THE MARBLE CITY WAS filled with more people than Laura and Millie had ever seen in their lives. The marble buildings gleamed white with swirls of blue and green. But despite the majesty of the ground level, the tops of the buildings looked like they had been demolished and hastily repaired. The roofs were made of a patchwork of driftwood and metal scraps. Horse-drawn carts barreled down the busy roads, and people rushed along the sidewalks past rows of storefronts—taverns, apothecaries, flower shops, and cobblers. They all wore sturdy, broad-brimmed hats. Several people who passed Laura and Millie looked suspiciously at their bandannas. But Laura and Millie were too busy marveling at the city to notice. They stood, awestruck, until one of the horse-drawn cart drivers hollered, “Get out of the way!”
They pulled Donkeycorn out of the road, just narrowly avoiding a collision.
“This place is wild,” said Millie.
“What happened to the roofs?” Laura asked.
“From what I hear, after the Lysors disappeared, the Marble City developed”—Quin hesitated, trying to find the right words—“a bit of a bird problem.” He pointed to a storefront down the street that had a red door with a large eye carved into it. “There it is! The shop with the eye on the door!”
They tied up Donkeycorn outside and pushed open the door. A copper bell rang as they walked in. They found themselves in what appeared to be a drab waiting room filled with people crowded on wooden benches. Some sat patiently, while others twiddled their thumbs anxiously, looking back and forth.
Sitting behind a desk was an old woman with white, wispy hair tied up in a bun so it looked like there was a big cotton ball growing on the top of her head. Her eyes were glued to a book. She didn’t even glance up as Laura approached her.
Laura cleared her throat. “We’re looking for Deirdre?”
“Take a number,” the woman said in a monotone voice, pushing a stack of parchment toward Laura. The piece on the top said 23. Laura looked around nervously at the crowded room. They didn’t have time to wait for all these people to see Deirdre.
“Please,” Laura tried. “It’s important.”
The woman raised her eyes from her book, meeting Laura’s. “Kid, everyone walks in here acting like if they don’t see Deirdre right away, the whole world is going to end. Here’s the truth—it’s not!”
Laura dropped her voice to a whisper. “But Hobbly Knobbly sent us.”
“I don’t care who sent you, Hobbly Knobbly or Hubbly Wubbly or Hoobly Scoobly! Everyone has to take a number!” she snapped.
By now, the whole room was staring daggers at Laura. She sheepishly took the number and squeezed onto a bench in between Millie and Quin.
They overheard a conversation on the bench next to them.
“So why are you here?” said a woman with wire-rimmed glasses.
A man in dirty overalls replied, “Someone stole my cow. I’ve got to get it back. I haven’t had milk for days. What about you?”
“I’m in a book club, and I have a sneaking suspicion that I’m the only one who reads the books!”
Laura, Millie, and Quin exchanged confused glances.
Millie whispered, “What do you think this Deirdre lady actually does?”
Laura and Quin shrugged.
Just then, the door at the back of the room flew open. An old man with a curved back and a wooden cane walked out, followed by a tall woman with long, straight black hair and silver bracelets stacked on her wrists. She had the eyes of a small mage, one green eye and one violet.
The man shook her hand enthusiastically. “Thank you, Deirdre, I’ve always wanted to know what my cat does while I’m at work.”
“You’re very welcome,” Deirdre said, waving good-bye. As soon as the man walked out, Deirdre turned to the woman behind the desk and shrugged. “It’s not that interesting. The cat just sleeps all day.”
“Number seven!” the woman behind the desk called out.
The man in the dirty overalls stood up. Laura knew she had to do something. There was no time to spare. She ran over to Deirdre.
“Excuse me, Deirdre?” she said. She pulled back her bandanna ever so slightly, just enough to reveal her green lock to Deirdre alone.
Deirdre drew in a sharp breath. “I owe Hobbly Knobbly a fat goose, don’t I?”
Laura nodded.
Deirdre clapped her hands and announced, “Everybody out, we’re closed for the day.”
“But my cow!” the man in the overalls whined.
“Come back tomorrow,” said Deirdre. “Martha, you can go, too.”
The woman behind the desk shut her book and stood up. “Okay, but I expect to be paid for a full day.”
Everyone filed out of the room, grumbling and complaining. Martha left last, locking the door behind her.
Deirdre looked to Laura, then Millie, and finally locked eyes with Quin. “This day just got a lot more interesting.” She smiled. “Come with me.”
They followed Deirdre into the back room. Everything was made of marble—the walls, the floor, and a large basin in the center of the room that was filled with water. There were blue velvet stools positioned around the basin. A large window on the back wall looked out onto a beautiful tree-filled courtyard.
“Wow.” Quin arched his eyebrow. “Being a small mage in the big city is pretty different.”
“Nobody trusts a small mage until you help them find their lost cow. Then suddenly you’re their best friend.” Deirdre winked at Quin, then sat down on the stool closest to the window. “It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a Lysor. You must have traveled quite a ways.”
“We have,” said Laura. “All the way from the Dead End.”
“How’s Hot Breath doing?” Deirdre asked.
“Cranky,” Millie replied.
“Well, he’s still teething. Trolls live to be seven hundred years old. It takes them a while to mature. Now, something tells me you didn’t come here to chitchat.” She gestured for them to sit down. “Whose eyes?”
“Sorry?” Laura asked.
“Whose eyes would you like to see through? That’s what I do. Anyone you want, I can show you what they’re seeing at this very moment.”
“Really?” Millie asked. “Is my little brother Horton reading my diary?”
“If he’s your little brother, then yes,” said Deirdre. “I don’t need any magic to tell you that.”
Laura piped up, “Bloato. We need to see through the eyes of Bloato.”
“Bloato it is,” Deirdre said. She leaned over the stone basin. Her chin hovered just above the water. She glanced up at Laura. “What are you waiting for? Make me cry.”
“What?” said Laura.
Deirdre sighed. “Martha didn’t tell you? I need you to make me cry. That’s how this works. My tears fall into the water basin. We see through this Bloato person’s eyes. Couldn’t be simpler,” Deirdre said matter-of-factly. “But don’t try any sob stories, I already heard one today that you’ll never top. It was about a guy who accidentally ate his pet fish. So sad when that happens!”
Millie thought for a moment. “Sometimes I laugh so hard, I cry. I know! I’ll tell you a classic Lysor joke.” She rubbed her hands together. “Okay. Why did the Never-Dark Forest trees blow away in the wind? Because they were so light !” Millie burst out into hysterical laughter. “Get it?!” she shrieked, doubling over.
Deirdre stared at her blankly.
“Millie,” Laura said. “Deirdre doesn’t know what the Never-Dark Forest is. Plus, it’s not a very good joke.”
Millie wiped away tears from her own eyes. “Agree to disagree, Laura,” she said, still giggling. “Agree to disagree.”
“I know!” Quin said, waggling his fingers. “Are you ticklish?”
Deirdre held up her hand. “Don’t even think about it!”
Laura racked her brain. There had to be some way to make this woman cry. They couldn’t have come all this way for nothing. Suddenly her eyes went wide. “I’ve got it!” She grabbed Millie’s rucksack and pulled out the big brown onion she had gotten from the produce cart in the Dead End.
“Genius!” said Quin.
“Keep that thing away from me,” said Millie.
Laura peeled off the outer layer of the onion, then snapped it in half and held it under Deirdre’s nose. Deirdre took a deep breath in. Tears welled in her eyes.
“Ooh!” she said. “Here come the waterworks.”
The tears rolled down her cheeks and into the basin with a soft plunk! At that exact moment, Deirdre said, “Oighar’e.”
Water.
Dark blue droplets swirled on the surface of the basin as if it were filling with ink.
When the droplets cleared, an image appeared, fuzzy at first, like the memory of a dream. Then it came into focus. It was a dark room with walls made of rock. It was filled with jewels and precious metals, shiny gold coins piled high in the corners. Whoever this Bloato was, they couldn’t see him, but they could see through his eyes that he was seated on a golden throne. He brought a silver chalice to his lips and took a long sip. Then he stood and crossed the opulent room, his silk robe dragging along the stone floor. The room was dimly lit with lumpy black candles.
Laura recognized it instantly. It was the same kind of candle that Quin had lit in his tiny house. “Quin, those are—”
“Goblin wax candles,” he finished her thought.
They looked back into the basin.
Bloato stood in front of a long table where there was a ruby-encrusted box. He reached out his hands, which were a sickly green. His nails were long and yellow. His fingers were covered in heavy gold rings with fat diamonds. He opened the box. When Laura saw what was inside it, she teared up a little herself.
It was a crown carved entirely of crystal so clear, she could see right through it.
As Laura stared at the image of the Crystal Crown in the pool of water, her lock of hair became so bright that it cast a green light throughout the whole room. Heat radiated through her entire body. Then suddenly a bright light came in through the window. The trees in the courtyard outside were glowing more brightly than the Never-Dark Forest.
All at once, the image in the basin disappeared. The water became clear, and Laura found herself staring at her own reflection. Her lock dimmed, and the trees outside stopped glowing.
Quin stared at Laura. “What. Just. Happened?”
Deirdre looked at Laura. “You found what you were looking for.”
“I can’t believe it!” Millie said. “We actually saw it!”
Quin jumped to his feet. “We’ve got to go get it.”
Millie and Quin headed for the door, but Laura didn’t move. She didn’t speak. She just kept thinking of the words her mother had written, Bloato wears the Crystal Crown. All those years ago, she had been right.
“Laura, come on!” Millie said.
Laura looked back up at Deirdre. She knew she would never have a chance like this again. “I need to see through one more person’s eyes.”
Deirdre placed her hands on the sides of the basin. “Whose?”
Laura took a deep breath. “My mom’s.”
The look of longing on Laura’s face brought a tear to Deirdre’s eye without the help of any onion. It dropped into the basin.
“Oighar’e,” Deirdre said.
Laura watched the blue droplets dance across the surface of the water. Her heart raced. For a moment, she felt the faintest glimmer of hope. But then, when the droplets cleared, there was only darkness.
Deirdre placed her hand on Laura’s. “I’m sorry.”
From outside, they heard the sound of giant wings flapping overhead.
Deirdre looked up, panic flashing across her eyes. “Scabenger!”
Before Laura could take a single step, an enormous black beak pierced through the ceiling and tore off the roof.
