Free The Missing Link by David Tysdale

right to know."
    "Be that so?" Lucreta asked Carole.
    "Uh huh."
    "What be said? I swear not to tell any other."
    Carole handed over the parchment.
    Lucreta screwed up her eyes as she tried to decipher Mariat's scrawl.
    "Ye be in it deep, Sylphwood," Mariat said, whilst Lucreta was reading. "But we be here
to help. Ye need help, jest come to us."
    "Ye be no good to anybody if yer belly splits open, witchling." Lucreta scolded. "Did ye
tell her 'bout the party yet, Carole?"
    "I haven't had time."
    "What?" Mariat demanded.
    "Lucreta graduated. She gets her own cottage."
    "That be great for her." Mariat smiled, but it seemed forced. "No longer has to put up
with sourpuss witchlings."
    "'Cepting maybe one," Lucreta lamented.
    "Which one be that?"
    "The one she'll be rooming with." Carole said.
    "What be ye two babbling 'bout? Lucreta gets her own cottage."
    "Seems Lucreta's not the only one who graduated. You've been promoted, too."
    "So I get Lucreta's room, next to five sourpusses. I always knew that I be moved down
when the new witchlings arrived."
    "Not quite."
    "What ye be saying, Carole? I still have to live upstairs with those new whelps?"
    "What do you think, Lucreta, should we put her out of her misery?"
    "She do look to be one miserable witchling, Carole."
    "Come on ye two. Tell me!"
    "You and Lucreta are sharing a cottage together."
    Mariat gasped. "That be true? I get to live in a whole cottage? Ye want to share with
me?"
    "If ye want it."
    "Ohhh... That means I go from living next to five sourpuss witchlings, to living with one
flower-stink-loving witch. What a life."
    "Why ye little ghoul." Lucreta grabbed Mariat by the collar.
    "Careful of me belly. I be yer patient, remember?"
    "Not after I kills ye."
    "Okay, okay. I be nice. I stay in bed and listen to ye." Mariat grabbed the plate of treats
and placed it on her lap. "See, I accept yer goodies, gracious like. Hey, did all the young'un
witchlings get accepted?"
    Lucreta released Mariat. "The entire batch, though one got a good scare when her kitten
played a snootish prank on her."
    "The Brutus look-a-like kitten?"
    "That be the one, though Herling gave him what fer."
    "That kitten be a trouble-maker," Mariat said.
    "No surprise ye figure that out. One trouble maker always knows another."
    Mariat snorted and stifled a yawn.
    "Time to sleep, witchling," Lucreta ordered.
    "I not be tired."
    "Ye not be yawning, either. Eats yer goodies later. To bed with ya."
    "Okay, okay." Mariat passed the plate to Carole and eased herself down.
    "I'd best be saying goodbye, Mariat. You heard what Philamount said. We're leaving
tonight."
    "Yeah. He not be wanting Conundrum types to get suspicious." Mariat yawned again. "Ye
come back before winter snows fly."
    "No promises. I've still got a bunch of things to figure out."
    "All right, multitasker. Bin a great visit this time arount, even if we got blowed-up a
little..." Mariat's eyes fluttered and she drifted off.
    "Come and get me, if she be even a little bit of trouble, Cleo," Lucreta directed.
    The cat blinked knowingly.
    "Let's go, Carole. Mariat needs plenty of sleep that heals."

--8--
    A warm gust of air brushed Carole's cheek as she stepped from the transdimensional
tunnel onto the dew-laden field. She looked around as she heard the soft sigh of the tunnel
collapsing behind her. The only thing visible was the Nightshade connector sticking out of the
ground like an off-kilter barbershop pole. Relaxing her focus, she activated her subtle sight and
watched a kaleidoscopic ribbon of light bubble out of the connector. The light from the collapsed
tunnel wrapped around the pole a number of times before corkscrewing off into the evening
sky.
    No one else could see the transdimensional tunnels. They were invisible to other
multitaskers, and as far as she could tell, had always been invisible. Special tools, detectors and
connectors were required to find, activate and repair them.
    The sky overhead was diamond studded black velvet.