Lauren shook her head smiling. “Earth to
Keegan, we are talking about the fair.”
“Do you think they will let me know something
about Xavier?” Anna wondered out loud, completely ignoring her
friends’ ramblings.
“Maybe, but I think you have to ask about
him. At least that’s how it goes on the TV shows.” Lauren glanced
over at Keegan, swinging her small purse at her side as they
walked. “What do you think?”
“I’m not sure. You would think if they were
real psychics they would see it without being asked,” Keegan
answered honestly.
“Good point,” Anna said. “I don’t think I
will mention him. Besides, it’s bad enough he makes it obvious he
only thinks of me as a friend. I don’t think I could handle psychic
rejection as well.”
Lauren clapped her hands and jumped around.
“EEK, we’re almost there! This is so exciting!”
Keegan was surprised at Lauren’s enthusiasm.
The fair didn’t quite sound like her thing. She was probably hoping
someone was going to tell her that she and Josh would be married,
have three kids, and live happily ever after.
The fair was disappointing at first glance.
Keegan had been expecting...well, she wasn't sure exactly what, but
it looked like some boring craft fair in a church basement. A few
tables and stands were arranged around the room with a bunch of old
people seated at them. It didn't look like the few attendees
milling around the place were actually buying anything. Still, she
could hear her mother in her head.
Don't judge a book by its cover, Keegan
.
She decided she might as well relax and try to have fun with her
friends.
Keegan noticed a large red sign at the
entrance of the fair that said NO PHOTOGRAPHY. Mumbling under her
breath, she put her camera back in the bag.
They stopped at each stand, admiring the
jewelry, crystals, tarot cards, and many other items available.
There were certainly some fascinating things. Keegan picked up a
moonstone necklace for her mother. The small sign next to it said
it would bring considerable fortune. Keegan also knew it was a
healing stone. It was one of her favorites. She loved the way you
could see the colors through it when it was held to the light.
Lauren came to a halt in front of a stand
where a woman sat behind a table, dressed like a stereotypical
fortuneteller. She was slightly overweight, fortyish, and wearing a
multi-colored dress that gave her an outrageous gypsy appearance.
She had a kind face. Her long curly hair was a brilliant red like
that of a clown's nose. Gesturing to a pile of rocks on the table,
she told Lauren, "Pick one and hand it to me. I can tell your
future."
Lauren did so. When the woman had the rock,
she closed her eyes and ran her small hands around it for a few
moments before looking up at Lauren with a warm smile.
“You will do great things and succeed in
whatever you put your mind to. I also see that you should put your
focus into law.”
Lauren’s mouth gaped open; her dream was to
be a lawyer. The girls all looked at each other in disbelief.
Anna jumped up and down yelling, “Me next!”
She grabbed a rock and the woman did the same thing, closing her
eyes and feeling the rock. “Child, you have a beautiful soul but
you will struggle in life if you do not let go of the sadness
inside of you.”
Keegan and Lauren glanced over at Anna,
surprised to see her brush away a tear. “Thank you,” she said
quietly, and put the rock in her pocket.
Finally, it was Keegan’s turn. Placing her
hands over the pile of rocks, she grasped the one that was calling
to her and handed it to the woman. The woman kept her eyes closed
for an extremely long time. When she finally opened them, she
looked at Keegan warily. Keegan’s heart started to race. She felt
as if the woman knew she wasn’t human and was going to say so.
The woman sighed, handing the rock back to
her. “I’m sorry, I feel nothing.”
"What do you mean you feel nothing?" Keegan
balked at the woman.
"That's just how it works sometimes. I'm
sorry." She shrugged.
Keegan wanted to ask the psychic some
questions, but Anna and Lauren were keen to move on and dragged
Keegan to the next stand. She turned to look back and the woman
returned her stare with a blank look. Keegan thought for sure
something wasn’t quite right.
Could she possibly know her elfin secret?
Maybe she truly was unreadable and that’s why the woman looked at
her strangely. It seemed odd, not to mention disappointing. Keegan
wanted to hear what the psychic had to say about her.
The three girls spent hours browsing, which
turned out to be a lot of fun. The crowd steadily built in the room
so that it no longer looked sad and unused, but with the dim light
and the noise of guests, it felt like a fair. After enough time had
passed, and Keegan’s feet were starting to hurt, she yawned and
stretched dramatically.
“Are you guys ready to go?” she asked,
tugging at Anna’s sleeve.
Lauren nodded vehemently. “I shouldn’t have
worn these boots. I’m exhausted.”
Though she done well hiding it for most of
the day, Anna had obviously been shaken by the psychic’s words. She
just shrugged. “Sure, let’s go get dinner.”
As they walked towards the door, Keegan
sensed someone watching her. She glanced around the room, searching
for the source of the feeling, and was startled to come face to
face with another elf.
Elves can recognize each other when they
happen to cross paths. Unless of course it’s your chosen, they are
cloaked from each other by magic. Keegan had never seen anything
quite like this elf. The girl was stunningly beautiful, but that
was not a surprise as all elves tend to be overly attractive. She
had short black hair, pale skin, rosy cheeks and the greenest eyes
Keegan had ever seen on a person. She felt as if she were staring
into the eyes of a cat.
What took Keegan by surprise was the darkness
around the stranger. Keegan had heard of dark elves. Wherever there
was light there had to be dark, but knowing something in your mind
and actually seeing it is different. This was the first time she
had seen a dark elf with her own eyes. She had heard they mainly
lived up north and rarely made efforts to be a part of the human
world like the light elves. Since her childhood, they’d almost felt
like specters; boogeymen told through light elves’ folklore.
Keegan’s body felt cold. She tensed up and all her senses
heightened as her eyes were caught by the stranger’s.
“Do you know her?” Anna asked.
Keegan couldn’t talk. She felt as if their
eyes were locked and she was unable to move unless the girl allowed
it. Finally, the dark elf averted her gaze and Keegan’s body
relaxed. A distracted look crossed her face and she replied, “She
looked familiar, but let’s get out of here.” Keegan’s only desire
in that moment was to rush home and talk to her mother about what
had happened.
***
From a distance, Rourk was staring with a
grim expression on his handsome face.
What was that exchange all about and who was the
dark elf?
He had to make a choice. He could continue to
follow the girls or go inside and talk to the dark elf. As much as
it pained him to watch Keegan walk away, he quickly advanced into
the building. He needed to know if she was in danger.
Rourk scanned the room, but he did not see
the dark elf anywhere.
Where could she have gone?
Closing his eyes, he
breathed deeply as he felt the coldness wash over him. He saw her
with his mind’s eye. The dark elf had taken the back door and was
walking casually down the alley. It was times like this when he was
grateful to be a descendent of a great warrior. He’d trained his
whole life for his calling—from the time he got out of bed in the
morning until the time he went to sleep at night. Hell, he even
dreamed about the techniques he’d learned. He needed to put them to
good use.
Silently he advanced. He was now the hunter,
and she, his prey.
K
eegan tried not to think about what had just
happened and planted a smile on her face. “I’m starving! Isn’t it
Lauren’s turn to pick?” She turned to Anna and at the same time
they yelled, “Wendy’s!”
“Funny guys. I don’t always choose Wendy’s.”
Lauren pouted.
Keegan and Anna exchanged a glance. Anna
asked, “Name one time you didn’t pick Wendy’s?”
Lauren paused, and thought about it for a
moment. “Fine, you are right. I love Wendy’s. If I had to choose my
last supper it would be a Jr. Bacon Cheeseburger, fries, and a
frosty.”
Shaking her head, Keegan put her arms through
theirs and dragged them down the street. She was grateful for the
distraction, but in the back of her mind she was still thinking
about the dark elf and what seeing her could have meant.
Once they got to Wendy’s Keegan went with a
frosty and a baked potato.
“I still don’t get this whole vegetarian
thing you are going through,” Lauren told her, wrinkling her nose
at Keegan’s baked potato.
Keegan reached across and grabbed one of
Lauren’s fries and dipped it in her frosty. “I just suddenly got
creeped out by eating animals. I want to help animals, not eat
them.” Anna and Lauren both rolled their eyes. Keegan was always
going on crusade for something.
Keegan genuinely wanted to ask Anna about
what the psychic had said about her sadness, but figured if she
wanted to talk about it she would. Lauren, on the other hand, was
not quite as tactful. She blurted out, “Anna, you have to tell us
what is going on with you. Are you really sad?”
Anna tilted her face down so that her purple
bangs hung over her eyes. She didn’t say anything.
Seeing Anna’s hesitation, Keegan reached over
to touch Anna’s hand and said, “If you don’t want to talk about it,
we understand.”
Lauren butted in. “No, it’s not okay. She’s
our best friend. If we can help, we need to know.”
“I’ve wanted to talk to you guys,” Anna said
softly, looking down at her hands clasped in her lap. “I just
didn’t know how to bring it up. My parents are getting a
divorce.”
“What?” Lauren was genuinely shocked.
“They have been fighting for years,” Anna
told them, finally looking up at them. “I’m kinda relieved. I know
they’ll be happier apart. My dad has a drinking problem. He’s such
a jerk to everyone. I hate the way he talks to my mom. She’s even
on medication for depression.”
Lauren jumped up and ran around the table
pulling Anna out of her seat. She wrapped her arms around her, “It
will be okay. I just wish you told us sooner.”
Keegan got to her feet and joined in the
group hug. “Don’t keep secrets from us anymore, okay?”
Anna smiled. “I’ll try not to.”
As if I have room to talk
, Keegan thought as they
all returned to their seats.
Keegan moved her iPhone around the table as
she spoke. “I really had no clue. Your family always seems so happy
when they’re out in public.”
Anna met her eyes across the table. “I guess
you never really know what goes on behind closed doors.”
Ain’t that the truth—if only they knew they were sitting
across from a magical elf
.
“I’m worried about my sister,” Anna said. “I
don’t think she's going to handle it well at all. She’s quite a
daddy’s girl.”
A mischievous grin crossed Lauren’s face.
“Okay, enough negative thoughts for one day. We are going to
Patrick’s party tomorrow night, right?”
Anna smiled. “Yeah, why not? At least I’ll be
able to see Xavier.”
Keegan laughed. “Patrick is super cute.”
Lauren looked at Keegan in disbelief. “He’s
also obnoxious as hell. You have the strangest taste.”
“Blah, blah, blah who cares. I didn’t say I
wanted to marry the guy,” Keegan responded, waving off Lauren’s
comment.
“Good point. What are you guys wearing?” Anna
asked.
“We’ll figure out later what to wear,” Lauren
said. “What’s the theme this time?”
“Dress to the nines.” Anna sounded slightly
annoyed.
“Oh, that will be fun. We can all dress up. I
needed an excuse to buy a new dress.” Lauren glanced over at
Keegan. “You know what that means?”
“Shopping!” they replied in unison. Anna
looked at them as if they were crazy.
After they finished eating, they walked back
to Starbucks where Lauren had parked her car. Keegan unchained her
bike from the bike rack in front of the cafe and the three of them
managed to shove it in Lauren’s trunk, though the back tire jutted
out. They took Anna home first, and then Lauren dropped Keegan off
at her place, helping her unload her bicycle and roll it in the
garage.
She pushed the heavy door open and walked in
the house with her shoulders slumped, letting out a big sigh as she
found her mother in the kitchen.
Mom looked up from her cup of tea, her blue
eyes big under her cap of ginger-colored, pixie cut hair. She had a
hardback book laid flat on the table, one small hand holding it
open, the other holding her tea. She frowned and asked, “What’s
bothering you?”
Keegan pulled out the stool next to her mom
and sat down, letting her head rest in her hands. “My day was
weird. I wanted to talk to you about it.”
She filled her mother in on all the details
from what had happened at the fair to learning about Anna’s
parents’ divorce. She ended with a request to give Anna’s mother a
healing.
Her mother’s response took her by surprise.
“Keegan, how could you have gone to a place with psychics without
telling me?”
“Mom, it was just for fun. I didn’t think
anything of it. Anna was so excited.”
Her mother sighed, a worried look crossing
her face. “You have no idea the trouble this could bring us.”