Chapter 11 - Time to Die
Back in Antibes town there are missing children to be found, five missing children! Their parents are worried. The whole town comes to a halt. Police set up road blocks and search every car leaving the town. Every house is searched. Extra police were drafted in and firemen and volunteers join the search. Divers check the port and helicopters hover like big dragonflies. 'Last seen running in the direction of Fort Carre,' is the dispatch.
In the Witch's hut, the children hear the helicopters flying low overhead. Then a funny thing happens. Two policemen walk into the room, right through the wall.
'Help, help, au secours!' yell the children thinking they're saved.
The Witch laughs a wild cackle as the policemen light a cigarette and chat. 'Well I don't know,' says one. 'They seem to have vanished into thin air.' They turn, walk right through the children and out through the fireplace.
'Vanished into thin air, he, he, he,' repeats the Witch. She is having fun.
Sofie closes her eyes and concentrates. She cuts out the crying of the little ones and tries to contact Rose. She calls and calls but there's no response. Then she concentrates on the witchy twine she's tied up with. When she pushes against it, it cuts into her wrists and ankles, but when she really concentrates her mind on it, it gives a little. She practices for a hour, being careful the Witch isn't looking, until she feels like she can jump up and run away. She whispers her discovery in Leah's ear, 'Don't struggle, think of being free.'
ZAP!
The Witch zaps then again. 'If I didn't need you fresh, I'd be finished with you right now,' she snarls.
'I'm free,' whispers Leah.
ZAP!
Ouch! Ow!
It does hurt!
The sun is getting higher and higher in the sky. There can't be an hour left until it reaches its highest point. Sofie focuses her mind on Princess Rose, loosening her bindings and untying her in her mind.
Sofie thinks of freeing Jana and Lulu, but decides it
will give the game away, so shifts her thoughts back to Rose.
'Rose, Rose,' she calls in her mind.
Nothing.
'ROSE, ROSE, WAKE UP!'
'Sofie, is that you?' says Rose, weakly.
'Don't move, I've untied you, but the Witch thinks you are still tied up,' says Sofie and tells Rose what's happened and what the Witch is up to.
'I'm so sorry,' says Rose. 'I shouldn't have contacted you, now we're all finished.'
'Not quite,' says Sofie. 'We're in a bit of a tight spot, but we're not in the pot yet!'
'Where's Sam?' asks Rose.
'I killed him,' says Sofie.
'He's not dead,' says Rose. 'If we both concentrate, maybe we can reach him.'
The girls call and call.
Sam hears someone calling him. It's strange though, the voices come from inside his head, his aching head. He sits up and rubs it.
'Sam, don't say anything,' says Sofie. 'Lie back down and cover yourself up, and for once don't say anything!'
'You are so bossy,' thinks Sam.
'Am not,' replies Sofie. 'It's important. Remember, we're rescuing Princess Rose. Well, it's all gone wrong and the Witch is going to cut us up and put us in her cauldron.'
'No sisters, what bliss,' thinks Sam.
'Oh, shut up Sam and rescue us!'
Sam is quiet for a minute, then says, 'Sofie, why did you put the antidote in the potion bottle?'
'That's what you do,' says Sofie. 'Then the Witch gives Rose the potion with the antidote in it and everyone lives happily ever after.'
'Girls,' says Sam, 'You spend too much time reading fairytales. Why didn't you give Rose the antidote?'
'Oh,' says Sofie.
'I was wondering,' says Rose.
Sam likes being able to talk using his thoughts, Sofie will get no peace now!
Sofie and Rose say to him, 'Look at the room. No, no, don't get up. Look with your mind.'
He doesn't know what they're on about for a minute, then he can see everything all at once. He can see what everyone is doing in the room, even behind him. Keeping his mind open and watching the Witch, Sam rolls out from under the towel and across under Rose's bed. He unscrews the top of his antidote bottle and passes it under the covers to Rose. She waits a minute until the Witch is busy tasting her potion, then gulps it down.
Nothing happens!
'Opps,' says Sofie.
'Well thanks for trying anyway. It did taste delicious,' says Rose.
'What we need is a plan,' says Sofie.
But there's no time for a plan. The bells it the town strike 12 noon.
'The time has come, time to die,' shrieks the Witch, raising her wand above her head, uttering a curse and aiming it at Rose.
Leah charges across the room and crashes into the Witch's legs.
A beam of magic shoots out of the wand and across the room, destroying the bathroom just as Sam dives out. The Witch kicks Leah out of the way, sending her sprawling against the wall.
'This time you're finished,' yells the Witch, bringing her wand down with a sweep of her hand.
Hisssssssssss, snarls Jinx as he bursts out of the wardrobe and with powerful magic knocks the wand out of the Witch's hand. It flies across the room and Sam catches it.
'I've always wanted one of these,' he says, and aims it at the Witch. A beam of light shoots out and blasts a hole in the wall just above her head.
'Wow!' exclaims Sam and starts blasting at the Witch, hitting everything but her.
Jinx jumps up, grabbing around the Witch's neck and scratching at her eyes.
In the middle of all the chaos, Sofie just sits there, cross legged with her eyes shut. 'Done it!' she says.
Lulu and Janjan jump up, free from the witchy twine and run for the wardrobe door. They don't make it.
The Witch catches Lulu and throws her at the bubbling cauldron. She sails through the air...
Then it happens.
BOOMPH!!
There's a mighty bang and a flash of lighting.
Lulu lands on the rubble strewn floor of the ruined hut and bursts into tears.
Through the dust and smoke Sofie shouts, 'It worked, it worked, the antidote has worked!'
The Witch is on the floor with Jinx pinning her down. Sam raises the wand to finish her off.
'No, let her go,' orders Rose.
Zubenelgenubl gets to her feet with a snarl, takes her broomstick out of the wardrobe, hops on and zooms out the window.
The Witch flies out across the harbour and into the sky.
Her broomstick just doesn't seem to be behaving. There's something wrong, like it's missing a twig or two!
The pilot of a big orange jet, making his final approach to Nice airport, can't believe his eyes as a witch on a broomstick comes zooming up towards him.
Smash, crash, chop, chop, chop!
Witchy gets sucked into the port engine. Bits go everywhere.
Yuck!
The engine catches fire and the jet yaws wildly, leaving a trail of thick black smoke as the pilot fights to control it.
The kids can hear shouts outside and there's a whirr of rotors as a helicopter hovers low overhead.
'Quick,' yells Rose. 'They're coming. Down the tunnel!'
She grabs a few things, throws them in her witchy bag and they run into the wardrobe, shutting the door just as the policemen enter the ruined hut. The policemen rub their eyes and peer through the dust wondering what on earth is going on?
Jinx and the kids run through the tunnel, out into the light at the other end and splash their way to the beach. There's no need to swim this time, the tide has finally gone out.
Their parents are having a picnic on the beach.
'Shouldn't you be looking for us?' says Leah. 'Everyone else is.'
'We were a bit worried but thought we might see you here,' says Mohammed.
'So, you rescued the Princess then?' says Caroline.
'Yes,' says Sofie. 'We did
it.'
'She looks lovely. Just like the Princess Rose you drew.'
Sam stands there, twiddling with the wand in his pocket, wondering what to zap next!
Chapter 12 - Big Trouble
The children think they're in big trouble, but for once, they don't seem to have done anything wrong. The police ask them lots of questions but they say nothing. Apart from Sam, that is, who confuses them with a lot of talk about Jinxs and Bingbors and rescuing the Princess from Zubenlgeneb!
The authorities don't like talk about witches or magic, or any other strange goings on. It might cause panic or riots, or worse still, a general strike. The smoking ruin of a hut that appeared on top of Fort Carre, is quickly demolished by the pompiers and nothing more said.
The Nice Matin the following day carries the headline Near crash at Nice Airport on the front page. The article says, Flight EZ 8349 from London flew into a flock of birds on its final approach to Nice Airport, causing its left engine to catch fire. Due to the skill of the pilot, the plane landed safely and a major disaster had been averted. The pilot and several passengers are being treated for shock.
Then on page four, in the Antibes section, there's a little column headed Lost Children Found and at the bottom of the next page, Gas Explosion at Fort Carre.
Rose is given a new red passport. Place of birth, Antibes, 7 September 1995, and nothing more is said about the incident.
Rose goes to live with Sofie, Sam and Lulu. It isn't even discussed, she just moves in as part of the family. She goes to school, not that she needs to, but she's happy to be doing the same things as the other girls of her age.
Sofie's mum, Caroline, does a bit of research and finds out that Rose has a claim to the English throne. After reading the newspapers and watching the TV, Rose decides that being Royal these days isn't what it used to be and is happy just to grow up like the other girls.
Jinx spends most of his time living with Leah and Janjan. Be it bringing back live rats and letting them go in the apartment, or other misdemeanors he's always in trouble.
He teaches Leah to fly on a broomstick.
They crash land, smashing through the window in a shower of splintered wood and glass and knocking over the TV.
'Now explain that,' he whispers in Leah's ear as she picks herself off the floor, dusting off shards of glass.
The End
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