Wizard's Key (The Darkwolf Saga Book 1)

by Mitch Reinhardt

  “This must have been a beautiful place,” she said, giving her temples a rub.

  “Yeah, I agree,” said Sawyer. “It’s getting dark. Think we better get inside?”

  Jane nodded and they followed Sawyer into the keep. The first room they entered was long and had narrow slits for windows. Large broken beams leaned against the walls and littered the floor, along with bits of wood and stone. The left wall contained a large fireplace. The far end of the room opened into a small twenty by twenty room with a smaller fireplace. In the other corner of the room was a rubble-strewn, circular staircase leading up and down.

  Ivy snaked up the walls and covered much of the rough stone floor.

  Jane sniffed the air. There was a dank, musty odor mingled with an earthy smell. The amount of debris, along with the ivy and even some saplings, made the space look cramped.

  “That looks like a good place to set up camp, whadda ya think?” asked Sawyer, pointing to a corner of the room that was less cluttered with debris.

  “I want to go home,” said Jane.

  “Me too,” said Geoff. He walked about until he found a suitable place for a small fire.

  “Maybe we can clear away those vines and junk and sleep here,” said Geoff. “Hopefully there aren’t any poisonous snakes hiding in all this mess.”

  “Ugh,” said Jane with a shiver.

  Sawyer smiled and grasped a handful of the thick leafy vines and began to pull them away from the floor. His activity disturbed a pair of brown and white sparrows that had nests wedged into cracks in the wall. Squawking, they flew away.

  “Sparrows,” said Geoff. “Hey, it’s a good sign that we see trees, deer, rabbits, and other familiar animals. Isn’t it?”

  “I guess that means we can expect to find poisonous snakes and spiders and, like, bears, too,” said Jane.

  “Oh. I didn’t think of that.”

  Jane watched Sawyer, his arms bulging as he strained to pull the vines up. Not only had the vines had grown into nearly every crack and crevice, they had started to branch out, making them difficult to dislodge. Jane tied the rag around her head and grabbed a handful, too. Eventually, the vines grudgingly surrendered their long conquered homes to Sawyer and Jane.

  Soon they had cleared enough space on the stone floor for Geoff to make a fire.

  “Sawyer, can I borrow a shoelace? I need it to help me start a fire.”

  Sawyer looked suspiciously at Geoff. “You’re not going to burn it, are you?”

  “No, no,” said Geoff. “You have the best shoelaces for using the bow and drill method. I’ll give it back.”

  “You better,” said Sawyer as he untied his shoe and gave the string to Geoff. “I seriously doubt you can do it. But go ahead, mountain man.”

  Using the shoelace from Sawyer, Geoff fabricated the rough tools needed to start a fire. Once he had everything assembled he began the task of quickly moving the bow backward and forward.

  “Ow,” said Geoff. He dropped the makeshift bow and clutched his shoulder. His injury prevented him from being able to work the bow back and forth to apply pressure to the drill.

  “Geoff, you’re hurt. Let me help,” said Jane, dropping a handful of vines. She walked over to Geoff and knelt beside him.

  “Okay,” she said. “Tell me what to do.”

  “Here, hold this rock in place with your foot and push down on the drill here,” said Geoff as he pointed to the thin, dry branch positioned perpendicular to a somewhat flat piece of wood with crumpled dry leaves at its base. Jane held the flat rock as Geoff instructed and feverishly worked the bow back and forth as Geoff gently blew on the kindling.

  Sawyer watched from a comfortable position against the wall with a disbelieving look on his face. “Ha! Like this is really going to work,” he said.

  It was dark by the time Jane saw a red glow under the leaves and smelled smoke. Geoff blew again and small flames burst forth. Geoff quickly placed more leaves and broken twigs on the fire. Soon they had a good-sized campfire that illuminated the area.

  “Holy crap!” said Sawyer. “You did it! I didn’t think it would work! Way to go, you two.”

  Jane smiled at Geoff and gave him a reassuring pat on his shoulder. Geoff flinched in pain.

  “Oh, Geoff, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I forgot about your shoulder.”

  “It’s okay,” he said.

  “No, it isn’t okay, Geoff. Here, let me take a look.”

  Jane moved behind him and carefully lifted his shirt over his head. In the firelight, she saw his right shoulder was red and purple and swollen to twice its normal size.

  “Oh, Geoff,” she cried. “Why didn’t you say anything? You must be in a lot of pain.” She lightly ran a finger along the discoloration surrounding his shoulder.

  “I think it’s dislocated,” she said. “I hope there isn’t any muscle damage.”

  Sawyer, who had been adding kindling to the fire, stopped and walked over to Jane and Geoff.

  “Ouch,” he said. “Yeah, looks dislocated to me.”

  Jane thought for a moment, and then she saw the pile of vines and undergrowth Sawyer had pulled up from the floor and walls.

  “I think we can make a sling from these vines,” she said as she gathered a large pile of the greenery.

  “But we need to pop that shoulder back in place,” said Sawyer. “I had the same injury last year in the state quarterfinals. Coach popped my shoulder back in, but I wasn’t able to continue. It hurt like hell…,” Sawyer’s words trailed off. Jane remembered hearing about how upset Sawyer’s dad was and how he had to be restrained by security. He had attempted to go down to the sideline and berate Sawyer for being too soft.

  “I’ve never done that,” said Jane. “Do you remember how they reset your shoulder? Do you think you could try with Geoff?”

  “Yeah, maybe. I think I could do it,” said Sawyer as he examined Geoff’s shoulder more closely, “but it’s gonna hurt, Geoff.”

  “Sawyer, if there is any doubt we better leave it alone. We could end up doing more damage to his shoulder.”

  “No,” said Sawyer. “If we leave his shoulder all messed up there is a chance it will be permanently damaged. He’s been walking around like this for hours now.”

  “Geoff,” said Jane, “it’s up to you. Do you think you can wait until we get home or do you want us to try and reset your shoulder?”

  Geoff looked at Jane, then Sawyer. He was trying to decide what to do when Sawyer gave him a reassuring nod.

  “C’mon,” he said. “I got this. You’ll be okay.”

  Jane noticed the confident tone in Sawyer’s voice seemed to chase away any fears Geoff may have had. Geoff smiled.

  “Okay, let’s do it,” he said.

  “All right. Now we need some room to work. Here,” Sawyer said as he turned and kicked a few stones away. “Jane, let’s clear a place for Geoff to lie down.”

  Sawyer tugged at a few pesky vines that lingered in the way. Jane joined Sawyer and several minutes later they had cleared a place large enough for all three of them.

  “Okay,” said Sawyer. “Geoff, come lay over here by the fire so we can see.”

  Geoff’s eyes were wide, and Jane could see he even shook a little. He took a step forward and then stopped. Jane went to Geoff and gently placed an arm around him.

  “Don’t worry, Geoff.”

  She helped Geoff get into place on the stone floor. Sawyer told her to position herself on the opposite side of Geoff.

  “Geoff,” began Sawyer, “like I said, this is gonna hurt like hell until we get your shoulder back in place. I need for you to relax, take a deep breath, and let your arm go limp.”

  Geoff inhaled and closed his eyes.

  “Don’t forget to exhale,” said Sawy
er. Geoff exhaled.

  “Okay. I’m ready,” said Geoff. Jane noticed he was gritting his teeth.

  “Don’t be nervous, Geoff. It’s okay,” said Jane in a soothing tone. “We’re going to fix your shoulder. Just do what Sawyer said and relax. Let the tension leave your body. Relax.”

  As Jane spoke she felt Geoff’s body unwind, and his breathing slowed and became deeper.

  “Good. That’s good, Geoff,” said Sawyer. “Now, Jane, you’re on the other side of Geoff. I need for you to put your arm around his waist and pull him toward you when I pull on his arm, okay?”

  “Sawyer, are you sure about this?” Jane didn’t want to insult Sawyer, but she didn’t want to make Geoff’s shoulder worse.

  “Of course,” he said with a wide grin. “I’ve had this done to me and I’ve seen it done to a couple teammates. No problem. It’s the same thing. Now get ready to pull, nice and slow. Don’t jerk.” Jane reached over Geoff, placed her hand firmly around his waist, and waited for Sawyer to start.

  Sawyer carefully straightened out Geoff’s elbow so his arm stretched outward from his body. Then he grasped Geoff’s wrist with both hands. Geoff took another deep breath.

  “You’re doing great, Geoff,” said Jane. “It’ll be over soon.” She glanced up at Sawyer. He met her gaze and gave her a quick nod. As soon as he started to pull Geoff’s arm, Jane felt him tense up.

  “Ow! Ow! Ow!

  “Relax, Geoff,” she said. “We’re almost done. You’re doing great. Just relax.” She pulled Geoff’s body toward her, trying to match Sawyer’s steady, slow tug. Geoff grimaced and as Sawyer kept pulling.

  “That’s it, Geoff,” she said. “You’re doing it. Hang in there. Almost done…”

  The growing look of agony on Geoff’s face was not a good sign, and Jane worried that Sawyer was doing more harm than good. Geoff’s mouth was open now and it looked to Jane as if he were about to scream. She heard a faint pop and crack. Geoff’s eyes flew open and he cried out.

  “Ahhh! Stop! Stop!”

  Sawyer released Geoff’s arm.

  “Good job,” he said with a quick nod. “How does it feel now?”

  “It…really hurts,” he said. “But it’s better, I think. I can move my arm a little more.”

  With Jane’s help, Geoff laid his arm across his stomach and let out a big sigh. Then she leaned forward and had a closer look at Geoff’s shoulder. She noticed the discoloration was still there, of course, but now it looked like everything was in the right place.

  “Looks good,” said Sawyer cheerfully. “You’re gonna be okay. You’ll be sore for a while, so just try and get some rest.”

  “You’re going to be fine, Geoff,” said Jane, echoing Sawyer’s reassurance. She looked at Sawyer.

  “Nicely done,” she said.

  He smiled and nodded.

  “Here,” she said to Sawyer as she handed him the rag Geoff had placed on her head. “Would you go dip this back in the water? I’ll get to work on a sling for his arm.” Without a word, Sawyer took the rag and scrambled over the ruined wall, disappearing into the growing darkness. Jane reached for the pile of vines she had set aside and began crudely weaving a handful together. Sawyer returned a few moments later with the dripping wet rag and handed it back to Jane.

  “Here ya go,” he said. Jane placed it over Geoff’s shoulder, trying to cover as much area as she could.

  “You know,” said Sawyer, “I think you may be right. I think someone is out there watching us.” Jane looked at him. The serious look in his eyes gave her pause.

  “What happened?”

  “Nothing happened,” said Sawyer. “I felt like you did earlier, but and when I turned and looked back at the forest…well, I don’t know.”

  “What did you see, Sawyer?”

  “I don’t know,” answered Sawyer. “Just for a split second, out of the corner of my eye, I thought I saw some movement. Something in the darkness moved. It was big. I mean, really big. But when I looked I didn’t see anything. Just a tree. It was probably a moose or something.” He shrugged. “Maybe we should be careful. What if someone is out there and they aren’t friendly? Or what if a wild animal is stalking us?”

  Jane looked out into the darkness, considering what Sawyer said. They had no way of defending themselves and would be at the mercy of whomever or whatever happened upon them in the forest. She shivered a little, but tried to keep a stoic face. Sawyer handed her his makeshift club.

  “Here,” he said. “Just in case.”

  Jane took the club and laid it next to her. Sawyer stood up and walked back to the wall to look around.

  “I’ll be back. I’m going to get some more firewood.”

  “Sawyer,” said Geoff, “it’s not a good idea to get separated. You better stay here now that it’s dark.”

  “It’s okay,” said Sawyer with the same confident tone he used earlier. “I’ll be right back.” And with that he hopped over the wall and was gone again.

  Jane looked at Geoff and smiled. Geoff showed what looked like a forced a smile and said, “He likes taking risks, doesn’t he?”

  “All jocks do, I guess,” said Jane.

  She lifted the wet rag and looked at his shoulder. Geoff was right. Sawyer was always a reckless kid growing up, doing all sorts of dangerous feats like jumping a parked car on his bicycle and holding a firecracker until the last moment before he threw it.

  Jane closed her eyes. A nagging throb in her head had returned and now she realized she was tired. She picked up Sawyer’s club and positioned herself cross-legged beside Geoff, facing the wall and waiting for Sawyer to return.

  The soothing breeze they felt earlier grew stronger. Jane could hear the limbs far above in the treetops scrape and scratch each other in the wind. Almost twenty minutes later, a smiling Sawyer dropped an armful of tree limbs over the wall and climbed back into their camp.

  “Everything okay?” he asked.

  “Yes,” said Jane quietly as she put a finger to her lips and pointed at a sleeping Geoff.

  “All right,” said Sawyer in a hushed tone. “Sorry. I think we have enough wood to burn now.”

  “Good. That should keep the night chill away. Did you see or hear anything out there?” asked Jane. Sawyer shook his head, “Nope. Just crickets and fireflies. I must have been imagining earlier.” Then he reached back over the wall and proudly produced a relatively straight six-foot-long tree branch.

  “However, this is my new weapon.” He looked at Jane. “Just in case.”

  “Just in case?” asked Jane.

  “Yeah. Just in case,” repeated Sawyer. “I’ll pull off the smaller limbs and sharpen the tip. It should make a nice spear.” He looked at Jane.

  “Hey, maybe you better get some rest, too. I’ll be up for a while working on this,” he said as he held his soon-to-be spear up high. “Don’t worry. I’ll keep the fire burning.”

  “We should try to have a plan for tomorrow,” said Jane. “We need food and we need to decide on a course of action. I wonder if we should follow the stream or perhaps build a bigger fire and hope someone will see it.”

  “Dunno,” said Sawyer. “You and Geoff are the boy scouts. I’m just the shoelace guy.”

  Jane looked at Sawyer, who was smiling.

  “No, really. What do we do tomorrow?”

  Sawyer stopped working on his makeshift spear and thought.

  “I’m not sure,” he said. “I would like to follow the stream. I mean, sooner or later it has to come out somewhere, right?”

  “I suppose so,” said Jane. “Tomorrow morning Geoff and I will look for something to eat—berries or some fruit, maybe.”

  “Cool. That’s a good idea,” said Sawyer.

  “Can you keep an eye on me while I go down to
the river and wet my rag again?” asked Jane.

  Sawyer chuckled.

  “Not afraid of the dark, are you?”

  “No,” said Jane. “Just stay where you can see me, that’s all.”

  “Yeah. No problem.” Sawyer stepped to the wall and continued working on his spear.

  Jane went to the courtyard and knelt beside the stream. She glanced up at Sawyer, who could easily see her—if he was looking. His attention was focused on his spear, however. Jane dipped the rag that Geoff had given her into the cool, flowing water. How refreshing it was! She gave it a quick squeeze and then placed it on the back of her neck. Some excess water rolled down her back and relaxed her a bit. Jane took a long, deep breath. She was so tired. All she could think about now was going to sleep.

  She stood up, and as she did a white flash or shimmer moved in the forest by the stream below her. She gasped and blinked. She was overwhelmed by the brief glimpse of something intriguing.

  Without a word to Sawyer, she ran down to the stream to where she had seen the exquisite shape dash off into the darkness.

  Her heart pounded in her chest. Did she really see it? Was she too tired and simply imagined that beautiful form in the dark?

  Jane ran back and forth along the stream, peering into the forest for another white shimmer. She slipped on some large stones and fell on her rear. The stones were wet. She lifted her hands and in the moonlight saw they were covered with a dark, purple-red liquid. She smelled her hands and detected a faint trace of iron.

  Jane began to tremble.

  She glimpsed the white shimmer again. Her heart leapt.

  She struggled to her feet and looked back at the keep.

  “Sawyer!” she called. “There’s something out here! Hurry!”

  And then Jane ran into the forest.