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    The Holly & the Ivy
    The Holly & the Ivy
    The Holly & the Ivy
    Ebook83 pages53 minutes

    The Holly & the Ivy

    By J. A. Clement

    ()

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    About this ebook

    Greta's daughter Holly has gone missing, and a terrible storm has eradicated all traces of her. Greta despairs but just when everything seems at its blackest, hope comes in the shape of a hare. At a loss for other options, Greta follows when it leads her into the mountains. But is it more than an animal? Where has Holly been taken? And what is the significance of the odd little tree-root doll?

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherJ. A. Clement
    Release dateAug 21, 2017
    ISBN9781908212412
    The Holly & the Ivy
    Author

    J. A. Clement

    J. A. Clement lives near London with her partner and a sneaky but handsome lurcher with a predilection for gingerbread. She writes her fantasy series "On Dark Shores" whenever she can, mostly in her lunch hour (which probably explains the excessive number of bacon sandwiches that have to be edited out later). The main series is accompanied by the 'Parallels' series which features other stories set in the same world. Her "To-Write" list is as big as your "To-Read" list (and covers several genres, but she just needs to finish this series first...) For advanced warning of new releases, you can sign up to her newsletter via her blog, or she's happy to be contacted by readers via email at jaclement [dot] ondarkshores [at] gmail [dot] com. She is happy to answer any questions she can without spoilers, and does love a good gossip with fellow bookworms. You have been warned...

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      Book preview

      The Holly & the Ivy - J. A. Clement

      1

      The Storm in the Night

      BLAM! Greta was woken by a crash right there in the bedchamber. What-? The room was filled with the howl of wind, and the rumbling boom of thunder. Rain battered at the windows and the shutters swung wide as lightning crackled white across the darkness over the mountains .

      The wind has forced the shutters open! Matthias threw back the blankets, hurried to the window and reached for the shutters which flailed back and forth in the wind. After a couple of attempts, he caught hold of one and managed to pull it towards him, but the force of the wind was too strong and the hinges squealed and broke. The shutter plummeted to the ground, leaving the other banging against the wall with some force.

      Wonderful! Matthias wrestled the windows closed with some difficulty. If it’s this wild I’ll be surprised if the other shutter doesn’t smash the window, and then there will be glass everywhere. We’d be better off downstairs. He dragged the blankets from the bed and bundled them over his shoulder.

      I’ll check on Holly. Greta put on her slippers and wrapped herself in a shawl, her heart rate slowing after the shock of that awakening. Taking the flickering lamp, she went into their daughter’s room. The child blinked sleepily at her, not properly awake despite the noise. Come down to the kitchen, Holly. The storm’s raging. Greta helped the sleepy girl out of bed, bundled her into a warm robe and led her, still drowsy, downstairs.

      In the kitchen, Matthias opened the squat iron stove and began to rake up the embers of the fire, clearing the ash while behind him, Greta arranged the blankets on the sofa and settled Holly

      on

      it

      .

      If you can get back to sleep, Holly, do. Greta lit a couple of candles and set a pan of milk to warm over the stove. Holly snuggled into the comfortable cushions of the sofa, still blinking the sleep away from

      her

      eyes

      .

      Matthias added kindling and then a few logs to the embers and pushed the stove door to, leaving it just open enough to draw air in. "It’ll be a while before it’s warm enough to heat

      the

      pan

      ."

      I know, but after waking up like that, I don’t think I’ll be going back to sleep for a while. Hot milk might help. Greta set mugs on the side and then took a seat next to Holly on

      the

      sofa

      .

      Holly snuggled up to her, stifling a yawn. I’m not sleepy any more either. Will you tell me a story?

      Greta threw an amused glance at her husband. I don’t see why not. What story do you want? The Clever Princess? The Axe of Errol? The Old Man and the Parrot?

      Holly thought for a moment. Tell me about the time the snowmaiden helped you, before you had me. I like that one. It was the story Holly asked for most often.

      Matthias came to join them as Greta began to talk. "Well, as you know, this was a few years ago, because you are… let’s see, how old are

      you

      now

      ?"

      Eight! Holly was outraged at the mild tease.

      Eight! How did that happen? Greta smiled to herself. Well, if you are eight, then it must have been ten years ago now. The snows were very deep that year, and we were almost entirely cut off from the town for a while. I was restless and a bit lonely, and one night I was out in the snow and there was a hare that came out to play in the snow nearby. I decided to make a snowmaiden, as detailed and beautiful as I could. It was cold, but I was happy doing it, and with the hare jumping and diving in the snow, it felt companionable, somehow. Your Papa had travelled down into town to get supplies-

      To get an engagement ring so I could ask you to marry me, actually…

      "So there was no-one to help when Grandpappy and I had an accident while we were out cutting wood for the fire. I was not badly hurt, but Grandpappy would not wake up, and I was all alone in the snowy night. I needed to get him back to the lodge before we both froze to death, but I couldn’t

      lift

      him

      ."

      And then? Holly prompted.

      "The hare appeared, and I was so worried that I started talking to it, and I told it

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