Blood and Clay (14 page)

As
I flopped against Gabe he lay back down, taking me with him. He kept one arm
tight around me as I kept my head on his chest. He stroked my hair and I felt
myself drift off to sleep. I couldn
’
t fight the exhaustion anymore. When
I woke up the clearing was just a bit darker.

“
How long was I asleep?
”
I asked, sitting up and rubbing at
my sore eyes.

“
Not so long, an hour maybe. How do you feel?
”

Gabe
sat up too, taking my face in one hand and using the other to move strands of
hair off my face. Once the hair was gone he kept his hand on my face, stroking
my cheek and looking at the skin as he stroked it before moving his eyes to
look into mine. Our faces were close now. So close that our breath mingled. His
eyes were so close that they were all I could see. We stayed that way for an
eternity, seeming to inch closer with each breath, each breath getting shorter
and shorter. When we were so close that trying to look into Gabe
’
s eyes made my head hurt, I closed my
eyes. I could still feel his hand on my cheek, warm, hot even. Then his lips
touched mine. My first kiss. It was long and soft and sweet then he pulled back
and I opened my eyes. He was staring straight at me. Before I knew it he kissed
me again. Harder this time so that my lips pressed hard against my teeth until
I opened my mouth, not knowing why, just feeling it was the right thing to do.
My nerves tingled all over my body. My heart beat too fast and not in its usual
pattern, making me feel delirious and sick. Then it was over and Gabe pulled
away from me.

“
Sorry Lizzie.
”
He gasped.
“
Dear God I
’
m sorry.
”

My
heart dropped again. I felt like I had been punched in the stomach. Of course
it was all a mistake.

“
No, I
’
m sorry, I won
’
t tell anyone. Your girl won
’
t find out, the one that you are
courting. I
’
m so sorry Gabe. I
’
m dragging you into this whole
jumbled mess. Just get off back to the village. I
’
m sorry.
”

“
What? What are you talking about?
”
Gabe looked puzzled and amused at my
speech.
“
Are you so befuddled by your damned family that you can
’
t see past the end of your nose?
Lizzie, the girl I have been courting is you. Am I so bad at it that you don
’
t even realise?
”
 

“
Don
’
t tease Gabe. I
’
m not tough enough to be teased
today.
”

Gabe
laughed a big guffaw.
“
Lizzie I
’
m not teasing. I
’
m not sorry I kissed you, you fool. I
am just sorry that I did it when you were so sad. The last thing I wanted was
to take advantage of you.
”

As
if to prove it Gabe kissed me again and this time it lasted a lot longer. When
we finally stopped I knew that he wasn
’
t teasing.

We
stayed in the clearing for the rest of the afternoon, kissing and talking,
talking and kissing, until the midges started to bite then we packed our food
away, ready to leave.

“
What am I going to do about Mr Law?
”
We were walking back to the river,
the horse following behind, and I was snuggled into the crook of Gabe
’
s arm. It felt so normal and natural,
not something new but something that was meant to be.

“
It weren
’
t your fault. You can
’
t think it was, but he does so I
suppose you had better apologise. Maybe then you can forget about it.
”

“
Will you come with me?
”

“
Aye my Lizzie, I will. I am free from the farm for a day at
week end. I will meet with you at Beggar
’
s Bend and we will go from there.
”

We
had reached the point of the river where we had met just that morning, though
it seemed an age ago. Gabe kissed me then made his way back across the river. I
looked back to Malkin Tower to check that no-one had seen us. The barn was dark
and no-one was in sight. By the time I looked back Gabe had mounted the horse and
was riding into the distance.

“
Lizzie get yourself in here!
”

It
wasn
’
t often that Gran raised her voice. She didn
’
t usually need to; her malicious
tones caused a far greater fear in those that heard it than the loudest shout
ever could. The very fact that Gran had raised her voice made my blood run cold
and I shot a nervous look at Nettie before leaving the bedroom to go to the
living area of Malkin Tower.

“
Ah Lizzie
”
said Gran as I entered. Gran and Mam were sitting by the
smouldering fire with matching grins. The familiar feeling of dread built in my
stomach.

“
Welcome to the coven daughter
”
said Mam.
”
You
’
ve come good after all. You're one of
us now.
”

“
Aye and the power we will have now; the power of three. Old
Chattox won
’
t be nothing compared to us. Pendle will be ours.
”
said Gran as she rubbed her hands
greedily.

“
No more healing of animals and sick kiddies eh Mam? Real
power now, real power. Better than that Chattox and her bitch daughter with her
barren womb. There'll be no power of three ever settling there.
”
Said Mam, her eyes swivelling in
their sockets.

I
stood quietly as I wondered what they were talking about, then my confusion
turned into of terror and I began to shake my head as realization dawned on me.
As my feelings registered on my face Gran sneered, her wrinkled old face taking
on a look of malicious glee.

“
Don
’
t shake your head at us lass. For all your prissy ways your
blood
’
s won the battle. You
’
re a witch through an
’
through girl and you
’
ve proved your powers now. Couldn
’
t hide
‘
em forever could you? Struck that
fella down you did. Whole of Pendle
’
s talking about it. More
‘
n likely you
’
ll hang for it but not if we gather
the power of three first. Won
’
t be no-one in the County who
’
ll go up against us when they hear
how powerful we are.
”

“
No.
”
said I quietly.

The
fate I
’
d prayed against for all these years had finally caught me
up. Could God really be so cruel to let me fall to witchcraft when my whole
heart screamed out to Him to let me be good? Was this no more than I deserved?
A third generation witch and maybe evil did lurk in my heart; maybe there was
no escape.

“
Where
’
s your familiar girl?
”
asked Mam.
“
A daughter of mine is bound to have a
good familiar.
”

“
What
’
s a familiar?
”
I asked.

The
veiled compliment made me blink a few times; the first compliment that Mam had
ever paid me and I didn
’
t even understand what it meant. I was still half in a daze
and conscious that I was being swept away by the conversation; not sure where I
was being swept to but knowing that I didn
’
t want to go there.

“
Your familiar girl
”
said Gran.
“
All got
‘
em we have. Your mother
’
s is Ball. He comes to us in the form
of a brown dog. Mine... ahhh well mine, child, is the most powerful familiar
you will ever meet. The spawn of Devil himself he is. He can be whatever he
wants to be. Most powerful demon that does the bidding of the most powerful
witch. Could
’
a been Chattox
’
s familiar but he chose me. Knew
power where he saw it he did.
”

“
Is he a dog too?
”
I whispered, half terrified to find
out but needing to know if the dog I had seen could be a familiar.

“
Don
’
t you listen girl? He is whatever he wants to be. First
came to me as a boy nigh on twenty years ago. Beautiful he was, just beautiful.
”

As
Gran leant backwards in her rocking chair and heaved a wistful sign I finally
felt my knees give way as all the hope and strength left me. I sat on the floor
and tried to concentrate as Gran continued with her tale.

“
Was on my way home. Your mam was just a babe at breast. I
’
d left her with a neighbour. We still
had neighbours back then, ones who didn
’
t fear us. Ones who had no reason to
fear us; we were weak back then, without purpose. Not for long
”

I
started as Mam surprised me with a manic giggle. She was angled forward,
hanging onto every work of Gran
’
s story; a story she must have heard a hundred times over.

“
I
’
d just reached the stone pit at Goldshey when I saw him. He
looked about your age Lizzie but not the scrawny wretch you are. His skin shone
in the moonlight, white as bone and almost shimmering. His eyes were the colour
of bluebells and he had the face of an angel. He was dressed to the nines an
’
all. He wore a gorgeous coat; half
brown, half black. I could see back then. Perfect eyesight I had when I were
younger.
”

In
spite of myself I found that I was just as caught up by the story as Mam was. I
’
d always thought that my family were
the way that they were just because they didn
’
t do right by God. I
’
d never thought that there was a
story behind it; that my family had a history that might explain it all.

“
Where are you off to by moonlight fair lady
’
he said to me. His voice was like
Heaven itself. It sang to my very soul and made me want to weep.
‘
Off home to my baby
’
said I,
’
Where are you off to lad?
’
‘
Nowhere and everywhere
’
said he
’
but now I see you I know I have
arrived. Follow me my child
’
.

Seemed
strange him calling me child. I was old enough to be his mam but I followed. I
don
’
t think I could have resisted if I tried but I didn
’
t want to resist. Not for a second.
He led me past through the stone pits to a small graveyard on the other side.
‘
Lie down pretty lady
’
he said.
‘
Let me suckle at your breast, you
look full to bursting. Your baby is sleeping; she won
’
t need a feed until the morning. Let
me ease your pain.
’”