The Spellbinder (Tom & Laura Series), page 12
Going through that door brought them out onto the large square flat roof, which was about ten yards to a side. There was a crenulated stone wall on the sides of the roof. The cannons poked out over of those two sides. When Tom found the courage to stand at the wall, he discovered the view was magnificent. Laura was happier to stay standing by the door which was set in a low circular stone structure.
Looking out to the west, Tom saw a small fishing village. There was a small harbor with fishing vessels. It looked like a model, it was so far away. The three small fishing boats looked too small to risk using in the wild sea beyond the harbor. Tom marveled at the bravery of fishermen who risked their lives for a daily catch of fish.
“I were born there,” Mick told him. “We keeps oursen’ to oursen’ and don’t ‘ave truck with foreigners.”
“You mean like us?” Laura asked. She had moved to the wall, but held onto it with what looked suspiciously like a death grip to Tom.
Mick laughed, “Aye, yer foreign to us, with yer strange way o’ talkin’ and yer London airs an’ graces.”
They had confided in Mick some of their problems, how they had nearly been killed on the train and how Tom had been attacked in Hobsgate. They had a deep trust in Mick and found it easy to tell him things, though neither could have explained why.
“Can you make us copies of the housekeeper’s keys?” Laura asked.
“But yer be a witch, lass.”
“Oh, I could turn an iron bar into a key, but the bind wouldn’t last a long time and we might need these keys weeks from now.”
“Don’t yer even know how to use yer skills, lass? Look, I’ll show thee.”
Laura was slightly offended at his tone, but she knew he meant well and followed him down from the tower. Tom was highly amused. Mick, who had probably never been to school, was going to show Laura how to do spellbinding. Tom had no doubt at all that Mick would deliver on his promise, which only served to make the whole thing more amusing.
Mick took them to the stables and made them sit on bales of hay while he went to get the tools he needed. He came back with a fire bucket filled with sand and a horseshoe. He took the side door key from the key ring.
First pushing the key hard into the damp sand, he carefully removed it with his pocket knife. A negative imprint of the key was left in the sand. He took the horseshoe and balanced it lightly inside the impression of the key, standing it upright.
“Yer witch that shoe so as it’s soft and runny, like thick oil, Witch it slow now.”
Laura instantly understood his method and grinned. She took a scrap of parchment hidden in her drawers, and pen and ink bottle from her pocket to work the bind. The horseshoe became soft and ran as a liquid into the imprint. Mick used his knife to flick away excess metal.
“Now end yer magic,” said Mick and Laura tore the parchment. It burst into flames. The iron was instantly hard again.
Mick dug it out and gave it to Laura, “Go-on give it a try” he commanded and she took it to the door put it in the lock and turned. It was rougher than the real key, but it locked and unlocked the door. Laura was delighted.
“How did you know how to do that, Mick, are you a Spellbinder?”
“Nay Laura, I’ve none of yer gifts, but ‘appen the local blacksmith has, though only a mite. He can witch the metal just long enough to shape it like that. It’s the same as melting it, but much less effort.”
“Let’s do the other keys,” said Laura enthusiastically. She felt they were finally making progress.
Chapter 17 Set Up
“Last one,” Mick said wearily as he pulled the key from the sand and rubbed it clean. Laura now had a complete set of the housekeeper’s keys and there were a lot fewer horseshoes in the stables. That worried her a little.
“Will anyone notice the missing horseshoes, Mick? I don’t want to get you in trouble?”
“Nay, Lass. They were worn ones destined to go back to the blacksmith and he’s a mate of mine. I’ll say I took them down to him and he won’t say different.”
Tom collected the keys as Laura and Mick made them. He tied them together with a thick piece of twine.
“Where are we going to put them? They weigh a ton.”
“A lass’s dress provides a few places of concealment, but I doubt yer’d be able to walk straight wi’ that lot dangling from your unmentionables.”
Laura was sure he was right, but she didn’t think that was the right place for them in any case.
“I think we should hide them near the doors they are used for; somewhere where they will not be easily spotted.”
“Aye and which side of the door would that be, Lass, for goin’ in or goin’ out?”
Tom wondered about that himself.
“Mick has a point. I suspect we’ll be going out at first, but if we ever want to get back in again all the other keys would be on the wrong side.”
Laura gave Tom a severe look, as he wasn’t helping. “We hide them on the inside. If we are getting out we’ll be in a hurry, and I can always use a bind to get in again. I don’t want to try and write a bind with Snood chasing me.”
With that decided, they set off to put the keys in place. It would have been quicker to split up, but Tom and Laura needed to know where every key was hidden, in case they were on their own when they needed to use them.
With Mick’s help and a certain amount of hiding in corners as people walked by, they managed to find a place for every key but one. The front door key was much too big to easily hide, not only that, there was no furniture by the door to hide it in.
Laura had wanted to avoid using magic because of the uncertainty about how long it would last and the need to hide the bind nearby, but in this case she had no choice. She turned the key into flat strip of wood and placed it on top of its bind on a light fitting. With luck, it wouldn’t fall down and nobody would notice it. It was the best they could do under the circumstances.
By the time they finished it was time for dinner in the mess. Mick said his goodbyes and left them to return to the stables. Tom and Laura made their way to the mess through the empty building, Tom looking over his shoulder every other step. They hurried because being late for dinner carried significant penalties
Emma Jones had been late to dinner the day before and Snow White had caned her in front of the other students, making her stand on a chair after he had finished with her drawers around her ankles and her skirt pulled up at the back for the rest of the meal. Neither Tom nor Laura relished the idea of being subjected to similar chastisement.
The mess door was ajar when they got there. As they slid inside they saw an old woman in rags in the centre of the room holding everybody’s attention. She had a stooped back and stood uncertainly with the aid of a stick. She lifted her head so that everyone could see the sores weeping yellow puss down her face.
Tom’s eyes were drawn to her enormous nose which was covered in ugly warts with thick black hairs stuck out of them, but his eyes kept returning to the sores as if they had a mind of their own. Her arms were outstretched towards the seated students as if beseeching them for help. What she got in return for her trouble were looks of disgust and contempt.
“Who will feed an old woman down on her luck,” she croaked. She fumbled with her stick and fell to the floor, writhing on it as if possessed by demons.
“Now that’s what I call a distraction,” Tom whispered; a broad grin on his face.
“She always overdoes the makeup” Laura whispered back. “Come on, let’s take her in hand.”
“Come on, my dear,” Tom said as they hauled the hag to her feet in a non-too-gentle manner. They pulled her to a vacant table, her feet dragging across the floor. “You may eat with us, just as if you were a second year student.”
As they reached the table, the old woman broke their grip on her. She reached for her face and pulled her large nose clean off, taking some of the sores on her cheeks with it. There was a collective gasp from the students and teachers as they realized who it was. Cam bowed to the rapturous applause that followed.
“Without any doubt your best disguise so far,” Tom told her.
“Where did you get those clothes?” Laura asked as the room began to settle down, “They’re awfully realistic. I hope they didn’t come with real fleas.”
“What are mere fleas to an artist?” Cam said airily. She mopped her brow as an elegant lady might. “I am born to be the world’s greatest spy and disguise artist. Who would dare to say otherwise?”
“If you were such a good spy, you would know what was up with Tompkins.” Tom told her, nodding towards the man in question who sat at a table some distance away with his head bowed so low it was nearly in his soup.
“I do know,” Cam said as if it was of no import.
“You don’t. Tell us quickly then, I am intrigued.” Laura was anxious to know what had depressed the previously cheerful boy, and besides, gossip is gossip.
Cam lifted her head, taking on the aloof pose of a saint looking to the heavens for inspiration.
“I cannot talk, my lips are sealed. His pain must remain private.”
“You don’t know,” Tom said, in the hope of getting her to spill the beans “He hasn’t told anybody. There is no way you could know what is causing it.”
Cam put her arms out and pulled their heads close to hers, whispering in both their ears.
“If a girl was to sneak into his bedroom and read his private mail while he was out, would that be a bad thing?”
“You didn’t?” Laura asked in mock horror and stared at her friend. From the twinkle in Cam’s eyes the answer was obvious. “Yes, you did. Well, if you don’t tell us what you have found out right now, I will tell Tompkins what you’ve done.”
Cam blushed and looked in Tompkins’ direction. He sat, oblivious to the world around him. “Don’t do that, Laura… Very well, I shall tell you. His older brother was a soldier in the Crimea. A couple of weeks ago he was hit in the head by shrapnel and lapsed into a coma. Well, the letter was to inform him that his brother has died. I believe they were very close.”
“That’s terrible,” Tom said, feeling sick at the news. “I have an older brother in the army and I worry about him every time we get word of casualties. I should go over and say something.”
Tom started to get up, but Laura pulled him back down.
“If he wanted us to know, he would have told us, Tom. Leave him be. He needs time to grieve.”
“He does, and we will give him all the time he needs,” Cam said. “And now, more to the point, where do you two keep hiding? I had to keep my granny routine going twice as long as I planned because you two weren’t here. I didn’t want you displaying your striped red bottoms to the crowd, like Emma had to.” Cam paused for a moment to contemplate the image that formed in her mind. “Though in Tom’s case, it might have been worthwhile. Boy’s talk about what they see in the shower, you know, and I hear you are quite hefty below the belt.”
It was Tom’s turn to blush.
“He has the usual male anatomy, only slightly larger than some,” Laura said as if considering the matter dispassionately, which only served to deepen his blush.
“You have seen his apparatus, Laura dear?” Cam enquired. “Should I be shocked? Though they say it is always the quiet ones that do the darkest deeds.”
Laura grinned.
“Only ‘en passant’, Camilla. Tom was a dog at the time and changed back rather suddenly. I must say it was not the unpleasing sight that one is led to believe it will be.”
“Girls” Tom said through gritted teeth. “Would you please stop talking about my…?” Words failed him
Camilla grinned wickedly.
“Only if you come clean about where you have been going, and why I am not invited?”
Before Tom could say anything Laura intervened.
“Cam, we are trying to ensure our safety. We know things we can’t tell you. Please don’t press us. It’s safest for you if you don’t know.”
Cam absorbed this information, but did not look happy about it.
“Very well, if you tell me so. This is a rum do and no respect. I shall expect a complete explanation at a later date.” Cam grinned at them. “And if not, my superior spying will be turned on the two of you.”
After the meal, they retreated to the dorm room, which had a large fire and a set of comfortable padded leather chairs. Leon arrived and joined them. Despite the two of them never sitting together at meals or in the class, Tom suspected that Leon and Cam were more than just friends. It would be just like Cam to keep their relationship a secret. He knew she had good reason. She was already a target for teasing, and if such a thing was to get out it would be over the school and back to the Headmaster in no time at all.
They pulled their chairs in a semicircle around the fireplace, hogging it. The nights had a bit of chill in them as summer turned to autumn, especially in Hobsgate as it sat in such an exposed position.
Cam read a newspaper and looked over it at them.
“It says here that the USA is demanding we return the Northern Territories to them. New York and such like.”
“Haven’t they been saying that since 1812?” Tom asked.
“They got trounced in the Battle of New York, when was that anyway?” Laura asked sleepily.
“1850, I think.” Tom nudged Laura with his foot. “A Class A ripped their forces to pieces. That will be your job soon.”
“I don’t kill people, Tom.”
“If you say so.” Tom said. He knew she would have no choice. The Empire would not let a weapon like Laura choose what she would do. He felt sad at this thought. Laura was far too nice to be used as a weapon.
Leon chose that moment to speak. He sounded surprisingly vehement. “The USA should consider themselves lucky we drew the border where we did and didn’t go on to retrieve all Her Majesties lands from their traitorous hands.”
Tom disagreed. “They seceded such a long time ago. Let them have their United States and much joy may they take in it. We have most of North America after all.” He felt there was too much fighting in the world as it was, and the Americans had been British citizens once. It was sad they were slavers though.
“I heard their President said that all the Class A’s in the world should be taken out of combat and held as world assets. He wants to form a League of Nations allied against the British Empire.” Cam pointed out.
“That’s only because we have nearly all of the Class A’s in the world.” Leon said and grinned at Laura. “If the Class A’s were all American citizens you can bet he’d soon change his tune.”
“Everybody hates the British Empire,” Laura said wearily, “The USA, the French, not to mention the Spanish. Maybe they will all gang up on us one day and then where will we be?”
“On top, as always,” Tom said cheerfully. “But you forgot to mention the Austrian-Hungarian Empire, and they hate us most of all.”
Chapter 18 Snood Meets Laura
Snood and Laura had been avoiding each other, though neither was aware that their fear of meeting was mutual. For Laura, Bruno’s attack on the train and Tom’s subsequent beating had brought home to her the reality of the threat. Now she was about to face the man who killed Carmichael in cold blood and she was terrified at the prospect.
Snood also dreaded meeting with Laura. Class A’s were the things of legend and he was tasked with either getting her to join the Brotherhood or to kidnap her. Either course of action was fraught with personal danger. She might inform the Headmaster of his attempts at sedition and it went without saying that Her Majesties Government would chase the kidnappers of a Class A around the world and back again.
He also expected someone would contact him when he arrived at the school, someone working with the double he killed. However, all he received was a cordial welcome from the Headmaster and a tedious tour of Hobsgate. This served to set his nerves on edge as he still expected a tap on the shoulder at any time.
There were fifteen Spellbinders in Hobsgate, which was a staggering number for one man to tutor. However, with the exception of Laura they were all at Grade 4 or 5, which he regarded as hardly worth his effort. Their previous tutor had been the Headmaster, who was also a Grade 4 and appeared to be glad to be shut of the job.
Meeting the other students gave him the excuse to avoid Laura for nearly a week. He considered many possible strategies to win her over and decided to start by being nice to her and see what that produced. Despite his age and experience, he was still feeling nervous when she knocked at his door.
He would have been comforted if he knew how nervous Laura was on the other side of the door. It took all of her courage to knock. He called out for her to enter the room.
“Ah, Miss Young, the Class A.” Despite his best efforts, Snood’s voice sounded laced with sarcasm, even to him. “Please sit down.”
Laura sat down facing Snood across his desk.
“The role of a tutor is to instruct you in the physical and mental aspects of Spellbinding. This involves explaining the appropriate structure for spells and how to achieve the mental discipline required to force the universe to comply with your demands.”
“Yes, sir. My previous tutor taught me those things.” Laura meant simply to state the facts, but her nervousness made her sound arrogant.
Snood grimaced. It was hard to be nice. He didn’t do it very often and right then he wanted to slap the girl’s face hard enough to take her self satisfied smirk right off it.
“Do you know how to create partial binds?”
Laura looked puzzled and shook her head, much to Snood’s satisfaction.
“I can teach you how to write all but the last word of a bind and keep it ready until you need it. Many Spellbinders never discover that it can be done.”
And now that he had told her about it, she would be able to do it. Snood cursed his loose tongue, but he’d wanted to bring the girl down a peg and show her he knew more than she did.
