Chapter 12—The Olive Grove

On the same morning at the very same time, Madame Villars stood in her kitchen stirring a pot of stew. She gave it several hearty swirls and turned to another burner where she lit the flame under a kettle of water. The villagers called her la sorcière—the sorceress. But there was another side to Madame that few people knew about.

The children would not have recognized her, even if she had appeared before them at the inn. No black cloak and veil, no pointy black boots. Today she wore a flowered dress that any woman of the village would wear on a summer day. Over the dress was a bright yellow apron. Her face was in no way hideous. It was, in fact, quite beautiful with a small, feminine nose and clear rosy skin. Long, dark hair formed a neat twist at the back of her head. Pointy boots had been replaced by a pair of sandals. Near her lay Zana, Madame's red wolfhound, dozing by the kitchen stove in the old stone house.

The olive grove's two-story residence had been built in the 1600s and updated only once, over a hundred years ago. Yet everything about the place was neat and well cared for in an antique sort of way. There was one treasure one wouldn't normally see in an old house—or any house at all. A wall-mounted waterfall hung near the kitchen windows that overlooked the grove. The watering piece was large, about five feet high by four feet wide. A wide stream of water flowed continuously over a glistening silver pane, emitting a pleasant sound, much like music to anyone who listened closely.

Clarisse Villars knew what the villagers called her. Stories had been told and retold over many centuries about her family being unnatural and having magical powers. The Villars family had been the first to build a home and plant olive trees in Joyeux. Since 1617 their descendants had remained there and worked the grove.

In medieval times people were convinced that supernatural beings existed. That fairies, elves, and unicorns populated ancient forests. Women who appeared to have mystical powers were called les dames blanches or "the white ladies." And it was true that since the 1600s, several women from each generation of the Villars family had shown mystical powers.

Madame poured two cups of fresh mint tea and added a dollop of honey from her own beehives. She carried the cups to the long wooden table and sat down. Looking at the red-haired wolfhound lying near the stove, she made two large circles with her left hand and snapped her fingers. The hound blurred momentarily, like it might disappear, then transformed into a young girl of fourteen. The girl stood up, and her straight red hair cascaded down to her waist. Large green eyes sat wide apart under her perfectly shaped cinnamon eyebrows. Her skin was ivory with a pink undertone, as if she were always blushing, adding to her sweetness.

"Zana, my dearest," Madame said. "Today the games begin. The children will come here looking for the crystals. They will not get them back, not one of them, unless they solve the puzzle of what we truly are and accept that knowledge fully into their hearts. This will show their worthiness to have the crystals. It is just as well your papa and Zibier are away right now delivering this season's harvest. They would not be as tolerant of trespassers as we will be." Madame smiled. "Did you place the crystals where I asked?"

"Oui, Maman," Zana said, and sat down at the table to drink tea with her mother. "The crystals are safe from the human children—for now."

"Bon," Madame said, patting her daughter's hand. "Maintenant, we will joyfully await their arrival and will soon learn how they plan to reacquire the crystals. Their attempts and actions will tell us much."

Zana lifted her cup. "But I want them to win, Maman. I like them."

"We shall see, ma petite, we shall see," Madame said, smiling at her changeling. They turned toward the waterfall and listened to the melodious sounds of water tinkling over the thin silver panel.

The foursome left the sun's warmth and stepped into the cool, dark forest. Jesse marched first with Le Nez, and Aimée and Juliette followed right behind him. Daniel, carrying his grandfather's walking stick, brought up the rear. He was so nervous that he kept turning his head to look back just as often as he faced forward. This was one time when he wished he had eyes in the back of his head. The friends were on high alert for the wolfhound and the witch, listening intently for any sound that would forewarn them.

Finally, they arrived at a path leading into the forbidden grove and to the home of Madame Villars. Branches from gigantic trees hung low and waved like wooden sentinels, daring them to enter at their own risk.

"Arrêtez," Daniel called out, bidding them to stop. "I have been down this path before when I was little and visited the grove with m-mon pére."

Jesse, who was interested in hearing more and perhaps delaying the inevitable, stopped and stared at Daniel. "What do you remember? Anything?"

"Not m-much except a girl with red hair. We played together. She was n-nice."

"That's it? 'She was nice' is all you remember?"

"Well, after a while she disappeared. Later I asked m-mon pére where she went. And he slapped my head. 'Imbécile, don't ask such stupid questions.' So I n-never spoke of it again. But it was queer how she was there one m-minute and gone the n-next."

"That's too weird." Aimée shivered and rubbed her arms. "Did Madame dispose of her?"

"Lucky you weren't disposed of too," Juliette spoke up. She couldn't help but wonder if they would all be disposed of this day by the sorceress of the olive grove. Out of patience, Le Nez took off and disappeared into the grove.

"Arrêtes, Le Nez!" Juliette yelled, and forgetting her fear, took off after her dog.

Without thinking, Aimée ran after Juliette, and Jesse took off after the twins. Daniel watched as everyone left. Then he looked behind him, turned back around, and tucking his walking stick under his arm, shrugged and followed the others into the dark and sinister grove.

Mother and daughter finished their tea, and Madame took the cups and saucers to the sink, rinsed them, and wiped her hands on her apron before removing it. She pinned a fallen strand of hair back into the twist on her head and motioned for her daughter to come to her. Zana rose gracefully from the table. She flipped her long red hair over her shoulders to reveal two pert elfin ears, and approached her maman. The two stood before the waterfall and stared into it. Madame raised her arms high and cried out words in an unearthly language that in English meant: Summer's nigh, crystals high, angels fallen from the sky; we on earth will hear your sighs.

Within seconds, as if the water was coming alive, a series of gentle sighs emerged. And a fog-like vapor rose and spiraled from the bottom to the top of the waterfall, bringing forth an image of four children running through the forest toward the grove. The mirage showed a small dog at the grove gate, barking and poking his nose through the opening.

"Voilà. Here they come, ma petite," Madame said. "Let us prepare. We will make it easy for them to get in, n'est-ce pas?" With her arms still high, she closed her eyes and uttered a few more incomprehensible words. She opened her eyes and placed one arm around her daughter's shoulders. "Now, ma petite, we shall learn what they have planned," she said, and a mischievous smile lit up her pretty face.

"Slow down," Daniel said, trying to catch up. "We should n-not go in running. Besides, I know this p-place, and you don't. Let me go first."

"What about Le Nez?" Juliette asked, pointing ahead.

Jesse stopped and bent over with hands on his thighs to catch his breath. "I wouldn't worry about Le Nez. He seems to have a plan of his own." Jesse stood up. "I agree with Daniel; let's not go in running. How far do you think we are from the house?"

"I'm n-not sure, but a little farther, I think.

"Let's keep moving before we back out completely," Jesse said.

Soon they arrived at a tall iron gate where Le Nez sat waiting. He barked once, but remained poised like a perfect gentleman. There was no sign of the wolfhound, or of the witch. From where they stood, they could see a tiled roof and the corner of a weathered, gray barn. Tall, yellow flowers grew alongside the barn. They did not see a house.

Daniel jiggled the gate latch—it was locked. He examined the lock as the others searched for a way around the gate or over the fence. Suddenly, the latch released, and the gate rolled open, revealing a mowed grass path that led directly toward the barn.

"That's odd," Jesse said, glancing around. "It's as if someone's expecting us."

Feeling a chill, Aimée rubbed her arms. Juliette twisted her ponytail. "We don't call her the sorceress for no reason." The dog pulled away.

"Le Nez, arrêtes!" Juliette grabbed the dog's collar, but he wiggled away and raced into the grove as if horses in a hunt were after him.

"Let him go!" Jesse said as Juliette started to chase him.

"But the wolfhound—" she said, stopping reluctantly.

"Le Nez can handle a witch and a wolfhound. He's got sharp teeth and speed on his side. And besides, he has the scent of the crystals, so we'll probably find him sniffing around for them. Right now we need to worry about us. Come on." He waved his hand, beckoning everyone to follow. With great trepidation, they began their final march into the grove—and toward their destiny.

It wasn't long before the ancient stone house came into view, and they could see the lay of the land. As they got closer, they hid behind several giant trees and scoped out the area. Little did they know their every step was being observed through the vapors of the waterfall.

From behind the trees, they saw the barn with its enormous doors open. An attached pen contained two snorting adult pigs and ten squealing piglets. A food trough was attached along one side of the pigsty and a wooden water trough ran along the opposite side. Both had been recently filled, and the pigs were slurping food and water, grunting joyously in between. A loud braying sound came from the barn, which Daniel identified as a mule.

They spotted a large bulkhead jutting out from the house's foundation and figured it might be a cellar. The doors were down, but Jesse hoped they weren't locked. The house itself was a huge stone relic, but looked fresh with newly painted trim and a shiny red-tiled roof. A covered porch ran along the front and two sides of the house, and several rocking chairs sat overlooking the grove. Jesse noticed they seemed to be rocking on their own, or from a wind gust he hadn't noticed until now. Reassured the angel might be present, he whispered, "Cool place. The olive business must be good." He looked around for their dog, but Le Nez was nowhere to be seen.

"Let's move to the barn," he said. "That'll get us closer to the cellar. Ready to run?"

"What if she sees us?" Juliette's lips quivered. "She'll put a spell on us. I'm afraid." She pulled hard on her ponytail.

"Juliette, if you're going to be a baby, go wait for us at the gate," Jesse said.

"Non!" Juliette shot back. "I'll stay with you."

"Then be quiet; we're all anxious."

Juliette pinched her pale lips together and didn't say another word. Daniel caught her eye and nodded reassuringly. No one saw a curtain move slightly in a front window of the house. Standing behind the tree, Jesse put one foot forward. "On the count of three, we run to the barn. I'll feel better once we're under cover. Then we can organize our search." He felt his pack to be sure the poison was still in the outside pocket. "On your mark...one...two...three...let's go!"

The foursome ran to the barn as fast as their legs would carry them. Madame watched them through the vapors and Zana looked out the front window. Zana wanted to see with her own eyes. In all of her fourteen years, she had not met many other children.