Witch Catcher by Mary Downing Hahn Page A

down to the kitchen.
    Moura sat at the table, drinking a cup of coffee. Today she'd braided her long hair into one thick black rope. She wore black jeans and a long-sleeved black T-shirt that made her look even slimmer. The red stone in her pendant caught the morning sunlight and sent reflections bouncing over the wall and ceiling whenever she moved.
    "Where's Dad?" I picked up the bowl of cereal and glass of orange juice he'd left on the counter for me.
    "He's gone to Mingo to pick up a few things at the hardware store. I've encouraged him to work on the garden behind the house. Your uncle had a way with flowers and herbs."
    She paused and waited for me to join her at the table. When I hesitated, she smiled. "Come and sit beside me. I don't eat little girls, you know."
    Held by her eyes, I sat down reluctantly and began to eat my cereal.
    "I'm so happy to have this opportunity to talk to you, Jen." Moura eyed me over the rim of her coffee cup. The sun lit blue highlights in her hair, almost as iridescent as a starling's feathers. The house was silent except for the ticking of the clock and the hum of the refrigerator. By Moura's side, Cadoc sat still as a statue, and Tink huddled by my feet.
    I met Moura's eyes briefly but said nothing. Outside, on the windowsill, a robin strutted up and down, cocking its head at us now and then.
    "May I tell you a story?" she asked.
    I shrugged. The only way to escape the story was to leave the kitchen, but for some reason I couldn't summon the energy to excuse myself.
    "Once upon a time, people believed the woods behind this house were enchanted," she began in that soft, musical voice of hers. "Rumors abounded of entrances to other worlds. Magic worlds. Fairyland, perhaps. Believers traveled from great distances to explore the paths and rivers. Some disappeared, never to be seen again. Others searched without success. Frustrated and angry, they denounced the stories as lies."
    Moura paused, but I said nothing. I continued to eat my cereal as if I took no interest in her story.
    "Your great-uncle built his house here because of the stories. He had a deep interest in the occult, as his tower indicates. All his life he sought the entrance to that other world. He never found it. But he did find something else."
    Once again, Moura paused to gauge my reaction. Without looking at her, I nodded. "Dad said Uncle Thaddeus was eccentric."
    "That's not the word I would choose," Moura said softly. "Thaddeus Mostyn had a brilliant mind. A unique curiosity."
    Unwillingly, I looked across the table at her. The sun struck her face, emphasizing its beauty but at the same time revealing tiny lines in her pale skin, like fine cracks beneath the surface of old china.
    "Don't you want to know what your great-uncle found—and trapped?" Moura asked, her voice low.
    I already knew, but I was curious to hear what Moura would say. Hoping to show my indifference, I shrugged and answered, "I guess so."
    "You recall my desire to find the witch catcher?"
    "Yes."
    "And my dismay when I found your cat had broken it?"
    "Yes."
    "Do you remember what I told you?"
    "You said I was in danger."
    She nodded and poured herself another cup of coffee. "But I didn't tell you why."
    "No." I poured myself a cup of coffee and added sugar and cream. Moura raised one fine black eyebrow but said nothing.
    She leaned toward me, her body thin and angular. "When the glass is broken, the evil spirit finds someone foolish enough to help it." She paused and looked at me sharply. "It will do anything to find its own kind."
    Moura's intensity made me uneasy. I drew back from her, glad to feel Tink leap into my lap and begin to purr as if he were telling me something. If only Kieryn had given me the gift to understand cats, I might have known what it was. At the open window, the robin chirped. Moura glanced at it, and it flew away.
    "I told you my grandmother knew your uncle," Moura went on. "She was a curious woman. When she found the witch trap