‘The spinning of the windmill signifies the gravest danger. The lives of your families are in great perile. Do not hesitate as we dide! Acte! Marke the barnes with the sigils of containmente and destroy the evil…’”
Eric interrupted. “Paint the barns? Isn’t that a bit premature? I saw the sigils and they look like graffiti. The festival is starting in a few days. All we need is to have mad old Heimler publish an article accusing the council of having the crazies because of symbols we vandalized our own barns with. Thousands of visitors are about to pass through. Do we need them to think we’re nuts? I vote no. A windmill is just a windmill.”
“We’re taking advice from men over four hundred years dead,” Bill Farmer added.
John stayed quiet. He didn’t mention his chat with Luke. He didn’t mention that he had seen other signs, signs that Jacob Barrington wrote about in his diaries. Thank God Jacob had been literate. Only one other diary existed to support The Circle’s book, and that was Dame Parquhar’s ‘Book of Record.’ He needed more time to look into this. His council wasn’t convinced with the information they had.
“It just seems so impossible,” Eric Sweet said grumpily.
“Vote then,” John ordered gruffly.
Only Noah Baker was with him. The rest weren’t. The motion didn’t pass. The barns would stay as is. John had a terrible feeling in the pit of his stomach that they would pay for their disbelief.
A few days later, Sadie showed up at the library as soon as it opened. Luke was working with Liz. She was telling Luke a story and he was laughing at her wild gestures. He looked relaxed, considering what had happened Monday. His hair was sticking up in places as if he had run his hands through it constantly all morning, and he was wearing worn jeans with a soft blue tee shirt the colour of his eyes. It said “BOOKS MAKE YOU SMRT” in white lettering.
Adorable, Sadie thought sadly to herself. She observed their camaraderie and felt a frisson of jealousy. Everyone loved Luke, even her, the ice witch. He was fun and easygoing, unlike her—completely opposite to her, in fact. She wasn’t easy going or friendly, and despite the ache in her heart at what she was about to do, she was going ahead with it. No point in wishing for what she couldn’t have, especially after her frightening and embarrassing episode.
Luke had always been in her life but just out of reach. When he was young he had been such a sweet and happy boy, and when those bullies had started picking on him…well, she had stepped in knowing even then that she was different and could scare the hell out of them. With happiness not being a constant in Sadie’s life, even at that tender age, she wasn’t about to allow a bunch of idiot bullies to tamper with a perfect example of happiness. Luke represented that possibility to her, and Sadie had looked for that in him every day since.
The problem now was that her feelings for him had changed over the last few weeks. Well, not changed, bloomed. What she had locked inside her had escaped. She was hopelessly infatuated with the tall, sweet, gawky, smart kid.
In school he always acknowledged her, and in the last couple of years, she often felt his eyes follow her. Interest? Possibly. She was…striking. The mirror showed her that. But a crush? Love? Not possible. She was too cold, too silent, and too distant. Strange. Nobody loved her. She was a Kellar. “Witch,” they called her behind her back…those mean girls…the same ones who draped themselves around the loveable Luke Barrington. How could such a warm and happy boy like that love a cold, graceless girl like her? It was time to cut ties with him before she was distracted by a broken heart, even though she suspected it was already too late.
Sadie was despondent and decided to leave. She would speak to Luke later. She was still upset over what had happened earlier in the week. Although she very much wanted to confide in Luke, she observed that he seemed very happy without her. She was feeling very sorry for herself and this was completely out of character for her. Spending time with Luke was turning her into a big emotional mess. A mooner! On top of that, she was going crazy. Disgusted with herself, Sadie turned to go at the same time Luke glanced behind him and saw her.
“Sadie!” Luke cried happily, jumping up and stumbling towards her, his chair spinning away wildly.
“For God’s sake, Barrington, be careful!” Liz yelled, hands in the air, before she turned and headed to her office.
His face grew serious when he saw the expression on her face. “What’s the matter?” he asked her, taking a chance and putting his hands on her shoulders. “You okay? I missed you. What happened on Monday, anyway? You disappeared so fast.” He looked into her cold face, not realizing the tumult of emotions raging around inside her behind her calm exterior.
“Look Luke, it’s not your concern,” she responded coldly, stepping back and away from his warm hands. He had been so nice to her, she thought to herself. He doesn’t deserve this, but she couldn’t thaw her manner or she’d cry, and that was not going to happen. “I’ve just come to tell you that my research is done and to thank you for all your assistance. We’re done. Have a nice summer.”
Luke was dumbfounded. He looked at Sadie’s cold, tight face in shock. “Sadie, something happened to you. You were not yourself. I could see it plain as day.” He bent towards her. “It was like you were possessed,” he whispered. “I spoke to her. You had no idea she was there, afterwards.”
Oh, this is bad. I didn’t know that. “I have no idea what you’re talking about, Luke, so just forget it. Okay?” Sadie said with heat and fear. She tilted her chin up with pride, and so she could look Luke in the eye. Sadie now knew that her aunt’s strange behaviour and her missing time were linked. It probably wasn’t safe for Luke to even be around her, and she panicked a bit at the thought.
“Whoa, now Sadie,” Luke said easily, taking her icy, clammy hands in his. The thought of spending another summer without her was unbearable. Impossible. He’d tasted heaven. He was addicted. “I’m here for you. I want to help. We can figure this out together,” he said softly, and a bit desperately.
How she wanted to believe that. How she wanted him to help her figure this out and not do it alone. Always on her own. Her sadness grew. She choked on her next words. “Just leave me alone, Luke,” Sadie said in a final tone, jerking her hands out of his large warm ones. She turned to leave. “This isn’t your problem, it’s MINE.”
“But Sadie…” Luke’s voice faded as the door swung closed behind her. She could hear the pain in it as she took off running. She couldn’t bear to see the hurt look on his face.
Luke was crushed. He started to wheeze with agitation and bent over to catch his breath.
“Girl problems, Barrington?” Liz asked casually, leaning against the reference desk and watching as the door swung closed. “Couldn’t help but overhear.”
“What? Oh, no…no. We were working on a project and now it’s over,” Luke said, his voice tight with loss.
“Yep, it’s what I thought. Girl trouble,” Liz said knowingly, nodding her head. “The signs are obvious. She ran away. You’re hurt.”
Luke just rubbed his face.
A kid came with a book. Liz whipped her head around and stared at him. He froze like a deer in headlights. “Make like magic and disappear, okay honey?” Liz said in her sweetest voice. “Come back in five minutes, ‘kay?” Wide-eyed, the kid backed away and disappeared into the children’s section.
“You know you have to go after her, don’t you?” Liz said, putting her hand on his shoulder. “I saw the look on her face. That girl’s just as awkward at expressing herself to you as you are to her. If we were all like you two, the earth wouldn’t have people. Don’t be a chicken shit, Barrington.”
Luke looked at Liz doubtfully. It was one thing to have Sadie seek him out; it was another thing to pursue her. It was a daunting task, but Liz looked very smug at the moment, and strangely, Luke knew she was right. His resolve firmed. He was going to go to the Kellar residence tonight and insist Sadie talk to him, even though it was a scary prospect.
Liz was
walking away and Luke ran after her. “Wait, Liz, can you tell me about the look on her face?” he asked desperately.
Liz just laughed. Boys were so dense.
“Next!” she yelled into the children’s section.
After wolfing down his supper and nearly offending his mother with his table manners, Luke headed to Sadie’s house. She only lived a few streets over from him. Luke had biked by the Kellar home hundreds of times. This would be the first time he actually stopped.
It was a large, white, two-story clapboard farmhouse with a wraparound porch. Even the low light of dusk couldn’t hide the obvious fact that the house was badly in need of repair. The paint was chipping and the yard was overgrown and full of weeds. The tree at the front of the house was dying, and its branches looked skeletal in the fading light. Luke looked at it curiously and shivered. It had been healthy in the spring and now it was just creepy.
Luke’s stomach churned with nerves. He took a moment to take a few deep breaths. Sadie had him in a constant state of emotional turmoil. I’m not complaining, God, he thought to himself. Better this than just dreaming about having her in his life. Straightening, he squared his shoulders and marched up the stone walkway. He knocked on the front door and waited. The porch light went on and Sadie’s aunt opened the door. Her normal welcoming frown turned into a scowl when she saw who it was.
When Luke saw her expression, he recoiled.
“You are not welcome here, boy,” she said in a low and menacing voice. “Barringtons are not welcome on Kellar land.”
Luke was shocked. Her black eyes were staring at him with venom and she appeared to be baring her teeth, which were crooked and yellow. No one had ever been this mean to him before.
“Are you soft in the head boy?” Liora Kellar hissed at Luke. “Begone,” she said and started to close the door.
“I’m here to see Sadie,” Luke blurted out futilely as the door slammed in his face.
Luke stood in the doorway. He had the creeps. All of a sudden the house seemed to personify malevolence itself. Luke wanted to back away and go home. Everything about the Kellar property was the antithesis to his sunny personality. Luke kicked himself mentally. Don’t be a chicken shit, Barrington, he thought to himself. Get your girl and talk to her.
Luke turned and walked down the stone path, quickly cutting left and heading to the rear. He scanned the back of the house and immediately knew which window was Sadie’s. It was the only one with white, perfectly ironed curtains. There were candles flickering in her room casting shadows on the walls. Luke looked around for some stones to throw at her window to get her attention.
The stones made cracking sounds against the glass. Sadie was lying miserably in her bed. Her eyes were wet. She couldn’t get rid of the image of the stricken youth, with the soft blond hair and brilliant blue eyes, she had left at the library. He probably thought she was a crazy witch. Witch, ha! She thought, turning on her side.
Sadie ignored the first few cracking sounds but when they continued, she got up listlessly to investigate. In the yard she saw Luke waving his arms like an idiot. Sadie was shocked, having just been daydreaming about him, and blinked a few times to make sure she wasn’t hallucinating. Nope, it was Luke waving his arms like he was on fire.
Sadie’s heart started to pound. Luke is here, she thought weakly. She opened her window and climbed out, hanging onto the trellis running up the back of the house to her window. Her arms were shaky with nerves and she could hear Luke squeak with fear as she hung suspended two stories up. She clambered down easily and hopped onto the grass.
Luke ran to her and grabbed her. “ARE YOU CRAZY?? YOU COULD HAVE KILLED YOURSELF!” Luke yelled in a whisper, shaking Sadie. Fear had wiped away any inhibitions Luke may have had about touching his ice queen.
Sadie looked wildly towards her house and dragged Luke to the concealing shelter of some trees bordering her property before responding in kind. “ME?” she hissed. “I’M THE CRAZY ONE? WHO’S THE BARRINGTON ON KELLAR LAND, SNEAKING AROUND? MY AUNT IS JUST LOOKING FOR ONE GOOD REASON TO SHOOT ANY BARRINGTON, AND TRESPASSING IS AS GOOD AN EXCUSE AS ANY!” she whispered fiercely. Despite her initial joy at seeing Luke in her yard, she was spitting angry. He had taken a big risk. “I told you I don’t want your help, Luke, so what the HELL are you doing here?”
Luke stepped back and looked at Sadie. Her eyes were red, and her face showed signs of crying, yet she was still stunning. Luke thought of how alone she was, and how despite everything, was still strong. Luke stepped forward and gathered Sadie into his arms. She was thin and frail, like a bird, and shivering with reaction.
“I’m here, Sadie, because I’m kind of nuts about you,” Luke said quietly. She wasn’t resisting his embrace, but she was still stiff against him. She wasn’t used to being hugged.
“The thought of spending the summer without you is agonizing. Please don’t shut me out,” Luke whispered into her hair. “Please…I can’t take it. I just can’t take it anymore.”
Sadie hesitated, but only for a brief second before happiness flooded her. One afternoon crying in her room had changed everything. She couldn’t resist him. She didn’t want to. This was Luke, she thought before she wrapped her arms around him and they stood together, hugging each other tightly. Wild joy and excitement filled Sadie as she put her head against his chest. She could hear his heart beating as wildly as hers.
“I’m not exactly sure what’s going on—” he began.
“It’s complicated,” she interrupted.
“That may be, Sadie, but you can trust me,” Luke said earnestly, tilting her head up and cupping her face with his hands.
Sadie smiled. “I know,” she said softly, breathlessly, as she looked into his adorable face. He didn’t disappoint her. He bent slowly and Luke Barrington kissed Sadie Kellar. His mouth was warm and sweet against hers, and she wrapped her arms around his neck to pull him closer as he crushed her body to his.
A few hours later Sadie sneaked back into her room with Luke whispering encouragement and helping her to climb the trellis into her bedroom. She remembered it being a lot easier when she was younger. She waved goodbye as she watched Luke disappear into the night, and hugged herself with happiness.
Behind her house ran Stone Creek, a small rivulet that ran the length of the furthest edge of the east quads. Small bridges had been built at regular intervals to span the little river. Each bridge was lit with a single lantern in the center and was very romantic in the moonlight. Beyond the bridges, on the other side, were the woods. She and Luke had walked to one of the small bridges close to her house and crossed it into the woods. They had complete privacy. After years of suppressed longing, Luke just wanted to kiss and couldn’t get enough of her. He held her to him tightly and only released her mouth a few times to moan and nuzzle her neck before his lips and tongue found hers again. He wanted to devour her. She had laughingly tried to control him at first; pulling away and making him take a breath, but she gave that up quickly. She didn’t want to be out of his arms either.
When they eventually agreed it was time to go home, he told her what Liz had said about the expression on her face in the library. “That’s what gave me the courage to come and see you tonight, Sadie,” Luke said while kissing her neck passionately. She’d have to thank Liz for that.
Sadie’s room seemed small and stifling after drifting through the trees with Luke. She was too keyed up to sleep. She’d just spent hours kissing Luke Barrington. Her! A Kellar! Making out with a Barrington! Their ancestors were probably rolling in their graves. She felt flushed and out of control. Her skin was buzzing and her hair was floating away from her head as if she were full of static electricity. It was so unlike her. She felt loved, and it was amazing.
Over the next few weeks Sadie spent her time exclusively with Luke. Most days she waited in the library while Luke worked, reading de Rochefort’s book on possession that he had acquired for her. It had been translated from the French by a mediocre translator,
so she often needed his help to decipher meaning in some of the paragraphs. After she had confided in him, they discussed what Luke had seen and decided that if it was indeed a supernatural event, it was most likely a case of possession. That’s where the signs pointed. Fortunately, she hadn’t had one episode since she and Luke started seeing each other. Luke kept her with him as much as possible, hoping his presence would protect her somehow. Sadie was so absorbed with Luke and the feelings that spiraled through her with his presence (and his mouth and hands), she almost forgot her problem.
Luke was ecstatic with his new girlfriend. He would often stare at her while she read quietly, causing many a book borrower to have to clear their throat to get his attention.
“Mooning, infatuation, obsession,” is what Liz called it. “Don’t get creepy, Barrington. No one likes someone slobbering all over them.”
Sadie had hugged Liz in thanks and she had just laughed. “He’s a good boy,” Liz said with much affection. “He deserves a nice, pretty girl like you. Now maybe he’ll pay attention to what he’s doing…or maybe not.”
Liz may be right, but it was hard for him to control his obsessive staring. Sadie was gorgeous with her long black hair, striking features, and quiet manner. A goddess sitting in a red velvet chair. At times she would look up with her usual cold and indifferent expression on her lovely face, but when she saw him, it would melt into a breathtaking smile, and he’d get light headed. Soon she’ll be soft and warm in my arms, he thought to himself, and I’m going to…
“Do your shelving, lover boy,” Liz would say in passing, smacking him softly on the back of the head and bringing him back to reality.
Sadie would just smile and continue reading.
Their afternoons were spent swimming or walking in the Barrington woods so they could have some privacy. The Barrington pool always seemed to contain the Croft’s five-year old twins who teased Luke and Sadie mercilessly, chanting “Luke and Sadie, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G” only to be thrown in the pool by both Luke and Sadie to the boys’ extreme, screaming at the top of their lungs, delight. Her participation in their punishment put Sadie firmly in their good books, which was a very hard place for a girl to get to.
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