by Adele Abbott
“What’s she doing with that ball and chain?”
“Don’t you know anything? It’s not a ball and chain. It’s called a hammer.”
“It doesn’t look much like a hammer. What do you do with it?”
“Watch. You’ll see.”
The young witch began to spin around and around in circles, faster and faster. Then suddenly, she seemed to lose her footing, and the hammer, instead of flying off parallel to the ground, flew up into the air.
“Where’s it gone?” I watched it disappear through the clouds.
“Probably into the stratosphere somewhere. Come on, we don’t have all day to hang around here. Let’s get going.”
She led me to another part of the Range I hadn’t seen before. Set below ground level was what appeared to be a bunker. We walked down a few steps, and as we approached the large metal door, it opened.
“Where are we going?”
“This is the underground section of the Range.”
“I didn’t even realise there was one.”
“You wouldn’t. It’s not visible on open days. It only appears on advanced days.”
“What’s down here?”
“You’ll find out soon enough. Now you’re a level three witch, the single most important thing you must do is to concentrate on spell selection and customisation.”
“What about focus?”
“You shouldn’t even have to ask! Focus is always important. Now that you have an armoury of spells, it’s essential that you are able to select the right spell for the right situation. Not only that, you need to be able to customise that spell to suit your circumstances at that moment in time. That’s what today’s lesson is about.”
“What will I be doing, exactly?”
“There are several sections to the underground area. One of them is a sort of obstacle course.”
“That sounds fun.”
“We’ll see if you still think so when this task is over.”
She led me through a series of tunnels, and then through a set of double doors into what looked like the entrance to a concrete maze.
“What happens now?”
“Somewhere in the maze there is a pendant. When you wear it your existing powers will be enhanced.”
“Where is it?”
“That’s the whole point of this task. In a moment, I will say ‘one, two, three, Go!’ Then you will have ten minutes to find it.”
“How will I know which way to go?”
“You must leave it to your inner witch to guide you.”
“And that’s all I have to do? Find my way to the pendant?”
She laughed. “If only it was that simple.”
I had a horrible feeling I wasn’t going to like this.
“There’ll be a number of obstacles in your way. It’s for you to select the correct spell to overcome those obstacles.”
“But I—”
“One, two—”
“Grandma!”
“Three—Go!”
She pushed me into the maze. It was dark, and I could only just see where I was going. In front of me there were two tunnels—one to the left and one to the right. Instinctively, I took the left one. I’d only gone a few yards when I heard a rumbling sound behind me. I turned to see a huge, stone ball, which filled the entire width and height of the tunnel. It was coming straight for me.
If I stayed put, and used the ‘power’ spell, maybe I could push it back? But what if there was too much force behind it for my spell to work? It would simply crush me. Grandma had said this task was all about spell selection. I couldn’t afford to wait until it was on top of me; I had to do something now.
I cast the ‘shatter’ spell, and the stone ball broke into a million pieces.
My heart was pounding as I carried on down the tunnel, and came to another fork. Something told me to take the right hand tunnel. I’d only taken a few steps when I saw the flames. There was a wall of fire in front of me. What should I do now? Turn back and go the other way? No, the whole point was to show that I could overcome these obstacles.
I cast the ‘rain’ spell, and directed the cloud over the fire. The water soon extinguished it, and I was on my way again. After only a few more yards, I was faced with a choice of three tunnels. I’d no sooner taken the centre tunnel when I heard something scrambling about on the floor. It sounded like lots of little feet. As I got closer, I could see there were scorpions everywhere.
I could have used the ‘jump’ spell to get over them, but in such a confined space I was afraid I might fall to the floor, and land among them. Instead, I chose the ‘levitate’ spell, and lifted myself just high enough to clear them, then slowly inched my way beyond them before dropping gently to the floor.
This time there were five paths to choose from! If I tried to guess, I would have only a one in five chance of getting it right. I had to trust my inner witch. Something told me to take the one second from the left. Yes, second from the left, I was sure of it.
Suddenly there was a deafening roar—a terrifying sound that scared me to death. A creature, the likes of which I’d never seen before, was running towards me. It was a kind of lion/rhinoceros hybrid with very sharp teeth and a horn on its nose. I had to act quickly. I fired a lightning bolt at it, but it just bounced off its armour-plated body. I cast the ‘sleep’ spell, but that had no effect. It was getting closer and closer.
I didn’t have time to think, so I just acted instinctively, and made myself invisible. To my amazement and relief, the creature slowed and then stopped. It obviously didn’t have much of a sense of smell, and was relying solely on sight. Although the top of its body was armour plated, the area underneath its chin and belly looked like soft skin. I cast the ‘power’ spell, pulled back my arm, and punched it under the jaw as hard as I could. The creature rolled backwards and fell onto its side, stunned. I wasn’t sure how long I would have before it recovered, so I rushed past it as quickly as I could.
When I reached the end of the tunnel, I saw something hanging from the wall in front of me. Something gold. It was the pendant. I’d made it! I picked it up and slipped it over my head. As I did, the wall in front of me opened and there stood Grandma.
“Took you long enough, didn’t it?” she said. “Come on out then.”
I should have known better than to expect praise from Grandma. Once the test was over, she disappeared without so much as a ‘well done’. I was absolutely exhausted as I made my way out of the Range. That’s probably why I didn’t notice someone creeping up behind me until it was too late.
I was sent tumbling to the floor by the push on my back.
“What the—?”
I looked up to see Alicia’s side-kick, Cyril, standing over me.
“That’s where you belong, Gooder.” He snarled. “In the dirt.”
“Where’s your big sister, Cyril? Has she let you come out to play on your own?”
Under normal circumstances, I would have given the stupid little runt a kick up the backside, and sent him on his way, but I was bone-tired and could hardly think straight.
“You’re finished, Gooder. Say goodbye to your pathetic little life!” He raised his hand, and I could sense he was about to fire a thunderbolt at me. I was powerless to get out of the way. Was this it? I’d always known that TDO might one day get the better of me, but it had never crossed my mind that I might die at the hands of this little pipsqueak.
I closed my eyes, and waited for the inevitable.
“Ouch! Ouch!” Cyril screamed in agony.
I opened my eyes to find him hopping around. It took me a few seconds to work out what had happened, but then I spotted the hammer which had finally returned from orbit. It had obviously landed on Cyril’s foot.
I scrambled to my feet, and dusted myself down.
Cyril was groaning louder than ever.
“Serves you right.” I laughed. “Now, hop it!”
Chapter 3
I’d just about recovered by the time I go
t back to the office. After that session at the Range, I needed some peace, quiet and sanity.
Who was I kidding?
Mrs V appeared to be shredding the Yellow Pages.
In my office, over by the leather sofa, was a huge pile of white stuff. For a moment I thought Mrs V had gone wild with the shredder again, but on closer examination, I could see that it was some kind of stuffing. The kind used in soft toys.
Just then, a pair of ears appeared above the pile of stuffing.
“Winky? Is that you behind there?”
“I’m a bit busy at the moment.”
“I can see that, but what exactly are you doing?”
“What does it look like?”
“It looks like you have a mountain of stuffing.”
“Your observation skills are as keen as ever.”
“What are you doing with it?”
“Making soft toys, obviously.”
“The soft toy market is very competitive you know. Do you think you’ll actually sell any?”
“Of course. I’m not just selling any old soft toy. This is an exclusive line.”
“Can I take a look?”
He held up one of the finished toys for me to see.
“It looks exactly like you.”
“That’s the whole point. It’s a mini-Winky.”
“Seriously though, who would want to buy one of those?”
“Hey! Just be careful what you’re saying.”
“I hope you haven’t invested too much money in this venture. Where did you get the felt bodies from?”
“I had them manufactured overseas. They were very reasonably priced. With the mark-up I intend to add, I should make a killing.”
“I don’t want to pour cold water on your idea, buddy, but I’m not sure there’ll be a market for these things.”
“As always, you don’t know what you’re talking about. As of this morning, I have orders for over five thousand.”
“Five thousand? Already?”
“Yes. My biggest concern is how I am going to keep pace with demand. Perhaps you could lend a hand?”
“Me?”
“Why not? It’s not like you have anything else to do.”
“I’ll have you know I have a lot of work on at the moment.”
“How many cases are you working on?
“Err— I’ve lost track.”
“More than one?”
“Look, I’ve no intention of discussing my business with you. Anyway, where are you selling these toys?”
“I’ve opened a new website: GetYourOwnWinky.com. If things continue like this, I’ll have to bring in outside help.”
“Perhaps you could get Mrs V to lend a hand?”
“The old bag lady? Not likely! She’d like to see me stuffed.”
“That’s not true.”
“Of course it is. Anyway, what’s with all the noise she’s making out there? There’s been a buzzing sound on and off all morning. Is her pacemaker playing up?”
“She’s got a shredder.”
“Why does she need a shredder?”
“Beats me.”
“Let’s just hope she doesn’t have a nasty accident,” he said, with a wicked grin.
“Winky. That’s beneath you.”
He shrugged. “I can’t stand around here all day talking to you. I’ve got mini-Winkys to stuff, and if you’re not going to help—”
“I’m not.”
“Well then, the least you can do is give me some food to keep me going. Do we have any salmon?”
“Sorry, we’re fresh out.”
“I suppose I’ll have to make do with the muck you usually serve up, then. You do have full cream milk?”
“Of course.”
“Good thing too.”
***
The noise from the shredder stopped about an hour later, and I could hear Mrs V talking to someone. After a few minutes, she came through to my office.
“There’s a man out here asking to see you. He doesn’t have an appointment.”
“Who is he? What does he want?”
“I don’t know. He’s being very secretive. He won’t tell me his name, or what he wants. I don’t like him. Shall I send him away?”
“I’ll see him, but give me a couple of minutes first.”
Mrs V looked at the pile of partially stuffed soft toys, and shook her head.
“Winky,” I shouted, once she’d left. “You’ll have to shift this lot into the corner. It’s going to ruin my business.”
He popped his head above the pile of stuffing and laughed. “That’s very funny. Like you even have a business. Why don’t you work for me? I would pay you the minimum wage.”
“You’re so generous.”
“Cash in hand.”
“Look, I have a potential client out there, so I need you to move your operation into the corner so it isn’t so obtrusive. Now!”
“But—”
I didn’t have time for a debate with a bolshie cat, so I picked up the pile of unfinished toys and threw them into a corner.
“Hey! Watch the merchandise.”
When I’d cleared as much space as I could, I went through to the outer office.
“Come through please.”
The man had ‘used car salesman’ written all over him. From his slicked-back, obviously dyed black hair, to his pinstripe suit and black brogue shoes. And of course, the obligatory handkerchief in the breast pocket. Never trust a man with a handkerchief in his breast pocket.
“Thank you for seeing me, Miss Gooder.”
“It’s Jill.”
“My name is Blake Devon.”
He took out a business card and handed it to me. It turned out he was a lawyer. Used car salesman, lawyer? Same difference.
“How can I help you, Mr Devon?”
“Please call me Blake.”
“Have a seat—Blake.”
He cast an eye over the pile of soft toys, and gave me a quizzical look.
“It’s a charity thing. I agreed that the local cat rescue could use part of my office to make the toys.”
“I see.” He obviously didn’t, and who could blame him? “I represent a large multinational company. They’re currently having a few issues involving the loss of certain trade secrets.”
“Do they think someone is spying on them?”
“Not spying, exactly. Not anyone from outside the business, anyway. They think there may be someone on the payroll who is leaking information.”
“I see.”
“They would like you to investigate this matter.”
“I’m afraid industrial espionage isn’t really my forte.” Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Winky laughing. I ignored him. “I specialise more in missing persons, infidelity, kidnapping—that sort of thing.”
“You come highly recommended. And besides, my client is keen not to employ one of the larger, well-known companies because these stories have a tendency to fall into the hands of the press. We wouldn’t want that, so the lower-key the better.” He looked around my office. “No offence, but it doesn’t get much lower-key than this.”
No offence?
“Even so, Blake. I’m not sure I’ll be able to help.”
“Before you make a decision, I should tell you that the fee in question is very generous indeed.” He took out a sheet of paper, and pushed it across the desk to me. Wow!
“But then, I am always looking to extend into other areas. It doesn’t do to get stuck in a rut,” I said, still transfixed by the figure on the sheet of paper in front of me.
“I hoped you might see it that way. So, can I tell my client that you’re interested in taking the case?”
“I’d certainly be prepared to discuss it in more detail.”
“Excellent. That’s all I can ask.”
“When could I meet with your client?”
“This is a delicate situation. It wouldn’t be appropriate for you to visit my client at his main office, so he’d like to h
old the meeting at one of the smaller, satellite offices. That way, there would be no possibility of anyone asking any awkward questions.”
“I understand.”
“Excellent. Let me get back to my client and tell him the good news. I’ll contact you to arrange a time and place for the meeting.”
With that, he left.
“You’d sell your soul if someone offered you enough money,” Winky said.
“What do you mean?”
“One minute, you don’t deal with industrial matters, and the next, you’re falling over yourself to take the case.”
“It’s important to broaden my experience.”
“So, it had nothing to do with the amount of money he offered you, then?”
“Of course not. I can’t be bought.”
For some unknown reason, Winky was rolling around on the floor, laughing.
***
I left the office earlier than usual because I needed plenty of time to prepare for my date with Luther.
Once I was ready, and before I left my flat, I gave myself a good talking to in the mirror. Play it cool, Jill! If he tries to kiss you, act all coy and surprised. You don’t want to scare him off. Got it? Got it! Okay, let’s do this.
He answered the door dressed in a plain white shirt and a pair of smart trousers. A big improvement on the jogging bottoms he’d worn on our last date. This was beginning to look promising.
“Hi, Jill. Thanks for coming. I wasn’t sure if you’d make it.”
“I managed to get away from the office early.”
“Come in. Would you like a drink?”
“That would be lovely. I’ll have a vodka, please.”
“Oh? Right. I was going to have a coffee. It’s a little early—”
“Did I say vodka? I meant coffee. Thanks.”
His flat was very classy. Much like mine. We were an excellent match, if I did say so myself. Things may have gone a little awry last time, but I had a good feeling about tonight.
“There you go.” He put the cup on the coffee table in front of me. “You’re probably wondering what the surprise is.”
“The surprise? I’d forgotten all about that,” I lied.
