by Jamie Summer
Yet the only thing I could focus on was the way his body seemed to lean into me even more, the way his breath washed over me like a gentle breeze, making me shiver.
My heart raced, and I hated the fact that he was likely close enough to feel it. I needed to put a stop to this.
I needed to concentrate.
I took a deep breath, taking in his distinct smell one last time before stepping back. The distance was exactly what I needed, yet my heart ached the moment I stepped away. It hated the fact I broke this off. Whatever this was.
“It looks like the key we found by the lake, doesn’t it?” I tried to steer the conversation back to our quest.
Nathan closed his eyes, as if trying to get his focus back, and nodded. “Yes, it does. But it still doesn’t tell us anything else. I mean, yes, it looks like a key and would make sense, but what are we supposed to do with it as a clue? Do you have any ideas?”
I didn’t have anything. No answer whatsoever. Because, strictly speaking, I thought the exact same thing. Finding some carvings or pictures of a mysterious key weren’t getting us any closer to solving the mystery. Even the website was more descriptive than that.
“Wait, there’s more.” Nathan reached toward the picture of the key on the wall. I couldn’t see what he was doing, but it seemed as if he was pulling on something. “Got it!” he exclaimed and turned to me, a piece of paper in his hands. My heart tripped over itself in excitement.
“Open it,” I demanded. He obliged with a chuckle. “What does it say?” My patience was low right about now.
“It’s another website,” he whispered. I felt disappointment settle in my bones. It wasn’t that I thought the location of the keyholder would be scribbled on a random piece of paper, but it sure would’ve been a nice change.
“Like the first one?”
“I don’t know, but it’s another random string of letters like the first one.”
This was good. We found something that might give us a better idea of where to find the keyholder. It might not have been what I was looking for, but then again, I didn’t have any idea what we were looking for. Another website seemed oddly fitting.
“Wanna go back to the hotel and check it out?” I asked.
Nathan pondered my request for a second before shaking his head. “No. Call me paranoid, but I’d rather go to an internet café where ten other people are using the internet at the same time. That way, our search might not be directly traceable to us.”
I stared at him. He did have a point, albeit a moot one.
“They know who we are. Or at least who I am. They handed me this note personally. You handed me the first one personally. So I think we’re long past the traceable part,” I replied. Nathan actually smiled at my answer.
“I’m sorry for not remembering giving you that letter. Part of my accident, I think. And I understand they’re aware of who you are, but it doesn’t mean we have to lead them right to what we found. For all they know, it could be random kids who found this particular piece of paper and visited the website. It might not work, but it’s still worth a try.”
I nodded, not having a good enough reason not to go with his plan. Plus, if it really meant whoever was behind this might be delayed in knowing how far we’d gotten, I’d take it.
“I saw a café down the road. Fancy a coffee?” I was always ready for coffee, which he knew.
It took us fifteen minutes to reach the internet café, then found a computer in the back. The more privacy, the better. While Nathan got out the slip of paper with the website address on it and typed it in, I pulled out the notebook where I’d written all the clues from the first site.
The website that opened was much like the one I’d seen back home. Dark and mysterious. Maybe even a little creepy.
“So you found the words throughout the various pages the first time, correct?” Nathan asked.
“Yes. You couldn’t see them just by scrolling through the pages. You had to highlight them all and only then would the words show.”
Nathan did what I said. Sure enough, three words showed up on the screen.
Tower.
Park.
Eye.
The words meant nothing to me, and by the blank expression on Nathan’s face, I could see they didn’t to him, either.
“Click on the subpage and let’s see if there are any other words we can add to the list,” I told him. Our search of the rest of the page resulted in five more.
Queen.
Key.
Horses.
Left.
River.
Something about those words had a familiar ring, as if it was something I should remember but couldn’t.
“This is another city clue, right?” Nathan wanted to know.
I shrugged. “It might be. But I have no idea what city. I mean, when I was younger, I used to travel with my parents. We’ve been to some amazing cities, but those words…” I shook my head. “I have no idea. They sound familiar, but I can’t place them.”
Nathan’s gaze, which had been turned toward me, refocused on the screen. He pulled up Google and typed the words in. I noticed he left out key, but I guessed that was because the reference was most likely to the keyholder itself.
“London… It’s London. Tower Bridge, Hyde Park, London Eye, the queen, the Thames River. They have horses in front of the palace, and they drive on the left,” Nathan rattled off. I realized why it sounded familiar to me.
“I’ve been there with my parents. I was twelve or thirteen and it’s one of the first trips I actually remember. I loved London.” I smiled at the memory of that particular holiday with my parents.
“So, I’m guessing that means a trip to London is in order?” Nathan tried to sound excited, but there was a certain edge of uncertainty in it, almost as if he were scared to take the next step. “It’s a big city. Much bigger than Lucerne. The chances of finding anything there are rather slim.”
I knew what he was doing, but it wasn’t going to work. He wasn’t talking me out of this one.
“We talked about this. You’re welcome to leave at any time,” I told him once more, but a dry laugh was all the answer I got as he pulled up several sites and searched for the next flight out.
“There’s a flight tomorrow morning. Not too early, which is nice.”
I agreed. I didn’t feel like getting up in the middle of the night, no matter the journey we were on. In addition, we had to go to Zurich first, which took us another hour. The later we flew out, the better.
“Okay. Booked us two tickets. Hotel next?” His gaze met mine, but before I was able to answer, he’d turned his focus back to the screen in front of him. It seemed the question had been more rhetorical.
Since he had everything covered, I paid for the coffee. When I was done, Nathan stood next to me, flight and hotel confirmation in hand.
“Let’s do this, shall we?”
Chapter Nine
We spent the rest of the day sightseeing. Thankfully, nothing out of the ordinary happened. Dinner was a quiet and peaceful affair, which I didn’t mind. Something about being with Nathan was incredibly soothing, as if his mere presence were like a scarf that wove its way around you and made you feel warmer inside and out.
When we talked, I let his voice wash over me. I knew I should pay attention to what he was saying, but I couldn’t. The day had been emotionally draining, so the safety I felt around him was what I decided to focus on, not what was coming out of his mouth.
After dinner at the hotel restaurant, we got into the elevator to go to our respective rooms. I mourned the loss of his companionship the moment it was gone, but it was nothing a hot bath and a good night's sleep couldn’t fix.
I undressed and tried to calm my mind. I wanted to relax, but I couldn’t when everything I thought about was the keyholder, open questions, and what ifs. I needed a few minutes to decompress, and while the bath would calm me, I also decided to order a bottle of wine. It showed up five minutes later, deliv
ered by a rather handsome porter. After he opened the bottle and had me confirm it was to my satisfaction, he left without another word. As I took another sip, part of me wished I could share it with Nathan, but I knew having him here with alcohol involved wouldn’t be good. For either of us.
I still had no idea what his deal was. While I was definitely attracted to him, it was hard to tell if there was any more to it on his part. With guys, you never knew. So, drinking by myself it was. Once the bathtub was full, I took my glass and let the water soothe my soul.
About an hour and two glasses of wine later, I climbed out and dried off, ready for bed. The wine had made me sleepy, so I quickly got dressed in my pajamas and was under the covers within a few minutes, falling asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.
Something startled me awake. I couldn’t exactly pinpoint what it was, and after opening my eyes, adjusting to the darkness, I wasn’t any wiser. At least I remembered I was in a hotel room.
I sat up and took a sip from the bottle of water on the nightstand.
Suddenly, the room started to shake, just like on the bridge. I tumbled off the bed, sprawling onto the floor.
What the heck?
The shaking stopped. When nothing happened for another few moments, I dared to get up. What was going on? I gazed around the room. Nothing. I walked to the window and looked out. I didn’t see anything out of the ordinary. Was I going crazy?
The shaking started again, knocking me to the floor. I prayed to whomever would listen that I’d make it out of this alive. The walls started crumbling, large pieces falling to the floor. I needed to find cover. I crawled over to the bed, only to realize there was no room for me to hide under it.
“Seriously?!” I said.
As I turned to glance at the window, I gasped, seeing the hooded figure standing there.
How did he get in here?
“Who are you?” I yelled through the noise continuing to go on around me. Nothing. The figure stood there, still as a statue. “Why are you doing this?” In my mind, there was no doubt he was the one responsible. “What did we do to you?”
You aren’t worthy.
It was the same phrase he had said on the bridge.
“I’m not worthy? Of what?”
I was met by silence, which pissed me off. I pushed myself off the floor and started to stumble over to where the hooded figure stood, but by the time I reached him, he’d turned around and disappeared through the window. I didn’t even notice it was open, but the cold air blowing in and billowing the drapes proved as much. I craned my neck as I looked outside, trying to see where he had gone, but there was nothing.
“Great. As if being on a crazy quest wasn’t enough,” I murmured, then turned around and gasped. Hooded man now stood near the bathroom door. How did he…
“What the—”
The room shook aggressively, knocking me onto my ass. The walls started to crumble again, and I scrambled to avoid several falling pieces. My hands covered my head, trying to protect myself.
“Stop it!” I yelled, but something told me there was no use in doing that. This person, whoever he was, wouldn’t stop simply because I asked him to.
You aren’t worthy, he repeated.
I wanted to yell out my frustration. I had gotten the point the first time, not that I understood what he meant.
“What are you talking about? Care to be a bit more specific?” I asked, trying to dodge falling debris. How I managed, I have no idea, but it was as if every time I thought I’d be too late in jumping out of the way, the piece of the wall would redirect itself and hit a spot right next to me. It was scary, but ten times better than hitting me on the head.
I knew I needed to take action, not just wait for something to happen. I moved through the debris on the floor over to where the figure stood.
“What…is…going…on?” I asked, letting out a word with every step I took. I had to yell over the noise around me in order for him to hear me.
Then it was over. And he was gone.
It felt like déjà vu. The same thing had happened on the bridge. The shaking stopped abruptly and the man was gone.
I glanced around, ready to take in the devastation. But there wasn’t any. My room looked like it did when I went to bed.
“This can’t be happening,” I whispered. I needed to talk to Nathan. I didn’t care that it was the middle of the night. I needed to talk to someone, and he was the only one who came to mind.
I quickly grabbed my robe and left the room, only to realize I had no idea which one he was in. For some reason, we hadn’t let each other know. Great. There went my plan. I knew there was no use asking the front desk. They wouldn’t just hand out room numbers because you asked them to.
Sighing, I accepted defeat and went back to my room. Maybe, by some miracle, I’d be able to sleep.
Yeah, right. As if that would work after what I’d just gone through. I tried, I really did, but the moment I closed my eyes, images of the walls crumbling around me assaulted my mind, making it impossible. I gave up after a half-hour and decided to make some coffee. My room had its own coffee machine, so I turned it on and hoped the liquid would help me stay sane for the next several hours.
Please.
I must’ve dozed off again at some point because I woke to the sound of someone knocking on the door and yelling. It took me a few seconds to figure out who it was.
“Coming,” I told Nathan, closing my robe before opening the door.
“What are you doing? We’re gonna be late,” he stated, standing there with his bag in hand. He took in my disheveled appearance. I was pretty sure I had dark bags under my eyes and hair sticking out in every direction. It wasn’t a picture I ever wanted him to see, but at this point, I couldn’t care less. I felt like I’d been run over by a train. “Are you okay?” His voice had gone from accusatory to worried.
“Define ‘okay’. I slept like shit and had one hell of a nightmare. At least I hope it was only a nightmare.”
“What do you mean?”
Now, with the sunlight shining through my hotel window, everything that happened last night seemed too crazy to be true.
I waved him off. “Nothing. Never mind.”
“It doesn’t look like nothing. Whatever it is, you know you can talk to me, right?”
I nodded and walked back into the room, hoping he’d take the hint and drop the inquisition. “I’m sorry I’m late. How much time do I have?”
Nathan glanced at his watch. “Ten minutes. Can you make that?”
“I’ll be ready in five.” I smiled, grabbed my clothes, and vanished into the bathroom.
Five minutes later, I walked back into the room, dressed and ready to face the day. I couldn’t shake off the lingering unease from last night’s event, but I tried to ignore it as I shoved stuff into my bag.
Nathan grabbed it and we went down for a quick breakfast before making our way over to the train station. Our flight wasn’t for another three hours, so we made it to the airport with plenty of time to spare. Nathan didn’t ask about my night again, which I appreciated. While I had been eager to talk to him about it just hours before, I now felt stupid for even thinking about it.
It was just a nightmare. Granted, a very real and scary nightmare, but a nightmare nonetheless. No reason to worry him with something insignificant like that.
After we checked in, we got a coffee and waited to be called for boarding. To pass the time, I took out my notebook and studied the clues one more time.
Maybe staring at them would bring me the answers I’d been seeking.
Yeah, didn’t think so.
The paranoid part of me was scared something would happen during our flight, but thankfully, it was smooth all the way to London. Once the cab dropped us at the hotel, we were pleasantly surprised to find our rooms ready. The hotel Nathan had picked wasn’t in the immediate city center, but close enough. The room was minimal at best, containing only a bed and a dresser, as well as a tiny bathroom.
But from what I remembered from the trip with my parents, that was the way England worked.
We didn’t waste time unpacking, meeting back downstairs right after depositing our bags in our rooms.
“Before we start, can we get lunch? I’m starving.” Nathan smiled sheepishly. It was a new and refreshing look for him. Since my stomach grumbled, as well, I agreed and we grabbed a quick bite at the Pret a Manger.
We had looked at the clues during the flight, so we’d already decided on a route, starting with the London Eye. Next to Buckingham Palace, it was the biggest attraction in London, so we wanted to get it out of the way first. It was early afternoon by the time we got there, and a few hundred people stood in line. I hadn’t decided if the clue meant we had to get on the Eye or merely look around it, but Nathan’s argument of going on it just to be thorough made sense.
While he got our tickets, I searched the area, not finding anything of importance. I wasn’t sure if we were supposed to be looking for more key carvings or drawings, but I kept an open mind.
Coming up empty, we got in line. An hour later, we entered one of the capsules. The London Eye, a monstrous Ferris wheel, was easily one of the most impressive, and scary, structures I’d ever seen. I wasn’t a huge fan of heights to begin with, and standing in a glass-enclosed capsule where I saw the ground beneath my feet didn’t help the issue.
“Focus on the view outside,” Nathan told me with a soft smile, obviously sensing my unease. I took a weak breath before following his advice. It was a little better after that, but needless to say, I wasn’t much help when it came to searching for clues. We’d decided against going through all the various capsules. It would take too much time and cost a lot of money. I simply hoped being in one would be enough.
