Camelot, NY - the Once and Future King

by Vanessa Cortese

  “Don’t lose hope,” Merlin said. “It would be something of a miracle if you had managed anything overnight.” Elaine nodded, toying with the phone in her hands. What he said made sense, but the practice of it was another thing entirely. She knew that she had only just discovered this world of magic and wizards and…Arthur. But she couldn’t help but feel that she was at a loss. She should know all these things, and the knowledge that she was somehow lacking made her all the more anxious.

  The phone blared to life in her hand, the ringtone loud and jarring, indicating that her sister was calling.

  “Hey Lacy,” Elaine answered the phone.

  “Where the hell were you?” Lacy shouted into the phone. Elaine pulling it away from her ear in reflex.

  “What are you talking about?” Elaine shouted back.

  “I called you four times last night,” Lacy corrected her volume but not the intensity. Elaine cringed and mouthed a curse. “I was worried that something had happened to you.”

  “I’m totally fine, Lacy,” Elaine said, looking around for something to cover for her absence from her phone. Lacy was grossly overprotective, and this kind of situation usually had her sister filling a missing person’s report. Not that Elaine could blame her for her worry. Her parents had left the house one morning and never returned. “I went to a bar in town with Geoff and Arthur and left my phone at home.”

  “Who is Geoff?” Arthur asked from behind her. Elaine turned and smacked him on the arm and placed her finger over her lips, begging him to be quiet.

  “Who was that?” Lacy asked her tone insinuating.

  “Lacy,” Elaine tried to redirect.

  “Did you bring a man home last night?” Lacy asked. Elaine smacked Arthur again for good measure.

  “No,” Elaine said. “That was Arthur. He’s staying in the big house with me.” Lacy was stunned into silence. “It’s not what you are thinking,” Elaine said quickly.

  “Far be it from me to tell you not to get some,” Lacy said, but Elaine could tell her sister was unhappy about this.

  “I’m sorry about last night,” she said, trying to redirect Lacy. “I promise it won’t happen again. But you have to remember Lace, I’m an adult.”

  “I know,” Lacy sighed, “I know. It’s just…It’s just that I have this weird feeling. Like I should be there with you and not here. I know I’m overreacting. I know this isn’t even the farthest away from each other that we’ve been or the longest we’ve gone without talking…but…I still feel like something is off.”

  “Nothing is off, Sherlock,” Elaine said, trying to reassure her sister even if nothing was farther from the truth.

  “I’ll take you at your word, Watson,” Lacy sighed again. “But seriously…Are you sleeping with him?”

  “Goodbye, Lacy,” Elaine snapped into the phone as she heard her sister's warm belly laughter. She ended the call and relaxed a little.

  “Geoff?” Merlin asked.

  “I couldn’t exactly tell her that the man she knew was Argus Merlin suddenly reverted back to a younger age,” Elaine sighed. She needed coffee.

  “Why not?” Merlin asked. “Most of the Ladies families have been in on the secret.”

  “You heard how she reacted after not talking to me for 24 hours,” Elaine said, making her way to the kitchen. “Imagine what she would do if she knew about all of this.” Elaine gestured widely emphasizing the bizarre nature of everything that was going on.

  “So, it’s better if she thinks you are sleeping with a man you just met?” Merlin asked his gaze flittering to a confused Arthur who was still rubbing his arm from where Elaine hit him.

  “Wildly easier to deal with,” Elaine said as she turned to make coffee.

  “I’m still confused,” Arthur said, “Who’s Geoff?”

  “I am,” Merlin said. “At least where Elaine’s sister is concerned.”

  “And we’re sleeping together?” Arthur turned a devious look to Elaine.

  “No,” Elaine said. “We’re not.” Arthur was enjoying that idea far too much judging by the look on his face. Elaine turned away from them to watch the coffee drip in the coffee maker and wondered. She thought that Arthur was supposed to be head over heels for Guinevere. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. Arthur still watched her with a teasing expression. “Knock it off,” she said, swatting at him again. This time he dodged effortlessly.

  “Come now, darling,” Arthur said sappily. “Violence is never the solution.” Merlin barked in laughter.

  “Control him,” Elaine snapped.

  “Would if I could, my lady,” Merlin laughed. Elaine’s phone blared to life again, and she groaned. This time she didn’t recognize the number.

  “Dr. Lakeport?” an unsure voice asked.

  “Yes,” Elaine answered.

  “This is Jessica down at the hospital,” the voice said, and immediately Elaine picture the woman who had helped her with the harpy the day that she had been down there.

  “Hello again,” Elaine said. “What can I do for you?”

  “I have a patient who requested you for a follow-up,” Jessica said. “I told him that you don’t officially work here yet, but he’s insisting.”

  “I’ll be there as soon as I can,” Elaine said. Jessica hung up immediately. “Change of plans.” Elaine said, staring wistfully at the coffee that was nowhere near ready. “I’m off to the hospital.”

  “How long?” Merlin asked.

  “Not long,” she said, making her way to the stairs. “Just one patient.”

  Elaine showered, changed into her scrubs and made her way down to the kitchen again. She pulled out her phone and was about to call for a taxi again when a board next to the back door caught her attention. There were several sets of keys there. She had all but forgotten in all the excitement that she had not only inherited her aunt’s house and money, but there was a collection of cars that had come with the estate. She ran her fingers over the keys, choosing one at random and made her way to the large detached garage. There was a laminated strip of paper on the key ring that read, “Buick”. She unlocked the garage, and her jaw hit the floor. “Oh wow,” she stammered, looking at a large collection of cars.

  There were classics, two-seaters, convertibles, and a massive SUV tucked into the corner that looked like it could have sat eight, easily. Her eyes found a mid-fifties midnight blue Chevy Buick. She slid the key in the door, “Hello baby,” she said as she slid into the mint condition leather seats. “You might just be my favorite.” She looked around for a garage door opener and found it in the glove box. Clicking the button, the massive sliding door opened, she turned over the engine and drove to the hospital.

  When she arrived, she drew more than a few looks as she pulled into a parking spot and locked the door. Elaine grabbed her purse and put on her watch as she walked into the main entrance of the hospital. The ladies at registration had no idea what she was talking about but sent her to the nurses station on the third floor.

  “Dr. Lakeport?” the tiny blonde nurse asked as she approached. “What are you doing here?”

  “Jen, right?” Elaine asked. And the nurse smiled widely and nodded. “I got a call from Jessica. She said that a patient asked for me for a follow-up.” Jen stared at Elaine as if she had lost her mind.

  “Jessica’s not even working today,” Jen said.

  “What?” Elaine asked.

  “Maybe I’ve got my wires crossed,” Jen said. “Give me a few minutes.” Elaine nodded, and Jen walked away. Elaine stood at the nurses’ station wondering. Things changed at hospitals all the time, so it was possible that something had changed, that Jessica had left, that the patient had changed their mind. But something felt wrong, very wrong. The hair on the back of her neck stood up, and she felt a heavy gaze on her, as if she was being watched.

  It took nearly twenty minutes for Jen to come back. “I’m sorry, Dr. Lakeport,” Jen said with a frown. “But I can’t find anyone who knows what you are talking about.
” Elaine’s shoulders tightened, and she stood up straighter. “Do you want me to call Jessica?”

  “No,” Elaine said. “That’s not necessary. If she’s at home, I’m sure she has no better idea about what’s going on than you do.”

  “I’m sorry,” Jen said.

  “Don’t be,” Elaine said. “Maybe it was just some weird prank call.” She really hoped that was all it was. Elaine said goodbye, and still feeling the eyes on her, made her way back out of the hospital. She pulled her phone out and dialed Merlin.

  “That was quick,” Merlin said as he picked up.

  “Something’s wrong,” Elaine whispered into the phone as she walked back to the Buick. “I got to the hospital and no one knew what I was talking about.”

  “Get to the car,” Merlin said his voice tight. “Don’t stop for anything.”

  “Merlin,” Elaine said fumbling in her purse for her keys. “You’re scaring me.”

  “I didn’t think she’d find us so soon,” Merlin said. Elaine dropped her keys, panic coursing through her veins as she saw a man standing next to her car, his back to her. “Elaine?” Merlin called through the phone. Elaine opened her mouth to answer, but the world went black.

  Chapter Ten

  Elaine shivered and pulled her arms in her sleeves, trying to keep warm. She had woken up in an industrial meat freezer, she knew from the terrifying hooks hanging from the ceiling. She had no idea how long she had been out, or how long she had been in the freezer, but she knew that she was beginning to lose the battle with the cold. She had tried to find a way out, had tried calling for help until her throat was raw. Her teeth were chattering, and she couldn’t feel her toes anymore.

  Magic was her only way out...

  And she had no idea how to use it.

  She wracked her brain, trying to remember anything from the night before, but things were foggy. She took a deep breath and tried to focus, but the only thing that she remembered was a locating spell. It hadn’t required any sort of ingredients, only for the caster to call out to the person they want to find them.

  The problem was, that this spell had been labeled as advanced. Elaine had failed at everything that she had tried and those were basic things. There was no way that she could manage something advanced. She whimpered as the cold began to physically hurt.

  “No choice,” she whispered to herself. She took a deep, shuddering breath and focused. She tried to remember what Arthur had said the night before when he had somehow managed to coach her into opening the door, but it too was hazy in her memories. “Something about wanting it,” she muttered.

  She wanted not to die a slow death from hypothermia. She wanted to see her sister again. She wanted to see Merlin again. She wanted Arthur to come bursting through the door like he did in the stories that her father had told her. To find her. To get her out of here.

  She focused on Arthur, imagined his face, and whispered his name.

  Chapter Eleven

  “You didn’t tell her anything about Morgan?” Arthur snapped at Merlin as the wizard drove at breakneck speeds down the long dirt driveway from the house.

  “I didn’t want to scare her off,” Merlin answered. “I never thought that Morgan would find us so quickly. She’s never been able to sense where Avalon was before. I thought we had time.” Arthur clenched his fist. If Morgan already knew where they were, then they were all in danger. But he couldn’t worry about that now. It was very likely that Morgan had Elaine. He swallowed. He knew more than anyone what Morgan was capable of.

  Merlin never slowed as he reached the city street, racing right through two red lights. Arthur didn’t know if he was disappointed or not as to them not being followed by a police officer. Merlin hit the driveway to the hospital hard and the car bounced, jostling them up, and made his way to a car that Arthur had never seen before and threw his sedan into park. “I saw her take this one this morning,” Merlin said as he got out of the car and cast his gaze about for some sign of Elaine.

  Arthur looked to the ground, there were no footprints to track, but he could try and retrace her likely steps. He began to walk from the car in a direct path to the hospital entrance. Ten yards from the car, he saw a bundle lying on the ground. He bellowed for Merlin, as he crouched down and saw Elaine’s cell phone lying on the ground.

  The phone started ringing, and Arthur picked it up, not sure what to do. He saw the name ‘Sherlock’ flashing across the screen and his stomach fell. He had heard Elaine call her sister by that name just that morning. Merlin had mentioned something about pressing the green button to answer, “Hello?” he asked.

  “Who is this?” a woman’s voice came through the phone.

  “Arthur,” he said as Merlin came up beside him and began to examine the purse on the ground. “I’m Elaine’s friend.”

  “Oh,” the woman’s tone softened slightly. “I’m her sister, Lacy. Can you put her on?” Arthur took a deep breath. He didn’t know why, but he wanted to tell this woman everything. She deserved to know that her sister had been kidnapped by a maniacal, homicidal, dark sorceress. A sorceress that had had a grudge against the Lady of the Lake for centuries. He glanced at Merlin for a response, any response, but Merlin just stared at him. “Where is she?” Lacy asked, panic and rage competing for the top emotion in her voice.

  “She was on the phone with us,” Arthur said truthfully. He didn’t know why, but he couldn’t lie to this woman. “She was scared, saying she was being followed, and the line went dead. We rushed down here, and she’s not here.”

  “But her phone is?” Lacy asked a tightness to her voice that Arthur couldn’t identify. “I’m calling the locals, stay there. I’m on my way.” He looked at Merlin.

  “It was unavoidable, I suppose,” Merlin said, taking the phone from Arthur.

  “She said that she’s coming,” Arthur said looking around for some sign of Elaine. “And that she is ‘calling the locals’, whatever that means.”

  “The local police,” Merlin explained. “She’s a detective.”

  “I couldn’t lie to her,” Arthur said, “I’m sorry.” Merlin shook his head. Arthur was aware that he had just made things infinitely more complicated. He had done the one thing that Elaine hadn’t wanted. He had brought her sister into the situation. And the worst part was, he wasn’t even certain why he had done it. As soon as he had heard Lacy’s voice, he knew that she could be trusted, knew that she could handle it, and knew that she had a right to know that her sister was missing.

  They stood around waiting as the local police turned the parking lot into a crime scene. He had seen a show on the television that was similar, but it chilled him to the bone knowing that it was because of Elaine they were doing this. They wrapped it with tape, asked Merlin and Arthur a thousand questions. Sooner than they would have thought, an unmarked car with sirens blaring came to a screeching halt on the far side of the yellow tape.

  The woman who emerged was tall, with the same reddish-gold hair and statuesque figure that Elaine had. She was dressed in a pair of long black slacks, a white button-up shirt, and a pair of boots that looked like they were made for kicking, and what looked like a gun strapped to her hip. She barked at a uniform cop who snapped to attention and had a brief exchange with the man before she let herself past the tape under the officer’s objections and strode over to the detective who was questioning Arthur.

  “I take it you are Lacy Lakeport,” the detective who had introduced himself as Harris turned.

  “What do you have?” Lacy said.

  “We are letting you near the investigation as a courtesy, Lakeport,” Harris warned. “Remember, you are only here at my generosity.”

  “Are you seriously trying to pull rank?” Lacy snapped. She stepped threateningly close to Harris who was not a tall man and looked down on him. “Worry more about my sister,” she growled. Harris stiffened but said nothing, he walked away. Arthur noticed a murderous look in her eyes as she turned her fury to him.

  “You mu
st be Arthur,” she said coolly still glaring at him.

  “Yes, Ma’am,” Arthur replied automatically. He had been in many different militaries over the centuries, and he knew a soldier when he saw one. He had hoped this address would buy him some goodwill, but Lacy just narrowed her eyes.

  “Did my sister say anything to you before she was…” Lacy paused, clenched, and unclenched her fists before finally saying, “Abducted?”

  “She was on the phone with Merlin,” Arthur said.

  “Who?”

  “That would be me,” Merlin said stepping in. “Geoff Merlin.” He extended his hand to her.

  “You go by Merlin?” Lacy asked suspiciously but took the offered hand.

  “When your last name is Merlin and your best friend is Arthur,” he shrugged with a laugh, “I’ve found it best to steer into the skid.”

  “I guess that’s fair,” Lacy chuckled in spite of herself. The seasoned detective turned her questions to Merlin, who had a lot more information to offer, and Arthur was glad that he had told Lacy what had happened. He wasn’t sure why, but he liked the detective immediately. Not in the same way that he had bonded with Elaine, but he felt that he could trust Lacy Lakeport completely. He wondered why Elaine didn’t want Lacy to know what was going on. It would certainly make it easier to have a member of Law enforcement on their side, and something told him that Lacy was more than capable of handling it.

  Arthur ran a hand through his short hair as his thoughts turned to Elaine. They had next to nothing to go on, but he knew that it was Morgan. This whole thing stunk of her. Arthur closed his eyes and shook his head.

  That was when he heard it.

  “Arthur,” Elaine’s voice whispered in his ear. He spun around, relief flooding him for only an instant, to find that she wasn’t there.

  “Arthur?” Merlin asked his eyes sharp and questioning.

  “I thought I heard something,” Arthur shook his head and watched Merlin go back to talking to Lacy. Arthur looked in the direction that he had heard Elaine’s voice.