Chapter 24
Chapter Twenty-Four
RUE
Having broached the subject of the mould with my grandmother and aunt that morning over breakfast, I spent a happy couple of hours collecting nettles, careful not to be stung, from behind the barn to hang up and dry in the spell room.
My grandmother always insisted we replace the herbs we used, so that we always had supplies in emergencies.
That done, I took a red candle from her stock and, gathering a small amount of dried nettles I had sourced the previous month, crushed them and dressed the candle in them.
I stood the candle in a small brass holder and lit it so that, once burnt, I could scatter the fine dark grey ash left by the burnt nettles and candle wick in places outside our home to guard against unknown hexes and to continue to bring strength into our lives.
Next, I made up small sachets of dandelion leaves for cleansing rituals, as well as some of lavender and meadowsweet. This was my way of forgetting my difficulties, or at least some of them.
‘Rue? Where is that girl?’ My grandmother’s voice interrupted my thoughts.
I left what I was doing on the table and ran up the stairs to join her. ‘Yes, Grandmother?’
‘I need to call on the rest of our coven for help,’ she announced. ‘I’ll send Jem and Pierre to invite each of them to the house this afternoon to cast a spell to rid us of this unpleasant substance on the wall.’
‘I don’t like this,’ Aunt Sorrel said as we waited for the other women in the coven to convene in the withdrawing room a few hours later. ‘Every time they come here, I feel certain they notice how the manor house has deteriorated.’
I felt compelled to say something to allay her fears.
‘Aunt, they don’t need to come inside to see that.
’ I hoped she wouldn’t be angry with me for saying as much.
‘Surely they only have to see the outside of this place to know the inside can’t be much better?
’ As soon as the words were out of my mouth I wished I had kept them to myself.
‘Rue is right,’ Grandmother said. ‘We have far more urgent matters to face than worrying about our pride.’
She looked from my aunt to me. ‘We need their help, and the sooner the better. I sense Theo Le Cerf will be darkening our doorstep again soon. I’d rather we sort this matter out before he does, in case he sees it for himself and believes it to be proof of evil in this house.’
Aunt Sorrel shrugged. ‘I suppose you’re right. I’m beginning to think this world is too dark a place for me to go on living here.’
‘What do you mean by that?’ Grandmother asked, clearly startled.
Aunt Sorrel placed a calming hand on Grandmother’s shoulder.
‘Sorry, I didn’t mean that to come out in such a bleak way.
It’s just that I really feel the urge to leave Thistlebury, once and for all.
I’d love to go and live with one of my children, or at least be closer to them.
’ She rolled her eyes. ‘I know that’s probably out of the question, but with this constant threat over our heads, and now whatever is seeping through the walls – well, I’m finding it all a bit too much to bear. ’
I gave my aunt a hug. It wasn’t something I often did, and I felt her stiffen for a moment as my arms went around her. Then she relaxed. ‘I’m fine, Rue. Please, I didn’t mean to alarm either of you.’
I let my arms drop and took a step back. ‘We’re all exhausted and overwrought and it’s not surprising. Life was difficult enough before, and now that I’ve come to the Witchfinder’s attention and this house seems to be turning against us, I can see it’s wearing you down.’
Grandmama sighed loudly. ‘Enough of that talk, the pair of you. Remember, we are strong women and we have each other.’ There was a sharp rap on the front door and Grandmother’s face lit up in a satisfied smile.
‘And even though we’re all taking a risk inviting the members of our coven here in daylight, we must be grateful that we have these powerful women on our side at all times. ’
I wondered if inviting the coven to perform magick was also troubling my aunt. I glanced at her and saw by her frown that I was right. ‘Aunt Sorrel, you don’t agree?’
She glared at my grandmother. ‘I don’t. We might want the coven, but we know it’s dangerous having them here, especially with the Witchfinder’s son investigating you, Rue.’ There was another knock on the door. ‘But there’s no time to discuss this further now.’
‘I’ll answer the door,’ Pierre called as he hurried past the open withdrawing room.
Grandmama smiled at him before addressing my aunt and me again. ‘Well, I for one am glad we have our coven to help us. Take strength from that, you two. We need to summon up our powers and take back what’s ours.’
‘What do you mean, Grandmama?’
‘We must find a way to set you free,’ Grandmother whispered, as we walked into the hallway and Pierre opened the front door. She lowered her voice. ‘And discover how to bring this house back under our control.’
She was right. I smiled at her and then at Aunt Sorrel. ‘We can do that,’ I said, feeling suddenly that it was possible.
‘Without question,’ Grandmother said, walking to the door to welcome three of our members.
I wondered if word had spread about my situation with the Witchfinder, or if any of these women were behind the accusation.
I pushed the suspicion from my mind. They were members of our coven.
Most of them had practised our craft with my grandmother, aunt, and some of them with my mother, for years.
What reason would they have to bring me to the Witchfinder’s attention?
As soon as there were thirteen of us, my grandmother left Pierre guarding the front door and Jem the back, in case Theo Le Cerf returned unexpectedly.
Impatient to begin, she led us up to the attic where the darkness had first appeared.
I sensed she didn’t like the thought of all these people cramming themselves into my bedroom.
‘I believe this is the best place to begin ridding ourselves of this parasite,’ she said.
She was right, although knowing this didn’t make me feel any more comfortable having them in the attic. Even without the blackness, the place was a mess, and I wished I had done what I had meant to do for some years and sorted through all the trunks, dusty boxes and sheet-covered furniture.
I spotted the ornate white birdcage I recalled my father buying for my mother, remembering only too well his hurt when she immediately asked him to carry it over to the window, unclasp the door and allow the two doves inside to fly to their freedom.
I supposed the cage must have been up here ever since.
‘If we are ready, I propose we begin,’ my grandmother said, clearly wanting this over with as quickly as possible.
When each of the women had acknowledged that they were, she spoke again.
‘As you are aware, we have gathered here today to help banish whatever evil this blackness is that has begun taking over our home.’ She gestured for the others to move closer for a better look.
‘As you can see, it appears to have originated from the chimney breast over here—’
There were mumblings of shock and bewilderment.
‘—and has stretched along this wall into the next attic room and worked its way down to the next floor.’
‘Is it in either of your bedrooms?’ Appoline de la Mare asked. She was the oldest of us witches and was our high priestess until she had a stroke last year and was not expected to survive. My grandmother had taken over from her.
My grandmother hesitated and I suspected she wasn’t sure whether to share that it was now taking over my bedroom. Desperate to be free of the thing, I spoke for her. ‘It is now spreading across one wall in my bedroom.’
The women shuddered.
I cleared my throat, intimidated by their shock and the accusing expressions on a couple of faces.
‘Why do you look at my niece that way?’ my aunt asked, glowering at those who had given me a sideways glance.
I was grateful for her support but less concerned with my own humiliation than with finding an explanation for this thing.
‘Please, I’m fine,’ I addressed the women. ‘We need to know what this is, why it’s here and why especially it has invaded my room. If anyone can explain that, I would be grateful.’
‘We all would,’ my grandmother said.
No one spoke for a moment. Then Iris, a young woman who had been initiated into the coven only months before me, raised a hand. I had barely heard her speak before and was surprised.
‘What is it, Iris?’
She gave me an apologetic smile before answering. ‘Could it be that the—’ She hesitated, frowning. ‘I’m sorry, I don’t know what to call it.’
‘The blackness?’ I suggested, eager to hear what she had to say.
‘The blackness,’ she repeated. ‘Maybe it’s chosen this house and, um, Rue’s bedroom for a reason?’
Silence filled the attic as we all contemplated her suggestion. There was some sense to what she was saying. But why would this thing be coming for me specifically?
I realised everyone was staring at me. Recalling the advice my mother had given me when I was younger and didn’t know what to do about something, I closed my eyes, emptied my mind and allowed my instincts to guide me. ‘Your instincts are more powerful than anyone else I know,’ she liked to tell me.
I did as she had instructed. Distant sounds – waves at the beach a mile or so away, a cow mooing in a field – faded until all I could hear was my heartbeat. I knew without doubt that my earlier suspicions had been right. ‘I believe this is my mother’s way of telling me something.’
‘Don’t be absurd,’ Maisie, Daisy and Jessie, the Trehorel triplets, said in unison.
They were the only ones who reacted immediately. Surprised not to hear more comments, I looked from one to the other of them, my confidence in my theory growing. Could this be the case?
I looked at my grandmother. ‘Is this as ridiculous as it sounds? You didn’t tell me what you thought when I said as much earlier.’
She frowned thoughtfully. ‘I don’t know.’
‘I knew my twin better than most,’ Aunt Sorrel said, looking unsure, ‘and Martha was one for grand gestures.’
‘This is no grand gesture,’ Clarice Coutanche said. ‘Why would Martha give a sign that was so ominous and unsavoury?’
Aunt Sorrel placed her hands on her hips. ‘Probably because anything less than this could have been ignored, or put down to the deterioration of the house.’
My grandmother glared at her, but Aunt Sorrel either didn’t notice or chose to ignore her.
Excitement raced through me. Usually Aunt Sorrel was quick to dismiss anything she thought unfeasible. Could I be right?
‘If this is the case,’ Appoline said thoughtfully, ‘what message would Martha want to convey? Because whatever it is must be extremely important to her for her to go this far.’
When my aunt or grandmother didn’t answer, everyone’s attention turned to me.
I shrugged. ‘I have no idea, but this started before I was taken to the Witchfinder and told of the accusation against me, so maybe she was trying to warn me of danger.’
‘That does sound like Martha,’ Clarice agreed. ‘She would be desperate to protect her child in any way possible, even from beyond the grave.’
Comforted at her thoughts, I became impatient to discover more. ‘Should we not be casting the spell you’re all here to help with?’
My aunt shook her head. ‘I understand your urgency, Rue’—she glanced in the direction of the door—‘and our need to finish this today before we have any unwelcome visitors.’ She gave me a sympathetic smile.
‘But if this does have something to do with my sister, and we have misunderstood her reasons for it, then she might only have one opportunity to reveal her warning.’
‘You believe she is trying to warn us then?’ Fear crept up my throat.
‘Sorrel is right, Rue,’ said my grandmother. ‘If we make a mistake and cast an incorrect spell we might ruin everything and lose Martha’s intended message forever. Are we willing to take that chance?’
‘No,’ I snapped. ‘But how will we know which one is the right one?’ I looked at her for an answer.
‘That is what we must work out,’ she replied. I went to argue, but she continued speaking. ‘No, Rue. If this is what we suspect, we must take care to do everything right.’
I realised I had little choice but to accept what they were telling me. ‘What happens now then?’
Appoline’s sister, Mrs Lamy, was almost as experienced as her sister. She murmured something to herself. We all watched her.
Finally she said, ‘I have an idea what needs to be done, but we must start our preparations immediately for there is a lot to prepare.’ She gave my grandmother a nod.
‘Ophelia, may I speak with you in your spell room? I believe we should work through a few thoughts I have.’ After my grandmother acknowledged she was happy with this, Mrs Lamy addressed all of us once again.
‘You all return to your homes now. We don’t want anyone becoming suspicious of us meeting here, and I think we all agree that we should take our time rather than make any mistakes.
’ She looked at me and I felt compelled to nod.
‘Good. Then I will contact each of you and let you know what your part in the preparations will entail.’
‘And I will have Sorrel and Rue here to help me.’ Grandmother clasped her hands in front of her chest. ‘Thank you all for coming at such short notice. We are grateful for your support.’
Iris stepped forward and rested a hand on my grandmother’s. ‘It’s what we are here for, Ophelia.’
‘If we do only have one chance to get this right, then each of us must be as thorough in our preparation as possible,’ my grandmother said as she led the way downstairs to see the women out.