Garth Nix - Troubletwisters

First published in 2011

Copyright Garth Nix & Sean Williams 2011

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publisher. The Australian Copyright Act 1968 (the Act) allows a maximum of one chapter or ten per cent of this book, whichever is the greater, to be photocopied by any educational institution for its educational purposes provided that the educational institution (or body that administers it) has given a remuneration notice to Copyright Agency Limited (cal) under the Act.

allen & unwin

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isbn 978 1 74237 398 0

Cover design and typography by www.blacksheep-uk.com

Cover illustration by Jeremy Reston

Text design by Bruno Herfst

Set in 12.5 pt Centaur MT by Midland Typesetters, Australia

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Printed in Australia by McPhersons Printing Group

1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2

For Amanda and the boys, and my mother for getting me hooked in the first place

Sean

As always, for Anna, Thomas and Edward, and for all my family and friends

Garth

Contents

THE YEAR THE TWINS TURNED TWELVE, EVERYTHING CHANGED.

It started with a black cloud scudding over a perfectly ordinary suburban landscape. Neither Jack nor Jaide noticed it, even though they were standing sentry outside their house, eyes peeled for the first sign of their fathers arrival. Their attention was fixed on the street and its occupants, not the sky above.

A taxi appeared in the distance, and the twins craned their heads hopefully, but it turned off two blocks ahead of their house. They sagged in disappointment.

I wish Dad wasnt late all the time, said Jaide.

Heres hoping its not genetic, Jack gloomily replied. This time, their father was a full day late... and counting.

Jaide sent a hard look her brothers way. Speak for yourself, Jack. Im not the one who takes after him.

This was true. Jaide had her mothers green eyes, red hair and fair skin, though she never burned in the sun, whereas Jack had the brown eyes, black hair and brown skin of his fathers side of the family. Or at least they assumed their fathers family looked like that; they had never actually met any of the other Shields. They all lived far away, the twins were told, and werent very friendly. Even their mother had only met their fathers relatives once. And clearly it hadnt gone very well.

Jack vowed to himself that if the Shields were late all the time, he wasnt going to be like them. Genes werent everything, their mother liked to say. Jack wanted to believe this.

Several hundred yards behind their house, the cloud turned right at a church spire and spun twice anticlockwise, as though lost.

Instead of their hoped-for father, the next person the twins saw was the postman. He smiled at them and put a letter in their letterbox.

Hey, maybe its a card from Dad! said Jaide. Hector Shield was a treasure-seeker, hunting lost masterpieces for auction houses and galleries. Sometimes cards from him took even longer to arrive than he did.

Hes probably just making long-distance excuses, muttered Jack.

Jaide pushed past her brother, opened the letterbox, and took out the envelope.

Its not from Dad, she said, examining the cream-coloured envelope curiously. But it is for us.

The envelope was made of a thick, flecked paper and was addressed in ornate, formal handwriting that neither twin recognised. It also referred to them by their real names, the ones their mother only used when they were in big trouble:

Whos it from, then? asked Jack, peering over Jaides shoulder.

Jaide turned the envelope over. There was no return address anywhere, and next to the stamp was a four-pointed star like the compass symbol on a map printed directly on the envelope.

Something about the star unsettled Jack. But he couldnt help asking his sister, Are you going to open it? Jack would rather know something disturbing than have to wait in suspense.

Of course, Jaide told her brother, trying to sound as calm and cool as she usually did. It took a lot to bother Jaide. Whats the hurry?

She didnt tell him that there was something about the card that made her hesitate, too. Something about it just felt... odd.

She ran her thumb along the flap and tore it with a satisfying rip. The smell of salt and sand hit her nostrils, as though a strong sea breeze had just rushed over her even though they lived nowhere near the sea.

Jack wasnt hit by this strange sensation. As his sister hesitated, he pulled the envelope from her frozen fingers and tugged out the card from within. It was white, with the same four-pointed star embossed in gold on the front.

The day darkened momentarily. Then the single black cloud moved on, and the sky was immediately blue again.

Maybe we should show it to Mum first, Jack said.

It does have our names on it, Jaide pointed out. She flipped open the card.

Inside were a few lines written in the same old-person handwriting.

Grandma who? asked Jack.

Thats not Mamma Janes writing, said Jaide, thinking of their mothers mother, who lived with their aunt in an apartment on the other side of town.

Let me see that.

Both Jack and Jaide jumped as their mother reached past them and snatched the card from Jaides fingers. Neither twin had heard her coming.

After reading the message, Susan Shields lips tightened and she shut her eyes for a moment. The twins watched her, puzzled by her reaction.

This isnt really for you, she said finally. I want you to forget you ever saw it.

But it was addressed to us, Jaide said.

I know, but it shouldnt have been, their mother replied firmly.

Jack couldnt help himself. Whats a troubletwister? he asked.

Were not going to talk about it now. I want you to forget it, Susan repeated in a warning voice. The twins knew that tone. They only ever heard it when they were caught doing something particularly bad, like climbing on the roof or blowing things up in the microwave.

But we didnt do anything wrong, Jaide protested.

I know, said Susan. She knelt down and pulled them both in for a quick hug, which typically Jaide resisted and Jack leaned into. But lets move right along, okay? Why dont you go and have a jump on the trampoline?

We did that already, said Jack.

Who jumped the highest? Susan asked.

I did, both twins declared. They glared at each other for a moment, then ran off through the house, since that was marginally faster than going around to the backyard.