brimstone witch 09 - witch is dead Read online

  I stroked his head. “I’m not planning on dying just yet. Let’s get something to eat and see if we can cheer Tobias up.”

  I prepared some chopped fruit for myself and some nibbles for Stanley. I put extra in his dish in case we could tempt Tobias to eat.

  As we walked over to the window, Tobias turned to face us and said, “Would you mind if I went out for a little walk? My heart feels too heavy for my body and I think a walk would help.”

  “We’ll come with you,” I offered.

  “No, thank you. I’m not very good company. I’d like to feel sorry for myself for a while and get it out of my system.” His chin trembled slightly. “I’m sure I’ll feel better soon. I won’t be long.” He gave us a tiny smile before leaving the apartment via the cat flap.

  Stanley and I went over to the sofa and sat down.

  “Poor Tobias,” Stanley said. “I hope he’ll be alright.”

  “I’m sure he will. Eat up, Stanley. We need to keep our strength up. We’ve got a lot of work to do today.”

  A minute later, there was a knock at the door which we recognised.

  “Come in!” I shouted.

  Luca entered the apartment with a smile on his face. “Hi. Did you know it was me or do you let anyone just walk in?”

  “Of course we knew it was you.” I patted the seat next to me. “Have you anything to tell us?”

  “I have.” Luca gave Stanley a quick tickle behind his ears before sitting next to me. “I saw you zooming back to town five minutes ago. Why were you in such a rush?”

  In between crunching apple slices, I told Luca about my conversations with Selena and Gethin. The muscles in Luca’s face went into overtime as he clenched his jaw tight and tried to keep control of his anger.

  When I’d finished telling him about Gethin and his comments about the cats, Luca exploded, “That’s it! I’m not going to stand by and let those vampires treat you like that! And as for the residents of Dingy Skipper! How long have they been living a life of terror? It’s outrageous! It’s unacceptable! Something has to be done immediately.”

  I put my empty fruit bowl on the floor and said, “I’m working on it. I’ve got Henrietta’s records of those vampire potions and I’ve got Cordelia’s notes about their crimes. The only problem is that I haven’t got any evidence to confirm they intimidated residents. Cordelia’s notes show the crimes, but her records state the crimes have been dealt with. I need hard evidence if I’m going to arrest the vampires. Ideally, I need witness statements, but you know what the residents in Dingy Skipper are like. They’re hardly approachable.”

  Stanley added, “They’re too scared to talk. If no one talks, then the vampires win.”

  Luca shook his head. “There’s something we can do. There has to be. I’ll talk to the residents. I’ll make them see sense.”

  I put my hand on his arm. “Don’t go rushing over there just yet. I need time to solve this murder case first. Speaking of that, did you speak to Henrietta’s sister?”

  “I did. She’s upset about Henrietta’s death but not altogether surprised. She begged Henrietta not to move to Dingy Skipper as they both knew how dangerous it was. Henrietta argued and said the creatures there needed her help. She intended to give her help free of charge, but her sister said she had to charge something or else she would be taken advantage of. Henrietta agreed to charge a small amount if needed.”

  I asked, “Did you tell her about Henrietta working for the vampires?”

  Luca nodded. “She was surprised about that and said it didn’t sound like Henrietta at all. Henrietta was all about compassion and helping those less fortunate.”

  Stanley told Luca about his theory of Henrietta being forced to help the vampires.

  “That makes sense,” Luca noted. “I know I’d do anything to keep my loved ones safe.”

  “Me too,” Stanley added. “I’d do anything to protect you and Cassia.”

  I grinned and said, “Not me. I’d leave you two to fend for yourselves.”

  There was a fluttering noise at the door and a second later a Brimstone butterfly came through it with a message for one of us.

  Stanley said, “How do they manage to get through a closed door? I’ve checked that one for gaps, but I can’t find anything.”

  “They’re magic,” I replied. “Pure and simple magic. Who’s the message for?”

  The butterfly hovered in the air in front of us and opened its wings. A loud voice boomed out. I recognised it immediately. It was Gethin:

  “Dear Cassia and Stanley, you really shouldn’t have let that cat out on his own. I saw him wandering around your town and decided to take him home with me. You can have him back when you return my potions. He might be alive when you get him back. He might be dead. It depends on how quickly I get my potions back. See you soon.”

  Chapter 22

  As soon as we’d listened to Gethin’s message, Stanley and I got ready to leave Gran’s apartment and to return to Dingy Skipper immediately. Luca wanted to come with us, but I told him no.

  I explained, “This could be a trap and there’s no sense in all of us being victims. If we don’t come back soon, you can look for us.”

  “That’s a terrible plan,” Luca argued.

  “I don’t have time for a better one,” I replied. I grabbed my broomstick and left the apartment before he could argue any further with me. Stanley trotted at my side.

  Stanley worried incessantly as we flew back to Dingy Skipper. “I hope those vampires haven’t hurt Tobias,” he said. “What if they’ve turned him into a cat vampire? That would be awful. I thought Blythe had put a spell on Brimstone to stop the vampires coming here. Why didn’t it work?”

  “I don’t know. I’m so mad at myself for not placing a protective spell on Tobias when I had the chance. Try not to worry so much, Stanley. No matter what Gethin said in his message, I think Tobias is more valuable to them alive than dead. Hold on; we’re nearly there.”

  The town of Dingy Skipper seemed more dismal than ever when we arrived. The drizzle had turned into heavy rain and I was thankful Stanley and I were still protected by the water-repellant spell.

  We headed over to the vampires’ house and as soon as we landed, I marched up to the garden gate and pushed it open.

  Just as we set off up the path, a flash of light exploded in front of my eyes. I was lifted off the path and flung backwards over the garden gate. I landed in a patch of muddy earth. Stanley landed at the side of me.

  I reached out to him. “Are you hurt?”

  He shook his head. “What just happened to us?”

  I aimed a narrow-eyed look at the vampires’ house and replied, “I don’t know. I’m going to try walking up the path again. You stay here.”

  “I’ll come with you.” Stanley tried to pull his paws free from the thick mud.

  “No, wait here.”

  I took advantage of his mud problem and stood up. I walked towards the gate and went slowly through it. I took a careful step onto the stone path. As soon as my foot touched the stone, I was knocked backwards. I wasn’t flung as far this time, but I still landed in a patch of mud.

  The door of the house was flung open and Gethin stood there. He guffawed loudly and put his skinny hands on his stomach as if he were afraid his sides would split with mirth. Vampires appeared at the windows on the ground floor of the house. They opened the windows and joined in with the raucous laughter.

  I prised myself free from the mud and then pulled Stanley out of his muddy trap. With my broomstick in one hand and Stanley tucked under my other arm, I walked up to the gate and shouted, “What have you done to the path? I demand you let us enter the premises immediately.” I placed Stanley on the ground slightly behind me.

  Gethin laughed even louder. “You should have seen yourself flying backwards through the air! It was hilarious. So undignified. And you did it twice! What a foolish witch you are. Have another go. I dare you. See what happens this time.”

  I looke
d at the path and could detect a light blue sheen on it. I said, “You’ve used magic on it.”

  Gethin gave me a slow clap. “Well worked out. It’s a witch-repellent spell. A very effective one. It works on cats too. After your earlier threats, I got in touch with some of my contacts in other towns. They too had experienced problems with irritating witches. They had access to certain spells which they were happy to share with me. My new spells cancel out your feeble protective ones.” His thin lips moved back into a wide smile and he made a show of rolling up his sleeves. “You may be wondering what other spells I’ve got up my sleeves.”

  Stanley muttered, “Cassia, I’m scared. The other vampires are rolling their sleeves up too. What are they going to do to us?”

  Without any warning, the vampires sent balls of fire hurtling through the air towards us.

  “Stanley! Run!” I yelled.

  Too late.

  “My tail is on fire!” Stanley screamed.

  I used magic to extinguish his flaming tail as more balls of fire landed near us. I used my broomstick to bat the balls away and hoped it wouldn’t burst into flames. Stanley whimpered in pain behind me.

  Gethin cried out, “Halt! That’s enough. I think the witch has got the message now.”

  The attack stopped.

  I placed my broomstick on the ground and then picked Stanley up and sent healing into his tail. “Are you okay?” I asked. “Did they hurt you anywhere else?”

  His little body trembled in my arms. He said, “I’m fine, thank you. It was the shock more than anything. Did they hurt you?”

  I shook my head and then turned my anger on Gethin. “How dare you?” I seethed. “That’s another crime you’ve committed. You’ll answer to it along with all the other things you’ve done.”

  Gethin folded his arms. “You’re not still going on about that, are you? Let’s get this clear. I am in charge of this town. I will run things as I see fit. You have no authority here. You are not welcome. I banish you and your cat from this town with immediate effect. If I see you again, I will kill you both on the spot. Understand? By the way, I don’t need those potions Henrietta made. I’ve got new suppliers who will provide my goods at half the price. It’ll be a joy to use my new potions. The residents here are in for a sharp shock.”

  “You can’t do this. I won’t let you.” I swallowed my fear as the vampires at the windows glowered at me. One face was missing. I asked, “Where’s Selena? What have you done to her?”

  Just when I thought Gethin couldn’t look any angrier, his face contorted into a mask of intense fury. Through gritted teeth, he hissed, “That name is banned. Our conversation is over.” He slammed the door. The windows around him were closed and faces withdrawn.

  “Where’s Tobias?” I shouted after him. “You can’t keep him a prisoner. I demand that you let him go!”

  There was no reply.

  I shouted at the house a few more times, but again, there was no response.

  Stanley said, “What are we going to do? Tobias could be inside that house right now.”

  “I know. Let’s go back to Henrietta’s house. I noticed some spell books when we were last there. There could be something we could use to protect ourselves against this magic the vampires are using.”

  “I thought Blythe’s spell would be strong enough protection.” He rested his head against my chest.

  “Me too. Don’t give up, Stanley. We won’t be defeated. We will return and rescue Tobias. I promise.”

  I picked up my broomstick and we headed to Henrietta’s house. When we arrived, we found someone sitting on the doorstep.

  “Hello, Vera,” I said to the gnome. “I’m glad you’re here. I wanted to talk to you again but I’m in a rush at the moment. Could you move out of the way, please? I need to get inside the house.”

  Vera didn’t look our way. She stared straight ahead of her and said dully, “I killed Henrietta Whitmore. I murdered that witch.”

  Chapter 23

  “Pardon?” I knelt at Vera’s side. “What did you say?”

  In a dull monotone, she repeated, “I killed Henrietta Whitmore. I murdered that witch.” She kept her eyes forward.

  Stanley whispered to me, “She sounds like a robot. What’s wrong with her eyes? She’s not even blinking.”

  I said to him, “I think she’s been hypnotised. Or she could be under a spell. Let’s get her inside. I don’t know how long she’s been sitting here but she’s soaking wet.”

  I opened the front door, pulled Vera to her feet and manoeuvred her inside and into the living room. I took her empty basket from her cold, wet fingers and set it on the floor. Then I sent drying magic into my fingers and aimed them at the soggy gnome. This was one of my favourite spells and it made me feel like a human hairdryer. Vera didn’t look at me once as I worked my magic on her.

  It didn’t take me long to dry Vera out. When I’d finished, I walked her over to a seat and asked her to sit down. She remained standing and her eyes were still staring at whatever was in front of her.

  “Excuse me for handling you this way,” I said. I lifted the little gnome and placed her on the chair. I pulled a stool over to her and sat down in front of her. “Vera, tell me what happened to you.”

  Without blinking, Vera repeated her earlier words about killing Henrietta.

  I shook my head at Stanley. “I don’t know what to do with her. If she is under a spell, I can’t attempt to reverse it without knowing what it is. I could cause more harm than good.”

  Stanley said, “What if she isn’t under a spell? What if she’s in shock because the reality of what she’s done has finally hit her?”

  I frowned. “What are you saying?”

  He nodded in the silent gnome’s direction. “What if Vera is the one who killed Henrietta?”

  “I’m not convinced she did. Let’s question her further and see what else she’s got to say about the matter.” I turned my attention back to Vera and said, “How did you kill Henrietta?”

  “I killed Henrietta Whitmore. I murdered that witch,” was Vera’s reply.

  I tried again, “Where was Henrietta when you killed her?”

  Vera droned out the same words.

  One more try. I said, “Why did you kill her?”

  The same words came out.

  I stood up and said to Stanley, “Let’s leave her alone for a while. If she’s under a spell, it might wear off. If not, I could take her over to Brimstone and see if Blythe or Gran can help us. At least Vera is safe in here. It’s better than her sitting on the doorstep in the rain.”

  Stanley nodded. “That’s true. Are we going to look for Henrietta’s spell books now? I want to get back to the vampires’ house as soon as possible.”

  “Yes. Come on. I saw the books in the room where she meets customers.”

  Stanley followed me into the other room and I soon located the spell books. I flicked through them and came to a stop at the end of a tattered-looking book. I didn’t find any more protection spells, but I found something else.

  I showed the spell to Stanley and said, “It’s quite a nasty one. It can cause a vampire to turn into dust. I don’t know if I want to use that one. I want the vampires to answer to their crimes not disintegrate.”

  “Are there any other spells which could work on them?” Stanley asked.

  I looked through the pages again. “They’re all violent ones which end up with the vampires dying. Well, the vampires are already dead, but these spells extinguish them forever. I wouldn’t feel comfortable using these spells. I’d feel as if I were murdering them.”

  Stanley said, “You might not have a choice. It wouldn’t be murder; it would be self-defence. Cassia, this might be the only way we can protect ourselves against those evil creatures. We have to fight them.”

  I sighed. “You’re probably right. I’d better learn these spells just in case.”

  I memorized the spells and Stanley looked at the words too in case I forgot them in the hea
t of the moment.

  Once we’d done that, we went over to the stockroom and had a quick nosy at the bottles and jars inside to see if there was anything we could use against the vampires. I read the potion names out to Stanley and added, “Most of these have the customer’s name on them. We could speak to those customers later and see how well they knew Henrietta. They might provide us with valuable clues.”

  Stanley pointed out, “One of these customers could be the murderer. We haven’t had the chance to do a full investigation yet. Those nasty vampires have been taking all our time up.” He tutted in disgust. “I’m tempted to use one of those extinguishing spells on them myself just to get them out of the way. Can we go back to their house and confront them now? I’m worried sick about Tobias.”

  “Of course. Let’s go.”

  Before we took a step further, a wail of distress came from the living room. We raced into the room and found Vera Gilligot standing in the middle of the room with her hands waving madly in the air.

  “Get off me!” she screamed. “Get your evil hands off me!” She flapped her hands at an invisible assailant.

  I ran over to Vera and said, “Vera, it’s okay. There’s no one here. You’re safe here. It’s me, Cassia.”

  “And me, Stanley.”

  Vera’s hands dropped and she stared at me with wide eyes. “Where am I?” She blinked and took in her surroundings. “What am I doing in Henrietta’s house? Where’s my basket?”

  “Over there,” I told her. “Vera, we found you on the doorstep. You said you’d killed Henrietta.”