Chapter 41
Chapter Forty-One
THEO
It was proving too difficult to find tracks from horseback, let alone detect small clearings or remnants of a bonfire.
I might have ridden through this wood earlier that day, but either I had been too focused on reaching Rue to take much notice of anything around me, or I was in a different part of the wood. Everything around me felt strange and unrecognisable.
I slowed Warrior and turned in my saddle to speak to Garnier behind me. ‘Do you know these woods at all?’ I asked.
‘I do not, unfortunately. I used to play here with my siblings and cousins when we were children, but something happened and our parents banned us from returning. I haven’t been since.’
I wondered what could have occurred to cause their families’ concern. ‘Was someone hurt here?’
‘I believe one of the parents heard a rumour about witches meeting here. It frightened all of us. Enough to stop me wanting to come here anyway.’
It made sense that witches would choose somewhere like this to practise their craft, I supposed. After all, this was why we were here. As I looked around us, a thick canopy of branches and leaves shut out most of the sunlight even though it was still a couple of hours before dusk.
‘It is an eerie place.’ I suppressed a shudder, only just ducking in time as Warrior walked underneath a low-hanging gnarled branch.
I thought of Crack Ankle Lane as I lay against Warrior’s neck.
Rue had gone out of her way to help me that day.
Her kindness was not something I could ignore, not when she needed me now more than ever.
I closed my eyes and wished I hadn’t discovered the truth about her.
‘I was thinking the same thing,’ Garnier said, confusing me for a moment as to what he meant. ‘I wouldn’t come this way alone even now, if I’m honest. I can’t think why any woman, even a witch, would choose to come here at all, let alone at nighttime.’
I felt the same darkness about the place as he did and supposed that witches must feel protected in some way, unless we were being unnecessarily frightened by tales.
I hoped we would come across the coven’s meeting place soon, because I was ready to dismount and find somewhere to await their arrival. If indeed they came tonight.
We continued past fallen trunks with mushrooms growing from them like tiny lanterns. Rabbits scattered into the undergrowth as we neared and somewhere in the distance crows sounded as if they were deep in an argument.
Not a place I would choose for any meeting at all, I mused.
I supposed I must have come through the outskirts of the wood on my ride to the manor, because it had been much more open and brighter than here, and far less foreboding.
Something moved to my left. I reined Warrior to a halt and peered through the greenery to see what it might be. A raven took off, flying quickly towards us and barely missing my head. I ducked and turned to watch it as it flew away.
‘That was close,’ Garnier growled. ‘I half expected it to hit my face with its wing.’
So had I, but I didn’t want to think about that right now. When I was certain that there was nothing to be seen in the place where the bird had taken flight, I waved to Garnier to follow me there.
‘It’s a clearing,’ I said, wondering if the raven might have been a witch escaping by turning herself into the bird. I pushed away the fanciful notion.
‘There’s been a fire here too at some point.’ Garnier pointed to the circle of ash and half-burnt sticks. ‘And not that long ago. Maybe days, a week even.’
I dismounted and walked over to the centre of the clearing to have a better look. Crouching near the fire remnants, I ran my fingers through the ash. Feeling around, my fingers encountered something cool. I picked it up and lifted it to study it.
‘What is it?’
I wasn’t sure at first but brushed the excess ash from the circular item that was slightly smaller than the palm of a woman’s hand. ‘It’s steel,’ I said, wondering what it could be used for.
‘May I look at it?’
He held out his hand, and I passed it to him to inspect. Then wiping it on his trousers he held it up again and smiled.
‘Do you know what it is?’
He held it out to me. ‘Stare into it,’ he insisted, very proud to be better informed about it than me.
I did as he suggested, not knowing what to expect. I inclined my head closer to it and I saw a reflection of my own face. I had seen a few of these items in the larger, more impressive homes I had visited with my father. I tried to think of the name used for them.
‘I believe it’s made of a speculum metal,’ Garnier said smugly. When I frowned in confusion, he continued. ‘Copper and tin, if I’m right. The substance is brittle and therefore expensive to produce, but when polished it is brilliantly reflective, as you can see.’
I was intrigued. How was he this knowledgeable? He wasn’t from a wealthy family so I couldn’t imagine where he might have come across one. I decided to keep my thoughts to myself for the time being.
‘But what would they have wanted it for?’
He laughed. ‘If it was women, they probably looked at their reflection.’
Unimpressed with his attitude I gave him a sideways glare. ‘I doubt anyone in this place would want to take time to study themselves. No, I believe this was used in their witchcraft.’
‘But how?’
I shrugged. ‘I cannot answer that.’ My feeling of unease deepened.
They must have used the item for a spell, but in what way was it useful?
I felt an icy trickle down my back. To see into the past, maybe?
Or the future? I kept my thoughts to myself.
‘We must hope that when we catch them they will answer that question for us.’
He scratched his head. ‘We need to find some witches first.’
‘That is true.’ I needed to get organised.
I lifted my bag and leather flask from my saddle then handed my reins to him.
‘We can’t have the horses with us when we surprise them,’ I said, thinking as I planned.
‘You take them somewhere nearby where you can tie them to a tree or branch and where they won’t be seen or heard, then return here.
I’ll look for the best place for us to settle down and wait for them to arrive.
’ He began to lead the horses away. ‘And don’t be too long, we don’t want them coming here before you’re back. ’
I searched the area further but didn’t find anything.
Then, noticing my footprints in the soft ground around the fire, I placed my bag and flask beneath a nearby bush, in case I was taken by surprise and they arrived early, then searched for a leafy branch to brush away the traces of my presence.
That done, I tossed the branch aside, collected my things and went to find somewhere with a good viewpoint and space for the two of us to sit down and wait for dusk.