The speckles in the aventurine swirled and glowed until the glass was almost too hot to hold. The Great Hall stretched and erupted with color as beams of sunlight shot through the stained glass windows.
“What is it doing?” Friedrich stared into Birdie’s outstretched palm as the golden speckles flew together in the center of the glass. He brushed his finger across the surface. “What is that?”
“A shape. A clue, really. It looks like some kind of chest.”
“A clue to what?”
“Um, we have bigger questions than that.” Kayla’s arms dropped to her sides. “Do you believe us now?”
The air had stopped shimmering, bringing the Great Hall into sharp focus. The once crumbling walls now stretched three stories higher, their unblemished surfaces soaring to a vaulted ceiling. Vivid lions and dragons glittered in the elaborate stained glass windows, and intricate tapestries graced every wall, lending a warmth to the space that Birdie would not have thought possible. It was colorful now, alive.
An enormous banquet table stretched roughly the length of the Great Hall, and heavy chairs with emerald cushions lined both sides. Beyond it, a large woman vigorously swept the tile floor. She wore an apron over a simple dress and a white kerchief over her hair.
Friedrich gaped at the scene before them. It was as if they’d stepped from a black-and-white photograph into a Technicolor movie.
Birdie rubbed her thumb across the surface of the warm aventurine. “Get us out of here,” she whispered.
Friedrich set his hand over hers.
“What are you doing?” She tried to pull away, but he curled his fingers tight.
“We must stay. I must see this.”
Kayla nudged her arm. “Birdie, we need to go!”
The glass cooled in her palm. She yanked again, but Friedrich’s grip was so strong that her hand was losing circulation. She twisted toward Kayla. “It’s not working. I—”
“What do you mean, it’s not working?” Panic edged into Kayla’s voice.
“I thought maybe if I rubbed it, we’d go back.”
“Did that work before?”
“No, but Friedrich…” She jerked her hand, but he held tight.
“You don’t know how it works?”
“You know I don’t. You were in Bruges, you know we can’t exactly control—”
“It is just as I imagined.” Friedrich gazed at the Great Hall with wonder.
Birdie stopped tugging and wrinkled her brows at Kayla.
“Is he okay?” Kayla slanted her chin.
Birdie studied his awestruck face. “I’m not sure.”
“It’s just like the stories my mother told me.” He stared at the tapestries on the walls. “Look at them – they show the harvest. And those portraits…” His voice faltered, and it took him a moment to continue. “Each member of the duke’s family is there.”
“Friedrich, we have to go.” Birdie wrapped her other hand around his grip and attempted to pull him away. “We’re going to get caught.”
“There is the duke. And Princess Elisabeth. And there, beside her—”
The woman swiveled to clean a fresh area and saw them. Her reaction was immediate. She barreled toward them with the broom as if she planned to sweep them away with the dust and dirt. “Sie! Dort! Aus! Aus!”
Friedrich flinched and dropped his grip on Birdie’s hand.
Kayla skittered backward on the tile. “What’s she saying?”
“We must go.” Friedrich seized their elbows with his long fingers and steered them toward the door. “Now!”
He shoved them through the entrance, which, to Birdie’s dismay, no longer led outside. They were at the end of a lengthy corridor lined with gold and black banners emblazoned with coats of arms and flame-throwing dragons. Thick candles in heavy sconces lit the way to a massive door at the far end.
“This wasn’t here before,” Kayla said.
“No, it wasn’t. Most of the keep was destroyed, remember?” Friedrich surveyed the corridor. “Hurry – this way!”
They sprinted to the door. Friedrich pulled the round iron handle and, as sunlight flooded the corridor, Birdie sent up quiet thanks that the door led outside rather than into another hall.
She followed Friedrich into the light and stopped short.
The courtyard, which had been barren except for tourists a few minutes before, was alive with people of all ages and persuasions dressed as if they were in the costumes they’d sorted that morning. The air was heavy with the fragrance of many things, some good – like baking bread – and others that were better to ignore. A thick layer of smoke clung to the sky, forming a haze and welcome cover to the worst of the smells.
Birdie pushed the aventurine into her pocket.
“We must hide.” Friedrich kept his voice low. “Stay close to the wall. And stay down.”
“Do you know where we’re going?” Kayla said.
He scanned the courtyard. “I think so. This way.”
They rounded a corner, and he disappeared through a slit in the stone wall. Birdie ducked in behind him and entered a narrow earthen tunnel. It was damp and cool compared to the hot sun outside. She hunched to clear the ceiling and squeezed against the dirt walls to avoid the torches that burned like beacons at each intersection.
She shivered. “Where does this lead?”
There was no need for Friedrich to answer – a moment later the tunnel ramped up and ended, dropping them back in the storeroom.
There was no sign of the camp or the other campers. The bearded guard sat on the rickety chair with his back to them, surrounded by crates and supplies. He held his sword at the ready, as if an enemy might pop up in front of him at any moment.
Friedrich put a finger to his lips and motioned back to the tunnel. They clustered there, watching the guard.
“What should we do?” Kayla whispered.
“Hide,” Friedrich replied.
They held still in the gloomy tunnel, the only light coming from the flicker of a torch several yards away. Birdie scanned the web-like passageways that spiraled out, connecting the storeroom to the rest of the fortress. She was sure someone would come at any moment and catch them, hiding like mice.
It felt like forever before the guard moved, heaving himself from the chair and tipping it over on the way up. He bent to retrieve it, releasing a loud plume of gas as he did.
Kayla giggled.
Friedrich covered her mouth with his hand and leaned in close to her ear. “Shhh.”
She stiffened, and he released her.
The guard checked his weapon then crossed to the stairs, which he mounted slowly, as if every joint in his body hurt. He pressed the door open, allowing daylight to gush into the storeroom before he disappeared outside. A heavy scraping sound signaled the placement of a wooden beam, and the door shook violently before they heard him move away.
Friedrich toppled out into the storeroom.
“Great, now we’re locked in here.” Kayla followed him and glared at the stairs.
“We can get out through the tunnels,” Birdie said as she emerged. “We’re not completely trapped.”
“We will stay here.” Friedrich seized the chair and set it upright. “I am not sure what is happening here, but I believe going back out there dressed like this is a bad idea. Especially you two.”
“What’s wrong with my outfit?” Kayla posed, her long legs crossed and her arms spread wide from her bare shoulders.
“Stop it, Kayla. You know he’s right. We’re in trouble here, and we need to get back to camp.”
Kayla dropped her pose but not before winking at Friedrich, whose cheeks flushed red. “Besides, we’re not really stuck, are we?” she said. “Camp should be right here.”
“The room is the same.” Friedrich turned in a slow circle. “But on the old maps, two tunnels emptied into the storeroom because of the water. Now there is only one.”
Birdie couldn’t tell if he was talking to them or to himself.
“What water?” Kayla asked.
“But it is the storeroom now, so that means it has to be at least the late 1400s.”
“Friedrich? What are you talking about?” Kayla asked.
“The time period.” He examined a sack leaning up against the wall. “It has to be at least the late 1400s because before that, this storeroom was part of the moat and there would have been two tunnels for the rainwater to flow through. If it were any earlier, we’d be swimming in here.”
“A moat!” Kayla said. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“No,” Friedrich said. “I am not kidding you.”
“Great. Well then, I guess things could be worse.” She turned to Birdie. “How did you and Ben return to the present day in Bruges? Because rubbing the glass like it’s Aladdin’s lamp clearly isn’t working.”
Birdie thought about it. “Ben didn’t make it back the one time, remember?”
“What?” Friedrich’s eyebrows drew together.
“Well, he did eventually,” Birdie reassured him. “It’s complicated.”
“When I was with you, there was a loud noise, something that kind of startled us back to the present,” Kayla said.
“A taxi blew its horn. That happened twice.” She turned to Friedrich. “The taxis in Bruges are ridiculous. They run people down.”
He looked skeptical.
“And Louisa broke the connection when she smacked that lunch tray. It’s like an auditory hammer smashed through the space-time continuum or something.”
“So let’s make a loud noise.” Friedrich spied an iron crowbar several feet away. “That should work.”
He retrieved the bar, held it high, and swung it hard, smacking a shield that hung from a thick rope on the wall.
Birdie clapped her hands over her ears as the sound reverberated through the storeroom, the noise deadening when it hit the stone walls.
Friedrich dropped the crowbar, which thumped against the hard dirt floor. He rubbed his arms.
“Are we back?” Kayla looked around.
Nothing had changed.
“Why didn’t it work?” Friedrich demanded.
“I’m not sure.” Birdie lowered her hands from her ears. “It was certainly loud enough.”
“I thought you said it would work,” he said.
Birdie rubbed her hands over her face and took a deep breath before she spoke. “If you wanted to get out of here, you should have kept your hands to yourself in the keep. I don’t know if rubbing the hot aventurine would have worked because I didn’t get the chance to try.”
The wooden beam scraped against the door.
“Someone’s coming!” Kayla crouched low. “Do something, would you?”
“It’s the guard.” Friedrich’s voice trembled. “He’s coming back.”
“He must have heard us.” Birdie surged toward the tunnel.
She was almost there when the scraping stopped. She peeked over her shoulder, expecting the guard to be staring back at her, but the door was still closed.
“Maybe he changed his mind?” Kayla said.
Then, from far away, a sharp noise broke through.
It sounded again, louder.
“What is that?” Kayla glanced around.
“No idea,” Birdie said.
It sounded again and Louisa and the other campers shimmered into place, assembled at the long table as if nothing had happened at all.
“Louisa!” Friedrich cried. He bent forward and put his hands on his knees.
“What on earth?” She stood, handing Ryan the hammer and an iron spike. “Keep practicing.”
Ryan took them from her but didn’t move. He blinked hard. “How did you—”
“Birdie?” Sophia pushed her chair away from the table and stood.
And just like that, it was over.
They were in the modern-day storeroom, the leftover chips and sodas from lunch still sitting at one end of the table.
Silence spread as everyone stared at them.
Louisa broke it. “Where did you come from?”
“The tunnel.” Kayla crossed the storeroom and slid into the chair next to Rich. “What are you working on?”
He stared at her, his lips parted.
Louisa gave Friedrich a hard look and said something to him in German.
His face flushed, and he looked down at his sneakers. “We have to tell her.”
“Yes,” Louisa said. “You do. Because I know you did not come through that tunnel.”
Sophia approached Birdie. Sam got up and followed her.
“I saw you,” she whispered. “How did you do it?”
“We all saw you,” Rich said from across the room.
“You just… appeared,” Ryan said.
“It’s the aventurine.” Kayla spread her hands wide against the table. “I told you Birdie found a magic piece of glass in Bruges, but none of you believed me.”
“I don’t believe in magic.” Sophia shot an annoyed look at Kayla. “It’s a trick of some sort. An illusion. How did you do it?”
“Is it true, Birdie?” Sam asked. “Is Kayla telling the truth?”
Curiosity made Sophia’s dark eyes sparkle. “Yes, an illusion. Can I see the glass?”
“That’s not a good idea, Sophia,” Birdie said.
“But if I see it, I’m sure I can figure out the trick. Or is that why you don’t want me to see it?” She bit her bottom lip.
“I would like to see this so-called magical… what did you call it? Aventurine? I want to see it right now.” Louisa held out her hand.
“Louisa,” Friedrich began.
“Now. Or I’m sorry to say that I will be forced to call Birdie’s parents and Kayla’s grandparents to remove them from camp.”
Birdie winced, and not just because Louisa assumed she had parents, plural.
She thought about her options, all of which stank.
If her mom had to abandon her research at Burg Eltz to pick her up, she’d never regain her trust. And if she gave Louisa the aventurine, she’d be one more person who knew the truth, who could see.
“I’ll leave,” she blurted. “I told Friedrich I’d take the aventurine home. There’s no need to call my mom.”
“Oh, no you don’t.” Friedrich straightened. “If you leave early, it will be because a parent picked you up.”
“But—”
“Bring the aventurine here, Birdie,” Louisa said.
She had to decide.
Louisa, though perfectly nice, was temporary, a blip, while her mom was permanent. The only permanent thing she had, really. She could live with Louisa learning the truth. She didn’t want to think about what would happen if she disappointed her mom again.
She pulled the piece of glass out of her pocket. The surface was cool, and the image of the golden chest held steady.
“Wait.” Friedrich held up his hand. “Wait just a second.” He rummaged in a box of camp supplies.
“What are you doing?” Louisa asked.
“Just give me a minute.”
Birdie watched him search.
“Oh, for goodness’ sake.” Sam scooped the aventurine from her palm.
“No!” she cried.
“This is so cool.” Sam turned it over in his hand. “Sophia, check out the sparkles!”
He passed it to her, and she studied it closely.
Birdie cradled her face in her palms.
“You sure did it now, Birdie,” said Kayla, chuckling.
“Did what?” Raina came closer to peer over Sophia’s shoulder. Sophia handed the glass to her for closer inspection, and, of course, she shared it with her brothers.
“What’s it doing?” Ryan dropped it onto the wooden table. “It’s getting hot.”
“Give it—” Birdie began, but Louisa scooped it up.
“It is hot.” She grabbed a petticoat from the costume pile to blunt the heat as she scrutinized it. She glanced up. “Birdie, what is this thing? Where did you get it?”
The storeroom shimmered.
“Not again,” Kayla groaned.