Chapter 53
Fifty-Three
‘You’re saying there’s no way it could all just be coincidence?’ Kim challenged, unnerved at the woman’s conviction.
‘Find me another family where every male descendant for one hundred years has died before the age of fifty.’
‘But back in the day, fifty would be old, wouldn’t it?’ Kim asked as Bryant coughed beside her. She knew she was testing his tolerance, but there was more she wanted to know.
‘Absolutely, but not so much now. And yet they keep on dropping.’
Kim thought about the oldest Stout son who was currently battling terminal illness. He looked unlikely to be the one to break the pattern.
‘What do you know about it?’
‘Not much more than has already been recorded,’ Monica said, standing and moving to the bookcase. She perused the shelves before shaking her head. ‘We did have a book written by a local historian charting all the family trees, but it’s gone, so I’ll tell you what I know.’
‘There was a coven of five witches at the turn of the twentieth century: Ma Hubbard, Ma Stout, Ma Grimshaw, Ma Smith and Ma Davies. The families were all very close, and the Hubbards and Stouts were neighbours.
‘There’d been rumours about Edgar Stout’s penchant for young girls long before the accusation from Ma Hubbard’s daughter.
His farm was a thriving business back then and he was pretty well connected, so the complaint went nowhere.
Some time later, Ma Hubbard’s daughter drowned herself.
They said it was when she found out she was pregnant.
Ma Stout had already left the coven, believing her husband innocent, so the remaining witches placed a hex on the family.
The rest is history, and it’s no secret that the hatred between the two families has festered over the decades. ’
‘Okay, for the believers out there, what can break a curse?’
‘The problem is that curses are classed as sorcery, a manipulation of supernatural forces with malicious intent. It’s not easy.’
‘But there is a way?’ Kim pushed.
‘To my knowledge, any witchcraft, good or bad, can be defeated in one of three ways.’
‘Go on,’ Kim urged.
‘Using benevolent protection magic.’
‘Next,’ Kim said, feeling sure that Ma Stout would likely have tried that.
‘Forcing the witch to retract his or her spell.’
Too late for that.
‘And the last?’
‘Destroying the witch physically.’
‘They’re all dead, so why does the curse live on?’ Kim asked.
‘If none of those things occurred, the curse will just continue.’
Kim wasn’t after a remedy that would actually work because she didn’t think one existed. She was just looking for something that the family would believe had the power to lift the curse.
Kim thanked the woman for her time and headed out of the shop.
‘Hang on,’ Bryant said, moving back towards the counter. He picked up the roll of sage and paid for it.
He waved it in her face as she held the door open for him. ‘Never know when it might come in handy.’
‘You’re not even a bit funny,’ she said once they were back in the car.
Despite his attempt at humour, she didn’t need any supernatural abilities to know what was coming next.
‘Guv, normally I am a superfan of your tenacity,’ Bryant said, looking straight ahead. ‘There have been times when I haven’t agreed with you, and you’ve eventually proven me wrong, but on this occasion I’m pretty confident you’re looking for something that’s not even there.
‘You’ve had an itch about this case since you sat down with Martha. You’ve interviewed her, you’ve interviewed her whole family, you’ve interviewed the neighbour, and you won’t let it go.’
Kim had no argument to make, so she stayed quiet even though the feeling in her gut refused to go away.
‘I know Donna and Eric’s plight affected you. I know you’d like to heal that family. But as long as they believe in that curse, you’ve got no chance.’
He took a breath, and Kim knew he was right.
‘Martha has confessed. Woody has warned you off it. Hell, even Keats has called it and released the body.’
‘One last visit,’ she said, sitting up in her seat. ‘And then it’s over.’
‘Oh, Jesus, what the hell did I say now?’
‘Well done, Bryant,’ she said, taking out her phone. ‘Today you’ve earned your keep.’