Book excerpt: W.i.t.c.h.: The Disappearance - Book #2

The following is an excerpt from the book W.i.t.c.h.: The Disappearance -
Book #2. I thought readers of this newsgroup might find it of some interest.

One

Will and her friends arrived at her apartment building just as black clouds
in the sky began to roll, rumble, and spark.

As she, Cornelia, Irma, and Taranee climbed the stairs that led to the
apartment she shared with her mother, Will glanced at her friends. It was
hard to believe she'd known them only a few days! She already felt so
familiar with Cornelia's long, blond hair, Irma's smirk, and Taranee's
raggedy fingernails. Will even knew that Taranee always gnawed on her nails
when she was nervous.

In fact, Will thought, I bet I could practically read their thoughts. As she
opened the door to the hallway and ushered her friends through it, she gazed
at Cornelia's pale, heart-shaped face. Her pink-glossed lips were pulled
into a tight, tense line. Her blue eyes were steely. And she had the same
expression Will got when she and her mom were having an argument.

Yup, Will thought. That's exactly how I look when I know that I'm wrong and
my mom's right, but I'm not gonna admit it! And Cornelia's being just that
stubborn about this whole magical powers thing. I mean, she made a vine come
to life in the school courtyard. It slithered up her arm like a snake! That
was magic! There's no other explanation for it. But Cornelia still refuses
to say the M word.

As the girls turned a corner in the hallway, Will's eyes fell on Taranee,
whose ever-clicking beaded braids were hidden under the earflaps of her big,
floppy, red rain hat. Behind her little, round specs, Taranee's brown eyes
were big and watery. Her chin was trembling ever so slightly.

She's wishing she was home, Will thought sympathetically. Taranee liked
being tucked away in the safety of her photography darkroom or curled up in
front of the fireplace.

And Irma, Will concluded as she gazed at her, is wondering what kind of
cookies I'm going to serve for our after-school snack.

As Will and her friends reached the loft door, she dug around in her pink
backpack. Then she pulled out the big tangle of keys attached to the tiny
rubber frog that was her key chain.

"Okay," she said, glancing at Cornelia's impatient frown, "don't laugh, you
guys, but every time I try to unlock my front door, I seem to use the wrong
key."

"Well, that is a lot of keys." Irma giggled, pointing at the crowded key
chain. "Is this a home or a jail?"

"Good question," Will muttered as she fumbled through all the keys. The
truth was, Will didn't feel as though the loft were her home -- yet. She and
her mom had moved to this seaside city called Heatherfield right before
Halloween. They'd come here from Fadden Hills -- where Will was born and
raised.

Mostly, the move had been a good thing. Will had met her new friends almost
immediately. And her mom seemed much happier now that she was farther away
from Will's dad.

Come to think of it, Will mused with a frown, the only reason my key chain
is crowded is that I can't seem to bring myself to take my old Fadden Hills
house keys off it.

Will wondered what her new friends would think if they knew that she was
clinging to her old keys, and her old life. They might think she was a total
baby. Or that she was a little nuts.

Or, Will thought, glancing over her shoulder at Taranee's scared eyes, they
might . . . understand. After all, even before we found out we had been
given magical powers, we were totally bonding. Now, we share that major
secret. And as everyone knows, secret-sharing is the first step toward
becoming best friends.

The realization made Will's heavy heart lift -- a little. So her next
thought was more of a resolution..

Okay, she told herself as she chose one of the shiny brass keys. If this key
is the right one, I vow to take all my old Fadden Hills keys off this frog.
Even the key to my old locker at the pool.

Will held the key up to the doorknob and bit her lip. Then she stuck the key
into the lock. It fit!

And it turned! The front door swung open easily.

Will took a deep breath and thought, Home, sweet home? Well, maybe . . .

Then she smiled and stepped inside. The girls crowded in behind her.

"Hello?" Taranee called out. Her voice echoed off the loft's high ceiling.
Even though the apartment was lined with tall, multipaned windows, the place
was dark and shadowy. The storm outside had turned the sky almost black.

"Come on in," Will said, glancing at her watch. Her mom rarely got home from
her big, swanky office at Simultech early. "No one's here. My mother will be
back in about an hour."

Will maneuvered around a few cardboard boxes to hit the light switch.
Naturally, she stubbed her toe on one of her own boxes filled with CDs.

"Grrrr," Will mumbled, hopping up and down on one foot. Okay, she had to
admit it. Another thing that might make her feel more at home in this new
apartment would be finally unpacking all her stuff!

Copyright © 2004 Disney Enterprises, Inc.

(Excerpted from the book W.i.t.c.h.: The Disappearance - Book #2; Adapted by
Elizabeth Lenhard; Published by Volo; April 2004; $4.99US/$6.99CAN;
0-7868-1729-1)

For more information, please visit the W.i.t.c.h. Web site,
www.clubwitch.com or www.writtenvoices.com.