reached the town square. Mark parked in front of the health clinic and left the engine running. Hemlock got out of the car.

  “I’ll be back in a minute. Can you guys make room for Bram?” she said to Linda and Corey.

  “Sure,” Linda said.

  Linda scooted up closer to Corey, who looked like he was about to fall asleep. He could barely keep his eyes open. The infect
ion from his wound weakened him terribly. Despite the antivenom, it wasn’t enough. He needed treatment in a hospital.

  As Hemlock raced up the steps to the clinic, an injured man hobbled into the clinic with his wife. Another man carried his unconscious son to the doors of the clinic from his car.

  Crows perched on cable wires and telephone poles watched them grimly. Linda looked around at the quiet street and was overcome by an incredible feeling of angst, a feeling that this world was coming to an end. She felt goosebumps on her skin. She hoped Hemlock would come out soon so that they could leave.

  A minute later, Hemlock came crying out of the clinic. She went to the driver’s side door and Mark lowered the window.

  “What’s wrong?” he said.

  “It’s really bad, Mark. I don’t know how much time Bram has. Three patients died today. Three. And we don’t have enough medicine at the clinic. We can’t even get anymore because we’re sealed off from the rest of the world!” She wiped her runny nose.

  “Let’s take him with us,” Mark said.

  “No. He can’t move. He’s hooked up to the IV and … just go without us.”

  “Without you guys?” Mark said incredulously.

  “Yes. I’m staying behind with Bram.”

  “I want to stay too,” Beanie chimed in. “I don’t want to go if not all of us are going.”

  “No, Beanie,” Hemlock said. “Go with your father.” To Mark she said, “Get help. Bring them to Kitewell. Bring medicine—bring everything.”

  “I’ll get help,” Mark said with a glimmer of hope. “Don’t worry. I’ll bring the whole dang government if I need to.”

  “Can I see Bram one last time?” Beanie said.

  “No,” Hemlock said. To Mark, she whispered, “I don’t want her to see him like this. Just take her and go. It’s better this way.”

  “All right,” Mark said, tearing up.

  “I love you,” Hemlock said. She kissed Mark.

  “Be safe,” Mark said.

  “You as well,” Hemlock said.

  He wiped the tears from his eyes. “I love you.”

  Hemlock went around the car and hugged Beanie through the window. She kissed her and embraced her heartwarmingly.

  “I love you, Bean-Bean.”

  “I love you too, Mommy.”

  Mark pulled onto the road slowly. Beanie watched from the rear window as her mother shrank in the distance down the lonely street. She waved at her mother, who kissed her goodbye.

  Chapter 30

  They had been on the road for hours.

  The car was down half a tank. For over a hundred miles, they had seen nothing but trees and an endless stretch of road. No cars came from the opposite lane. They were miles and miles from civilization now. Who knew what was waiting in the forest: crows, snakes, or the giant spider?

  Mark and Linda were looking out for the turn to Wishwell Road. Corey had fallen asleep in the backseat. He was pale and appeared sickly. He didn’t look like he would make it to nightfall.

  Meanwhile, Beanie preoccupied herself by gazing out the window. She kept thinking about Mrs. Kantor … wished she could’ve been there to stop Malik.

  No one spoke. The only noises they heard were the trees whooshing by the car and the engine’s static hum.

  At some point, the road started to curve.

  Mark slammed the brakes.

  Linda fretted, bracing for impact. Beanie sat bolt upright and looked ahead. Corey was so weak that he could only open his eyes halfway.

  Ariel stood in the middle of the road. Her sapphire pendant pulsed like a heartbeat. Mark, Beanie, and Linda got out of the car, gazing at her in astonishment. They approached Ariel, who appeared translucent.

  “Ariel!” Beanie beamed.

  The bristles on her neck stood on end.

  Beanie ran up to hug Ariel, but her arms went straight through her. She gaped in disbelief. She waved her hand through Ariel, stunned that she couldn’t touch her. She had wished for this moment to come, and now she couldn’t even hug her.

  Ariel said, “There’s not much time. Malik is after my spirit-gem. He wants to use it to enter the other dimension—to steal people from there and bring them here.”

  “Malik’s alive?” Mark said incredulously.

  “Yes, Mr. Sinclair,” Ariel said. “I’ve traveled to many places … many worlds. I’ve learned that there are worlds that are physical and worlds that are spiritual. I can go between them—explore them—see the wonderful creatures that exist there. I could tell you many stories about them, but there’s no time. Malik wants to destroy all life in spirit worlds—especially this one.”

  “This is a spirit world?” Linda said perplexedly.

  “Yes. I opened the portal for you when you drove to Kitewell. I wanted you to see for yourself what it was like so that you could help us.”

  “Me—help you guys?” Linda said.

  “Yes.”

  “What about us?” Mark said. “Why can’t all of us leave Kitewell?”

  Ariel held up her sapphire and showed it to them. It was cracked down the middle. “When I fought Malik yesterday, he broke the spirit-gem. I can’t make enough portals for everyone or keep them open for long. But the one that bonds with the spirit-gem can.”

  “Who?” Mark said.

  Ariel met Linda’s eyes. “You.”

  “Me? Why me?” Linda said.

  “Because the spirit-gem seeks you.”

  Ariel removed her sapphire pendant and handed it to Linda. She hissed a spell and unbonded herself from the sapphire.

  “You know that spell?” Beanie said in surprise.

  Ariel nodded. “I’ve learned many things in my travels.”

  The sapphire lit up like a bright blue lamp in Linda’s palm.

  Ariel turned to Beanie and said, “On the day we were at Mrs. Kantor’s house, I almost beat Malik. But the dream was broken, and I never fully bonded with the spirit-gem. My spirit is weak because of it, and that’s why I’m just a spirit. Mrs. Kantor tried to help us, but I know now that she is gone—that Malik got her.”

  Beanie began to cry. “It’s my fault. I gave him my spirit-gem.”

  “It’s all right,” Ariel said consolingly. “She’ll be back. Once Malik is defeated, she’ll return.”

  “How are we going to defeat him?” Beanie sniffled.

  “I put my faith in you,” Ariel said to Linda. “She will restore the spirit-gem to its full power. She has the strength and courage to defeat Malik.”

  Linda wore the sapphire pendant, and it glowed even brighter.

  “Only you can enter the portal,” she said. “But you must fix the spirit-gem before you return, or else the others won’t be able to come back to your world.”

  “Her world?” Mark said. “But what about saving this one?”

  “Do you remember the flood?” Ariel said.

  “The one from a hundred years ago that devastated Kitewell?”

  Ariel shook her head. “There was another one about a year ago. Malik used his spirit-gem to flood Kitewell after a great battle with a wizard named Marquee Lemay. When he flooded the town, he opened a portal, which pulled everyone in. We are those people, Mr. Sinclair. The portal brought us here, a world where he seeks to devour our spirits.”

  Ariel walked over to Linda. “But you are different. The spirit-gem spoke to me about you. I used the man at the gas station to tell you to come here. It was no accident that you arrived in Kitewell. I opened the portal for you so that you could come and see what’s happening here. I know you will save us.”

  “How much time do I have?” Linda said.

  “You only have a couple of days,” Ariel said.

  “A couple of days?” Linda gasped.

  Ariel nodded. “He’s growing much stronger. I can feel his
power. He’s taking over this world, and soon, all of us will be gone.”

  All of them gazed at her in shock.

  Ariel noticed that Corey hadn’t been moving in the car. She went over to him and gasped. “He’s almost gone.”

  All of them huddled around Corey. Linda called out his name and shook him by the arm, but he wouldn’t wake up.

  “No,” Linda said. “No!” She was on the verge of tears.

  “We need to bring him back to your world,” Ariel said. “It’ll take all my strength to open the portal for both of you.”

  Ariel held out her palm and used the energy from the sapphire pendant. Linda looked down at the sapphire on her neck, and it got so bright that she couldn’t look at it.

  Ariel managed to open a portal, but as soon as she did, it began to shrink as if it was contracting.

  “Hurry,” Ariel said. “I can’t hold it open for long.”

  Mark helped carry Corey out of the car, wrapping his arms around him. Linda lent a hand and they carried Corey to the portal. The portal started to shrink down to the size of a small window. Mark heaved and pushed Corey through it. He disappeared instantly.

  “Don’t forget to come back for us,” Mark said to Linda.

  “I won’t.”

  “Please hurry,” Ariel said weakly.

  Linda leaped into the portal, and as soon as she was through, the portal vanished with a burst of light.

  Ariel fell to her knees, her body fading more and more. Beanie went over to her and kneeled next to Ariel.

  “Don’t go, Ariel. Stay with us.”

  “I’ll always be here,” she said faintly. “We’ll be reunited one day.”

  Her body faded until she was gone. Beanie wept uncontrollably, wishing she could hold her friend in her arms just one more time. Mark went over to Beanie and hugged her.

  “It’s okay, honey. Everything will be okay.”

  Chapter 31

  Linda lifted her head off the pavement. Her muscles were heavy, sore. She peered down the long stretch of road. Trees covered both sides of it, receding to the horizon. She pressed her palms against the asphalt and pushed herself up.