The Third Key (The Alaesha Legacy Book 1) (12 page)

"If your dad was smart enough to take that money and make it work, he'll be able to find something else. Maybe he could be a broker or something. And I'm sure Charles won't just abandon you or your family. They won't leave you without anything."

Dana bobbed her head. "Yes, they will. If a Keeper loses their key, they lose all benefits it afforded. If I had held onto it until I was eighteen, then we would have gotten a stipend every year, enough to keep us on our feet. But losing the key voids the contract. And my parents hate me for losing the key. It means I'm nothing. I have nothing."

She started to cry again, but her tear ducts were dry. Edith patted her hand. "Things have a way of working out. I'm not sure how, but they always do. I promise you, it will be all right. And you'll have me. I won't leave you just because you made a mistake. Everyone makes mistakes."

Edith bit her lip, not knowing what else she could possibly say to make Dana feel better. Until that point, Edith hadn't thought about what being the Keeper meant beyond the impending battle. She knew she was in danger, but she refused to let herself think about it.  And now with the discussion of money, Edith began to wonder and hope. If she could get through the next few weeks, if she could survive, there might be a chance to break away from the life she so loathed. She glanced at Dana, feeling guilty that the girl's downfall may be Edith's chance at freedom.

There was nothing else to do so they sat there on the window bench, hand in hand, both contemplating their individual fates as they stared out the glass until the lock clicked. Mags stepped through. She gave the girls a little smile and set to clearing the table. She took the tray out into the hall and locked the door behind her, but returned a few minutes later. In her hand was a small canvas bag. She held it out to Dana.

"A few books and a couple movies," she said. "To keep you busy."

Edith glanced around the room. They hadn't seen any electronic equipment at all. How were they supposed to watch movies? Seeing their confusion, Mags opened the drawer on the nightstand and pulled out a remote control. She pressed a big blue button and half the wall withdrew, showing a complete entertainment unit.

"You didn't think we were that stuck in the middle ages, did you?" she said, winking at the girls' sagging chins.

***

“Dana, can I ask you a question?”

The girls were lounging on their beds, watching one of the movies Mags had lent them. The cheerleader nodded, her mouth full of popcorn.

Edith was silent a moment, weighing whether the potential backlash from her question was worth knowing the answer. “Why were you so nasty to me when we met? I still don't get it.”

Dana finished chewing her popcorn slowly, her eyes locked on the television screen. She laid the bowl on the bed and pushed herself to a seated position. “Well,” she said thoughtfully. “I guess, I don't know. I have a hard time with new people. I know, it doesn't make any sense. I'm the most popular girl in school. Everyone invites me to their parties and stuff. But honestly, I hate it. I've always been pretty and my parents encouraged me to be outgoing, but I don't really like to be. So, sometimes I get mean, especially when I'm afraid someone is going to mess with the little bubble I've built. You were talking to Alex and I needed him. He was part of what defined me. The pretty head cheerleader has to date the hottest guy in school. That's the way the world works.”

She laughed as she stared at a kernel of popcorn laying on the bed. She picked it up and rolled it between her fingers. “I thought all that stupid stuff mattered. The clothes, the money, the fancy cell phone. It's all just stuff, though. It doesn't mean anything. In the end, what do we really have but ourselves?”

Edith gave her friend a weak smile and moved over beside her. “We have each other,” she said as she grabbed the bowl of popcorn. The silence that fell between them was no longer tense, but comfortable.

Chapter 12

Edith spent the rest of the remaining days before the next dreaded battle preparing with Charles. When she arrived at the training room after lunch, he grinned and handed her a longbow and a quarrel of arrows. They quickly discovered that her excitement wasn't without warrant. It took half a dozen shots, but after careful instruction from Charles, she took a deep breath, steadied her hand and blew the air out slowly. When the last wisp passed her lips, she released the arrow, remaining perfectly still as it flew through the air toward the target. As it sank deep into the edge of the bullseye, her eyes went wide. She spun around, her cheeks pinching as her grin grew. Charles was there, throwing his arms around her. He picked her up and she squealed with exhilaration.

"That," she said out of breath, "was awesome."

He set her down, but kept his arms around her waist. "You have a definite talent, my dear. Are you sure you've never shot a bow before?"

"We had a two-day archery class in fifth grade during a series on Native Americans, but I only got to shoot the bow a few times then. It's just always fascinated me. I watch them on television all the time and read books. It's something I've always wanted to do."

"Well, let's keep working. You're still not combat-ready by any stretch of the imagination. You're decent with the dagger, but not great. We need to work on that a bit more."

Edith laughed as she held up her left hand. It sported a long, shallow cut that had just started healing. “I think I might agree with you there.” As she stared at the cut, her face fell. “I need to be ready.”

She met Charles's eyes and he nodded. “If you want to be, you will be.” He cocked his head to the side. “I have an idea.” He walked to the wall and pulled the Galthe bow from its peg. “Here, take this.”

She reached out and took the special bow from him. As before, it felt warm to her touch. The longer she held it, the more right it felt in her hand, like it was designed just for her. She gripped the handle, marveling at how light and easy to carry it was.

Charles watched her reaction, a smile forming on his face. “Just what I thought. Come on.” He beckoned toward the target.

Edith raised the bow and pointed the arrow toward the bullseye. After a few deep breaths, she released the string. The arrow sang as it flew and hit the target, several inches from the center. She sighed and frowned.

Charles placed a hand on her shoulder. “Trust the bow, Edith. Let it do most of the work. Just relax and let it guide you.”

She nodded and raised the bow again. She stared at the bright red dot at the center of the target. Electricity surged through her hands and into the bow. She felt connected to it, like it could read her thoughts. Her thumb moved of its own volition, triggering the release. The arrow flew straight and true, sinking deep into the little black X marked on the red.

She felt a smile grow across her face and she turned to Charles, her eyes shining. He matched her grin. “I think the bow has found a new owner.”

***

They were in the training room the next morning, working on moving targets. Edith was practicing with the bow while Charles threw knives and throwing stars. She was admiring his deadly handiwork when the door opened.

"They are here." Mags was somber, her normally cheerful smile drooping in the wrong direction.

Charles paused, taking a deep breath, then nodded. "Thank you, Maggie. We'll be right up."

Mags nodded once before retreating. Edith dropped her bow arm. The excitement that had been building quickly turned to fear. Charles spun swiftly, releasing the knife he held. It sank deep into the human-shaped target, right into the X that marked where the heart was. He stared at it for a moment until Edith set her bow on a table. The thunk of wood on wood brought him out of whatever trance he was in. He looked up, meeting her eyes. He held out his hand to her. She stepped up to him and slid her fingers through his.

He smiled, but his eyes creased with worry. "Are you ready?"

She inhaled deeply and returned his smile, though the butterflies in her stomach beat their wings furiously. "As I'll ever be."

Hand in hand, they left the training room, heading off to meet the new arrivals.

***

They stopped to gather a few supplies and each hefted a backpack filled with food and medical supplies. While Edith collected some extra clothing from Mags, Charles had disappeared, returning with a double quiver full of sharp metal arrows and the bow she had seen that first day in the training room.

The other advisers and their companions were gathered outside. Boxy, Veth, and Edlaner each had one other person with them and they milled around the well in the center of the courtyard.

"Is that it?" Edith asked as Charles led her across the yard to the barns.

"Yeah. We decided that a small, tactical group was better than a large assault. Besides, we do not have the time to amass the kind of people it would take for an attack of that scale. Better to get in, get the keys and get away."

She nodded as if she knew exactly what he was talking about, but inside her stomach was flipping like a gymnast. She almost laughed when she thought about how terrified she'd been of Dana. Now she was carrying a triple-action crossbow and getting ready to take on some of the biggest baddies she'd ever heard of. Not too many people her age could make that claim.

Deep breaths,
she told herself, reaching for Charles hand. She gripped him tightly and he squeezed. His touch comforted her a little bit.

"This is not a good idea." Veth met the pair before they reached the others. "She is just a girl. She cannot defend herself. If they capture her, they'll have the Third Key. This is a horrible plan. She should stay here, where it's safe. Leave a guard--"

Charles held up a hand to stop the man from prattling on. "I trained her myself. She's ready and she's going. That's final."

Charles hard eyes offered no chance for rebuke and Veth stomped away to grumble to his compatriots.

Charles made to move forward, but Edith held him back. He turned to her, his eyebrows raised.

"Like Veth said, are you sure this is a good idea?" she whispered.

He pulled her close, brushing her cheek with his thumb.

"Not in the least. I'm terrified to take you with me. But I also have reason to believe that you would not be safe here."

Edith narrowed her eyes. "What do you mean? How do you know that?"

Charles glanced back at the group. They were talking amongst themselves, mostly ignoring Charles and Edith. "You remember Old Lady Warfall? The woman who sat on the step at your home?"

Edith nodded. "Of course. What does she have to do with anything?"

"She is a seer. Seers are... special. They can see the future, making them very valuable. But the future is always changing, and they cannot shut off the visions. They are continually bombarded with images of life, death, pain. When they are young, they try to change the future, but they quickly discover that they can't stop all the bad. If they reach Warfall's age, they are usually mad. It makes them utterly crazy, especially since all seers are also born blind and mute. It makes it very hard for them to communicate their visions. The fact that she stuck by you and refused to leave, even after being attacked, proves that she thinks something bad will happen. I can't have you out of my sight. I can't."

Charles brushed her cheek and inhaled as if to say more.

"When you two are ready, we would like to get on our way." The soft voice floated behind them. Boxy was standing there, hands on her wafer thin hips. When she saw Edith, her eyebrow quirked up. "You gave her the bow?"

"She earned it." Charles straightened his shoulders as if he were preparing to defend himself.

Boxy just nodded. "They are ready," she said before turning away.

Edith wanted to ask Charles about the bow, but he took her hand and led her to the barns.

"We all set?"

The others nodded, all conversation coming to a grinding halt.

"Let's get this over with then. We have a lot to do and very little time to do it in."

Charles led the way between two of the barns. When she emerged from the gap, Edith saw two large white carriages, each tethered to four unicorns, one at each corner. The carriages were each two stories tall and she wondered how the little horses were going to pull them.

"Come, my dear. We're in the first carriage." He paused at the door, walking up to speak momentarily with the driver. Edith watched the man on the seat. At least, she assumed it was a man. He had short, thick hands that wrapped tightly around the reins. His face looked like it had been flattened with a two-by-four and his hair was pulled back in a tight ponytail. He snorted at something Charles said, his laugh coming out almost like an oink.

When Charles came back, he opened the door and ushered Edith inside. Before he could shut it, Ollie bounded up the stairs.

"No," Charles scolded, narrowing his eyes at the dog. The creature whined and laid down. Charles knelt beside him, scratching his ears. “Don't be like that, boy. I need you to protect Mags and Dana while I'm gone. You're the only one who can.” The big dog sighed as if in reluctant assent and stood. He licked Charles's hand once and plodded back into the house.

Laughing, Edith surveyed her surroundings. The view of the carriage from the outside did not do it justice. Two walls were lined with plush couches, all upholstered with a soft, luxurious, dark blue fabric. Along the back wall, underneath a winding set of stairs, sat a bar. Boxy's companion was helping himself to a drink.

He asked a question in a language Edith did not understand, holding up a glass filled with red liquid as emphasis.

"No thanks, mate. We're good." Charles nodded at him and turned to Edith. "Come, I'll show you to our rooms."

A knot settled in Edith's stomach. She had not thought about traveling with Charles or what it would entail. Apprehensively she followed him up the stairs. A tight hallway ran down the center of the carriage. One door led off either side. Charles picked the door on the right and pushed it open.

The room they stepped into was similar to the downstairs, but much smaller. There was a door along each wall. Charles walked to the one in the middle, swinging it outward. "The powder room, my darling."

Edith peeked inside. It was very small, barely big enough for the three important fixtures it contained.

"Now," Charles said, opening another door. "Here is your room. Not much to look at, but it is functional."

The room contained a full bed, a small dresser, and windows along two sides. Nothing more. She placed her pack and bow on the bed and turned around, unsure of what to do next. Charles was standing by the door, leaning against the frame. He smiled at her.

"Come here." He held out his arms and she moved toward him.

Edith felt like she was floating as she walked
.
She turned her head, catching a glimpse out the window. The barn was moving. She turned away from Charles and ran to the window. The barn wasn't moving.
They
were moving. The carriage was rising straight up off the ground into the air. She pressed her face to the glass. One of the unicorns in the front was just barely visible. Its wings were stretched to full capacity, so long and wide that they rivaled the wings on an airplane. Edith's eyes grew wide as she watched the creature strain and huff, the ropes tethering it to the carriage pulled taut.

"Amazing, aren't they? They're small, but powerful. They can travel for nearly eighteen hours at a time without stopping."

Edith watched the mansion disappear beneath a layer of clouds. The carriage stopped rising and began moving horizontally. "Let's head down to the main room," Charles said. "It's almost time to eat."