The Spook's Sacrifice (22 page)

Dear Mr Gregory,

I am sorry for any distress that I might have caused
you. I do what I do for the best of motives. Although you may not agree with
the means that I employ to achieve it, I hope to win a great victory. If I
fail, the Ordeen will be able to strike anywhere in the world and it is most
likely that the County will be her first target. She will not forget what
I attempted to do and will vent her wrath on the place where my family still
dwell.

I will almost certainly die within the Ord, and then
my son will need you to train and prepare him to deal once and for all with
the Fiend. As for yourself, remain true to your principles, but please, I
beg you, make an exception in two cases. The first, of course, is with respect
to my son, Thomas. Your strength and guidance will be vital in seeing him
safely through the next phase of his life. Now he is in even greater danger.

I beg you also to make an exception for Alice Deane.
She is the daughter of the Fiend and a potential malevolent witch. She will
always walk a narrow path between the dark and the light. But her strength
is tremendous. If she were ever to forge an alliance with the dark, Alice
would be the most powerful witch ever to walk this earth. But it is worth
taking the risk. She can be just as strong as a servant of the light. And
only if both Tom and Alice work together will they complete something that
has always been my goal – something that I have striven for most of
my long life. Together they have the potential to destroy the Fiend and to
bring a new age of light to this world.

You can help make this possible. Please journey with
us to my homeland. Your presence is vital to protect my son and make sure
that he returns safely to the County. Be less than what you are so that you
can become more.

Mrs Ward

'She was a great woman,' said the Spook. 'I certainly
don't
agree with her methods, lad, but she did what she
felt had to be done. Her homeland will be a far better
place because of what she achieved. Indeed, the
County and the whole world will be safer.'

The Spook was making allowances for Mam that he
had never really made for Alice. But of course he
didn't know the full truth. I could never tell him that
Mam was Lamia, the mother of the whole brood of
witches and hybrids. He wouldn't be able to come to
terms with that. It was one more secret that we could
never share. One more thing with the potential to drive
us apart.

'What about Alice? Will you do what Mam asked?'

The Spook stroked his beard and looked thoughtful.
Then he nodded but his face was strained. 'You're still
my apprentice, lad. Now that Bill Arkwright's most
likely dead, it's my duty to help you all I can and to
carry on training you. Aye, I don't dispute that. But the
girl worries me. No matter how much care I take and
how carefully I watch her, it could all go terribly
wrong. I'm of a mind to give it a try though – at least
for the time being. After what your mam's done, how
can I refuse her?'

Later I thought over what we'd said to each other. As
we'd spoken, I'd almost made myself believe that
everything would soon be all right and that the Spook,
Alice and I would return safely to Chipenden to
continue our former lives there. But how could that be
when I had less than one day remaining on this earth?

I was so afraid of what was going to happen to me
that, in a moment of weakness, I considered going to
my master again and telling him what I faced, hoping
against hope that somewhere in his vast store of
accumulated knowledge he would find a way to save
me. But I knew it was hopeless.

My final chance would be to use the blood jar as
Alice had suggested, adding a few drops of my own
blood to hers. But then we'd have to stay close to each
other for the rest of our lives so that she could benefit
from my defence against the Fiend. Something would
eventually happen to separate us and then his fury
would be unleashed on Alice. No, I couldn't allow that
to happen. I had got myself into this situation and I
had to get myself out – or accept the consequences.

The Spook was sleeping on the other side of the
campfire and Alice lay to my right, her eyes
tightly closed. It couldn't have been more than ten
minutes to midnight.

I got carefully to my feet, trying to make as little
noise as possible, then moved away from the fire and
into the dark. I didn't bother to take my chain. It
would be useless in the face of the power that
I'd soon confront. In just a few minutes the Fiend
would come for my soul. I was afraid, but despite
that I knew it was better to face him alone. If
Alice or the Spook were nearby, they might try to
help me and would suffer as a result, maybe forfeiting
their own lives. I couldn't allow that to happen.

I walked for about five minutes, then descended a
slope through some stunted trees and scrub to reach
a clearing. I sat down on a rock beside a small river.
Close to the river bank it was muddy underfoot, the
ground churned up by livestock that had come down
to drink. There was no moon and the sky was hazy,
obscuring the stars, so it was very dark. Despite the
warmth of the night I began to shiver with fear. It was
all going to end now. My life on earth was almost over.
But I wasn't going to the light. My fate was to belong
to the Fiend. Who knew what torments he'd have in
store for me?

I didn't have long to wait. I heard something on the
other side of the river. A thudding sound. A hissing
too. Then a splash as something very large entered the
water. At first it sounded like a horse. Certainly some
big, heavy animal. But the rhythm of its crossing suggested
two legs rather than one. It had to be the Fiend.
He was coming for me now. Coming to claim my soul.

I could hear eruptions of steam, the water hissing
and spitting as he approached. Then I saw huge cloven
hoof prints appearing in the soft muddy bank, glowing
red in the darkness. He'd crossed the river. With the
formation of each print there was a hiss as the hot feet
of the Fiend came into contact with the soggy ground.
Then he began to materialize. This was no image of the
murdered Matthew Gilbert; this was the Fiend in his
true, terrible shape – a shape that caused some people
to die on the spot from fear. And he glowed with
sinister light so that every detail of him was visible to
my terrified gaze.

The Spook had told me that the Fiend could make
himself large or small. Now he had chosen to be big.
Almost three times my height, with a chest like a
barrel, he towered above me. He was a titan, roughly
human in shape – though that similarity only served to
make him appear more monstrous.

His feet were the cloven hooves of a goat and his
long tail dangled behind him in the mud. He was
naked, but no flesh was on view; his body was covered
in long black hair. His face too was hairy but his
features were plain to see: the prominent teeth and
curved horns of a goat; the malevolent gaze of the
eyes, with their elongated pupils. He came close, very
close, within the reach of my arm, and the stench that
came from him was ranker than anything from a barnyard.
I could only stare upwards into those terrible,
compelling eyes. I was transfixed. Helpless.

My knees threatened to give way and my whole
body began to tremble. Was I dying? About to take my
last breath?

At that moment I heard a sound behind me.
Footsteps! There was a light and I saw it reflected
in the pupils of the Fiend. Saw his eyes widen in
anger. I turned. Someone was standing close behind
me holding a lantern. It was Alice, and she was
gripping something in her other hand too. Something
small. Something she was holding before her
like a weapon. She pushed it into my left hand.

'Leave him be!' she cried. 'He's mine. Tom belongs
to me! Get you gone! You can't stay in this place!'

At those words the Fiend let out a terrible bellow of
rage. For a moment I thought he might reach down
and crush us both. His anger surged towards me with
palpable force. I was blown backwards off my feet into
the mud and I heard the trees on the slope behind me
crack and splinter. Then the wind seemed to reverse
direction and he simply vanished.

There was utter silence. All I could hear was my own
breathing, the beating of my heart and the gurgle of
the river.

Then by the light of the lantern, I saw what I was
holding in my left hand.

The blood jar.

I struggled to my feet just a second after Alice, who
was already retrieving the lantern from the mud.

'What were you doing out here all alone, Tom?' she
demanded. 'Did you come here to meet the Fiend?'

I didn't answer and she came nearer, holding up the
lantern to look closely into my eyes. My heart was
beating wildly, my mind in turmoil. I was still
trembling at my escape yet wondering if the Fiend
might reappear again at any moment. How could Alice
have driven him away like that? How was that
possible?

'Something bothering you, Tom, isn't there? Been
funny for days, you have. Too quiet . . . and there's
something in your eyes. An expression I ain't ever seen
before. Know you lost your mam, but is there something
else? Something you ain't telling me?'

For a moment I didn't speak; I tried to hold it back,
but the urge to share my fears with someone made me
blurt it out in a torrent.

'The Fiend visited me in the Ord,' I explained. 'He
showed me the future. That all of us were going to die
– you, the Spook and everyone in Kalambaka and
Meteora. All the refugees on the road. He said he
would give me a chance. He delayed the Ordeen's
awakening for an hour. He also told me where she was
to be found. But for that I wouldn't have been able to
help Mam. We'd have lost.'

For a moment Alice was silent, but I could see the
fear in her eyes. 'What did he want in return, Tom?' she
asked. 'What did he want from you?'

'Not what you think, Alice. He didn't ask me to be
his ally and to stand at his side. I would have refused
him—'

'So what, Tom? Come on. Don't keep me waiting . . .'

'I gave him my soul, Alice. I sacrificed myself. You
see, if the Ordeen had won she'd have been able to use
her portal and appear anywhere she chose. And
she would have come to the County. So I did my
duty—'

'Oh, Tom! Tom! What a fool you've been! Don't you
know what this means?'

'I know I'll suffer in some way, Alice. But what else
could I have done? I suppose I was hoping that Mam
would be able to find some way to save me. But now
she's dead and I've just got to accept what's eventually
coming to me.'

'It's worse than you can imagine, Tom. Much worse.
Don't like to tell you this but it's best you know the
truth. Once you are dead and the Fiend has your soul,
you'll be totally in his power. He'll be able to make you
feel pain worse than you've ever known. Don't you
remember what you once told me about how Morgan
tormented your dad's soul?'

I nodded. Morgan was a powerful necromancer and
he'd trapped Dad's soul in Limbo for a while. He'd
made him think he was burning in Hell. Tricked him
into feeling the actual pain of the flames.

'Well, the Fiend could do the same to you, Tom. He
could make you pay for fighting against him. Not only
that: you'll have given up your life. He'll not have
taken it. That means the hobbles will have been
nullified and chance will prevail. He'll no longer face
the threat that you might destroy him or send him back
through the portal. With you out of the way, he'll be
free to grow in power as the dark itself waxes until he
finally rules the world. And you'll be in such terrible
pain, tormented beyond anything your soul could
bear, that you might actually become his ally just to be
released from it. We may have defeated the Ordeen,
but at a terrible price. The Fiend might have won, Tom.
He might have beaten you. But there's one thing he
didn't allow for . . .'

Alice pointed to the blood jar that I was still holding
in my left hand. 'You really need this now. You have to
keep it with you always. This is what drove him
away—'

'But can it possibly work? I thought it needed my
blood mixed with yours?' I asked.

'I took it without asking you, Tom. Sorry, but it had
to be done. When those rocks came down on you, you
were unconscious for a long time, so I took a little of your
blood. Just three drops – that's all I needed. Your blood
and my blood are together in this jar now. Keep it on
your person and he can't come anywhere near you!

'So you've one chance! Just one! Forget your
principles. None of 'em matter now, do they? You've
used the dark wish that Grimalkin gave you and now
you've sold your soul. It's the only thing left to do now,
Tom. Keep the blood jar. If you use it, we've defeated
the Ordeen and the Fiend's gained nothing!'

I nodded. She was right. That's all I had left now. A
final chance, the means to keep the Fiend away from
me. But the Spook's worst fears were coming true. Bit
by bit I was being compromised and pulled towards
the dark.

'But what about when I die, Alice? Even if it's five or
fifty years from now, he'll still be waiting to take my
soul. He'll get it in the end.'

'Can't get your soul if you destroy him first!'

'But how, Alice? How can I do that?'

'Got to be a way. Your mam gave you life so you
could do that. Didn't she ever say how it could be
done?'

I shook my head. I wondered if Mam had had any
idea at all. If so, she'd never mentioned it. Now she
was dead and it was too late.

'We'll find out how to do it, Tom. Slay him or bind
him, one of the two, and then you'll be safe!'

I grasped the blood jar very tightly. It was the only
thing keeping the Fiend at bay.

At dawn on the following day we began our journey
west towards the port of Igoumenitsa, where we
hoped the
Celeste
would still be waiting. The witches
had already left for the coast, and it was now only the
Spook, Alice and me.

Hardly had the journey begun when something
happened that lifted my spirits a little. The sound of
barking alerted us – and Claw and her pups bounded
towards us. And it was me they came to first; my
hands that they licked.

'Always knew that dog would be yours one day,'
Alice said with a smile. 'Didn't think you'd have three
though!'

The Spook was less than enthusiastic. 'They can
travel with us, lad, and we'll get them home to the
County, but after that I'm not too sure. They're hunting
dogs and Bill put them to good use. There's no place at
Chipenden for them though. Those dogs and the
boggart certainly wouldn't mix. They'd not survive
even one night in the garden. We'd best try and find a
good home for them.'

I couldn't argue with that. But it was good to have
them back for now and it made my own journey
towards the coast a little easier.

We were relieved to find the
Celeste
still waiting at
anchor. The captain was happy to see us and, in the
absence of Mam, immediately dealt with me as if I was
the one who'd chartered the vessel. These were the
instructions Mam had left, he explained.

We waited for several days, just in case there were
any more survivors from the party who had sailed to
Greece so long ago. A few stragglers turned up, and by
the end of that time fifteen witches, including
Grimalkin and the Mouldheel sisters, were sheltering
in the hold. But there was no Bill Arkwright. It was
clear now that he'd sacrificed his life to enable us to
escape.

When we sailed for home, I didn't spend the nights on
deck in a hammock as before but in the comfort of a
large bed. It was the Spook's idea that I take Mam's
cabin.

'Why not, lad?' he said. 'It's what she'd have
wanted.'

So it was that my voyage home was one of relative
luxury, and there, at night, listening to the creaking of
the timbers and feeling the roll of the ship and the
occasional snuffle from the dogs guarding my door, I
had plenty of time to think. I went over and over again
in my mind all that had happened, and always I
returned to the same grim thought: was Mam trapped
in the dark, her soul carried there as the ruin of the Ord
passed through the portal? Had that been Bill
Arkwright's fate too?

I kept hoping that I would dream about Mam; each
night that was my aim. Suddenly dreaming was more
important than waking. It didn't happen for almost
two weeks, but finally she appeared to me. And it
was a lucid dream too – I was fully aware that I was
dreaming.

We were back in the kitchen at the farm and she was
in her rocking chair, facing me across the hearth. I was
sitting on a stool and I felt happy and contented. It
was the Mam of old, not the one who had returned
from Greece to make Jack fear she was a changeling;
certainly not the one I'd talked to within the Ord, who
had changed rapidly into that fearsome, beautiful
angel.