Into the Wildewood (17 page)

“You don’t
get
a rock. The rock chooses you. You’ll know when you feel a vibration from it. It’s like a hum. A disturbing vibration at first, and then it settles into a soothing hum. It also filters out dark magic.”

A few months ago, she would have laughed at his words. Now she nodded. She could use a rock that powerful.

Sir Davey furrowed his eyebrows. “I want you to have your special rock, too, because lass, with what’s going on at the Faire, you need it.”

Cold swept through her body. “What’s going on? This seems worse than the Red Cap.”

“Different.” Davey pressed his lips together and motioned ahead. Conversation over.

They wound through a twisting, narrow road that cut through dense forest. Keelie whispered comfort to the trees as they passed, until the forest thinned and the cries of the wood folk drew faint. A few houses were set way back from the road, and then they passed a gas station straight out of an old movie, with uncovered pumps weathered to pink and gray and a man by the front door, chair tilted back against the wall. The town of Canooga Falls was smaller than your average L.A. neighborhood.

“Here we are,” Sir Davey said, pulling over and putting the truck in “park.”

Keelie looked around in astonishment. “Here? There’s nothing here. You’re kidding, right?” They were parked two buildings away from the moldering gas station, in front of a beauty shop that promised anything but. “Sally’s Clip and Curl. Holy cow.”

“The train station is around the corner. I’m heading to the rock shop. As soon as the train pulls in, you girls come find me, and I’ll treat you to lunch.” His eyes glinted excitedly, as if the prospect of bins of dusty rocks was the best treat ever. “You might find your special rock there. If not, there’s more shopping in this charming town.”

“Really? Like an awesome thrift shop? Or a used appliance store?” There was no point trying to make this dead place into some sort of shopping haven. Besides, she didn’t have any money, and any money she would earn from her jobs was going for those boots. And a Steak-on-a-Stake costume.

Sir Davey rolled his eyes.

Keelie wished that they could at least window shop. It was something that she and Laurie had enjoyed together, and shopping with her old friend would have been a good transition to the Faire world—because Laurie was going to have an Alice-in-Wonderland experience when they returned to Wildewood.

The train station was a one-story platform with an ornate but rusty ticket booth facing the street. The train chugged and smoked on the tracks while a few people milled on the wide flagged platform. Keelie couldn’t see her friend, but she knew she must be here. The stack of Louis Vuitton luggage gave her away.

Keelie’s stomach became a mushy lump as she realized she’d have to keep Knot away from Laurie’s luggage. If he didn’t like her, he’d use them as the world’s most expensive litter boxes.

Then she heard Laurie’s familiar voice. “This town is so
quaint
.”

And there she was. Long, sun-streaked blonde hair, big blue eyes, and wearing an adorable gauzy top, low-slung jeans, and striped wedge sandals. A warm wave of sisterhood, of friendship, flowed through Keelie. Laurie was from her old world, the world she shared with Mom, and now that Laurie was here, memories hit Keelie like an asteroid.

Laurie turned and saw her. Her eyes widened and she shrieked. Keelie screamed, too, and ran toward her, arms opened wide. People stared as the two hugged and jumped up and down.

“Keelie, you look fabulous.”

She wasn’t quite expecting to hear that from Laurie. Her hair had gone curly and grown out, and her new clothes had suffered from the Faire’s substandard laundry facilities.

Laurie stared at her face. “My God. Have you like been going to a spa? Whatever treatment you’re doing, you’ve got to share the secret with me. You’ve got, like, this glow that is so
au naturel
. I would pay to glow like you.”

“I … ” Keelie started to tell her that she hadn’t done anything different, but Laurie cut her off.

“This is the coolest town, ever. I mean, L.A. is so full of concrete and unnatural. I mean, you can juice all you want and take colonics, but I swear just stepping off this train, I’m, like, breathing pure air. They should bottle the air, like they bottle water, and sell it in L.A.”

Had she always been such a chatterbox? “Laurie … ”

“Oh, and do you want to know what else? I’m dying to hit the little stores in this town. I bet it’s full of darling shops. Is there a Starbucks here?”

“I don’t know. This is my first time here.” Keelie wasn’t ready to admit that the place was a dud. On the other hand, Laurie’d see it for herself soon enough. “Dad and I went straight to the Faire when we drove through here.” Coffee would be good, though. Keelie’s blood sang at the thought of caffeine pumping through it. She was going to need it if she was going to keep up with her friend. “Let’s look for one.” And hope there aren’t, like, geriatric hikers and scout troops hanging out in it.

“Hello? What about my luggage?” Laurie rolled her eyes toward the huge stack of designer bags. “Where’s your car?”

“It’s a few blocks away.” Keelie’s heart sank as she thought of how Laurie’s expensive things would look in the back of the old Jeep.

“What are you driving? Daddy bought me a Prius, not the snazziest, but it’s so eco-friendly, you know? And all the kids are driving them. Mine was silver, but I had it redone in light blue, because it goes with my eyes. Where are you going?”

Keelie flagged down a railway employee. “Excuse me, can we stash this luggage here until later?”

The man tugged at his chin as he looked at the pile. “There are lockers inside the ticket office, but none of them are big enough to put all of this in.”

“I’ll stay with the gear. Just get the car and come back here, Keelie. Geez. You’re going all New York all of a sudden.”

The man gave Laurie a sour look and walked away.

“Great idea, Laurie, but I don’t have a driver’s license.”

Her friend’s eyes widened. “What? Did you flunk the test? It’s, like, the easiest test in the world.”

“I haven’t even learned how to drive yet. My dad hasn’t had time to teach me,” Keelie said through clenched teeth.
And just shut up about it.

“Oh.” Laurie looked embarrassed. “I’m sorry.” She gazed helplessly at her suitcases. “I brought a lot of stuff, huh?”

“A lot,” Keelie agreed.

“Well, how did you get here? You’re acting like you took a bus!” Laurie said “bus” the way most people said “sewage.”

“No, a friend of my dad’s drove me here. Sir Davey. He’s at one of the stores.”

Laurie perked up. “Sir? He’s British? That is so cool! I’ve never met a real knight.”

“And you won’t meet one now.” Keelie laughed. “I think he’s just called Sir Davey because of the Renaissance Faire. It’s like a character he plays. His real name is Jadwyn Morgan, but nobody calls him that.”

Well, her grandmother did. That was nobody, right?

Laurie’s delighted expression didn’t change. Obviously, to her, a Ren Faire knight was as good as the real thing. She tossed her blonde hair over her shoulder and flounced after the railway employee, who was at the other end of the platform.

For a second, she’d looked just like Elia. A human, friendly version of Elia. Keelie grinned. Wait until the two of them met. Laurie could be just as mean, but for a good cause. Life was about to be much more interesting.

Laurie tipped the ticket seller to store her baggage in his office, and the two girls browsed their way to the end of the street, giggling at the hopeless, dusty-windowed shops until they came to one that looked like a piece of a castle that suddenly landed in upstate New York.

The shop’s front was covered in stone, and above the wide doorway swung a wooden sign that read “The Canooga Crystal Shoppe.” A little stone gargoyle leered down at them from the top of the sign. Keelie rolled her eyes. She thought the pseudo-medieval décor was limited to the Renaissance Faire, but apparently it had spread to the town, just like a virus.

Laurie stared at the building’s façade. “Totally cheesy.”

“Yeah. Let’s go inside.” Keelie reached for the painted metal door. A strong buzz traveled from her fingertips up her arm. She pulled back and stared at the door.

Laurie pushed through the doorway, unaffected. Keelie followed, after hesitantly touching one of the rocks that protruded from the wall. It was real. The buzzing hum tickled her fingers through the stone, but it didn’t talk to her the way wood did. She shrugged. Maybe it was just bad wiring, because if rocks started talking to her, there wouldn’t be any place safe for her on this planet.

The Canooga Crystal Shoppe’s interior had purple walls decorated with hand-painted murals of mermaids, unicorns, dragons, and other fantastical creatures, which gave the place an ethereal, fairy-tale feel. The humming grew louder and more focused.

Wooden shelves lined the store, some holding baskets full of small rocks, others holding stones as big as her head. Geodes filled one shelf, split open and gleaming. The quiet was soothing, and Keelie realized that it was because, in here, the trees were a faraway whisper.

Even Laurie seemed to sense the heavy pull of Earth magic. She’d stopped talking and was walking silently through the shop, taking everything in.

The buzzing shot through Keelie again. It wasn’t like insects. It was as if her blood had suddenly become sand-papery, and she was filled with the raspy throb as it moved through her veins. She followed the sound.

“Do you feel that?” she asked Laurie. “That buzzing?”

“What buzzer?” Laurie was examining a display of crystal sculptures.

“I don’t think it’s a buzzer, but it sure is annoying.” Keelie walked over to Laurie. The humming lessened. She looked at the ceiling, but didn’t see anything that would generate the sound.

“I don’t hear anything.” Laurie walked toward the rock displays, and Keelie trailed after her. The sound became louder. This was like playing a game of Marco Polo.

Laurie picked up a spray of amethyst crystals. “This place is cool. It’s a lot like this store where I hang out, the Dolphin Cottage? It’s a beach cottage that was turned into a feng shui shop. Mom loves to buy love stuff there.” Laurie threw an arm over Keelie’s shoulder, laughing. “Last thing she bought there was a book of love spells. I think she might have the hots for the cabana boy at the club, not that she thinks it’s true love. Permanent relationships should be based on cold green cash, not warm feelings, at least according to her.”

“So, what does she need love spells for?” Keelie wondered if Laurie’s mom had always been like this. She hadn’t really seen it. Had her own mom seen it? But after hearing about the Wizards and Witches Association and witnessing Dad work his “charm” on the EPA agent, a love-spell book seemed like a harmless toy.

“She thinks she’s losing her looks, and love spells are cheaper than plastic surgery.” Laurie’s voice was matter-of-fact.

The humming had turned into a ringing that echoed in Keelie’s head. She covered her ears, shrugged out of Laurie’s arm, and looked around wildly for the cause. Laurie was sorting through a basket of rocks as if nothing was wrong.

Keelie stopped in front of a counter filled with glass-like rocks. She reached a hand toward it and the ringing escalated into a shrill whine, like the fire alarm at school. One of these rocks was the cause of the noise, and she was ready to heave it through a window. She backed away, then turned around and walked quickly to the back of the store, anxious to put distance between her and the noise. With every step the sound lessened, and the tension between her shoulder blades eased.

Back here, the décor was totally different. Cool, almost heavy, air filled the dark room. Keelie turned around to make sure she hadn’t stumbled into another store. The wide airy room behind her glowed with blues and greens like the inside of an aquarium.

The buzzing called to her from the counter where Laurie still stood, staring at her. Keelie walked back slowly. Laurie didn’t sense it, so it must be something magical.

It seemed to be coming from a glossy black stone, the size of a walnut and shaped a little like a jagged snail. This rock must be special; it was on top of a square of thick red felt in the center of the glass counter. Now that she was closer, Keelie’s hands grew cold. The buzzing sounded like a warning. Maybe it was dangerous.

“Oh, you are so totally cute!” Laurie’s declaration was followed by her laugh, and then Keelie heard Sir Davey and the man behind the counter laughing, too. She shook her head. Laurie and Sir Davey sounded like old friends.

She looked down at the sharp-edged rock, her fingertips inches away, and slowly withdrew her hand. Maybe she was learning something after all. She was not going to touch the thing until Sir Davey told her it was okay.

Sir Davey strolled over to her, stroking his beard. “Seems like you’ve found your rock, Keelie.”

“Can you hear it, too? What is it?”

“Tektite. How interesting that it called you.” He stared at the rock.

“What’s a tektite?” Laurie touched the rock with a fingertip. The store didn’t blow up.