I looked around again to find my way, and I saw several paths stretching away through the trees. There were no landmarks I recognized, nothing to tell me which was the right way to go. Should I just choose a direction at random and start heading down it? That sounded like a good way to get lost.
But before I left the clearing, I heard another sound of movement in the trees. When I turned my head to look, I saw another path that I hadn’t noticed before, and a tall figure running down it. “Rosa!” he called, waving.
I couldn’t believe my luck. “Mantis?” I started moving toward him. Yes—it was him!
“Oh, thank the Lady, it’s you!” Mantis ran up and threw his arms around me in a bear hug that lifted me up off the ground.
The force of his hug knocked the breath out of me for a moment. I gasped and pulled back. “Is it Mantis still?”
“I don’t care what you call me, I’m just glad that you’re here.” Mantis set me down gently and looked me over. “Are you alright? We have been looking everywhere for you! Where have you been?”
I blinked. How should I explain what had happened to me? “I—I just got in, finally. Who’s looking for me? How did you know that I was here?”
He ran his hand through his hair nervously. “Everyone—your friends, your family, the police. We were all so scared when you just disappeared in the middle of the day. You didn’t take anything with you, so the police thought that you’d been kidnapped or ran into some other sort of trouble. But when Glen and Ashleigh found your broom by the Grove, they thought that you could have tried to come here, so they came and asked me if I’d seen you. I knew if you were in the Faerie Realm, you were probably lost and couldn’t find the way, so I’ve been out looking for you all night—”
“What?” My voice cracked. “All night? It couldn’t have been more than an hour.”
Mantis shook his head. “Rosa, there’s been no trace of you in your world or this one for over twenty-four hours in your time. I have to take you back—you’ve been gone for so long.”
I didn’t realize that I was swaying until he put his hand on my shoulder to steady me. “I missed another day of school? My parents are going to ground me for a whole year this time. But I don’t feel hungry or anything, and I haven’t had anything to eat or drink—”
“It’s good that you haven’t eaten anything,” Mantis said quietly. “Time runs differently here, but I don’t think you’ve been here the whole time. There was no way open between our worlds on the day that you disappeared. Glen and Ashleigh came the same way hours later and saw no sign of you, and I’ve searched every path I know between here and Doe’s Rest since then. I was afraid that you were lost forever. Do you have no memory of where you were?”
I looked behind me, as if I could see some sign; there was nothing but forest. “There was a fire,” I said carefully. “And—a dragon. Kaorinix?”
His eyes widened. “The guardian? She shouldn’t have let you pass.”
“She didn’t. She told me to turn back, and then she tried to set me on fire.”
Mantis shook his head. “I think you were confused somewhere. We’ll have to figure it out later. We’re wasting time here talking, and I promised I would take you back as soon as I found you. I’ll find the way back. Just stay close to me.”
He took me by the arm and led me back along the way that he’d come. It was strange, because I thought we were walking away from the Grove, but a minute later he just stepped around a tree, and the next thing I knew, we were stepping out of the Grove into the gardens of Doe’s Rest Castle.
17
Desperation
I looked up at the sky—it looked like early afternoon, but I couldn’t be sure. “Do you know what time it is?” I asked Mantis, still clutching his arm. “Will Glen and Ashleigh be here, or are they at school, or are they at home—”
Mantis stared at the castle for a long moment. He must have seen something that I couldn’t, because he nodded. “They’re here. We can go in and talk to them.”
We went inside by a side entrance to the main building. One of the servants found us first, and took us up to Ashleigh’s private rooms in the west wing of the castle. A few minutes later, Ashleigh and Glen, still dressed in their school uniforms, rushed in.
“You’re alive!” Ashleigh cried. Both of my friends threw their arms around me. “Oh, Rosa, where have you been? I was so scared!”
“I don’t have time to get into it all right now,” I said. “Do you still have my broom? I have to stop my mother before she can do anything else.”
“But you can’t just go flying off again right away,” Glen said. “You just came back to our world. You need to sit down, eat something, and tell us what happened.”
A servant was already coming into the room, carrying a tray of sandwiches and a pitcher of water. Mantis pushed up a chair behind me, and though I tried to protest, sat me down in it. “I think she’s been a little confused by what happened,” he told the others over my head. “She mentioned Kaorinix.”
Glen nodded. “The guardian.”
“She warned me to turn back,” I started to explain, but Ashleigh put a glass of water into my hand and a plate with a sandwich on my lap. The sight of it made me suddenly realize that I was very hungry—and thirsty. I started to drink the water.
“She can talk after she’s had something,” Ashleigh said.
The glass was empty too quickly, but the servant was already handing me another one full of water. I drained that one, too, and picked up the sandwich. I barely tasted anything as I wolfed it down.
“But why did you leave in the first place?” Glen demanded. “Kaorinix was right, you shouldn’t have tried to go into the Faerie Realm. There was no doorway open. Why didn’t you just come here? We could have protected you.”
I couldn’t look up to meet their eyes. “I’m sorry that I yelled at you guys before. I—I didn’t want to go to you for help, because of that. I was looking for him.” I looked up at Mantis.
He shook his head and frowned. “You can’t come to me for everything. Your friends here can help you better than I can. I’m not always available—especially when there isn’t a doorway.”
“But then how did I get through?”
Ashleigh handed me another sandwich. She stood there with her hands planted on her hips, watching me as I ate. “You must have been stuck in between, somehow, until the doorway opened for you. I’ve never heard of it happening before, but I can’t think of another explanation—we looked everywhere for you on both sides of the Veil, with every practical and magical method we had, and there was no trace at all.” She threw up her hands. “How could you do something so dangerous?”
“I didn’t think it was as dangerous as facing my mom after she knew what I’d done,” I said quietly. My choice weighed on my heart, waiting for me to say it out loud. “But now I know that I don’t have any choice. I have to destroy her garden, and my family has to leave, just like you guys said. Do you think there’s any way that we could get them out safely before she knows I’m back?”
Glen frowned. “I think that your best bet would be to contact your dad first so he knows that you’re back, but don’t go home yet. Someone can go by the store to see if your mom is still there.” He glanced at Ashleigh. “And then I think your family should stay here, at the castle, for protection. We’re the best equipped here to repel any kind of magical attacks or influences.”
Ashleigh nodded. “We’ll start making up rooms for all three of you. The castle has plenty of space.” She motioned to the servant who’d brought the food and gave him instructions.
“And once we know they’re out, then we can start planning how to destroy the garden,” Glen continued. “Can I contact Heather and Kai, to let them know you’re back? They’re both worried, and I think they’d also want to help.”
“Sure.” I looked at down at the floor. “Listen. I know we have to turn my mom in to the Court tomorrow. But what do you think is going to happen to her
? Will they arrest her? Put her in magical jail for the rest of her life?”
Glen coughed. “Well, that depends on how serious they consider the problem. They’ll demand that she appear for a hearing to determine her punishment. They’ll probably strip her of her powers.”
I flinched. “No magic at all? She’ll hate that.”
“She broke the oath that she made when she got her powers,” Ashleigh said softly. “So far as we know, she hasn’t actually hurt anyone, so I don’t think they’ll do worse. But if she broke her promise, she can’t be allowed to use magic anymore.”
I sighed. “I guess that’s true.” I looked up at them with a sad smile. “Well, thanks for helping out, at least.”
Then I looked at Mantis. He held up his hands and shook his head. “I’m going back to the Otherworld. You’ll have more than enough help. Besides, Rosa--” He crossed the room to give me a hug, then whispered in my ear, “I think you’re finding that you’re stronger than you realized.”
While Ashleigh and Glen handled matters with the castle staff, I flew to the hospital where my dad worked, hoping I could catch him before he went home. Mark Twain St. Joseph’s Hospital was a small two-story building that looked more like a health clinic than a hospital, but it was the only one in the county. I landed in the little grove of trees to one side, chained my broom to the bicycle rack out front, and rushed into the main lobby.
Inside, the hospital was white and powder blue with furniture that looked like it had been sitting there since the seventies. I went up to the front desk. “I need to see Dr. Samuel Alda-McAddams. Has he gone home for the day yet?”
The young woman behind the front desk pushed her glasses up on her nose and frowned at the computer screen before her. “Do you have an appointment?”
“No, I’m his daughter, Rosamunde McAddams. It’s an emergency.”
She looked up at me in surprise. “The daughter that ran away yesterday?”
I nodded. “Yes, and it’s urgent, so can I please see him?”
The receptionist swiveled in her chair so she could reach the phone. “Let me page him and see where he is. I think he was just finishing up some paperwork for the day.”
Two minutes later, a door swung open and my dad came rushing out. “Rosamunde!” He ran over and threw his arms around me. “Are you alright? Have you called your mother yet? She’s been freaking out! I was freaking out—we were both so worried!”
“No, Dad, don’t call Mom.” I pulled back from the hug to look at him. “I don’t want her to know that I’m back.”
“Why not? What’s going on? I know that she called and tried to talk to you yesterday when you were at school, and then another student said she saw you just walk out and leave during the middle of lunch—”
“Slow down and let me explain!” I pulled him to one side away from the front desk, because the receptionist and one of the nurses were staring at us. I lowered my voice so they couldn’t overhear. “I found the spell, the one that I told you about. After I got my magic back, I realized that her garden is the spell that’s controlling us. I have to destroy it, but first I have to get you and Akasha out to somewhere safe.”
He put a hand on my shoulder. “Whoa, are you sure? She had me convinced that there couldn’t be a spell—” He stopped and shook his head. Her control over him was strong again. “That garden was always a little weird, but I thought it was just because she used it so much for her work. But you can’t destroy it! It means everything to her.”
“Exactly—because it’s the source of the power that she uses to enchant us.” I looked him straight in the eye. “If you believe anything that I’ve told you, you have to listen to me now. It’s not safe for any of us to stay with her anymore, because she’s never going to change. If I break this spell, she’ll just try to find another way to control us. We all have to leave.”
I could see his face fall as his world crumbled in front of his eyes. “But I’ve spent over half of my life with her. And she’s your mother. It’s better for you girls if we stay together as a family.”
I shook my head. “No, you’re wrong. It’s better for all of us if we stop sacrificing everything for an artificial peace and don’t let her run our lives anymore. You may not want to leave her, but if you want to do the right thing for me and Akasha, you have to get us away from her.”
He stared. “So you really think that the best thing I can do for you is to help destroy the only home that you’ve ever known, and tear you away from the mother who raised you and taught you how to use magic?”
I pulled away from him and folded my arms. “If you don’t let me do this now, then tomorrow, when she’s reported to the Faerie Court’s High Council for breaking the laws against manipulative magic, it could be bad for all of us. You said yourself that you let her make the magical decisions. They could think that you knew about the spells and approved of them.”
His eyes narrowed. “Are you threatening me?”
I shook my head. “I’m saying that it’s out of my hands, and it’s going to happen with or without us. But we could show them that we don’t want this. The Faerie Court will protect us.”
“What will the Court do to her?” I heard the fear in his voice.
“Strip her of her magic. She broke her oath to the Court.”
“What?” Dad stared at me. “That would break her. Magic means everything to her.”
I rested my hand on his arm. “I know, but it’s the consequence of her actions. But we don’t have to get dragged down with her. We just have to leave tomorrow.”
Dad closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. “That’s such short notice.” He sighed. “I just don’t know if I can do this.”
“I’m sorry, but I’ve been trying to talk to you for a while now. I’m staying with friends tonight, but in the morning I’m going to the house to get some of my stuff. I’m not going to live there anymore.” I touched his shoulder. “If you want to, you can stay home from work and pack up your things, and tell Akasha to skip school so she can pack, too. When you guys are out, then I’m going to destroy the garden. Believe me, you’ll probably feel very different when the spell is no longer on you. I know I feel much more free now.”
Dad looked at me. “I just don’t know, honey. I have to think about this. Where are you staying? Will you keep in touch with me, at least?”
“I’m going to be at the castle, with Glen and Ashleigh. I don’t have my phone on me, but I’ll give you Ashleigh’s number. Let me know what you decide.” He handed me the paper pad and pen from his coat pocket, and I wrote down numbers for Ashleigh, Glen, and one of the landlines for the castle. “Sleep on it, maybe, and see how you feel tomorrow—except remember that the spell is stronger at home, so of course that will influence you more when you’re there.”
I hugged him good night and wished him well, then walked out again to find my broom. I still had to talk to Heather and Kai, and see what we could figure out for tomorrow.
When I got back to the castle, Heather and Kai were waiting with the others in Ashleigh’s sitting room. As soon as she saw me, Heather threw her arms around me, tight. “I’m so glad that you’re okay! Why didn’t you tell me that you were leaving?”
“I don’t know, I guess I just panicked.” I patted her on the back. “I’m sorry for making everyone worry.”
When she let me go, Kai hugged me with one arm and took a step back. “I was worried about you, too.”
“Sorry,” I mumbled again. “It’s good to see you.”
Ashleigh stayed sitting on the couch, but she smiled and waved. “So what did your dad say?”
I shrugged. “He’s having a hard time with the idea. He told me that he’d think about it and let me know. I gave him your phone number so he could contact me—I hope that’s okay.”
Ashleigh nodded. “Of course it’s okay. If your dad and sister decide to leave, we’ll have room for them here. There’s a room already made up for you tonight, by the way, and I’ll g
et some clothes for you to borrow until you can get your things from home.”
I smiled at her. “Thank you for everything.”
Everyone found a seat around the room, and Glen leaned forward. “So.” He clapped his hands together. “Other than your family, what’s the plan?”
“Let me start with what I know.” I began to tick off points on my fingers. “I know that the spell is the garden. I think that to break the spell, I’m going to have to destroy the whole garden as thoroughly as possible. I don’t think I can stand up to my mom if she’s fighting back, so I need to do it when she’s not home, without her knowing about it.”
Glen nodded. “How do you want to destroy the garden? Should we get some shovels, or rent a backhoe, or what?”
“I want to burn it—I think that would destroy everything the best. But I’m worried that someone will call the fire department if they see a fire that size.”
Ashleigh raised her hand. “Glamours are my specialty. I can create an illusion so no one will be able to see the smoke. The nearest neighbors to your house are almost half a mile away, right?”
I nodded. “There shouldn’t be anyone too close nearby, especially if we go in the middle of the day when my mom is at work.”
Glen rubbed his chin. “It will be easier for all of us to help you if we can do it after school, because someone will get suspicious if we’re all missing. I know you’re skipping tomorrow, so you can get your things in the morning, but do you think that you can wait until the afternoon to go back and burn it? Will your mom still be at her store then?”
“I hope so,” I said. “Halloween is usually one of her busiest days of the year.”
Kai flicked two of his fingers up in the air. “I can swing by downtown after school and keep an eye on her store to make sure she doesn’t leave early. And if this garden is as important as you say, she may be able to tell when something happens to it—if you trip another alarm and she comes rushing home, I can at least give you a warning to get out of there.”
Fae of Calaveras Trilogy Box Set Page 24
