by Aiden James
“I’m a huge fan, and have been for a very long time.”
“I imagine since their inception?” She laughed.
“Yeah... I guess it’s been since then,” I said, chuckling. “Dad used to take me to old Wrigley Field, and I guess I was the equivalent of an eight or nine-year old kid at the time. That was decades before they moved to Soldier Field.... What’s your grandfather’s name? Maybe I’ve heard of him.”
“Gerald Seiberling.”
“The Gerald Seiberling, the dude who once threw six touchdown passes against Notre Dame when he was a college fullback at Drake? That record lasted for damn near fifty years!”
I was genuinely impressed, since I recall how Dad had high hopes for the kid out of Drake University, back in the day when the fullback threw the ball. Quarterbacks at the time merely called the snap and got out of the way. It was just before the Golden Age of guys like Sid Luckman and Sammy Baugh.
“Yeah, that’s him... how did you know about his college career?”
“My father used to be a bigger Bears’ nut than I am,” I said. “He would definitely remember your great-grandfather, too, since I remember him being super excited to have him teamed up with Bronko Nagurski.”
“Oh, wow!” I assumed she blushed, as I couldn’t see her cheeks. Her eyes were even more alluring while wearing a mask.
“And the Seiberling family? Goodyear rubber company founders, right?”
“Yep... although my family in Tennessee likes to joke we come from the ‘trailer-trash’ side, since my great-grandfather’s dad stayed with farming in Iowa, while his brother, F.A. Seiberling, was the tire baron. But, hey, we get to visit Stan Hywet in Ohio for free!” She laughed.
“That’s the huge Seiberling mansion in Akron, right?”
“Yeah, it is. But, it’s nowhere near as enormous as the Vanderbilt’s Biltmore mansion in North Carolina. My grandfather used to go there every Christmas, until it got too expensive to upkeep and the family sold it to the city....”
Her voice trailed off and her eyes suddenly squinted as if she were concentrating on something important. Oddly, in that very moment the temperature seemed to drop ten degrees. A moment later, the sun dimmed as if a heavy storm cloud had formed above us. Both of our gazes were drawn upward.
Holy shit! Wormholes are opening.... There must be damned near one hundred of them!
Truly, this was extraordinary, and something I had never personally witnessed happening before. The entire sky resembled a darkening blue sea with circular punctures that glowed with the brilliance of a beautiful dawn or sunset. Normally, wormholes are closer in proximity to the Earth’s surface—like the one that formed in my bedroom the other day. But these wormholes hovered several hundred feet in the air and were immense in comparison, and similar to what Adrian and Manual had accessed when the pair arrived in Denmark to save my family from the Mateis pursuing us from Chicago.
To my amazement—and horror—as the wormholes drifted down toward us, an army of darkly cloaked figures emerged from within them. And, unlike the peaceful process of properly holding a broomstick horizontally against their chests, the figures rode their broomsticks like fearsome warriors straddling warhorses! The horde raced toward us with billowing blonde hair being whipped around their angry faces.
Mateis! Hundreds of them descending on Denmark! What in the hell?
It could only mean one thing. Something earthshattering did happen today in Bucharest!
The ensuing dominos fell quickly, and if I wasn’t blessed with preternatural awareness, it could’ve only been described as a blur. While the town-folk around us fell into a panic, seeking cover from the sudden invasion, constables Klaus and Karl Hausner appeared before Rhiana and me.
Klaus produced a wand and uttered an incantation that I understood meant the early death of whatever could’ve spawned between Rhiana and me—even before I caught a glimpse of her body wavering back and forth from the ‘forgetting spell’ administered where she sat upon the bench.
Karl grabbed my left arm forcefully,
“Come, Sebastian!” he snarled, his Austrian accent thick. “You’re under house arrest until our investigation ends!”
“What investigation—”
He shushed me with a gloved hand over my masked mouth.
“To determine your role in Daciana Matei’s sedition. She has broken her marriage contract and fled Romania!”
Chapter Eighteen
The return to Twin Magnolias was unpleasant, to say the least, as surely anyone would expect.
And, if not for a broader invocation shouted by Klaus Hausner before the European Matei contingent reached the square, I might’ve forever been known as the Denmarkian villain who killed Oktoberfest, circa 2020. Or, perhaps far, far worse.
Here lie the ruins of the former municipality of Denmark, Tennessee—the site of a warlock/witch battle that left the beloved town founded in April, 1821, in ashes on Saturday, September 26th, 2020....
Hearing the first few lines of Klaus’s ‘community-sized’ forgetting spell (before I was whisked home by his angry and powerful warlock brother) eased some of my guilt. Also, despite my own distress, I managed to send forth a silent prayer heavenward for Rhiana’s forgiveness, should her soul ever remember the momentary infatuation we enjoyed.
Thankfully, our town’s populace would be none the wiser of how close they came to becoming an American version of a mortal pogrom. Frozen in their panicked footsteps while Klaus’s spell worked its way through the crowd, the ancient traditions of sparing the innocent would surely prevail once the older witch/warlock clans from Europe and other locales around the world touched down in the center of Denmark.
But there were no such assurances for my family, and those mortals closest to us. All of it due to my stubborn determination to not turn my back on my heart and the only woman I’ve ever loved.
“What in the hell, Bas?” Alisia shouted angrily, soon after I was thrown to the foyer floor by Karl, as the front door slammed behind us after we flew inside my home. “I can’t believe you put us all in danger like this!”
It wasn’t just her wrath I had to deal with. As I scooted away from her ire across the marble tiles, the heated gazes of my parents, grandmother, and uncles joined my sister as they all closed in. Only Harris and Grandpa eyed me from a safe distance with a mixture of sadness and compassion, along with Julien and Meredith Mays. Likely, Harris and the Mays were brought inside our house for their protection, since assuredly the local Mateis knew these dear friends were especially close companions. Confidantes, in truth, who’ve known for some time now what we are—making them just as liable to be injured, or killed, by our longtime adversaries already circling the mansion.
I say that last part about the Mateis’ taking out our place in full confidence, based on a golden glow I detected through the French-paned windows along both sides of our front door. The transparent boundary appeared to stretch from the ground to as far as my vision could detect, and surely was an impenetrable dome encompassing our entire home, and perhaps our entire property.
It would only be a temporary deterrent unless created by a wizard. As if in answer to my silent assessment, the front door swung open again, and in strolled Attila von Stroheim.
“Everything is secure! So, Sebastian, Daciana is believed to be on her way to the United States, and surely with the intention of returning to Denmark. Most likely, her destination is to come here to Twin Magnolias!” The diminutive wizard’s announcement drew everyone’s attention—and even Adrian’s usual hostility toward the constable he loathed seemed in check.
I am definitely in some deep, deep, serious shit!
“I’ll ask you again, Bas... what has she told you?”
I felt overwhelmed by an ever-increasing sense of guilt and hopelessness, as well as worried my mind’s privacy might no longer be foolproof. Worse, my tenuous grasp on my secrets could be slipping, allowing them all to escape from the fortress I had pictured inside my head.
<
br /> “Daciana said she couldn’t stay in Bucharest,” I said, frantically combing my mind for the less detrimental facts to share. Less detrimental, I should say, to her mostly. I had already screwed myself royally. “She told me that Magnus Ninnius is a good man... but not someone she could love.”
“So, you let that ‘inconvenience’ put all of our lives in jeopardy?” Adrian hissed, barely able to restrain his wrath. It took Manuel’s and Dad’s grasp to keep him from coming after me. Hell, if allowed to do so, the flaming emeralds in his head might melt me into a gooey mass where I sat huddled against the wall near Dad and Grandpa’s office. “You richly deserve whatever sentence comes your way, Sebastian!”
“I know,” I replied weakly, casting my gaze to the floor.
“What else has Daciana told you, Bas?” Wizard von Stroheim asked, his tone far more congenial than my uncle’s. Kind of a wizardry version of ‘good-cop, bad-cop.’ I tried not to smile at the thought while sensing Attila’s physical presence draw nearer to me. For a moment, his shadow blocked the soft glow from the massive chandelier hanging above the foyer. “What secrets has she recently shared?”
Secrets?
It sounded like he didn’t know the details of the conversations in question. Maybe that meant he didn’t know other key information—such as my experience and conversation with Daciana’s voice on the hillside overlooking the Denmark Winery. Perhaps none of those gathered around me at that moment knew anything more than they did earlier that morning.
“She hoped someday we’d be reunited... something that seemed impossible to me at the time, and still does,” I said, focused on the immediate situation to ensure I continued to sound despondent.
Truthfully, I didn’t wish to hurt anyone in my family, or our friends. Hell, I didn’t want for anyone else to suffer in Denmark, either.... Okay, maybe any Matei not named Daciana could suffer. Although, for things to ever work out long term for her and me, there would have to be peace and healing for both our families.
“The chances of Daciana getting past the guardian patrols in Europe are extremely slim. Although, none of us believed she’d ever escape Gregorius Ninnius’s fortress,” said Adrian, when no one responded to my answer to Attila’s question, other than thoughtful nods. “But, try to tell that to the Matei hotheads who couldn’t wait to seek revenge!”
“I had no idea... I’ve never seen so many warlocks and witches pour out of wormholes like that,” I said, thinking back to what had just happened, less than twenty minutes ago. “I thought it was strictly prohibited to ride broomsticks—especially in such a hostile manner.”
“I thought the same thing.” Alisia eyed me sullenly, but at least the temperature of her ire had abated from moments ago. “They carry such hatred. I thought it was just the American Mateis that are such assholes!”
“They’re worse in Europe,” said Grandpa. “And, riding a broomstick in a manner that reflects violent intentions is very much prohibited. But the Mateis in Europe, as well as some Radus, have always been that way; which was one of the reasons our families—Valerian and Iriana’s clan and ours—fled Europe together, at the dawn of the nineteenth century. We thought we’d escape the vitriol that had become so rampant among the other Radu and Matei clans scattered throughout the world.... We were the oddity—two tiny branches of these immense families who actually liked each other. Loved one another.”
Grandpa wiped at his eyes before shrugging and moving into the living room—likely in search of his beloved pipe. I stiffened at the thought that one of my only allies had just left the foyer.
“Klaus sent a mental message to me from the square, just before I came inside, that the EEC’s guardians arrived on the heels of the Matei forces who descended first,” Wizard von Stroheim advised. “Certainly, the guardians are anxious to keep the Radus separated from the Mateis they had pursued through the very same legion of wormholes. Both contingents have arrived in anger, but as long as the guardians can keep them separated, nothing catastrophic will happen. It is a tenuous peace made worse by the local Mateis moving dangerously close to forcing my hand. If they do instigate unwarranted violence, I will move to imprison the whole lot! It might require your help, Adrian—with the understanding that we seek to arrest them with as little violence as possible.”
He paused to look my uncle’s way, who nodded in agreement.
“Consider it done—should it become necessary.”
See? They can play together in the same sandbox after all.
I wanted to laugh at the thought, but didn’t dare linger on the humorous Tom and Jerry imagery in my head—despite the cool realization that neither Adrian nor Attila seemed even slightly aware of it.
I drew confidence from the relief that my head’s privacy was still intact. But other non-verbal ques could prove just as damning, if I were to let down my guard for just a second.
“If Daciana does make it through the phalanxes and booby traps waiting for her, you’ll likely be her target, son,” said Dad, regarding me with a look of sadness I had never seen from him before. “It will be difficult—perhaps heartrending... but you will have to turn her in. It’s the only way to keep you from being incarcerated for many years, if not decades.”
Everyone in the room turned toward him, as so often my father doesn’t say much—unless it’s something important. Like the old E.F. Hutton commercials.
He shrugged, and immediately I became the focus once more.
“Gabriel is correct,” said Grandma, squinting her gaze as if trying to somehow bore a hole into my mind’s fortress. “You have no choice but to betray her trust, Sebastian—even if she doesn’t actually get this far. Whatever inkling you get, it must be shared immediately!”
“It’s truly tragic for Daciana,” added Mom, unknowingly twisting a hidden dagger that had already been plunged into my heart as I considered how dire things were. “The EEC’s judgement will likely be severe, as she was seen as an innocent victim of your seduction the last time you two physically crossed paths. Now, however, she cannot be viewed as innocent... and it is critically important, son, that you are not seen as complicit!”
Honestly, I missed some of this until I ran it back through my head after Mom spoke. Me, a seducer? Really? ... On what planet?
Maybe I’m naïve to some degree... but it wasn’t one person seducing the other. It was far more complicated than that. More like a powerful attraction that neither Daciana nor I could fight. Still can’t, as should be obvious to anyone reading this journal and my previous chronicle.
I think most folks would call this a case of star-crossed lovers hoping to beat the odds, and not end up like Romeo and Juliet.
Of course, that all depended on whether or not Daciana could even make it out of Europe. Then, if she were to reach America and then Denmark, Tennessee, the likelihood of her ever getting anywhere near Twin Magnolias was quite remote. Hell, the odds for me finding a way to elude my house arrest to do anything beyond visiting a porch were even worse!
No way in hell is this going to work, unless....
The wild card in it all remained one ornery wizard whose name hadn’t come up yet. Sorin Gabon.
Honestly, would anything that had happened so far between Daciana and me since my return to Denmark have been remotely possible without Wizard Gabon’s involvement?
That answer obvious, I determined right then to leave him out of this discussion, interrogation, or whatever this conversation could be defined as.
“You must tell us immediately if you have any contact with Daciana, Sebastian,” Attila resumed. “Even if it is miniscule, like a phantom in a dream, or an impression in your head. It might save her life—especially if we can still somehow prevent her from leaving Europe. Remember, it was a heads-up coming from our office in Denmark that brought her under control following her astral contact with you.... Can you give us your commitment, Bas?”
“Okay... I’ll do it.”
“Yes or no, Sebastian,” he persisted.
I released a low sigh and nodded. “Yes.”
“Good... I will return later today, after ensuring Denmark is secure, and our citizens resume what is left of their Oktoberfest plans. Although, the weather forecast calls for another major storm to come through here later this afternoon... one that should chill the anger of our unwelcome visitors. Regardless, I do foresee an early end to the mortal festivities slated for today, and tonight.”
More guilt for me, of course. But, to my further relief, the interrogation ended the moment Wizard von Stroheim left the premises. I stood and dusted myself off, glancing at my family as they walked by, shaking their heads.
“Hey, sorry, man,” said Harris, coming up and lightly patting my shoulder. “Maybe we can try again with Rhiana, once this all blows over.”
I smiled weakly, feeling sad that I had possibly caused this poor girl future confusion, since ‘forgetting’ spells often came with unpleasant side effects.
“Thanks, Harris,” I said. “I’m glad you’re part of our clan.”
Yeah, that comment caught him off guard. But the smiling response I received was one of gratitude, followed by a warmer impish look from Alisia.
“Please don’t screw things up any worse than you already have!”
My sister’s plea to me was delivered with a hopeful smile, before she wrapped her arm inside her beau’s muscular bicep and pulled him toward the kitchen where almost everyone else now gathered.
“Well, sport, my heart goes out to you,” said Julien, who paused to give his lovely wife a light kiss on the lips. She offered me a kind smile and a mouthed ‘me too’ before moving to join everyone else. “Care to accompany me as I seek out your grandfather to share a smoke?”
He smiled playfully, which affirmed this noted author’s remarkable ability to flow through life seemingly unscathed by the landmines that line the paths of most mortals. Not to mention, deftly surviving the added liability from a family of witches and warlocks that he and Meredith had become entangled with. As I’ve stated before, I view Julien as a kindred soul. A mortal human being whom I deeply admire.
