“I don’t want to.”
“Ah, go on. It’s your turn. I’ll keep sketch, I swear.”
“But Joey, it’s really, really dark.”
Joey looked down on his little sister and folded his arms. “I’m the biggest, I say it’s your turn. Or I’m telling Da it was you who broke his crappy CD.”
“It wasn’t me! It was you!” Tears filled Natalie’s eyes but Joey remained unmoved.
“Who cares? Da always believes me. Go on, it’ll be funny.” He pushed his sister forward and hoped Mam wouldn’t catch him. She hated when he got Natalie in trouble. Natalie looked so scared, it was worth the risk.
Natalie gazed up at the dark building and wondered who she was afraid of most, the old woman who lived there or her big brother Joey. She looked at him once more but he was determined, she recognised the cruelness in his eyes. She had her answer.
Natalie took a deep breath and stepped closer to the gate. Daddy always said the old woman who lived in the creepy house at the end of the cul-de-sac was a witch but Mammy said she was a harmless lady who deserved to be left alone. Joey never left her alone, he was always persuading the kids to play knick knack on the woman’s door or throw things at her windows at night.
Joey’s antics made Daddy laugh but Natalie felt bad whenever he did those things. Almost as bad as she felt when he cut her kitten’s ear or burned the tail of his friend’s dog. Joey was mean but he had a knack for getting away with everything. Mammy said he would grow out of it but Natalie looked at her father and wasn’t so sure.
Natalie pushed open the gate and winced as it creaked loudly. A cold breeze whipped through her curls and felt like ice cold fingertips. Her tiny fingers gripped her jacket. She couldn’t turn back or Joey would laugh at her forever. She crept up to the door, pushed herself onto her tippy toes and lifted her hand towards the door bell.
“No, Natalie!” Joey’s sudden shout made Natalie jump, lose her balance and fall against the door with a great thud. Paralysed with fear, she heard Joey running away, and to her horror, the door opened, revealing the old woman who lived there. Shrouded in light, Natalie noticed the woman’s hair was held back with combs that could have been made from bone. She had to be at least a hundred years old and her eyes looked black as she peered down at Natalie.
“What do you want?”
Still frozen, Natalie stared up at the woman, her mouth opening and closing without a sound. The woman looked out beyond her gate, her eyes as sharp as a bird. She sighed, gripped Natalie’s shoulder and pulled her inside, shutting the door behind them.
Natalie gave a little scared squeal which made the woman chuckle. “Don’t worry, child. I’m just giving your brother a little scare. I suppose he tried to make you play knick-knack on my door.”
Natalie nodded, transfixed by the woman’s house. She had a real fire in her living room and no television. Shelves stacked with books lined the walls instead. A cat curled up in front of the fire, its tail visibly scarred with an old scorch wound.
“What happened the kitty?” She couldn’t help asking, despite her fear.
“A bad little boy hurt her once.” The old woman sucked her false teeth and reminded Natalie of her grandfather. That made her feel a little more at ease.
“I’m sorry,” she said, meaning it.
The old woman stared at her then nodded. “Sit down next to my cat for a bit and we’ll scare your brother good and proper. He’ll think I’ve eaten you for dinner.” The woman winked at Natalie, making her giggle. The idea of scaring Joey held a certain delicious appeal.
“Would you like something to eat, Natalie?”
Natalie sat down next to the sleeping cat and wasn’t surprised the old woman knew her name. She was sure the woman knew lots of things. “Yes, please.”
“Chocolate fudge, maybe?”
“That’s my favourite!”
The old woman smiled. She brought Natalie a plate of bite-sized chunks of chocolate fudge and a glass of sparkling lemonade.
“How come you don’t have a telly?” Natalie asked, feeling braver now she was sure the old woman wasn’t going to hurt her.
“Those things are no good at all. Besides, I have lots of books to read.” The old woman picked up her knitting and click clacked until Natalie felt positively drowsy.
“What are they about?”
The click clacking stopped and the old woman leaned toward Natalie, lowering her voice to a whisper. “Magic.”
Natalie laughed. “My Daddy says there’s no such thing as magic.”
The old woman smiled at Natalie and carried on knitting. “Ah, but he’s wrong. I bet he’s wrong about a lot of things, isn’t he, Natalie?”
Natalie thought about the times her Daddy told her Mammy she was ugly and cold. Natalie’s Mammy was the most beautiful mother in the world and her snuggles were extra warm. Daddy always called Natalie a stupid girl but her teacher said she was the smartest girl in the class. The old woman was right, Daddy really was wrong about a lot of things. She nodded her agreement.
“Well, maybe we can sort that out,” the old woman said. “Did you know, that when your Daddy was small, he was just like your brother?”
Natalie shook her head. Her Dad was mean like Joey so it made sense.
“He used to persuade all of the little children to throw stones at my windows, and he was the one who burned my cat’s tail. He pushed the smaller kids around and liked to hurt animals when nobody was looking. He sounds a lot like Joey, doesn’t he?”
“I suppose so.” Natalie’s pulse quickened. She felt a little guilty, talking about her family. Daddy always said good girls kept secrets.
“Imagine if Joey grew up to be just like your father.”
Natalie gulped. He already did act like Daddy. She was afraid of them both. Grown up Joey would be unbearable. Her face paled as she looked back at the old woman.
“Perhaps if your father wasn’t around, Joey would learn to be a good boy.”
Natalie thought about it. Maybe. If Daddy didn’t push Mammy around then maybe Joey would stop pushing Natalie around. Natalie nodded again and took a sip of her drink.
“Perhaps you would like to make a wish. Just for fun. Think of how life would be if your Daddy wasn’t around to hurt people. And now think of a pet, something you would love.”
Natalie laughed. “A white puppy with brown spots!” Inside her head, she wished her Daddy would go away and leave her mother alone. Maybe Mammy wouldn’t look so sad all the time, maybe Joey would learn that being mean was wrong if Daddy wasn’t there to laugh and egg him on. She sipped her sparkling lemonade and wished and wished and wished.
The old woman took Natalie home after a while. She wasn’t surprised to see a white puppy with brown spots on Natalie’s doorstep. Nor was she surprised when Natalie’s father seemed to vanish off the face of the planet. After a few months, Natalie’s mother stopped looking so pale and the small children stopped playing knick-knack on the old woman’s door.
Joey was good, for a time, and Natalie visited the old woman more often. She ate chocolate fudge, drank sparkling lemonade and read some of the many books while curled up in front of the fire with the old woman’s cat. Sometimes she made wishes and sometimes the wishes came true. Natalie didn’t believe in magic, not really, but whenever anyone hurt her, she went to the old woman’s house to eat chocolate fudge and drink sparkling lemonade.
When Joey turned sixteen, the memory of his father had faded and his mean streak revealed itself again. Natalie sported bruises and her cheeks were pale with fear while Joey now urged the younger kids to drink beer and throw empty cans at the creepy old house down the end of the cul-de-sac.
The old woman wasn’t surprised when Natalie came to her house to eat chocolate fudge and drink sparkling lemonade once again. Nor was she surprised when Joey disappeared and a tiny calico kitten appeared on Natalie’s doorstep. Karma was a witch.