Black Wood (A Witch Rising) (11 page)

Emily repeated the words, trying
to memorize them. Aurelie prepared fish fingers and mash for lunch,
and they ate together. By afternoon, she had learned three more
spells: one to start a small flame in the palm of her hand, one to
open locked doors, and a last one to make a star follow her so
she’d never have to walk in complete darkness. Being a witch was so
much fun. She smiled as she imagined the look on her brother’s face
when he realised she could now open doors without a key. If only
her head wasn’t hurting so much from trying to remember all those
weird words.

It was almost dark outside when
her father rang the bell, his face flushed from the cold December
wind. But there was something else in his eyes. A glimmer Emily had
never seen before. Like a flame surrounded by a block of ice, it
made him shimmer from the inside.

Aurelie looked at Emily with a
deep frown set between her brows, and whispered, “Oh, no. He’s been
bewitched.”

“Dad, are you okay?” Emily asked
as she walked beside her father the short distance to Ravencourt
Manor.

“Sure. Why’re you asking?” He
trudged along, slightly stooped to the side. His breathing came
laboured as though he’d just spent an hour in the gym.

Emily shrugged. “Just so.”

They stopped in front of the
door and her father hassled with the key, missing the lock.

“Why don’t you let me try?”
Emily asked. She covered her mouth and whispered, “Ianua,
pateface!”

The door bounced open and she
smiled, pleased. She wasn’t just a witch, her spells were also
working
and
useful.

They stepped in and her father
locked the door. “What did you say?”

“Nothing.” Emily looked around.
“Where’s Sam?”

“He’s waiting for us.” Her
father changed into his slippers and guided her toward the kitchen.
“There’s something we need to tell you.”

Emily frowned. “We?” Whatever it
was, it didn’t sound good. And then her gaze fell on Muriel sitting
next to her brother at the kitchen table.

Her father put his arm around
the witch’s shoulders and smiled. “Muriel and I have some great
news to share with you.”

“What?” Emily squinted. She had
a feeling she wouldn’t like the news at all, especially with the
sneaky look Muriel gave her. Muriel was mean and dangerous, and
Emily didn’t trust her one bit.

Her father beamed, the unnatural
sparkle in his eyes twinkled like a flickering candle. “We’re going
to get married.”

Emily gasped. He didn’t just say
that!

Sam threw her a questioning
look, the corners of his mouth curled down. “You’re married to
Mum.”

“Don’t you worry. I’ll take care
of that tiny inconvenience,” Muriel said.

“Em, do something,” Sam
whispered.

“You can’t be serious, Dad.”
Emily breathed in. “She’s an evil witch.”

Her father turned red. “Now
you’re being rude. Apologize to Muriel this instant.”

Emily planted her hands on her
hips. “I won’t because she’s a witch. She’s a
mean
witch,
and I’m going to send her back to where she belongs.”

Her father opened his mouth to
speak when Muriel raised her hand to stop him. “Emily, I know
you’re upset and there’s nothing wrong with that. You’ll get over
it. In time.”

“You’ll be gone soon. Tell her,”
Sam said, hiding behind Emily’s back.

“Dad, all she wants is
Ravencourt Manor and Grandma's magic,” Emily said. “That’s why she
turned Sam into a troll.”

Her father grabbed Muriel’s hand
and turned to face them. “Trolls? That’s enough! I won’t put up
with your nonsense. Go to your rooms now. I’ll have a word with you
later.”

***

“He doesn’t believe us,” Sam
said as they climbed up the stairs.

Emily shook her head. “She’s
bewitched him and he doesn’t even know it.”

“What should we do?”

Above their heads, wood creaked.
Emily lifted a finger. “Did you hear that?”

Sam nodded. “Probably just your
cat.”

“There’s this window in
Grandma’s room that keeps popping open.” Emily shuddered. “And the
room turns cold as ice. Something’s not right. Probably Muriel
weaving her evil magic.”

The creaking moved nearer and
stopped above their heads. They both looked up toward the attic,
then turned to face each other. Emily spoke first. “Something’s up
there.”

Sam swallowed.

The sound of hundreds of tiny
wings broke the silence. And then cawing. Emily pressed her palms
against her ears. “What is that?” she shouted on the top of her
lungs so her brother would hear.

His face paled. “The crows are
back.”

The sound stopped as abruptly as
it had begun. Emily spun around, gasping for air. She didn’t trust
this quietness. “This is too freaky. You stay here and take care of
Dad while I go talk to Aurelie. Maybe she knows what’s going on.”
Without waiting for her brother’s answer, she ran down the stairs,
put on her winter coat and boots, and tip-toed to the living room
and out the backdoor into the garden.

The temperature had dropped over
the last few days. Thick, dark clouds hung low in the sky,
obscuring the rising moon. Emily hurled herself over the fence and
bolted for the house.

Aurelie opened on the second
knock. “I didn’t expect you before tomorrow. What happened?”

Emily entered the cosy living
room and plopped down on the sofa, sinking into the soft cushions.
“Dad said he and Muriel are getting married.” She looked at
Aurelie, waiting for assurance that this wasn’t going to happen,
but it never came.

Aurelie pursed her lips. “Did
you have dinner yet?”

“Dad’s still married to Mum,”
Emily said.

“Your parents have lived apart
for a long time. There are some things they never told you.”

Emily jumped up, pouting.
“Still, he can’t marry her just like that.”

“Muriel’s a dangerous witch. She
knows her magic well.” Aurelie tilted her head to the side. “We’ll
have to act fast, for, once she becomes mistress of Ravencourt
Manor, its powers will be hers. She’ll not only be able to open the
portal through the mirror, but also summon Black Wood creatures to
enter this world. I wouldn’t want human-devouring silverfurs
roaming the streets of Inverness.”

“That reminds me,” Emily said,
tapping her chin with her finger, “did Grandma ever tell you
anything about crows in our attic?”

Muriel shot her a wary look.
“Why’re you asking?”

Emily shrugged. “They come every
year. Sam and I heard flapping of wings ten minutes ago.”

Aurelie rose to her feet.
“Clifford, get down here this instant,” she shouted toward the
staircase.

A few moments later, Clifford
emerged in the doorway. “What is it, Aunt Aurelie?” His glance fell
upon Emily, and his cheeks turned bright red.

“I want you to bring me the
backpack,” Aurelie said.

Clifford’s eyes popped wide
open. “What? Now? But you said she needed more time.”

“We don’t have more time,”
Aurelie snapped. “Now, do as I told you.”

What where they talking about?
Emily looked from one to the other when Clifford ambled away,
hesitation written on his freckled face.

“What’s going on?” Emily
asked.

Aurelie turned to face her.
“It’s a sign, dear. And not a good one. The crows return every
year, multiplied in number. This year, they come particularly
early. Muriel’s magic is growing by the minute. You must leave for
Black Wood tonight, because, once Muriel’s magic reaches its peak,
all is lost, and Ravencourt Manor will be hers forever.”

Emily returned home a few
minutes later, a black backpack thrown over her shoulder, her
thoughts circling around Aurelie’s advice.

Don’t stop to sleep or eat.
Never ever drink or waddle into Black Wood’s streams for there are
water snakes and flesh-eating fish and the water spawns its own
dark magic. If you see a silverfur, speak the magic words and then
run because where there is one, other silverfurs aren’t far away.
Don’t trust anyone, not even the beautiful elves and the nixes with
their enchanting voices.

The list went on and on, and
Emily’s head throbbed with the effort to keep it all in. Hoping she
would remember everything, she hid the heavy backpack under her
grandmother’s bed and went in search of her brother. She knew
shortly before midnight he’d turn into a troll, so there wasn’t
much time to share her plan.

Emily found him in his room,
pacing up and down in front of the window. As soon as she entered,
he grabbed her in a tight hug. “Did you talk to Aurelie? What did
she say? Do you know how to get rid of Muriel? Dad was here to talk
to us.”

“Slow down.” She raised her hand
to stop his rant. “What did you tell him?”

“That you went over to Aurelie’s
because you felt bad about what you said to Muriel. He was pleased
but said he still wants you to apologize to her.”

Emily pursed her lips. Maybe the
magic diary could take care of that and make her father think she’d
already apologized because she wasn’t sorry at all. “Did he say
anything else?”

Sam shook his head. “Can’t
remember. Wasn’t really listening.”

Emily pulled him onto the bed.
“We can worry about Dad later. There’s so much I need to tell you.”
Whispering, she informed him about Black Wood.

“I don’t know. Doesn’t sound
like a safe place to me,” Sam said.

She crossed her arms over her
chest. “Well, it probably isn’t, but I think we can trust Aurelie.
Grandma did. It’s the only way to get rid of that awful woman.”

“When will you be back?”

Emily shrugged. “Dunno. In a few
days, perhaps?”

“There’s no way I’ll be able to
keep this from Dad,” Sam said. “He’s worse than Mum. He always asks
questions.”

“The diary will take care of
him. I’m more worried about Muriel. Now,
she
won’t be easy
to fool.”

Sam swallowed and nodded. “I
know what to do about her. I’ll be extra mean and make her angry
all the time, so she’ll forget about you.”

Emily smiled. “Just be careful.
You know what she’s capable of.”

Sam lowered his gaze, but she
caught the glint of sadness in his eyes.

“Trust me, I know and I won’t
forget. Night after night, I change into this thing.” He shook his
head and rose to his feet, suddenly chirpy. “I’ll help you with
everything. What do you need done?”

“The backpack has everything I
need. Aurelie will feed Solace while I’m gone. You just make sure
no one suspects a thing.” Emily peered out the window into the
dense darkness. The moon stretched against the horizon. She stood
and gave her brother a quick hug with tears in her eyes. She
wouldn’t cry, but a tiny sob escaped her throat nonetheless.

“Hey, you take care of
yourself,” Sam whispered as she left for her grandmother’s
bedroom.

***

The magic diary was still
wrapped in its black cloth. She pulled it out and began writing,
wishing for her father to be so busy at work he’d fail to notice
her absence. After she finished, she blew her grandparents’ photo a
kiss and snuggled under the covers, trying to sleep, for, once she
entered Black Wood, there’d be no proper sleep for her.

Soon, she drifted off into an
uneasy slumber with hundreds of thoughts haunting her troubled
mind. When she rose to Solace nibbling on her toes, she felt more
tired than before.

Emily switched on the bedside
lamp and looked at the watch. It was a few minutes after midnight.
She hurled the covers aside and jumped out. The room was cold as
ice. Luckily, she had gone to bed with her clothes on because she
didn’t fancy getting dressed in this chilliness.

She noticed a tray with last
night’s dinner on top of the clutter on her grandmother’s desk. The
delicious scent of fish and chips hung heavy in the air. Her
stomach rumbled, but she didn’t lift the cover. She wouldn’t have
any of it, just in case Muriel poisoned it. After throwing the
heavy backpack over her shoulder, she climbed up the ladder to the
attic.

The cawing began as soon as she
opened the trapdoor. Emily forced her feet to move one step after
another, but her heart hammered in her chest and her legs turned
into jelly. The attic was pitch-black. Should she use her magic to
ignite a flame in the palm of her hands? Wings fluttered and a
sudden gust of wind blew to her right. Aurelie had strictly warned
her against using magic inside the house until she opened the
portal.

Emily turned on the spot,
peering into the darkness around her. The cawing seemed to come
from every direction. Nothing fancy like a bonfire, just a tiny
flame in the palm of her hands. Aurelie would never know. She drew
in her breath and muttered the magic words. “Flamma, appare!”

The heat rose in her palm almost
instantly. And then a faint spark, no bigger than a bud, appeared.
Emily smiled as it grew stronger, illuminating the vast space to
her left and right.

A croak to her right. Her heart
jumping in her throat, Emily snapped her head toward the sudden
noise. The large eyes of a black crow glared back at her. The bird
opened its beak and let out a shrill caw. Emily gasped and took a
few steps back until she bumped against the mirror. She tried to
calm her racing heart. It was just a bird. Nothing to be scared
of.

The mirror looked as black as
the room. The flame in her palm flickered toward the shiny surface,
illuminating Emily’s reflection, the crow’s beady eyes following
her. Should she blow out the flame first and then open the portal?
The crows cawed again and Emily flinched. She wished they’d just be
quiet for a moment so she could focus. But they kept staring at
her, as though they were watching her every move, waiting for
something to happen.