The Light Keepers Trilogy Box Set (Books 1-3)

By Bettina Melher

In the fight against the darkness there are fates far worse than death…

The Light Keepers Trilogy Box Set: Books 1 - 3

This Box Set includes the entire Light Keepers Trilogy, bundled at a discounted price!

This spellbinding young adult trilogy is packed with magic, mystery, and a touch of romance. Fans of witchcraft, demons, and the world of the paranormal will enjoy this YA urban fantasy box set!


>>> In the Dark of Light (The Light Keepers Trilogy #1)

A dark secret, a chilling past, and a terrifying future.

When Victoria discovers a shocking secret at her grandmother’s funeral, everything she has ever known is suddenly thrown into question. As she hunts for the truth about her family’s past, she finds herself caught in an ancient battle between the world of light and the world of shadows. But it’s only when Liam, a new student at her school, falls into the clutches of evil itself, that Victoria realises just how dangerous her newfound knowledge really is.

Victoria must stop the evil forces before it’s too late.


>>> Eternal Darkness (The Light Keepers Trilogy #2)

There is something brewing in the town of Blackheath…something dark and ancient with the power to change the world forever.

Victoria knows that she should leave the past where it belongs—buried and forgotten—but her intuition tells her otherwise. She knows that there is more to her sister’s disappearance, and she can feel that her fight against the darkness is not over yet.

Victoria’s hunt for the truth leads her down deeper into the secrets and dangers of the world of magic. But with a new threat looming and an eternity of darkness waiting at the doorstep, she must prepare for her hardest challenge yet.

In this battle, failure is not an option.


>>> Shadow Whispers (The Light Keepers Trilogy #3)

There are fates worse than death…

Victoria and her family are desperate to move on with their lives and put their dark memories behind them. But just because things appear calm doesn’t mean the dark shadows are not there—in fact, they are closer than ever before.

This time, Victoria must risk everything and fight a battle that she can’t afford to lose—a battle which may very well be her last.


Get your copy of The Light Keepers Trilogy today and lift the veil of the shadow world for yourself!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Bettina Melher
• Release date: Jun 14, 2017
• ISBN: 9781386449911

Book preview

PROLOGUE

September, 1613 – England

Hundreds of eyes stared at her. They glistened with frenzied rage, the pure hatred in them unmistakable. Over the hills to the west, the sun was beginning to set, drowning the horizon in blood.

Burn her! someone called from the gathering crowd. More people began to shout foul words at Elvina. Only a few of them remained quiet. The crowd had worked itself up into a blood-thirsty frenzy, and began to chant, Burn the witch! Burn the witch!

Elvina closed her eyes in an attempt to escape reality, even if just for a moment. She had stopped trying to free herself. The ropes digging into her wrists, ankles and around her waist had sealed her fate. She knew what was coming and she had already accepted the fact that nothing and no one could save her now.

Today, she was going to die.

Proceed with the execution! Master Harlow called.

Elvina’s eyes shot open at the sound of his voice. It was the same voice that had sentenced her to death earlier that evening for being a witch and working with the devil.

The man standing to Elvina’s right looked at Harlow, nodded once, and lowered the torch to the stake’s base. The flames immediately spread through the hay and started to consume the dry wood. In an instant the ground below her was alight. The heat rose up with incredible force. Elvina took a deep breath and squeezed her eyes shut as the highest of the flames began to lick at her feet.

Almost everyone in the crowd cheered, except for the mothers who had recently lost their children; they wept and watched as the flames began to swallow the woman who they believed was responsible for their pain.

To the people it seemed that the very gates of hell had opened right in their little village and unleashed the horrors that resided within it.

For the last few months, babies, children and even young women had mysteriously disappeared in the night, and countless of men claimed to have seen a beautiful woman wandering around the village at night. A woman who they said they had never before seen. Then the mutilated bodies of animals were found in the streets and the villagers quickly concluded that these strange happenings were the work of the devil and his accomplices.

Master Harlow had travelled to countless of other villages in the hopes of eradicating those who worked with Satan. Hundreds of women had been accused of witchcraft and working to fulfil the devil’s wishes. They were tortured, hung and burnt at the stake, yet the disappearances and mutilations continued.

Elvina was innocent of the crimes she was accused of; however, she was a real witch. In a way, her death sentence was her own doing. She knew that she had been risking her life if someone were to catch her performing rituals in the woods. But Elvina had no choice—she’d had to use her magic powers in the hopes of saving the lives of innocent children targeted by the evil lurking in the shadows. Most importantly, she had to protect her own daughter, Camilla. She was only seven months old and Elvina had sensed a dark entity having attached itself to her little girl. She could not see the demon, but she knew it was there. She had encountered dark entities before, but never one like this.

Elvina’s husband, Jarvis, was the only one who knew what Elvina really was. She was a witch, but she was a good witch. A woman who served the light and protected the world of the living. She was a guardian of the world of light who fought to keep the entities who resided in the shadow world at bay. Elvina had risked her own life in the hopes of saving a hundred more. But no matter how careful she had been, she hadn’t realised that someone had been watching her closely.

Edith, a recent widow whose husband died in an unfortunate tree-lopping accident, had suspected that Elvina was a witch for quite some time now, so she had followed her late one night. Elvina had been unaware of Edith’s suspicions and ventured to the secret clearing near the edge of the forest. It was her favourite spot to perform her rituals, with an even ground and the trees offering protection from prying eyes.

That night had been an important one—it was full moon and the most powerful time to practice magic. Elvina set down the basket of supplies and had begun by drawing a large circle in the soft forest ground, followed by a pentagram inside it. She used a stick to draw long and precise lines, ensuring each point of the pentagram connected with the circle.

The rustling sound coming from the trees behind her, which Elvina mistook for a harmless animal, was actually Edith retreating back to the village. She had enough proof to accuse Elvina and bring her to justice.

Now, a mere two days later, Elvina was tied to the stake and was struggling to breathe as the flames crept closer.

Elvina met Edith’s eyes. She stood at the very front of the crowd and smiled, satisfied with her good deed of bringing a witch to justice. Elvina broke the gaze, desperately trying to ignore the intense heat. She searched the crowd for Jarvis and her little girl, but couldn’t find them. It was a relief. She knew that if they stayed around her little girl would be killed for having witches blood, and perhaps even Jarvis would be hung for being Elvina’s accomplice. Elvina had no idea where they were, but she prayed that they managed to get as far away as possible.

When Master Harlow and his men had come to take Elvina away, Jarvis and Camilla had barely escaped through the back window. Elvina wished she’d had the time to kiss her little girl goodbye and tell her husband how much she loved him, but it all happened too fast. The villagers were out for blood and Elvina found peace in the hopes of having given Jarvis and Camilla time to get away while they captured her.

Elvina could no longer tolerate the pain. The flames burned through her clothes and had started to boil and melt her skin. It was agonising and she only hoped that she would drift away soon. With one last glance, she searched the village square and through the smoke could just make out a dark figure hiding by the town’s mill in the distance. Elvina knew it was Jarvis. He carried a large bag on his back and cradled Camilla wrapped in blankets in his arms. He turned away and began heading for the dark forest, leaving the village and all its demons behind.

Shortly after, the screams started, but as with all the others who died at the stake before Elvina, the screams never lasted long. When it was all over, the blood-stained horizon had turned black, and with the darkness, the demons came out to play once again.

CHAPTER 1

Present day — Blackheath, New South Wales, Australia

Victoria hadn’t cried since she found out about her Nan’s death. Victoria’s mother, Alison, said that it was because she was still in shock and that they all had to be strong; and together, as a family, they would get through this.

What family? Now that Rhoslyn, or Nan Rose as she used to call her, was gone, the Hales weren’t much of a family. Now it was only Victoria and her mother. Years ago they were a normal family, back when her sister, Natalie, and their father, Tom, had still been with them. But that was a long time ago.

Vic, please try to eat something, Alison said, freeing Victoria from her thoughts.

Alison’s eyes were bloodshot and thick dark bags had formed underneath them. Her shoulder-length brown hair was firmly tied in a large bun at the crown. The blond highlights in her hair made it look like a cinnamon swirl and it was a painful reminder of Nan Rose. She would often wear her hair like this, only hers had been completely white.

Alison looked exhausted and it was easy to see that Rose’s death had shaken her to the very core. Victoria couldn’t bear seeing her mother like this, but there was nothing she could do or say that would console her, and nothing would bring Nan back.

Victoria shook her head. Food was the last thing on her mind. She couldn’t understand how anyone could feel like eating after just having been to the burial. The burial itself consisted of family and very close friends, but now virtually everyone Nan had known had come to gather at her home to eat, drink and celebrate her life.

Victoria could see that Alison was disappointed by her failed attempt to get her to eat. Victoria hadn’t eaten all day, but then again neither had her mother. Alison nodded once and kissed her daughter on the forehead. At the tender age of seventeen Victoria had already been through so much and now Rose was gone too.

Victoria smiled sadly and turned to leave.

Where are you going? Alison asked, her brow creasing. It seemed she had aged another five years at least.

I need to get some fresh air, Victoria said, her voice strained, trying to hold back the tears.

She hadn’t cried all this time and now, when the house was full of people, her emotions finally decided to make an appearance.

Victoria hurried out the front door of the Queen-Anne-style home. It was a beautiful house and by far the nicest on Hat Hill road. The red brick walls and white-painted woodwork of the windows made it really stand out. There was a small gothic tower right above the crescent shaped veranda. Tears pricked Victoria’s eyes as she hurried down the steps leading from the veranda into the immaculate front yard. Large Rhododendrons, in Nan’s favourite shade of pink, offered the front yard privacy from the road.

She was glad to be away from her Nan’s bingo friends. All she wanted was to be alone and mourn the loss of her grandmother.

As soon as Victoria reached the last step of the porch, safely away from the sympathetic eyes of Nan’s friends, the tears began to flow. She was relieved to be out of the house, away from everyone and glad to be on her own. She couldn’t take any more sympathetic comments and sloppy wet kisses on her cheeks. She knew they all meant well and that they were just as shocked and devastated as she was, but Victoria doubted that anybody understood what she felt like. Nan had been like a second mother to her and now she was gone. The house, in which she virtually grew up in, was now nothing but an empty shell of a once warm and loving home.

Victoria wiped her tears with the back of her hand and the warm breeze dried them gently. She made her way to the oak tree, which sat right beside the house and the narrow driveway. She sat on the grass below it, resting her back against the bark. This had been her spot since she was a little girl. The warm, spring air was soothing. She closed her eyes and focused on the happy memories she had shared with Nan. Her fingers found the crystal pendant around her neck: it had been a gift from Nan when she was only eight years old and she had worn it ever since. Nan had given it to her shortly after her sister died. Victoria’s fingers caressed the smooth sides of the stone. Rose had been taken too soon. Now she wouldn’t get to see Victoria graduate or celebrate her eighteenth birthday. Victoria’s only solace was that Nan had lived a long and happy life.

The sound of footsteps approaching interrupted her quiet time. She sighed inwardly and turned to see who it was.

What are you doing out here? Uncle Jeremy asked when he reached her.

I needed to get away for a bit. Just sit alone for a while.

Jeremy shuffled uncomfortably. I’ll let you be then. I just wanted to make sure you’re okay.

He turned to leave when Victoria said, I’m okay. How are you and Julie doing?

Julie was Uncle Jeremy’s wife and although Victoria never had a close connection to her, she and Alison were best friends.

Jeremy turned to face her again and used his arm to support himself against the tree. They were now both looking out over Nan’s backyard, their backs turned to the quiet street that was lined with parked cars.

You know… We’re coping. It’s not easy on any of us.

I know Nan wouldn’t want to see us sad… she would want us to celebrate the life she’s had, not mourn her death, but it’s just so hard.

I think the hardest part is still to come, but that’s up to your mum and me. We’ll start clearing the house tomorrow, so we can put it on the market while it’s still a good time to sell. In times like these, the market can change in a matter of weeks.

Victoria thought about offering to help, but she knew Uncle Jeremy wouldn’t accept; and besides, she didn’t think she would actually be able to go through with it. Just being in Nan’s house, knowing that she wasn’t there and that she was never coming back was hard enough.

Thanks, Jeremy, Victoria said as fresh tears welled in her eyes.

It’ll be okay. She’s in a better place now and she’s probably looking down on us right now.

Yeah, she probably is, Victoria said, looking up at the clear blue sky.

They hugged and Victoria watched as Jeremy walked back to the house.

A few minutes later, Victoria decided to head back inside. As she entered through the front door, a few guests looked up to meet her eyes, but Victoria quickly turned away. At the foot of the stairs, Spark, Nan’s black-and-grey Siberian cat, meowed quietly. He climbed up two steps and looked back at Victoria.

I know… I miss her too, Victoria thought, sensing Spark’s confusion at his owner’s absence.

Spark meowed once more and continued up the stairs, until he reached the halfway bend, leading up to the second floor of the house.

Instinctively, Victoria followed him.

What is it, Spark? she asked, trying to keep her voice low.

Although this was Nan’s home and she had spent most of her childhood in this house, it felt strangely forbidden to walk upstairs without Nan being there.

Still, she followed him all the way into Nan’s bedroom, where he jumped onto the bed and stared at her. Victoria had never seen Spark act so strangely. She didn’t blame him, but it was starting to freak her out a little.

Come on, tubby, she said as she leaned over the bed to pick him up, but he swiftly moved away from her.

Spark, what’s wrong?

A shimmer from the corner of her eye caught her attention. It was the reflection of glass inside a photo frame on top of the dresser.

Spark lay down and began to purr, something he only did when he was being scratched on his belly or when Nan would pick him up. Natalie walked over to take a closer look at the photograph. It had been taken back when the Hales were still a family. It was here at Nan’s house, and the family had gathered to celebrate Rose’s birthday. Victoria had only been six years old then and her sister, Natalie, was nine. They were both grinning and hugging each other. Their parents stood behind them. They too were smiling and looked very much in love. Then there was Uncle Jeremy and Aunt Julie, and their two sons, Aiden and Jason. It was a beautiful photo and it made Victoria wish that just for a while things returned to the way they were.

When Victoria turned her attention back to Spark, she saw that he was looking at something on the ceiling. He was staring at it.

Victoria expected to see a big spider, but instead there was a thick rope hanging from a ceiling door. Victoria had only ever known of one door that led up to the roof, and it was out in the hallway. As far as she knew, Nan’s house didn’t even have an attic. The space was usually left empty, only used for insulation and wiring. Victoria knew that she shouldn’t go through Nan’s belongings, but Spark’s strange behaviour told her that she should at least have a quick look at what was up there.

Despite being quite tall, Victoria struggled to reach the rope. When she finally did, she pulled hard, expecting the door to require a lot of effort to open, but it came down with a swing, catching Victoria completely by surprise.

The door had a built-in ladder that extended effortlessly. Although it was early afternoon, there was no source of light in the attic: the ladder went straight up into darkness.

Victoria started to climb the ladder. She pulled her phone out of the pocket of her pants and switched on the flashlight feature.

As she reached the top the entire attic came into view. There was a small round window at the far wall, but it was covered with a transparent black sheet, allowing only a trickle of light to shine through. The phone’s light did very little, but she could just make out a table pushed up against the wall, right below the window. It was a very large table and was crammed with stuff on top. A strange shimmering light on top of the table caught her eye.

Vic! What are you doing?

Victoria jumped, almost dropping her phone. She looked back down and saw her mother standing there, eyes wide and hands on her hips.

Victoria felt her cheeks grow hot. She felt like a thief who had just been caught red-handed.

I was just looking, she said, then quickly added, I wanted to see the whole house before it gets sold.

Alison waited until Victoria descended the ladder again. She did not look impressed.

You shouldn’t be up here! Especially not today. You should be downstairs with everybody else, Alison said, her voice cutting the air like a sharp knife. She had changed from a mourning daughter to a scornful mother in an instant.

I’m sorry, Mum. I don’t understand why you’re so mad, I just want—

You’re never to go up there again, do you understand? There’s nothing but old boxes of junk.

But Mum, I didn’t do any—

Enough! Alison said, holding her right hand in front of her.

Victoria couldn’t understand why her mother would overreact like this. She couldn’t remember the last time she had seen her this angry. This was Nan’s home and her mother treated her like she was a stranger who had just been caught stealing.

Victoria could only shake her head in both defeat and disappointment. She walked past her without another look, and Spark quickly followed suit, leaving Alison standing in Rose’s bedroom alone.

Over an hour later, most of which Victoria spent in the kitchen trying to avoid her mother and Nan’s friends, the house was almost empty again. The last trickle of guests had said their goodbyes and now it was only family left.

Victoria emerged from the kitchen after she finished stacking the dishwasher. Julie, Jeremy and Alison were sitting around the coffee table and speaking quietly. They immediately stopped when they noticed Victoria standing by the door. She was carrying Spark’s transport cage in her left hand, and felt Spark’s weight shift as he nervously paced from side to side.

I’m finished now, Victoria said.

Oh, thank you, sweetheart. We still have a lot to discuss, so Jason and Aiden will drive you home.

Victoria nodded and then walked out. She could tell that her mother was feeling guilty. Victoria had absolutely no idea why her mother would react the way she did. She couldn’t shake the feeling that she was hiding something from her, and now she pretended like nothing had happened at all.

Victoria felt a little better once she was inside the car, knowing that she would be home soon. Despite the circumstances, she enjoyed seeing her cousins again. Aiden was twenty-three years old and very likeable. She liked him more than Jason, partly because Jason didn’t make much of an effort to talk to anyone. He was usually locked up in his room playing video games.

I guess Spark is all yours now, Aiden said, looking at Victoria in the rear-view mirror.

Yeah, he is. I just hope he won’t struggle to get used to his new surroundings. Poor guy thinks he’s going to the vet, I’m sure.

Aiden smiled and Victoria noticed that he had changed a lot since she had seen him last. He lived in Sydney and even though it was only a two-hour drive, he rarely visited his parents and younger brother, let alone Victoria or her mother. His face appeared the same, except for the extra facial hair, but he seemed more mature and it pained her to think what Natalie must have looked like if she hadn’t died. She had only been three years younger than him.

How are things at school? Aiden asked, distracting her from her thoughts.

Victoria hesitated. The last thing she wanted to think about now was school. After this weekend she’d have to go back there for another term until she finally graduated year twelve. She couldn’t stand school. It wasn’t the learning—on the contrary, she actually enjoyed it—but she just couldn’t fit in with the other students, and never had. She was a loner and since her father left and her sister died, she had often been bullied and picked on by the more popular groups in her grade. She did her best to ignore them, but it had been hard to do when it was usually more than five against one.

A lot of people still gossiped about the Hale family, and sometimes when Victoria and her mother would go to shop for groceries or go for a long walk, they would get curious looks and hushed comments about her father or Natalie. It was usually the older people in the town, but it still hurt.

Her sister’s death hadn’t exactly been normal. A lot of people speculated whether something more sinister had been at play, but as far as Victoria knew, she had fallen very ill and then passed away in the night. What really bothered Victoria, though, now that she was old enough to understand and make her own opinion of her sister’s death, was that there had been no burial, and that instead her body had been cremated and her ashes cast out into the forest.

Whenever Victoria had brought the topic up with her mother, or back then even with Nan, they would refuse to talk about it. They said it pained them too much, which was understandable enough, but Victoria always thought there was something in the family history that they didn’t want Victoria to know…a dark secret that was waiting to be discovered. And the more she thought about it, especially her mother’s strange behaviour and Spark guiding her to the attic, the feeling that she was closer to an answer to the mystery, grew stronger.

Victoria?

Aiden’s voice startled her.

So, what about school? You’ve only got like two months left?

Yeah, thank God. It’s just over two months until graduation. But I don’t plan on going to the formal. I just want this year to be over already, Victoria said, knowing that she was probably the only girl in the world that didn’t plan on going to the formal—one of the most important evenings of a high school student’s life.

Aiden nodded in agreement. Well, you won’t miss much. It’s not all it’s cracked up to be.

Victoria knew he was lying through his teeth, since he had been class captain and one of the popular kids in his high school times, but she appreciated his efforts in making her feel better about it nonetheless.

A few minutes later, Victoria thanked her cousins for the lift home and hurried inside. She made herself a cup of coffee, set Spark’s food and water bowl up and settled on the couch with Danielle Steel’s latest novel. She desperately needed a distraction, and reading had always been her favourite way of escaping reality.

She opened the book but only stared at the words on the page. Spark trotted along the living room, having spent the last five minutes exploring his new home. He meowed once, as if asking for permission to join Victoria.

Come on up, tubby, she said and Spark jumped onto her legs and settled there. He started to purr and closed his eyes.

Victoria closed the book and played her mother’s strange reaction over and over again in her mind. She just couldn’t put her finger on it, but something wasn’t right. There was something in the attic that her mother didn’t want her to see, and Victoria knew that if she had any hopes of finding out what this secret was, she would have to do it very soon. The house could sell within a week and then her chance would be gone forever.

Victoria’s mind was set. She had a plan and knew if she didn’t act on her gut instinct now, the question would plague her for the rest of her life.

CHAPTER 2

Victoria knew she was sleeping, but even in her sleep she was aware that she was dreaming. It was Nan’s funeral and she watched as the casket was being lowered into the ground. She saw her mother crying and being comforted by Uncle Jeremy and Aunt Julie. Victoria watched from above, although the scene was almost identical to the actual funeral, Victoria was nowhere to be seen. The casket finally stopped moving as it reached its final resting place. Her mother’s sobbing stopped and she, along with Jeremy and Julie, faded away. Now it was only the casket, and a thick black smoke was rising from deep within the grave. It accelerated and rushed up straight towards Victoria, until it completely engulfed her.

Victoria gasped for air and the familiar surroundings of her bedroom confirmed that that it had just been a dream. Her dark brown hair lay matted against her forehead and she brushed it off with sweaty palms. The oversized T-shirt clung to her back and she kicked the blanket off herself. She propped herself up on her elbows and calmed her breathing. Soft rain tapped on the window outside and in the distance there were flashes of light, but no sounds of thunder. Nan’s sudden death would haunt her for months to come—that she knew. She missed her dearly and wished she had at least stayed around long enough to see her graduate.

Spark, who had been lying by Victoria’s feet during the night, suddenly started to purr and sat up in bed. He meowed once and stared at the far right corner of the room, right beside the door.

Victoria looked in that direction but couldn’t see anything at first. Then she slowly saw the outline of a person take shape. She held her breath as she watched, frozen in both horror and fascination. The outline first started as a white fog and slowly solidified. Then she recognised the person—it was Nan!

She looked just like she always did—a long, oversized cardigan, pleated pants, and her long white hair rolled in a perfect bun at the top of her head.

Spark continued to purr and stared at his old owner. Victoria couldn’t believe her eyes. It really was Nan.

Victoria was no longer scared, but it was still eerie to see a ghostly vision of her grandmother. She knew that this was real—this was not a trick of her own imagination, or a vivid dream.

The longer she looked at her Nan’s vision, the stronger and more distinct the features became. The fine lines around her kind eyes, the deep creases along her neck; everything was as it had been only days ago.

Nan looked directly at Victoria. Her eyes were soft and knowing. She virtually spoke through her eyes… and suddenly, just like that, Victoria could hear her, although Nan’s lips never moved.

It’s time, Victoria… You must be brave. Trust your strength and prepare for the dark. Prepare to fight the shadows.

Victoria had no idea what Nan meant, but she instantly remembered the table at the far wall of the attic and the shimmering light that had caught her eye.

Rose nodded in agreement, almost as if she had read Victoria’s thoughts, and then with a kind, yet somehow sad smile, she disappeared. The vision of her simply faded away, until she was gone completely.

Victoria was lost for words. Her eyes were unwilling to stray from the very spot her dead grandmother had just appeared in. She wondered if this had just been a product of her own imagination or whether Nan Rose was trying to tell her something from beyond the grave.

Spark made his way closer to Victoria, his purring had stopped. She stroked him gently and settled back in her bed.

Victoria could not sleep for the rest of that night. All she could do was try to figure out what on Earth Nan Rose could have possibly meant.

*

Are you sure you don’t need me to come with you, Mum? Victoria asked, knowing her mother would say no.

Alison’s handbag was already on her shoulder and she scrambled through paperwork that was scattered on the kitchen table. There was a long pause until Alison finished gathering the papers she needed.

Thank you, sweetheart, but Jeremy and I will take care of everything. I’m going to meet him at the funeral home first, so we can finalise the payments and approve the inscription on Nan’s headstone. After that we’ll start clearing the house, but I should be back just after lunch.

Alison looked up to meet her daughter’s eyes. She sighed and walked over to her. I know it’s difficult, but we have to keep reminding ourselves that Nanna was old. The most important thing is that she lived a long and very happy life.

I know.

Alison kissed her daughter on the forehead and then rushed out the door.

Victoria watched as the car backed out of the driveway until it disappeared down the street. She quickly cleared the dishes from breakfast, finished the last two sips of her coffee and hurried upstairs to get changed. If she wanted to beat her mother and uncle to Nan’s house, without them knowing she had been there, she would have to be quick. She checked her watch: it was six minutes to nine. It usually took her half an hour to walk to Nan’s house, using a shortcut which Alison had forbidden her daughter to use a long time ago. The shortcut led through a section of dense bushland, but Victoria didn’t see the harm in taking it. If someone were to abduct her, they could just as easily do it from any of the other streets in town. If she walked faster than usual, she could maybe shave an extra ten minutes off the trip.

Moments later, Victoria said goodbye to Spark and rushed out of the house. She walked as fast as she possibly could without actually running. Victoria had taken this route many times before; her mother not knowing that she had broken her promise of sticking to the main streets a long time ago.

She prayed that her mother and Jeremy would stay at the funeral home for at least half an hour. This should give her just enough time to get there, find out what’s hidden in the attic and make her way back home without being detected.

She wondered what she would later tell her mother if she happened to stop by home on the way back to Nan’s, only to find her daughter missing. Any normal seventeen-year-old girl could say she spent the day at her friend’s house, like so many girls did during the holidays, but Victoria wasn’t a normal girl. She was different. She had no friends and it was something that bothered her more and more the older she got.

Most of the students at her school were out partying, drinking, hanging out with their group of friends, while Victoria stayed at home and read books, watched movies or spent time with her mother. She tried to make friends, but the Hale family was tarnished in this town. Victoria often fantasised about moving to a new city, starting in a new school, where nobody knew them and the rumours about them. It was a dream—a dream that most normal teens her age feared.

Only a couple more months, then you won’t ever have to see these people again, Victoria thought to herself.

She fumbled the spare key attached to a silver-cat key ring in her hand. It was the fourth spare set of keys to Nan’s house. Alison, Jeremy and Julie had the other three spares. Nan had given it to her years ago and Victoria was glad she had decided to hold onto it. Seeing the key ring brought tears to her eyes. The little cat held a heart which had the words I Love You Fur-ever engraved in it.

As she walked down Hat Hill road, she couldn’t help but look back over her shoulder every few steps she took. But she didn’t see her mother’s car driving towards her. She quickened her pace a little more, ignoring the stitch she had been fighting for the last ten minutes.

She hurried along and finally came to the house. There were no cars parked at the front or in the driveway. Victoria rushed to the front door, leaping up the veranda stairs in only two steps. She unlocked the door, slipped inside and quickly locked it behind her again. Should her mother and Jeremy decide to turn up while she was still in the house, she could at least escape through the back door.

Victoria pressed her back against the door and looked up at the staircase leading up to the second floor in front of her. Suddenly she felt as if she weren’t alone in the house. It wasn’t frightening, but she wasn’t sure whether she felt Nan’s presence or if it was something else. She had loved this house so much, but now that Nan was gone it would never feel the same again. Victoria decided she didn’t like being here all alone and knew she would have to hurry before she changed her mind about going back up into the attic.

She hesitantly made her way up the stairs. A short moment later she entered Nan’s bedroom. It was untouched, just as it had been yesterday, but when she looked up to the ceiling she saw that the rope which was attached to the ceiling door had been removed. There was nothing dangling from the hook which would allow her to reach the rope and pull the door down.

Her mother must have removed it yesterday, which only confirmed Victoria’s suspicions of something being up there that her mother did not want her to find.

She needed something to stand on, and the bed was too far to the right. The heavy timber frame and queen mattress would be too heavy for her to move on her own.

Think, Victoria! Think, she muttered to herself, annoyed with whoever had built this house and decided it was necessary to have such high ceilings on the second floor.

Her eyes went wide at a thought. She rushed to the wardrobe on the other side of the room and opened it with urgency.

Sorry, Nan, she said, taking one of the hangers and removing the dress hanging on it.

Using the long side of the coat hanger, Victoria managed to pull the door open far enough for her hand to then push it down all the way. The ladder extended once again and she slowly made her way up to the attic.

It looked just the same as yesterday and she used her phone’s flashlight to guide the way. She was old enough to know that there were no monsters hiding in the attic, but as soon as her upper body was inside, she scanned the entire surroundings using the light to ensure there were no possums or bats lurking in the shadows.

Satisfied that she was alone, Victoria stepped inside and searched for a light switch. She expected to need to crouch, but as she tried to stand up straight she found that there was just enough space for her to walk straight down the centre of the attic. The angle of the roof slanted sharply, leaving little room on the sides. She found a long rope in the middle of the room and pulled it. The attic was immediately flooded in a warm yellow glow. The three far walls near the door were lined with cardboard boxes, old lamp shapes, and stacks of books next to a dismantled dressmaker’s mannequin.

Victoria turned to face the window and for the first time saw what was on the large table beneath it. This, she knew, was the sole reason her mother was so desperate to keep her away.

Nan… What were you doing up here? Victoria whispered to the empty attic.

The table was much larger than it first appeared. It had a beautiful, dark timber top and thick wooden legs. The feet were each shaped as a claw grasping a ball. The desk itself showed a lot of wear and it was packed to the very edges with the strangest items Victoria had ever seen.

There were dozens of candles, all in different sizes and colours. Some of the candles had strange symbols carved on their side. There were lots of small wooden bowls, each filled with various crystals and stones. The whole right top corner of the table was dedicated entirely to books. There were stacks of them on top of another. Then there were small bowls of rock salt, herbs and ground spices heaped on a round plate.

Victoria couldn’t understand what something like this would be doing in Nan’s house. Nan had always been a clean freak and she was meticulous when it came to organisation and cleanliness, yet this desk was cluttered with the strangest assortment of objects Victoria had ever seen. The only things she recognised were the mortar and pestle, the deck of Tarot cards, and four dice. Absolutely everything on this desk pointed to the fact that Nan Rose had been practicing witchcraft.

Amongst these items were more crystals—many as large as a tennis ball—black feathers—presumably from a crow—incense, and the smallest little glass bottles with brown, clear, blue and purple liquids inside.

The sound of a car horn startled Victoria and a small shriek escaped her lips. She looked around the attic, feeling silly for having reacted like this. She lifted the black sheet draped over the window and to her relief it was someone else’s car, but she had to hurry. Time was ticking and now that she had seen what she had, she knew she had to salvage what she could before her mother would get rid of it.

Victoria had the strongest sensation and felt her Nan’s presence with her. It suddenly all made perfect sense to her—Nan had used Spark to guide her up to the attic. She had visited her last night, and now she was certain that this was not a result of grief and an overactive imagination. Nan Rose was trying to communicate with her and Victoria would not give up until she would get to the bottom of this. It appeared there was a part of Nan that had been a secret—a double life she hadn’t known about, until now.

Victoria noticed the largest item of all in the centre of the desk. Underneath a crystal ball was a massive, leather-bound book. It was roughly the size of her laptop and about ten centimetres thick. It looked ancient, and as Victoria lifted the glass ball off the cover, she saw a gold emblem of a star in the centre of the leather. But the star wasn’t any normal star, it was a pentagram—continuous lines that formed a five-pointed star. She had seen the symbol many times before in movies and TV shows.

Victoria ran her fingers over the top, feeling the rough, thick leather of the book and the rise in texture of the golden pentagram. She felt uneasy about looking through these things, sensing that Nan was not at all who she appeared to be. Could it really be that she was a witch? The thought alone scared her, especially seeing the pentagram, which as far as Victoria knew was a sign of the devil.

The thick book almost spoke to her, and a sudden urge overcame her to open its pages, but she wasn’t sure whether she was ready to do that yet. She feared what she might find inside.

Victoria checked her watch; she had been up here for over ten minutes already and was worried that she would be caught red-handed once again. But she wasn’t willing to leave all of this behind. What if her mother forgot it up there, only to leave a precious part of Nan’s secret life behind for the next owners to find? What if she decided to throw it all away?

She couldn’t let that happen.

Frantic, Victoria rushed to the back of the attic and searched for an empty box so she could take all of these things with her. She knew she wouldn’t be able to physically carry everything on her own, but given the circumstances she would have to go with her gut feeling and take what she thought could be most important.

As she crossed the centre of the attic floor, she noticed she was standing in the centre of a huge pentagram, just like the one on top of the leather book. The pentagram had been scratched into the old floorboards using a knife or rock. Dozens of scratches formed the thick outline of the five-pointed star. It also appeared that the pentagram’s lines had been rubbed over and over again, the wood showing signs of significant wear.

Victoria kneeled on the ground and ran her fingers over the deep grooves of the floorboards. She inspected her fingers and felt a grainy residue on them. The pentagram’s lines had been rubbed with charcoal or a black powder of some kind.

She got back on her feet and rushed to the stack of boxes along the wall where she found a relatively large, half-empty box. She swiftly threw away the old romance novels with those cliché half-naked women and overly muscular men on the covers into another box and rushed back to the large table.

She started with the thick book with the pentagram on it and gently placed it into the bottom of the box. It must have weighed at least two kilos. Then she added the bowl of crystals and stones, the tarot cards, a few pouches that contained more rocks and everything else that she managed to fit. She didn’t have time to think what she was taking; she had to hurry and get back home without getting caught.

When she could fit no more, she took a quick glance back at what appeared to have been Nan’s magical workstation and lifted the box filled with her Nan’s belongings. With her free hand she turned off the light and hurried down the ladder. It was a difficult climb down, but somehow she managed to do so without rolling her ankle. She needed to get back home and investigate what all of this meant; and she had to do it without her mother finding out. Victoria knew that her mother would find out. She doubted she would simply leave these items up there for the next owner to find, but she decided she would deal with it when the time came. For now, all that mattered was to get away and pray that her mother and uncle wouldn’t arrive before she managed to get home.

She set the box down on the floor and listened, holding her breath. No engine sound, no sound of the front door being unlocked. She still had time, but not much. She quickly pushed the ladder back inside and pushed the door as high as she could reach, then with the aid of the coat hanger and standing the bed, she pushed it up the rest of the way until the quiet click confirmed the latch was closed again.

Victoria doubted she would have another chance to return and retrieve the rest of the items, and depending on what she found in that mysterious book, she wasn’t yet sure whether she would even want to return.

She returned the dress and the coat hanger, and then flattened the creased blanket on the bed from where she stood. After she checked the rest of the room and ensured that everything was exactly as she had found it, she rushed back downstairs. The box was heavy and she wondered how on Earth she was going to carry it all the way home, but she figured she would just take as many breaks as she needed, and as long as she didn’t get caught, it really didn’t matter.

Her mother’s car was nowhere to be seen. Victoria locked the front door and hurried down the street as quickly as she could without actually running.

Several stops to catch her breath and just under half an hour later, Victoria was at home with a box full of secrets and Nan Rose’s double life to discover. Was she really ready to find out what Nan had been doing in the attic? Why would she have kept it a secret? And how much did her mum know of this? Surely she knew something, otherwise she wouldn’t have been so careful to remove the string to the attic and demand that Victoria never go up there again. You’re never to go up there again, do you understand? There’s nothing but old boxes… she had said to her.

Spark showed interest in the box when Victoria brought it inside.

Hey, tubby, she said softly. Yeah, this is all Nanna’s… Should we have a look?

She carried the box up to her room and settled it on the carpet in front of her bed. The big box she had carried all this way was now sitting in front of her like a treasure chest she was seeing for the first time.

She checked the time. She still had a couple of hours until her mother would return and even if she came home early, she’d put everything back in the box and hide it in her wardrobe, at least until she was ready to talk to her about it, if that was even an option. It all depended on what she was going to find in this book. It had a strange feeling to it, almost as if it were a living, breathing thing, and not a leather-bound book of papers.

She pulled all the other strange bits and pieces out of the box, being careful not to damage them in any way. She’d get to the other items eventually, but for now she wanted to see the book first. It seemed the most important.

The book’s weight rested on her lap and she felt the entire surface with her hands. It seemed so personal, almost like she was about to read her Nan’s diary. Spark watched her; he was obviously curious as well.

She opened the cover and read the fine handwriting of liquid ink: Rhoslyn Hale’s Book of Light. Inside the cover was an envelope. It was blank. The envelope seemed so modern compared to the pages of the book—it was not meant to be there. It didn’t belong.

Victoria lifted the envelope and on the other side, in black ink, it read: For Victoria. Love, Nan.

It seemed that Nan Rose had left a message for her after all.

CHAPTER 3

The envelope was sealed with a thick drop of red candle wax and stamped with a five-pointed star and the letters R.H. inside it. Victoria’s hands trembled as she carefully lifted the flap apart. Although the envelope was significantly younger compared to the book itself, the wax was brittle and came apart with surprising ease. This letter must have been left in the book for many years. Victoria had no idea what it could be about, but whatever it was, Nan Rose must have known that Victoria would eventually find it.

She lifted the paper out and immediately recognised Nan’s handwriting.

The letter was dated December, over nine years ago. It had been a time of great darkness in the Hale family. Her sister had fallen ill and died that August. Shortly after her father simply left, abandoning the family for a fresh start in life.

Victoria blinked the tears welling in her eyes away, attempting to clear her vision. It did very little. She wiped them away using her shirt’s sleeve and took a deep breath in.

Her grandmother’s cursive and precise lettering read,

My dearest Victoria,

If you are reading this, I am afraid I no longer walk this Earth. Please do not mourn my death. I am still around you, I am with you even when it seems you are alone. My guidance is the very reason that you’re holding this letter in your hands, so do not fear the signs that are guiding you on your way.

I understand you must have a lot of questions, but I am sorry, for you will not find all the answers to them in this letter. It is not because I choose not to tell you, believe me. If I could have shown you this part of our lives, I would have done so a long time ago. However, there are rules we must follow and there are forces at work which would make it dangerous for you and our family if I had shared this with you before the time was right.

I did, however, feel I had to do something. I could not leave you wondering for the rest of your life. I trust you will learn soon enough and our secrets will resurface eventually. I only hope that you will learn the truth.

I am terribly sorry and guilty for having kept these secrets to myself, knowing that I may take them to my grave. I mustn’t tell you what it is. You shall find out when, if ever, the time is right. I hope the day will come while I still live and the need for this letter will be no longer, by which time I will have destroyed it.

However, the fact that you are holding this letter in your hands, Victoria, I am afraid it is not so. I can only guide you along the way; but, Victoria, it is ultimately up to you whether or not you are ready to discover who you really are. You must follow your heart.

I could not teach you and open your eyes to this world while your mother still resented it. I had promised her that I would stop using my craft, but I simply couldn’t bring myself to stop doing something that is a part of us. I know that a promise is a promise, and I have never disappointed your mother, but in this case things are very different. You must understand that this is in our blood and always will be… Our craft, the powers we have as white witches, is not something one can simply walk away from. Yes, it is both a blessing and a curse, as you shall find out for yourself one day, but it is our fate. We are the defenders—the keepers of the light. We are the ones who are responsible for ensuring that our world is the one that remains in the light, for when the tides are turned and the shadows come to light, we have no chance of turning them back. Then we will be the ones condemned to live our lives in the darkness.

Victoria, you are not alone. Your mother and I also weren’t alone with our duties. There are thousands of us out there, each single one of us are fighting the dark in our own ways. But together we all serve the same purpose—we serve the light.

Just as many as there are of the white witches, there are just as many, if not more of the dark ones. I hope you will never encounter someone who serves the dark, for they use their powers to free the demons and evil entities that reside in the shadows. Not only do the dark ones communicate and summon demons of the shadow world into the world of light, but their sole purpose is to turn the tides. They are the ones who are working towards switching the worlds around. And we must stop them.

There will come a time when the portals to both worlds will align perfectly, making the switch easier for the dark ones. I don’t know when this will occur, and if it will even happen in your lifetime, but you must be prepared. You must be ready to stop them when the time comes.

Victoria, I hope I did not frighten you with this letter. I so hope that there won’t be a need for you to ever read this, but that, my dear, even I cannot predict.

You don’t have to follow in my footsteps and take your place in this world as a light keeper. It is entirely up to you and I can only advise you to think of your final decision very carefully. But the only way to the truth—the truth about our past and your future—is to accept your calling and use the powers you were born with.

I made an oath a long time ago to fight the darkness, and I will honour that oath until the day I die, even if I had to hide it from my own daughter and you, my dear Victoria.

Us white witches are fighting an ancient battle—a battle that always has and always will be. One world cannot exist without the other, but we must do everything in our powers to prevent the dark ones from turning the tides. We must protect our world. We must stay in the light, for the darkness is always there and always waiting…

I love you, Victoria. And I can only hope that you will make the right decision for yourself. I hope you discover the truth.

Take good care of yourself and your mother.

Love,

Nan

Victoria stared at the letter long after she had finished reading it. Magic, witchcraft, demons and two worlds that are in an eternal battle. And somehow Victoria was now in the middle of it all. What was more, Nan Rose wrote about secrets that she could not share with her family, but which Victoria had to discover for herself.

Victoria’s suspicions had been confirmed, but she had no idea what to make of it. She hated to admit it, but she felt incredibly hurt and deceived for having to find out like this.

What if she had never gone to Nan’s home to look in the attic? What if her mother and Jeremy had sold it without her ever getting her hands onto this letter?

You must understand that this is in our blood and always will be… Our craft, the powers we have as white witches, is not something one can simply walk away from… The words echoed in her mind. Could it be true? Was Victoria a witch as well?

Why did her mother ask Nan to stop using her powers? What was she so afraid of?

Hundreds of questions bubbled in her mind and Victoria made herself stop. She folded the letter and put it back into the envelope. She returned to the open book on her lap and turned to the first page.

It was filled from top to bottom with her grandmother’s handwriting: some parts were in a large font, others were covered in sketches and drawings of the moon, plants and other strange symbols.

Skimming over the page, it came to appear that the text was some kind of warning.

I am my owner’s only, for she has birthed me wholly,

If you look, you must know,

The wisdom will not come and go,

Whether you do good or bad,

Expect it back three times as mad,

Know your craft, know the rules,

Summon only those who soothe,

Protect and serve, never loathe,

Trust you me and I shall be

Forever yours for all eternity.

There was another pentagram in the top right corner, and inside it was a drop of blood. Victoria tried to imagine her grandmother sitting at the table in her attic, pricking her finger and watching as the drop of blood hit the paper. It seemed so strange, so unnatural. She continued to flick through the book, going through countless of pages filled with spells, drawings, sketches and feathers, leaves and dried plants glued inside them. The more she read and saw, the more it seemed that this was a fairly harmless book of natural medicinal potions, teas and instructions to help the ill, but then, about halfway through the book, the text and drawings became more complex. There were instructions of how to cast a spell, how to break a spell, how to summon entities of the unseen world and how to protect oneself from demons, black witches and dark magic.

There were photos glued into some of the pages, depicting a group of five women standing inside a pentagram in the woods, holding hands. The pages near the end of the book showed drawings and spells about demons, protection of dark entities and horrifying sketches of beasts with horns, hooves and other half-human, half-animal beasts.

Victoria had seen enough for now. It was all starting to get to be too much for her. She closed the book and put it aside. In that moment Victoria felt a lot of different emotions; but mostly, she felt confused.

Spark took the book’s place on her lap and Victoria stroked his fur absentmindedly.

Just like that, from one day to another, her life had changed and was turned upside down once again. If there was one thing Victoria had always wished for, it was to be just a normal teenager, to be like everyone else, to be accepted, and not to have a weird family with a troubled past and dark secrets.

She finally peeled herself off the floor when she heard the car pull into the driveway. She made her way down the stairs and met her mother as she entered through the front door.

Oh, hey, sweetheart, Alison said. She looked exhausted, but when she saw her daughter’s face she was suddenly alert.

Honey, what’s wrong? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.

I’m okay, Mum. But we need to talk.

Of course. What is it?

Alison had locked the door behind her and set her handbag down