Page 31 of The Wonder of You

I hand Lukas a coffee and look up at the bright blue sky.

“What a nice day, we bloody need it after that storm.”

Lukas closes his eyes in relief as he sips his coffee.

“I agree, it’s nice to see that big yellow thing in the sky.”

We both laugh.

“Anyway, where is my little Maudie? She was meant to come over to paint rocks with me.”

“Oh, I thought she had. Perhaps she got caught up with some flowers or chasing butterflies.” He doesn’t seem concerned. The circus is a safe space for us all. The idea of Maudie chasing butterflies brings a smile to my face.

“I’ll go and find her,” I tell him as I begin walking away. I keep my eyes on the sky and try to figure out what shapes the few clouds lingering about look like. It was something I used to do as a child. I’d lay on the grass and look up at the sky, trying to find animal-shaped clouds or perhaps looking for a sign from a greater force that good things were coming. I never did get any signs from the clouds, but I found many shaped like animals. It’s something I still enjoy doing, a bit of the child inside me. I never got to do it for too long back then, Lydia would always boot me and tell me to get on with the laundry or help with the cooking. Now, I have the freedom to unleash the desire to lay on the grass and look into the sky. I smile to myself as I continue to look for Maudie. And then I hear voices in the trees.

“Why don’t you come with me? I’ll show you some of my magic.”

I recognise the croaky voice. My heart drops. The smile wipes itself off my face.

“Lukas!” I scream as I run forward and down the small hill where I see Maudie speaking to one of the witches from yesterday. She looks timid and nervous as if she wants to get away but doesn’t know how, her little body paralysed to the spot. I almost fall down the hill as I sprint towards them.

“Get away from her!” It comes out of my mouth high-pitched and panicked. A look of relief takes Maudie’s features as she runs into my arms. The witch looks at me in disgust and I wonder what is going through her mind. Can I protect myself and Maudie? Without a doubt, I will prioritise Maudie’s life. Her life is worth so much more than mine. But if I’m hurt, will she be able to run?

The panic doesn’t last long as Phoenix, Henry and Lukas come running towards us.

“I was just talking to the little clown.” The witch stretches out her arms in some awkward surrender, but there is a sly smirk on her face that doesn’t match the statement which she is trying to portray as innocent.

“Do not ever come back here, do not ever speak to her, do you hear me?” Lukas snaps. He is a different man when it comes to protecting his daughter. He goes from looking like a cuddly bear to a wolf ready to attack. I don’t blame him for letting Maudie walk off somewhere on her own, this has always been a safe area. We’ve never experienced anything like this before.

“How cruel for someone like you to reproduce, bring that into the world!” she spits. Maudie turns away from the woman and buries her head into my stomach, wrapping her arms around my waist. She sobs desperately and I hold her tight as Phoenix pats her head.

“Leave, do not come near our circus again,” he snarls. The woman laughs at him as he says it. She laughs so hard that her face seems to distort into something even more terrifying than her usual look. Her mouth is wider than what I believed could be possible and her eyes change colour. They look red. I hold Maudie tighter to me so she can’t turn around and see this nightmare. The men tense up and Phoenix puts himself in front of me.

“Stay behind me,” he whispers. I am surprised he’s not sending us back, but he probably wants to keep us in sight in case any of the witch’s friends are lingering around, ready to pounce and attack us when we’re at our most vulnerable. I don’t want to fall into a trap.

“I’ll feed you to the dogs if you carry on.” Henry moves forward towards the witch. “I’ll let them rip you up alive, so you stay away from this circus and these people, do you understand?”

The witch stops laughing and instantly looks at Henry with a deadpan expression. Her ability to change her features and go from one mood to another sends chills through my body. Maudie tries to turn, but I prevent her from doing so. I rub her head and whisper that everything is okay. I really don’t think anything is okay though.

The witch jumps on Henry, her hands wrapping around his neck.

I gasp.

I see the way Phoenix and Lukas tense up immediately in their shock, it takes them a second to even respond to the situation.

“Get her off me!” Henry shouts. Finally, Phoenix and Lukas attempt to pull her away. I notice the way the fabric from her coat seems to tear off in their hands. A look of disgust takes Phoenix’s features for a brief second, but he’s intent on getting this woman, this thing , off his friend.

Maudie starts screaming. The shock in my body prevents me from stopping her turning around and witnessing this chaos. Her eyes widen so much it looks like they might pop out her head.

The witch continues to strangle Henry. She clearly doesn’t have enough strength to be at risk of killing him, but she still may be able to hurt him. The fact she has enough power within her to hold a man like Henry down is alarming.

“Help!” Henry calls out.

“I’m trying!” Phoenix shouts back, but the fabric keeps coming off in his hands and he seems reluctant to put his arms around the witch to drag her off.

It doesn’t matter, though. Like a giant bird, Toni flies down the hill and tackles the witch away from Henry. She rolls further down the hill with her. We all watch in disbelief as they keep rolling .

Henry stands up, patting down his suit. We watch as Toni throws the witch into the river.

“Do not come back!” she screams as the witch swims away. If it wasn’t for the fear slamming through my body, I’d jump up and down in excitement at how amazing Toni is. What a woman!

“Maudie, why did you come down here?” Lukas shouts. She turns into me again and cries.

“Please don’t be angry at her,” I say weakly.

“I don’t want to be angry, but she could have taken you, Maudie, she could have taken you.” He looks like he might throw up as he repeats it.

“I’m sorry, Daddy!” She lets me go and throws herself into Lukas’ arms. The anger on his face leaves as she wraps her little arms around his waist. He picks her up and hugs her tight.

“It’s okay, baby, but don’t do that again, okay?”

Toni walks back to her cabin casually, as if she didn’t just tackle a woman down a hill gorilla style. Lukas carries Maudie back up the hill, talking softly to her, but I feel rooted to the ground.

“Are you okay?” Phoenix puts his hand on my cheek and examines me.

“I’m okay, I just feel a bit worked up. I didn’t know how I’d fight her away and protect Maudie.” I shake my arms at my side, attempting to shake off all the concern and fear. Phoenix kisses my forehead and I feel the adrenaline rush leaving my body as he calms me.

“Do not ever go near them, okay? I understand that was for Maudie. I don’t blame you at all for running to her rescue. But if you ever see them about, leave it to us guys,” he says firmly. I take a deep breath. “Leave it to you guys? I think I’ll leave it to Toni!”

We both laugh anxiously as Phoenix leads me back to the cabin, but I stop in place. I can’t help myself with the fear still working its way around my bones and bloodstream.

“How did she have that strength, Phoenix? She’s a little old lady.” I question. Phoenix turns and faces me. His expression serious, which only makes all this more concerning.

“She’s also a witch; they all possess some level of magic. It was just a scare tactic.” He reminds me, sending fear immediately to my chest, making me want to throw up all this emotion.

“Okay but what if next time isn’t a scare tactic? What if they come back in force? The stories I heard as a kid, some made out they were powerful in groups. They’ve practised magic for years. They could use it to cause damage. To cause us damage.” My voice cracks. I turn and watch as Lukas carries Maudie into their cabin. Her little fingers are digging into his back with all the fear she holds. Henry is still patting himself down from the attack. Could these witches hurt my family? Could they ever posses enough power to hurt someone like Toni if they came back in a group?

“Renée, stop.” Phoenix puts his hands on my cheeks. “They can come here and try to frighten us, but they won’t be able to do anything more.”

“They could have taken Maudie. What if I hadn’t been looking for her? ”

Phoenix scans my face as he rubs his thumb on my jawline. The sensation calms me, but not enough. I stare at him waiting for his answer.

He sighs. I know he can’t provide one.

“But they didn’t.”

I go to speak, to argue his point that they could have done, but his thumb lands on my mouth shushing me.

“I know. I know how it could have been. But it didn’t happen, and it won’t happen. Lukas won’t let Maudie out of sight now.”

He kisses my forehead and holds out his hand. I take it and follow him back to our cabin. I need to sit down; I need a drink. I want to believe him. I want to believe that perhaps Toni has scared them away for good. Perhaps the witches are weak and just caught Henry off guard.

But something tells me I am wrong.

And something tells me this isn’t the end.