Ashes: Witches of Whitley Bay Book 2

by Katherine Heason

  “That’s not what I was doing. My phone was on silent and I lost track of time, that’s all,” Lillith tried to explain, but she knew her mam was right. She had Tristan, now. She still needed her mam, but not as much.

  “I understand,” Uma said, smiling.

  “Is Brody home?”

  Uma shook her head. “He’s out somewhere with Angela.”

  Lillith felt a pang of something. Angela and Brody out together? That was strange. “Where?”

  Uma shook her head. “Maybe Chatten?”

  To see Mark, Lillith thought. Angela was probably feeling sorry for Brody, and was trying to make him feel better.

  “Would you like a cup of tea?”

  “I’d love one. Do we have any chocolate biscuits?”

  Uma smiled. “I think so.” She walked back into the kitchen, and Lillith followed.

  “So much happened in York. We’re going to need plenty of biscuits,” Lillith said, as she sat on a stool.

  Uma looked concerned. “What kind of things? Are you okay?” She picked up the kettle and filled it with fresh water, then placed it on the stand and clicked it on.

  “I think I am,” Lillith answered. “I want to know more about Lilly, though.”

  “What more do you want to know?” Uma reached into the cupboard and took out two large mugs, the tea tin and the biscuit tin.

  “Just about her. Her upbringing. See if there’s a reason she turned dark?”

  “I don’t know that much,” Uma said. “Why do you need to know?”

  Lillith shrugged. “Forewarned is forearmed.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “I just think it’d be good to know everything.”

  “Do you think you’ll turn dark?”

  Lillith hesitated. Do I? she thought. “There’s always that possibility,” she conceded. “But actually, I’m hoping to find out that what turned her dark couldn’t possibly happen to me, meaning that I never will.”

  The kettle started to boil, and steam filled the air. Uma poured the teas. She placed a cup of black tea in front of Lillith. She could smell it immediately. A swirl of steam curled around the top of it.

  “I joined the coven late, so I only know the rumours,” Uma said.

  “Good enough.” Lillith reached into the biscuit tin for a chocolate biscuit.

  “Okay. As a girl, Lilly did something to some kids at school. I don’t know what exactly, but one of them ended up in hospital. After which, she and Donovan were kept at home, and home-schooled. They lived with their Dad then, and I heard he was a strict one. He tried to control them and stop them from turning dark, but they turned on him, and when they became strong enough, they overpowered him. I don’t know what happened to him after that, but they had their freedom back, and they abused it. They attacked any witches that got in their way.”

  Lillith shivered. “Arthur’s wife?” she asked.

  “I really don’t know much about that. Like you, I know she died, and he says that you killed her. I’ve heard that’s why he started the coven, but I don’t know more than that.”

  Lillith’s eyes fell to her cup of tea. It’s arm of steam had subsided.

  “To be honest, that’s all I really know. You should ask some of the original coven members. Most of them are locked up, but there are a couple who aren’t.”

  Lillith bowed her head. Most of the original coven members were the ones locked up for trying to kill her. That was telling. Maybe it was them she needed to speak to. Maybe they were the only ones who knew the real story. “I think I will,” she said. “Thank you.”

  “Now, are you going to tell me everything that happened in York?”

  Lillith dunked a second biscuit into her cup of tea, and licked the melted chocolate off. Where should she start?

  Uma was shocked to hear about the under-grounders, and even more shocked to find out that Lillith had been trapped and almost killed by a couple of scared witches.

  “How did they even find out about you?” she asked.

  Lillith couldn’t answer that. She’d wondered the same thing. “They said they had friends up here.”

  “That must mean someone from our coven,” Uma said. “We’re the only ones who know about it, surely.”

  “Is it supposed to be a secret?”

  “Of course it is. We keep each other’s secrets, remember. It’s one of the sacred rules of the coven.”

  “For members.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I’m not a member. Neither is Brody. Do they have to keep our secrets?”

  “You’re half-members. Your secrets should be safe. Even so, it’s just not a nice thing to do. I wouldn’t expect anyone in our coven to betray you.”

  Chapter 15: Arthur’s trial announced

  It was March. Already three months since Lillith had returned from York. She and Brody were sat side by side in Mr. Douglas’ chemistry class. Their A-Level exams were only two months away, and they’d been focusing on them since the New Year. Brody was lucky that the School had let him return after he’d missed two months. They nearly hadn’t, but Uma told them he’d had a bereavement, and luckily his grades had been good, so they permitted it.

  Brody was officially living with her and Uma. He was stronger, now, but he was still affected by his time locked up. He often screamed out in the night, and didn’t joke around as much as he used to. Lillith wondered if he’d ever return to his usual, happy self.

  Mr. Douglas had arranged for them to do flame tests today. Brody looked at Lillith when he announced it, giving her a ‘you remember what happened last time’ look. Lillith dipped her head, concealing her amusement. Last time she did a flame test, she almost burnt down the lab, and trapped Brody behind fire. That was before she knew she was a witch, and before she’d been able to control her powers.

  Mr. Douglas remembered that incident, as well. “Little bits, remember. Little bits of the substance each time,” he warned, over and over again. His eyes fixed on her every time.

  Lillith picked up each substance on her Nichrome Wire, and held them in the Bunsen burner to see them change colour. She noted the colour and what it told her about each substance in her notebook.

  “It seems like so long ago,” Brody said.

  “What?”

  “This. The last time. When you – you know.”

  Lillith nodded. A lot had happened since last October.

  “You know,” Brody said, philosophically. “In some ways, I feel freer now.”

  Lillith looked up from her notepad.

  Brody smiled. “I was keeping secrets from you. I knew I was your brother, and I knew you were a…” Brody leaned in and whispered, “witch.” He shook his head. “And I wasn’t telling you any of it.”

  Lillith shrugged. “It’s water under the bridge, Brody.”

  “I know,” he said. “I just wonder if things would’ve turned out differently, if I’d handled them differently.”

  Lillith reached out and stroked Brody’s arm. “We’ll never know,” she said. “And besides, we can’t change the past, so there’s no point in worrying about it.”

  Brody scoffed. “Since when did you become so philosophical?”

  Lillith chuckled.

  After chemistry, it was lunchtime. Angela was already waiting in the school canteen when Lillith and Brody got there. She was sitting at a table near the back, typing on her phone and smiling.

  Lillith sat next to her friend. “Is that Mark?” Lillith asked. Angela had stayed in touch with Mark from Chatten. It was his broach-cam that had saved their lives that day. It had allowed Angela to record everything that had happened, and send it to the coven as proof of Arthur’s guilt and Lillith’s innocence.

  Angela looked up, flashing a smile of perfectly straight, white teeth. “What makes you think that?” she asked, but her flushed cheeks betrayed her.

  Lillith laughed. “How’s he doing?”

  “Good. He’s got a temporary job on a farm, helping with
lambing.”

  Lillith smiled again. “Good for him.”

  Angela turned her phone over and sighed. “It is good for him, but means he has to work weekends, get up early, and go to bed early, so I don’t know when we’ll see each other next.”

  Brody chipped in. “Maybe you could go and help him with the lambs,” he suggested.

  Angela pulled a disgusted face. “Me, in overalls and sheep fluid?” she said, shaking her head. “That’s not for me.” She looked towards the food counter. “Come on, let’s get something to eat, before the queue gets really big.”

  Lillith ordered a baked potato with cheese savoury, and grabbed herself a bottle of water. They sat back down at the same table.

  “You know it’s the coven meeting tonight,” Angela said.

  Lillith nodded. It turned out that being a half-member of the coven wasn’t that bad. She wasn’t connected to any of them, but she was allowed to attend some of the coven meetings. Not the whole time. Not when they were discussing secrets, but that was rare. She was allowed to take Tristan, and she could leave at any time. It was like being part of a club. The members gave her pointers when she asked about magic, and they seemed to be warming to both her and Brody. She tried to ask about her past self, Lilly, and their experiences of her, but she hadn’t got anything worthy yet. Lillith didn’t want to lose their trust, so she hadn’t pushed.

  “Well, I think they’re going to announce Arthur’s trial tonight,” Angela said, taking a bite of her salad sandwich.

  Lillith breathed in. “Already?”

  “It’s been five months. My mam said that’s longest she’s ever known someone to be held without a trial.”

  Lillith breathed deeply, and looked at her plate. She stirred the cheese savoury with her fork. She wasn’t all that hungry any more. The thought of Arthur potentially being free again horrified her.

  Brody put his hand on hers. “Just because he’s getting a trial, doesn’t mean he’ll get out.”

  Lillith looked up. “I know,” she said. “But there’s a chance, right?”

  Both Angela and Brody looked down. Of course there was a chance. They couldn’t deny it.

  Angela looked up again. “And once they’ve done Arthur, they’ll do the others.”

  Lillith felt the blood drain from her face. “I know.”

  “How come it’s taken so long?” Brody asked. “I mean, they did my trial quickly.”

  “Yours was a bit more straightforward, and Lillith, the victim, appealed for you,” Angela explained. “They’ve had to dig up a lot of information on Arthur, which has taken time.”

  “Like what?” Lillith asked.

  “I don’t know everything. I just know they’ve gone way back. They’ve studied his life. Apparently, it’s been quite revealing.”

  “Revealing in a good way, like something that’ll keep him locked up? Or in a bad way, like a defence that’ll let him out?” Lillith asked.

  Angela paused. “I don’t know,” she said. “Some things are being saved for the trial.”

  Lillith’s skin went cold, and she felt her the hairs on her arm stand on end. “I presume your mam has read the cards. What do they say?”

  Angela shook her head. “We’ve both read them, but the message isn’t clear.”

  Lillith narrowed her eyes. “What do you mean?”

  “The outcome can’t be predicted.” Angela said, flippantly. “Sometimes that happens.”

  Brody chomped down a mouthful of food. “That’s weird,” he said.

  Angela shook her head. “The future isn’t usually black and white. There are many factors that would cause this outcome or that, and predicting which is the most likely is difficult, even with powers.”

  Lillith played with a forkful of cheese savoury. “So we just have to wait?” she said.

  “I’m afraid so.”

  “So what do you think’ll happen?” Lillith asked Angela.

  Angela swallowed a mouthful of food. “I have no idea, but I think we’ll get some information at the meeting tonight.”

  Lillith sighed. There was nothing she could do, now. She’d just have to wait. She forced some food into her stomach while it was doing somersaults.

  The rest of the school day dragged. Lillith was unable to concentrate in many of her lessons, but by the time Angela dropped her and Brody at home, her nervousness had passed. There was nothing she could do, now. She messaged Tristan, who came down immediately.

  “Are you worried?” Tristan asked, after Lillith told him. He was seated at the breakfast bar in the kitchen, while she was making cups of tea.

  “A little,” she said. “But I’m also a little, I don’t know, sick of worrying. Does that make sense?”

  Tristan chuckled. “Yeah,” he said.

  Lillith smiled. She handed Tristan a cup of tea, and the biscuit barrel. Of course he would understand her. She grabbed her own cup of tea, and one for Brody, who was in the living room. “Come on, let’s take these into the sitting room and have a comfy seat.”

  Tristan jumped off the stool, and followed Lillith into the living room.

  Brody was watching T.V. He switched it off when they entered. “Have you heard the news?” he said to Tristan.

  “Yep. Are you okay?” Tristan replied.

  Brody shrugged.

  Guilt swept through Lillith, and she suddenly felt extremely selfish. She hadn’t even considered how this would affect Brody. He’d been seduced by Arthur. Or was it blackmailed? Whatever the reason, he’d definitely been deceived by him. Now, he was probably going to have to testify against him. He was going to have to face up to him.

  “I’m so sorry, Brody. I’ve only been thinking of myself. How are you, really?” Lillith ask, sincerely.

  Brody’s face twitched. “I’m trying not to think about it.”

  Was that Lillith’s cue to stop asking? She wasn’t sure. She took a biscuit out of the tin and dunked it into her cup of tea.

  Brody sighed. “If I’m completely honest, I’m not looking forward to any of it. But at the same time, it’ll be a relief to get it over with.”

  Lillith had a mouthful of biscuit, and couldn’t reply even if she wanted to.

  Brody used the silence to continue. “The thought of testifying against Arthur has been giving me nightmares ever since I was released.”

  Lillith’s stomach sank. Why hadn’t she been more attentive to Brody?

  “I honestly don’t even know if I can do it,” Brody said. He looked down at the carpet.

  Lillith didn’t know what to say. She regarded Brody supportively.

  “Maybe you won’t have to,” Tristan said.

  Brody looked at him.

  “Arthur’s not on trial for compelling you to join him. He’s on trial for trying to kill Lillith,” Tristan explained. “And kidnapping me, and putting me under a sleeping curse.”

  Lillith gazed at Tristan. He would have to testify, too. She hadn’t thought of that, either.

  Tristan seemed to know what she was thinking and he turned to her with a genuine smile on his face. “Don’t worry,” he said, with a glint in his eye. “I’m looking forward to testifying.”

  Lillith wasn’t sure she could love Tristan any more than she did.

  He turned to Brody again. “And everyone’s heard your story at your trial, so it’s unlikely they’ll need to hear it again.”

  Brody beheld Tristan hopefully. “Do you really think so?”

  At that moment, they all heard the door shut. Lillith’s mam was home.

  Tristan shrugged. “I’m sure Uma can ask,” he said, loudly enough for her to hear.

  Uma appeared at the door, arms folded. “Ask what?”

  Lillith told her what they’d been discussing.

  Uma paused, thinking. She unfolded her arms. “Tristan makes a good point, and the coven aren’t in the business of making people uncomfortable,” she said. “It’s not my decision, but I’ll definitely ask the question tonight.”

  Bro
dy smiled. A knock at the door made everyone jump, and stopped Uma from saying any more.

  “I wonder who that could be?” Uma said, and went to answer it.

  Lillith heard the door open, and some muffled voices. Then she heard footsteps approach the sitting room. Uma came in with a bewildered expression on her face. She was followed by two people; a woman and a man.

  The woman was older, small and round. She had short brown hair with flecks of grey, and washed out, blue eyes. She had a small nose, which turned up at the end, and thin lips. She was wearing a long, lemon tunic that reached her knees, and a pair of grey trousers.

  The man was fairly tall and stern looking. He was bald, except for a white ring of hair just above his ears. He had blue eyes and a large nose, and wore a checked shirt with faded jeans.

  Brody jumped up. He stared, mouth open, then whispered, “Mam? Dad?”

  Lillith looked between the strangers and Brody, not quite believing what she’d just heard. The man and woman had tears in their eyes as they nodded. Brody rushed towards them, and almost bowled them over. The strange man and woman threw their arms around Brody and the three of them hugged tightly. Lillith heard sobs from all three of them.

  Lillith looked at her mam. Her mouth was agape, and her eyes were wide. Were they really Brody’s parents?

  Uma looked just as shocked as Lillith felt. “These are the Parkers,” She announced. “Brody’s parents.”

  Chapter 16: Brody’s parents

  The man released his embrace. “Brody,” he said, almost laughing. “That’ll take some to get used to. You’ll always be Donny to us.” He was referring to Brody’s real name; Donovan. Brody had changed it when he came here, as a way of hiding from witches who wanted him and his power. The same ones who’d supposedly killed his parents.

  “You’re alive?” Lillith said, more to confirm it to herself than to ask the question.

  The woman, Mrs Parker, turned to Lillith. “Yes,” she said, then turned back to Brody and ruffled his hair.

  “Where’ve you been? How are you just…here?” Lillith asked. So many questions were flying through her head.

  Tristan had been holding Lillith’s hand. He let go of it, now, and stood up. “You’re the lady who woke me up,” he said, before Mrs Parker could answer Lillith’s question.