Their flashlights cast long shadows in the outermost chamber of the ancient cave, forming images that danced along the walls and ceiling as they passed, as though they were trapped in a flickering lantern.
When they reached the room where the guards had discovered them, Friedrich rounded on Birdie. “The glass?”
“But we just got here!” Raina’s voice trembled as she moved closer to her brothers. “And Birdie said we might not have to go back at all.”
Ryan snickered. “And you said this was all a load of crap.”
Raina bowed her head. “I saw her too. On the tournament field. Screaming. She screamed at us. Her friend, the guard, Peter? He was there too.”
“It’s okay, Raina.” Rich wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “We all saw them. That’s why we’re here.”
“I… I know, but—”
“We have to make this right.”
Raina lifted her chin and nodded.
“The aventurine, Birdie.” Friedrich held out his hand. “Time is short. They will murder Marielle and Peter at dawn.”
Rich stepped away from his sister. “How do you know?”
“It was normal,” Louisa said, “to schedule executions at dawn.”
“Put your hand down. I’m not giving it to you.” Birdie hiked up her knotted skirts and reached into the pocket of her jeans for the glass. “It’s still the dragon. That’s what we need to find. The image has to be here somewhere.”
“Make the glass take us back so we can find it,” Friedrich demanded.
The aventurine remained cold in Birdie’s palm. “I can’t do that. If we go back at all, it’ll be because we’re in the right place. This must not be the right place.”
“It worked here before,” Friedrich said, the irritation clear in his voice. “Where else would it be?”
“I may know.” Sophia stepped forward and circled the room, sweeping her light up and down the stone walls until she found the carving. She brushed a layer of dirt away and shined her flashlight on it.
“There you are.” She ran her palm over the lines. “What are you hiding?”
“Is it a dragon?” Sam joined her as Friedrich closed the distance in one stride and loomed behind them both.
She used her puffy sleeve to brush more dirt away.
“Wow.” Sam touched the wall where a faded dragon now roared. “That’s amazing. There’s still some color in the flame.”
Friedrich shoved them aside.
“Hey! Watch it!” Sam said as he regained his footing.
“The chest is behind here!” Friedrich dropped to his knees and scratched at the crevice in the wall.
“Friedrich!” Louisa yanked him up by the collar. “Get ahold of yourself.”
Birdie narrowed her eyes at the dragon, which seemed to grow brighter. A prickle of heat pierced her palm and the chamber shimmered. The scent of spilled wine returned as barrels and crates crowded into the space. “It’s happening! Be prepared for anything!”
She steadied herself between two barrels and crouched low, expecting to see the guards waiting for them, but they were alone. She shined her light on the dragon, which had transformed into a vividly painted work of art adorned with ash and natural colors.
“The dragon guards the treasure.” Sam ran his fingers along the carving. “I bet there’s another chamber behind here.”
Louisa released Friedrich and made her way to an opening on the other side of the room. “This passage is collapsed in our time and you need special gear to climb down. I scaled it once with my friends, but it wasn’t worth it. Stones and boulders block everything. But now—”
“Brilliant, Louisa!” Friedrich shot past her through the opening.
They stared after him in surprise.
Kayla raised her eyebrows. “Should we follow him?”
Louisa shrugged. “I guess?”
The passage led to an intersection where a series of interconnected chambers converged. Beyond them, the cave seemed to go on forever, with chambers and passageways spilling deeper and deeper underground.
In the distance, a light bobbed against a chamber wall, swung toward the passageway, then jerked wildly. It flickered up and down, then snuffed out as a shuffling sound rippled through the darkness, followed by a solid thump.
“What on earth was that?” Sophia said.
“Maybe Friedrich hit his head and dropped his flashlight,” Kayla said. “He’s kind of out of his mind at the moment.”
“We’d better go see. Stay close.” Rich moved toward the chamber, poised to fight. The others crammed behind him and Birdie could feel the heat from their bodies.
When they reached the chamber, Rich aimed his flashlight. “What the—”
Friedrich stood frozen in the center of a long chamber, cradling an intricately carved wooden chest.
“You found it!” Rich said.
Louisa moved into the chamber. “Where was it? Tell me it wasn’t just sitting in here.” She swept her light around the room and her breath caught. A young guard was sprawled on the hard stone floor behind Friedrich, his sword sheathed and helmet askew.
“Who on earth is that?” Louisa pointed to the boy.
“Did you hit him?” Birdie crossed the room and took a knee beside the injured guard, who couldn’t have been more than twelve or thirteen. He stirred, and she helped him sit up. His head wobbled against her chest.
“Is it Peter?” Rich moved closer to help Birdie.
She slid the helmet’s long metal sheath away from the boy’s nose, revealing his pale face. “No. It’s a different guard. He’s much younger.”
Panic rose in the boy’s unfocused eyes. “It’s okay.” She patted his leg and turned to Louisa. “How do you say ‘friend’ in German?”
“Freund.”
“Freund.” Birdie smiled at the young guard. His muscles tensed, and she knew he would run if he were able.
“Open it.” Kayla had crowded close to Friedrich and stared at the wooden chest.
“I… can’t.”
“Why not?” She reached for it, but he swung his arms away.
“It’s locked.”
“Shine a light on the latch,” Birdie said, as Sophia moved closer to examine the chest.
It was a masterful piece of craftsmanship, with intricate scenes carved into the marbled wood. A magical forest lived on its surface, with trees and deer and water interwoven into the landscape. The wood shone with a high gloss, and an intricate latch secured the two halves.
“It’s locked alright.” Sophia ran her hand over the mechanism. “This might take a while.”
“We don’t have a while.” Birdie shifted on the floor as the guard groaned in her arms. “This part of the cave is collapsed, remember? It’s time to go. Now that Friedrich found the chest, I’m not sure how much longer we have.”
“I thought you said we needed a loud noise to get back,” Louisa said. “The cave is empty in our time. We should be safe.”
“Yes, a loud noise seems to work, but sometimes the shimmer ends on its own.”
Rich backed toward the passageway. “Birdie’s right. We shouldn’t risk it. Let’s go where we know we’ll be safe.”
“What about him?” Ryan considered the guard, who was looking more frightened and confused by the minute.
“Leave him. He’ll be fine,” Rich said. “He’s from here, remember?”
Birdie touched the guard tenderly on the shoulder and eased him back to the hard stone floor. When he landed, he closed his eyes. “He’ll think he had a horrible dream.”
Rich nodded. “Good call. Come on, everyone.”
They picked up speed as they retreated to the intersection.
“Which way?” Raina pivoted in a circle and stared down each passage. “Which way leads out?”
“I’m not sure.” Louisa turned. “They all look the same to me.”
“We need to go!” Birdie said. “We cannot be down here if the aventurine stops working.”
Ryan pointed down a passageway. “This way! We came this way.”
“Are you sure?” Raina had gone rigid and Birdie wasn’t sure she’d be able to move, no matter what Ryan said.
“I’m sure.” He placed his hand on his sister’s back and pushed her forward. “Go!”
She broke free and darted up the passageway.
“The glass is cooling off!” Birdie cried as they ran, the light from their flashlights bouncing against the walls. The stone floor shifted beneath her feet. “Run!”
But they were too slow.
The ground shifted again and Birdie’s knees gave way. She tumbled several feet down onto the collapsed floor.
Raina screamed.
Then she screamed again.
“Raina!” Rich yelled from somewhere close behind Birdie. “Raina! Stop screaming!”
She choked off the next cry.
“You’re okay.” He shined his flashlight at her. “It looks like we’re all okay.”
They’d fallen together in a heap on the cave floor, which looked like it had collapsed centuries before.
Louisa got to her feet and brushed herself off. She steadied herself on the uneven floor as she pointed her flashlight toward the ceiling, then along the walls. The light revealed the truth: They were trapped in a narrow corridor on the wrong side of the passageway, several feet shy of the upper chamber.
Birdie’s heart raced. This was what she’d feared. She had no control over the glass, no way to stop it from hurtling them through time and space. She sent up a silent thank you they’d at least made it through the intersection.
Everyone appeared slightly dazed, but they were alive. Boulders blocked the passageways behind them. A few more seconds of hesitation would have ended their lives. They’d have been gone, forever trapped. Who knew how long it would’ve been until someone found their bodies? They might never have been found.
“We must climb out.” Louisa fitted her foot into a space on the wall and hauled herself up toward the opening. “We’ll fit if we go one at a time.”
She placed her sneakers with care, searching for handholds as she scaled the wall. Rich spotted her as she climbed into the chamber, and then Louisa reached back to offer Raina a hand.
Birdie shivered as she watched Rich boost Raina into the upper chamber.
She couldn’t let this happen again. She needed to get rid of the aventurine.
To destroy it.
Permanently.