Chapter 19
Morgan was the first to rush forward, her relief palpable. “Jolene, thank heavens! Are you all right?” she asked, glancing at Maynard, who was also soaked.
Shivering, Jolene clutched her arms around herself. “One second, I was falling, and the next—splash! I was in the ocean just off the north beach.”
Fiona’s brow furrowed with concern as she handed Jolene her hoodie. “But that”s right below us. How did you get out?”
Jolene looked at Maynard. ”Mr. Dove saved me.”
Wheezing slightly, Maynard straightened his soggy jacket. ”I was trying to control the ley lines from the beach when I saw her go in.” His voice trailed off into a series of ragged coughs.
Celeste, gripping her amulet, looked back at their house. “Let”s get inside. You both need to warm up.”
A violent sneeze shook Maynard, signaling urgency to the situation. They shuffled toward the welcoming glow of the kitchen, where Johanna was already boiling water for tea.
Johanna dropped what she was doing and embraced Jolene, relief washing over her face. ”Thank goodness you”re all right,” Johanna murmured, holding Jolene tight despite the fact that now she was getting wet too.
Fiona was already rushing to grab towels, passing them to Jolene and Maynard. ”Here, dry off. We”ve got some spare clothes, too, if you need them.”
Jolene gave a weak smile as she accepted the towel. ”I”m okay. Just a bit shaken up. And very confused how I ended up in the ocean.” She scrubbed at her dripping hair, glancing uncertainly at Maynard.
The old wizard was wheezing and coughing as he dried his beard with the towel. Luke guided him to a chair near the fireplace, where Calvin and Mateo were building a fire. ”We need to get you warmed up, sir.”
”Thank you for saving me,” Jolene said to Maynard, her voice steady despite the ordeal she”d just been through.
Maynard nodded, his eyes focusing on the brass instrument in Calvin”s hands. ”That”s a celestrolabe, isn”t it?” he asked, his tone suggesting he knew exactly what it was.
Morgan watched closely, feeling a strange sense of unease at the way Maynard was staring at the device.
”Calvin had it in his basement, and it seems to be able to see these invisible ley lines,” Celeste said.
He nodded again, his gaze not wavering from the celestrolabe. ”It will see the lines, but it won”t do you much good with Sofie messing things up,” Maynard said, his voice carrying a weight of warning.
”What do you mean?” Morgan asked.
”We only have two more days, and I can”t control the lines and battle her much longer,” Maynard added, each word imbued with the gravity of the situation. ”Without being able to control them, we can”t get to the epicenter to mitigate the effects of the alignment.”
Silence fell over the room as they all absorbed the implications of his revelation. The tension was palpable. Morgan felt the responsibility pressing down on her shoulders.
”We need to figure out how to stop her,” Morgan declared, her voice firm in spite of the fear trying to worm its way into her heart.
Jolene nodded, her eyes finding Morgan”s. ”We have to work together to find a solution,” she stated, her voice strong and determined.
”Yes, we do,” Maynard concurred, gaze still fixed on the celestrolabe. ”But we have to be careful. Sofie is powerful, and she won”t hesitate to use that power against us if she thinks it will help her achieve her goals.”
Morgan nodded, her mind racing with possibilities. ”What do you suggest we do?” she asked Maynard, hoping he held insights on how they might overcome this looming threat.
The elderly wizard glanced at the celestrolabe on the table then back at Morgan. ”There is another device called a lumiscope,” he began, his voice a low rumble in the quiet room. ”It”s an ancient piece of equipment—a blend of a clock and a compass.” He made a circular motion with his hand as if to illustrate his point.
Morgan could almost see it in her mind”s eye: a large, circular instrument with hands like a clock and an arrow like a compass. She imagined its surface covered in strange symbols and runes that pulsed with magical energy. ”What does it do?” she asked, her curiosity piqued.
”The lumiscope has the ability to sense and manipulate ley lines,” Maynard explained. ”It can balance their energies and harmonize their frequencies.”
Celeste nodded enthusiastically. ”That makes perfect sense. I could feel how erratic the lines were when we were in the woods earlier. It was like they couldn”t hold still.”
”Yes, precisely,” Maynard confirmed with a sage nod. ”With Sofie meddling and magnifying the effects of the alignment, the ley lines have become impossible to control. But the lumiscope can mitigate her interference.”
He grimaced, breaking into another fit of wheezing coughs. The fire now blazing in the hearth seemed to revive him slightly.
”I used to have the lumiscope in my possession. Our father gave it to me. Unfortunately, I haven”t seen the lumiscope since Alex stole it,” Maynard continued ruefully.
”But if we can find it,” Jolene said hopefully, ”we can use it to stabilize the ley lines and get to the epicenter?”
”Exactly.” Maynard coughed.
”Where do you think we can find it?” Fiona asked.
”Well,” cut in Johanna, who had been silently listening, ”the celestrolabe and the crystals all ended up at Calvin’s pawn shop. Maybe it”s there.”
”It could be, but I think I have a better idea,” Luke said. ”We can go straight to Alex. If he stole it, he probably knows where it is.”