by S.J. Armato
So, unseen, unheard and unknown, the underground fans continued on through the night and into the next several days, until finally, pitted and corroded they faltered, sputtered to a grinding stop, and the room fell into an eery silence. Nothing remained, except for piles of wind swept crystals. Nothing more.
The CEO of Universi-Toy was never seen again. The case was closed, and his disappearance was, and continues to be, the town’s most intriguing unsolved mystery.
Chapter 30
They didn’t want to lie, but it was easier than telling the truth and trying to explain everything. So, Maggie, Molly, and Tim’s official story was that Tim hurt his ankle when he tripped over Eeny Meeny. (Now, if you’ve ever had a cat, you’d realize how believable that is.) Besides, Tim was fine. It was just a minor sprain.
The month of December passed gently by. Everyone celebrated Christmas at Maggie’s and Hanukkah at Molly’s. The kids didn’t see much of Mr. Oddley during that time.
And then suddenly, it seemed, it was Spring.
“I have a s-surprise for you,” said Tim one day, holding something behind his back.
“For who, me or Maggie?” asked Molly.
“For b-both of you,” laughed Tim. The girls were all eyes and ears and big-time smiles.
“Here,” he said, as he handed them each a tiny baby turtle. “Lady Byron’s eggs f-finally hatched.”
The girls were thrilled, as was Bernie, who engaged in a turtle sniff-a-thon. Eeny Meeny and Miny Moe were a little too thrilled, however. More like — please, please, please, let us play with those new toys — thrilled.
“Ah, better keep the kittens away f-from them,” suggested Tim.
“Oh yeah! And hey, we need to get tanks for them,” said Maggie. “Let’s go to Le Pet Store, then we can drop in on Mr. Oddley.” They put the turtles safely away in an air-punched shoe box, way out of cat reach, and left.
***
Mr. Oddley was standing outside the closed up shop when they arrived. He was holding a For Sale sign and shaking hands with someone. He didn’t look very happy. The someone left.
“Hello kids,” he said with a sad smile. “Well, I’ve sold the shop. Made a pretty good deal too. I should be happy but truthfully, I’m going to miss this place. Going to miss Just Like Magic. And I’m going to miss all of you.
“But we’re not going anywhere,” said Maggie.
“Well, but I am,” answered Mr. Oddley. “Liza is getting better, she’s still a little shaky, but her memory is coming back. We’re moving out west next week, and we’re going to open up a pottery shop.”
Without saying a word, and fighting back the tears, the kids circled Mr. Oddley and gave him the warmest hug he’d ever gotten in his life. Bar none.
“Hey,” he said, his voice shaking. “For old times sake, how about we go inside, enjoy each other’s company and talk? We’ll order pizza and milk!” And that’s exactly what they did.
***
“We’ve had some good times, no? Here’s to three special kids,” said Mr. Oddley as he raised his glass of milk in a toast.
“Yes we have, and thank you sir, but how about here’s to four good friends?” suggested Maggie. And with nods of approval four glasses rose into the air.
“Hey, did you hear that Rob and Daphne are back together?” asked Molly.
“No way,” everyone shouted.
“Yes, but Rob’s changed. This whole affair really turned him around. I wouldn’t have thought it possible, but he’s not Rob-noxious any more. He’s become a really nice guy.”
“Huh,” said Tim. “It’s maybe the only g-good thing that came out of Mr. Merless’ insanity.” Everyone reflected on that curiously correct thought in an awkward silence.
“Good for them. Now for a change of subject, the giant mouse is gone,” said Mr. Oddley, as he munched on a slice of mushroom pizza. “I have no idea where he went, but I still wouldn’t be surprised if he turned up one day on the evening news, as I had once feared he might. But, my guess is that he will live out his life, like all rodents, searching for scraps of food and trying hard to be invisible.” Somehow the prospect of this giant rodent being shown on Live TV was rather exciting for the kids, especially since they were three of only a small group of privileged people who would know what that darn thing was.
“Another change of subject. What do you think happened to Mr. Merless?” asked Maggie.
“Oh, I don’t know for sure but I have given it some thought. He became obsessed with the power of the crystals. It grew into a kind of mania. His damaged crystals were dying and were poisoning his body, poisoning his mind, and perhaps making him do things that he normally wouldn’t think of doing, things that no sane person would ever think of doing. And then it seemed he crazily thought he had become a...”
Suddenly, there was a loud knock at the door. Mr. Oddley opened it just in time to see a car pulling away. On the doorstep was a large container. A envelope, bearing his name, was attached. So he dragged the box inside. The note inside simply read:
From Universi-Toy,
We believe these are yours.
They opened the container, and it was filled to the brim with the untainted Incredimite. Thankfully, the crystals were sealed in small gel capsules. “And I thought I was finished with all this craziness,” sighed Mr. Oddley.
***
Maggie hung up the phone, and stared out her bedroom window. It was a gorgeous early Spring day. The trees had begun doing their yearly magic act of pulling buds from thin air, and a gentle wind was bending tree branches to applaud their arrival. It was the kind of day to help you forget there was such a thing as Winter. Later in the day she was going to see Adam. They were becoming good friends. But first, there was something she had, they all had, to do.
After saying “Bye” to her Mom, Maggie went to meet Molly and Tim on the corner of Memory Lane and Chance Street, right outside the old toy shop. Mr. Oddley and Liza were there also. She was smiling and looked fine, but she still had that scrubbed clean look.
“I transferred it into five well sealed packages and placed them into backpacks. I think we’re ready.” said Mr. Oddley softly. Everyone piled into the car and started off toward the mountains. In spite of the fact that five people occupied the vehicle, it was a silent ride. Each person was lost in their own thoughts of what they had lived through. When they arrived they saw the parking area was not empty this day. Several hikers had beaten them to the punch and were starting up Halfway Mountain, walking sticks in hand. Apparently, the seismic activity scare had come to nothing, and it was back to business as usual.
Slowly, the group made their way up the trail and to a quiet little ledge overlooking a stream. “Funny,” mused Mr. Oddley, “when Merless left me stranded on the mountain, he said I would be the last victim of the Pandoran crystals. But he was wrong, for it appears, he was. Well anyway, we’re here,” he said.
Each person unzipped their pack and pulled out a bag... a bag of Incredimite.
“Hey, they’re yellow!” exclaimed Molly.
“Yes,” nodded Mr. Oddley. “I bleached them. Wait, wait, I’ll explain. There was a passage in one of the tablets Merless and I found in the cave that puzzled me. It referred to color and the importance of maintaining a consistent hue... however, it did not explain why.
“But then I began putting two and two together. The original crystals worked well while Merless’ altered ones did not. Why?” No one answered, so Mr. Oddley continued. “Because their color had changed, and because of that the frequency in which they vibrated changed. And vibrations were how the crystals communicated. His reddish ones had lost their ability to communicate reliably.”
“Like a cell p-phone with a b-bad connection,” exclaimed Tim.
“Yes, Tim. That is correct! And then I wondered further, what would happen if the shift continued so that the color of the crystals were as far from violet as possible? And that would be the yellow-orange ones you see here.
“There is no wa
y to render them completely inert but in their current state, which is permanent, mind you, each one exists on its own. They are no more dangerous than grains of sand.” The kids all looked a bit confused but no one spoke.
Then, one by one, led by Mr. Oddley, each person poured their crystals into the fast moving waters; which sparkled and glistened under the early morning sun and spread like a blanket of hope over the churning river.
Which was truly fitting, for in the legend, when Pandora opened the box, bad things were released into the world... and only one thing remained, and that was Hope.
“But why put them into the river?” asked Maggie. “This stream will carry the crystals out to sea. What good is that?”
Mr. Oddley nodded and smiled. “What good indeed? Well, you see Maggie, out to sea and eventually all around the world. Each harmless little bit will find its way somewhere... who knows where.
“But remember, each crystal still possesses a tiny spark of life. A spark that just might bring a little magic into someone’s life.”
“And in this crazy, crazy world,” whispered Liza, “a little bit of magic couldn’t hurt, now could it?”
How could anyone argue with that!
About the Author
After 35 years of working at a large publishing company, S.J. Armato went back to college to train for his second career. He now works as an Occupational Therapy Assistant, providing services to special needs school children. He lives in New York State with his wife, three cats named Stinky, Cali, and Tippy, and a loopy black Lab named Molly. He is very proud of his two grown kids, his daughter-in-law, and his beautiful grandson. He is currently working on his third novel chronicling the continuing adventures of Maggie and her friends.
Also by S.J. Armato
The Legendary Adventures of
Maggie Golden, Book I: The If Bridge