The Bad Luck Lighthouse

by Nicki Thornton

  ‘No, I suppose not.’

  She insisted Seth describe the man in detail and Angelique groaned and closed her eyes as if in pain. ‘No, no, no, no, no! You know who that was? That was the head of the library.’

  ‘That was Ethylene Despair? Well, he didn’t look much like a sorcerer – I thought Pewter said the head of the Elysee library was a reformed sinister sorcerer?’

  ‘Well, I’d be pleased if you’d describe exactly what you think he’s supposed to look like. Should he go around with a cloak and an evil sneer?’

  She tried to take the book from him, but Seth pulled it out of her way.

  ‘He really wanted me to have this. So I can’t see what harm it’ll do. It’s his library.’

  ‘This is not good, Seth.’

  ‘But how did you get on?’

  ‘We’re doomed.’

  ‘Did you find Soul Snakesmouth’s problem book?’

  ‘No I did not. Mostly because I couldn’t find Ethylene anywhere. Now I find that’s because you were having a cosy chat with him.’ Her eyes were flashing. ‘He didn’t know I’d brought you, did he?’ She loomed in closer to him. ‘ You should be locked away in the Problem section, Seth Seppi.’

  She had a book too, but before Seth could read the title, she had shoved it into the red handbag she carried everywhere with her.

  ‘Erm, Ethylene really wanted me to have this book, only—’

  ‘Only what, Seth?’

  ‘I don’t have a library card.’ He pointed to the one in her hand. ‘Would you mind awfully, perhaps . . . taking this out on yours?’

  28. You May Never See Her Again

  By the time they’d teleported back to the lighthouse, Dex had somehow managed to slip away from Lark and was lurking in a corner of the kitchen quickly downing a coffee and eating a fresh round of toast. Angelique sat down at the table and started going through her notebook, studiously ignoring both of them.

  ‘Going to get a quick squint about, Seth, before that Rendleton grabs me,’ said Dex.

  He shrank deeply into his jacket as the back door was flung open.

  ‘Boat leaves in ten, right,’ Jo announced, ‘Just time for a couple more biscuits.’ She filled her pockets from the tin and headed back outside.

  ‘So are you here working with Inspector Pewter?’ Dexter asked, sidling up to Seth. ‘What’s that like? Must be great.’

  ‘Not work exactly. He’s more of a friend.’ Seth heartily wished he could say that he was here working with Pewter. He didn’t want to admit to Dex that he was only here as the kitchen boy.

  ‘I’ve never worked with him,’ said Dex, sounding wistful. ‘But he’s supposed to be one of the best rudiments.’

  ‘Ah. Is he?’

  ‘I’m guessing you’ve not passed the Prospect yet? Just in case you didn’t know, a rudiment is someone whose magic comes from the elements. Some rudiments have an affinity with one element, but those at the top of their game can control everything – water, air, fire, earth. I’d love to see Pewter at work.’

  Celeste had crept into the kitchen, once again wearing the dark glasses. Probably trying to cover up the purple smudges beneath her eyes telling stories about whether she was managing to sleep no matter how many times Seth sent her to her room to rest.

  Dex strode over to where she was sliding out a kitchen chair, treating her to a close-up of his white teeth. ‘Don’t think we’ve met. I’m Dexter Stormforce, here to shed light on these strange mysteries of ghosts and flickering electrics.’ His eyes sparkled.

  ‘Oh, yes, good,’ said Celeste uncertainly, reaching to see if there was any coffee left.

  ‘What I mean is,’ said Dex, with his charmingly off-centre smile. ‘I’m the new builder.’

  Celeste pushed up her dark glasses. ‘Brilliant. I’m Celeste Crackling. I was maid to Miss Mintencress,’ she whispered, fiddling with her hair, which was completely hidden under the old-fashioned cap she insisted on wearing.

  Celeste’s face did look exhausted, despite the snores he’d heard. He told himself that when he got the chance he’d ask her if she’d ever seen any of them – Brockler, Lark, Rendleton or possibly even Alfie, he supposed – doing anything strange. Something that could have fired up the magic.

  Magic, Pewter repeatedly told him, was mostly hard work. If someone had been trying to do really sinister magic, magic that led to someone dying, surely there would be signs? If someone had been practising with those shadow snakes you might at least expect to find scorch marks, the smell of burning. He wouldn’t be surprised if you found bodies. Seth sighed as he thought of trying to boil milk and the mess he’d made. It couldn’t be that everyone found magic easier than him.

  ‘Amazing what the smell of coffee drags out,’ muttered Nightshade, leaping on to the kitchen countertop.

  ‘Nightshade, please keep your voice down,’ Seth breathed into her ear. ‘I’m never sure who can hear you, but the last thing I want to have to do is explain to anyone why my cat talks. Life is complicated enough. And –’ Seth scooped her on to the floor – ‘please stay off the worktop. You’re too fluffy and unhygienic to be in a hotel kitchen.’

  ‘How rude. Huh. I have come to talk to you – you’re always too busy yabbering with everyone except me. Why bother coming to see how I’m doing? I haven’t even had any breakfast.’

  ‘Last time I saw you, you were fast asleep,’ said Seth, sliding a look at an empty plate on the kitchen table, where not long ago there had definitely been a few rashers of bacon. ‘And I guess it wasn’t you that helped yourself to a little bit of bacon?’

  ‘What’s a cat supposed to do? I’d starve around here if I left it to you.’

  ‘Seth, we should catch a lift on the boat,’ called Angelique as she headed towards the back door.

  ‘Catch the boat? Me?’ said Seth.

  ‘The new cook is leaving already?’ said Celeste sharply.

  ‘Getting in supplies,’ said Angelique unconvincingly and let slip a short puff of annoyance. ‘Seth,’ she said quietly as he joined her by the door. ‘I think it is a great idea to see if Snakesmouth village was ever cleaned, and if Bladderwrack missed anything there. Despite your disgraceful behaviour at the library, it was your idea. So, you coming?’

  Seth was thrilled. Angelique had asked him along to hunt for magical texts and devices – she was cleaning and Seth was helping.

  ‘And I suppose you’re leaving me to do dinner?’ snapped Celeste.

  Pewter arrived at just the right time to step in. ‘Maybe we can rustle up something together. Might be fun. Maybe one of those things with pastry – what do you call them, Seth?’

  ‘A pie?’ Seth offered cautiously.

  ‘Seth, hurry, I’m not going to miss the boat,’ snapped Angelique. ‘I’m off,’ she warned, and headed outside without any further hesitation.

  Nightshade was busy with the last bit of bacon under the table. Seth gave her a cuddle then sidled up to Inspector Pewter.

  ‘I’ve got it all covered.’ Pewter clapped Seth on the back. ‘You know you can trust me completely.’

  ‘Are you going to help Dex find the darkwitching laboratory?’

  ‘The mysteries are piling up, aren’t they? I have questions about shoes. I would very much like to solve the Mystery of the Apple Cake. That was the one you baked last night? Or was that a chocolate cake? I think the fruit cake was from the night before.’ He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. ‘Perhaps it doesn’t matter. But I should have plenty of time to do dinner.’ Pewter beamed. ‘First, and most important, I would really love to find a dead seagull.’

  Seth found himself staring, as he often did with Pewter. Just for a moment, it felt as if the inspector was deliberately getting rid of him. And the thing with the gulls was worrying. ‘Er – you weren’t thinking of using a gull in the pie, were you?’ asked Seth warily.

  ‘Hadn’t even crossed my mind, young Seth. But now that you’ve mentioned it . . .’ Pewter’s eyes twinkled.

  Seth sc
rambled to follow Angelique down to the boat. He wished he could make sure that Inspector Pewter was joking. But he was too busy being excited. He was on his way to investigate magic.

  29. Serious Doubts About that Story

  The little boat danced low in the water, with Dr Malinger, Angelique, Lark and Alfie already loaded in as Seth raced along the beach, desperate not to be left behind.

  As he reached the boat, he caught the drift of the conversation between Angelique and Jo. Seth was surprised to hear Angelique was quizzing her about Celeste.

  ‘Dunno. If you really pushed me, I’d have to say she’s ordinaryish. Sort of shortish. Brownish hair? Can’t says as I particularly noticed the maid.’ Jo puffed out her cheeks, struggling to remember.

  It wasn’t a helpful description. But why was Angelique asking?

  ‘Has she been with the Mintencress family long?’

  ‘Well, maybe, although no, I don’t think so. I’m not sure.’

  Seth shuffled into his place at the back. The boat sank a little lower.

  ‘Is Dex not coming?’ asked Lark mournfully. ‘They do a very nice tea along the coast in Merricove. I’m sure he’d have fun.’

  ‘Oh, he finds concrete and cracks great fun. You can’t tear him away from peering at rendering and roof tiles,’ said Angelique. ‘Most of his conversation is usually about drainpipes. And ductwork. He’s very keen on ductwork.’

  The moment they were away from the shelter of Gull Cove, the boat dipped and rose with every wave, spray dousing the travellers, their stomachs left somewhere above the foam. The stormy weather hadn’t quite abated yet.

  ‘It’s a bit like being on a roller coaster,’ cried Jo joyfully.

  It was too exciting for Alfie to want to stay stuck with Lark tucked in at the back of the boat. He moved right up to join Jo, his face alive with joy at the exhilarating pace of the waves, and he beamed even more when she gave him a go at steering.

  Seth glanced at the boy and couldn’t help but worry what would happen to him. Celeste had been right when she’d said how much fun the boy had on the island, learning to be a strong swimmer, poking about in rockpools and learning about the birds. And it was great to see how everyone had swooped in to keep him from having time to dwell on his sister’s death. Who would be the boy’s guardian now? Had Brockler been serious about staying on here and trying to finish what Mina had started?

  Seth remembered Lark asking the lawyer what he was up to and questions rose in his mind now. Brockler claiming he wanted to stay; Brockler hunting desperately for a painting, of all things.

  But they were questions he hoped he might find more answers to in Snakesmouth. He was keen for his first clear view of the village, the nearest point on the mainland. The place he’d heard so much about. From this distance, buildings were still indistin-guishable, but he could make out a row of white blobs lining the waterfront.

  Angelique spent the journey huddled towards the back of the boat, gripping one side, pasty-faced as the waves hissed and heaved them up and crashed them down again.

  Dr Malinger sat right at the back, her tightly curled hair neatly tied in a bun, but she put her face right to the wind, as if drinking in the breeze. Seth could hear Angelique attempting to draw her into a conversation about what she’d thought of the changes to the lighthouse. Seth guessed any second now she’d probably steer it towards talking about Mina Mintencress’s death.

  That left Seth clear to shuffle in and chat to Jo, who was at the wheel, steering confidently through the waves.

  ‘You live in Snakesmouth, don’t you?’ he asked, now able to make out a cluster of tired-looking cottages surrounding a larger central building as the village of Snakesmouth began to come into clearer focus.

  ‘This place?’ said Jo, indicating ahead with her thumb. ‘Me? Nah, no one lives there. Haven’t you heard the story? You must have heard how the same night Soul Snakesmouth vanished, a whole slice of the coast fell into the sea. Practically cut off the whole village and made the cliffs unstable. Everyone moved out. It was as if he’d somehow been protecting the village and it collapsed when he died. But then,’ Jo warmed to her tale enthusiastically, ‘there were plenty of stories about that old Soul Snakesmouth.’ She lowered her voice, even though Seth doubted even Alfie could hear them above the wind and the throb of the engine. ‘They say he used to do these experiments. Bad things. He didn’t always live alone, you know? But one night, he did something so dreadful, it terrified his wife so much, she ran off to the other end of the earth. Some,’ whispered Jo, clearly enjoying herself, ‘as reckoned his experiments were with magic.’ She paused.

  ‘That is a great story,’ said Seth.

  Jo turned from steering the boat. ‘That Mr Brockler loved it too. You believe it?’

  Seth tried to remember Brockler’s words. ‘I think there’s a lot that people can’t simply explain.’

  Jo nodded enthusiastically. ‘Too right. But, nah, I live over at Merricove, just along the coast a bit. Nice place, Merricove. Great tea room. Best scones for miles. Are you sure you want to stop off here at Snakesmouth? Everyone stays as far away as possible.’

  As they drew closer, Seth could see cottages that had once been bright colours now just looking drab, paint dried out and peeling in the stinging, salty air. Brockler had told Seth that strange carving of a lighthouse being eaten by a dragon had come from here, and that had pricked Seth’s curiosity. Brockler had been so keen to rescue it from the bottom of the bath. Mina had worn it as a pendant for good luck, he’d said.

  But as they approached the harbour and Seth saw the village close up, he had serious doubts that Brockler had been telling the truth about where that dragon carving had come from. Yet everything associated with the lighthouse should have been taken away when Copious Bladderwrack had done the cleaning. So where had it really come from?

  Seth had an uneasy feeling as they landed at a short, broken jetty.

  This was going to be a waste of Angelique’s time. And he was the one who had persuaded her to come.

  The quay was dominated by a once white-painted hotel, now smeared with a green slime that was taking over. He could see a weather-beaten front door was battened down with boards. The hotel had an impressive veranda, but tables and chairs were just stacked against the wall, leaving an expanse of crumbling concrete, nibbled by lichen and home to hundreds of those same small, tough flowers Seth had seen clinging on in every nook and cranny on the island.

  ‘Why on earth do you want to visit a completely deserted village?’ said Dr Malinger unexpectedly. ‘There is really nothing to see.’

  Seth’s instincts were telling him she had a point. He did seem to have a habit of believing the wrong people and watching his careful theories blowing away.

  Jo was pointing to the far side of the semi-circular harbour, where a gate was half off its hinges, battering against its post in the wind. Beyond it, a path wound up the cliff. ‘Up there is where the star fell from the sky. I did tell you about that, didn’t I? Just a short while ago folk saw a bright light up there right where the rift is. They took it as a sign change was coming.’

  Alfie scrambled out of the boat to help Jo tie a rope to a rotten-looking post.

  Angelique leapt gladly from the rocking boat.

  ‘Mind yourselves, it’s not very safe,’ said Jo. ‘You really sure you want to stop here? Much nicer to travel with us along the coast.’

  ‘Oh, we’ll be fine,’ said Angelique, striding off down the jetty.

  As she stepped on to the shore at the deserted village of Snakesmouth, the deeper Seth’s certainty became that, once again, he was on the wrong track. And he’d dragged Angelique here for no reason. He felt doubly bad, after being responsible for her failing to talk to Ethylene Despair in the library.

  Wherever Brockler had got that carving from, it wasn’t here. Seth could see the air of sad neglect, the shuttered, mournful windows on all the buildings. It was as Seth went to clamber out of the boat that he caught sight
of the brand-new drill Jo had pinched from the Sunrise Wing. It had been poorly concealed, but seeing it made some things fall into place. He had a fresh idea, and wondered why it hadn’t occurred to him before.

  He took Jo to one side so that Dr Malinger, Lark and Alfie wouldn’t overhear and spoke in a low voice.

  ‘It wasn’t just stories Mr Brockler was interested in, was it? Mr Brockler showed me a strange carving. He told me he got it when he came here. But looking around I don’t think that was true.’ Seth looked right into Jo’s eyes. ‘But you seem to know everything. I bet you know where he got it from really?’

  Jo’s eyes refused to meet Seth’s. ‘No idea.’ She could not have looked more guilty and Seth felt sure this time he had finally guessed right.

  ‘I bet you loved sharing all your stories with Mr Brockler,’ he pressed on, determined to get the truth. ‘I bet he asked you lots about the history because you know so much about it? Didn’t he? I bet he believed you when you said Soul Snakesmouth lived in a remote lighthouse because he was experimenting with magic. I bet not many people believe you. But I think Mr Brockler believed it and I believe you too.’

  This time, after barely a pause, Jo nodded eagerly. ‘Most people don’t believe it. But, yes. He really did do magic.’

  ‘When they put the lighthouse up for sale and you heard someone was going to come clear it all out, if I’d been you, I’d have gone and had a look around. All that stuff was about to go. No one wanted it. Bet you thought it’d all be thrown away.’

  Seth waited, trying not to hold his breath. It took a little longer for the girl to nod, as if she’d been weighing up if she was going to be in trouble. ‘I might have saved a few bits and pieces. Well, as you say, thought they’d be chucked away. And when Mr Brockler asked me, I brought them and showed him. He was really interested. He believed in the stories. He believed in the magic.’

  So, Brockler had learnt of the prospect of magic, and Seth knew exactly how exciting that could be.