How did you get here?
The twins each took one of her hands. They wanted to show her something.
On the other side of the tree a long white object shimmered in the rain. Eureka approached it cautiously, but the twins laughed and pulled her harder. It was shaped like a hammock, but its fabric made it look more like a huge cocoon. Eureka studied it, amazed by what appeared to be a million iridescent moth wings woven together. The tiny, fragile pieces formed a massive bower that hovered in the air, floating on its own.
Inside the bower lay Eurekas father. A thin canopy of soft brown wings shielded his face from the rain. The sliced shoulder Eureka had bound in her shirt had been expertly redressed in a silky fuchsia gauze. A poultice of the same material was wrapped around the bruise on his forehead. He was awake. He reached for her hand and smiled.
Good doctors on this side of town.
Hows the pain? Eureka asked.
A nice distraction. His eyes looked lucid but he spoke like he was dreaming.
She reached into her pocket, pressed the vial of salve into his hand. This will help.
Beyond the moth-wing bower, three new gossipwitches huddled under another, sadder tree, murmuring to each other behind the backs of their hands. The witches who had led Ander and Eureka here flowed toward the others, kissing them on the cheeks and whispering as if they had years of news to catch up on.
How many are there? Eureka wondered.
Cat appeared at her side. The freaky fairy godmothers showed up a few minutes after you left. I was like, Where are all my baby teeth you took? Thanks for sending them down to help us.
I didnt send them, Eureka said.
One of them flicked her tongue in a hole in a tree, William said, and a zillion bugs flew from it.
The bugs made a big white diamond in the sky, then carried Dad up into the rain! Claire added.
These toddlers shit you not, Cat said.
Dad can fly! William said.
Cat reached for Eurekas thunderstone, studying its rain-reflective surface. When they showed up on the beach, I knew they had something to do with you. Its like, somehow, you fit in more here than you ever did at Evangeline.
And I thought Id never find my clique, Eureka said dryly.
I mean, Cat said, you make sense where impossible things are possible. Youre one of those impossible things. Cat held out an open hand to catch some rain. Your powers are real.
Eureka looked back toward the gossipwitches, but they were gone. All that was left of them was a single orchid petal, glowing on the ground. I wanted to thank them.
Dont worry, avoice whispered in her deaf ear. It was the youngest gossipwitch, but she was nowhere Eureka could see. Solon has a tab with us.
Where do we go? Ander shouted into the rain.
The witches laughter shook the earth. Eureka felt something in her hand and looked down. A torch had appeared between her fingers. It had a long silver handle and widened into a broad fluted goblet near the top. A flame glowed from the goblets center, unextinguished in the rain. Eureka gazed into the center of the torch, looking for the oil or coal that fueled its flame. Instead, she saw a little mound of glowing amethyst stones.
Youre welcome, the young witchs voice whispered in Eurekas deaf ear.
Give Solon our worst! the old one shouted.
There was more laughter, then silence, then rain.
Eureka paced the grove, looking for clues her new torch might illuminate. Just past the trunk of one of the trees she slammed into something hard. She rubbed her brow. Nothing unusual was visible before herjust more rotting, twisted trees. Yet she had walked into something as solid as a wall. She tried again, and slammed into it again, unable to take another step.
Ander traced the invisible force with his fingers. Its wet. It feels like a cordon. Its real, I can feel it, but it isnt there.
Guys. Claire waved from a few feet away. Shouldnt we just use the door?
Eureka squinted as something white blurred in the space in front of her sister. Claire rose on her toes to reach above her head, revisiting what seemed to be a tricky spot several times. At the edge of the grove, under the crooked elbow of a hazelnut branch, just past a flat stone bearing a patch of lichen shaped like Louisiana, a wall of porous white rock sharpened slowly, incredibly, before them.
Claire had finger-painted it into existenceor into visibility, for the rock had been there before its painter.
Here it is. Claires hands moved over a black portion of the rock like she was polishing a car. The rock looked more and more like a rounded doorway.
Eureka wished Rhoda were here to applaud. It made Eureka think about Heaven, which made her think about Diana, and she wondered if two souls interested in the same earthly subjects could gather in the same celestial place to look down on them. Were Rhoda and Diana together, somewhere out there, on a cloud? Did Heaven still lie beyond the gray smear of sadness above?
She looked upward for a sign. Rain fell in the same lonesome rhythm it had been beating out all day.
Ander knelt next to Claire. How did you do that?
Kids see more than adults, Claire said matter-of-factly, and slipped through the door like a ghost.
7
The twins each took one of her hands. They wanted to show her something.
On the other side of the tree a long white object shimmered in the rain. Eureka approached it cautiously, but the twins laughed and pulled her harder. It was shaped like a hammock, but its fabric made it look more like a huge cocoon. Eureka studied it, amazed by what appeared to be a million iridescent moth wings woven together. The tiny, fragile pieces formed a massive bower that hovered in the air, floating on its own.
Inside the bower lay Eurekas father. A thin canopy of soft brown wings shielded his face from the rain. The sliced shoulder Eureka had bound in her shirt had been expertly redressed in a silky fuchsia gauze. A poultice of the same material was wrapped around the bruise on his forehead. He was awake. He reached for her hand and smiled.
Good doctors on this side of town.
Hows the pain? Eureka asked.
A nice distraction. His eyes looked lucid but he spoke like he was dreaming.
She reached into her pocket, pressed the vial of salve into his hand. This will help.
Beyond the moth-wing bower, three new gossipwitches huddled under another, sadder tree, murmuring to each other behind the backs of their hands. The witches who had led Ander and Eureka here flowed toward the others, kissing them on the cheeks and whispering as if they had years of news to catch up on.
How many are there? Eureka wondered.
Cat appeared at her side. The freaky fairy godmothers showed up a few minutes after you left. I was like, Where are all my baby teeth you took? Thanks for sending them down to help us.
I didnt send them, Eureka said.
One of them flicked her tongue in a hole in a tree, William said, and a zillion bugs flew from it.
The bugs made a big white diamond in the sky, then carried Dad up into the rain! Claire added.
These toddlers shit you not, Cat said.
Dad can fly! William said.
Cat reached for Eurekas thunderstone, studying its rain-reflective surface. When they showed up on the beach, I knew they had something to do with you. Its like, somehow, you fit in more here than you ever did at Evangeline.
And I thought Id never find my clique, Eureka said dryly.
I mean, Cat said, you make sense where impossible things are possible. Youre one of those impossible things. Cat held out an open hand to catch some rain. Your powers are real.
Eureka looked back toward the gossipwitches, but they were gone. All that was left of them was a single orchid petal, glowing on the ground. I wanted to thank them.
Dont worry, avoice whispered in her deaf ear. It was the youngest gossipwitch, but she was nowhere Eureka could see. Solon has a tab with us.
Where do we go? Ander shouted into the rain.
The witches laughter shook the earth. Eureka felt something in her hand and looked down. A torch had appeared between her fingers. It had a long silver handle and widened into a broad fluted goblet near the top. A flame glowed from the goblets center, unextinguished in the rain. Eureka gazed into the center of the torch, looking for the oil or coal that fueled its flame. Instead, she saw a little mound of glowing amethyst stones.
Youre welcome, the young witchs voice whispered in Eurekas deaf ear.
Give Solon our worst! the old one shouted.
There was more laughter, then silence, then rain.
Eureka paced the grove, looking for clues her new torch might illuminate. Just past the trunk of one of the trees she slammed into something hard. She rubbed her brow. Nothing unusual was visible before herjust more rotting, twisted trees. Yet she had walked into something as solid as a wall. She tried again, and slammed into it again, unable to take another step.
Ander traced the invisible force with his fingers. Its wet. It feels like a cordon. Its real, I can feel it, but it isnt there.
Guys. Claire waved from a few feet away. Shouldnt we just use the door?
Eureka squinted as something white blurred in the space in front of her sister. Claire rose on her toes to reach above her head, revisiting what seemed to be a tricky spot several times. At the edge of the grove, under the crooked elbow of a hazelnut branch, just past a flat stone bearing a patch of lichen shaped like Louisiana, a wall of porous white rock sharpened slowly, incredibly, before them.
Claire had finger-painted it into existenceor into visibility, for the rock had been there before its painter.
Here it is. Claires hands moved over a black portion of the rock like she was polishing a car. The rock looked more and more like a rounded doorway.
Eureka wished Rhoda were here to applaud. It made Eureka think about Heaven, which made her think about Diana, and she wondered if two souls interested in the same earthly subjects could gather in the same celestial place to look down on them. Were Rhoda and Diana together, somewhere out there, on a cloud? Did Heaven still lie beyond the gray smear of sadness above?
She looked upward for a sign. Rain fell in the same lonesome rhythm it had been beating out all day.
Ander knelt next to Claire. How did you do that?
Kids see more than adults, Claire said matter-of-factly, and slipped through the door like a ghost.
7
