Emily Rodda - Isle of the Dead

A small notice was fixed to the door.

‘Ava is a witch!’ hissed Jasmine.

‘More likely just a fraud who is as crafty in business as her brother,’ muttered Barda. He pointed to the last line of the notice. ‘As I recall, Tom promises a free gift for every customer also.’

‘He does,’ Lief whispered. ‘But he only gives it if you remember to ask. I wonder if his sister is the same?’

‘Enter, friends, if you are of good will!’

They all jumped violently as the husky voice called from within the shop. With a nervous glance at his companions, Lief pushed the door open.

Inside it was warm, and very dim, for the only light came from a glowing fire. The air was heavy with the scents of herbs and smoke.

Peering through the gloom, Lief noticed first that the walls of the room they had entered were lined with shelves that stretched from floor to ceiling. Every shelf was crammed with jars, bottles, tins and boxes.

Then he saw, crouched in a sagging chair beside the fire, a figure shrouded in a hooded cloak made entirely of the black and white feathers of sea birds.

‘You have found Ava,’ the figure whispered. ‘What is your wish?’

Lief took a breath, but could not speak.

‘A love potion?’ Ava murmured. ‘No. I can see there is no need for that. A cure, then? No… not yet a while.’ She tittered unpleasantly.

Barda cleared his throat. ‘We would like to hire a boat, if you please, good lady,’ he said loudly.

Ava raised her head.

Lief’s heart jolted. The face framed by the hood of the feathered cloak was powdered chalky white, even to the thin lips. Dull brown hair hung limply about the hollow cheeks. The eyes were covered by a tightly wound band of black silk.

Then, for the first time, Lief noticed the white stick leaning on one arm of the chair.

Ava, whose symbol was the eye, was blind!

… she sees more than most…

I have no boats for hire,’ Ava said softly.

‘The sign on your door says you do!’ Jasmine exclaimed.

The woman shrugged. ‘I have only one boat now,’ she said. ‘I do not care to lend it to strangers.’

Her thin white lips curved slightly at the corners. For a fleeting moment Lief saw an eerie resemblance to Tom.

‘Your brother told us of you, Ava,’ he said quickly, before Barda or Jasmine could say anything more.

‘Brother?’ The figure in the chair grew very still.

‘Your brother Tom is—a friend of ours,’ Lief said, feeling in his pocket for the Peppermint Fancies. ‘He told us that you could help us—if you were willing. He sent you a gift.’

Cautiously he moved towards the chair, holding out the bag of sweets. Ava seemed to have relaxed a little. Her nose twitched, but she did not stir.

Lief placed the gift in her lap and stepped smartly back. He held his breath as hands warm in thick black woollen gloves crept from beneath the feathered cloak and clasped the bag firmly.

‘Peppermint Fancies,’ the woman sighed. ‘Ah, Tom always remembers his little sister’s favourite. Clever Tom! But then, he was always the cleverest of us all, even in the old days. Or so it was said.’

She tilted her head slightly.

‘It is not like Tom to admit our relationship,’ she said. ‘Tom values his privacy, as do I. He must have a special reason for helping you. What might that be, I wonder?’

Again her lips curved into that slightly mocking smile. Again Lief felt a stab of recognition.

But this time… this time it was different. This time the smile reminded him not only of Tom the shopkeeper, but of someone else as well.

He caught his breath as memories flooded through him.

It is a matter of business…

Due to circumstances beyond his control… your present doings are more Tom’s affair than he might wish… Perhaps it was always fated to come to this…

Tom always saw himself as the cleverest of us all… of us all…

‘Of course!’ he exclaimed aloud.

He had seen the resemblance—the thin, wide mouth, the lean face, the long limbs, the mocking smile—seen it with his own eyes! But at the time he had not made the connection. He had not realised…

Barda and Jasmine were staring at him. Ava’s smile was fading.

Lief wet his lips. ‘I think Tom felt he had no choice but to help us, Ava,’ he said. ‘He felt he owed it to us. Somehow he learned that we had fallen foul of his brother—and yours. The man we know as Laughing Jack.’

Jasmine and Barda gasped. Ava’s shoulders stiffened beneath the feathered cloak.

‘That man is no brother of mine,’ she rasped.

‘I think he is,’ Lief said. ‘The likeness is—’

‘Jack, Tom and I are of the same blood, that is true,’ Ava broke in harshly. ‘As children at home on the Plains we were very alike to look upon, it is said, and our minds could link as though we were three parts of a whole. But when we grew old enough, we went our separate ways to seek our fortunes. Tom went not so far. I went very far, to the sea where I had always longed to be, though I could not see it with the eyes of the body…’

Her voice trailed off.

‘And Jack?’ Lief prompted softly.

‘Jack went… furthest of all.’ Ava’s white lips were trembling. She made an obvious effort to firm them, and went on rapidly.

‘Long ago Jack made choices that parted him from me—and from Tom—forever. That is why I say he is no longer our brother. Now and then fragments of his thoughts still whisper like evil ghosts in the dark corners of our minds. He is still part of us. But he is our enemy.’

‘He is our enemy, too, Ava,’ Lief said softly. ‘And the greater Enemy he calls his master is trying to destroy our land. Please help us! Lend us your boat!’

‘And if I do, where will you take it?’ Ava asked. She waited for Lief’s answer, her head on one side, her mouth a straight, hard line.

It is a test, Lief thought. She has seen or guessed where we want to go. She is waiting to see if we will lie to her.

‘We must go to the Isle of the Dead,’ he said firmly.

‘So, you have decided to trust me.’ Ava murmured. She sank back in her chair, folding her hands beneath her cloak. The Peppermint Fancies slipped from her lap and fell to the ground, but she did not seem to care or notice.

‘Very well,’ she said. ‘Then hear what I say. No boat can land on the Isle of the Dead. The sea churns around its rocks like milk boiling in a cauldron. To reach the Isle, you must go first to the scarlet island, and cross by the rock bridge.’

‘It sounds almost too easy,’ Barda said.

Ava raised her head. The silk band that bound her eyes gleamed in the firelight.

‘The journey to the Isle may be easy,’ she said slowly. ‘But the Isle itself is another matter. I can tell you nothing of it—except that no-one who has set foot upon it has ever returned. If you value your lives you will forget it, and go on your way.’

A cold knot tightened in Lief’s stomach as she smiled.

15 – The Scarlet Island

An hour later, Lief and Barda were rowing Ava’s tiny, battered boat across the channel that lay between the mainland and the scarlet island. The channel was rough, and wider than it had first appeared. They were still only halfway to their goal, and though the tide was with them, the work was hard.

Spray beat on them from every side, and for once they were glad of the stiff oiled coats they had taken from the fishing hut in Broome. Choppy water slapped against the blunt stern where Jasmine sat with Filli chittering unhappily beneath her collar. Kree flew overhead, the only one who was dry.