“How can you not believe in magic? Amethyst’s your mother. How can you have a magician for a mother and not believe in magic? Aren’t you magical too?”
“If you mean, have I inherited Mother’s special mental abilities, no, I haven’t. But lots of what you’re calling ‘magic’ can actually be explained scientifically. I have books about it. And the stuff we can’t explain, well, that’s just because we haven’t made the right discoveries yet,” Bertie said, fiddling nervously with a piece of cord he wore round his neck.
“We?” Lucy said.
“Scientists.”
“You’re a scientist?”
Bertie nodded.
Lucy raised her eyebrows at Kathleen, who shook her head slightly. So instead of arguing the point further, Lucy turned to the little scullery maid.
“Will you tell me what happened to you, Violet?”
“My parents made me work all the time. They didn’t want to get a job themselves. Just to loaf around all day, eating treacle pudding. They hired me out as a scullery maid to whoever paid the most money without caring whether I’d be safe or not. And it turns out I wasn’t safe at all.”
“Oh, Violet!” Lucy wished she had known all this before. Perhaps she could have done something to help? But then again, Violet had seemed happy enough at Grave Hall. Could she have been under some kind of spell?
“It was only when you met Amethyst that you found out the truth about Lord Grave, wasn’t it?” Kathleen said.
“I was so lucky. I met her in Grave Village when I was doing some shopping for Mrs Crawley.”
“Amethyst was in Grave Village. Why?” Lucy asked.
“Keeping an eye on Grave’s activities, of course,” Bertie said.
“I dropped my bag, and everything fell out. Amethyst helped me pick it all up,” Violet continued. “She was so kind, she’s always so kind. We got talking. I told her about my horrid parents and about working at Grave Hall. Then she told me the danger I was in. So she brought me here.”
“Violet,” Lucy said anxiously, “did Lord Grave ever hurt you?”
“No. But Amethyst said it was only a matter of time. She said I was full of energy and curiosity and that was just what he needed to make himself more powerful.” Violet’s voice trembled.
“And what about Becky? Do you think he tried to take her power?”
“I don’t know. But she was always so horrible to us, wasn’t she? Perhaps that was because something at Grave Hall was making her unhappy and scared.”
“That might be true, I suppose. What about you, Kathleen? How did you end up here?”
“My parents loved the gin shop more than they loved me.” Kathleen looked down at her hands. “I don’t really like to talk about it.”
“I’m so sorry. But at least you’re safe now. Are there more of you here? There was a boy called Eddie taken recently. Is he all right?”
“Yes, Eddie was with us, just for a little while,” Bertie replied.
“And what about Claire Small? And Harold Jameson? Deborah Jones?” Lucy explained how she had found their belongings when she crashed into the painted cabinet.
To Lucy’s dismay, Bertie shook his head. “I don’t know any of them. I’m sorry. Amethyst can’t rescue all of the children that Grave kidnaps. It’s impossible.”
“That’s awful,” Lucy said. “That we’re all safe here and they …”
“I know,” Kathleen agreed. “I know.”
“So what will happen to me? To us?” asked Lucy. “You said Eddie left. Did he go back home? When will I go home?”
Bertie shook his head. “You’ll never be safe with your own parents. Mother finds new families for the children she rescues, with decent magicians that are sympathetic and can offer protection.”
“But I don’t want to go to a new family. I want my own parents!” Lucy cried.
“Could they guard you against Lord Grave?” Bertie asked quietly. “Are they good parents?”
“I … well … they try.” But Lucy knew in her heart that her parents were useless in many ways. They’d have no chance of keeping her safe. “But if there are other magicians out there willing to help, why don’t they do something to stop Lord Grave?”
“There’s not enough of them brave enough to stand up to him, Mother says,” Bertie replied.
Kathleen laid a hand on Lucy’s arm. “Amethyst is a good person. This is all part of her plan to defeat Lord Grave and everyone who is on his side. You have to trust her. Your life depends on it.”
Lucy swallowed hard. “I know. I thought at first she wanted to hurt me, not help me. But I do trust her now. Bertie, you must be really proud of your mother, of what she’s doing.”
“I am. But you know, she isn’t my real mother,” Bertie said quietly. “I had terrible parents too. They cared more about making lots of money than they did about me. Grave was their friend. He told them he had found a good boarding school. That I could stay there and they wouldn’t need to bother with me until I was grown up. Of course, really he was planning to experiment on me. He was taking me away in his coach when Mother realised what was happening and rescued me. I’m lucky to be alive. We’re all lucky that Mother rescued us in time.”
That evening they all had dinner with Amethyst, except for Violet, who went to bed early, as the day’s surprises had worn her out. The food served at Amethyst’s table was very strange. Pickled fish. Berries. And a dish of something pinkish and jelly-like.
“What is that?” Lucy asked.
“Seal blubber – it’s delicious. And studies by Blenkinsopp and Pratt show it’s really good for you,” Bertie said, helping himself to a spoonful.
Lucy thought Blenkinsopp and Pratt might be mistaken. She found herself thinking almost wistfully of the sausage and custard pie that Mrs Crawley had presented for the servant’s supper a couple of nights ago. The berries she was eating suddenly seemed to stick in her throat. She still found it hard to accept the housekeeper-cum-cook was involved in Lord Grave’s dreadful crimes.
“Is something wrong with the dinner, Lucy, my sweet?” Amethyst asked.
“It’s lovely. Really it is. Um … is there any magic in it?” Lucy asked, and explained about the Grave Hall everlasting soup and chicken-with-more-body-parts-than-might-be-reasonably-expected.
“No, there’s no magic in this food. It’s not one of my skills,” Amethyst said. “I would imagine that the cook at Grave Hall is an Eker, though. They often are.”
“A what?”
“An Eker. They can make a little of something go a long way. So they’re very economical cooks.”
Lucy remembered what Paige and Turner had told her about magicians; how most had one or two particular skills. “Oh, I see. Which skills do you have, Amethyst?”
“I had many, Lucy. Or at least I did before they were taken from me.”
“Me too,” said Havoc, hastily swallowing his seal blubber. “Used to have dozens and dozens.”
Lucy ignored Havoc’s boasting. “So that means you were extra powerful?” she said to Amethyst.
“I suppose you could say that,” Amethyst agreed.
“Has Lord Grave got lots of skills or just one or two?”
“He has many, much to the misfortune of us all,” Amethyst sighed and shook her head.
Before Lucy could decide which of the hundred questions teeming in her mind to ask next, Amethyst said, “I think we should all get some rest. Kathleen, will you help me make hot chocolate for everyone?”
“Of course,” said Kathleen, smiling.
“Lucy can have her hot chocolate in bed. Havoc, escort Lucy to the girls’ room. She’s still finding her way around and she might get lost.”
Lucy really didn’t fancy spending any more quality time with Havoc. “I’ll be fine, I remember where to go.”
“I insist, sweet child,” said Amethyst. Her smile was as lovely as usual, but Lucy thought there was an impatient note in her voice.
“Very well,” said Havoc, pushing
back his chair. “Goodnight, my dear,” he said to Amethyst, taking her hand and kissing the back of it.
Amethyst snatched her hand away and wiped it with her napkin.
As they made their way along the passage to the girl’s bedroom, Havoc said, “I’ve been meaning to ask you – why do you always wear boy’s clothes?”
Nevermore, who was on Havoc’s shoulder, cackled.
“I’ve been meaning to ask you – why do you suck up to Amethyst so much?” Lucy retorted.
Havoc puffed out his chest. “She’s a wonderful woman and immensely talented. And she would never dress in such an unbecoming way.”
Lucy snorted. “This coming from a man in a tatty tricorn hat and a straggly pigtail? So last century.”
Havoc opened his mouth, no doubt to utter another insult. But then he paused before saying, “Look. We need to try to get along. Trust each other.”
Lucy was about to reluctantly agree when she remembered something. “Lord Grave said you took his son. If I’m to trust you, I need to know what he meant by that.”
“Lord Grave has invented accusations against me to cover himself. I have it on good authority that the boy died by Grave’s own hand in some kind of botched magical experiment. Now go and get some sleep.”
CHAPTER TWENTY
SPINNING A YARN
The next day, Kathleen helped Lucy find some warmer clothes to wear. When Lucy explained that she didn’t like dresses, Kathleen picked her out a pair of woollen trousers, furry boots and a shirt that had belonged to Eddie Robinson.
Suitably attired, Lucy was able to join the others outdoors to play in the snow, where she saw the outside of her new home for the first time. The tower’s walls were made of lumpy, crumbly black stone and the whole thing listed to the right. The snowdrifts surrounding the tower reached to the windowsills of the first floor where the dayroom was. The girls’ bedroom was on the second floor while Amethyst and Bertie had quarters on the third floor. Havoc and Nevermore were apparently sleeping in the attic rooms.
“Did Amethyst build the tower herself?” she asked Bertie.
“No. There was once a whole castle here, but it was destroyed centuries ago. This tower is all that’s left.”
“Does it have a name?”
“We just call it ‘the tower’. Now, look, I’ve got something for you!” There was a pile of wood leaning against a nearby tree. Bertie selected some of it, presenting Lucy with what looked like two planks and two sticks with sharpened ends.
“They’re skis,” he explained. “Very efficient way of getting around in a snowy environment. Hunters and warriors have used them since the Middle Ages you know. I’ll show you how.”
Bertie proved to be a very good teacher and Lucy soon learned to use the skis to skate along the snowy plains. She and the others also had great fun climbing out of the dayroom window and zipping down the slope created by the snowdrift piled up outside.
Lucy began to enjoy her new friends and surroundings, and her first couple of days at the tower soon flew past. Those days were short though, as sunset came very quickly and everyone had to be safely inside before dark.
“The wolves come out at night,” Violet had told Lucy, her eyes wide. “Amethyst says the wolves would eat me up as soon as look at me.”
The long evenings were pleasant too. Lucy would play hide-and-seek or hopscotch with Violet or simply chat with Kathleen. She also argued with Bertie on the matter of science versus magic. Then, just before they went to bed, all the children would visit Amethyst in her cosy sitting room and sit round the fire. They’d drink delicious hot chocolate while Amethyst told them fairy stories. She’d act them out extravagantly, transforming herself into the part of a cruel parent, a fairy godmother or a wicked enchanter, making everyone shiver or laugh.
Lucy found that she slept surprisingly soundly at the tower, although sometimes she was a little fuzzy-headed in the morning. Bertie informed her that was because she wasn’t used to the change in altitude yet. Whatever the reason, she felt completely safe for the first time in her life. She began to realise how terrible and neglectful her parents had been. With every day that passed, she grew less desperate to get back to them and more grateful to Amethyst, and more and more fond of her. In fact, she began to secretly hope that Amethyst might decide to adopt her and become her mother for good, just as she had with Bertie.
But on her third night in the tower, Lucy didn’t sleep as well as usual for some reason. Her dreams were full of stolen children, begging for help. Their cries woke her. Even when she opened her eyes, the cries didn’t stop. For a few seconds she continued to hear a thin wailing, which then petered out. Lucy slipped from her bed, thinking perhaps Violet or Kathleen was having a nightmare. But when she lit her candle to check, she found that Violet was fast asleep and Kathleen’s bed was empty.
Lucy sat on the side of her bed and decided to wait and see if the wailing started up again. It didn’t.
A few minutes later, Kathleen came into the bedroom. She looked dazed and her eyes were very red.
“Are you all right?” Lucy asked.
“Of course,” said Kathleen, getting into bed. “Why?”
“I wondered where you were.”
“I was with Amethyst. She says everything’s almost ready for me at my foster parents’. I’ll be leaving soon.” Kathleen yawned hugely and was asleep as soon as her head touched her pillow.
Lucy was about to go back to sleep too, when she heard voices in the corridor outside. Kathleen had left the door open slightly. Lucy tiptoed out of bed to have a closer listen.
“… planting all that rubbish. Very impressive. I can’t wait to see the end result,” Lucy heard a screechy voice say. It was Nevermore.
“I imagine you’ll get your chance soon,” Havoc replied.
“Won’t the other dear children wonder?”
“Oh, Amethyst spins a good yarn. She always has a convincing explanation ready.”
The voices faded as Havoc and Nevermore went upstairs.
Lucy’s feet were freezing from standing on the cold stone floor. She hurried back to bed, thinking about what she had just heard.
Amethyst spins a good yarn. Did that mean Amethyst was lying about something and if so, what? And why?
The next morning, Lucy was greeted by an excited Violet bouncing on her bed.
“Come on, let’s go outside!”
Lucy unglued her eyes.
“Please hurry – we have to build a snowman before the sun goes away again!”
Lucy sat up in bed and blinked wearily. She felt as though she’d only fallen asleep a few minutes ago.
At that moment, Kathleen came into the bedroom. She seemed to notice Lucy wasn’t quite feeling up to par and said, “Violet, come on, let’s go down to the dayroom. Bertie’s there. We can have a game of hopscotch while Lucy’s getting ready.”
Feeling relieved to be alone for a few minutes, Lucy poured a bowlful of icy water from the jug that sat on the chest of drawers next to her bed. After a chilly wash that made her break out into goose bumps, she quickly dressed herself. Despite the lack of sleep, her mind felt sharper than it had for days.
Amethyst spins a good yarn.
Although she kept telling herself it meant nothing, that Amethyst had no reason to lie about anything, she couldn’t help feeling a prickle of unease.
Lucy looked around the room. It was warm and comfortable, and she still felt grateful to be here, to be safe, to be alive, not like poor Claire Small and the others. But somehow the room was stifling too. Like wearing a shirt with a too tight-collar that made it difficult to breathe properly.
And so, when Lucy finally left the bedroom and found herself alone in the corridor, she made a sudden decision. It was time to do some exploring, some sneaking around. She should have done this before, instead of accepting everything she’d been told. It was most unlike her usual curious self.
Lucy crept up the spiral stone staircase to the third floor, where Amethyst
and Bertie’s rooms were. But just as she reached the top of the steps, there was a rustling behind her.
“Lucy! Good morning, sweet child. I hope you slept well. Did you want me for something?”
“We’re going outside. I said I’d meet the others in the dayroom.”
“The dayroom’s downstairs,” said Amethyst.
“Oh, I thought it was upstairs. I must have got muddled,” Lucy said, trying to sound cheerful and not at all worried.
Amethyst said nothing.
“I’ll be off and join the others now,” Lucy continued, trying to sound unconcerned.
“It’s very strange you should be so … muddled. You’ve been here three days now. I would have thought you’d know your way around. Is everything all right?” Amethyst said.
“Yes. I’m just tired. I didn’t sleep very well.”
“Hmm, I see. Well, have fun in the snow. Remember now, back before dark. Night can be dangerous here, as you know.”
Heart thumping, Lucy hurried down to the dayroom. The feeling of safety she had experienced over the last few days was beginning to fade. She wasn’t quite sure why. At least not yet. But she was determined to find out.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
THE TEAR CATCHER
“Bertie, isn’t it boring for you, stuck here all the time?” Lucy asked as they were rolling a snowball big enough for a snowman’s body, while Violet was making the head. Kathleen wasn’t with them. She had decided to stay inside and read by the fire.
“It can be. But now I’m older Mother takes me with her sometimes when she visits the outside world. I go to bookshops, museums and libraries. That’s how I discovered science. And of course, since Mother started rescuing children I have some company.”
Lucy fiddled with the hood of her cloak. “It’s very dangerous for Amethyst, isn’t it? What if Lord Grave catches her?”
“She doesn’t seem to worry about that. She’s so brave. You know she tried to keep exactly what she was doing a secret from me at first, because she didn’t want me to be worried? I’ve only known for a few months.”
Goodly and Grave in a Bad Case of Kidnap Page 10
