The witches caressed the paper with their long fingers, using their weird senses to pick up more information than the mere text on its surface. It was decided that the Eye should be consulted immediately.
‘Sorry, but who or what is the All-Seeing Eye?’ asked Emily.
‘She used to be one of us once, a witch,’ answered Granny Smith. ‘Then she went beyond witchery, by taking her magic to the next level, to a place where most of us don’t want to go.’
‘Where is that?’
‘All in good time, m’dear. So she left the coven. Now she lives alone at the top of the mountain,’ she indicated the general direction of the mountain Emily had seen that morning with a cock of her head, ‘and she watches everything. All that goes on in this world, in the magic world and in the strange worlds beyond magic.’
‘Will she help us?’
‘Of course she will. Once a sister, always a sister. Right girls?’
All the witches around the table nodded and murmured approvingly. Emily could see that she was now part of something special and she need never feel alone again. She desperately wanted to meet the All-Seeing Eye, who sounded so mysterious, exotic and exciting. She also wondered just what kind of worlds could lie beyond the world of magic.
‘So are you coming with me?’ asked Granny Annie.
‘Yes please,’ said Emily, her eagerness for adventure bursting from every pore.
‘Very good. Have we time for a quick sangwich?’ she asked Granny Smith.
‘There’s always time for a sangwich,’ she replied, as she got up from her seat and walked towards the kitchen. ‘Emily, can you help me with the tea, love?’
Emily followed Granny Smith into the kitchen, then carried the mountainous platters of yummy sandwiches into the witches, who were by now chatting excitedly about the All-Seeing Eye and Emily and other things, like embroidery and the price of ham these days. Emily brought all the sandwiches in, then went back to the kitchen to help with the teapots.
‘Granny, will I be okay?’
‘Of course, dearie. Granny Annie will look after you and you’ll come to no harm. I think you’ll enjoy yourself, actually.’
Butterflies flapped about inside her, but Emily still felt reassured. She brought four large teapots into the dining room and the jugs of milk and bowls of sugar cubes flew in behind her, but she paid them no heed, already well-accustomed to the bizarre events that happened in the magical house.
The sandwiches disappeared almost as magically as they had been made, but there were no spells involved this time. Emily wasn’t sure that she could even eat, what with the excitement of her impending trip. She picked a ham sandwich and nibbled it. But then the taste got her. It was just about the nicest sandwich she’d ever tasted, definitely some magic involved in the baking of the bread and the roasting of the ham. Wow! She wolfed it down and three more sandwiches followed. She wasn’t allowed to drink tea back home, but this was a different place, so she washed her sandwiches down with lovely, hot, strong moguls of the stuff.
‘All set Emily?’ It was Granny Annie, pulling a heavy cloak around her shoulders. ‘Let’s go and see the All-Seeing Eye. Maybe we’ll find some answers.’
Chapter 15: NIGHT DRIVE
They drove down winding country roads, where the branches of the trees rattled off the roof of the car and potholes that would swallow a small horse lurked around every bend. Granny Annie was concentrating hard on controlling the car, her shoulders hunched forward and her eyes sweeping the road in every direction. It was raining now and the windscreen wipers screeched back and forth across their field of vision, not helping matters.
‘We’re nearly there, Emily,’ said Granny Annie as she did a handbrake turn and careered through a barely noticeable gap in the hedgerow.
Emily thought her granny had gone mad, but was relieved to find that they were not in a field, but on a very narrow dirt track that led up, up to the All-Seeing Eye’s mountain lair. Emily could see very little ahead, as the hedges and trees were closing in on them, the car’s headlights making little progress in lighting the way.
‘Watch out for trickery now, Emily. It’s her way of scaring off any unwanted visitors.’
‘Like what?’ said Emily apprehensively.
‘Like that!’
A huge oak tree just ahead of them suddenly became animated and lunged for the car with its mighty branches. An evil face appeared on the tree’s trunk and it wailed like a banshee. Emily was scared, but Granny Annie reassured her with the explanation that it was simply an automatic spell. Whenever the tree detected a moving object on the track, it would do its routine. They passed it by safely, the tree rubbing its head with a branch in confusion at its inability to scare the newcomers.
‘Must be witches. Oh well,’ it said to itself as it turned back to face down the trail again.
There were other spells at work. A huge, gaping hole opened up right in front of the car, but they drove straight over it. Swarms of evil-looking bats, each one carrying a ball of cow dung, flew at the car. The dung balls rained down on the windscreen, causing the wipers to groan in their work and complain about the stink. After what seemed to Emily like a five mile journey through a real-life chamber of horrors, they finally came to a clearing.
‘That’s the worst of it. You all right, dearie?’
‘Fine. That was actually a bit exciting. My heart’s beating so fast!’
‘Look!’
Emily looked ahead, through the dung-covered windscreen and saw that the All-Seeing Eye’s lair was within reach. They were near the top of the mountain now and Emily could see that its peak was shrouded in cloud.
‘Where’s her house? She doesn’t live in a smelly old cave or anything, does she?’
‘No. You’ll see that she has a fine place. The cloud is a spell to keep her hidden from all below. It’s impressive, isn’t it?’
‘Wow!’
They continued upward and entered the cloud. Granny Annie slowed right down, following the trail with her inner senses. Emily noticed that her hands were off the steering wheel and the car seemed to be controlling itself. It was truly spooky being surrounded by cloud, in zero visibility, yet still driving forward at the top of a mountain. Oh, and with nobody’s hands on the steering wheel.
Then the cloud faded and the night became utterly clear and calm. Immediately bore them was a splendid, wooden house. It shot up into the sky, at least four storeys tall, and had a flat platform perched on top of the roof. The house was painted black, with dim light peeking from unusually-shaped windows, some square, some round, some triangular and even a few ovals. They left the car, Granny Annie tut-tutting at the amount of dung on its roof and Emily amazed at the house. The front door was very narrow and, as it began to creak open, she imagined that the All-Seeing Eye must be a horrid old hag with one cloudy eye, wrinkly skin and a baldy head.
Chapter 16: SEEING THE ALL-SEEING EYE
To Emily’s amazement, the All-Seeing Eye was beautiful, possibly the most beautiful woman she’d ever seen. Her hair was long, black and shiny. Her skin was as pale as the full moon, with not a wrinkle in sight and she wore a gorgeous, flowing robe, made from velvet of deepest, midnight blue. Tiny stars seemed to shine from it, twinkling as she moved. And she had two eyes, each as deep as a precious well.
‘You finally made it,’ said the All-Seeing Eye. ‘Hello Annie. And hello Emily, I’m pleased to meet you.’
She extended her delicate hand, its long, red nails not at all like the talons Emily had expected.
‘I’m very pleased to meet you too.’
‘Well, the rest of our chit-chat will have to wait, I’m afraid. To the viewing platform now, girls. Emily, I’m afraid your brother is in serious danger.’
As she followed the All-Seeing Eye into the house, through a wide hallway and up the stairs, Emily feared that her pounding heart would burst from her chest. The house was dark, with just the occasional candle throwing its flickering light on unusual textures and c
olours. The ground floor had been sparsely decorated and, with each thudding step upwards, Emily figured that the All-Seeing Eye spent all her time on the roof, watching all that went on the valley below. The stairway was a circular one, wooden, enclosed. Every dozen steps or so, a small door, about Emily’s height, led off the stairs. Each door was closed. They passed a green one, a yellow one and a red one. Finally, they came to a large, heavy, steel door. It looked too heavy to be supported by the flimsy, wooden house. The All-Seeing Eye turned to them both as she pulled a slender, silver key from a little velvet bag that hung around her neck.
‘Don’t be scared of anything you might see or feel in here. You’ll come to no harm,’ she said. Her voice was believable.
Emily nodded, as did Annie, who smiled reassuringly at her granddaughter. The silver key was twisted and the All-Seeing Eye said something in a foreign language that Emily couldn’t understand. It was like "Sverigana notsu". The door sighed and quietly slid into the wall on the lt. Beyond was a dark, narrow passageway. The All-Seeing Eye led them in. Emily’s heart beat faster. It was very dark. Her eyes hadn’t adjusted yet, so she felt blind. She stumbled. The floor was rising. Up ahead, she saw a small rectangle of stars. Her pupils expanded to let in more of the scarce light and she began to notice details. The walls were not black and featureless, but dully glinting, polished granite. Emily touched the stone and drew her hand back when she felt heat. She touched it again. It was hard, yes, but its warmth was gentle and happy. They reached the end of the ramp and emerged onto a round platform, about ten metres in diameter, with no walls or roof, just the sky. Beneath the platform floor, on all sides, was cloud. Beyond the cloud was a breathtaking view of the entire valley, with the sea glimmering distantly in the moonlight.
‘Wow!’ exclaimed Emily. ‘That’s all I can say. Wow!’
‘I’ll explain the workings of my viewing platform later, Emily. For now, come here. Malcolm.’
She led Annie and Emily to a huge telescope at the edge of the platform. It was like an antique, with ornate brass fittings, a leather body and the smell of time. But it also had gadgets, little blinking lights and sleek ornamentation. It looked like a witch’s telescope. The All-Seeing Eye squinted as she focused the telescope on a point in the forest, which stretched for miles between the two mountains that dominated the townland.
‘Got them. Look,’ she took Emily’s shoulder.
Emily stood on a little wooden stool and closed her left eye as she put her right against the telescope’s eyepiece. The eyepiece fitted around her eye snugly and, like the entrance walls, it was comfortably warm. Emily felt the telescope’s body. It was warm too.
Chapter 17: THE SMELL OF RAIN
The image became clear. She was seeing Malcolm and his hunting companions. There’s the boy. There’s a few men. Six altogether. They’re walking across a field, the telescope automatically tracking their progress. The men carry guns, the boys don’t. Then sounds, a distant howl. She was hearing as well as seeing.
‘Having fun yet, Malcolm?’ It was Farmer Blue, his voice as clear as if he was standing there on the viewing platform. ‘This is the best night of my life!’ answered an enthusiastic Malcolm.
‘Good, good. We’ll have a break in a cave up ahead, do some tea. You warm enough? Good. Then we’ll close in on this stag. I can smell him. Can you?’
‘No. I can only smell grass and rain.’
‘Do this for a few years. Grow up in it. Then you’ll be able to smell the deer. I promise. I’ll catch up with Jim, see if there’s any fresh tracks.’
Roger caught up with Malcolm and told him about the cave.
‘It’s great. Really scary. It’s tight getting in and then it opens up into a big room. We always have a fire there when we’re out hunting.’
‘It’s not too freaky, is it?’
‘Well, you’ll probably be afraid that the walls will come together and crush you to a pulp when you’re going in. I always am. But it’s never happened yet.’
‘Oh. Good.’
Emily looked at the All-Seeing Eye.
‘It’s the cave, isn’t it? It’s going to crush them?’
‘No. Worse. Well, not worse. Nastier. You know what I mean.’
She let her fingers dance across a tiny computer keyboard along the telescope’s body and it hummed gently as it rotated and adjusted its elevation until it was pointing at a rocky area where the forest met the distant mountain.
‘Now look again.’
Emily looked and saw a man at a crack in the rock face that she knew was the cave entrance and the hunting party’s destination. He was big and heavy, which was all she could tell from his back. He turned slowly and looked around him with a sly smile on his twisted face. He knew he was being watched!
‘He knows I’m looking at him!’ exclaimed Emily, without taking her eye from the telescope.
‘Has he seen you?’ asked the All-Seeing Eye, concerned.
‘No.’
‘Tell me if he stares you in the eye.’
‘Okay.’
He stopped seeking out Emily’s eye and began to work. He sat on a large rock and put a cloth sack beside him. He opened it and took out some large jars and string. His eyes, the beard. Yes, the string around his waist.
‘It’s the weird man from the train!’
‘As I suspected,’ answered Annie.
The All-Seeing Eye was concerned.
Emily watched him closely, describing the scene to the witches. He opened the lids of the jars, which were filled with heavy, yellow liquid, pierced them with a knife and put a length of fuse string through. Then he put a lump of putty around the holes to keep the string in place. When he had four jars armed, he used heavy tape to stick them together. Then he twisted the fuses together and joined them to a long strand.
‘Is it a bomb?’ asked Emily.
‘In a way. It’s a sleep bomb. I think he plans to put it in the cave.’
True to form, the man packed his tools back into the sack, stuffed it in his coat pocket and carried his device carefully into the crack in the rock. After a minute, he emerged without the device. Then he sat back on the rock and stared into the forest, turning his head whenever he heard the slightest sound.
‘He’s waiting for them. When they get near, he’ll light the fuse then hide in the forest. When the sleep bomb goes off, they’ll all be knocked out...’
‘And he grabs the boys,’ said Granny Annie, completing the All-Seeing Eye’s analysis.
‘My God. What will we do?’ sobbed Emily, tears welling up.
‘First we’ll think. Good girl. We’ll save him. How long until they reach the cave?’
‘About twenty minutes, what with the full moon. They’re travelling fast,’ replied the All-Seeing Eye.
‘I can’t drive, they’re on the wrong side of the mountain.’
‘Maybe the spell amplifier?’
‘Did you ever get it to work?’
‘Not really. What about a weather spell? Make it rain so they’ll just go home?’
‘They’d probably only run to the cave.’
‘Yes. Is there anyone near them?’
‘No. That’s the side of the valley witches can’t bear. The spirit there is wrong for us. Been like that for a few years now. The lake and all.’
‘I have great difficulty seeing there. Great difficulty. What about smells?’
‘Smells?’
‘My spell amplifier isn’t great for sending spells long distance, but I found out it works really well for sending smells.’
‘Smells. What do we do with a smell?’
‘We find that deer they’re after. Then we direct the smell of a female deer so that we draw the stag across the hunters. They’ll follow him for miles and won’t bother with the cave. They might even get him, which would be sad for the stag, but good for the kids. I think everything’s starting to come together now. A plan or what?’
‘A plan, definitely a plan,’ replied Granny Annie.
/> ‘It’ll work. I know it will,’ said Annie.
‘I’ve some deer scent downstairs in my chemistry parlour. Keep an eye.’
And she was gone. Emily and Annie waited by the telescope, taking the occasional look at the hunting party, as it made its progress towards the trap in the rock.
‘I think she’s right,’ said Granny Annie.
‘About how everything’s starting to come together?’
‘Aren’t you the clever girl? Go on, tell me what you think.’
‘Okay. The strange man on the train is the same man who’s trying to ambush the hunting party, which includes two boys. The man was on the train that crashed last night, the train that one or more children have disappeared from recently. There’s also an evil presence around here, I can definitely sense that, an unease.’
‘So?’
‘So the man is kidnapping children. Why? I don’t know. Who is he? I don’t know. Are the children alive or dead? I don’t know.’
A single tear meandered down Emily’s face. Inside, she was panicking. Her granny sensed this and put a warm arm around her shoulders.
‘We’ll get a message to the rest of our sisters, keep them up to speed.’
‘Will you send an owl or a bat or something?’
‘No dear. Too unreliable. I’ll use my mobile.’
She fished around in her pockets for a few moments, pulling out a small snake that hissed sleepily, and then a corkscrew, bore she found her phone. She called home and alerted Granny Smith to the drama that was unfolding in the fields below.
‘Fine. The girls will come up with a Plan B. Don’t worry now.’
The All-Seeing Eye returned, carrying a tiny bottle with both hands. She entrusted the bottle to Emily, who held it tightly, then went to the far side of the platform. She pressed a switch on a huge contraption that was fixed to the platform just like the telescope. A wide, brass rail ran around the edge of the platform. It seemed to just hover there, no fixings being visible. The All-Seeing Eye’s beautiful fingers danced across a keyboard on the device and it began to slowly move. It glided quietly around the platform and Emily saw that it was fitted to the brass rail with a ring. Emily now saw that there were more devices around the platform, any of which could be easily moved to any viewing position. The new device, which Emily assumed was the spell amplifier, eased in beside the telescope, which moved a little to the left and readjusted itself to keep the hunting party in view.