Sinners of Magic (4 page)

‘
We didn’t do
anything,’ Matt said, in his defence. ‘She just started saying
loads of strange stuff and acting really weird.’

Beatrice turned her attention
back to her daughter, brushing her hand over Crystal’s cool
skin.

‘
You need to
understand that my daughter is very special. By that remark, I
don’t mean she has any physical or mental disabilities. What I mean
is she is different, she can sense things.’

She turned her attention
towards Matt.

‘
Tell me,
what did she actually say to you?’ Matt shrugged his
shoulders.

‘
I’m not sure
to be honest, none of it made any sense.’

‘
What about
you?’ she asked Alfie, raising a quizzical eyebrow, her expression
already doubtful. ‘Can you shed any light as to what has happened
to my daughter?’ Alfie shook his head and then knelt at Crystal’s
side. His hands were shaking and he twisted a bit of his shirt
between his fingers in an attempt to give himself
courage.

‘
She was
mumbling something about the darkness winning,’ he told her,
stroking Crystal’s clothes as if she were a puppy. He fixed his
gaze upon Beatrice, his huge eyes pleading for a look of
reassurance.

Crystal murmured something
unintelligible and then began to stir, causing Beatrice to shift
her daughter’s head onto her knees so that she could use her lap as
a pillow.

‘
She’s waking
up,’ she said, her eyes sparkling with relief. ‘You can go now if
you wish.’

‘
Are you
sure?’ asked Matt, looking reluctant.

‘
Yes, of
course,’ Beatrice insisted. ‘There’s nothing more you can do for
her.’ She caught the pained look in his eyes, realising he only
meant to be helpful.

‘
She’s going
to feel pretty embarrassed once she comes round,’ she explained,
heaving a sigh. ‘Please, don’t make it any harder for her than it
already is.’

Matt nodded. ‘Okay,’ he said,
hesitating, ‘if that’s what you think is best.’

Beatrice nodded. ‘It is, my
dear,’ she replied, allowing her lips to turn into a tight smile.
‘Everything’s going to be just fine.’ The boys said their goodbyes,
but both were unwilling to leave. Dragging their heels, they made
their way out of the building and onto the main street.

‘
What on
earth was all that about?’ mumbled Alfie, once he felt they were
well out of earshot, his eyes still fearful. Matt didn’t answer; he
had noticed his hands were shaking and he shoved them into his
pockets in an attempt to make them stop.

‘
Beats me,’
he said, turning to view the library in a new light, ‘but I was
really scared for her back there.’

‘
What do you
think she was trying to tell us?’ asked Alfie, concentrating on
picking his nose and wiping it on the front of his
shirt.

Matt pulled a face. ‘Do you
have to be so disgusting?’ he hissed, shoving his hands deeper into
his pockets. A nervous twitch formed above his right eye when a
droning noise filled his ear. He tilted his head and watched a
honeybee buzz close to his ear; it was big, black and golden. He
moved out of its way, allowing it to pass, watching the small,
plump insect race along with the wind, busy, alone, yet with such
purpose to its life. His thoughts returned to Crystal, wondering
what he had just witnessed.

‘
I just think
Crystal’s lost her marbles,’ Alfie said, frowning; ‘what other
explanation could there be?’

Matt shook his head in
dismay.

‘
I don’t know
what to make of it, but one thing’s definite; I ain’t ever going
back inside that library again.’ He made his way across the road
and headed for a side street, his face tightening when he mounted
the pavement. ‘In future, I think we’ll just stick with the
Internet.’

Alfie laughed, slapping Matt
playfully on his shoulder, the incident already becoming a distant
memory.

‘
Come on,
mate, cheer up. I’ve just remembered the footy’s on tonight and
we’re having fish and chips for tea. I’m sure there’ll be enough
left over to put a smile on your face; what do you say?’

‘
Now that’s
food for thought,’ said Matt, suddenly producing one of his famous
grins. ‘Hah,’ Alfie chuckled. ‘First one home gets to eat the
scraps!’

‘
You’re so
gross,’ shouted Matt, breaking into a run. His strong legs took
huge, wide strides, allowing him to take the lead almost
immediately.

‘
Get back
here!’ Alfie shouted, stumbling. ‘It’s not fair, you have an
advantage with those beanpoles for legs.’ He stopped for a moment
to catch his breath.

‘
Come on,
loser,’ cajoled Matt, slowing down when he realised his friend was
miles behind.

Conceited
swine
, thought Alfie, who was anything but
amused.
Why did Matt always have to make
everything so bloody competitive
? He
started to run again, his determination getting the better of
him.
One day,
he
thought to himself
, I will show Matt what
I’m really capable of.

*

Crystal opened her eyes and
winced. Her head hurt beyond belief and she raised her hand to feel
the back of her swollen skull. Her fingers probed for the source of
the pain; a large egg-shaped bump was making its way to the
surface. Although coherent, her head throbbed from the impact of
hitting the hard stone floor, making her feel rather woozy. As her
eyes came back into focus, she realised her mother was bent over
her, holding her in a protective embrace. She groaned, turning her
head away in embarrassment.

‘
Come on,
love,’ her mum urged, ‘let’s get you onto this chair; it’s a bit
more comfortable than the floor.’

Gritting her teeth, Crystal
used all her strength and tried to stand, grasping her mother’s arm
for support. With some reluctance she allowed Beatrice to help her
get into a sitting position, before managing to pull herself up off
her knees and onto the chair.

‘
What
happened to you?’ Beatrice asked, with a flash of anxiety reaching
her eyes. Crystal lowered her lashes as though to hide from her and
turned her face away.

‘
Don’t you
want to talk about it?’ her mother pressed.

Crystal lifted her head and met
her mother’s gaze. She noticed the worry lines etched deeply in her
skin and felt a twinge of guilt. Her mother didn’t deserve to have
this weight of trouble put upon her, yet Crystal had no one else to
turn to. She took a deep, steadying breath.

‘
I saw one of
those boys die,’ she said, fighting a sickening knot that invaded
her gut. She brought her fingers to her mouth and started chewing
her nails. It was clear her nerves were bordering on
collapse.

‘
I tried to
tell them what I’d seen,’ she blurted, looking deep into her
mother’s troubled eyes. ‘I tried to warn them, but the dark side
jumbled up the scenes in my head, trying to stop me from telling.’
Tears of frustration filled her blue eyes as she begged for her
mother to understand.

‘
I scared
them away,’ she said, sounding miserable, ‘and all I have to go on
are their first names.’ Her words faltered and the tears that had
been brimming so close to the surface now ran unchecked down her
face.

‘
I don’t know
what to say,’ said Beatrice in bewilderment. ‘You’re getting
yourself all worked up over something you can’t control,’ she
added, busying herself with her daughter’s crumpled clothes and
ruffled hair.

Crystal shook her head in
dismay. It was obvious her mother just wasn’t grasping the
seriousness of the situation. Her soft, calming tone was soothing
to her daughter, yet her lack of understanding irritated her
immensely. Crystal rose to her feet, setting her hands on her hips
in a gesture of defiance. Her cheeks were streaked with tears and
her eyes shone with those yet to be shed.

‘
You know I
have a special gift,’ she snapped, searching her mother’s face for
some sign of comprehension. She reached out and squeezed her
mother’s shoulder.

‘
Tell me you
know I’m different.’

It was Beatrice’s chance to
turn away, but Crystal’s grasp was far too strong and their eyes
held one another.

‘
I do
understand only too well my darling, probably more than you
realise, but this is not the time or place to discuss it. Let’s
just get you out of here and back home where you
belong.’

Crystal let her go.

‘
You know I
have to try and help them,’ she said, whilst the evening sun crept
through the windows, casting a wonderful golden light above her
head and causing her to look like a fiery angel.

Her mother gave her head a
solemn shake. ‘Look, just be very careful what you do,’ she warned,
holding onto her hand. ‘This is all new ground for you and you
don’t know the penalty for dabbling in these dark arts.’

‘
You know I’m
not dabbling and they aren’t dark arts,’ Crystal snapped with
rising frustration. ‘I can’t just sit back and do nothing when I
know someone is in danger. I feel a real sense of power deep inside
me, one which I don’t quite know how to use yet, but in time, I’m
sure I will. All I do know is that one of those boys is in serious
peril and I’m going to do my very best to save him.’

‘
Sometimes I
think you have come from another place,’ Beatrice said, feeling a
stab of cold apprehension.

‘
I think
that’s exactly it,’ said Crystal, making light of what her mother
said. ‘I think I came from somewhere like the planet Krypton.’
Beatrice managed a weak smile.

‘
I’m
serious,’ she chided. ‘You know, when you were born I used to have
the oddest of dreams, nightmares really, and I would wake up
believing someone wanted to take you away from me, that you weren’t
actually
my
daughter.’

A soft smile lingered on
Crystal’s mouth. She had heard this story many times in the past
and had never taken it seriously.

‘
You should
be so lucky,’ she chuckled. ‘No one’s going to take me away, Mum,
not ever; that’s all they were, just horrible dreams.’ Her
expression softened and the atmosphere around them turned lighter.
‘I’m all the family you need,’ Crystal added, flashing her
brilliant blue eyes and enabling her mouth to lift at the corners
just a little. She took a step forward and slipped her arm around
her mum’s full waist, giving it a tight squeeze.

‘
Nobody will
ever change who we are,’ Crystal whispered, when her mother
returned her warm embrace. ‘It’s just you and me, like it’s always
been and that’s how it’s going to stay for the foreseeable
future.’

Chapter
2

Only a single day had passed
since the drama in the library, but to Crystal it felt like a
lifetime. She sat huddled over the breakfast bar in her warm
kitchen and scanned the local newspaper for any clues or stories
that could inadvertently help her save a life. She probed each
column of print, in search of crucial information involving water,
but everywhere she looked she found nothing that could help.

Beatrice entered the kitchen
from a side entrance leading from the dining room and headed for
the sink. Placing a used cup and saucer in the washing-up bowl, she
eyed her daughter, aware of how much she had matured over the last
couple of months. She stared at her delicate features and thought,
not for the first time, how she didn’t resemble anyone in her
immediate family.

She had been such a good baby.
Once settled into a routine, she had rarely cried and grew into a
gentle and caring child. Her placid nature and quick wit showed at
an early age, but she had to admit that the nagging doubt of her
being some kind of an impostor was still there, eating away at her,
bit by bit, day by day.

She remembered how she’d slept
fitfully that first night of Crystal’s birth, worrying the child
was not truly hers after the harrowing dream she’d suffered as soon
as she’d drifted off to sleep. Since that night, part of her always
believed that the real mother would one day make her way to her
tiny cottage and steal her beautiful baby back. Logic told her she
was being completely ludicrous; what substantial evidence had she
ever found to support the wild accusation that roamed
uncontrollably in her head? Yet she knew, deep down in her soul,
that the child she held dear was not her own. The dreams had been
too real and too regular, and the reality of day had been unable to
chase away the dark shadows that had so readily grasped hold of her
subconscious mind; it was like an itch that could not be scratched.
But she loved Crystal with all her heart and no one would ever take
this child from her without a fight.

She studied Crystal once again,
watching as her hair fell over her face whilst she devoured the
contents of the weekly tabloid. Her long auburn hair had been
allowed to grow out of its girlish bob and it fell down her back
like a moving cascade of hot lava. It was so rich in colour and
thickness that it was outrageously sinful, the deep russet tones
accentuating her eyes, which were a dazzling shade of sapphire
blue, protected by a row of long, silky lashes. She was a willowy
creature with slender limbs and artistic tendencies. There was not
a shadow of a doubt; Crystal would mature into a strikingly
beautiful woman.