by Adele Abbott
“That’s quite ingenious. What about you? Have you used the agency?”
“No, I have no need for it. I already have a boyfriend.”
“Another Reaper?”
“Yes.”
“I see. I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name.”
“I’m Kim. Kim Neaper.”
“No, seriously, what’s your real name?”
“That is my real name.”
“So you’re Kim Neaper, the Grim Reaper?”
“Oh? I see what you mean. It rhymes, doesn’t it? It never occurred to me.”
O—kay.
“Well, give my regards to Jim. Tell him I’ll pop in again some time to see how things are going.”
Chapter 19
“Grandma? What a nice surprise.”
Did you see how I did that? I actually sounded like I meant it. I was getting really good at this.
“Don’t pretend you’re pleased to see me,” she barked.
Seems I wasn’t as good as I thought I was.
“To what do I owe this pleasure?”
“It’s time for your lesson.”
“Sorry?”
She sighed. “Your lesson. It is time for it. Which bit of that don’t you understand?”
“But Grandma, don’t you remember? I got into the sealed room at Candlefield Museum of Witchcraft. I’ve inherited all of Magna’s knowledge and power. Surely I don’t still need lessons, do I?”
“I said it was time for your lesson. I did not say it was time for you to take a lesson. You’re giving the lesson.”
“Me? Give a lesson? Who to?”
“To a bunch of young wizards and witches who are all starting out on their own magical journey. With your help, they’ll soon achieve level one, hopefully.”
“You mean, like, be a teacher?”
“Only if you can learn to speak properly first. ‘You mean, like, be a teacher?’ Was that supposed to be a sentence?”
“Sorry. You just caught me off-guard. Do you mean you want me to teach them?”
“That’s precisely what I mean. Witchcraft is all about paying it forward.”
“But, I’m busy! I’ve got cases to work on.”
“Jill, you and I both know that any time you spend in Candlefield does not impact on your time here in the human world. So, giving a lesson to a few children is not going to have any effect on this silly little business of yours.”
“Excuse me! This is not a ‘silly little business’. And, even though time stands still, it still uses up my energy.”
“Aww, you poor thing.”
I might have known better than to expect any sympathy. “So where am I supposed to give this lesson?”
“In the Range, of course. Come on, they’ve been waiting for five minutes already.”
“Why didn’t you tell me about this before now? I haven’t had chance to prepare.”
“Be quiet with your excuses.” She held out her bony hand.
It was pointless arguing once Grandma had made up her mind, so I took her hand, and the next thing I knew, we were standing in the Range. It was quite a while since I’d been there. My mind went back to my very first visit with Grandma and the twins. At the time, I’d been on level one. When Grandma had asked me to perform the ‘transform’ spell, I’d had no idea that it was a level five spell. It was after that I began to realise I had the potential to become a great witch.
“Earth to Jill. Are you with us?” Grandma’s voice brought me back down to earth with a thud.
“Yeah, sorry—I was just—err—yeah I’m back.”
“Good. It’s time for you to meet your pupils.” She led the way to a quiet section of the Range where a bunch of young witches and wizards were waiting. There were eight of them in total: Four boys and four girls. They all looked at me expectantly.
“Right, boys and girls,” Grandma said. “As promised, your teacher will be Jill Gooder. I assume you’ve all heard of her?” They all nodded. “Good. In that case, I’ll leave you in Miss Gooder’s capable hands.”
She leaned forward and whispered, “Don’t mess this up.”
Before I could respond, she’d disappeared.
“Hello, everyone.”
“Hello, Miss Gooder!” They all said in unison.
“I think you should call me Jill.”
“We can’t do that,” a young witch at the front said. “We’re not allowed to call teachers by their first name.”
“Who says?”
“We were all given a book of rules. One of them is that you must always address teachers by their surname.”
“Okay, Miss Gooder it is then. That lady was my grandma, but I suppose you already know that?”
They all nodded.
“You all said you’ve heard of me? How?”
All hands went up; I pointed to one of the young wizards at the front.
“What’s your name?”
“Donald, Miss.”
“Hello, Donald. How have you heard of me?”
“You’re the witch who got into the sealed room at the Museum of Witchcraft.”
“That’s right, Donald. I did.”
“My mum says, you must be the most powerful witch there’s ever been because no one else has ever been able to get into that room. Is that right, Miss?”
“I’m not sure about that, Donald. I’m actually still only a level three witch.”
Another hand shot up; a young witch, this time.
“What’s your name?”
“Lydia, Miss Gooder. My dad says you should be a level six witch for getting into the sealed room, and for all the competitions you’ve won.”
“That’s very nice of your dad, but I have to work my way through the levels unless I win the Levels Competition next year.”
“You will win it, Miss! My dad says you definitely will!”
“We’ll have to see. Anyway, I suppose we ought to get started with the lesson. Look, I’m going to be honest with you. I’m not really a teacher. I didn’t even know I was going to be taking this class until about five minutes ago, so I haven’t prepared anything. Maybe, we could focus on one spell, and see how it goes? How do you feel about that?”
They all nodded enthusiastically.
Being there with them made me realise what I’d missed out on as a kid. Their enthusiasm for learning magic was clear to see. They would have many years to develop their skills whereas I’d been totally unaware that I was a witch, so had grown up without magic in my life.
“Why don’t we start with something fairly simple: The ‘faster’ spell. Do you all know that one?” They all nodded. “Are you sure?”
One hand went up. A young wizard.
“Yes, what’s your name?”
“Tim, Miss Gooder. I don’t know it. I’m sorry.”
“That’s okay, Tim. That’s what you’re here to learn. Do you all have your Book of Spells with you?”
They grabbed their bags, and pulled out a copy of the same book that I’d once been given by Aunt Lucy.
“I tell you what. Why don’t you all spend a few minutes looking at the ‘faster’ spell. Then we’ll give it a try, and see how you get on. Don’t worry if you find it difficult to remember the images at first. I was hopeless when I started.”
That seemed to make them relax a little.
“I’ll take a walk around the Range while you study the spell.”
I figured if I walked around the perimeter, it would give them plenty of time to swot up on the spell. I passed by several groups of witches and wizards—all at different stages of the learning process. I spotted at least a dozen level six witches. Whereas at one time, they wouldn’t have even noticed me, today they all seemed to be watching me. It made me a little self-conscious.
“What gives you the right to teach a class?” The familiar, but unwelcome voice came from behind me. I turned around to find my BFF, Alicia.
“Grandma asked me to take it, if you must know.”
“You’ve no right to
be teaching witches and wizards. You’re not even a proper witch yourself.”
“Nice to see you too. How’s Ma Chivers?”
“If I had my way, you wouldn’t be allowed to take these lessons. I’ve already spoken to Ma Chivers about it. She’s not very happy. She says she’s going to bring it up with the other level six witches.”
“That’s fine by me. I’ll be happy to stand down if that’s what people want. But for now, I’ve been asked to take this class, and that’s what I’m going to do. So, if you don’t mind, Alicia, there are some young witches and wizards waiting for me.”
She huffed and puffed, but didn’t make any attempt to stop me.
When I got back to the kids, they were still poring over the page for the ‘faster’ spell.
“Right, everyone. Time to put your books away.” I waited until they had. “On the count of three, I want you to cast the spell, and then run to that wall on the far side of the Range. Then turn around and run back. Okay? One, two, three.”
The concentration was etched on their faces. One by one, they all set off, running at breakneck speed towards the wall.
All except one, that is.
Tim was still standing there with his eyes closed.
“Tim? Are you okay?”
“I keep getting the images mixed up, Miss. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t worry about it. I think you’re trying a little too hard. Take your book back out again.”
“But Miss, I’m meant to have memorised it.”
“It doesn’t matter about that. It’s more important that you prove to yourself you can cast the spell.” I flicked through the book until I reached the ‘faster’ spell. “There you are. Look at the images, cast the spell, and then off you go.”
The spell worked perfectly. He ran to the wall and back again, finishing only a few yards behind the others.
“That’s very good, everyone. I don’t know how often we’ll be having these lessons, but there’s something very important I want to tell you. You mustn’t spend every spare minute on this. It’s important you find time to be with your friends, and for play. You should try to devote no more than one hour each day to studying this book. When we have our next lesson, I’ll pick one spell, and we’ll make sure that you’re able to master it. Before we finish today, does anyone have any questions?”
All their hands went up.
“Lydia?”
“Will you sign my spell book, please, Miss Gooder?”
“Sign your book?”
“Please, Miss.”
“And mine!”
“And mine!”
Wow! Kathy, eat your heart out.
***
I was making remarkably little progress in the Starr Fish murder case. Even so, I thought I’d better give Stuart Steele an update. I preferred to do it at a time that suited me rather than have him contact me out of the blue. If he was to call when Jack was with me, it could have been very embarrassing.
So, after I’d finished signing autographs for my young fans—
What? If Kathy can have fans, then I’m sure a superstar witch like me can.
Anyway, as I was saying. I magicked myself over to Bar Fish, in the hope that he’d be there.
I was out of luck. The bar manager told me that Stuart was out of town for a couple of days. I asked him what he made of his boss.
“I knew Stuart long before he opened Bar Fish. He used to come into the bar where I worked previously, on the other side of Washbridge. That’s how I landed this job. He liked the way I ran the bar, and asked if I’d do the same for him here. It sounded like a great opportunity. It was a lot more money.”
“I’m sensing there’s a ‘but’ coming?”
“There have been a lot of rumours recently.”
“What kind of rumours?”
“I shouldn’t really say.”
“Come on. I won’t tell anyone.”
“Rumours that Stuart overspent putting this place together, and that the money’s run out. I overheard him on the phone to his accountant—or maybe the bank. He said something about cash-flow problems. And he hasn’t been himself recently. He always used to be a happy-go-lucky guy. Maybe it’s just the pressure he’s been under, but he’s been really short with everyone. I’m worried about whether or not the bar is going to survive, and if I’ll still have a job. I don’t think it helped that Stuart’s girlfriend dumped him.”
“Do you know why?”
“No idea. He wouldn’t talk about it.”
“I don’t suppose you know how I can get in touch with her, do you?”
“I do, actually. Stuart gave me her phone number in case I couldn’t reach him any time.”
Chapter 20
I was in the outer office with Mrs V when the door burst open, and Armi came rushing in. He was red-faced and out of breath.
“Armi, are you all right?” Mrs V looked concerned, and little wonder.
“I’m fine.” He gasped. “Just let me catch my breath.”
“Would you like a glass of water?” I offered.
“No, it’s okay. I’m all right. I’m glad I caught you both together, though.”
“Whatever’s wrong?” Mrs V said.
“It’s Gordon.”
“I might have guessed.” My blood pressure could rise just at the mention of his name. “What’s he done now?”
“He thinks he’s found a way to have you thrown out.”
“He’s tried before and failed. What’s he up to this time?”
“He’s got a picture of a cat sitting in your windowsill.”
Oh, bum.
Mrs V gave me a look; she knew that we weren’t meant to have Winky in the office.
“I don’t see how he can, Armi. We don’t have any cats in here,” I lied.
“Look, Jill, you don’t have to lie to me. I’ve seen the cat myself, but I don’t care. I love animals, and cats in particular. But I do know that it’s against the terms of the lease. When Gordon tells Zac, things might get very difficult for you. There’s something else, and I know this is going to sound crazy.”
“Go on.”
“I’ve seen the photo, and it looks like the cat is—” He hesitated. “No, it’s too ridiculous.”
“Go on, Armi, spit it out.”
“It actually looks like the cat is waving flags around.”
Mrs V looked puzzled. Me, not so much.
“Flags?” I tried to sound shocked.
“I told you that you’d think I was crazy.”
“I’m pretty sure a cat can’t wave flags, Armi,” Mrs V said.
Little did she know.
“Anyway, I’ve got to get back. I wanted to warn you both because I’m sure Gordon has called the landlord already. When he gets here, and Gordon shows him the photograph, things might be very difficult for you.”
“Okay. Thanks for the heads-up.” I forced a smile.
“See you later, Armi.” Mrs V blew him a kiss.
“How sweet.” I grinned.
“Never mind that, Jill. What are we going to do about Gordon Armitage? I warned you that stupid cat would get us into trouble.”
“Don’t worry about it. I’ll sort something out.”
“But if he has a photo, we’ll be thrown out for sure.”
“Mrs V, I’ve already told you. Don’t worry. I’ve got this one.”
I knew that Gordon Armitage regularly popped out to his favourite coffee shop. He was a creature of habit, and made the trip at more or less the same time, once in the morning, and again in the afternoon. He could have sent a junior, but I suspected he was also going out for a crafty cigarette. A few minutes before his morning run, I waited behind the vending machine in the common area. When Gordon appeared, I stepped out in front of him.
“Gooder! You made me jump! What are you trying to do now? Give me a heart attack?”
Don’t give me ideas.
“Sorry, Gordon. I was just picking up the coin I dropped. I didn’t see you there.�
��
“A likely story. Get out of my way.”
“Time for a cigarette break, Gordon?”
“I don’t smoke. Now move!”
Before he could side-step me, I cast the ‘sleep’ spell, and managed to catch him as he slumped to the floor. His phone was in the outer pocket of his jacket. Fortunately, he hadn’t set a password, so I flicked through the screens, and brought up his gallery of photographs. Sure enough, the most recent one on there was of Winky, and he was indeed waving his little flags around. If Zac saw this, he’d have no option but to throw me out. I had to do something, and I had to do it quickly.
First things first. I dragged Gordon into the cleaners’ cupboard—I couldn’t have people tripping over him. Next, I popped back into my office.
“Mrs V, get your knitting needles, and go stand by the window in my office. The one where Winky usually sits.”
“Why?”
“Please, just do it. There’s no time to explain.”
“What do you want me to do there?”
“Wave your knitting needles around as though you’re signalling to someone.”
“People will think I’m crazy.”
“You have to trust me.”
She sighed. “I hope you know what you’re doing.”
So did I.
I didn’t have very long because Zac would arrive at any moment, so I rushed downstairs, out of the building, and waited until Mrs V appeared at my window. She looked rather self-conscious, but began to wave the knitting needles around, as instructed.
I took a photo on Gordon’s phone, and then deleted the one of Winky. After rushing back inside, I put the phone back in Gordon’s pocket, pulled him out of the cupboard, and reversed the spell.
“What happened? What am I doing on the floor?”
“You tripped. Are you all right?”
“Something weird is going on here.”
“You’re just clumsy, that’s all.”
“I’m not the least bit clumsy. Not normally. That’s the effect you have on me.” He climbed back to his feet. “Get out of my way.”
A few minutes later, Mrs V came into my office. “The landlord is here.”
