Mintwood's Magical Map Page 6

  I swept past Meredith with my head held high.

  Paws was so pleased he was nearly doing somersaults. “And don’t you forget it,” he told her.

  Slightly dazed, Hansen followed us into the back yard, which was just as beautiful as I remembered. It was a real pity I couldn’t get along with my fellow coven members. At any other time the sleek cauldrons and the bubbling stream would have been soothing. Maybe even inviting.

  I recognized several of the faces on the witches who were standing around waiting for the meeting to start. There was no sign of Madame Rosalie, but Geraldine was there with Scarlett, looking serious and a bit sad. Josephine was also with her friend. She just shook her head at me without a word. I wasn’t sure what the gesture meant, but it probably wasn’t good.

  I squared my shoulders and kept moving to a spot near the trees, where I stopped and waited. Hansen stood next to me, his blue eyes taking everything in. Ever the journalist, I was sure he was mentally documenting the scene, even if he was never going to be able to use it in the way that he’d have liked.

  Several of the witches kept their heads bowed. I couldn’t remember who they were, but it was clear that they didn’t want a reporter to see their faces, at least not until this meeting was over. Maybe Hansen would be spelled to forget when he left; maybe that was the solution to the whole problem. But I didn’t like it. I wanted to stick to the plan: Hansen walks away knowing my secret, and unscathed.

  A murmur went up as Rosalie joined us and made her way to the lectern, Meredith Munn trailing behind her. If Meredith’s eyes could have spit sparks in my direction, I was sure they would have.

  I waited silently, but instead of losing confidence I was gaining it. These people were not the boss of me, and they were certainly not the boss of Hansen. Hansen had been a good friend to me, while these witches had left me to deal with Ellie and the consequences of Puddlewood on my own.

  Now they simply made my blood boil. I went along most of the time without thinking about it, but now that we were here my mind was stuck on what had happened last time I’d been here. I didn’t owe this coven anything. Maybe that was the conclusion my grandmother had also reached before she died.

  Paws was at least sitting calmly at my feet. He looked up at me and said, “Keep it together. Don’t get cocky now. We have to get out of here first. I hate to break it to you, but you’re going to have to be the one who makes sure that happens.”

  “I’ll try to behave,” I told him quietly.

  “For once,” he grumbled.

  Hansen’s eyes flicked down toward my ankles. I knew he thought he’d feel better if he could hear Paws for himself, but he only thought that because he hadn’t actually heard him yet.

  I went silent. The gathering was about to begin.

  “Good evening,” Rosalie began. “We are gathered here tonight under rather unusual circumstances.” Rosalie was old, and she had been doing this for a long time. Her voice carried and she commanded the space. When she spoke, everyone stopped to listen, including Hansen, who had gone entirely still.

  “Tonight is not a normal gathering. Tonight we have a guest. An offender, in fact, someone who would seek to destroy our privacy and our way of life. Obviously that is not something that we can tolerate.”

  Rosalie looked around, making certain that everyone was paying close attention. “To that end we are here to cast judgment. Unfortunately, none of the options are pleasant. However, what this man sought to do was equally unpleasant. To reveal our secret is unforgivable.”

  Hansen shifted uncomfortably. It was already clear in what direction this was going, and it was not a good direction for him. He glanced at me once and looked like he was about to say something. Then he stopped himself.

  For the first time since she had entered the clearing, Rosalie looked our way. When her eyes landed on me her expression immediately soured; we hadn’t had the best interaction the last time I had seen her. I tried to glare back, to make it abundantly clear that I hadn’t forgotten what she had done any more than she had.

  When I didn’t look nervous, her eyes sharpened. She had clearly been trying to intimidate me, and I wasn’t sure she had a plan for what to do if I refused to be cowed.

  “It is time to cast judgment,” she said.

  Hansen made a little noise that sounded as if he were about be strangled.

  Before I could step forward and argue, Geraldine did so instead. “This is of course a serious matter. No one is saying otherwise. I myself am dismayed and have been since I saw the articles in the Caedmon Chronicle. Even so, we have procedures to follow. The accused is allowed to be heard from. Judgments are allowed to be discussed. We should not simply turn this matter over to a vote with no deliberation or process beforehand.”

  Rosalie did not look the least bit pleased that someone had spoken up to argue with her. In fact, she now turned her glare from me to Geraldine. While she did that, I glanced quickly at Hansen and shook my head. There was no way, shape, or form that I thought that he should speak to this group. It would have to be me. Hopefully Paws would also keep his mouth quiet; I didn’t think Rosalie would ever forgive me for him.

  Looking around the space, Rosalie was even more displeased to see that there were enough other witches who agreed with Geraldine that she was forced to concede. “I suppose we can discuss options,” she flounced.

  I stepped forward. “I would like permission to speak.”

  “You do not have permission,” said Rosalie quickly.

  Another murmur went up through the crowd. Some didn’t like my being denied a chance to speak, others clearly thought I didn’t have the right. Standing near Rosalie, Meredith was one of the latter. She was again smirking at me.

  “I am afraid I’m going to have to insist,” I said, forcing my voice to carry through the clearing.

  A chill ran over me as I said it. This was the moment. If I was going to stand up for myself and my friends, it was now or never.

  Rosalie fixed me with a cold stare. Geraldine looked concerned. I might just have been imagining it, but I also thought she might look a little bit proud.

  “Very well. You may speak, but it will not change our minds,” said Rosalie. How she could know that I had no idea, given that she didn’t speak for anyone’s mind but her own. Regardless, I took the opportunity for what it was and cleared my throat.

  “That’s a great way to start. You go girl,” said Paws. I turned around to glare at the cat. The other witches gathered there could see him, but luckily he had chosen to speak quietly so that they hadn’t heard what he said.

  “I could give a speech about how great Hansen is. We’ve been friends for a long time, and I have not met a kinder or more thoughtful individual. He is a professional competitor of my roommate Charlie Silver, yet he has never once done anything underhanded, or anything that would make her think him untrustworthy. That is impressive in its own right, but I could also tell you about how his stories are always fair. I could say that he just wants to get the truth, and that his love of the newspaper business is more important than anything else. At this point, though, his concern is also about his own safety.”

  I took a moment, not daring to glance behind me, not wanting to know what Hansen thought of my speech. I thought of Jasper and wished he were here watching me do this. I would have liked to think that if he had seen me, there’d be pride shining in his mint green eyes. Everyone in the clearing was paying attention to me. Even those who had clearly wanted to dismiss my words were now focusing on what I was saying.

  I rolled my shoulders and continued. “I am not going to talk about Hansen, because instead I’m going to talk about myself.”

  The other witches already thought I was self-involved, so none of them were surprised at that. I went on as if I didn’t care what they thought, which I didn’t. “I am loyal to a fault. Sometimes it’s my own fault and sometimes it’s the fault of my friends. In this case I have complete and utter faith in my own judgment. I am proud
to say that I got that from my grandmother.

  “In this case my judgment is that Hansen is to be trusted. He is worthy of my trust. That’s all I care about. When I offer him my protection, that will be the end of this. He will not come to harm. He will also no longer write articles about us in the newspaper. I would like it noted that he really had no hard evidence of anything in particular in the first place. If we had left him alone and laughed this off, none of what followed would have happened. He never would have found proof that any of you were what you are.”

  I spread my hands to take in everyone who was listening. Some witches were now exchanging glances, others were just staring at me. A few still had their heads bowed.

  “I would agree that it would be best that no one ever find out about us. I would also like to say that I understand that I am one in a long line of generations. Those of you who have been doing this for longer know the risks and the costs. I am not the first one to come along and want to save a friend. However, save him I will. We cannot live by avoiding any human who does not know about us. From time to time it is bound to happen that someone will find out.

  “Our secret will be discovered from time to time. The real question is how we choose to handle the situation when we’re found out. Well, I am making my stand tonight. All of you might have to make a similar stand in the future. Someday someone you care about may discover your secret. Maybe today or maybe tomorrow. Maybe next week or maybe next month. Maybe we’ll have to wait longer. When that day comes, you will have to decide what to do. I choose my friend. I choose every friend, today, tomorrow, and always. I would not in a million years put any of you at risk. If for no other reason, if you think so poorly of me, than that it would also endanger myself and everything I care about.”

  Hooded heads had started to nod, and I went on. “The thing is, I have faith in all of us. We keep the fabric of our own society together. Someone like Hansen is not a danger. I know that when real danger strikes we can take care of ourselves. We are capable. We come from a long line of distinguished witches. Someone like Hansen is not a threat to that, or to us,” I said.

  “Thanks so much,” Hansen muttered. I could tell from the tone of his voice that he was amused.

  “Everyone here would make the same choice I’m about to make. Not because they know how much they care about their friends, even though they do. They would make that choice because they know in their hearts that they can handle it. We can handle it. Hansen knows our secret. There is no longer anything to be done about it. The jig is up. The cat is out of the bag. The ghost cat is even out of the bag . . .” A few titters of laughter. “No matter how hard I try to get him back in.”

  “Rude,” said Paws behind me.

  “We don’t have to spell him or punish him,” I said. “I mean Hansen, not the cat.”

  Now smiling, I was about to say something more when we were interrupted. One moment I was standing there talking, holding court. The next moment every light around us was snuffed out and we were plunged into blackness. There were no screams of fear, just simple calls of confusion.

  I looked around and tried to get my eyes to adjust to the lack of light. Behind me I heard Hansen shuffle. I scanned the area quickly, but all I saw were darks shapes slowly starting to move. Other members of the coven were just as confused as I was. Something was coming toward us. We weren’t alone.

  Chapter Eight

  Then, through the trees, I saw the movements, and my throat went dry. I didn’t need magic to know what was coming toward us. The dark ghosts were floating inexorably in our direction.

  “You,” I called out.

  Other witches, who were getting out their wands, turned to follow my gaze. I quickly fumbled in my skirt and pulled out my own wand, simultaneously shrugging my cape back from my shoulders.

  “It is for current needs that you should spend more hours practicing,” said Paws, not sounding the least bit concerned, but maybe just a little bit baffled.

  “How did they find us?” I whispered.

  “It was probably Hansen’s fault. We should throw him in the dungeon,” said Paws.

  “There is no dungeon,” I said.

  “What makes you so certain?” asked the cat.

  “I don’t have time for this,” I said.

  “Me neither,” said Paws. He plopped down and started washing himself.

  More flares lit the sky as witches fully took in the fact that we were no longer alone. I craned my neck around, but it was the same in every corner.

  “I take it this is not part of the plan?” Hansen called out.

  I was surprised. “You can see them?”

  Hansen nodded. “I’ve been able to see Paws since we came out into the coven circle. Now I can see all of those other darker-looking ghosts as well. I take it they aren’t friends?”

  There must have been some magic that allowed humans attending a coven meeting to see the ghosts. I wondered if Rosalie even knew about it. I wondered when the last time a human attended one of her meetings had been.

  I glanced behind me at Paws. “Can you get him out of here?” I demanded. The dark ghosts were coming closer, and there were more of them by the moment. Pretty soon we’d be surrounded.

  The problem of Hansen Gregory appeared distant and irrelevant as compared to this new threat.

  “I hate to admit this, but he is probably safest staying with you,” the cat pointed out.

  I glared at him, but realized that he had a point. Unless Hansen could get to the car and drive them both away fast, the dark ghosts would probably be there as well.

  “Okay. So we fight,” I said.

  I turned around to look at my fellow witches. Some of them were gathering close, preparing defend themselves. Others were cowering. Geraldine was barking orders to everyone around her, urging us to take a stand. She was doing it right as far as I was concerned.

  The dark ghosts stopped about ten feet away from the outside of our circle. Between us and them was a band of trees, but nothing more. They seemed to be waiting for something.

  Rosalie stepped forward as if to confront them. “What do you want?” she called out, her gnarled hands reaching out.

  For a moment none of the ghosts moved. Then I saw a familiar face and nearly groaned. Wendell was floating his way toward us, looking as pompous as ever. In his self-importance he bounced several other ghosts out of his way.

  There were so many witches at the meeting that I didn’t think Wendell noticed me at first. I crept carefully downhill, my wand still comfortingly in my hand. Without it I would have been at a loss; with it, my mind was calmly reviewing spells. As always happened in moments like this, I wished I had practiced just a little bit more.

  “We come in peace,” Wendell smirked. “We only wanted to make a point.”

  “If you come in peace, why are there so many of you? Need I remind you that you were not invited?” said Rosalie, her voice sharp and clear as she stood tall between us and the ghosts.

  “We were not sure how you would take our little visit. We felt the need to be ready to defend ourselves, just in case,” Wendell explained.

  Rosalie nodded sharply. “I do not believe the words coming out of your mouth. You came here with hostile intentions. You will leave now, or the full weight of the coven will fall upon you. To interrupt a coven meeting is a great insult.”

  Wendell looked more amused than scared. Really, he looked like he couldn’t care less what Madame Rosalie was saying. “My bosses were aware of the insult. They felt the need to make that point.”

  I wondered how old Ellie was doing these days.

  “How did you know about this meeting to begin with?” Geraldine asked. “Only coven members knew.”

  Her eyes slid accusingly to me, and I glared back at her. The idea that we were the ones in cahoots with Ellie and Wendell was ridiculous, all the more since I was the one who had sought help against them in the first place, and I was the one who’d been refused by this very coven that was n
ow under attack. I didn’t even want to think about how Jasper fit into all of this.

  Since none of it could be discussed right now, if ever, I simply glared back at Geraldine.

  Unfortunately, the result of that exchange was to draw Wendell’s attention to me. He nearly yipped in glee.

  I spared a quick glance over my shoulder, expecting to see Hansen and Paws standing behind me. For Wendell to know about Hansen was dangerous.

  To my total relief, there was no sign of them, but I heard a low yowl from behind a nearby tree. Paws was letting me know that they were all right.

  I turned back, feeling slightly better.

  “Well, well, well. If it isn’t the littlest troublemaker. Ready to give up your town yet?” Wendell asked.

  “And just why would I do that?” I inquired, as calmly as I could.

  Wendell smirked. “Because you see how many dark ghosts we now have on our side.”

  He spread his arms wide to take in everyone, but I just glared back at him. He did have a point, unfortunately. There were dark ghosts everywhere, and more just kept appearing.

  “Mintwood will never be Ellie’s. Doesn’t she have her own little place now?” I asked.

  “She likes yours better,” said Wendell.

  Ellie had created the dark town of Puddlewood to suit her own ends, a terrible place that was probably only getting worse.

  “If you’ve made your point, you can go,” said Rosalie.

  Wendell smiled coldly and made no move to leave. “Puddlewood is expanding. This is only a fraction of the power we’ve gathered. You should really do better protecting your own,” he said.

  I didn’t know what he meant by that, but I had a terrible feeling I’d find out soon enough. The dark ghosts looked like they were preparing to float away when one of the witches stepped forward with a yell, the blonde whom I remembered unpleasantly from the last coven meeting. She had done nothing but snipe at me on that occasion.

  “Be gone, you fool ghosts!” she yelled, and raised her wand, which was bright pink and sparkling. Light flashed out of its tip and headed straight for Wendell. One of the other ghosts near him stepped in and took the blow.