The Bad Luck Lighthouse by Nicki Thornton

Author:Nicki Thornton
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781912626366
Publisher: Chicken House

25. Seriously Impressive Magic

‘ I guess we have a couple of possibilities.’ Pewter considered for a moment. ‘Maybe three,’ he said, taking a seat at the long kitchen table once the four of them had emerged from the wordstone and were back in the lighthouse kitchen.

Seth made tea, slowly readjusting to reality.

‘The shadows attacked you,’ said Pewter to Angelique. ‘That’s very helpful.’

‘That was very painful.’

‘You stirred them up again just with a few short flashes from your divinoscope?’

Angelique nodded. ‘That’s all I did, and what happened, well . . . no one could have missed those shadows,’ she said, rubbing her neck.

‘Then I think we can safely presume that did not happen when Copious was here,’ mused Pewter. ‘When Bladderwrack was here the magic must have been completely dormant, otherwise he would never have given up trying to discover that secret laboratory. He would never have passed the Snakesmouth Lighthouse cleaned and safe for the unfortunate Mintencress party to buy. So the real puzzle is – what’s changed?’

‘We should go over all Bladderwrack’s notes,’ said Angelique as Seth handed them each a mug of tea.

‘That may take some time. We’ve already had one death,’ said Pewter, deep in thought.

‘The magic has managed to return?’ said Seth. ‘So – how can that happen?’

He was thinking of his own home. Angelique had been on a secret S3 mission to investigate his mother and whether the Last Chance Hotel needed cleaning. But since learning of the existence of magic, Seth had begun to suspect that there had always been magic lurking there, even in the fabric of the building, even in the walls. It hadn’t come back, it had just never completely gone away.

But when Copious had checked this place out, the magic hadn’t been here. And Angelique had already told him that magic didn’t return all by itself.

‘Yes, what has stirred up this very powerful hidden magic?’ Dex’s eyes glinted.

‘Seriously impressive magic,’ said Pewter, steepling his fingers, then reaching absent-mindedly for a biscuit. ‘Getting those shadows to form and strangle like that . . .’

‘I know Brockler has got interested in the history of this place,’ said Seth tentatively, recalling again that furtive look when the lawyer talked about secrets. ‘I wonder if he could have . . .’

‘I think what we saw was too powerful for someone who discovered magic for the first time when they arrived here, Seth,’ said Angelique, wrapping her strand of red hair around a finger again.

Seth thought back to his own disastrous attempts at magic and could see she had a point. If someone had been trying to tap into Soul Snakesmouth’s magic and kickstart it, how could they have done that without leaving a trail of destruction? Unless, of course, whoever was controlling those shadows possessed more than just a spark of magic – perhaps a magic that was much, much stronger?

‘It’s difficult to believe that Brockler could have taught himself to grow a wart on the end of his nose since he’s been at the lighthouse, let alone master the sinister art of darkwitching,’ said Dex.

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