Chapter 28
Chapter Twenty-Eight
We approach the gated estate, which is just a stone’s throw from the sprawling public park that stretches beyond the boundary. The detached house’s facade is exactly like in the pictures, a tasteful mix of smooth white render and red bricks.
I feel anxious as we open the garden gate, walk up the twisted, hedge-lined path, and knock on the black front door.
It opens immediately, and Dad is there. “You don’t have to knock.
” He grabs my arms, pulls me in for a hug, kisses my forehead, and then holds me at arm’s length with a frown.
“You’ve lost weight. A lot of weight.” I pull a face, and he laughs and pulls me back into his arms for the best dad cuddle.
I hug him right back because I need it and do my best to fight back the tears. I know I’ll have to tell him what happened to our town and his friends, but for the moment, I enjoy being in his arms.
“My turn,” Mum says from behind us.
Dad reluctantly lets go, and suddenly I’m in her arms. She smells of flowers and home. Her strawberry blonde hair brushes against my face as she kisses me on the cheek and gives me a quick squeeze.
“Oh, sweetheart, your dad and nan have been so worried.” She grabs my forearms and gives me a shake. “Never do that again. I have new wrinkles and grey hair from the stress.”
“Aw, Mum. You look beautiful as always.”
She pulls away and looks at me. “You’ve lost weight.
You’re practically skin and bone. You need to look after yourself better.
” She looks up at Soren and gives him a dirty look.
“You’re her bodyguard? You have to make sure she eats properly.
She’s always so busy, and she keeps busy and forgets to eat. ”
“I’m okay, and Mum, it’s not Soren’s fault; leave him alone. It’s not his responsibility to feed me.”
Mum lets out a humph and stares back into the house. “I don’t know what your brothers are doing. They’ve been suspiciously quiet all afternoon. Your nan is at the library and won’t be back for another hour and a half. She will be sad that she missed you.”
Oh, aren’t we staying long then? I frown and duck my head so no one can see my hurt expression.
“Come in, come in. I don’t even know why I’m saying that. It’s your house. You can come into your own home.” She waves her hand and we follow. At the door, I take off my trainers, and Soren removes his boots without saying a word. I smile at him gratefully.
The house opens into a spacious hallway with dark wood floors in a herringbone pattern. To the right, a sweeping staircase curves gracefully to the upper floors.
“It’s not my house, Mum.” I ensure the shoes are neatly tucked away. “It’s our family home, and I’ll sign the deed over to you and Dad as soon as I have time to see the solicitor.”
“Oh no, you will not.” She stops and turns, and slashes of red brighten her cheekbones. I internally cringe at her angry expression. “Me and your dad are going to sort ourselves out. Robert has an interview next week?” She turns to him.
“Yes, on Tuesday.”
“And I’ve got some plans in the pipeline. We’ll be able to afford our own home and will not have to rely on our talented daughter.” Why does the word talented seem to come out as a slur? “We will be moving out as soon as possible.”
I frown. “Congratulations on the interview, Dad.” I pat him on the arm with a forced smile. “I know you’ll smash it and get the job.” I turn to Mum, take a deep breath for courage and try again. “There’s no point in the house being empty, and it’s too big for me.”
“Well, then sell it. Honestly, girl, sometimes you think too big.” She stomps off again, and over her shoulder, she says, “Would you like a cup of tea?”
“Yes please.” Tea will fix everything.
“Aleric, Ledger,” Mum bellows. “Kricket is here. Come down, boys, and greet your sister.” She waits for a beat, and when there isn’t the sound of obedient running feet, Mum huffs and marches up the stairs. “Robert, get ready to turn the Wi-Fi off.”
Dad chuckles, puts his arm around me, and steers us towards the kitchen. “Let’s put the kettle on, shall we?”
The open-plan living area is arranged around a low coffee table and a contemporary fireplace.
A plush, oversized, L-shaped sofa dominates the space.
The dark grey kitchen has state-of-the-art appliances integrated into sleek, handleless cupboards.
Adjacent to the kitchen, the dining area features a long wooden table and sliding doors leading to a spacious patio and garden. It’s nice.
Soren follows us quietly.
“I’m sorry I haven’t said hello to you yet, Soren. Thank you for keeping us informed about Kricket’s situation.” Dad leans around me, and both men shake hands. “I’m Kricket’s dad. Would you like a cup of tea?”
“Yes, that would be lovely, thank you.”
Oh heck, my manners aren’t the best. I’m sure I’ll get it in the ear later from Mum. “I should have introduced everyone, but I don’t know where my head is at. I’m sorry.”
“You’re still not recovered,” the gargoyle says kindly.
Above us, there’s a door bang, and then Mum runs down the stairs. Out of breath, she flies into the kitchen. “They’ve gone,” she says. “They’ve—they’ve gone.”
“Gone where?” Dad asks, putting down the kettle.
“I don’t know,” she wails. “They’re not supposed to leave the house.
We have strict instructions and bodyguards to protect us when we leave the house.
Emma arranged everything,” she tells Soren.
“But they’ve gone. They’ve snuck out. Robert, they’ve snuck out, and there’s another thing”—her eyes fill with tears and dread—“I checked, and I think they’ve been in the safe. ”
The charms.
Oh no.
I give Soren enormous eyes while I wrestle with my emotions.
I need to keep calm. “I’ll go and have a look.
See what’s missing, if anything.” I bolt out of the room and take the stairs two at a time.
I know where I’m going. Even if I hadn’t seen the layout and photos, the main bedroom is easy to find because the magic in the safe calls to me.
I fling open the wardrobe and drop to my knees. The safe’s ward opens with a touch, and then I pull out the bag of charms.
A box containing twelve charms is missing.
My brothers took them ’cause the box is fancy, and inside, the charms are inlaid with foam.
I put everything else back in the safe and hurry downstairs.
I know what I can do. I can track the charms and, if they’re still near the box, find Aleric and Ledger.
It’ll be fine. Everything will be fine. They’re more than likely messing around with the charms outside.
“Yes, some charms are missing. They’ve taken a box full of them.”
“Oh no,” Mum says, slumping against my dad’s chest. “Where have they gone, and why would they do that?”
“I don’t know, love. Perhaps they’ve got some new friends and wanted to show off.”
“They haven’t met anyone yet, no new friends.
They haven’t got a phone. I don’t know what they were thinking.
” Mum pushes Dad away, bunches her fists, and then her anger is aimed at me.
“Kricket, this is your fault. All this is your fault. Your blood money and this stupid house. Your baby brothers wouldn’t be in trouble if it weren’t for you and those stupid, dangerous charms.”
Blood money, wow. I stumble back in shock, wrap my arms around myself and look at my mum as if I’ve never seen her before.
“Mum, I…” What can I say? I can’t—I can’t give excuses, and I can’t claim innocence.
Mum’s right. This is my fault. I should have tweaked the ward so not even my family could touch the charms, or better yet, I shouldn’t have sent them with them in the first place.
“Mary, that’s not fair,” Dad says, his voice pleading. “You can’t blame her for this. Your Mum doesn’t mean it,” he tells me.
“Don’t you dare talk for me.” Her nostrils flare, and she glares at Dad. “I do mean it. I’m sick of walking on eggshells for our daughter.”
Eggshells?
I’m sorry the annihilation of our entire town inconvenienced you.
I rub my chest as I remind myself that she doesn’t know.
She wouldn’t say all this if she knew. My parents are aware that I’ve not been very well, and it has something to do with the invaders, but they don’t know all the details, which was why I came here in the first place.
Mum moves towards me with her hand raised.
“No.” With a soft growl, a blank face, and his wings rustling, Soren moves to stand between us.
He’s doing the bodyguard thing. I don’t know why he’s bothering.
Mum has a temper, but she wouldn’t hurt me.
Right? Prickles of pain dance across my forearms, and the skin on the underside becomes itchy.
I scratch, and bumps can be felt underneath my fingertips.
Am I having an allergic reaction? I pull my sleeve up.
My arm looks perfectly normal.
“Do they have a computer, a datapad?” Soren’s voice has slipped into professional mode, and it cuts through the bullshit.
“Yes, they both have datapads and a gaming console,” Dad answers.
The gargoyle nods, pulls out his phone, and calls someone. He quickly explains what has happened, and when he hangs up, he says, “Ava will ring back after she’s checked their accounts.”
Ava, that’s good. She’s the best at computer stuff.
“I can track the charms—” My voice cracks and my hands shake. I hide them by tucking them into my armpits. This with my mum has thrown me. I need to get over myself and track my brothers.
Soren turns to me and his expression is kind when I meet his eyes. His big hand tugs one of mine out with a gentle squeeze. “You can track your charms?”
“Yes.”
“Interesting.” So interesting. Great, we’ll discuss this at length when we are alone. “If you can find the location of the charms, I’ll help you get your brothers home.”
“Thank you.”
“If you don’t find my boys, I’d better not see you again,” Mum snarls.
“Mary, that’s not helping.”
I think she’s talking to Soren, but no, she’s looking at me.
It’s going to be incredibly hard to concentrate with the vitriol that my mum is shooting at me and the blame in her eyes. Love hurts like this sometimes. The crack inside me that’s been growing, splinters a little bit more. I’m dealing with the consequences of my actions.
Every day, I feel more like the villain.
Fear for my brothers, along with guilt and my mother’s nasty words, make me shut my emotions down.
It’s not about me. None of this is about me.
I let all thoughts of what is happening drift away.
It’s beyond my control, and I can only afford to concentrate on tracking those charms. I block everything out.
I hear Soren’s phone ring. I ignore the conversation and force myself into the blackness of searching.
The dots in the vast ocean of black come much easier now that my mind has calmed, and I quickly pinpoint where the charms are scattered like little fireflies in the sky.
I immediately find a cluster far off my mental map—the twelve charms. I realise then we have a problem: the box of charms is not in this world.
No. It’s in Faerie.