She thought about taking off her ward but reconsidered halfway through reaching for it. There was no way to know what kind of raw power or magical anomalies were present in this in-between state. Taking off her ward might just as easily throw her into nothingness as get her home.
Sighing, she slumped forward and rested her head in her hands, propping her elbows on her knees. None of this made sense. How had she even gotten into this mess in the first place?
That thought made her sit up again. She considered it, doing some mental calculations.
The loop was supposed to be a closed system, yet both she and Sebastian had been pulled in. That wasn’t supposed to happen. If tears or openings were showing up in the fabric of the magic, creating weak points, then the spell must be degrading. Depending on how many times the loop had been reset, and how old the device was, it made sense that the magic might be weakening. Like everything else in life, spells faded over time to varying degrees and either had to be renewed or sealed in an inactive state to retain their power. If the device’s seal had been broken when it was activated, its power could be fading, drained by continual resets.
But who was using it? More important, did they realize the magic was fading? The implications of a time loop breaking apart while still in effect was chilling. People might be sucked out of the loop through weak points and left stranded in this in-between space. Worse, if the magic went haywire in the middle of a loop, it could throw everyone into nothingness. Three hundred and seven people, or whatever the actual population of Pitts was these days, could cease to exist.
Sebastian’s words held a new meaning. Lives were indeed at stake.
Lily got up abruptly, wobbling somewhat as she struggled for balance. She was getting the hang of this gravity-yet-no-gravity thing, but it took concentration.
Now that she had an idea of what was going on, it was time to do something about it. She had to get back to town and check out that antique store. It was imperative to find the device as quickly as possible and stop whoever was using it from looping it again. If she could find a hint of its whereabouts, then all she had to do was re-enter the loop and track it down. She hoped against hope she could use her original entry point—the weak spot on Pitts’s main street—to get back in and meet up with Sebastian.
She started off north, toward town, weaving back and forth unsteadily as she waded through the gray grass. Her passage left no mark, bent no blade, and left no imprint in the soil. It was as if she wasn’t even there.
* * *
Lily had no idea how long it took her to get to town. Her cell phone, safely in her back jeans pocket, had frozen, probably because of all the magical interference. It might have been five minutes, or five hours. Or maybe time didn’t exist in this in-between space.
When she finally got there, however, everything was exactly as it had been before. The cars were still parked along the main street, including hers, the “OPEN” sign still hung in the 5 and Dime, and the fan was still rotating back and forth in the antique store. The fact that everything now appeared black and white and fuzzy around the edges simply added to the eeriness of the scene.
She made her way to the antique store and pushed through the front door. The gray door didn’t move at her touch, the same way the grass didn’t move as she walked through the field. Neither did she pass insubstantially through the closed door. Yet, somehow, she found herself on the other side.
Looking around, she almost forgot her dire situation. The clutter of old furniture and lamps, bookshelves of embossed tomes, and cases full of trinkets made her heart flutter with excitement. She was in front of a corner bookcase, reaching toward a particularly magnificent-looking copy of Great Expectations, before she remembered that not only was she not there to read, but she probably couldn’t take it off the bookshelf, anyway.
With a sigh, she turned toward the rear of the store, weaving in and out of piles of antiques to see if she could find where the owner kept his inventory records. As she rounded the last pile, she ran smack dab into a rather solid-yet-not-solid something and was thrown off balance. She had to devote all her concentration to staying upright. Once she had her balance back, she took a good look at what she’d run into and nearly fell over again in shock. Filling up the narrow space between the pile of things she’d rounded and the long glass case that served as a counter stood a man. Despite the force with which she’d made contact, he seemed oblivious to her presence. Like everything else in the store, he was gray and fuzzy around the edges, leading her to assume he existed in real time, outside the loop. That meant she couldn’t touch or influence him.
To test her theory, she cautiously approached and waved a hand in front of his face as he leaned over the glass case, examining an open ledger. He didn’t blink or seem to notice her hand at all. She tried touching him. There was something there that her hand couldn’t push past, but she wasn’t really touching him. The fabric of his sleeve—he wore a very expensive Italian suit, by the look of it—didn’t dent in as she poked at it with her finger.
Taking a step back, Lily examined him curiously, watching as he turned a page and continued reading through the ledger. There was something almost familiar about him, yet she was sure she’d never seen him before. Or had she? Perhaps he simply looked like someone she’d known once, but couldn’t remember. He certainly wasn’t Freddie, not if Sebastian’s older brother looked anything like Sebastian himself. This man was solidly built and of medium height, not tall and lanky like her friend. He also had a Roman nose and decidedly patrician features in contrast to Sebastian’s less angular, boyish face.
Besides his expensive-looking clothes and perfectly trimmed hair, beard, and goatee, the man seemed normal enough. Except the normal she was used to in Atlanta was distinctly out of place in a backwater like Pitts. Here, the fine clothes and immaculate grooming screamed money and class, both rare sights in this town. She looked closer and noticed a large ring on the forefinger of his left hand. It was set with a gigantic, pitch-black stone—onyx most likely—and the thick band was heavily engraved with dimmu runes.
Lily felt a jolt of excitement mixed with dread. This man could simply be a collector of fine antiques, but her gut told her he was a wizard. That ring looked like a power anchor, similar to the amulet attached to her ward bracelet, only much stronger, judging by those runes. If he was a wizard, he was probably here for the same reason she was: the artifact Sebastian had lost. Perhaps this was the “someone” who’d offered Cory money for the lugal-nam.
Trying not to touch him, even though he wouldn’t know, Lily inched in close and peered over him at the ledger. Everything had been written in a spidery, neat hand. The ledger listed each item in the shop followed by its details such as the seller, cost, date of purchase, description, buyer, date of sale, and profit. The items were numbered, and papers scattered around the ledger were stapled with Polaroid photographs of antiques, each one meticulously labeled with the item number and date. Obviously, the man before her was searching through the ledger and pictures for the lugal-nam.
Taking a closer look at the page the man was currently examining, Lily realized he wasn’t just searching for it. He’d found it. It was hard to see the picture, as it lay on the opposite side of the thick ledger from her, but the item in it was unmistakable: a cylinder-shaped tube about six inches long made up of rotating pieces like a combination lock. Just then the man leaned closer to the picture, blocking Lily’s view as he squinted at it, so she switched her attention to the line in the ledger on which his finger rested. It listed the item’s details, as well as a date and amount of sale. She peered closer, heartbeat quickening, trying to read sideways around the man’s hand. It appeared the antique-store owner had sold the lugal-nam about two weeks ago in early June to a man named Rob. She couldn’t see the last name, covered as it was by the man’s finger.
Though doubtful it would help, she reached forward anyway, trying to shift the man’s hand so she could see the writing underneath. As she
reached, the amulet hanging from her wrist brushed against the stone on the man’s ring, and for the first time since she’d been thrown into this in-between time, she felt something, like a jolt of power. Based on the startled jerk of the man’s hand, he felt it, too. He looked at the offending limb, perplexed, then raised his head to peer around him. Lily knew he couldn’t see her, but she still paused only long enough to read the last name the man’s finger had covered, before shrinking back.
Turning her direction, the man’s gaze passed over her, then swung back and lingered. Lily shivered. He wasn’t looking at her exactly, but she felt sure he could see, or sense, her there. The puzzled wrinkle of his forehead deepened to a frown, and she saw his lips move, though she couldn’t hear his words. Not waiting around to find out if he was merely talking to himself or casting a spell, Lily fled the antique store. She had what she needed. Now if only she could get back in the time loop where it would do her some good.
3
Here We Go Again
Out on the street once more, Lily retraced her steps to the curb where she’d first entered the loop. A quick glance at the antique store assured her the strange man hadn’t followed her out.
Relieved, she closed her eyes and tried to remember how she’d entered the loop the first time. There’d been a sensation of being pulled sideways and squeezed, as if she’d been forced through a narrow crack between realities. Such a crack shouldn’t exist. Its presence weakened the integrity of the time loop. But if it got her back where she needed to go, she’d worry about the rest later.
Taking a deep, calming breath, Lily relaxed and sank into a meditative state, opening herself to the Source to feel the currents of magic around her. If she focused hard enough, maybe she could find…
There.
In that gray world of muted senses, she felt the barest hint of something. It was a slight shift in the aether before her, like feeling a draft in a cave. She held tight to it, seeing the trickle of magic in her mind as it seeped through the crack before her.
Lily stepped toward it and…
Stumbled.
Scowling, she turned and stared at the spot where the crack should’ve been. The asphalt was unsurprisingly immune to her glare, so she sighed and stepped back up onto the curb to try again. And again.
At one point during her attempts, the man from the antique store emerged onto the sidewalk, disrupting her concentration. She watched nervously as he surveyed the seemingly empty street. Though his gaze swept in her direction, it didn’t linger. After a few moments he set off east, toward the outskirts of town. Knowing they were after the same thing, Lily redoubled her efforts, anxious to find the lugal-nam before it fell into the wrong hands.
After several more fruitless attempts, she stopped herself. She was missing something. Recalling the memory of her first passage, she scrutinized every detail. Then it dawned on her: the pull through had been sideways. Her physical movements were irrelevant since it was the loop’s magic which had pulled her sideways from one timeline to another.
Armed with this newfound discovery, she readied herself again. The draft of magic tickled her senses as she focused on it and carefully, without moving, stepped sideways through time and…
Emerged onto a sunlit street curb.
A wave of sensation bombarded her, driving her to the ground where she sat, momentarily dazed. Cars trundled by on the street and a few passersby looked at her strangely. She ignored them all. Closing her eyes, she reveled in the feeling of rough cement beneath her hands, the smell of the hot summer air, and the warmth of sunshine on her skin.
“Lily!”
A familiar cry came from across the street, and Lily’s eyes snapped open. She was intensely relieved to see Sebastian running toward her—an unfamiliar feeling, since his appearance usually evoked annoyance and exasperation.
Wobbling unsteadily, she rose in time to be swept up in a tight hug, throwing her completely off balance once more. The hug was brief, giving her shocked brain no chance to protest before Sebastian relaxed his embrace to hold her at arm’s length, his expression relieved.
“Good grief, Lil, you scared me to death! What happened?” Sebastian’s words came out in a breathless rush. “You weren’t there when the time loop restarted. I’ve spent hours looking for you! I was worried you might have gotten stuck or lost somewhere. I didn’t know what to do.”
“Calm down, for heaven’s sake,” Lily said, trying to regain a semblance of composure despite Sebastian’s death grip on her shoulders. “I’m perfectly fine. I was stuck, but I found my way back. If you’ll stop squeezing me to death, I’ll explain.”
“Oh, sorry,” he said, dropping his hands self-consciously.
There was a moment of awkward silence.
“So, um, shall we sit?” Lily asked, gesturing to a bench further down the sidewalk.
“Yeah!” Sebastian agreed, seeming relieved.
Sitting down, Lily explained all about the space in-between, the strange man, and how she’d managed to return. She also noted, with no little amount of annoyance, that Sebastian’s pant legs were now clean and free of the mud and stickers they’d tramped through following Grimmold, as if it had never happened. Her pants and shoes were still covered with it. While she spoke, she worked on brushing off the dried flakes of muck.
When she finished, Sebastian’s expression was troubled.
“So, you think the guy in the antique shop was a wizard?” he asked.
Lily shrugged. “There’s no way to be sure, but I doubt anyone could’ve acquired a power anchor like that ring otherwise, especially one so powerful. It’s not as if you can buy one at the local ‘wizard-mart.’ You have to construct it yourself. It’s a deeply personalized item, and it never functions as well for another wizard. The only exception is a blood descendant. They’ve been known to be passed down within wizard families. Regardless, he must be a wizard to have entered the loop to find Cory, then exited again to search the antique store. I have no notion how he’s doing it. Then again, I have never studied time magic. It’s a dangerous field. Most people die fiddling with time or disappear, never to be seen again.”
Lily fell silent, her thoughts troubled. She was meddling with time, and historical precedent did not predict a favorable outcome. All the more reason to find the artifact and escape this loop as soon as possible.
“Well,” she began again, “now that we’re caught up, it’s time we—”
“Oh no! What time is it?” Sebastian cried, looking at his watch and jumping up from the bench in almost the same moment.
“Wha—”
“Be right back!” Sebastian dashed up the street, leaving Lily with her mouth agape in astonished question. He seemed to be headed for a young girl coming toward them across the street. Her braided hair, adorned with bright beads, bounced as she walked, and she licked happily on an ice cream cone probably acquired moments before at the 5 and Dime store behind her. The dripping treat left white drops of melted confection on her hand and wrist that contrasted sharply with the girl’s ebony skin.
Lily couldn’t imagine what Sebastian was up to. Though a car was driving down the street toward them, it was far enough away to not pose a threat to the girl. Yet, Sebastian didn’t slow.
As she watched, he scooped the girl up in his arms and out of the approaching car’s path just as it materialized exactly where she’d been seconds before. It was as if the car had teleported forward. The startled driver screeched to a halt, and Lily noticed the car now sat barely a dozen feet from the lamppost marking the crack she’d originally come through.
Setting the girl gently down, Sebastian spoke to the driver who, window lowered, was most likely apologizing for not seeing them in the road. As the car drove off, Lily watched him escort the girl back across the street. Before leaving, he dug in his pocket and handed her some change, an obvious apology for the ice cream cone now lying smushed in the middle of the road.
“What in the world was that about?” Lily asked as
he returned to the bench.
“What did it look like?” Sebastian grinned, obviously pleased with himself.
“Well, it looked like a time warp. The crack we both came through is skewing the normal flow, creating pockets of distortion. It’s like I told you: the magic holding this loop together is weakening.”
“Well, yeah, that too,” Sebastian agreed. “But did you notice my handy little save? I saw her get hit a few loops ago. Couldn’t let it happen again, now could I?”
Lily sighed, exasperated. “Yes, I saw it. You did a tremendous job. I’m pleased she’s safe. But don’t you see what’s happening? Saving one girl won’t be enough if we can’t find this device before everything spins out of control.”
That made him pause. “Ah. Yes. I see the problem there…so what are we going to do?”
“We need to locate Rob Smith. He’s the one who bought the device from the antique store.”
“Good thing you got his name. The old grouch who owns the place wouldn’t tell me a thing. Tight-lipped as a clam.”
Lily cocked an eyebrow. “Clams don’t have lips.”
“I know that, but they…oh, never mind. So how are we going to find out where this guy lives? The people in this town seem pretty shy of outsiders.”
“Is that so?” Lily asked, affecting a shocked expression which failed to disguise her smirk. “Has the unthinkable happened and your charm failed you? How rude of it.”
“Oh, shut up. I’d like to see you do any better.”
“I don’t have to. It’s called a phone book, genius. You have heard of those, haven’t you?”
“Er, yes. There’s that,” Sebastian admitted, sheepish.
Love, Lies, and Hocus Pocus Beginnings Page 14