The Circle (Hammer) - By Elfgren, Sara B.,Strandberg, Mats Page 0,127
about Gustaf and his doppelganger.
A bell jangles when Vanessa opens the door to the Crystal Cave. The plucked harp strings, burbling water and birdsong are filtering out of the speakers. Vanessa feels as if someone is plucking directly at her nerves.
She almost bumps into Monika of Café Monique, who smiles so widely that her eyes almost disappear behind her cheeks. It’s the first time Vanessa has ever seen her smile. She’s carrying a big, rustling plastic bag in her arms with ‘Crystal Cave’ written on the side in the same curlicue lettering as the sign outside.
‘Vanessa! How nice to see you!’ she says, and adds, in a conspiratorial whisper, ‘Isn’t she amazing?’
It takes Vanessa a second to realise she’s talking about Mona Moonbeam.
‘Absolutely,’ she answers. ‘Totally amazing.’
‘Good luck,’ Monika says, and gives her a gentle nudge before she leaves.
Vanessa notices that the shelves are full of new products. Most striking among them are a couple of large crystal fountains with dolphins suspended above the water’s surface, frozen in their frolic. The copper dragon that was standing by the red curtain has gone. Not only is the Crystal Cave still there, but business seems to be booming.
Vanessa waits until she’s alone with Mona. She stops at the shelf of porcelain cherubs and fingers the price tag stuck to the biggest. The one Linnéa had liked.
The doorbell jingles again as the last customer leaves. Mona is still behind the counter, lighting a cigarette. ‘I assume you’re not here to buy a dream-catcher,’ she says.
‘How do you know?’
‘That kind of knick-knack is the last thing a real witch would be interested in,’ Mona says.
Vanessa’s shock must have registered clearly on her face because Mona is grinning with such satisfaction that both rows of yellowed teeth are showing. She goes to the door, locks it and flips the ‘Open’ sign to ‘Closed’.
‘How did you know I was a witch?’ Vanessa asks.
‘I saw it in your hands. And in the teeth. Not that I needed the Ogham characters. It’s just fun to take out that pouch in front of cheeky little girls.’
‘Why didn’t you say anything when you read my fortune?’
‘You didn’t know it yourself then, and it wasn’t my responsibility to tell you. That job was already taken.’
‘If you could see that I’m a witch, does that mean you’re also—’
‘What a silly question. Of course I am.’
When Vanessa had suggested the Crystal Cave to the others, it had been a gamble. She’d thought that Mona was just your typical crystal-rubbing ex-hippie. A bit nutty, but harmless. Or, rather, Vanessa hoped she was, considering the fortune she’d received. If it’s true, then goodbye Wille, hello, death. Vanessa looks at Mona, sizing her up. Tries to decide what to do. If Mona is a witch … what sort of witch is she? Does she know the principal? Does she report to the Council?
Vanessa looks around the shop. She looks at the crystal fountains. Thinks about Monika’s smile. Monika who never smiles. Looks towards the red curtain. Looks at Mona Moonbeam as she stands there, puffing away, in her denim outfit with butterflies on it. Suddenly she understands how everything is connected.
‘You’re tricking them,’ Vanessa says.
Mona raises an eyebrow, but doesn’t say anything.
‘When you read my fortune, you first tried to pull some kind of hocus-pocus crap on me to make me believe all your clichés. I felt there was something … and I wouldn’t fall for it. That was when you got annoyed, wasn’t it? And then you told my fortune for real.’
‘I was annoyed as soon as I laid eyes on you,’ Mona says. ‘And as for your fortune, I remember you weren’t especially pleased to hear the truth.’
She moves closer to Vanessa and blows a huge cloud of smoke in her face. ‘Can you honestly believe people want to hear their actual fortunes?’ she asks. ‘They want to feel happy when they walk out of here. Have a little hope for their future. And I’d say they need it in this backwater.’
‘So is this some act of charity for you?’ Vanessa says ironically.
‘Of course not,’ Mona snaps. ‘It’s business. A happy customer is a regular customer. What I do doesn’t harm anyone.’
For once Vanessa is grateful to the principal for constantly droning on about the Council.
You’re not allowed to practise magic without the Council’s express permission.
You’re not allowed to use magic to break non-magical laws.
And you’re not allowed to reveal yourselves as witches to the non-magic public.