Love lines (34 page)

As I expected, Lucas wasn’t a stupid guy, he quickly
realized what was going on and without any further explanation from us he vowed
that he would keep his mouth shut. 

Only one player of our team was still on the bench -
Anna. She still was under the supervision of Mrs. Weber, who continued to give
her all sorts of concoctions. Anna said the taste of them was just unbearable.
She regained consciousness a few hours after Evan had saved her from Eric.
Despite the weakness and persistent dizziness, she managed to joke all the time
and participate in our tumultuous discussions of daily events. Every night we
all came to see her. Mrs. Weber, of course, wasn’t happy to see so many people
near her patient, but upon seeing how much happiness our presence gave her, she
silently left us and retreated to give up some privacy.

Once again I smiled to my sleeping angel, kissed her
forehead and left.

It was only two more weeks before Eileen’s birthday. For
myself, I decided that, despite all the fears that paralyzed us all because of
this upcoming event, I will try to make it a real celebration. Our friends
supported me. Darcy and Amanda took the lead in organizing a party. We decided
it would be better to arrange it outdoors, in one of the gardens of Embry. My
sister was a master in the decorations, so I didn’t doubt that Eileen would
like her work. Evan was busy preparing real fireworks, with the help of his
magic. My goal was to purchase gifts on behalf of all guests. Since the
preliminary list of presents had already been made up, I had only to order
everything needed and arrange the delivery. About my own gift, I really wasn’t
sure yet. I had a few ideas, but still couldn’t decide what to choose.

“Good morning, son!” said my father when I got in the
car.

“Hi, Dad. Why are we not flying in one of Dever’s
planes?” I wondered fastening the seat belt.

“A thunderstorm was announced today, so all of our
planes are grounded,” he replied.

“That’s why you’d better make yourself comfortable,
Christian. This is going to be a long ride,” said Evan from the back seat.

“And why mom is not coming with us?” I asked.

“She’s already there. Together with Frederic. Amelia
still fears for his health, so said she would accompany him on his way from
Norfield.”

“That's our mom!” I smiled. “Do you think Nora will be
sentenced to life imprisonment?”

“Personally, I very much hope that, but...”

“
But
?” I raised my eyebrows questioningly.

“There is a chance that she would be declared insane.
And that could significantly mitigate the punishment.”

“I doubt that this is possible, Patrick,” Evan said.
“Most likely they will regard her actions as just an abuse of her power. Taking
into consideration Camilla’s murder and an attempt to kill Frederic, I don’t
think the Council will lighten the punishment.”

“Anyway, we will have to wait for the hearings to dispel
all doubts.”

“What I don’t understand is why they are having a single
hearing only,” I said.

“They have decided that to divide it in different hearings
is meaningless,” Dad said. “So here's the deal, Alexis’s hearing will be
separate and you, Christian, will be called as a witness . They need a
sufficient amount of evidence from you so that it will close any questions of
testimony pertaining to Dever.”

“Will they question me today as well?”

“Maybe. But since you were not directly involved in her
capture, more attention will be given to those directly involved in that
operation. You may be questioned about how you know Nora. Frederic said that we
shouldn’t mention Eileen in this case and it’s better to tell them that Amanda
told you about her visit to Nora. Some of Vero will be there to prevent anyone
from lying. So by saying that Amanda told you isn’t lying, but you won’t then
involve Eileen either. Anyway, before answering any question, think precisely
about how you respond. We don’t want to cause unnecessary suspicion. Better to
let everyone think that Nora’s abilities became known by accident. There may be
those who are her supporters, so we shouldn’t draw much attention. Do you understand?”

“Of course. We're trying to hide Eileen’s powers and her
involvement in this case as much as possible. I think that there are still
people, watching us in Dever. Especially now, that we know about Eric, I doubt
that he just abandoned his previous plans. We must be very careful.”

“That's right,” agreed Evan. “But will you stop
discussing the obvious and give me an opportunity to finally get some sleep? It
seems like every night is complete misery for me. I can’t sleep, since I am
constantly tormented and obsessed that something might happen, and I would miss
out on all the fun,” smiling, he added.

Despite the fact that the words were spoken with Evan's
usual ease, I knew that he was dead serious. Such thoughts disturbed all of us.
I often wake up in the middle of the night and go to check on Eileen. She gave
me her key so that I could enter the room at any time of day or night. My
sister didn’t like that, but I promised not to do it unless it was necessary.

The remaining few hours we passed in silence. We stopped
several times to take turns driving and to give everyone a chance to get some
sleep. A long hard day was ahead of us and we didn’t know what time we would be
getting back. We knew that some rest would give us extra strength that we would
all need.

The building of the Council was in the heart of London,
not far from Hyde Park. We left the car in the parking lot and went inside,
where my mom and Frederic were already waiting.

“It’s good to see you, my dear,” she said, giving me a
hug. “Is everything all right with Eileen?”

“Yes. She’s okay.”

“So she doesn’t know where you are?”

“I left her a note saying that Evan and I went into
town, so I hope that explanation will be enough to appease her. Well, at least
for now.”

“Relax, Christian,” my mom said taking my hand. “She
knows how worried you are about her, so even if she knew where you were, I’m
sure, she would understand.”

“God forbid,” I replied hopefully. “Frederic! I am so
glad to see you recovered so quickly.”

“All thanks to Amelia,” he said. “I have never needed
anybody's help before and, quite frankly, never thought I
would
, so I
was surprised when it actually happened,” he added, smiling at us.

“What did you tell Rebecca?” Evan asked.

“That we were going to court,” said Frederic. “Of course,
she didn’t betray her emotions, but something tells me that this isn’t
something she considered as unimportant.”

“The hearing is about to begin,” my father said. “It's
time to take our seats.”

Council Chamber as a whole didn’t differ from those that
could be seen in detective dramas or TV shows, where the main events took place
in the court. The only difference was the rich decoration of the room itself.
Council members and other participant’s of the hearing seats were made of
mahogany. The floor was made of dark marble, in it was a reflection of the
majestic round crystal chandelier shining.

We took our seats in the second row, next to the other
witnesses. I was surprised that there were more than twenty of them. The
Council’s secretary announced the beginning of the hearing.  What  surprised  me
 even  more  was  the  absence of  the accused.

“Where's Nora?” I asked Evan.

“She couldn’t attend the hearing. The concern for her
protection was considered, so now only the question of her punishment’s severity
will be addressed. Vero received a full confession from her, so her presence
here is not necessary. Besides, she’s still under the restraining effect of
drugs, so her sanity at the moment is questionable.”

The questioning of witnesses started. One by one the
chairman of the Council asked about the events of that day and what happened in
Norfield. He didn’t ask anyone about how it became known of Nora’s abuse of her
powers. It was a given that these things would be noticed by the Keepers of the
region.

When Frederic was giving his answers, he didn’t hide the
fact that the whole thing started because of him. At least, what he said was
partly true. His powers and abilities were well known to everyone. He withheld
the fact that he had an illegitimate daughter.

Responding to questions from Council members, my father
had to say that Amanda had told him about Nora, and that he, in turn, informed
the Keepers as to her location.

There was nothing left for me but to confirm and
collaborate what everyone else had testified to. Thank God, they didn’t ask me
anything else. When all the witnesses were questioned, the secretary asked all
those present to leave the room and wait outside for the Council's decision.
Everyone went out to the hallway, then it became clear that this small space
wasn’t designed to accommodate so many people.

“Shall we go out?” I suggested.

“I’m all for that,” said Evan. “There really is no point
staying here in this cramped space. We will pass out waiting for the
announcement of their decision.”

 I didn’t see my father, mom or Frederic. We had lost
sight of each other when the crowd was leaving the courtroom. Getting to the
exit wasn’t so easy. There were many people wanting to get a breath of fresh
air. As I got to the door, someone called me.

“Christian? You are Christian Fairey?” asked a man in a
dark suit.

“Yes, I am,” I said turning around.

“I have a message for you,” the man said, handing me a
small piece of paper, folded several times.

“A message?” I wondered. “From whom?”

“Soon you will understand everything,” replied the man,
and without saying another word he went in the opposite direction.

“Who was that?” Evan asked when we finally went out.

“I have no idea. He gave me this paper,” I said
unfolding the note.

“Dear, Christian! I didn’t have an opportunity or
time to tell you this personally, but Eileen is in extreme danger. If the
rumors are true, and my brother actually managed to escape, he won’t stop there.
You should know this and explain it to the others that it’s important to stop him.
I’m telling you only because I know that my involvement in this is over, and
that nothing good will come of this. So you must find him. He got enough
strength in Dever to hide out and stay hidden for quite a while. But he won’t
hide forever. In exactly eighteen days after Eileen’s birthday, she will get Frederic’s
full powers. At least, that is what Eric thinks. You shouldn’t allow her to use
them in considerable amounts. Eric wants to force her to do it voluntarily so
he can make her give them up. I hope you have heard or read about the Cup of
power. So yes, it does really exist. Eric has it now. The Cup’s power is one
that abandons one’s strength so when sipping from the Cup, the person, thereby,
transfers his powers to its owner. The Cup for years belonged to Jillian
Wizardy and now it’s owner is Eric. Using its properties, he wants to get
Eileen’s powers. By agreeing to give them up, she would also agree to give him
the power of her own life. That's why you must find him and destroy the Cup
before something terrible happens. Magic always leaves traces. Track the events
of recent developments in the world and find Eric. If you find him, you will
find the Cup. I sincerely wish you good luck. Please try to succeed where I
failed. Alexis.”

“This is some interesting news,” said behind my back
Evan, who was reading the note over my shoulder.

“I’m speechless,” I said stunned.

“So, the Cup does exist,” he concluded.

“Do you know anything about it?”

“Yeah, they told us about it in our courses of Wizardy,
but I always thought it was just a legend and that it really didn’t exist.”

“How can we find it?”

“Well, the note says that we need to find Eric first. We
- Wizardy are really able to see traces of magic, and the traces of dark magic
can’t be hidden. That is where we should start. We must look through recent
news, and I think we should pay more attention to the bad news as I’m pretty
sure that Eric couldn’t be doing anything good.”

“I hope it is only on a single continent,” I said
thoughtfully.

“I don’t think his traces will go beyond the UK. Although
Eric has recharged his batteries, but he can’t be strong enough to leave the
country, and he also knows some places to stay hidden at. I don’t think he
would venture too far away from Dever. If he realizes that the protective
spells and the elements have been changed, he will likely be waiting for the
moment Eileen leaves Dever so that he can take her.”

“I doubt that she will be leaving the campus anytime
soon.”

“But this applies to town as well. You can’t let her go
there.”

“We should tell her everything. And the sooner Frederic
does it, the better. Besides, if she knows everything, we won’t have to lie to
her any more, and she will be able to help us.”

“You're right. So we must first talk to Frederic. Hey,
look, everybody is going back. Looks like the Council has already made the
decision,” said Evan.