The one thing that remained was a discarded piece of parchment, left lying on a desk one the far side of the room, illuminated by the light that shone from the window above it. Lily walked across the room, her still-bare feet growing cold from the stone floor. It wasn’t a piece of blank parchment, she realised, but a letter. She reached out and picked it up, her hands shaking.

For the Attention of Alice Blackwell,

I have a proposal for you. I knew your mother and I know that, like her, you possess the gift, amongst other supernatural abilities. It has come to my attention that you are in possession of a particular gift that requires nurturing. Should you be interested in learning how to wield your special talents, then I advise you to meet with me. I will show you how to navigate a world that is filled with more magic than you could ever imagine.

I will be passing through Kelseth village when the next full moon rises. If you should wish to join me, and I should clarify that it is in your best interests to do so, meet me by the harbour, beneath the lamp, at midnight. Do not waste your time writing and sending a reply. Be there, and do not tell a soul where you have gone. This is of the utmost importance. You are entering a world of incredible power, and our organisation requires total discretion and absolute secrecy.

Until then,

Your friend,

Hecate Winter

High Priestess of the Shadow Sect

Lily looked up from the letter and gazed, unseeing, out of the window. She let the parchment fall to the floor, questions racing through her mind. What did this mean? How could this woman, this Hecate Winter, know of Alice’s existence, let alone of her ‘gift’, whatever that was? And why did she seem completely set upon meeting with Alice so secretly, and so urgently?

Lily knew that this letter must have arrived moments after Alice had returned from their argument. She had been in a vulnerable state, and Lily had no doubt in her mind that Alice would have gone if she had any hope of gaining the magical ability for which she yearned so desperately. But leaving so suddenly, without even leaving a note… Alice’s behaviour was reckless and out of character.

Lily was missing something. She knew she must be.

What was this ‘Shadow Sect’ and why, out of everyone in the world, did they want Alice?

Lily gathered up the basket, retrieved the letter, and set off back down through the forest. Her uncle had lived here longer than he cared to admit, and if anyone would know anything about this mysterious letter and its contents, it would be him. She thought that maybe he could help her convince the local warden to look into it; perhaps he could even contact the warden in Kelseth and see if anything suspicious had happened there. She hoped that someone would be able to read the letter and decipher its meaning without the distraction of emotion and concern that clouded her own logical thinking.