Free The Return of the Witch by Paula Brackston Page A

only mentioned summer, and some details regarding the uniforms. You may have brought me to the right place, but what of the time? We could be years adrift from the date Gideon disappeared to.”
    â€œPossible,” he conceded, washing down his bread and cheese with a long gulp of ale, “but unlikely.”
    His relaxed attitude began to grate upon me. “Mr. Balmoral…”
    â€œOh, call me Erasmus, I implore you!”
    â€œâ€¦ I do not think you are fully aware of the gravity of the situation.”
    â€œAm I not?”
    â€œI am not here on some flight of fancy. I did not undertake Time Stepping lightly. I understand it is not without risk. I have come here because I must, because someone dear to me, someone who depends upon my help, is in great danger. I must find her, and I must find her quickly. To be successful it is imperative I have arrived at the right time. I cannot afford to let the trail go cold. Tegan’s very life depends on my finding her before … well, the point is, there is no time to be wasted. I have neither the patience nor the wish to observe the niceties of being a guest, or to take in the view, or to sit here while a violent, evil man holds an innocent young woman captive.”
    Erasmus finished his mouthful, dabbed at his lips with a floury kerchief, which he then dropped onto his plate, before leaning back in his chair. He studied me, his head tilted, and when he spoke his voice was, for the first time, level and serious.
    â€œMadam, trust me when I tell you no one engages in the potentially perilous business of Time Stepping without a compelling reason to do so. Aside from the individual’s own wishes, no Time Stepper would agree to be of service to them for, as you so quaintly put it, a ‘flight of fancy.’ What is more, whilst you yourself are by all accounts a highly able and much respected witch, and a near immortal one at that, kindly allow that I am an expert in my own field. I would never, never, Step blindly. I always know precisely where and when I am to travel to, with whom, and to what end. You informed me whom we were in pursuit of, and this information enabled me to pinpoint their chosen time.”
    â€œBut, Gideon is adept at cloaking his location,” I protested, shaking my head. “I cannot see him. Even with the assistance of the Goddess and the help of my sister witches I was unable to stir a vision of him. Had I not had the help of the wood faeries I would not know what little I do of his whereabouts. How is it, then, that you believe you have traced him? How are your powers of divination in such an instance more effective than my own?”
    â€œIn all probability, they are not. So it is as well that I had another avenue of exploration open to me. As you say, this warlock is able to cover his tracks extremely well. Whatever cloaking spells he uses are complex and not easily broken. However, he is not a Time Stepper. Though he is immortal, he does not have the ability to jump from one era to another, back and fore, as his will dictates. No, that skill is denied him. He was not born to it, and he will never be given it. Such a man would be forever excluded from our ranks. So, it follows that to journey as he has done he would have to have employed the services of one such as myself.”
    â€œAnother Time Stepper? Would they have agreed to help him?”
    â€œIt is possible they had no choice. Few would attempt to coerce one of my society to work for them, but I fear Gideon Masters is one of those few. Whatever his methods of persuasion , it seems he found a Time Stepper unable to refuse his request.” He waited for me to take in this information and then clarified further. “Your warlock I could not follow, but another Time Stepper leaves a trail as clear to me as footprints in the snow.”
    â€œThen we are arrived at the right moment, it is certain?” When he nodded I rushed on. “And