The Spook's Sacrifice (3 page)

On the morning we were due to set off, I walked
down into Chipenden village to pick up the
Spook's weekly provisions from the baker, the greengrocer
and the butcher – after all we would only be
away a few days. At the last shop I told the proprietor,
a large red-bearded man, that if anyone came on
spook's business and rang the bell at the withy trees, it
would have to wait.

As I walked back through the village, my sack was
lighter than usual because of the food shortages. To the
south of the County the war was still raging and the
reports were bad. Our forces were retreating and so
much food was being taken to feed the army that the
poorest people were close to starvation. I noted that in
Chipenden conditions had deteriorated further. There
were more hungry faces, and some houses had been
abandoned, the families travelling north in the hope of
a better life.

The Spook and I set off at a good pace, but even though
I was carrying my staff and both our bags as usual, I
didn't mind at all. I just couldn't wait to see Mam.
After a while though, as the morning began to warm
up, the Spook slowed down. I kept getting ahead and
having to wait for him to catch up. He began to get
rather irritated with me.

'Slow down, lad! Slow down!' he complained. 'My
old bones are struggling to keep up. We've set off a day
early – your mam won't arrive until midsummer's eve
anyway!'

Late in the evening of the second day, even before
we reached the summit of Hangman's Hill, I saw
smoke rising into the sky from the direction of the
farm. For a moment fear clutched at my heart.
I remembered the raid carried out by the Pendle
witches last year: they'd burned our barn to the
ground before ransacking the house and abducting
Ellie, Jack and little Mary.

But as we began our descent through the trees
towards the north pasture, what I saw was more a
cause for wonder than fear. There were campfires to
the south of the farm – a dozen or more – and smells
of wood smoke and cooking were in the air. Who
were those people camping in Jack's fields? I knew
he wouldn't welcome strangers on his farm so
I wondered if it had something to do with Mam.

But I'd little time to think about that because I
sensed at once that she was home already. Faint brown
smoke was rising from the chimney into the blue sky
and I felt the warmth of her presence. Somehow I just
knew that she was back!

'Mam's here now – I'm sure of it!' I told the Spook,
my eyes glistening with tears. I'd missed her so much
and couldn't wait to see her again.

'Aye, lad, maybe you're right. You go down and say
hello. You'll have a lot to talk about and be wanting
some privacy. I'll wait up here.'

I smiled, nodded and ran down the wooded slope
towards the new barn. But before I could reach the
farmyard, my brother Jack came round the corner into
my path. The last time I'd seen him he'd been seriously
ill after being beaten to within an inch of his life by the
witches who had raided the farm and stolen Mam's
trunks. Now he was tanned by the sun and looked
strong and healthy again, his eyebrows bushier than
ever. He gripped me in a bear hug and almost
squeezed the breath from my body.

'Good to see you, Tom!' he exclaimed, holding me at
arm's length and smiling broadly.

'It's great to see you fit and well, Jack,' I told him.

'And no little thanks to you. Ellie told me everything.
I'd be six feet under now if it wasn't for you.'

Together with Alice I'd helped to rescue Jack and his
family from Malkin Tower.

'Mam's back already, isn't she?' I asked excitedly.

Jack nodded but the smile slipped from his face.
There was a certain uneasiness; a hint of uncertainty
and sadness in his expression.

'Yes, she's back, Tom, and she's really looking
forward to seeing you again, but I have to warn you
that she's changed—'

'Changed? What do you mean, changed?'

'At first I hardly recognized her. She has a wildness
about her – especially her eyes. And she looks younger,
as if she's cast off the years. I know that doesn't seem
possible but it's true . . .'

Although I didn't say anything to Jack, I knew only
too well that this might well be the case. Human rules
of ageing didn't apply to lamia witches. As the Spook's
Bestiary had explained, there are two forms for a
lamia, and they slowly change from one to the other.
Mam was possibly slowly shape-shifting her way back
to her feral state. It was a disturbing and scary
possibility. Not something I wanted to think about too
much.

'Tom – you know all about these things because of
your line of work . . . could she be a changeling?' Jack
asked anxiously, his face suddenly full of fear and
doubt. 'Anything could have happened while she's
been in Greece. Maybe she's been captured by goblin
folk and replaced with one of their own?'

'No, Jack. Of course not,' I reassured him. 'There's
no such thing as goblin folk. It's just a superstition. So
don't you worry about that. I'm sure it's just the warm
Greek weather agreeing with her. I'll go and see her
and we'll talk later. Where's James?'

'James is busy. He's making more money with the
forge than I am with the farm at the moment. But I'm
sure he'll find time for his youngest brother.'

James was living here now and helping Jack out
with the chores, but by trade he was a blacksmith. It
sounded like his new business was shaping up to be a
real success.

'Who are all those people camping in the south
meadow?' I asked, remembering the fires I'd seen as
we'd descended Hangman's Hill.

Jack scowled at me and shook his head angrily.
'You'd better ask Mam that question!' he retorted.
'But I tell you – they have no right to be here. No right
at all! Witches from Pendle, they are. And to think
they're camping in
my
field after all that happened
last year.'

Witches? If indeed they were, I could hardly blame
him for being angry. The Pendle witches had put Jack
and his family through hell last year. With that in
mind, why would Mam allow them so close to the
farm?

I shrugged at Jack and set off across the farmyard.

Just behind the barn, facing the rear of the house, I saw
a new building – and James, working at his forge
within, his back to me. Just outside in the yard, a
farmer was holding the reins of a horse waiting to be
shod. I almost called across to James but I couldn't
wait to see Mam.

As I approached the house, I was surprised to see
Mam's climbing rose bush in flower. Last time I'd been
here it had looked dead – the blackened and withered
stems had been ripped from the wall when the Fiend
attacked the house in his attempt to kill me. Now there
were new green shoots climbing up the stones and a
few roses were in bloom, gleaming a bright County red
in the sunshine.

I paused at the back door and rapped lightly on the
wood. I'd been born and brought up in this farmhouse
but it was now no longer my home and it was polite to
knock.

'Come in, son,' Mam called, and at the sound of her
voice my eyes watered and a lump filled my throat.

How I'd missed her! I stepped into the kitchen and we
were suddenly face to face.

She was perched on a stool, stirring the big pot of
lamb stew that simmered over the fire. As usual, the
curtains were drawn to keep out the sunlight, but even
in the gloom, when she got to her feet and took a step
towards me, I could see what Jack had meant when he
said she'd changed.

Her smile was warm but her face was a little gaunt,
her cheekbones more prominent than before. Her black
hair was no longer streaked with grey and she really
did look younger than when I'd last seen her eighteen
months earlier. But in her eyes I saw a wildness; an
anxious, haunted look.

'Ah, son . . .' she said, and she put her arms around
me and pulled me close. Her warmth enfolded me and
I sobbed deep in my throat.

Holding me at arm's length, she shook her head. 'Sit
yourself down, son, and be strong. It's good to be
together again, but we've lots to say to each other and
we both need clear heads.'

I nodded and sat down facing her across the hearth,
waiting to hear what she had to say. I desperately
wanted to ask her about Alice and whether she might
be the Fiend's daughter, but Mam's business had to
come first. It must be important to bring her all the
way back to the County for this meeting.

'How have you been, Tom? And how's your
master?'

'Fine, Mam. Fine. We're both fit and well. How
about you? How did you get on in Greece?'

'It's been hard, son . . .'

Mam caught her breath and I saw the emotion in her
face. For a moment I thought she was too upset to
speak, but then she took a deep breath and her manner
became businesslike.

'I'll come directly to the point. I've already visited
Malkin Tower in Pendle and collected the bags of
money that were in the trunks I gave you. Originally I
meant them for you, to help your own cause here in
the County, but things have taken a turn for the worse
in my own land. Things are critical . . . I desperately
need that money now to finance what must be done to
avert a terrible disaster. Are you happy to surrender it
back into my keeping?'

'Of course, Mam! It's yours anyway. Just do what
you think best. Is it to help your struggle against the
Ordeen?'

'It is, son. It is. Did your master tell you what we face
back in Greece?'

'He doesn't know much about the Ordeen. He was
hoping that you'd fill in the gaps in our knowledge.
He's waiting up on Hangman's Hill to allow us some
private time together, but he wants to talk to you later.'

'Well, I can do that for him at least – though I fear
that when we've talked, things may not be so easy
between us. Your master is a good man with high
principles: he won't be able to condone what I plan to
do. But we'll have to see. Perhaps he'll realize that it
really is for the best. Which brings me to the second
thing I'd like to ask you. I need
you
, son. I need you to
return to Greece with me and help me to fight the dark
there. Others will help too, but you have a special
strength that might really make a difference and turn
things in our favour. If I could avoid this, I would, but
I have to ask. Will you come back to my homeland
with me?'

I was astonished. My duty was to the County, and
Mam's wish had always been for me to become a
spook's apprentice. But if she needed help elsewhere,
how could I refuse?

'Of course I'll go, Mam. But will Mr Gregory be
coming too? Or will I have to stop being his apprentice
for a while?'

'I sincerely hope he'll journey with us, son. But that
must be for him to decide. I simply can't predict how
he'll react.'

'What are you planning?' I asked. 'What do you
need the money for?'

'All will be revealed in good time,' Mam told me,
and I knew now was not the time to press her further.

'Mam, there's one other thing I have to ask you,' I
said. 'It's about Alice . . .'

I saw the expression on Mam's face change. One
moment it had been stern and businesslike. Now it
suddenly softened, and sadness filled her eyes. Even
before I asked the question, I feared the worst.

'The Fiend told me that Alice is his daughter. He's
lying, isn't he, Mam? Surely it can't be true, can it?'

Mam looked at me and I saw her eyes brim with
tears. 'This time he isn't lying, son. It hurts me to say it
because I know how much you care about Alice. But
it's true. She is one of the Devil's daughters.'

My heart sank.

'That doesn't mean she's doomed to belong to the
dark, son. There's a chance of redemption for us all.
A chance to be saved. Alice has that opportunity too . . .'

'How long have you known?' I asked quietly. Her
confirmation hadn't shocked me. I think that, deep
down, I'd known it was true.

'Since the moment I first saw her, son, when you
brought her here to the farm.'

'You knew then, Mam? And yet you kept it
from me?'

She nodded.

'But there were things you said. Things that don't
make any sense now – that Alice and I were the future
and hope of the County and that my master would
need us both at his side. Why did you say that?'

Mam got to her feet again, put her hands on my
shoulders and looked straight into my eyes, her
expression firm but kind. 'What I said then, I still stand
by. Alice cares a lot for you, and it's that affection that's
kept her safe from the clutches of the dark this far.'

'Alice contacted me just a few days ago. Warned me
that a maenad assassin was in the Spook's garden. But
for her, I'd be dead now.'

I saw the alarm in Mam's face; the fear in her eyes.