Behind the Sorcerer's Cloak Read online

  Owen held his head close so he could hear.

  “Glad you answered, Holly,” said her mother. “I thought you should know that Chantel and Adam’s mother will be phoning from Canada. She called here earlier. I tried to talk her out of contacting you while you were on holiday, but she insists on speaking to Chantel and Adam. I asked her to wait until nine o’clock our time. Then you were all likely to be awake. She’s still up, though it’s nearly one in the morning in Canada. She’s in a state and can’t sleep.”

  Owen lifted his watch and showed it to Holly. It was a quarter to nine.

  “I thought Adam and Chantel should be prepared,” Lynne, Holly’s mother continued. “They were so upset after their mother’s last phone call. And with you being away…I’m concerned…” Lynne’s voice trailed off.

  Holly’s brain was working overtime. She mustn’t let slip what was happening. “It’s okay, Mum. Thanks for the warning. I’ll tell Chantel and Adam.”

  “Maybe I should talk to them?” Lynne said, her voice worried.

  “Er…It’s okay, Mum. We’ll phone you back if there’s a problem,” said Holly, thinking fast. “Chantel’s still up in her bedroom, and…and Adam…Adam has…er…just gone out with Myr…with Mr. Green.”

  Mr. Smythe gestured at Holly. He mimed using the phone.

  Holly nodded at him. “Mr. Smythe’s here, Mum. He’d like a word.” She handed over the receiver with a sigh of relief.

  “That was awful. I was lying to Mum,” she whispered to Owen.

  “What choice did you have?” Owen whispered back.

  “Greetings, Lynne,” Mr. Smythe’s voice was hearty. “I hope you’re not worried about us.”

  Holly and Owen watched with fascination. They had not realized Mr. Smythe was such a good actor. No one would guess from the tone of his voice that they were in a gigantic mess.

  Mr. Smythe listened to Lynne, agreeing now and then. “Thanks for filling me in. Rest assured I will comfort Chantel and Adam if they need it. But I suspect even if they are upset, there will be distractions. There is so much going on here.”

  Holly and Owen grinned in spite of themselves.

  “Actually, I was going to phone you today,” Mr. Smythe continued.

  Holly and Owen’s eyes widened.

  “My friend Mr. Green has invited us to stay for a couple of extra days. Would that be possible? I think the children would enjoy more time here.”

  Owen recovered first. He grabbed the phone. “Could we, Mum? Please say yes.”

  They could hear Lynne chuckle. “It’s the summer holidays, so why not? Are you finding lots of exciting things to do?”

  Owen rolled his eyes. “Loads and loads.”

  “Then you can stay. I’m glad you are having a good time. Let me know how Chantel and Adam get on and when to expect you back.” She rang off.

  “Mr. Smythe, that was brilliant! Now we have more time to rescue Adam and the staff,” gabbled Owen.

  Holly said nothing. She flung her arms around Mr. Smythe and gave him an enormous hug.

  The tips of his ears went pink. He patted Holly’s back. “I just took advantage of an unexpected opportunity, my dears,” he said. “But what about Chantel’s mother?”

  “Ignore the phone,” said Owen.

  “We can’t do that,” protested Holly. “It’s Chantel’s mum.”

  “Yes, we can,” insisted Owen. “She always makes Chantel cry by going on and on about the divorce.”

  “Chantel will want to talk to her,” insisted Holly.

  “We’re sunk if she spills the beans,” warned Owen.

  Right on cue the phone rang again.

  Owen and Holly stared at it.

  Owen picked up a cushion to muffle the bell.

  “Who’s calling?” Chantel’s voice floated downstairs.

  “We think it might be your mum,” Holly admitted.

  Owen threw the cushion back on its chair.

  Chantel half ran, half fell down the stairs. “Answer it!” she yelled.

  “Told you,” Holly mouthed to her brother. She picked up the receiver. “Hello?…Yes, it’s me, Aunt Celia….Yes, Chantel’s here, but…but…Adam’s out with a friend…” She stared at Chantel, willing her to catch on.

  Chantel stared for a moment. She gave a small nod.

  Holly handed the receiver to Chantel and patted her shoulder.

  “Mom?” said Chantel. She sat on the bottom step of the staircase and hunched over the receiver.

  The others retreated into the dining room but openly listened to Chantel’s side of the conversation.

  “No, Mom, Adam’s not here…No, he’s not out with a kid…he’s with…Mer…Mr. Green, Mr. Smythe’s friend, the man whose house we’re staying in.

  “Er…Yes, we…we’re…meeting them later…Yes, of course Mr. Smythe’s with us.”

  There was a long pause at Chantel’s end, while her mother talked.

  Chantel gave a big sigh. “Mom…It’s okay. Me and Adam are getting on fine.”

  Holly and Owen nudged each other. They had both heard the catch in Chantel’s voice.

  Owen crossed his fingers and held them up. “Don’t cry, Chantel. Don’t give anything away,” he whispered.

  Holly crossed her fingers.

  Chantel’s voice became shrill, and the stairs creaked as she sat up. “What do you mean, you’ve solved the problem of us fighting? We’re not fighting. It’s you and Dad who were fighting…No…NO…” Chantel’s voice rose to a shriek. “NO… YOU CAN’T DO THAT…NO WAY.” There was a bang as the phone slammed down. Chantel burst into noisy sobs.

  Holly and Owen rushed back into the hall. They’d never, ever, heard Chantel shout at her mother.

  Holly crouched on the stairs beside her young cousin and hugged her. “It’s okay. It’s okay.”

  Chantel shook her head. “It’s not. It’s awful.” She howled into Holly’s shoulder.

  Holly patted her back but looked baffled. “What’s awful, Chantel? What on earth did your mum say?”

  Chantel lifted her head. “I hate her, I hate her.” She hiccupped. “I thought the worst bit of them getting a divorce would be us not seeing Dad very often.” She sobbed and shuddered. “But now they want us to divorce.” She buried her head again.

  Holly looked baffled. “What do you mean?”

  “Spit it out, Chantel,” Owen said.

  “They…they’re sp…splitting us up,” hiccupped Chantel. “Mom says I’m to live with her, an…and Adam’s going to live with Dad. It’s not fair. Just ’cos they’re divorcing, why should we be split up? It’s not fair. It’s just not fair.” Chantel’s hands covered her face. Tears leaked through her fingers and dripped on the floor. “I wish I was dead. I wish I’d gone through the portal with Adam.”

  Owen and Holly gazed at each other helplessly over her head.

  Chantel pulled herself out of Holly’s arms. She dashed her hands over her eyes and ran wildly toward the front door. “I can’t take this. I’m going to the Tor. I’m gonna find the portal…and Adam…and I don’t care if we never come back.”

  She pulled the front door open. Mr. Smythe leaped forward to grab her. They stumbled out onto the doorstep.

  In a flash of light, Myrddin appeared between them and caught Chantel in his arms.

  “Thank goodness!” said Mr. Smythe. “As you can see, we have another crisis.”

  Chantel wailed. She burrowed deep into Myrddin’s cloak.

  Myrddin looked at all of them over her head.

  “Her mother phoned,” said Holly. She briefly recounted the phone call. “It’s too much on top of Adam.”

  Myrddin’s face grew sad. He cradled Chantel, wrapping her in his cloak and surrounding her with a feeling of warmth and light.

  “Believe in the light, child. Keep it in your heart.” To and fro he rocked her, to and fro, whispering in her ear until her weeping stopped, her head dropped and she drifted into a healing sleep.

  “You hypnotized her,�
� said Owen in a slightly accusing tone.

  Myrddin laid Chantel down on a sofa and covered her with his cloak. “Yes, I hypnotized her. She has suffered enough. Sleep will help heal her bruised heart and give her strength.” He dropped his eyes. “She will need strength. We all will.”

  Owen, Holly and Mr. Smythe exchanged frightened glances.

  “We must take counsel,” said Myrddin. “Come, let us sit in sunshine, for light keeps fears at bay.”

  Everyone followed him out to the patio.

  “First, you must beware. The Dark Being is within Gaia’s orbit. She affects everyone. People will be angry and unpredictable. Weather will be unusual.” He looked at the children from under his bushy brows. “She will affect you. You must fight dark feelings.”

  “We know, we know,” muttered Owen. “We have to keep the light in our hearts.”

  “Indeed,” said Myrddin. “Second, we can wait no longer for Equus and Ava.”

  “Where are they?” Owen said. “They said they’d come!”

  “Come they will, but something has detained them.”

  “We figured out that much,” said Owen, “but what?”

  Myrddin shook his head. “Peace child. Have faith. The Dark Being watches Gaia. It may be too dangerous for Equus and Ava to approach or to contact me. I am in human form and without my staff. I am helpless.”

  “Zorianna knows you’re here. She’ll tell the Dark Being,” said Holly.

  Myrddin smiled slightly. “Ahh…the first glimmer of hope. My staff and the Mists of Time have dealt with Zorianna. She was prevented from reaching the Dark Being.”

  “Hurray!” Holly and Owen gave a subdued cheer.

  “And the Dark Being thinks I am no threat. She knows I am without my staff. She senses my presence, but knows not where I am hiding.”

  “But what about Adam?” Holly could stand the suspense no longer. “Where is he? You’re saying nothing about him.”

  She looked at Myrddin’s face and saw distress.

  Fear clutched at her heart. “He’s dead, isn’t he?” she said, her voice dull.

  Mr. Smythe turned white. His hands trembled.

  Myrddin reached out and grasped Holly’s and Owen’s hands. “No…NO! You must not think that. Adam’s not dead. He fell into the darkness.”

  “W…w…what darkness?” stammered Owen.

  Myrddin squeezed their hands tightly as he looked at Mr. Smythe. “Adam fell and was captured by the Dark Being…”

  Holly moaned and closed her eyes.

  The color drained from Owen’s face. He clenched his fists.

  “But there is hope,” Myrddin continued.

  “Hope! Adam doesn’t need hope. He needs us to get him out of there!” burst out Owen. He stood up. “Come on, Myrddin, what are we messing about here for? We have to defeat the Dark Being before she zaps Adam.”

  Myrddin shook his head. “She will try to use him to learn about Earth Magic and the Tools of Power.”

  “All the more reason to rescue him first,” Holly stood beside Owen.

  “Check your warlike feelings,” said Myrddin gently.

  “I’m not feeling warlike. I’m feeling mad, real MAD,” roared Owen. “I’ve had it with you and the other Wise Ones. What kind of Magical Beings are you, letting Adam be caught? Stop mucking around. We’ve got to rescue him now! And if you won’t, we will.”

  “Owen’s right.” Mr. Smythe stood stiffly beside the children. “We must rescue Adam.”

  “Yes, yes, yes,” said Myrddin. “Of course we must rescue Adam, but not in anger. Never in anger. That is the most important thing you must learn. Anger feeds the Dark Being, makes her more powerful. It is one of the ways she gains strength.” He took several deep, cleansing breaths. “See, she affects even me.”

  Holly sagged and sat down again. “I get it. It’s like the dragon,” she said. “That’s how we defeated the dragon in the first adventure. Remember Owen? It was feeding on Adam’s anger and…and you distracted us all with a stupid song.” She began to sing softly, “Nobody likes me, everybody hates me, think I’ll go and eat worms…” She trailed off, her eyes anxiously on Owen’s.

  Several moods flashed over Owen’s face. First anger, then derision, then finally his lips quirked in a wry grin and his shoulders relaxed. “Big fat chewy ones, icky, slimy gooey ones,” he offered.

  “See how they wiggle and squirm,” they both warbled. They stopped and gave each other lopsided grins.

  “Thanks, Sis,” said Owen. He gently punched her arm.

  “Feeling better?” asked Myrddin.

  Brother and sister nodded.

  “Then keep the light in your heart. We will rescue Adam, but we will do it carefully, with help from the Lady.”

  “NO.”

  The outburst came from Mr. Smythe.

  “No more magic!” He stuffed his hands in his pockets to disguise their shaking.

  Myrddin placed a warning hand on Mr. Smythe’s shoulder, but spoke softly to the children. “Go inside to Chantel. I sense she is near waking. Then we will plan to help Adam.”

  He and Mr. Smythe watched them leave.

  Adam slept heavily.

  While waiting for him to wake, the Dark Being devised magical spells to penetrate the Mists of Time and Gaia’s Earth Magic and reveal Zorianna’s whereabouts.

  Nothing worked. It was as if the tiny planet below had opened up and swallowed her emissary. There must be more to Gaia than met the eye.

  The Dark Being glared down. She and the Shades were poised, ready to destroy, but she wanted Myrddin’s staff and Zorianna first. Then it would be such a pleasure to teach the pretty little planet a lesson.

  She gazed at the boy sleeping at her feet. What a gift he was! She would use him.

  When he woke, she would persuade him to reveal what he’d learned as a Magic Child. Then he would be her slave.

  She smiled as a new thought struck her.

  If she had a Magic Child, she didn’t need Zorianna!

  Yes! This boy could go back to Gaia and bring her the staff.

  How amusing! A new emissary, a human child who believed she was the Lady. A Magic Child she could use as a hostage.

  The Dark Being threw back her head and laughed. The loss of Zorianna no longer mattered.

  Still smiling, she returned to watching for a weakness in the Mists of Time, so she could send some Shades to spy on Gaia.

  Myrddin’s hypnotic whisperings had sent Chantel into a deep sleep. A healing sleep that strengthened her body and her mind. A dark sleep, a telling sleep, where age-old secrets whispered and hidden knowledge stirred. A dreaming sleep, a helpful sleep, where answers hovered.

  Chantel slept her way into a safe dark place with solid rock beneath her and at her back. She could hear waves crashing, pounding rhythmically against a cliff below her. As each wave broke, the rock at her back shuddered.

  Her body vibrated with the rock, yet she was not afraid. She trusted the rock. She knew it would not give. Not ever!

  The waves didn’t scare her either. They made a comforting sound, the strong steady pulse of Gaia.

  Despite her trust in the safety of the place, Chantel longed for light.

  No stars glimmered. No promise of sun lightened the sky. The dark was so thick that without the sound of the sea below, even up and down would be in question. The only certainty in this place was the rock at her back. She leaned against it and wondered why her life was so dark.

  Tears flowed.

  Meow.

  A luminous softness brushed against her arm.

  “A white cat! What are you doing here?” Chantel swept the cat into her arms and rubbed her cheek against its fur.

  The cat purred and lay still despite the tightness of the child’s grip.

  Bit by bit, Chantel relaxed.

  For a long while, the cat offered warmth and comfort. At last, it lifted its face and rubbed it one last time against Chantel’s cheek. With a wriggle the cat slipped from her arms and
disappeared.

  “Cat, please come back.” Chantel’s wail cut the night. “I need you.” Her eyes searched frantically for the glow of the cat’s luminous fur.

  The only glimmer was from the few hairs left on one arm of her T-shirt. Chantel stared down at them, three white hairs that gleamed in the dark.

  She stretched out her arm and patted the ground beside her. She leaned sideways and touched and stretched farther, beyond the rock. Aah…her hand felt the prickle of grass. She plucked several long stalks and wove them blindly together into a clumsy ball. One by one, she lifted the three hairs off her sleeve and inserted them into the woven ball.

  The hairs glowed.

  Chantel scrambled to her feet. Her heart flooded with hope and her body flooded with renewed energy. She could be strong like the rock. She could fight darkness.

  She had made a lantern. She had made light!

  The more she rejoiced, the stronger the light became.

  Holding the small lantern high, she looked around.

  She was at the top of a cliff. Waves crashed magnificently below. The dim light reflected on foaming white crests that looked like the tossing manes of horses charging toward the shore to surround and protect her.

  Remembering Equus, Chantel smiled. I am always here, he had said when she first met him. Maybe he was.

  “Chantel. Chantel…Wake up.” A voice echoed through the darkness. Someone was calling her. A voice she knew. She must go back.

  Chantel lifted the homemade lantern once again and made her way around the rock, away from the cliff edge, through the blackness. She moved with assurance, stepping to the beat of the waves, knowing she was not alone. She was not helpless. Equus would always be there in her heart, and her own actions could create light. She emerged from her dark sleep into the sunlight.

  The three cousins held a hurried meeting sitting on Chantel’s sofa.

  Chantel’s new-found confidence was shaken when she heard of Adam’s capture, but she held her emotions in check.

  “We’re going to rescue Adam and wake the Lady,” said Holly, holding Chantel’s hand in a firm grip.

  “We have to lose Mr. Smythe,” said Owen. “He’ll try to stop us. He’s terrified.”

  “Let’s find him a job to do,” said Holly. “Remember how helpful he was when we were looking for the Red Mare? He needs something to keep him busy while we do magic.” She looked at the others. “You realize that’s what we have to do, don’t you? We have to start doing more and more Earth Magic on our own. And we should split up to do it so there’s three times more Earth Magic working and growing.”