Page 71 of Spirit Witch
Arse. I halted abruptly, causing the person behind me to smack into my back. I turned and glared at her, as if it were her fault that we’d collided, then looked at the ghost. ‘Is there a problem?’
‘No, no!’ he trilled. ‘Quite the opposite, in fact.’
I gritted my teeth. If Clare had sent a fellow phantom here simply to say hello, I’d kill her whether she was a ghost already or not. ‘Then, why,’ I asked, ‘are you here?’
‘Well,’ he said, flipping his white silk scarf over his shoulder and considering the question, ‘I’m not entirely sure. I must say, I’m very glad to be here though. I perished on theTitanicso I could have ended up either in New York or here.’ He shuddered. ‘Or at the bottom of the ocean. Can you imagine having to haunt a bunch of fish for the rest of eternity?’
I stared at him then I began to turn away. Sod this malarkey.
‘Oh,’ he said. ‘You meanhereas in this place. Whatever it is. I’m looking for you because Clare Rees wants you to know that the rest of her coven have appeared.’
I spun back round then immediately regretted it as I almost toppled over. I definitely needed a holiday to regain my equilibrium. I’d had three days’ hard graft. That was more than enough for this month. Or this year.
‘Ivy!’ Winter called from the car. He tapped his watch and I nodded to show I understood.
‘Give me a minute. Can you pay for the petrol? I need to talk to this guy.’ I gestured at the overdressed spectre.
Unfortunately, a man who was most definitely not dead – but who looked like he had the sort of hangover that made you wish you were dead – passed in front of me and frowned blearily. ‘What? Were you at Jill’s party? Because what happened with that bush wasn’t my fault.’
‘I wasn’t talking to you,’ I said.
He glanced over his shoulder. There was no one there apart from Mr Titanic who, of course, my new acquaintance couldn’t see.
I rolled my eyes. ‘Just piss off.’ Politeness was all very well when you didn’t have dead people and mass murderers and potential Order destruction on your plate at the same time. I could see him thinking about retorting but in the end the hangover won out and he continued on his way. It was probably just as well.
I returned my full attention to the ghost. ‘Where are they?’ I asked. ‘Where are the other coven members?’
‘Visiting their families, I believe.’ He sniffed. ‘The newly dead often find it hard to let go when they realise they’re no longer physically viable.’
‘I meant where are their remains?’
His eyebrows lifted. ‘Oh yes. Apparently I’m to tell you that they’re in a hotel room in a place called Uffington. There’s a lot of activity going on outside. Something to do with magic? Or police?’ He shrugged. ‘I don’t really know.’
My stomach sank. ‘Is that it?’
‘Yes.’
‘Thank you.’
He bowed. ‘It was my pleasure, my dear. Toodle pip.’ He vanished.
I returned to the car at the same time as Winter. ‘All paid,’ he said. ‘Was that another ghost?’
I nodded grimly and told him what Mr Titanic had said. Winter’s expression grew even bleaker while his blue eyes darkened. ‘It’s confirmed then. They wouldn’t have appeared if Blackbeard was in the vicinity. His null nature would have prevented it. He’s definitely not in Uffington but he wants us to think he is.’
I turned on the engine. I thought I’d been driving too fast before; that was nothing compared to what I was about to do.
***
I half expected to arrive at the Order headquarters and find a scene of bloody carnage. We’d kept the radio on as we drove on the off-chance that a breaking news bulletin would tell us everything we didn’t want to know, but there was nothing. Abandoning all sense of propriety or sanity, I abandoned the taxi in the middle of the road and jumped out.
‘Stay with the car, Brutus,’ I ordered. This wasn’t the time to have him loose on a magical campus. We had enough to worry about as it was. Fortunately, he simply yawned in response and curled up to sleep in the back seat. Thank goodness for small mercies.
Focusing on the nearest group of witches, I grabbed a red-robed Neophyte and pulled her to the side before shaking her. ‘What’s going on? What’s wrong?’
‘Huh?’
‘Have you seen a man with a black beard and a bald head anywhere near here?’
