Any Way the Wind Blows (Simon Snow, #3)(124)

I push Philippa’s hand off my arm as gently as I can. “The thing is, Philippa—”

“She goes by Pippa,” Baz interrupts.

“Right, sorry. The thing is, Pippa, we’ve seen Smith cast the spell. We’ve seen it work.”

“It worked on me, ” Jamie agrees.

Pippa tries to argue, but nothing comes out for a few seconds. Then her voice kicks in, and she yelps, “—not true, J-Jamie!”

Penelope is looking between them, her hands on her hips. “Pippa, maybe you could explain what happened, from your point of view.”

“There isn’t … t- time. ”

“Well, we’re just wasting time, arguing.”

Baz looks like he might smite Penny, as well. “Lay off, Bunce. She was tied up in a basement.”

“That’s a good place to start,” Penelope says. “How did you end up in the basement?”

Pippa holds her throat and swallows. “I—” She swallows again. “I—”

Shepard reaches out to her. He’s holding a piece of yellow chalk. “Want to try writing it?”

She looks at his hand for a moment, then grabs the chalk, nodding. She turns to the wall and starts scribbling frantically on the wallpaper, as high up as she can reach.

I’ve been with Smith from the beginning, she writes.

We’re all crowded around her, trying to read along. Baz pushes us back —“Give her space”—and starts to read aloud:

“He said he could bring back my magic … and I believed him … I worked for him … and for Evander … They trusted me.”

Pippa glances back at us, like she’s making sure that we’re listening. We are. She goes back to writing.

“But today,” Baz reads out, “Beth … came to see Smith … She was afar —no, afraid … She told him all her spells … have stopped working.”

“Not Beth,” Jamie cuts in. “She was so happy.”

Philippa looks at him and nods. “Beth,” she says. “Her magic—” She turns back to the wall, finding more space.

Baz leans over her shoulder. “Smith told Beth that … she was just tired … That it was temporary … But … when she turned to leave … he cast a spell on her.” Baz shoots a glare at me, like this is my fault somehow.

“What spell?” I ask.

Baz looks back at the wall. “‘Put it out of your head.’”

“No!” Jamie is adamant. “Smith would never!”

“Yikes,” Penny says. “That’s like shaking up an Etch A Sketch inside someone’s brain.”

Philippa is still writing.

“Smith didn’t know … that I was watching … but he’d asked me to bring tea … I was standing…”

She’s running out of space. She gets on her knees.

“In the doorway,” Baz reads. “With a tray … I dropped it … Then he cast a spell on me, too … ‘Freeze’ … and called for Evander … to take me away … I couldn’t cry for help.” Baz’s voice cracks. He looks wretched.

“Smith told me he couldn’t … have helped me anyway…”

Philippa is kneeling on the floor, bent over. She’s written herself into the corner.

“That my voice was gone…” Baz reads. “Forever.”

“She’s lying,” someone says.

We all whip around. Smith’s godfather has come to. He’s trying to sit up, but his hands are tied to the bottom of the radiator. Baz points his wand at him.

“She attacked Smith,” Evander Feverfew says, furious. (He’s an odd-looking duck for an old guy: shoulder-length grey hair, long sideburns, a pierced ear. I’ve seen him helping Smith at meetings. I thought he was a roadie.)

Pippa’s eyes are wild, and her voice sounds bloody: “Why—Why would I do that?”

“Because he couldn’t help you, Pippa. You didn’t want anyone to have magic if you couldn’t.”

“Th-that isn’t—isn’t t-true!”

Evander looks at me. “She attacked him, and then she threatened to stop today’s meeting! We couldn’t let that happen. Smith is going to cure six people today. Six magicians.”

“He’s going to—to—curse them!”

“Liar!”

Baz is still pointing his wand at Smith’s godfather; he looks like he’s got a curse of his own at the tip of his tongue. Penelope looks as confused as I feel.

Jamie Salisbury has both of his hands fisted in his hair.

“Jamie,” I say. “Did Smith fix your magic?”

“Of course he did!” Evander shouts. “Everyone saw it.”

“I…” Jamie looks ashamed. “I hardly had any magic to fix.”

“But Smith cured you,” I say.

“He did,” Jamie says eagerly. “And then…”

“He cured you!” Evander strains against the radiator. “First among his followers. It was a tremendous honour.”

“It’s true.” Jamie nods. “I was the first.”

“And it worked,” I say. “You can do magic now?”