OMG… Is He Also a Witch Read online

  Creak. Bang. Creak. Bang. The bathroom stall doors were pushed open and slammed against the walls. They are looking for me. I have to get out of here.

  David’s voice sounded like it did when he helped Grace. “She really isn’t that bad. She was so concerned about her friend when she fell and about the heat being messed up and—”

  CLAP-CLAP. The thunderous clap of Mr. Malus’s hands echoed in the bathroom.

  “WE must get April Appleton. Do you hear me? Now repeat it,” Mr. Malus commanded.

  “We must get April Appleton,” David said. His voice changed. He sounded like a robot again. Josephine was right. Mr. Malus was certainly controlling David.

  Mr. Malus continued in a low voice, “You must get her so I can take her back with me where we will take her powers.” He let out an evil chuckle.

  April’s heart thumped. Back? To where? We? Who is we?

  At the end of the school yard, before the sidewalk, stood the bike racks. Bingo, Austin’s bike! Yes!

  She jumped to her feet. Her heart pounded so hard it felt like it would pop out of her chest. She ran toward the bike.

  “There she is!” David yelled.

  She whipped her head around and saw David’s head sticking out of the bathroom window.

  OMG…I have to get out of here. Run, run!

  CHAPTER 12

  APRIL reached the bike rack. She grabbed Austin’s lock. Please, please, please, Austin, I hope you didn’t change your password. Using her thumb, she clicked the numbers until they got to his password 0-4-0-9, his birthday. She yanked the lock and it popped off.

  Meanwhile, David shimmied out of the window. He fell onto the grass, landing on his head.

  Mr. Malus screamed, “Go get her! I can’t fit through this window. Hold her. I will find you!”

  OMG…I have to get out of here! She swung her leg over the top of the bike but her foot couldn’t reach the ground. Austin was at least five inches taller than her. She fumbled until her foot found the pedal.

  She gave a big jump and a push to start it rolling and hopped onto the bike. David stood only a few feet away. April pumped the pedals as hard as she could, going faster and faster down the sidewalk.

  She turned her head. David searched for an unlocked bike. Her bike wobbled and she whipped her head around to face forward. Righting herself, April dared to take one more look. David managed to find a bike and was pedaling like mad to catch up to her.

  Every muscle in her legs squeezed and pressed to make the bike go as fast as it could. He’s gaining on me. Pedal harder. Pedal faster!

  April’s heart thumped. Her palms were wet with sweat. Then, Josephine’s words came back to her: ‘You can handle this now. Remember there is no space in your heart for fear.’ I can’t be afraid. I can handle this. What spells do I remember from the Book of Magie?

  She arrived at her house. Her father’s crushed car was gone. She flew up the driveway and stopped at the side door to the kitchen. The bike fell as her feet hit the ground. April dug in her pocket and pulled out the house key. David rode up the driveway on the stolen bicycle.

  April stepped through the door into the kitchen and tried to close it behind her. But David wedged his body in between the door and the frame and she couldn’t shut it.

  He laughed a creepy, evil laugh. “I’m bringing you to Mr. Malus,” he said.

  April knew she couldn’t match his strength and backed away into the kitchen.

  He opened the door fully and entered the house. “He’s going to take you back with him.”

  David walked closer to April. “Oh, you think Mr. Malus didn’t know you undid the spell of the branch that fell on your father’s car? I came back last night and made sure the branch fell again. And that it stayed there. Now, come here so I can bring you to him.” He reached out and grabbed April’s arm.

  She held her breath. Her heart raced. April had never been so scared. Do something. What’s in the Book of Magie? Remember something. Remember anything!

  I’ve got it! I know a spell that turns someone back to normal. I know I’ve seen it in the Book of Magie!

  CHAPTER 13

  THE spell in the Book of Magie flashed before her eyes. That’s right. I need two things: an article of clothing, and a strand of hair.

  She tore at the front of David’s shirt with her free hand and pulled as hard as she could, ripping a few buttons off. An article of clothing. Check.

  David tried to grab her other hand. April reached for his ponytail. YANK! A few strands of hair came loose. Check.

  “Ouch!” David yelled and felt his head.

  She stepped back. I just need a second to be able to say it without him getting me. “Josephine, please help.”

  David tried to grab her arm but somehow tripped, falling onto the kitchen floor. April thanked Josephine silently and stepped further back. Squeezing her eyes shut, she said:

  “Heaven please help with the recent past,

  To un-do the spell that was just cast.

  Please take this request as formal,

  And, turn David back to normal.”

  She squeezed her eyes tighter and raised her shoulders up toward her ears. She cracked one eye open. Please let it work.

  “Why am I here?” David asked. “April, is that you? Am I in your house?” His eyes scanned her kitchen.

  The tone of his voice was different. It was his normal voice. He looked down and noticed his ripped shirt with the missing buttons. His eyes moved to what April was holding. “Why—what—? You are as red as a cardinal. What’s going on?”

  “David, do you know Mr. Malus?”

  “Yeah. He’s our math teacher. Yesterday afternoon, I went to him after school to ask if I could do extra credit to raise my grade. He’s super mean,” David recalled.

  April exhaled. “I’ve heard that before.”

  “Funny, I don’t remember much after that.” David sat down on one of the stools on the other side of the kitchen counter. He blinked as he looked at the ground, obviously trying to piece things together.

  April walked toward the kitchen island and rested her elbows on it with her chin in her hands. “Think hard. What do you remember?”

  “Oh, I remember helping Grace up when she slipped and fell on the hallway floor. I told her to be careful.” He cleared his throat and looked down at the ground again.

  “David, do you remember anything else?”

  “No.” David’s eyes met April’s.

  “Do you remember coming to my house and breaking a big branch off our tree out there?” April pointed out the door.

  “What? I’d never ever do that! I’m learning how to help plants, animals, and people, not harm them!” David’s jaw tightened.

  “Really? What are you learning? Are you also a witch?”

  CHAPTER 14

  DAVID cleared his throat then dropped his head. “No, not really. I’m a medicine man in training. Like a healer.”

  He put his hand in his jeans pocket and pulled out a small, beaded leather pouch. “Here are some of the herbs my grandfather is teaching me about right now. My family has many medicine people and—wait, you asked if I am ‘also’ a witch. April, are you a witch?”

  “Well, it’s kind of a long story but I, um, I have these powers. And, I have this book—”

  “Sorry to interrupt—but what’s up with the mailman?” David pointed out the kitchen window and jumped to his feet. The mailman stood frozen on the sidewalk across the street. His large mail bag hung limply.

  “Oh,” April gave a nervous chuckle. “I didn’t get to that part yet. So…you froze time.” April looked at David carefully.

  His eyes widened. “I did WHAT?”

  “I know. It’s really freaky and I’m trying to be calm. Maybe Mr. Malus does not have his own power to freeze time but he found you and, uh, I guess you do.”

  “I can what?” David asked again as he squeezed his eyes shut.

  Poor David, he has no clue of all the trouble he caused.
“We can figure out more later. Right now, like I was saying, I have this spell book upstairs.”

  David slowly backed away from April. “Uh, I don’t mess around with that stuff.” He took another step backward. “From the stories my grandfather and father tell me, witches are people that have been cursed.”

  April stopped in surprise and she focused on David. “Actually, I think my powers have been a blessing. A gift. Yeah, sometimes they can cause some problems but they can also help me fix things. You know?”

  David raised an eyebrow and tilted his head. Suspicion covered his face.

  April continued, “Maybe Mr. Malus made you do all those bad things.”

  “What do you mean, all those bad things?’”

  “You, or him, or both of you, jacked up the heat at school and made a flock of crows fly through it, pooping everywhere, then you froze time. And, I’m pretty sure that you are the one that caused the tree branch to crush my father’s car.” April bit her lower lip.

  David narrowed his eyes as he looked out the window. “You know what? The last thing I remember was being in Mr. Malus’s classroom. I wonder if he cursed me?”

  “I noticed when he clapped his hands and rubbed the charm on his necklace, you’d change,” April added.

  “Change how?”

  “Well, you just seemed different. Earlier, when you helped Grace up, you were so nice. After he clapped his hands, your face was just blank and you had this horrible robotic laugh.”

  David’s eyes bulged and his nostrils flared.

  “But, I was able to do a spell to lift the curse Mr. Malus put on you,” April said.

  David exhaled. “Wow, my sister calls me evil sometimes but that’s for scaring her with fake spiders and, this one time—I set a bunch of alarm clocks for different times in the middle of the night and hid them around her room so she couldn’t find them when they went off!”

  David let out a big belly laugh. His normal laugh made April smile. “She was mad at me for days.” He continued to chuckle.

  “You would get along really well with my brother, Austin,” she rolled her eyes. “But, like I was saying, I have a book that helps me do good spells. And, we could look at it to see what we can do about Mr. Malus.”

  “We? No, no.” David shook his head. “You are the witch. I’m just learning how to heal and help people, like my father, grandfather, and great-grandfather.”

  “Uh-huh, just come on. I’m sure Mr. Malus is wondering where you are.” April grabbed David’s hand and pulled him through the dining room and up the stairs.

  CHAPTER 15

  APRIL walked into her bedroom. David stood in the doorway, like he was paralyzed. She knelt on the carpet next to her bed. She pulled the heavy book out, sliding it across her pink carpet. “This is the Book of Magie,” April said as she turned toward David.

  He did not move. After a deep breath, he slowly walked into her room. Sitting on the carpet behind her, he peered over her shoulder as if the book was going to attack him.

  “It’s so old.” He pointed at the title. “What is Magie?”

  “It means magic in French. I had to learn French to be able to do the spells. Good spells, you know, to help with different things, like… lifting your curse.” She smiled at him.

  “I’m not touching it.” David pointed at the book again and jerked his head back, making a face like he had smelled poop. “I can’t believe I’m in the same room as it,” he murmured.

  “Oh, calm down, you have powers too; after all, you’re the one who made the branch fall and the birds attack! But you can figure all that out later, I have to find the spell. You just sit there.” April told him.

  “Yeah, well, I don’t speak French, either.” David said. He still looked nervous.

  April felt a bit sorry for him; after all, being a witch is difficult. She opened the front cover and turned the thin pages. “This is the first spell I did.” She pointed at the picture of a woman standing with an animal.

  “What’s that?”

  “It’s a spell to turn someone into an animal. I turned my pestering older brother into a cute, white, fluffy dog.” She shrugged her shoulders.

  “Not something gross like a centipede or a spider?”

  April wrinkled her nose. “Ew! No.”

  David chuckled, his worry disappearing.

  She hunched back over the book scanning the pages in search of the right spell.

  “By the way, thank you, Good Witch, for removing the curse.” David smiled at April.

  “No problem. Any time. ‘Good Witch?’” April asked and raised an eyebrow.

  “I give all of my friends nicknames. Hm, maybe not Good Witch because I don’t want to give away our secrets in school.” He winked. “Maybe Glenda, from The Wizard of Oz? Or, Hermione. From Harry Potter.”

  He’s really nice. I knew it. April looked up and smiled at him.

  Creeeaaaakkk. BANG! The kitchen screen door slammed shut.

  They both looked toward April’s bedroom door. The tremble in April’s hands came back. “Oh no, we left the door open and the bikes in front of the house, didn’t we?” April asked in a quiet voice.

  “Who’s here?” David whispered.

  April looked at him. “It can only be one person because everyone else is frozen…”

  “Mr. Malus,” they said at the same time.

  The hardwood floors downstairs creaked as Mr. Malus took a step toward the stairs. A bead of sweat formed on her forehead. Creak. The creaks got louder as he climbed each step. She swallowed hard.

  “I have a plan,” David said with a smile. “Follow my lead.”

  CHAPTER 16

  WHAT’S he going to do? I hope he’s got a good plan.

  David took a deep breath, lifted and raised his shoulders, then erased the smile from his face. His frown reminded her of the look he had back at school. April gasped. Is he pretending to be under Mr. Malus’s spell?

  “Don’t worry. Play along,” David whispered out of the corner of his mouth. He pointed under the bed, directing her to hide. He walked out of the bedroom toward the stairs. April pushed the book under her bed and crawled under with it. She laid on the book, holding it tightly. She could hear them talking.

  “Where is the little goody-two-shoes witch?” Mr. Malus asked. His gruff voice reminded her of pirates from movies. She saw David and Mr. Malus’s skinny legs as they stood in the hall.

  “I can’t find her,” David responded, sounding like a robot. He’s playing along so well.

  Mr. Malus walked past him and looked into her parents’ bedroom. Then he walked to the next door to Austin’s room. He opened the door. “Ugh, what a smell!” He closed the door then took another step. “Her room has to be up here somewhere. The other Logisilld said she and that book would be there.”

  April’s hands shook as she held the book. OMG! That’s the word Josephine used. April squeezed the book tighter. His worn, dark brown boots stomped back down the hall toward her room. Her heart raced.

  “She has to be here. Her bike is out front. I didn’t come three hundred years into the future to go back empty-handed. Come out, come out, wherever you are,” he sing-songed as he walked past the bathroom and into April’s room.

  “A Logi-what?” David asked.

  “Simple boy, I am a Logisilld, an ancient wizard from centuries ago. I came here to this time to get that Book of Magie and to use the girl’s powers, just as I’ve used yours. But, maybe I’ll take her back with me, too. Josephine—that old witch—kept that book hidden from us. When we would finally find it, she’d somehow sneak it away and hide it again!” Mr. Malus opened April’s closet door. He pushed some clothes around.

  “You see, we had an idea that the book was here. I tricked everyone into thinking I was a math teacher so I could study April and find out where that book was. But by a stroke of luck, I discovered you and your great powers! Now I didn’t have to do this all on my own and risk getting caught. So, I had you break the branch to fall
on her father’s car so he couldn’t give her a ride to school. But then she fixed it! I had you come back, freeze time so she wouldn’t hear anything and make it fall again!”

  Mr. Malus laughed an evil laugh. “I needed her to get to school a little later so I could keep you under my curse to set up the distractions of the heat and birds. I thought she would bring the book with her to keep it safe, given all the troubles at home. However, she keeps surprising me. I’m sure that ghost-witch, Josephine, has tipped her off,” he grumbled.

  He knows Josephine? How? Why?

  Mr. Malus looked under her desk.

  April stopped breathing. He’s going to find me! He stood back up. She exhaled but could not stop her lips from quivering. So many thoughts rushed through her mind. Was it the spell I did that broke David’s curse or some power Josephine gave me? What else can I do? How can I get us out of this?

  “She’s here. I can tell.” He paced back and forth in her room. Then he stopped. His dirty boots stood two feet in front of her. Her glasses slid down to the tip of her nose. The bottom rim rested on the book.

  April swallowed hard, squeezed her eyes shut and tightened her whole body. He wants to take my powers. How is he going to do that? I thought they were a gift. Maybe they are a curse. What can I do?

  She took a deep breath. The lump in her throat grew as she opened her eyes to find Mr. Malus’s thin face not twelve inches from hers.

  CHAPTER 17

  “FOUND you! Time to come out now,” Mr. Malus sneered. His yellow, crooked teeth looked like they hadn’t been brushed in months, or ever. “And bring the book with you.”

  April crawled out from under the bed, clutching the large book close to her chest. She sat on the rug with her back against the bed. Mr. Malus rubbed the quarter-sized charm on his necklace between his fingers.