Everyone was in the den for Friday night movies. Halfway through the second movie her phone dinged with a text.
Ruth: Need you in Fox Hollow immediately. Bring Ben, Natalie, Rick and Logan.
Alix texted back an “okay” and told everyone what it had said. They agreed to meet by the closet in five minutes. Alix said goodbye to her mom, dad, Sharon and Sean. She sent a quick text to Shay telling her they had to go to Fox Hollow and then went to her room. She grabbed an extra hoodie and her bag of special items. By the time she got to the closet door the other four were already there. They hurried down the stairs to the blue door.
When they reached Fox Hollow, all the lights were off. It was the middle of the night, but since they’d been called there, they expected to see someone when they left the secret passage. They went to the kitchen hoping to find Ruth there, but it was empty. Next, they went to look in the rooms on the main floor that they usually used but they were empty as well. Going up to the second floor it was dark and silent as well.
“Hello?” Alix called out. “Where is everyone?”
A very sleepy Ruth emerged from one of the bedrooms. “Alix, what’s going on?”
“I don’t know, you tell me. I got your text and we got here as soon as we could.”
“I don’t have a clue what you’re talking about. I didn’t send you a text. I’ve been asleep for the past few hours and nothing has happened that I know of.”
Alix took out her phone to show Alix. By this time, Gordon and Merideth were also out of their rooms. Ruth read the message and handed the phone to Gordon.
“We need to figure out where this came from,” Gordon said. “Logan, do you think you can trace the origin of this message?”
“Yeah sure,” he said. “Just point me in the direction of a computer and I’ll see what I can do.”
They went downstairs to Gordon’s office. Logan took Alix’s phone and plugged it into the computer. He started typing.
“This might take a few minutes,” Logan said.
“Come on everyone,” Ben said. “That’s Logan’s way of telling us to get out of his hair and let him work.”
Logan smiled at Ben. “Thanks.”
Leaving Logan in the office everyone went downstairs to the kitchen. Merideth started making tea while everyone else had a seat at the table. Alix wasn’t sure what was going on, but she didn’t like it. Where could that text have possibly come from and how did they make it look like Ruth sent it.
Alix wasn’t a huge tea fan, but whatever Merideth put in front of her smelled really good. As she sipped it, she thought about how quiet it had been for the last few days when it came to the Grynn. That should have been her first clue.
Not being able to sit still, she got up and rinsed her cup. Merideth was making a fresh batch of muffins so Alix decided to help her, anything to keep her mind and hands occupied.
They were just digging into the warm muffins when Logan entered the kitchen. He grabbed a muffin and took a bite before speaking.
“So, I managed to track the IP address of the message. As suspected, it didn’t come from Ruth’s phone. It led back to a physical address in Bozeman, Montana and registered to an S. Lawson.”
“Bozeman? S. Lawson? I don’t get it.” Alix said, and thought about it for a minute. “Wait, Logan, give me my phone.”
He handed it back to her and she dialed a number. No one answered and she dialed another number. Also, no answer.
“I can’t get a hold of my parents. Sean and Sharon’s last name is Lawson,” Alix said, starting to panic. “Something is very wrong. We need to get back to Sunset Creek right now.”
Everyone ran from the kitchen including Ruth, Gordon and Merideth. Within a matter of minutes, they were back home running up the stone staircase that led to the second floor.
When they reached the hallway Alix said, “Everyone in pairs and spread out. Look for my parents and Sharon and Sean. There should also be two Warriors here.”
Ben of course went with Alix and they headed downstairs and out the back door of the kitchen. She planned on checking out the backyard and cabin. She shivered with the cold night air, but that didn’t matter right now. The only thing she could focus on was finding her parents.
Alix created a ball of light to help her see where she was going. She searched for footprints in the snow but there were none. Opening the cabin door, she found the room was empty and it didn’t look like anyone had been inside since she was last there.
They left the cabin and did a quick search of the rest of the backyard. The only signs of life were a few birds and some rabbit tracks. With Alix feeling even more panicked they headed back to the house.
It had taken her and Ben longer to search the backyard, so everyone was waiting in the kitchen when they walked in the back door, everyone except her parents.
“Alix, your parents aren’t here and neither are Sharon and Sean. In fact, all of Sharon and Sean’s things are gone as well.” Rick said. “We found our two Warriors dead. I’m sorry Alix.”
She could see the pain in his eyes and was sure it was reflected in hers.
“There’s one more thing, we found this,” Rick said.
Rick handed her an envelope that had her name on it. Inside was a note but worst of all were the rings given to her parents at Stonehenge that were supposed to keep the Grynn from harming them. Alix curled her fingers around the rings and then read the note.
****
Alix,
If you ever want to see your parents again you will need to figure out where I am and surrender to me. When you do you must come alone. If I see anyone with you, I won’t hesitate to kill your parents. I will give you one clue to help you on your journey.
Start at the place we first met
You have exactly one week to find me or they are dead.
Sincerely,
François
****
Alix couldn’t believe what she was reading. Ben took the note from her and read it. Alix heard him talking, but she wasn’t able to form any words. Her parents were gone, and it looked like her birth parents were working for the Grynn. Never in her worst nightmare had she thought something like this would happen.
“Alix,” Ben said, grabbing her shoulders. “Alix, can you hear me?”
“Ben, just give her a few minutes,” Natalie said. “This is quite a shock for her.”
Alix could hear what everyone was saying, but she was lost in her own thoughts. She started thinking back to every interaction with Sharon and Sean trying to figure out if there was a clue that could have prevented this. Had she missed something important? Could she have done something differently? Who were Sharon and Sean really? Then all of a sudden it hit her.
“Beware the Essus,” she said, and the room went silent.
“Alix?” Ben questioned.
“My dreams,” she said. “They were telling me to beware the Essus. The Essus wasn’t a thing but letters. Sharon and Sean, the esses. How could I have been so stupid?”
“This isn’t your fault,” Natalie told her. “We all believed they were here because they loved you. The better question is, how could they really be who they said they were? Your parents were convinced they were the Sharon and Sean they knew from college.”
“So, either the Grynn brainwashed them or they were infected with Grynn magic that we couldn’t detect.” Rick said.
“None of that matters right now,” Alix said. “The only thing I care about is getting my parents back. François said to go to the first place we met. That was in Paris at the place I blew up. We need to gather everyone together for a rescue operation and alert all the Council members.”
“Gordon and I will start making calls,” Ruth said.
“I’ll call Kris,” Rick added.
“I’m with you Alix, whatever you need,” Logan told her.
“Let’s meet back in the den in an hour,” Ben suggested.
Everyone left to go do what they needed which left Ben and Al
ix alone. Not knowing what to say Ben put is arms around her and pulled her close. At first, she was stiff but after a minute or two she relaxed into his arms. And then came the tears. Alix let herself cry, but only for a few minutes and only this one time. She needed to be strong for her parents. She was going to get them back and take François out in the process. She tightened her fist around the Nykara rings that belonged to her parents and then put them in her pocket. Taking her parents just might have been the biggest mistake François had ever made.
Chapter 33
When Alix had herself together, she stepped away from Ben.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
“No, but I will be. We’re going to get them back.”
“I know we will Alix. If anyone can save them it’s you. I think François better watch his back.”
“You got that right,” Alix said. “I need to call Shay. She’ll kill me if she finds out from someone else.”
Ben nodded and Alix took out her phone.
“Hey,” Shay said, “It’s kinda late, is everything okay?”
“No,” Alix said and then told her what happened.
“I’ll be there in a minute,” Shay said and hung up.
Alix knew it was useless to try and stop her, and to be honest, she wanted Shay close to her right now. She texted Shay to meet her in her room then went upstairs to get what she needed. On the way to her bedroom she stopped at Sean and Sharon’s door. Deciding to go in she turned the handle and opened the door.
It looked like they’d never been there. The bed was made and there was no sign that they’d been living there for a month. That made her angry and sad at the same time. Closing the door, she went to her room.
Since she still had her special items with her, she quickly threw a few things in a backpack. She didn’t know what the next few days were going to bring but she wanted to be prepared. Lastly, she grabbed her journal. She was going to take it with her but needed to write a quick entry.
****
Feb 17
François has mom and dad. Sharon and Sean were impostors. I’m going to get them back and anyone who stands in my way probably won’t survive. This was the worst thing the Grynn could have done to me. Before I just wanted to stop them. Now I plan on destroying every single one of them.
****
She closed the book and shoved it in her backpack. Just as she was leaving her room she ran into Shay. No words were needed. Instead Shay hugged her, and Alix knew Shay would do anything to help her get them back.
“Does your mom know what’s going on?” Alix asked, when Shay stepped back.
“Yes. I told her everything.”
“I’m guessing you’re coming with me,” Alix said, motioning to the backpack Shay had with her.
“Yep. There was no way I was sitting this out. I know you’ll need me so don’t even try and talk me out if it.”
“I won’t,” Alix told her. “I know I’m going to need you too.”
“So, is there a plan?” Shay asked.
“No. All we have to go on is I’m supposed to go to the place where I first met François. Looks like you’re finally going to get to go to Paris.”
“In this case, I really don’t want to be going there. Do you think he’s really going to lead you to your parents?”
“Yes, I do. He wants me and finally figured out how to get me to come to him. I just don’t know what I’ll be walking into when I finally find him.”
“It won’t be anything good, that’s for sure.”
Alix knew that was a very true statement. But she couldn’t think about that now. She just wanted to get to Paris and see what François had been waiting for her.
By the time the girls got back downstairs, the den was full of people. Kris, Karen and Mike were there, but she was surprised to see that Baxter and Rand from the island were among the sea of faces.
“Um, hey,” Alix said to the room.
“Miss Alix,” Gordon said, “all these people have come to assist you in any way you need.”
“Oh, okay. I want to thank you for coming on such short notice,” Alix said to the room. “But since I really don’t know what’s going to happen or what I need I don’t know what to tell you.”
“Don’t worry Alix,” Kris said. “Gordon and I are taking care of everything. All you have to focus on is getting to your parents. You’re going to have a whole team with you at all times.”
She nodded and was really grateful to be surrounded by such amazing people. Kris and Gordon were going around the room talking to everyone and getting everything organized. Less than an hour later they were headed down the stone staircase and to the blue door.
Alix was the first through the door into the Paris safe house. She recognized the two Nykara from her last visit there but couldn’t remember their names. They greeted her and led them to a room with a large table.
“We have several vehicles on the way here,” the man said in a thick French accent. “There will be enough room to take all of your team to the Paris location.”
“Thank you,” Alix said. “What time is it here right now?”
“Roughly 2:00 in the afternoon Kaelneth.”
“Ok, good. Can we go straight to the place where GRN headquarters was?” she asked.
“Certainly. We’ll be ready to go in a few minutes.”
Kris and Gordon followed the two French Nykara and everyone else found their way to the front door. Alix looked out a nearby window. It was overcast and raining. The weather reflected her mood.
“Hey,” Ben said, and he and Shay joined her. “How are you holding up?”
“Alright, I guess. I can’t believe there are so many people here to help.”
“I can,” Shay said. “People love you and will do anything they can to help the Chosen One.”
Alix didn’t know what to say about that. Despite everything that had happened in the last few months, she still often felt like the shy, sixteen-year-old girl that wasn’t looking forward to starting her senior year of high school. But now wasn’t the time for those thoughts. It was time to be the Chosen One and everything that meant. She was going to be brave and strong for her parents.
When she saw two large passenger vans pull up to the front of the house she went to the door and got in the front seat of the closest one. Ben and Shay sat in the seat directly behind her. She wanted to be able to see where they were going, as well as search for any hidden Grynn traps or magic.
Like Fox Hollow, the Paris safe house was outside the city. Alix watched the scenery go by and eventually more buildings came into view. She had no problem searching for Grynn magic and still concentrate on what was around them.
They drove by the Eifel Tower and she heard Shay say that she hoped they could come back one day and go to the top of that. It was just a few short months ago, that Alix remembered saying the same thing. This was her third trip to Paris and each time it had been because of some emergency.
When the van finally came to a stop she didn’t even recognize where they were. All she remembered from the last time she had been there was pieces of the building blowing up. She hadn’t even known what it had looked like. Now, three months later she was looking at a very modern glass and metal building. She was actually surprised since she was expecting a pile of rubble.
“Shields everyone,” Alix said. “Shay, you stay with Gordon. We don’t know what to expect and I need to know you’re safe.”
Shay nodded and looked at Gordon who nodded in return. Alix got out of the van and the team fanned out behind her.
“It looks deserted,” Ben said, standing beside her.
“Yes, it does, so that means we need to be extra cautious.”
The Warriors were dressed and armed for a full military assault while everyone else was prepared to attack with energy balls. No one knew what to expect but they were all ready to take out any Grynn in their way.
Before they went any further, Alix did two things, she sent out her magic to loo
k for Grynn traps and made sure she was prepared to see anything hidden. Everyone else had the contacts, but she didn’t need them.
Her magic went out in a wide sweeping arc that covered the entire building and surrounding area. Nothing was popping up, so she decided to enter the building. Rand and Baxter insisted on going first and with their military backgrounds Alix had learned not to argue with them.
The main doors were unlocked. Rand opened one and Baxter went through with his gun ready. She saw him sweep his head and gun across the lobby and then motioned for everyone to follow. Rand, Baxter and Kris did this to all of the rooms on the main floor. They found no Grynn and no Grynn magic.
“We need to go down to the bottom level,” Alix told them. “The first place I met François was in the cell they were holding me in.”
Ben got an angry look on his face when she mentioned being held prisoner. Alix took his hand and gave him a small smile and he relaxed a little.
Not trusting the elevator, they found the door leading to the stairs. Once again, Baxter took the lead. Alix was continually scanning for enemy magic but so far, they were in the clear.
When Alix stepped through the door at the very bottom of the stairs she was taken right back to when she was trying to escape from there last time. The room was exactly the same, right down to the piles of boxes.
“What’s wrong?” Ben asked her.
“Nothing about this room has changed. I guess my energy balls didn’t get all the way down here. I was just thinking about how I escaped last time. If you would have asked me then if I’d ever be back here of my own free will, I would have said you were crazy.”
“That’s probably why François chose this place. He knew you would remember.”
Alix knew he was right, but she wasn’t going to let François get to her. She was stronger than that.
“There,” Alix said, pointing to a door. “That’s where I was held. I have to go into that room.”
“I’ll go with you,” Ben told her.
“No. This is one of those things I have to do alone.”
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