Love lines (28 page)

The rest of the night was sleepless. No one could relax
in light of recent events. Everyone was waiting for the meeting. At about seven
o’clock, Christian went to the dining room, and brought us breakfast. Since it
was Saturday morning, no one got up early, so the dining room was empty and no
one saw Christian load a tray with food for the four of us. Breakfast,
surprisingly, turned out to be beneficial. All of us were nervous, but we know
that in stressful cases, the appetite only grows. In addition, we all had to do
something to pass time in the remaining hour. Nobody said it out loud, but
everyone was thinking about how slowly eight o’clock was approaching and with
it - the meeting with Nora, of course. We didn’t call those who were currently
in Norfield. They were also preparing. Christian’s parents and Evan were
calling us every half hour throughout the night. From reliable sources it was
known that Alexis hadn’t left the territory of Dever. And this was good news,
though not reassuring.

When the clock showed eight, we all held our breath. The
plan was that Amelia was to spend about half an hour in Nora’s house - just
enough time to allow the Keepers and other participants of the operation to
surround the house and properly disperse their forces. Being one of the
Wizardy, Nora could feel the presence of foreign powers, so the plan was
prepared very carefully, calculating the distance to the millimeters, so that
she couldn’t feel anything. Amelia had the amulet, charged with magical powers,
which, if anything, was to protect her. I didn’t know where they managed to get
it, but Christian assured that his mother was out of danger. After the meeting,
Amelia had to try to get Nora out so the others could seize her. It was decided
to bring her to the headquarters of the League of Keepers in London. The
Council, being the supreme body of the League was to decide what to do with her
after that.

We all jumped from an unexpected knock on the door.
Christian took a deep breath, and went to open it.

“Anna!” he said in surprise.

“Sorry, I'm just looking for Darcy. Alexis needs her
urgently. Is she here?”

Amanda, Darcy and I exchanged startled glances.

“I'm here, Anna, come in,” Darcy said.

“Thank God! Alexis can’t find something to complete the
podium in the arena, so everyone’s in a tizzy.”

“Why did she start the preparations so early today?” I
asked.

“It was quite unexpected, but Beatrice called us, and
asked us to come to Alexis’s office,” Anna said.

“My phone battery must be dead,” said Darcy, checking
her cell phone. “Okay, I’m going to help Alexis, but call me if you need my
help.”

“What are you all doing here so early?” Anna suddenly
asked.

“Christian was going to refine a part of his show here
and asked us to help a little,” explained Darcy. “Let’s go,” she turned to Anna
stopping her from asking more questions.

 As soon as Christian closed the door behind them, we
sighed with relief.

“When she mentioned Alexis, I thought that she had found
out everything!” Amanda said, swallowing hard.

“I thought the same thing. When will anyone call to tell
us the news?”

“Even if they manage to catch her, it will still take a
few hours to get her to London. Plus during this time, neither my parents nor
Evan will leave her alone. So, I think, no news should be expected until
midday.”

“Maybe we should go help Darcy? I was working with her
all the time, so Alexis won’t suspect anything seeing us there,” I said.

“Good idea, Darcy shouldn’t be alone. If Evan’s right,
and there is someone watching us here, they know our schedules and routine,”
concluded Christian.

“Man, where will we find the strength not to collapse in
the middle of the arena?” Amanda said wearily.

Christian and I looked at each other. Despite the fact
that we had a sleepless night, we both felt great. It was so convenient to be
able to recharge each other’s energy.

“Come on sleepyhead,” he said, hugging her sister's
shoulders, “you can sleep when it's over.”

“Will this happy moment come soon?” Amanda asked,
reminding me of a child who asks his parents how many days are left before the
birthday and gifts.

“Let's hope for the best,” cheerily replied Christian.

Chapter 23. The
Festival (
Christian)

It was nearly noon when I received a text message from
my father:
“Watch Eileen. Alexis knows everything. Be on the alert
.”
Amanda
saw me reading it, so I had to show it her too. We decided not to tell Eileen
anything. At the time, she was talking to Darcy, on the other end of the arena.
Alexis wasn’t anywhere around. I didn’t know how she had found out about our
plan, but, judging by the fact that Alexis was very polite (maybe just a little
nervous), talking to us today, I didn’t believe she knew we were aware of what
was going on. At least, I hoped not.

“Hey, why you are not helping?” Eileen protested, coming
to us with Darcy. “Is there any news?” she asked quietly.

“No. Not yet. We are watching Alexis,” I replied.

“Alexis was just called to the office,” Darcy informed.
“An urgent call.”

“Every time I hear something like that, my heart skips a
few beats,” Amanda sighed.

“Not just yours,” I said. “Who called her?”

“Beatrice. But who was on the line, she didn’t say.”

“Anyway, we should stay together. If Alexis calls
someone, the others are trying to stay close, without attracting too much
attention. Got it?”

All three nodded in response. If Evan was there with us,
he wouldn’t stand and say something like:
“How did you manage to rule all
those women at the same time?!
”

 I smiled at the thought.

“What's so funny?” asked Amanda.

“Nothing, just thought about something Evan would say.”

“Of course, he is nothing but laughter all fun and
games,” she said irritably. “We still need to carry these boxes over the stage,
so enough smiling and memories, let’s get back to work!”

Having completed our tasks requested by Alexis, we left
the arena and went into one of the gardens of Embry. There was an abundance of
aroma in the garden that had a soothing and calming effect on each of us. It
was a combination of jasmine, lilac and freesias. Their while, purple and pink
petals were all over the grass and benches as if we were walking down some
magical fluffy clouds. This helped relax our tension and exhausted nerves. It
was very pleasant to be in a good atmosphere.

“Almost two hours have already passed, and there is
still no news,” Eileen said, going round the bench for the hundredth time
already.

“
No
news is still better than
bad
news,”
Amanda said.

“That's true,” Eileen agreed, sitting down beside me on
the bench. I felt how much she was suffering. The anxiety was written on
everyone’s face.

Suddenly my cell phone rang. It was Evan.

“Are you with Eileen now?” he asked. “Walk away from
her, and listen carefully. Frederic was seriously injured. We are trying to
help him. We need Darcy. Quickly! At the south gate there’s a car waiting for
her, so take her there and have Amanda stay with Eileen in my room. No one can
enter it without my permission, it’s spelled. Once you accompany Darcy, go back
to my room. Tell Eileen that we need Darcy’s help for some of the Keepers. Nora
has already been taken to London. She is still very strong, despite the fact
that Frederic spent a large amount of his power, neutralizing her. I’ll keep in
touch. Hurry up!”

As soon as Evan disconnected, I quickly explained
everything to the others and led Darcy to the gate.

“Did Evan say who was hurt? I know some of the Keepers
there,” she said.

“Actually… it was Frederic,” I blurted out.

“What?! He was taking part in this too?”

“Yes. I didn’t want to tell you this in front of
Eileen.”

“What do you think I can do to help him? Why not to ask
someone from Embry?”

“As far I understand, Frederic was injured by the same
potion as your grandmother. Your task is to recognize it.”

“I don’t get it... I mean, of course, I can recognize
it, but how did it hurt Frederic?”

“I don’t know, it wasn’t mentioned. They know the
antidote, but because it’s just as strong, as the potion itself, you need to
make sure that this is it. Otherwise, the very antidote can kill Frederic.”

“Oh, God! Why everything is so complicated!”

“I wish I knew,” I smiled sadly. “So, that's the car,” I
pointed to a black SUV. “Good luck, Darcy. And if you can, keep in touch.”

“Okay. Be careful too,” she said before getting into the
car.

I waited until it drove away, and went to Evan’s room.
Amanda and Eileen were already there.

“Finally, Christian! We thought that you left too!”
Amanda said, jumping up from the couch to greet me.

“Why did they need Darcy’s help?” Eileen asked.

“Evan didn’t give me an explanation, he just said that
they needed her help.”

It felt like lying to Eileen has become a habit.
Although, this was a lie for the good, I still felt bad.

“So now what? We are stuck waiting again?” asked Amanda.

“Do you have any other suggestions?” I asked in
response.

She didn’t answer, just sat back on the sofa, tucking
her legs.

“Christian,” Eileen called, “are you ready for
tomorrow's show? I mean, are you
sure
you can handle it?”

“I told you that everything would be fine,” I said
taking her hands in mine.

“I know, but this uncertainty about Nora worries me a
lot, and I'm starting to panic because all of this is hitting us at once.”

I put my arms her waist and added:

“You'll see that in a couple of hours everyone will come
back safe.”

“I still hope that some of them will get us some updates
and answers. How can they keep us in the dark for so long!” bursting, Amanda
exclaimed.

“I can’t believe that! Are you worried about Evan?”
smiling, I asked.

“Why should I worry about him at all?! I just want all
this ended as quickly as possible, so we can relax and enjoy tomorrows
Festival.”

“So that is it! You are
worried about losing your
date with Lucas!” Eileen laughed.

“The two of you’d better stop getting on my nerves!”
Amanda hissed, giving Eileen and me an angry look. “I’m sick and tired of all
of this!”

“Leave it,” I said Eileen. “Let her worry a bit. Evan
would still be pleased to hear that,” I added in a whisper.

“I can hear everything your saying!” Amanda cried out
from the bathroom.

Eileen and I smiled at each other. I bent my head and
touched her lips with mine. We didn’t have much time to enjoy moments like
this, so I tried to make it as perfect as possible. I missed her like hell and
every time I had to leave her alone my heart was screeching with pain and loss.
I needed her every single second of my life.

The rest of the day passed quietly, except, of course,
for our common anxiety over the complete lack of news. Evan didn’t call back.
Neither did Darcy. Later early evening I decided to call my father, and ended
up getting his voice mail.

“Are we going to get some sleep today?” asked Amanda.
“Eileen and I don’t need it as much as you do, Christian. You need to get a
good night’s before tomorrow.”

“She's right,” noted Eileen. “You can sleep on Evan’s
bed, and we will wait for someone to call. If anything happens, we'll wake you
up.”

“You shouldn’t wait all the night,” I said. “Go get some
sleep on the couch. I’ll give you my cell phone, just set a vibrating ring. But
if someone calls...”

“We will let you know,” replied in unison, Amanda and
Eileen.

“Good,” I said, smiling both of them.

A few hours later I open my eyes and the clock showed
already half past six in the morning. Since I wasn’t woken up no news was
reported. I quietly got up, walked to the couch and picked up my phone lying
next to Amanda’s pillow. She and Eileen were still asleep. Since the Festival
wasn’t to begin until ten, I decided not to wake them yet. Again I tried to
contact my father, but again got his voice mail. The same thing was with Evan’s
phone. Darcy was generally unavailable. I started to get really nervous. My
show was one of the last, and I was hoping before that to hear some news. Even
though Evan’s room was safe, I decided not to leave the girls alone. There was
enough time to dress and take everything I needed for the show. I made a cup of
coffee, and went to the balcony so that I wouldn’t awaken them accidentally.