Eric

 

 

They moved as fast as the forest and the moonlight would allow. Trails disappeared beneath layers of leaves, and shadows danced among the trees, giving Eric reason to pause more than once. The land rose and fell, and small creeks and streams challenged them along the way. After some time, they emerged onto a road, its foundation unlike anything Eric had ever seen. He stood upon it, marveling at its smooth rigidity.

David called it pavement. He said most roads were covered with it, that it made it easier for the cars to travel on. When he asked what cars were, David ended the discussion with, “You’ll find out soon enough.” While Eric didn’t care for the abrupt end to the conversation, the mystery intrigued him nonetheless.

They crossed the road and ran down a hill toward a metal fence. Off in the distance was a sprawling building, a couple of floors high.

“Really, David,” Charlotte said. “We’re going to hide in the school?”

“That is a school?” Eric asked, his heart thumping wildly. “For higher learning?”

David chuckled. “Not exactly. That’s Havendale High. It’s where Charlotte and I go to high school. If you lived here, that’s where you would go, too.”

“Fascinating.”

“Yeah. Totally.” David and Charlotte smiled at one another as David linked his fingers together, his palms up. “Up and over, missy.”

Charlotte placed a hand on David’s shoulder. “You do realize if anyone catches us, we’re toast, right? We’ll never find the crystals, or save Garrett and Gertie or Twiller’s family. And how are we going to explain these clothes? We look like escapees from a Renaissance Faire.”

“First, let’s not become toast. Second, we will rescue Gertie and Garrett, and third, I don’t think if anyone catches us, their first reaction will be, Where did you get those clothes? Now up and over.”

Charlotte took the boost and jumped over to the other side.

David went next.

“Toast? What does that mean?” Eric asked, clambering over the fence.

“It means we’ll be in deep trouble,” David said.

“Oh. Then I agree. Let us not become toast.”

They took off across the open field where two posts shaped similarly to Y’s stood in the ground opposite each other. “Football,” David said. “Don’t ask.” Eric didn’t, but he would, eventually.

They rounded the side of the building and stopped.

Sprawling before them was a town with a road that went through the middle and stretched off so far in both directions, it got lost in the darkness. There was another road to the left, intersecting the main one. Gray lights dangled overhead on a line of some sort, taking turns flashing red, yellow, and green colors. Riding on the roads were a handful of loud, growling, metal contraptions of all shapes, sizes, and colors, each with four strange wheels and bright lights.

Cars, Charlotte pointed out, and while not dangerous on their own, the people driving them could be. He had no reason to doubt her.

Lining the roads were trees and establishments, most of which seemed to be closed for the night. The light changed and the few cars on the main road moved on, leaving the streets empty and quiet. Crouching, David led them down a small incline and onto what Charlotte called a sidewalk. Eric marveled at the surface and imagined how much easier it would be to get around if Fallhollow had similar structures. He’d have to find out how to make them and teach the king’s architects once the war was over.

At the intersection, they crossed Main Street and headed down Clairmont. David jogged ahead and stopped before a small brick, two-story building with a large sign shaped like a cup, the words Java Joe’s written in big letters across the front. The building was dark except for the right upstairs window. A shadow moved past the drawn curtains.

David scoured the ground, picked up a couple of pebbles and walked to the darker side of the building. He took aim and tossed a pebble at the side window. The stone pinged off the glass and fell to the ground. He tossed another. That one garnered attention.

A boy with dark skin shoved the curtain aside and opened the window. “Who’s there? What do you want?”

“Jackson, it’s me, David. David Heiland. I need your help.”

Jackson leaned out the window. “David? Holy beeswax!” He spoke just a tad above a whisper. “Where have you been? You’ve got the whole world looking for you.”

“I, we, need your help. Can you let us in?”

“Sure. Meet me around back.”

The sash shut. The shadow of the boy vanished.

“Come on.” David led them down the alleyway, turning the bend around what could only be a large garbage bin judging by its smell. Jackson opened the door.

“Oh my God, dude, where have you been?” He embraced David in a hearty hug and stood back. “And what is that you’re wearing?”

Charlotte shot David a sideways glance. “See. I told you.”

“Yeah, okay. Bite me. Jackson, you remember Charlotte. And this is my friend, Eric. He’s not from around here so go easy on him.”

“Can’t promise anything. Come on in.”

“Where are your folks?”

“Bristol. They’re attending some coffee bean expo for the weekend. They’ll be back tomorrow night.”

Jackson led them down the hallway into a spacious room with bright, colorful couches, plush chairs, and weird but interesting artwork on the walls.

“You want some joe?” Jackson asked.

“Good heavens, yes,” David said, falling into a couch. “Nothing special, just make it hot and delicious.”

Jackson grinned. “Charlotte, Eric, want anything?”

Charlotte yawned. “Tea for me, please, and a blueberry muffin if you have one.”

“I’ll take some tea as well,” Eric said. “Black.”

“Sure nuff. My Uncle Charles likes to drink black tea. He lives in Stevenage. Where abouts in the U.K. are you from?”

“He’s not from the U.K.,” David said.

“Oh. I’m sorry. I assumed by the accent you were British. Accept my apologies.” Jackson addressed David. “Brazilian or Columbian?”

“Brazilian, please. Medium grind.”

Within minutes, Eric fell hostage to the most aromatic scent he’d ever experienced. “What is that? I have never smelled anything so bold. So intoxicating.”

“That,” Jackson said, “is coffee, or what we around here call joe. Wanna change your order?”

Eric inhaled deep. “Yes, please. I’d like a cup of joe, instead.” He doubted it would be the last time he drank it.

“Coming right up. Cream’s in the fridge, sugar’s on the counter.”

“I’ll get it,” Charlotte said, winking at Eric as she passed.

He smiled, and his heart flipped. Was she being flirtatious? No. Certainly not. It was clear by the way she looked at David how much she adored him. But, there was something in the wink. A twinkle in her eye. A softness in her smile. Ah, what are you gandering about, Eric? It was nothing more than a gesture of friendship and comfort, two things a man out of time and place needs. Maybe more so than the air in your lungs. Still, he relished in the gesture, thankful he even had one to ponder.

A few minutes later, they were all sitting around in a circle, sipping, nibbling, and trying to sort out the world as it applied to them.

“Okay, so you’ve got to tell me what’s going on.” Jackson set his coffee mug down. “I swear to God, we have had so many cops and FBI agents swarming around this town over the last eight weeks. I mean—”

“What?” David gulped the sip he’d taken, and sat forward, almost dropping his cup on the short table they sat around.

“What?” Charlotte said. Clearly, it wasn’t good news to them. “Did you say eight weeks? That’s impossible. I figured it up this morning. You were out of it for two weeks and it took us two weeks to do everything else.”

Jackson sipped his coffee and chuckled. “I don’t know what time clock you’ve been looking at, kitten, but seein’ as you guys disappeared January 4, and today’s the last day of February, I’m thinkin’ eight weeks.”

David stared at the floor, his expression blank. “How? How is it even possible to manipulate time? Twiller never said anything about—”

“Who’s Twiller?” Eric asked. “You’ve mentioned him a few times.”

“He’s a meadow—” Charlotte began, her voice, her expression lost in a daze.

David tapped her leg with his.

Charlotte brought her tea to her lips. “He lives in the same town where Garret and Gertie are. The last I heard he was on a sailboat with Jared and Mangus.”

Eric swallowed hard. Mangus Grythorn. The general of the mage army. Jared’s right-hand man. He’d said they were going on a diplomatic mission. More like they’d gone to collect allies willing to fight another war.

Jackson chuckled again. “The three of ya look like I just told you your favorite dog died. You wanna fill me in on what you guys are babbling about?”

“Sorry, buddy,” David said. “We’re tired. I guess days ran into each other and more time got away from us than we thought.” He collected his coffee and pressed back into the cushion. “You were saying about the cops?”

“Yeah, right,” Jackson continued. “Anyway, it’s been like something out of a who-done-it novel around here. And school. Good God. Everyone is like flipping out, wondering if the two of you are dead or something. Military’s been here, too. Air Force folk. Helicopters. Planes. Search teams probing the forest. They were called off about a week ago. And forget the track team. Dude, we haven’t won a single freaking race without you. Not one.”

“Sorry,” David said. “It hasn’t been a picnic where we’ve been, either.”

“Yeah, and where has that been? Comic-Con? Pennsic? I mean, I like Ren Fest, too, but come on, dude. You couldn’t change your threads?”

Eric sipped his coffee and set it on the table beside him. “That is the second reference you have made to our attire. Do you find it offensive?”

Jackson laughed. “No, dude. It’d take something really weird, and I mean really weird to offend me. But I can tell you it’s not the norm, know what I mean? Jeans, tees, and sneakers. That’s the norm.”

Eric had no idea what he meant. Any of it.

“We had to borrow some clothes,” David said. “It’s a very long story, and one I’d love to share, but we’re kind of in a situation. What we do need is a huge favor and you’re the first person that popped in my head.”

“Name it, man. Anything.”

“We need to get into my house, but there are cops crawling everywhere.”

Jackson grinned. Big. “And you need a distraction.”

“Think you can provide one? I hate to ask. If my friend, Mirith, was around, I wouldn’t have to.”

Eric bit his tongue. If it hadn’t been for Mirith, they wouldn’t be where they were at the moment. Stupid dragon. Stupid, stupid dragon.

“They don’t call me Jackson the Distraction for nothing.”

David snorted. “No one calls you that.”

“Hey, don’t go hurtin’ the feelings, man. Do I need to remind you? Homecoming. 2014. Bare Ass High versus their mighty rival, the Havendale Warriors.”

“Bearss,” David corrected with a grin.

“Hey, when you’re telling the story you can tell it like you want.” Jackson leaned back, his arm in the air, painting a picture as he spoke. “It was a cool autumn evening. Gentle breeze. Almost a full moon. Their king and queen had just been crowned and everyone was fanning their tears when suddenly, out of the nowhere—”

Eric’s ears perked up. They had kings and queens in this place? They’d attended a coronation? He would have to get details.

Charlotte broke into laughter. “Oh my gosh, that was you? You were the pilot who flew over the field and unleashed all those rolls of toilet paper on their Homecoming Court?”

Jackson stood and bowed. “Pilot extraordinaire at your service.”

Her laughter lit up the room.

Eric melted.

“Oh my gosh, I contributed to the t.p. fund!” she said. “You’re a legend!”

“He’s a criminal.” David chuckled. “He was arrested as soon as he landed for stealing his dad’s plane, and was sentenced to sixty days in a nursing home cleaning out bedpans.”

“Well worth it, my dear,” Jackson said, taking his seat. “Well worth it.”

Eric sat back, listened, and laughed, even though he had no idea what a plane, a pilot, or toilet paper was. He had his suspicions on the latter, and hoped against hope it had been of the unused kind.

David scratched his temple and leaned forward. “Well, we’re not going to need anything so grand tonight, just something distracting enough to draw all the cops from my backyard to the front yard. Have any ideas?”

Jackson smiled. “Oh yeah. Do I ever. Give me one hour, and I’ll give you your distraction.”

David gulped down the rest of his coffee and stood. “Thanks, man. I can’t thank you enough.” The two friends hugged again, this time with hearty smacks to the backs. “I don’t think I need to tell you to keep this all a secret. You never saw us, okay?”

“Well, I didn’t think you were asking me to distract them so you could stand on the roof and yell, ‘Here I am!’” Jackson punched David on the shoulder. “Get outta here, man. Stay safe. And one day, you better fill me in on all this, okay? Something tells me you’re going to be a legend, too.”

“Yeah, we’ll see.”

Eric rose and clasped Jackson’s outstretched arm. “Thank you for your assistance. I hope we meet again someday.”

“I’m sure we will.” Jackson turned to Charlotte and hugged her. Strings of electrical currents arced between her fingers and his arms. He arched his back and yelled, “Ouch! Damn, woman! What kind of personal power grid are you housing there?”

Charlotte’s cheeks turned red. “I’m sorry. It’s been happening every now and then. I don’t know why. I hope you’re okay.”

“Are you kidding? I’m rock solid. It’d take a bit more than a few lightning bolts like those to knock me on my feet.”

“You’re so full of it,” David said.

“Hey, dude, it’s my story. I’ll tell it like I want.” Jackson smiled at Charlotte. “Keep my team captain safe, and if you ever need a place … ”

“Thanks for everything,” Charlotte said, pecking him on his cheek. No sparks from her lips. “We owe you one.”

“Eeh. Your hand in marriage would be payment enough. We’ll discuss the terms of your surrender when I’m the last man alive.”

Laughter. A joke. Eric breathed a sigh of relief.

 

 

***

 

 

They scurried back toward David’s home the way they came. The cool air bit at Eric’s face as he pondered different distractions Jackson could pull off by himself. There weren’t many he could think of. In fact, there were none. David, however, appeared quite confident that his very odd friend with the incredible joe could pull off such feat with no problem. Time would tell, and Eric reveled in the possibilities.

The hike back also provided a brief education in track and field, and football, the latter of which seemed almost as barbaric and entertaining as jousting. But why anyone would want to run for a sport seemed peculiar; however, the archery part appealed to him immensely, especially since it is where David seemed to excel. He challenged his newfound friend to a tournament, upon which, David laughed and said, “You’re on, but be prepared to lose.” Eric smiled. What a cocky fellow David could be.

They topped a small incline and David motioned for silence. In the distance, a majestic white manor, rich with massive columns and gargantuan windows, appeared like an apparition, sprawling tall and wide across a rolling landscape. A thick wall of hedges, at least fifteen-feet high, guarded the left side of the home, the line ending at the forest’s edge. A huge fountain of a goddess, her arms outstretched to three jumping fish, graced an elaborate courtyard still sleeping from winter’s chill. To the right was a sprawling brick cottage veiled in thick ivy. Beyond it—a spatial greenhouse with arched windows and an ornate glass dome.

And walking the grounds were three men dressed in uniforms.

They kept to the shadows amidst a thick cluster of oaks and hickory trees.

Charlotte pressed her back to a tree. “David, don’t you find this strange? I mean, if we’ve been gone eight weeks, why are there still cops here? Why haven’t they moved on to something else? Surely, we’re not the only Havendale crime they have to solve.”

“I don’t know,” David answered. “It is kind of weird now that you mention it.”

“Not really.” Eric said. “Where is the first place you’d probe if you wanted to ensnare someone?” He glanced at the men walking the grounds. “I doubt they are who you think they are.”

“Great,” Charlotte said, throwing up her hands. “You had to point that out, didn’t you?”

David patted him on the back. “Thanks, buddy. I feel so much better now.”

“Happy to be of service.” Eric smiled. He looked over his shoulder at the house. “You know, I have to say, I never imagined you living in such opulence. You seem so … provincial.” He kicked at the ground, a grin stretched wide on his face. David laughed and shook his head. “Better watch tossing out those insults, buckaroo. This hillbilly hick throws them right back.”

Eric had no idea what a hillbilly hick was and he wasn’t about to ask, but he liked that David could make fun of himself. There was hope for the chap yet.

But now it was time to get serious.

“I don’t remember. Why do we need to get inside your home again?” Eric asked.

David scratched his nose. “Clothes, food, stuff we’re going to need if we’re going to hunt crystals. I also need to talk to Lily. I’ve got a gazillion questions.”

Charlotte snorted. “Don’t we all.” She bit her bottom lip while she thought. “How are we planning to get inside?”

“When Jackson does his distraction thing, we’re going to haul butt across the yard to the back door and pray to God the spare key is still inside the turtle’s butt.”

“Excuse me?” Eric asked, his brow tweaked. A horrible image fixed in his mind. He couldn’t be serious, could he?

“It’s a statue, dude, not a real turtle,” David said.

“What about the alarm?” Charlotte asked.

“I’ll take care of that. Once inside, you and Eric take the servant’s stairs and go to my room. No lights.”

“You have servant stairs?” Eric asked. The surprises never ended.

“Among a few other things.”

“Hey, guys, we’ve got company,” Charlotte said.

Three cops were heading their way.

They dropped to the ground behind a small slope

Beams of light cut across the forest.

Behind them, more footsteps.

Eric’s heart skipped, flipped and flopped. He closed his eyes and listened. The gait. It was light, measured, an animal of some sort. Large, but gentle. No threat. He exhaled and opened his eyes. One of the cops unhinged a black object from his hip and aimed it into the dark.

“You in there! Come out with your hands up!”

The forest grew quiet. Still. The beam sliced over Eric’s head and came to rest upon the face of a young buck standing a few feet away. The animal twitched its ears and bolted into the forest.

Eric gulped, his pulse racing.

The cop returned the object to his hip and the three headed back toward the house, their discussion on deer season, or rather the lack thereof, the topic of reflection and laughter.

Eric exhaled, his heart ready to take off after the deer.

“Wow, that was close,” David whispered, rolling onto his back. “I can’t believe he pulled a gun.”

“What is a gun? What does it do?” Eric asked, his eyes still on the men, now halfway to the house.

“What’s a … ” David retorted. “Oh, that’s right, you wouldn’t know. They’re weapons. They shoot these things called bullets that can kill you. Those cops, if they really are cops, they’re experts, trained very well on how to use them, and they won’t hesitate to do so.”

“Then I won’t give them reason to.”

A loud boom vibrated the air and a blue flash streaked across the sky. It exploded into a crackling waterfall and fizzled out. More booms and cracks followed lighting the sky in an array of colors. “Oh, no,” Charlotte said. “Please tell me he didn’t.”

David chuckled. “Oh yes he did. Oh, Jackson, you’re a genius.”

“What did he do?” Eric asked. “What are those things?”

“Fireworks,” David said. “Are you ready to run?”

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

The cops ran to the front of the house.

“Go! Now!” David grabbed Eric by the sleeve. “Run! You can watch them from my room!”

Eric ran, David and Charlotte puffing at his side. Around the fountain. Up the walkway. Onto the porch.

Boom!

Boom!

David grabbed a turtle statue from a table and fished a key from its butt. He unlocked and opened the door.

A loud, repetitive Honk! Honk! Honk! split the air.

Eric covered his ears.

“It’s the alarm!” David shouted. “Char, get him upstairs!”

A tall woman with auburn hair and turquoise eyes ran at them through a doorway to the left, her eyes and mouth open wide.

“David! Charlotte! What are you doing here?” She embraced David for a moment before she pushed him back. “Never mind. You’ve got to go. Upstairs. Now. Through the music room. You know where. Go! Before they see you!”

A knock hammered at the front door. “Ms. Perish, open the door!”

Footsteps pounded the front porch. Shadows appeared in the windows.

David drew in a breath. He tugged at Charlotte and Eric. “Follow me.”

They crouched and hurried down the hall into a spacious room. A strange looking harpsichord stood in one corner, a floor harp in another. Violins and a cello graced another corner. David lifted a wand from a music stand and inserted the thick end in a round hole obscured behind a gilded picture on a wall. A door opened inward revealing steps leading up.

“Are you freaking kidding me?” Charlotte asked. “I’ve known you how long and you’ve never told me about this!” She stepped inside.

“Never needed to.” David pulled a cord, a mechanism on the wall turned, and the door closed.

More pounding on the front door.

“I’m coming!” Lily shouted. The alarm shut off.

“Bless the pixies of Halair that sound is done.” Eric said.

They ran to the top of the stairs and exited through a wall into an elongated room that smelled of cedar. Eric paused for a moment, taking in the racks of clothes and shelves of shoes that surrounded them. In the center of the room were two small plush seats, and on the floor, a plush blue carpet littered with clothing.

Downstairs, Lily shouted, “You cannot barge into my home without a warrant! I demand you get out.”

David thrust aside some clothes in what looked to be a dressing room, twisted an overhead light fixture, and pushed on the wall. Overhead, the ceiling moved, and a set of steps descended, leading upward to an attic.

“Well, this house is just full of all kinds of surprises you never told me about,” Charlotte said, climbing up first.

Lily’s stern voice could be heard again, this time a bit closer than before. “I did not give you permission to go upstairs or traipse through my house. I beg you to leave.”

A man’s voice answered. “Your alarm went off, ma’am. We have to—”

“I already told you, the alarm went off by accident, probably due to the fireworks still rattling my home and everyone else’s in the vicinity. Why don’t you find the culprit responsible for the ruckus instead of violating my privacy and intruding in my home?”

David urged Eric not to stick around to hear more of the conversation.

Like ants, they retreated into the darkness. David turned a knob in the floor and the steps retracted.

“David Arwen Highland,” Charlotte said, standing in the middle of the dark room, her hands on her hips. “You and I need to have a serious conversation. What’s with the secret rooms and those NASA sized telescopes by the window, huh? Whose antique bed is this?”

“Shh,” he said.

Muffled voices entered his bedroom.

“Ms. Perish, please get out of the way.”

“But there is no one here, Officer, and I don’t appreciate the intrusion. I know my rights. You can’t just barge in here on whatever whim you think is valid.”

Doors opened and closed. Someone banged on a wall.

“There were others in the house,” a man said. “Where are they? We saw shadows moving in the hallway through the window.”

“There is no one else here. I don’t know how many times I have to tell you. Now get out!”

Another man spoke from what sounded to be a room away. “We checked everywhere. There’s no one else here.”

“Just like I told you, Officer,” Lily said. “Now get out of my house and off my property before I call the chief of police!”

The first man harrumphed. “Pardon our intrusion, Miss.”

“I will not pardon it, and the next time you want to search my home, get a warrant.”

“Oh, I’ll do that, Ms. Perish. Have no worries about that.”

Footsteps retreated. David dashed to a window and cracked opened the shutters. Four policemen and two plain-clothes cops got in their cars at the end of the cul-de-sac.

“More cops?” Eric asked, standing over David.

“Yes. And maybe an FBI agent or two.”

“Explain.”

Charlotte sat on the foot of the antique bed and ran her hands over the yellowed eyelet bedspread. “The FBI investigates missing person’s cases.”

Another boom, followed by a shower of gold and red sparks lit up the sky, this one further away.

The cars pulled out down the street, their lights flashing.

“Why do they think you’re missing?” Eric asked. “Didn’t you leave on your own accord?”

“No, they did not,” Lily said.

David and Charlotte spun around.

Eric jumped at her presence.

“They were taken,” she continued. She pulled David into her arms.

“Hi, honey.” She kissed his temple. “How are you? How are you feeling?”

David stepped back. “I’m fine. Slavandria said I’m almost as good as new. When did you come back here?”

“The night you fell ill. I wanted to stay with you, but I had to return here to not raise suspicion. Forgive me?”

“There’s nothing to forgive. I get it.” David turned back to the window. “Who were they, those men?”

Lily swept the back of her hand across her brow and finger-combed the hair from her face. “There are two men that work undercover for Charlotte’s father whom I know and trust, neither of which were here tonight. I’ve never seen those men before. They’ve been hovering around like vultures all day.”

“Seyekrad’s spies,” David said.

“I didn’t sense any magic about them, but that means nothing. I actually thought the same thing. Seyekrad could mask himself from me for months. Either my powers are getting weaker, or he has some black magic the devil himself wouldn’t want to use.”

Eric ignored the sudden sickness in his stomach. He hated being right. Sometimes.

Lily turned to Charlotte, her arms outstretched. “Hi, honey.”

Charlotte hurried into her open arms. “Hi, Lily. How are you? How are Mom and Daddy?”

“Good.” Lily brushed the hair from Charlotte’s eyes. “We’re all fine, but I’m a bit confused.” Her eyes shifted from Charlotte, to Eric, to David. “What are you doing here? Slavandria didn’t inform me you would be arriving.”

“That’s because she didn’t know,” David said. “We’re here because Finn ferried us. Well, not exactly, but I’ll get to that in a second. First, you’ve got to help Jackson. If they catch him, he’ll be in so much trouble, and I don’t want him to get in trouble for helping us.”

“So that’s who is responsible for all the racket.” Lily smiled as if she should have known. “I’ll be right back.”

She vanished with a swish of her hand.

Eric’s mouth quirked to the side. “She seems pleasant. How did you come into her care?”

David walked to the window and stared out. “She’s my godmother, and Slavandria’s sister.”

Eric dropped his gaze. Of all the answers he expected, that wasn’t one of them. It made sense, however, as he thought of it. Who better to hold the position of paladin than someone in the care of the most powerful mage family to ever exist? But how had the alliance been made? Who were David’s parents? Why did David live in Havendale, in a world away, rather than in Fallhollow? What was the connection?

His thoughts scattered as Lily materialized in almost the same spot from which she disappeared. She wore a satisfied smile.

“Jackson is safe and sound and the café has been tidied. He wanted me to tell you it was the most fun he’s had in months.” She glanced between Eric and David and grinned. “Don’t worry. He won’t remember speaking to me. In fact, he won’t remember anything from this evening. It’s best that way.”

Eric nodded even though his stomach turned. To think she could erase someone’s memory at the snap of a finger didn’t seem right. It was an invasion of the most personal kind, and yet, he knew deep down Lily was right. No one could risk the exposure, especially Jackson.

Lily sat on the edge of the bed. “So, tell me, David, why are you here? Did you meet your parents?”

David shook his head. “There was an incident. The queen was attacked, the crystals were stolen, and my parents are missing.”

Lily frowned. “I’m sorry—what?”

David, Charlotte, and Eric sat on the bed and rehashed the day’s events, from Trog’s almost arrest to Seyekrad and their narrow escape from Mr. Loudermilk’s house. Lily paced the floor, flicking her fingers around the room, setting magical boundaries as she listened. When they finished, she stood still, her back to them. With the flick of her wrist, an antique table lamp flicked on, casting a golden glow about the attic.

“Well?” David asked. “What are we going to do? How do we get the crystals back from Seyekrad without him killing us?”

“We have to find them first, David.” She fingered the pendant around David’s neck. “Rutseers, such as this one, are mere homing devices. They place the seeker within a certain radius of a missing item, not on top of it. They could be anywhere in Havendale, though it would make sense for Seyekrad to keep them close. From the sounds of it, he’s set up an elaborate maze beneath that house. Without seeing the atelier, without testing its magical limitations, I couldn’t and wouldn’t give you a definitive answer to any of your questions. But I can tell you this, we’re going to need some help and lots of it, and I know just the person.”

“Who?” David, Charlotte, and Eric hooted together.

Lily smiled. “My sister, of course. Who else?”