The Midnight Witch (53 page)
Read The Midnight Witch Online
Authors: Paula Brackston
Louis takes a moment to come to his senses, and when he speaks, his voice is cracked and hoarse. “Good grief, Lily.” He surveys the devastation around us. “Remind me not to make an enemy of you.”
I smile at him. “You could never do that, dear Louis.”
I become aware of shifting shapes behind me. The others sense them, too, and appear alarmed.
“All is well,” I promise them. “We are among friends.”
Slowly, cautiously, the spirits begin to reveal themselves. My faithful Cavaliers. Amelia. Many spirits known to me, and others new, but all come willingly, happily, in friendship. I stand up to greet them properly, and am astonished when they kneel in front of me. They whisper their thoughts and praise.
We are here to serve you, mistress.
Spirits bless you!
Welcome, Queen of the Night.
Bram helps Louis to his feet and they stand beside me.
“Well,” says Louis, who can hear every word, “it seems you have been elevated.”
I find myself, ridiculously, blushing. “I do not deserve such a title. I have not earned it.”
“What title?” Bram wants to know.
Louis explains, grinning, “Our little Lily is a risen witch now, Cardale. No longer Daughter of the Night, she is Queen of the Night.”
Queen of the Night, Queen of the Night!
The spirits echo my new name over and over.
Bram smiles at me. “It suits you. I have never seen anyone look more regal than you do at this moment.”
I meet his gaze.
“Can you love me still?” I ask him. “Can you wish to be a part of … of all that you have seen? You know what I am become. You have witnessed the danger that surrounds me. I was so afraid for you … Are you certain you still want to be with me? I mean…”
“Hush.” He puts a finger to my lips. “Where else would I be?”
High up in the branches of the cedar, a blackbird begins its tuneful song, starting up the chorus to herald the morning, as a thin, silvery light begins to lift the night from the city.
I take Bram’s hand in mine.
“Well then, my love, a new day is dawning,” I tell him. “Shall we face it together?”
Acknowledgments
The Midnight Witch
presented all manner of interesting challenges for me. I wished to immerse myself in a time and place that is extremely well documented, so that my first task was to present it anew. I also wanted to create a complex tale, with story layers that reflected the strata of the era, and that would at the same time reveal a hidden seam of magic and witchcraft. If I have succeeded in my aims, it will be due in no small part to the guidance and hard work of my editorial team, Peter Wolverton and Anne Brewer. I am hugely grateful.
Thanks also, as ever, to my long-suffering and supportive family, and particularly on this occasion to my mum—beta reader and cheerleader combined.
Also by Paula Brackston
The Witch’s Daughter
The Witches of the Blue Well
The Winter Witch
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
PAULA BRACKSTON is the
New York Times
bestselling author of
The Witch’s Daughter
and
The Winter Witch
. She has a master’s degree in creative writing from Lancaster University in the UK. She lives in Wales with her family. Visit her online at
www.paulabrackston.com
.
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
THE MIDNIGHT WITCH.
Copyright © 2014 by Paula Brackston. All rights reserved. For information, address St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010.
Cover design by Elsie Lyons
Cover photographs: shoes © Sandra Cunningham/Trevillion Images; gems © Dr. Margorious/
Shutterstock.com
; sparkle © nikkytok/
Shutterstock.com
The Library of Congress has cataloged the print edition as follows:
Brackston, Paula.
The Midnight witch / Paula Brackston.—First Edition.
pages cm.
ISBN 978-1-250-00608-0 (hardcover)
ISBN 978-1-250-02296-7 (e-book)
1. Witches—Fiction. 2. Fantasy fiction. 3. England—Fiction. I. Title.
PR6102.R325M53 2014
823'.92—dc23
2013033245
eISBN 9781250022967
First Edition: April 2014