Page 50 of Witchbane

‘Thank you, Your Lordship.’

‘Right, now you may tell me how you intend helping my daughter and what you need from me.’

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.