Enchanters: A Meridia Falls Fantasy Thriller (Meridia Falls Series 1 Book 3)

by D. B. Green

We follow her through the lobby and into the restaurant. All the fallen tables and chairs are back in their normal positions.

  “What are you gonna do with this place?” Maz asks as she turns on the spot.

  Stephanie stops and carefully pulls a sheet from a table. “Mr. Church wants to reopen the restaurant as soon as possible. We just have a few tiny revisions to make first. This place will provide a cover while we are here in Meridia Falls.” She glances at the sweeping staircase. “Victoria is in a little trouble…” Her voice trails off. “She needed to get away for a while. This place is perfect.”

  “What, better than Milan?” Maz says, rolling her eyes.

  Stephanie nods. “My, my, you have been busy.” She turns to face Teddy; her right eyebrow raises a little. “Checking up on us, Mr. Chen?”

  “Teddy, please,” he says. “I have enough of the Sarge calling me Mr. Chen. You make me sound like my dad.”

  Stephanie smiles and carries on up the stairs. “I suppose you did the exact opposite and went back to the chapel.” She turns and glances at me. “Did you find anything?”

  “No. There was nothing. It looks like they cleared out,” I say, climbing the stairs. “There was no access to the crypt. But we do know where they went - Vault Six. We overheard a scientist and Reverend Matthews talking.”

  “There’s seven of these illegal extraction vaults… we think,” Stephanie says. “We didn’t know for certain one was here until talking to you earlier. Mr. Church did suspect there was one here when George Randall disappeared, but there was no evidence of the location.”

  A loud scream suddenly comes from Penny’s apartment. Penny. Victoria comes running out, both hands clamped over her stomach. “Stephanie,” she screams. “It’s getting bigger.” Her hands fall away to reveal a small bulge stretching through her black T-Shirt. Her eyelids flutter and she tumbles forward, knocking the recently replaced golden gong onto the floor.

  I dive forward and wrap my arms around her, cushioning her fall. She’s fainted. Her heartbeat thumps against my arm. Two heartbeats. Like when I was in her mind earlier. Only this isn’t my heartbeat… A baby? “She’s pregnant,” I say.

  Stephanie wraps her arm around Victoria’s shoulder and we help her back into the apartment and lay her down on the sofa. Penny’s ghost still stands in the corner. Her arm is still raised, pointing. Relief - I’m relieved she’s still there. While she is, I know she’s still alive. I can feel it. Something at the back of my mind, a warmth - I can feel her presence again. Not like before, but she is there. I walk over, reaching out with my hand. My fingers pass through hers. I close my eyes, focusing on the warmth at the back of my mind, focusing on every heartbeat.

  “Pregnant?” Maz says, bringing my mind back into focus. “She was as thin as a rake this morning.” Her eyes wander to Victoria’s stomach. “She didn’t have that bump earlier.”

  Stephanie runs her hand through her hair.

  “What about her dad?” I ask. “Does he know?”

  Stephanie shakes her head, pulling a face. “No. I was hoping by bringing her here, we’d have time to figure it out.”

  “What do you mean?” Maz asks. “What’s to figure out? She got knocked up.”

  “Maz!” I shout.

  She shrugs her shoulders. “I say it like I see it, Newb.” She rolls her eyes and stands at the door, searching for any sign of Penny’s ghost. “You should know that by now.”

  “Thank you for your observations, Miss Moreau.” Stephanie closes the door.

  Penny’s bag swings on the hook. I rub my finger over the twine ring and turn to her ghost. The warm feeling in my mind, beats in time with my heartbeat. Penny.

  “The thing is, Miss Moreau,” Stephanie says, running her hand through her hair. “How do I say this…”

  “I’m still a virgin,” Victoria says, sitting up on the sofa. “Boys are not my type. Believe me. And I’ve never had sex, period.”

  Max glances at Teddy and then at Victoria. “So what are you saying? It’s an immaculate conception?”

  “It was about a month ago. One day I wasn’t pregnant. Then the next day, I was.” Victoria shrugs her shoulders and presses her hand to her stomach. “I don’t know how.”

  “Magic?” Teddy says.

  Stephane nods. “Yes, I think so.”

  Maz groans. “She could have been drugged and then…”

  “No,” Stephanie says, cutting Maz off. “The pregnancy is accelerated.” She glances at Victoria’s stomach. “She got to be equivalent to sixteen weeks now in the space of just four. There is definitely magic involved.”

  Victoria eases herself off the sofa. “I’m OK now. I think that was another accelerated shift.” She stops and arches over, clasping her stomach. Her eyes open wide. “It moved.”

  Maz walks over, disbelief in her eyes. “Can I feel?” Victoria takes Maz’s hand and presses it to her stomach. “Oh my god. I can feel it moving. She is pregnant.” A wide smile spreads across her face, the disbelief gone from her eyes. “A baby!”

  “Where’s Church,” I say, lowering my voice. “You can’t keep this from him now.”

  “Thankfully, he’s gone back to London,” Stephanie says. “He’s trying to find out some answers from back home.”

  I move back to the closed door and stand in front of Penny’s ghost. I pass my hand through her, watching her beautiful green eyes stare straight through me.

  “Did Mr. Church take the big guy with him, too?” Teddy asks.

  “Four? Yes,” Stephanie says. “That’s not his name, though. It’s a designation.” She sighs. “There’s so much you all don’t know.”

  “Then tell us,” Maz says. “Enchanters, M-Chromosome, Affinity - magic! We have a right to know about it if it involved us.”

  Stephanie ignores her and walks to the desk. “Victoria says that the processor in Penny’s computer—” she pauses and glances at Teddy. “—is laced with magic blood… Affinity blood.” She reaches into her pocket and pulls out the silver tube from earlier. She stands it on the desk. “The same blood that powers this Magic Release… That lets us do magic.”

  Teddy picks up the tube and examines it.

  “Careful with that,” Stephanie says, snatching it from his hand. “You don’t know what that would do.” She stares into his eyes. “Have you sparked…?” She pauses, her voice trailing off.

  Victoria shuffles across the floor to join Stephanie at the desk. “Penny’s ghost is emitting a magic signature, just like everything… everyone else in this town. I just need to write some code to separate them all out.” She turns and stares at Penny’s ghost. “Then I can track her location.”

  Magic signatures. Is that what I can feel in my mind? The warmth? “How long will that take?” I ask. “To find Penny’s signal?”

  Victoria half-smiles. “I’ll write the code tonight and have it running in the morning. But it could take a few days to separate all the signals.”

  “I’m afraid you’ll have to hang tight for a few days,” Stephanie says. “Do the normal things and stay under the radar.”

  Maz coughs. “Texas.”

  Stephanie narrows her eyes. “Texas. Your father?”

  “I’m visiting him tomorrow.” I say, glancing at my watch. “At four thirty, our time. He says he knows who took my sister. Maybe he knows who kidnapped Penny, too.”

  “Maybe…” Stephanie’s voice trails off. “Have you booked your flight yet?”

  “No. I’m gonna do it when I get home.”

  Stephanie leans on the desk. She grabs a pen and scribbles fast on the back of some business cards. She hands one to each of us. “Our Canadian numbers are on the back. Put them in your phones.” At the mention of phones, mine vibrates in my pocket.

  I flip the business card over. No numbers. Just a message.

  We have your number already. And now you have ours. You don’t need to book a flight to Texas. Come back here at 8.30 in the morning. I can get you to Texas much quicker. But don’t te
ll the others, yet. I need to show you something first. I need to explain a few things.

  Stephanie’s eyes open wide and she slowly nods as I look up. She’s holding her phone. I follow her movement and mouth ‘OK’. She half-smiles, relief in her eyes.

  I turn back to Penny’s ghost. I don’t want to leave her.

  Stephanie taps the top of the middle filing cabinet, the one where Penny got the police report about her brother’s disappearance from. “We’ll have to go through Miss Summers files…” She pauses. “Is that OK with you, Mr. Collins?”

  Why is she asking me? “Yes,” I say. “And call me Logan.”

  Teddy reaches into the safe and pats the top of Penny’s server. “Penny had all her files backed up on a hidden partition.” He glances at the filing cabinets. “I helped her scan them. We made a database; it will be much easier than sifting through the file.”

  Victoria spins around and narrows her eyes at Teddy. “I didn’t find a hidden partition.”

  Teddy rubs his hands together and smiles. “Let me show you.”

  The rage bubbles again in my stomach, sending thoughts of Teddy and Penny working together through my mind. Spending all that time together. Is this jealousy? I don’t like it, but I can’t stop this rage bubbling away like a bad case of indigestion.

  “Right then, Newb,” Maz says, grabbing my arm. “Are you gonna give me a lift home?”

  WEDNESDAY

  5th October

  2005

  08:04 GMT-4

  LOGAN COLLINS

  THE HARRISON ESTATE | MERIDIA FALLS

  “Come on, Logan,” Anne says, tapping at my plate. “You’ve not touched your breakfast.” Her left eyebrow raises. “And I thought Pop-Tarts were your favorite.”

  I push the plate away. “I’m just not hungry… even for Pop-Tarts.” Memories of Maz’s failed attempt at cooking burgers for lunch fills my mind.

  Anne places her warm hand on my forehead. “Are you feeling OK?” she says. “Is everything going OK at school.”

  Penny. The image of her shimmering ghost sits at the front of my mind. Not moving. Frozen. I let out a long breath. I can’t exactly tell Anne that the girl I asked to marry me is a ghost. “It’s all good,” I lie. “I’ve actually got another study date tonight. It’s straight after school, so I won’t be back for dinner.” I pause for a second. “Is that OK?”

  “That’s fine.” Anne smiles as she reaches for a cloth next to the kitchen sink. “I’m so pleased you’re settling in and making friends.” Her smile fades as she wipes the table. “I don’t think I’ll be back for dinner, either. I’ve got to go to join Harmony in Halifax today for an important meeting.” She sighs. “And I’ve had to juggle the staff around at the bakery. Charlotte has left town, indefinitely. Family emergency. So, I’ve had to move Tom into the bakery as a temporary manager and Rebecca, my shift supervisor, is covering him in the coffee shop.”

  “I’m amazed how you cope with it all.”

  She half-smiles. “It’s been a struggle, but I sorted it out. It will be easier when Harmony finishes up in Halifax. I feel lost without her.”

  Harmony. I wish she was here, although I’m not sure I’d want to drag her into all this mayhem. She doesn’t deserve that, not after how nice she’s been.

  “So, what’s your friend Penny like?” Anne asks, snapping my mind back.

  Penny. My heart sinks. I should be happy right now, telling Anne about the girl of my dreams. Not having to fake it. I close my eyes and think of Penny herself, not the ghost version of her. I focus on the steady warm feeling at the back of my mind. Faint butterflies flutter in my stomach. I will find you.

  “Well,” Anne says, taking my plate. “Is she nice?”

  “Way more than nice,” I say. “She’s beautiful.”

  Anne smiles. “I knew it. I could tell from your face the other night.” She holds out my plate. “You sure you don’t want these Pop-Tarts?” She shakes the plate. “Cinnamon roll flavor.”

  My determination to find Penny feeds my appetite. I grab the Pop-Tarts from the plate. Anne smiles as I take a bite.

  “I feel better knowing you’ve at least eaten something.” Anne lifts my rucksack onto the table. She pulls back the zipper and slides a box inside. “Some leftover cupcakes from the bakery,” she says, smiling. “For your study date, tonight.” She spins around. “Wait, a minute. Penny. As in Penny Summers?”

  I nod as I finish chewing the last bite of the Pop-Tarts.

  “I know her mother, Alice Summers,” Anne says. “She owns the Meridian Cinema Restaurant. I considered buying it as an investment last month.” She frowns and shakes her head. “But it wouldn’t have been viable for my business.” Her eyes suddenly open wide as she glances at the clock on the wall. “You better get going.” She slides my rucksack across the table. “You don’t want to be late for school.”

  She’s right, I had better get going if I’m to keep up the pretense of going to school. At least the cinema is on the same route. I close my eyes; thoughts of seeing Penny again feed the butterfly feeling in my stomach. Even if it is only her ghost.

  “If you’re going to be out late again, Logan, don’t forget your…”

  I jangle Cassie’s Wonder Woman keychain before she can finish. “I won’t forget my keys. They’re on here now. Safe and sound.”

  Anne smiles and leans in close. She kisses my forehead. “Have a good day. Depending on when you get in, I may already be in bed.”

  “Don’t worry,” I say. “I’ll be as quiet as a mouse.”

  “Speaking of mice,” Anne says. “As we’re both going to be out all day, I’d better leave some food and water down for Izzy.

  “Where is she?” I turn around, looking for her. “She slept on my bed until about six and then disappeared.”

  Anne laughs. “She heard me baking. I gave her some breakfast and then she curled up on the sofa in the living room.” She sighs. “Sometimes, I’d like the life of a cat.”

  “Let’s hope we find her owner soon,” I say. “They must be so worried about her.”

  Anne nods “The word is out now. If someone has lost her, then we’ll find them.”

  “Right. I suppose I’d better get moving.” I stand up from the table and grab my rucksack. I don’t know how Stephanie is going to get me to Texas any quicker than a direct flight from Halifax, but I can’t wait to find out.

  08:27 GMT-4

  MAIN STREET | MERIDIA FALLS

  It’s another misty, chilly morning in Meridia Falls. I’m beginning to see this is the norm around here. Luckily, I parked close to the cinema. I lock the truck and pull my jacket collar tight to my neck to block out some of the freezing wind, then head up the street to the cinema. My phone chimes in my pocket, making me jump. It’s a message from Stephanie.

  We’re in the coffee shop. Meet us in there for a coffee.

  Steph.

  I check the time. Eight twenty-seven. If Tom says anything, I’ll say I’m having a quick coffee before school. I can even say I’m checking up on him for Anne. That will wipe the smug smile from his face.

  I take a deep breath and cross over to the other side of Main Street. I turn and look longingly at the Penny’s apartment windows above the cinema restaurant sign across the road. Penny. I really want to see her.

  I head over to the bakery. Pressing my face to the window, I can just make out Tom, looking shell-shocked behind the bakery counter with a large line of customers in front. I hope Anne made the right move temporarily promoting him, but at least he won’t notice me in the coffee shop and report back to Anne that I wasn’t at school.

  I push open the door and head straight through the arch into the coffee shop. It’s quite full in here; all the tables are taken

  “Logan!” Stephanie shouts from the back of the room. She’s sitting with Victoria in a booth next to the back window. Victoria’s dark hair drapes over the back of the gold and red leather seat.

  I squeeze past the line of customers. S
ome of them are students I recognize; I guess they’re not too bothered about getting to school on time. A glimmer of recognition flashes in a curly-haired guys eye as I push past.

  Victoria smiles as I slide into the booth next to her. Her face has a little more color than yesterday. I can’t stop my eyes drifting to her baby bump, but she’s got the same black coat she had on yesterday wrapped tight around her, hiding the bump.

  “How are you feeling?” I ask.

  Her hands press to her stomach. “Better than yesterday,” she says, half-smiling.

  Stephanie pushed a mug across the polished table “I got you a plain black. Is that OK?”

  “Perfect.” I pull the cup towards me and take a sip.

  “Right then.” Stephanie smiles and leans across the table. “I want to go with you to Texas. If that’s OK.” She lowers her voice. “There’s something I want to show you first. We can go on the way.” She narrows her eyes and takes a sip of her cappuccino.

  “Sure. I’ll be glad of some company,” I say. “I was going to ask Penny to go with me… How is she?”

  “She’s the same,” Victoria says. “I finished the code this morning, so I’m just running an algorithm to separate the signatures, but there are a lot of them in this town. I’ve also set up a camera to record her continuously. One, it will help separate her signature, and two…” She bites her lip. “I’m sure her lips are moving.”

  “Moving!?” I say.

  She half-smiles and touches the back of my hand. I hadn’t noticed until now, but my hand is completely healed. Not a wrinkle in sight.

  “Yes,” she says. “I watched her last night when I was setting up the camera. I’m sure her lips moved - slowly.”

  Stephanie coughs and waves her finger between us. Victoria yanks her hand away from mine. “Shouldn’t you be like, reading her mind right now?” She leans forward and stares into my eyes. “There’s absolutely no sign of Radiance in your eyes.”

  Victoria bites her lip. “It doesn’t work… It didn’t yesterday. His magic has no effect on me.”

  Stephanie’s eyes open wide. “Did you tell your father?”