The Witch's Tears by Katharine Corr

Author:Katharine Corr [Katharine and Elizabeth Corr]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Published: 2016-12-06T05:00:00+00:00

LEO STARTED RUNNING in the direction from which the scream had come.

‘Leo, wait!’

He shouted at her over his shoulder. ‘Hurry up! It could be Ronan. I have to help him.’

Merry began running too. She quickly caught up with her brother.

‘How far?’

‘Few minutes … left path …’ Leo pointed, and Merry pulled ahead, sprinting in the direction he had indicated, through the trees, ducking branches and jumping over roots, until she burst into a large clearing – and there was Ronan, standing nearby. Further off a boy was lying on the ground, not moving. Right in front of Ronan, kneeling on the grass at his feet, was another boy who was sobbing and writhing with terror, had actually wet himself—

It was Simon.

Merry came to a halt just in front of Ronan.

‘What the hell are you doing?’

Ronan looked confused.

‘What?’

‘What are you doing to him?’ Merry crouched down next to Simon, but he didn’t seem to be aware of her. He was staring ahead at something that wasn’t there, flinching, begging for mercy from some invisible threat. As she watched he threw his hands up in front of his face and screamed again.

‘Stop it!’ Merry flung her outstretched fingers towards Ronan and he stumbled backwards, tripping and falling on to the grass. For a moment she thought he was going to retaliate: he brought one hand up, red sparks playing across his palm.

But then he smiled slightly and lowered his hand. Simon put his hands down too, but his eyes were still wide with terror and he stayed on his knees, breathing raggedly.

Leo jogged up and stopped next to Merry.

‘What’s going on? Ronan?’

Ronan stood up and brushed himself off.

‘Your sister and I obviously disagree on how we should be treating poisonous jerks like this one.’ He waved a hand and Simon gasped with pain.

‘You can’t go round torturing people!’ Merry yelled. ‘Even if they are horrible. It’s just not—’

‘No, you can’t,’ Ronan interrupted. ‘But I don’t have to follow any rules. You know what he did. And you know he deserves to be punished. Who else was going to do it?’

‘I …’

‘You knew?’ Leo’s voice was shaky. ‘You knew it was Simon who attacked me, and you did nothing?’

For a minute, Merry couldn’t think of anything to say. Leo and Ronan were both just looking at her.

‘I – you …’ She took a deep breath. ‘Yes, I knew. And I went round to his house the next morning. I messed up his car—’

‘So you … scratched his paintwork? And that made up for what he did to me?’

‘No, that’s not what I’m saying! But – but you told me not to get involved.’

‘Yeah, right. And since when has that ever stopped you, Merry? Maybe you’re just angry with Ronan because he’s the one actually doing something. Because he’s actually been sticking up for me!’

‘Sticking up for you?’ She pointed to Simon, whimpering and shaking on the grass between them. ‘Is this what you want? Is this what you would have asked me to

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