The Witches' Kitchen by Allen Williams

Author:Allen Williams [WILLIAMS, ALLEN]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: JUV037000
ISBN: 9780316122047
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Published: 2010-10-05T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

The ig-trolls left.

The Toad had barked out a few odd clicks and whistles and the creatures simply gathered themselves and their dead companion and silently loped away.

She turned to Jack. “I’ve asked enough… too much, already.”

“But we still have some things to do,” Jack replied as Pug plodded up with Sootfoot still cradled in his arms.

“I thought them things was gonna camp out here all day.”

Sootfoot was apparently feeling much better, though a little flustered and exhausted. “Will someone please tell Sir Pug that I am perfectly capable of walking? He refuses to put me down. It’s my shoulder that’s aching, not my foot, for mercy’s sake.”

“We’re all going to have to be on our feet when we leave the break,” Jack said. “We’ll have to move quickly and we might have some company if any of those crines have reformed.”

Pug gently placed Sootfoot on the floor and asked, “So you’re really goin’ to see the Widows?”

“Yeah,” Jack responded. “They’re the only ones that might be able to help us find out why the Sisters want her.” He pointed an iron finger at the Toad. “And answer where she came from, and what her name is… and maybe, how to get her out.”

“Might?” said the Toad. “Maybe?”

Jack ignored her concern. “The tricky part is keeping your eye… or eyes, in your case, on the path. When we step out of the break we’ll be headed in the right direction but we’ll only stay that way if we can see our destination. If one of us can keep our eyes on the Widows’ Clock at all times then we have a good chance of getting close.”

“That doesn’t sound very difficult,” she said.

“It all depends,” Jack responded.

“On what?”

Pug interjected, “On whether or not yer running fer yer lives.”

“Exactly,” Jack agreed. “And whether or not the path goes wild.”

“What do you mean, wild?” the Toad asked. “I thought the part of the Kitchen around Guthrie was stable.”

“It is on the way in. On the way out, the path can change or move. It can be different each time. Sometimes it’s longer, other times it’s shorter. Occasionally, as you get close to the clock, the actual landscape transforms. That’s when it’s especially crucial to keep your eyes on the face of the clock. Otherwise you could find yourself lost again.”

“We could get lucky. The path might be still. It sometimes is, at least for a short while, especially for travelers coming from the break,” Sootfoot said, attempting a halfhearted smile.

“We?” Jack said.

“We’ve decided to accompany you for a while, if you’ll have us. I mean, it is the only decent thing to do and well, we… ah.”

“We jus’ don’t wanna get munched by that damned demon,” Pug said, interrupting. “He saw us back there and now he knows us, knows we was helpin’ you. We figure we’d be safer with you. All’s we have is Sootfoot’s flute and that ain’t much defense against Grisswell’s type.”

“You’re both in agreement on this? Even though it’ll likely be dangerous?” Jack said, eyeing them seriously.

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