Chapter14: The face of Callie
In the streets
"So I hear that you were the one causing trouble in this town," the witch Mildred who was in control of the black coach cocked at Grace. The young dairy cow sat in the darkness of the black coach in both sorrow and fear with her neck and front ankles shackled. She felt more like a dangerous animal being sent to a place where she could be put out of her misery as the other two witches inside Ramada and Hazel watched over her. She turned away to the corner unable to bear seeing those horrid ugly faces staring at her shivering body. "You really shouldn't have done that you know; there are strict laws against what happened back there in the saloon," Mildred wagged her finger at Grace.
"Have you any idea what might have happened if our Mistress found out about your acts of heroism?" Ramada joined in, tugging on her neck chain. "She might've turned you into some kind of grotesque walking terror, if she is ever displeased of course. Or turn you into her slave!" her cackle sent shivers down Grace's spine. Grace was too afraid to look back at them and kept her gaze at the dark corner of the moving coach. How can she defend herself against foes more powerful than her? She possessed nothing but her strong spirit, but even that seemed useless in this situation.
Grace blanched as she heard citizens outside gossiping with the coach still moving along the dusty highway. She could tell the gossip was shocked and unpleasant words.
"I knew that wanderin' bovine was trouble the moment she entered Ghost Town, and now she is being carried off to her doom."
"That's life for all of us. None of us is ever safe from Callie's wrath. Poor ruffian should have thought twice and now she's in for it."
"I wonder what spell she'll use on her."
How was she going to reason with the witch if she is a prisoner? It was just like Minerva had predicted; she would be hunted down by Callie's minions and become a prisoner in her deep dark lair. At this point, she was too frightened to even sing, in fear of what dark spell they might wave over her.
"AW look, the poor dear is scared to death," Ramada taunted, pointing her bony green finger at the shivering Grace.
"Well not as scared as she will be soon enough," Hazel added with a cunning smirk across her age old face. Grace still kept her gaze on the other side refusing to look back at them for even a moment. The two witches stared at her grimly. For them, this particular outsider didn't seem to pose much of a threat, but it was still their job to bring in prisoners to their Mistress. "Looks like we scared her too well if you know what I mean; guess we're too good. She won't even speak or turn." She cackled lightly.
Ramada on the other hand was a little vexed from not being spoken to. She pulled firmly on the chain attached to the shackle on Grace's neck forcing her away from the dark corner. Grace found herself staring directly face to face into the evil eyes of the gruesome witch.
"We got our eye on you, troublemaker!" Ramada hissed through her gritted yellow teeth. With both hands firmly on the neck chain, she tugged harder to move Grace closer to her ugly face. "Whatever heroic act you're thinking, don't count on it to save your soul!" She threw Grace back over to the dark corner and held on to the end of the neck chain. Grace went back to face the other side away from them quivering more. Was going to see the witch ever a good idea from the beginning?
"Enough now back there," Mildred croaked. "We'll be at the Mistress's mansion pretty soon now; and she wants the prisoner brought to her alive and unharmed." The black coach was being pulled by skeletal structures of horses. The witches spoke no more for the rest of the trip. Ramada moved closer to Grace and whispered something in her ear.
"You're as good as dead," she laughed through her nose cruelly. Grace shivered feeling more scared than brave with going to see Callie. She couldn't help herself; it was hard to be brave sometimes, even in the world of the supernatural. Everyone here is dead and she is the only one still alive.
On a hilltop
Bolts of lightening struck in the dark reddish clouds above a gristly mansion. The mansion was designed in a Victorian style way, although the appearance loomed black and tall casting a grave deathly shadow below the ground. This house of evil was surrounded by a wrought iron gate overgrown with thorny vines reaching out to anyone who approached them unexpectedly. Creatures such as vultures encircled the mansion as if they were hovering above prey. Their faces were sinister and their eyes were red as blood. None but the wicked tread through here and for those who dared to venture the forbidden place, there would be no going back.
The black coach treaded upward on the winding hill until it came to a stop in front of the vine covered entrance gates.
"Open up, we have important business to attend to!" Mildred commanded as the vines slipped off the gates to allow the black coach to enter. It rode on until it came to a stop in front of the mansion.
"Come on out now," Ramada tugged on the neck chain to force Grace out of the black coach. Grace obeyed without resisting knowing that it was no use trying to fight back against them. Hazel stood next to her with a long stick in her left hand. Grace guessed she was holding a wand as she remembered something like that mentioned in the campfire tales. An object no living mortal should ever mess with without the knowledge of knowing how to control its powers.
"Huh!!" Grace gasped at the sight of the enormous dark mansion. The roofs above it looked as if they were touching the reddish clouds. Vultures still circled the sky while a few sat on the roof watching down on her and the witches. A crack of lightening bolted through the clouds. Either this was strange weather happening or else Callie was conjuring up some dark spell to bring forth dead souls from other worlds. Grace began to pull back on her neck chain hesitantly.
"There is no escape little cow!" Ramada held on to the chain while Grace had been resisting. A bolt of green lightening shot out of Mildred's fingers and struck Grace square in the chest. In a moment, the dairy cow looked completely petrified and stoned as if her brain had been removed from her head. Her eyes did not move or wink. Her expression was completely blank as her body stirred slowly. Grace almost looked like the walking undead.
"There that's much better," Mildred muttered, turning to the doors to wave her hands. They opened slowly.
"What kind of spell did you use?" asked Hazel whilst scratching her chin.
"The Stun spell of course," answered Mildred cockily. "It causes the victim to not only slow down but to obey mindlessly. The spell will fade once we get her inside," she motioned her arms forward.
"Move it along!" Hazel demanded slamming her wand onto Grace's back which left an open cut. But Grace did not holler or wince as she moved inside.
Inside
The inside of the mansion had many dark empty halls and grand rooms; although the ceilings above were partially littered with cobwebs. Some age old paintings of past witches hung on the walls. Some of them had eyes moving and watching as the witches passed by with Grace following behind whilst still under the Stun spell. They entered a long dark hallway that seemed almost endless. But they finally reached the end when a stoned gargoyle with batwings sitting on a small pillar stood before them.
"Going down," Mildred cocked, pulling down on the head of the gargoyle. The wall opened to reveal a passageway and a narrow stone staircase leading down. Grace was pushed in before the passage would revert back to a normal hallway. Flaming torches hung on the stone walls enlightening through the darkness. The witches lead her deep downward into the darkness. At last, they came to a room full of earth. It was filled with many barred cells. In a few moments, Grace would snap out of her trance and find herself locked up in the dungeon.
"In here now," Mildred opened up one of the cell doors to allow the other two to push Grace in and attach her neck chain to the stone wall. The witches moved out of the cell and locked her in to see if she would wake up.
"Huh, what is this place?" Grace had snapped out of her trance and discovered that she was in a different place filled with iron bars. She turned to see the witches standing on the other side smirking cunningly. "What happened, where am I? What did you do?" she asked panicking.
"There's nothing good like a small dose of the Stun spell to keep you under control," Mildred replied with her hands on the bars. "The Mistress will see you shortly, until then you're trapped down here!" Her cackle caused an intense fury in Grace. She attempted to ram into the cell walls but had forgotten that she was being held back by the neck chain. She fell on the floor after being yanked back placing her hooves on her neck which was in intense pain. "Oops sorry, didn't I mention that those chains will only come off by the click of a key? See you in a while," The witches exited out of the dungeon chatting with each other.
"YOU WITCHES WON'T GET AWAY WITH THIS, YOU HEAR ME!!" Grace hollered as loud as she could. Her outburst echoed throughout the dungeon. Heaving a sad sigh, she walked slowly to the corner and sat miserably. So far, she managed to make it through all those perils that had happened on her journey miraculously. Yet here she was now in Callie's dungeon which was cold, dark, and dirty. Even the sound of bats flying about could be heard. It seems that all prisoners brought here had never escaped; and the only way out of here was to accept whatever sentence they were given. Grace did not want that to happen as she grunted loudly struggling at the chains attached to her neck and front ankles. It was no use; she needed a key to open them and one of the witches has it. She went back to the corner sadly with her chains rattling behind. As she tried to sit down again, she winced from feeling something painful on her back. Turning her head around, she was shocked to find a red sore on her hide. If only she could reach forward and kiss it before it became infected. Tears of fear welled up in her eyes as she leaned her head against the stone wall. This meeting plan with the witch was not going well at all.
One hour later
The cell door in which Grace was being kept in opened. Grace had wakened from a small nap and turned to see Mildred standing above her.
"It is time my pretty. The Mistress awaits."
Mildred took the neck chain off the wall and tugged on it to make her move. Grace winced as she did so still feeling the pain from last time.
"Come on, we don't have all night," Grace stumbled as she was pulled forward to be lead back up the stone stairway and into the hallway of the mansion. She kept her eyes on the floor whilst still being pulled forward not wanting to look at the frightening eerie images on the paintings hanging from the walls.
Mildred tapped her wand twice on a set of wooden stairs to reveal another torch lit room opening before them. The walls were covered in the strangest sort of writings and symbols more peculiar than what Grace saw on the cavern walls in the Indian burial ground. But the most eerie thing of all was the sight of skeletons lined propped against the wall. She mumbled fearfully.
"My Mistress, the prisoner is here," Mildred had called out to someone. They had just entered an open area similar to an arena of some sorts. Before them stood a stone chair with huge demon-like wings placed atop, between two stone pillars with flames burning above them.
"So you've come at last outsider," a voice had spoken eerily from behind the stone chair. It was hard for Grace to see because it seemed that the chair faced the other way. "And you've come for a bargain?"
"Y…yes…I…I have," Grace stammered feeling scared. "You see…me…I…was told you…"
"DON'T STUTTER LIKE THAT OUTSIDER!!" the voice exploded angrily. "I make no bargain with anyone like you. Because I am the law of this world and I do not approve of pests in my domain." The chair began to rotate slowly to reveal an appearance shocking and deceiving to Grace. She gasped in horror staring with her eyes wide open. The witch laughed cunningly. "Don't worry; not everything is what it seems."
"Mrs. Calloway!"