Everyone paused.
‘And how do you know that Leo?’ Stella inquired.
‘Uh, well, you know…’ he was red in the face as he shrugged.
‘No I do not know, please inform me.’
‘Look, sometimes I enjoy reading a good human magazine okay.’
‘And when in the world do you have time to do that?’
Laura could see the amusement on Stella’s face, but she wasn’t going to give in so easily.
‘I don’t know. Here and there I have some free time.’
‘Ahhh, I think I know what he is trying to say,’ Logan said, settling back in his seat, sending a wink Leo’s way.
Leo’s eyes narrowed.
‘Please Logan, do tell.’ Stella pressed.
‘They are his toilet magazines,’ Logan remarked smugly.
‘Oh I was wondering what Woman’s Weekly was!’ Grace exclaimed.
Leo’s face had surpassed the colour of beetroot. ‘So I like to buy Woman’s Weekly, okay? It’s no big deal!’
Laura couldn’t control her giggles as Stella patted Leo’s shoulder, ‘whatever you say dear.’
‘Did you sleep well?’ Caspian inquired. He and Laura lingered by the Hotels front steps, the rest of their group deep in their own discussions while they waited for their taxi to arrive.
‘I slept okay. I did have another strange dream, though. How about you?’ Laura caught Drew’s eyes on them and gave a little smile before turning back to Caspian.
‘Nope, no strange dreams for me. What was your dream?’
Laura launched into a quick explanation, ensuring to add that it ended the same way her other one had. As if it was the return of a memory.
‘What was it your mother said before the dream ended?’ Caspian asked, his full attention now on her.
‘Memorias,’ Laura answered.
A flash of shock crossed his expression and he answered in a whisper, ‘that is the name given to the Memory Charm.’
‘So my mother is able to wipe my memories?’ Laura asked. She wasn’t surprised, like she thought she should be. She had begun to suspect as much.
‘By the sound of it, yes, although there is no way of knowing how until we find her and ask.’
‘What about Kane? And the charm he was talking about trying to find?’
Caspian hesitated for a moment, glanced quickly at Gemma, then pulled Laura to the side and out of earshot before explaining that there was such thing as a ‘Black Market’ in their world.
‘There are people of our world who are placed in between evil and good, claiming to take no side. They are known as the Sorcerers, and they hold the black light. We told you of Dark Magic? This is where it’s illegally produced. They trade objects the Gods crave and in return they receive the power to access their desirable Charm. From there, the trade extends to Enchanted or Wicked. Any Enchanted caught dealing in the Black Market are sentenced to Hell without trial.’
Laura was horrified that her mother had been dealing in such ways.
There was a flash of light as the taxi Stella had ordered crawled down the drive way, the sunlight catching on the glass windows. It came to a stop out the front of the hotel and Stella met the car by the curb.
‘All aboard,’ she called out.
As they entered the city Stella informed everyone that they would be making their first stop at Bran’s National Park. ‘I have a friend who will be meeting us there and will hopefully be able to shed some light on where the Istha Map is located.’
‘I can take you to the information centre to collect a map,’ the taxi driver offered.
Stella looked at the driver and laughed, ‘oh, no that won’t be necessary. We are searching for a special historical map for… research. To see what has changed.’
The cab driver gave a nod of understanding, and Laura gazed out the window, watching the streets of Bran pass by. She was vaguely aware of Stella reading from another brochure in the background.
As they arrived, Laura took in the beauty of the Park. Lush green grass surrounded a huge water fountain and stone paths weaved their way through the park and around the perfectly pruned trees. The place bustled with life, people were out running, watching their children play, having morning tea, and walking their pets.
Stella led them through the grass and into the shade of the trees. A Wizard was draped across a seat, reading a Bran newspaper and smoking a cigarette. His face was young, with high cheekbones, and brown hair falling down over his eyes. As he heard Stella approach, he lifted his face and his lips broadened into a smile, showing a set of slightly yellowed teeth. He folded the newspaper placing it under his arm and dropped his cigarette, stepping on it and drilling it into the earth. Laura looked around nervously, expecting security to come running.
‘Stella! Long-time no see!’ He exclaimed and pulled her in for a hug.
Laura chanced a look at Leo and almost laughed at the expression that was on his face. His glasses had slid down his nose and his face was crumpled into a dirty glare as he watched his wife pull away from the man.
‘Leo, good to see you man,’ he said, extending his hand, which Leo took.
‘Leo is adorable when he is jealous,’ Grace whispered to Laura and she stifled a laugh.
‘Tom, these are my students, but they have certainly become like my children after watching them grow up. Makes me feel old!’ Stella laughed.
‘Stell, you are much too beautiful to even be a day over twenty-one.’
Laura and Grace giggled as they watched Leo’s face further contort. Stella waved his compliment off as she stood aside and introduced everyone.
‘It is nice to meet you all,’ Tom smiled, shaking hands with each and every one of the students.
‘Now, we are in search of something special, Tom, and we are sincerely hoping you will be able to help us. Although when we ask we must beg of you to keep this visit secret, as it is not public knowledge,’ Stella said.
‘Of course Stell! We have been friends for years, you know you can count on me.’
Stella launched into a brief overview of the situation, not venturing into too much detail. She explained that Laura’s mother was missing and they were helping Laura locate her and in order to do that they required access to Istha’s Map to see if she was nearby.
‘Ah, the map. I will tell you the location of the riddle that will lead you to the map, but I’m afraid you will have to collect it alone,’ Tom said regrettably.
Leo sighed with relief.
‘Of course Tom, we don’t expect any more of you!’ Estella insisted.
‘The clue is carved into the stone wall of the library in a deserted house outside of the city. I have gone over the riddle numerous times and I cannot for the life of me figure out its meaning. I have to be honest though, each time I seek out the riddle, it seems to change. That’s why it is best you find it for yourself, for I believe the map changes locations often, thus changing the riddle.’ Tom said, removing a pen from his pocket, hastily scribbling down the address on the corner of his newspaper and tearing it off. ‘But I will tell you this, it is not as obvious as it first seems.’
‘Thank you Tom! This information is very helpful and much appreciated,’ Stella said, taking the paper.
‘You are welcome Stell. I guess we best part ways as you continue on your quest. I wish you luck. It was nice meeting you all!’ Tom said as he turned to leave, ‘Stell, don’t stay a stranger.’
‘I won’t Tom,’ Stella nodded, and with that, he left.
Chapter Eleven
Those That Lurk In The Shadows
Leo relaxed once Tom had left, and within seconds of his disappearance, Stella was herding everyone back to the taxi bus. Now that they knew where the riddle was they just had to solve it, find the map, and see if it knew where Laura’s mother was.
As they crossed the grass, Laura fell in step with Caspian.
‘I wanted to ask you something… about my dream,’ she said.
‘Su
re, what is it?’
‘The sacrifice that the man mentioned. Where you give up your mortality. What does that all mean?’
Caspian was hesitant, but answered her, ‘if you give up your life to the Gods, promising to serve as an angel of heaven for all eternity before it is your time to die, then they will agree to use their power and forces to protect he or she the person is sacrificing themselves for. They will not be harmed by anyone or anything.’
‘Do many people do that?’ Laura asked, stunned.
Caspian shook his head, a lock of his blond hair falling into his eyes, ‘no there aren’t a lot of people willing to give up their life for someone else.’
He pushed the hair from his face.
‘And my mother was going to do just that,’ Laura mumbled.
They loaded into the taxi bus, ‘are you going to tell Stella about the dream?’ Caspian whispered to Laura.
‘I will tonight, when it’s quiet.’
The taxi started and they were off.
‘From what this brochure says, the country cottages on the outskirts of Bran are mostly unoccupied due to the expenses and upkeep required, hmm, interesting,’ Stella read aloud as they reached the outer edge of the city.
‘Where the hell does she keep getting those brochures from?’ Drew asked, glancing around the bus, his eyes resting on Leo.
He raised his hands defensively, ‘hey don’t look at me, I have nothing to do with it!’
‘But you can do something about it, can you not?’ Gemma inquired, sweetly.
All six faces were staring at him as Stella read on in the background.
‘Leo, it’s killing us,’ Logan moaned.
Grace agreed, ‘another day of this and it will kill us.’
‘Alright, alright I’ll steal them from her bag while she’s sleeping.’
‘Good man. Always looking out for us,’ Logan said winking at him.
Leo rolled his eyes, pushing his glasses back up to the bridge of his nose, ‘you guys are going to be the death of me.’
‘The brochures will be.’ Drew said.
‘Are you listening to me?’ Stella called from the front seat, clearly frustrated.
They turned in sync, facing the front.
‘Yes honey!’ Leo called back. ‘The death of me, I tell you,’ he muttered to himself.
‘Are you going to activate the Invisibility Charm?’ Gemma asked Stella as they piled out of the taxi.
They stood before a small cottage a number of miles from the city. Leo paid the driver, asking him to be back in an hour to pick them up.
‘Shhh!’ Stella hissed as the taxi drove off.
Gemma rolled her eyes, ‘please, no one is around, the taxi is gone, its fine.’
Stella huffed, ‘no, we won’t be activating them, we will do a sweep of the area to ensure no one is around and then go about our business.’
Laura and her companions observed the cottage and surrounding area. Running along the front of the house was a cobblestone path, and in the distance they could see that the light bush surrounding them became much thicker. Dead flower beds and overgrown weeds covered the edge of the house, and the long grass was brown, crackling under their feet as they crossed the yard. They uncovered a cracked concrete path beneath the overgrown lawn that wound its way up a hill towards a cluster of eerie sheds.
‘Stella and I will take the inside, Drew, you and Caspian can check the backyard. Logan, Grace and Gemma search the sheds down that road. We need to make sure the place is completely deserted before we seek out the riddle,’ Leo said and they each moved towards their designated destinations.
‘What about me?’ Laura piped up awkwardly.
Leo looked horrified with himself, ‘sorry Laura! Follow Drew and Caspian, they can show you how a sweep is done.’
Laura dashed after Caspian and Drew as they made their way down the side of the cottage. The backyard was in worse shape than the front. The fence encircling the cottage had fallen down and was rotting underneath a mountain of weeds and dirt. The flower beds were barely noticeable and there were wildly overgrown hedges to their left. Laura shifted her gaze to Drew and Caspian who stood meters apart, observing the forest before them.
‘Do you smell that?’ Drew asked quietly, looking sideways at Caspian.
Laura sniffed the air, catching the scent of burnt grass mixed with something almost metallic like.
Caspian nodded, pulling a blade from under his pant leg. ‘Think they are here?’
Drew followed suit. ‘Possibly. Or not far gone.’
Laura didn’t understand the exchange. All of a sudden she heard a rustle and out of the corner of her eye, she saw the hedges shift slightly. She turned abruptly to see a flicker of movement within the bracken and squinted, unable to determine if it was her imagination or not.
There was no breeze. In fact, it was dead quiet. Eerily quiet.
‘Guys…’ Laura whispered as she was hit with the revolting stench of burning flesh.
Drew turned to Laura, and in that moment, the hidden creature pounced.
‘Do you think the riddle will be here?’ Gemma asked as they circled the group of sheds, ensuring no one was hanging around outside.
‘Maybe. Although, part of me thinks that Tom may have already found it and is just leading us on a wild goose chase,’ Grace answered.
‘Yeah he had that untrustworthy look about him didn’t he?’ Logan said, pulling a torch from his backpack. ‘He certainly didn’t seem to mind hitting on Stella in front of her own husband.’ He switched the torch on as they entered the first shed and were instantly hit with the stench of metal. Random bits and pieces of machinery lined the dirt floor, and at the back of the dark, odorous room was a huge sliding door.
After assuring themselves that the shed was empty, they carefully climbed the stairs, Logan and Gemma waiting patiently as the door squeaked open under Grace’s force. Logan shone the torch inside, sweeping it across the room, ensuring it was safe to enter. The place was dirty, musky, and the wooden floorboards were rotting underfoot. Cobwebs hung from the high ceiling, and no light was emitted in the room save a few holes in the ceiling and walls.
‘Ladies first,’ Logan said, stepping back and ushering the girls inside.
‘Smartarse,’ Gemma grumbled, stepping over the threshold, pulling a small penlight torch from her belt and switched it on.
Grace entered, then paused to wait for Logan to pass her before reaching into his bag and whipping out another torch for herself.
‘Hey, that’s my spare!’ He said.
‘And is this not a moment when a spare is needed?’ She grinned and shone the light around the room.
‘Don’t lose it,’ he warned.
‘If I do I promise to buy you another one,’ she swore, placing a hand over her heart.
Gemma tuned out the chatter as she shone her light over the room. There wasn’t a lot in there, a couple of chairs and a large work bench. Some wooden cupboards that were rotting away, like everything else seemed to be, and a few odd tools lying about. And there was another door. She crossed the room, heading straight for it. She tugged it open. Immediately her hand flew to her nose as she gasped with shock.
A gush of wind blew through her hair and sunlight poured in through the door, but that wasn’t what bothered her. There was a horrid smell; one that she was familiar with. She doubled over as bile rose in her throat, the putrid stench of rotting flesh filling her nostrils. The memories came flooding back. The blood. The growls. The screams. The horror.
‘Gemma, hey are you alright?’ Grace wheezed as she caught a whiff of the smell. ‘Logan, get over here,’ she shouted.
Logan hurried towards them, and Gemma saw as he caught sight of something out of the corner of his eye.
Something black with a mouth full of razor sharp teeth was closing in on them.
‘Get out of the doorway.’ Logan said firmly as he drew his dagger from his bag. ‘Get out of the way, now!’
Stella pus
hed the door open a fraction, pausing to listen for any noise. She and Leo were welcomed with nothing. Shoving it the rest of the way open, the two of them stepped inside. The house was musky, but it wasn’t dark. They were in the lounge room, but there was no furniture to indicate what the people who last lived there were like.
‘This place is very dull,’ Stella remarked as they continued on into the kitchen.
A passageway lead off to the left and to their right was a closed door.
‘I’ll check out the passageway, you take the door,’ Leo offered, moving carefully down the hall.
As she was edging towards the door, Stella pulled her dagger from her belt, hidden under her clothes. She tightened her hold on the hilt, placing her free hand on the cold brass handle. In one swift motion she twisted the knob and ripped the door open, looking from left to right. It was the laundry, and it was empty.
She sighed heavily and turned to seek out her husband.
She located him in the bathroom, standing over the bathtub, staring intently at something.
‘Leo?’ She said, frowning as she rested a shaky hand on his shoulder.
‘Look.’
He stepped aside and Stella peered into the tub.
‘Oh my god,’ she gasped as she stared down at the sizzling black charcoal. Black blood dripped from the sides of the slick white tub and she could see small flecks of red where the fire was still ablaze.
Leo’s eyes rested on Stella’s, ‘Goblins.’
Chapter Twelve
Challenge Yourself
‘Drew!’ screamed Laura, and she dove for him, pushing him to the ground with as much force as she could muster. She fell fast and Drew caught her before she landed hard on top of him. Caspian was there in a flash, dagger slashing at the creature. Laura managed to roll over and Drew was up in an instant, aiding Caspian in the fight.
They worked together, anticipating each other’s moves and distracting the creature to give the other the upper hand. Laura had never seen anyone work together in such harmony.
The creature ducked a blow from Caspian, darting sharply around him. In doing so, it caught sight of Laura and twisted its ghastly head sideways, advancing on her.
The Enchantress (Wicked Book 1) Page 12