Shadow Witch (39 page)

“No, uh, she’s off with Brenda. That’s my wife.”

“I know that.”

“Oh...uh, good. Well, you see, Brenda had to go down to Spartanburg to visit her sister.” He cleared his throat and swallowed hard. “Her sister ain’t feelin’ too good, ’cause she, uh, had some surgery a while back, and she’s laid up still. So Brenda went to help her out and look after their family, and she took Sammi with her.” Gundy felt his face and neck grow warm.

“You know that’s against the conditions of your foster parenting agreement, don’t you? I have to inspect your home and visit with Sammi once a month.”

“Yes ma’am, we know that. We do, we really do. It’s just these are special circumstances and all, what with Brenda’s sister being laid up in bed, and Brenda couldn’t leave Sammi here with me ’cause I can’t cook to save my life.” He attempted another laugh, but it came out more like a strangled grunt.

A trickle of sweat rolled down the side of his head past his ear and he held his breath as he waited for her response.
Damn, this woman don’t like me
. Her dark eyes narrowed to slits and she tightened her mouth as she regarded him wordlessly. Then she wrote something on her clipboard and said, “I will be back here next Thursday, same time. Be sure to have Sammi here then. If she’s not, we will remove her from your home immediately. Is that clear?”

“Yes ma’am. Perfectly. Clear as glass.” He nodded fervently. “She’ll be here.”

She turned to leave and Gundy closed the door. Then he exhaled heavily.
Boy, that was close. I gotta get Sammi back quick
. He rubbed one hand through his dark hair and gritted his teeth.
I gottathink of something fast
.

Chapter 20

Rachel stood in the back of the main room at the school with Evelyn, Aunt Connie, and Miss Duffy, watching Mr. Winston’s first teaching session with the children. It was more of a performance than a lesson, though. He had decided to begin with one of the Greek myths as an introduction to classical civilization, and he told the story with the gusto and style of a seasoned actor.

He changed his voice for each character, sometimes gruff, sometimes high-pitched and feminine. He stooped and made himself very small for some parts, and for others he stood on tiptoe and raised himself to his full height, arms outstretched and face contorted.

The kids were entranced, but Miss Duffy didn’t seem to be. She stood with her arms crossed so tightly it seemed like it would be difficult to breathe, and she wore a deep frown while she watched the older man work.

Rachel turned to her and whispered, “So what do you think of Mr. Winston?”

Her face became even stiffer before she answered, as if she were measuring her response carefully. “That is not proper instruction.”

“What do you mean?”

“He seems to think this is a stage instead of a classroom.”

“The kids seem to like him. He certainly has their attention.”

“Hmph,” she muttered. “Excuse me. I need some fresh air.”

She walked toward the front door, and Evelyn and Aunt Connie turned to watch her go. Evelyn said to Rachel, “What’s wrong with her?”

“She seems determined not to like Mr. Winston, for some reason.”

“She hardly knows him,” Aunt Connie said.

“Maybe she feels threatened by him,” Rachel said, “though I can’t see why. It’s not like they’re competing with each other for their jobs.”

“No,” Evelyn said, then turned back and gestured at Mr. Winston. “So, how do you think he’s doing so far?”

He had his hands twisted into claws before him and his face pulled up into a menacing snarl while he spoke in a rasping near-whisper. The children were wide-eyed and breathless, sitting on the edges of their seats while they watched.

“He certainly is dramatic, and I bet those kids will remember every word of this story.”

“I think so, too. We’ll have to wait and see how he does with his other lessons, though.”

“And how he handles setting up the library,” Aunt Connie said. “That’s important, too.”

Rachel nodded and watched the tall, eccentric man for a moment and thought,
But if he and Miss Duffy don’t get along, we’ll have a problem
.

* * *

Jamie returned to the school that afternoon to move bookshelves into the makeshift library, and he brought his new walking stick. He showed it to Mr. Winston and told him what he knew about it so far.

Mr. Winston rolled it between his fingers and examined it closely. “It certainly is beautiful. Wonderful craftsmanship.” He touched one of the strands that spiraled down its length. “What are these interlocking characters?”

“They’re infinity symbols. I don’t know why Uncle Charlie put those on it, but they look cool.”

“This vision of glowing lines that you get...does it only happen when you’re grasping it, or can it just be close to you when you cast a spell?”

“Only when it’s in my hand and it only happens when I make doorways, as far as I can tell. I’ve experimented with it a few times, and that seems to be the case. I was wondering if you had any idea what’s going on with it.”

“Do you mind if I try a spell while holding it? Though my magic is weak, I may get some response from the wood that will help me understand this phenomenon.”

Jamie nodded for Mr. Winston to proceed, and watched as the older man closed his eyes and furrowed his brow, the stick held firmly in both hands. Jamie felt a faint wave of magic emanate from him.

After a few seconds, Mr. Winston shook his head and blinked. “I experienced nothing out of the ordinary. I attempted a warming spell, but I saw no radiating lines in my consciousness.”

“Did you see anything at all?”

“No.” He handed the carved stick back to Jamie. “I am sorry that I am not more helpful.” Then he stroked his chin and pursed his lips. “Perhaps the wood is sorcerer-specific. Renn’s staff was clearly more powerful in his hands, so maybe this walking stick is somehow attuned to your own special power.”

“Maybe there’s unique wood out there for each wizard,” Jamie said. “Maybe there’s even some for you, and Aiven.” Then another thought crossed his mind. “Uh, Mr. Winston? There’s something I’ve been meaning to ask you. I should’ve done it the day we met, but it didn’t occur to me then. I really need an honest answer, too.”
And if I don’t think he’s giving me one, I’ll bring Nova here and ask him again. She’ll know if he’s telling the truth or not
.

“By all means, ask away.”

Jamie cleared his throat and said, “Why do you want to work at this school? And don’t tell me that it’s because you need the job, because you have your shop, and I think you’re doing okay with it.”

Mr. Winston turned his gaze to the wall and took a long breath through his nose before answering. “It is true that I earn a passable income from my little shop. Not a fortune, by any means, but sufficient for my simple needs. But I have been there for many years now, and frankly, I am becoming bored. Day after day behind that counter, staring at the same four walls.”

“But you have all those books.”

“Yes, and I have read all of them now, and most of the good ones many times. But I can read anywhere.” He tilted his head slightly to one side. “Tell me, do you have reliable memories of Eddan’s time as an apprentice with Karviss?”

“Pretty much, yeah. I don’t remember everything.”

“No one does. But I remember when I served him he often stressed the importance of older wizards training the younger ones. He said it was a duty, a solemn one that he took seriously.”

“I remember him saying that. And I know a couple of witches that say the same thing, Momma Sue and Mrs. Malley. At least that’s what Fred told me.”

“Fred?”

“She’s another witch, from Earth. She’s my girlfriend.”

“Hah!” His lips turned into a lopsided smile. “I have never heard of such a thing. You must have an interesting courtship.”

“You don’t know the half of it.” Jamie shook his head. “Sammi is a witch, too.”

“The little dark-haired girl at this school?” Jamie nodded and Mr. Winston smiled again. “How wonderful.” He scratched his wrinkled cheek thoughtfully for a moment and then his face became serious. “My reasons for coming to this school....” He took another long breath. “Like Karviss, I also believe that it is important to train the young. When I heard about your school, I became intrigued. A sorcerer opening a school? At first I thought perhaps you were planning to train other sorcerers, but now I see that is not the case.”

“Aiven is a wizard, too, sort of.”

“A young wizard? Here at this school? This is becoming more interesting by the minute.” Jamie gestured for Mr. Winston to continue, and the older man said, “Oh yes, so when I heard about your new school, I decided that perhaps this would be an opportunity for me to make a change in my life. A time for me to fulfill my obligation that Karviss instilled in me long ago.”

He seemed sincere. Jamie studied the old man’s face and decided that he was trustworthy.
I don’t think I need to bring Nova here to test him
. Jamie nodded again and said, “My mom and my gramma and my aunt seemed to like your first lesson about Greek myths, and that gives me an idea. We could take the kids on a field trip to Greece if we wanted to. We could see the Parthenon and the other ruins, because I could make doorways there, instantly. We could go to Rome and visit the Coliseum, too, or go see Stonehenge...any old monument you like.”

“Could we?” He widened his eyes. “That would be...
fantastic
. A dream come true.”

“I don’t know why I’ve never thought of it before. I’ve never been to any of those, even though I could go anytime I wanted.” Jamie frowned. “But right now we gotta go to a warehouse in the exciting town of Hendersonville and get some bookshelves.”

* * *

Fred waited until everyone was seated at the dinner table that night before saying, “Nova’s been invited to eat at Rollie’s house again this Saturday night. She just texted me a while ago.”

Lisa spread her napkin in her lap and said, “Adele told me she was going to invite Nova. I think she and Garrett like her a lot.”

“Rollie does, too,” Sammi said.

“How do you know?” Fred looked across the table and narrowed her eyes at Sammi. “Did he tell you?”

“No.” Sammi stabbed some green beans with her fork. “I just know.”

“Sammi, you are a Shadow Witch, not a Romance Witch, if there is such a thing, so stop saying that.”

Sammi shrugged. “Nova likes him, too.” Then she put the beans in her mouth.

“You don’t know that either. I think Nova would tell me before she told you.”

Sammi flashed Fred an impish smile, her dimples showing and part of a green bean poking out of her mouth.

I need to have a long chat with that little girl sometime
, Fred thought.

“Fred, do you and Nova talk every day?” Lisa asked.

“Pretty much. Sometimes we just text.” Fred held her breath for a moment while she watched her mother spread butter on a roll. “Um, I was just thinking, since Nova’s going to be over this way that night, would it be okay if she slept over?”

Larry paused with a forkful of chicken half-way to his mouth. “Here?”

“Of course. Where else?”

“We’ve already got a houseful, honey,” Lisa said, “with Sammi in the guest bedroom.”

“Nova can sleep in my bed with me,” Sammi said brightly.

Fred shook her head, her loose red curls swaying across her back and shoulders. “I can borrow an air mattress from Jamie and she can sleep in my room. But it’ll be easier on Jamie, don’t you think? Then he won’t have to wait around and make a doorway for her to go home after she’s done at Rollie’s house, and he and I can dowhatever we want, you know?”

“You said he doesn’t mind making doorways,” Larry said.

“Oh, he doesn’t,” Fred said quickly. “It’s just that he and I might be busy and it would be more convenient and stuff.”

“Busy doing what?” Larry gave her a stern look.

“Oh, just hanging out. Probably at his house.”

“You mean, making out.”

Lisa waved one hand in surrender and said, “It’ll be fine, if it’s okay with Nova’s mother. Is Nova going to go to church with us on Sunday?”

“I doubt it. She’s not the churchy type. But Jamie can make a doorway back to her house for her before we go. It’ll be perfect.”

Larry closed his eyes and rubbed them with the fingertips of one hand. “Three witches in the house at the same time. Is this going to be like a scene from Macbeth?”

“No, Dad. We won’t do any magic. I promise.”

“I can’t anyway,” Sammi said. “I’m still too young.”

Larry sighed deeply. “All right. Just don’t burn the house down, okay?”

* * *

Duane Gundy waited on the side of the road, slouched low behind the steering wheel in his dead wife’s Camry, until Libby’s mother backed out of her driveway and drove off with Libby in the passenger’s seat.
Good
.
They’re all gone
.

He picked up the yellow hard hat from the seat beside him and settled it on his head, then stepped out and opened the trunk. He pulled out his black plastic toolbox and walked casually toward the house of Sammi’s best friend.

Even though it was a warm day, he wore gray coveralls, which, combined with the hard hat and toolbox, made up another one of his favorite disguises from his bounty hunting days. People rarely noticed someone who appeared to be a utility worker or a maintenance man.

He approached the house cautiously, eyes and ears open for any sign of Libby’s family, but there seemed to be none. Just to be safe, he knocked on the front door and waited.
No answer
.
Good. This should be easy
. He walked through the overgrown grass and weeds to the side of the house and found the electric meter. He pretended to study it for a minute, then glanced over his shoulder at the next-door-neighbor’s home.
Ain’t nobody watchin’
. He nodded to himself and went to the back door, which was locked, as he expected it to be.

It had no deadbolt, which meant it would be simple to jimmy. He opened his toolbox and pulled out a screwdriver, which he used to pry the wooden trim loose next to the doorknob. Then he slipped a putty knife into the crack and pushed the latch in. The door opened easily.