Witch is How Bells Were Saved

by Adele Abbott

  Witch Is How

  Bells Were Saved

  Published by Implode Publishing Ltd

  © Implode Publishing Ltd 2019

  The right of Adele Abbott to be identified as the Author of the Work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

  All rights reserved, worldwide. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the copyright owner.

  The characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, dead or alive, is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 1

  “Morning, Jill.” Britt was doing press-ups on their back lawn.

  What was the matter with that woman? Didn’t she realise it was seven-thirty in the morning? I barely had the energy to open the dustbin.

  “Morning.”

  “Did you know Lovely was back?”

  “Yes, I saw her over the weekend. You must be really pleased.”

  “I am, but—” She hesitated.

  “She’s okay, isn’t she?”

  “Yeah, she doesn’t seem to be any worse for wear.”

  “What’s wrong, then? I thought you’d be happy now she’s returned.”

  “I’m pleased to have her back, obviously, but she seems to have taken up with that ruffian across the road. Those two are always together now. He even tried to follow her into our house yesterday.”

  “I suppose that’s better than having them fighting.”

  “I guess so. It’s just that my Lovely is a little princess, and Bruiser is a thug.”

  “You’d better not let Kimmy hear you say that about her Fluffykins.”

  “By the way, Jill, how are you getting on with your instrument? Was it the tuba you went for in the end?”

  “No, I couldn’t get along with that, so I swapped it for the penny whistle.”

  “Have you managed to put in much practice?”

  “Of course. Every spare minute I get,” I lied.

  “Good for you. Kit and I put aside an hour every evening. If you’re going to do something, you may as well do it properly, don’t you think?”

  “My philosophy exactly.”

  When I got back into the house, Jack was tapping his watch. “Come on, you’d better get a move on if you want me to give you a lift to the breakers’ yard.”

  “Sorry, Britt kept me talking out there.”

  “Did she have anything interesting to say?”

  “Not really. She was asking if I’d managed to put in much practice on the penny whistle.”

  “What did you tell her?”

  “That I had, of course.”

  “So you lied?”

  “No. I have been practising.”

  “I haven’t seen you.”

  “I prefer to do it when I’m in the house alone.”

  “You realise the next meeting is on Wednesday, don’t you?”

  “That soon?”

  “I’m looking forward to seeing how everyone else has progressed.”

  “You’ll be the only one there who’s bothered to practise.”

  “No, I won’t. Kit told me that he and Britt spend an hour practising every day.”

  “Okay, no one except for you and the Liveleys, but they’re crazy.”

  “You’re wrong. Everyone seemed really enthused on the night.”

  “That’s what people do. They get all excited about something, but when it comes down to putting in the hours, they flake out.”

  “I assume you’re talking about yourself.”

  “My case is different. I’m too busy with work.”

  “What about yesterday when you spent all evening watching that awful box set on Netflix?”

  “It was educational.”

  “It was a comedy western, and you fell asleep while you were watching it.”

  “I thought you said we were running late.”

  ***

  Jack pulled up outside Washbridge Breakers’ Yard.

  “Shall I come in with you?”

  “There’s no need. You’d better get going or you’ll be late.”

  “Tell me again how much you have to pay to get your car back?” He smirked.

  “Bye, Jack.” I slammed the car door.

  The spotty young man behind the counter was covered in oil. Or grease. Or maybe it was some new wonder acne cream. He was staring at his phone and he didn’t seem to register my presence.

  “Are you Wally Bridge?”

  “Me? No, I’m Rodney.”

  “Is Mr Bridge in?”

  “He’s cleaning out the meerkats.”

  “There’s no need to be sarky.”

  “I’m not. He is cleaning them out.” He pointed to a large wood and glass structure across the yard. “Wally’s into meerkats, big time. He’s got half a dozen of ‘em. I can’t see the appeal myself. All they do is stand on their back legs and look around.”

  “Could you ask him to come over here?”

  “He won’t come until he’s done with the meerkats.”

  “How long will that take?”

  “Another half-hour, at least.”

  “I can’t wait that long. Maybe you can help. It’s about a car that you picked up on Saturday by mistake. I spoke to Mr Bridge about it on the phone yesterday.”

  “I’m just the labourer. I’m only in here until Wally comes back.”

  “Can I go over there to speak to him?”

  “I suppose.”

  Bridge, an overweight, red-faced man in his fifties, was sweeping out the meerkat enclosure while the occupants peered out of various man-made tunnels.

  “Mr Bridge.” I knocked on the glass.

  He turned to me, shrugged, and mouthed, “What?”

  “I’m Jill Maxwell. I called—”

  He shook his head and pointed to the door. He surely didn’t expect me to go inside, did he?

  When I hesitated, he walked over to the door. “If you want to talk to me, you’ll have to come in here.”

  “Couldn’t you come outside for a minute?”

  “No, I have to finish what I’m doing here first. Are you coming in or not?”

  What choice did I have? I couldn’t afford to hang around there all day.

  “Do they bite?”

  “Not usually.”

  Very reassuring. “I’m Jill Maxwell. I rang yesterday.”

  “Oh yeah.” He grinned. “You’re the one who asked us to collect your car by mistake.”

  “I thought I’d explained that yesterday. There was a mix-up over which day my new car will be delivered. It isn’t going to come for a few weeks now.”

  “Like I said on the phone, it’ll be fifty quid if you want it back. You’re lucky to have caught us before it was crushed.”

  “That’s outrageous. I paid you a tenner to take it away because you said it wasn’t worth anythin
g.”

  “It wasn’t then, but now it’s worth fifty quid.”

  “How about twenty?”

  “Fifty quid, take it or leave it.” He stared at me. “Where do I know you from?”

  “I—err—I don’t—”

  “I remember. You were the one who won the Washbridge lottery, weren’t you? I saw it on TV.”

  “That was me.”

  “What a great prize. I love clowns—always have.”

  “Really? In that case, I have a proposition to put to you.”

  ***

  Mrs V was at her desk, holding an umbrella over her head.

  “We have a leak, Jill.” She gestured to a damp patch on the ceiling. “I’ve called the landlord. He said he’d get someone over here this morning.”

  “You can’t sit there holding an umbrella all day. Let’s move your desk out of the way. Can you take that end?”

  After we’d moved it, Mrs V placed the metal waste bin under the drip.

  “Did you get your new car on Saturday, Jill? What’s it like?”

  “No, there was a bit of a mix-up with the prizes. I didn’t win a car after all.”

  “What did you win?”

  “A voucher for a course at Clown.”

  “Oh dear, that must have been disappointing.”

  “Not really. I never actually believed it would be a new car.”

  “You seemed so sure.”

  “I was just joking. Anyway, I’d better make a start. New week, new challenges.”

  Winky was looking through his telescope.

  “Jill, quick! Come and look at this!”

  “What is it?”

  “If I’m not mistaken, it’s a brand new Jag coming up the road.” He laughed.

  “You’ve heard, I take it?”

  “I saw the presentation on YouTube. Your face! It was a picture.”

  “I didn’t actually think I’d won a Jag.”

  “Of course you did. You might be able to fool the old bag lady, but you can’t fool me. When they announced what you’d won, you looked like someone had just stabbed you through the heart.”

  “Rubbish.”

  “Still, you do have the consolation of a course of clown lessons. Oh, wait. You’re scared of clowns.”

  “I’m not scared of them. That’s just a vicious rumour.”

  “When will you be taking the lessons, then?”

  “As it happens, I’ve swapped the Clown voucher.”

  “For what?”

  “That’s none of your business.”

  ***

  Just when I thought that Winky couldn’t get any more annoying, he started making a weird brum, brum sound.

  “Do you have to make that noise?”

  “Brum, brum.”

  “What are you doing, anyway?” I stood up to get a better look. “Is that a toy car?”

  “Not just any toy car. It’s a Jag.” He ducked just in time to avoid the stapler. “Hey, that could have hit me!”

  “It was supposed to. How come you always kick me when I’m down? Why not try to be supportive for a change?”

  “Where would be the fun in that?”

  Mrs V came through the door. “You really shouldn’t leave these on the floor, Jill.” She kicked the toy car under the sofa. “I could have tripped on it.”

  “But it wasn’t—err—sorry. Is Macabre’s repair man here?”

  “No. It’s Daisy Flowers. She wondered if you could spare her a few minutes.”

  “Sure, send her in, would you?”

  “I’ll tell her to watch out for the toy cars.”

  “What brings you here, Daze? Can I get you a drink?”

  “No, thanks.”

  “Have a seat. Is everything okay?”

  “I’m afraid this isn’t a social call, Jill.”

  “Oh?”

  “There have been reports.”

  “What kind of reports?”

  “About you.”

  “What do you mean? What about me?”

  “You’re aware that I’ve turned a blind eye to the situation with Jack.”

  “Yes, and I’ll always be in your debt.”

  “The thing is, I’ve gone out on a limb for you, and that’s okay, but not when this kind of thing happens.” She held out her phone and played a video. “That is you and Jack, isn’t it?”

  “Err—yeah.”

  “In the car park near the cinema?”

  “That’s right. Jack and I were—” What I saw on-screen stopped me mid-sentence.

  “And that is you, turning that man into a rat, isn’t it?”

  “Yes, but I can explain.”

  “I’m listening.”

  “He pinched my parking space.”

  “And?”

  “And, err—that’s not really a good excuse, is it?”

  “No. It isn’t. What you did was unforgiveable, Jill.”

  There was something about an angry Daze which gave me flashbacks to being told off by Mrs Preston at junior school.

  “I’m sorry.”

  “It’s bad enough that you did it at all, but to do it in front of Jack makes it ten times worse. What were you thinking?”

  “I—err—”

  “You weren’t thinking! You can’t have been. You’ve put me in a very difficult position.”

  “I really am sorry, Daze. What are you going to do?”

  “What I should do is take you back to Candlefield and let the powers that be decide your fate. And I can pretty much guarantee what they would do.”

  “You said, should do. Does that mean you aren’t going to send me back?”

  “You’ve been a good friend to me and the rogue retrievers. I’ve lost count of the number of times you’ve helped us.”

  “I’m pleased I’ve been able to.”

  “That’s why I won’t do anything this time, but this can’t happen again.”

  “It won’t, I promise.”

  “I’m not stupid. I don’t kid myself that you’re never going to use magic in the human world, but you can’t do this sort of thing again. Having a hissy fit and turning that guy into a rat is precisely the kind of thing your grandmother would do. I expected better of you.”

  “I do. I have. I promise I’ll never do anything like that again.”

  “And please try not to use magic in front of Jack. At least, not while you’re out in public.”

  “I won’t. I promise.”

  “Okay.” She smiled for the first time. “Let’s never have this discussion again.”

  “We won’t. And, Daze, thanks. I know I messed up, and I really do appreciate what you’ve done for me.”

  After she’d left, I gave a great sigh of relief. I’d been a complete idiot by putting everything I treasured at risk. And for what? Just because someone had pinched my parking space.

  “Who’s been a naughty girl?” Winky pushed the toy car across the floor.

  “Shut up, you. And get that car out of my sight before I—”

  “Be careful. Don’t forget what happened the last time you lost your temper over a car.”

  ***

  I’d been summoned to Ever. Grandma wouldn’t say over the phone why she wanted me, just that I should get down there straight away.

  “What’s up with you, misery guts?” she greeted me.

  “I’ve just had a telling off from Daze.”

  “Daisy Flowers?” She scoffed. “Who does she think she is? Puffed-up little nobody, that’s who.”

  “She’s a rogue retriever, as well you know. And please don’t call her names. She’s done me a big favour by not reporting me.”

  “Pah! You worry too much. You’re more powerful than that lot put together. There’s nothing they could do to you.”

  “You don’t know that.”

  “Of course I do. Why do you think I get away with what I do? It’s not because I’m everyone’s bestie. They can’t touch me, and they know it. The same goes for you.”

  “Even if that’
s true, I wouldn’t want to let Daze down. She’s been a good friend.”

  “Oh please.” Grandma mimed putting a finger down her throat. “Excuse me while I throw up.”

  “You said you wanted to see me about something.”

  “I want an update on your investigation into Belinda Cartwheel.”

  “An update?”

  “Yes, please.”

  “Actually, there isn’t any update.”

  “Why not?”

  “The thing is—err—I—err—”

  “You have been investigating Belinda, haven’t you?”

  “Not exactly.”

  “Why not? You promised you would.”

  “I’ve been really busy. I’ve been working on some important cases.”

  “What could be more important than someone trying to stage a coup d’état and remove me as chairman of W.O.W?”

  “I—err—”

  “Nothing, that’s what.”

  “Sorry. I’ll get straight onto it.”

  “You’d better. I’ll expect a full report.”

  “You can leave it with me.” I started for the door. “Isn’t your new beauty salon supposed to open next week?”

  “It isn’t supposed to open. It is opening, a week on Friday.”

  “It’s just that I haven’t seen any promotions so far.”

  “Don’t worry your little head about it. Everything is in hand. Now, off you trot. I have a rash that needs my attention.”

  Chapter 2

  I’d been hoping that Grandma had forgotten about the W.O.W. business, but I should have known better. I’d declined invitations to the last couple of events, but if I was going to find out what Belinda Cartwheel was up to, I would have to accept the next one that came my way. Fingers crossed it didn’t turn out to be another beetle drive.

  It was definitely coffee time, so I magicked myself over to Cuppy C where I found both of the twins behind the counter.

  “Where are Lil and Lily?”

  “Upstairs with Jemima and the other kids.”

  “I’m gagging for a coffee.”

  “Latte?”

  “I think I’ll have an Americano for a change.”

  “Whoa! Steady on. And a muffin?”

  “Actually, I fancy toast with jam.”

  “Are you sure you’re the real Jill Maxwell?” Pearl grinned.