Witch's Bell Book One (35 page)

Finally there was a knock on the door,
and Ebony glanced up at the clock to see that it was indeed eight
o'clock already.

“
Come in,” she called, hoping
Harry would be polite enough to let the person in. It would be one
of three people: her father, Ben, or Nate. She'd lost track of the
conversation last night, or it hadn't been decided at that point,
but Ebony wasn't quite sure whose car she'd be hopping
into.

But as she stood, she realized
she truly looked like a slob. And while her father would hardly
notice, and Ben would just shake his head, Nate would
....

Ebony glanced around. Did she have any
clothes in this damn place? While she could run home and try to
find something nice, sleek, and sassy, that would probably not be a
good strategy considering the entire point of being picked up was
so that she was never alone.

“
Ahh,” she started, still
desperately glancing around. She could go out the back and get one
of her ceremonial gowns, but it might look like a bit
much.

The bell tinkled and the person,
whoever they were, walked in.

Ebony found herself jumping from foot
to foot, something she'd never done as a witch, but something she
apparently couldn't avoid as a mundane woman.

“
I brought you some clothes,”
the voice said from behind her.

In a flick, Ebony stopped jumping. She
turned to see her mother there. Her face strangely controlled. Her
eyes weren't glinting gold, and her hair wasn't whistling around
her like blossoms on the wind.

Ebony swallowed. Of all the
people that could have come
–

“
You weren't expecting me, where
you?” Avery Bell had two bony hands clutched over a large,
painted-silk bag.

Ebony just shook her head.

“
Really,” Avery took a breath,
“who else could it be? You think either Ben or your father could
protect you from a proper magical attack? While your father would
certainly put up a good fight, I'd rather he not stress his
joints.”

Ebony hadn't thought, had she? It
wasn't as if having a detective with a gun was going to be any
deterrent to a proper magical onslaught. You could shoot at the
apparition, but that was just going to make it very
angry.

Still, her mother
....

“
And as for that other one, your
little chevalier, well,” Avery seemed to roll the words around in
her mouth, as if savoring the taste. “While it seems there might be
nothing he can't do, I'd rather do this one myself.”

Ebony just nodded, staring down at her
feet for some reason.

It was a strange thing, but Ebony
hadn't ever had a particularly bad relationship with her mother.
While the whole no-magic punishment thing had certainly been a
blow, there hadn't been too many witchy domestics in the past. For
the most of it, both of them just went their separate ways. Avery
Bell was a big believer, after all, in a witch finding her own
feet, on her own ground, in her own time.

Avery handed the bag over to Ebony, a
little crackle of electricity escaping along her skin. The first
sign that Ebony's mother truly wasn't that human.

Ebony peeked inside, and her
face practically lit up. It wasn't a rubber-tubing top, it wasn't
happy Christmas slacks, it wasn't a paint-accident top from
the
‘80s.
No. Inside was a gorgeous, flaring, white skirt. It had delicate
little cherry blossoms embroidered along the hem, and light netting
to give it a touch of volume. There was a soft, cream, silk blouse
as well. It had slight ruffles, dips, and twists – but looked as
elegant as anything you'd find in the pages of a vintage Vogue.
There was a pair of sweet little high-heels too, in a soft lavender
with white trimming.

Ebony couldn't help but
smile.

“
I figured you wouldn't mind
looking good,” her mother kept her straight, elegant pose – but her
mouth was softer than usual – less drawn and formal.

Ebony clapped her hands. Finally,
finally, she could walk into the police station and not bother that
she looked like the patched together remnants from a costume
train-wreck.

“
Time to go,” her mother dipped
her head to the side.

Ebony nodded.
“I'll just go
change.”

Her mood shifted the instant
she put on her new clothes. She ran a hand along the soft fabric of
her top, simply drinking in its quality. She didn't have a mirror
in Harry's shop, so she was using the reflection off one of the
back windows to check herself out. Even though her reflection was
blurred and pinched by the old, warped glass
– it didn't matter.

“
You have a long day ahead of
you, little witch,” her mother called out. “Come on out and face
it.”

Ebony, though having not entirely
forgiven her mother yet, still smiled as she walked out. There was
something about the gift of wondrous clothes, especially at a time
when Ebony felt her most vulnerable and frumpy, that was the
greatest peace-offering a girl could get.

Her mother winked and
smiled.
“Beautiful.”

Ebony simply patted down her
skirt in reply, and resisted the urge to do a twirl. It was odd,
but the only thing that popped into her head was Nate. She smiled
to herself.
“How are we going to travel?”

“
Why my dear, we're going to
walk,” Avery Bell clasped her hands in front of herself in her
usual careful, proper manner.

“
Walk?” Ebony repeated, lips
jutting open. “But you're a Coven witch. Don't you think the
bin-men are going to get a little shocked when your hair starts
turning blue and crackling?”

“
I will control myself. It is a
nice day. And I haven't simply walked for ...” Avery's eyes shifted
a little, finally returning to their original blue-gray, “years.”
She looked back up at her daughter, expression
unreadable.

Was this a peace offering? The
clothes, the offer to walk Ebony to the police station? Was Avery
Bell saying sorry without actually going through the formality of
using the word?

Or would she start haranguing
Ebony the moment they got through the door? Would Ebony have to put
up with 45 minutes of
“you don't know what you want to do with your
life, and now terrible magical creatures are after your
soul?”

Ebony wiped at her mouth, and
shrugged. She'd just have to make a decision now, wouldn't
she?

“
Okay, let’s go,” Ebony headed
towards the door.

Ebony's walk with her mother
was
...
pleasant. She wasn't worried, after all, you would have to be a
ballsy or totally crazy magical fiend to want to take on a Coven
witch. Nor had her mother used the opportunity to bat her ears
about not finding greater purpose in life. In fact, the sun had
been shining, the scent of brewing coffee and baking bread in the
air, and the general happy ambiance of a Saturday morning had given
everything a happy little tinge.

Though their conversation had
been stilted to begin with, and Ebony had found herself having to
control herself on more than one occasion
– stopping herself from taking a stab
at her mother for her actions with the Coven – it had slowly turned
almost pleasant. Her mother told her about the things she was
planning to do with the house. How they'd recently had to widen the
cat flap because their cat, Muggins, kept bringing home magical
bats that turned into vampires halfway through the door, and got
stuck there till her father went to get the screw driver. And about
how Ebony's father had started to build dry stone-walls all around
the garden, even though it was barely five cars wide.

Ebony hadn't felt quite up to sharing
her own recent shenanigans. After all, her mother was already well
aware of them. Police work, magical punishment, magical attacks,
the usual.

But, several minutes from the station,
the topic of the conversation had changed abruptly.

Avery Bell had turned towards
her daughter, a knowing smile on her lips.
“So, little witch, tell me more about
the mysterious Detective Nate.”

Ebony's stomach had given a
little kick and she'd quickly found something else to look
at.
“What
about him?” she'd managed after a moment.

“
Something very peculiar, I
think. He has an unusual presence, and an unusual will.”

Ebony gave a brief
laugh.
“He's
like a dog after a bone. He doesn't let up, ever. And he asks
questions all the time, he just doesn't stop. And he begins every
single statement with a dry “right.” It's so infuriating,” Ebony
found herself suddenly talking non-stop, as if Avery had stuck a
water balloon with a pin, only to find its contents burst forth
with a pop.

“
Indeed.”

“
And he always seems to be at
the right place at the right time,” Ebony scratched her neck,
feeling it itch slightly.

“
Go on,” Avery simply prompted
quietly.

“
I don't know, the first second
I saw him, I thought he was just annoying. Someone who was so wound
up by the rules, that he'd just burst if he found someone flaunting
them,” Ebony kept scratching at her neck.

“
I see. And now what do you
think of him?”

Ebony ran her teeth over her
lip.
“Oh, I
don't know. He's just so different. He's not bothered by magic at
all, not by anything really. I used to think I could wind him up
and tease him, but now I realize he was always the one playing me,”
she laughed half-heartedly, then let out a deep sigh. She kept
going back to scratch her neck, it just felt so
peculiar.

“
And? What do you mean? How is
he different?” Avery's pace had slowed, even though the police
station was now in sight.

Ebony shrugged.
“I don't get a bad
feeling about him, not at all, I just—”

“
Want to know more,” her mother
smiled carefully. “Well, he is very curious ... very curious
indeed. So, tell me, do you like him?”

Ebony started to realize this
was no normal itch. She stopped suddenly, turning to her mother,
her face steely.
“You didn't,” she admonished harshly, “you didn't cast a
speaking-hex on me, did you?”

Her mother cocked an
eyebrow.
“It
is always a mother’s prerogative to know what her daughter is
thinking.”

“
Mum!” Ebony protested. “You
can't do that!”

Her mother fobbed her off with
a wave, but then her face turned very serious.
“I am still worried for you,
little witch. Do not forget that. And I will do everything in my
power to find out who is after you. Even if that requires hexing my
own daughter – the very creature I am trying to save.”

Ebony took a breath, almost
ready for another fight. But then, well, she just let it go. She
didn't want this
– she didn't want to keep fighting with her mother – keep
interpreting everything Avery did as some kind of mortal insult. It
didn't make Ebony feel good. In fact, it made her itch with
frustration and deep dissatisfaction. She sighed. “Please don't do
it again,” she managed.

Her mother dipped her head
elegantly.
“As you wish. Though, as mother to daughter, let me offer
you the following advice: while you're investigating the
Grimshores, keep an eye out for Mr Nathan Wall. I think you'll find
that would be,” she looked to the side and smiled, “a rewarding
search.”

Ebony sucked at her teeth and
shook her head. She got the innuendo, and didn't appreciate it
much. They finally arrived at the front doors of the
station.
“Well, here I am. I suppose you'll be picking me up tonight
then?”

Her mother nodded.

“
I feel like I'm in primary
school,” Ebony sighed.

“
In which case, I will be sure
to pack you a snack for the return journey. Chopped fruit and a
muesli bar.”

“
Good bye, mother,” Ebony said
sarcastically, but still offering a friendly wave as she finally
walked up the steps and through the front doors.

When she turned back, not
surprisingly, her mother was gone.

When Ebony Bell finally marched up to
her desk, she was ready to crack the lid open on this thing. She
wasn't ready, however, for the sight of Detective Nate sitting in
her chair, pouring over her files, and using her notebook and
pen.

He looked up and smiled.

Ebony found her nostrils flaring, for
some odd reason. She opened her mouth, not completely clear about
what she should say.

“
I've been here since five
o'clock this morning,” he cracked his neck from side to side.
“Which is lucky, because there's a lot to go through
here.”

Ebony just mumbled a yes. He was the
last thing she'd expected to see. She didn't know why, surely a
walrus-circus sprawled out between the files would have been less
likely. But still, Ebony hadn't thought he'd be here.