Gold Dust | Barns Courtney

Chapter Nine | The Crown

All of us stayed at the safe house for about three days before suspicious stuff started happening. Kaven and Barkley had spotted people lurking in the woods nearby. Barns organized hourly patrols of the grounds because of the sightings. Barnaby, Theresa, and I had been gathering as many witch craft books as possible. Even ones that weren't in the dark magic category. We were desperate to find anything.

The three of us were reading when Barkley ran into the room. He was out of breath and he looked worried. "We need help. Barns has lost his mind." He managed to gasp out. The four of us ran downstairs and outside. To my surprise and horror, Barns was holding a pistol to Kaven's head. "Barns! What the hell are you doing!?" Theresa yelled at him. He quickly looked up and I fear filled me when I saw his eyes. They weren't their usual pretty blue, they were amber colored. Almost like they were the color of flickering flames.

"He's a traitor! He's working for the enemy!" He replied in a creepily monotone voice. It was obvious that he wasn't himself. "Look at his eyes." Barnaby whispered to us. "He's fucking mental!!" Kaven said, which was a mistake. Barns violently pressed the barrel of the gun to his head. "What do we do?" I asked no one in particular. A few moments passed of Barns yelling vial things at Kaven. A dull thud caught my attention before Barns fell to the ground. Barnaby was standing there with a two by four plank of wood.

I guess while we were distracted he snuck around behind Barns. There was a pile of scrap wood nearby where he must have gotten the two by for from. The rest of us rushed over to examine Barns. "He's still alive, just knocked out." Barkley said after checking to see if Barns had a pulse. "Help me get him inside." He said to Alex and Robert who had just came out of the house. I quietly pocketed the pistol and walked over to check on Barnaby.

"Are you okay?" I asked him curiously. He was still holding the plank of wood with a death grip. "I had to... he was going to kill him." He said nervously. "It's okay, we know you had to knock him out," I said as I slowly took the plank out of his hands. "Thanks for that by the way. If you hadn't done that he probably would have killed Kaven." I said softly. Hoping I was helping him come down off his adrenaline rush. I suggested that we go inside and check on Barns.

We walked side my side as we entered the house. Several pots of tea were made to calm everyone's nerves. Barkley and the others had laid Barns down on one of the couches. It took a while for us to get called down enough to go back to reading. Robert brought meals up to us, which was kind. None of us wanted to stop our research. Theresa called it a night around one thirty. But Barnaby and I stayed up reading.

He and I took a break and walked to the kitchen to make some coffee. Barns was still laying on the couch. Alex was now watching him; I guess Barkley and the others had went to sleep. Barnaby and I walked back to the library like room where we stretched and drank our coffee. As I was walking around I glanced out of one of the windows. A rumble of thunder was followed by a downpour of rain. Lightning lit up the night, and I suddenly got an idea.

"Do you trust me?" I asked him, breaking the comfortable silence as I turned to look at him. "Yes." He hesitated, but eventually said. "Good. I hope this works." I said as I walked over to my backpack. I unlocked the lock that was on the zippers before opening it. I reached inside and retrieved the burlap bag that was inside. "What's that?" He asked curiously as he moved closer. "You'll see." I replied with a small smile. I opened the burlap bag and pulled the crown out, which made him gasp in surprise.

"How did you get that" he asked curiously with wide eyes. "It's kind of a long complicated story." I replied with a small laugh. The rose gold crown glistened in the dim lighting. The topaz and rubies glittered beautifully. It was quite mesmerizing. Barnaby stared as I lifted the crown and gently placed it on his head. It looked even more beautiful resting amongst his dark hair. It fit him as if it were made for him. I smiled softly as I admired the king of Babylon.

Suddenly the ground shook and an ear piercing whistle rang out. I closed my eyes tight and covered my ears with my hands. Panic rose in my and I wondered if I had done the wrong thing. The next thing I know, I'm being violently shaken. When I opened my eyes again I was in a completely different place. I wasn't in the library with Barnaby anymore. When I gathered my bearings I realized gay I was on a train. 'Where the hell am I?' I wondered in my head.

"Ma'am, you fell asleep during the journey. We're at your stop." I looked to the owner of the voice and saw an elderly train conductor. "Oh." I replied as I rubbed my eyes and slowly got up from my seat. He assisted me in gathering my belongings and I thanked him. When I reached the platform I watched as the train left. "It was all a dream." I whispered to myself. "It was all a dream." I said again and laughed softly to myself. Relief washed over me, and I couldn't help but feel a little silly.

"Rose? Rose Blackthorn?" I heard my name being said. Oddly enough it was a voice that I recognized. But I couldn't quite figure out who it was. When I turned around I felt like I saw a ghost. It was Barnaby and he was holding a sign with my name on it. Like people usually do at airports and stuff. "It's me, Barns. Your pen pal. Sorry for not telling you I was coming to pick you up." He said with an apologetic look on his face. "It's okay." I replied, trying to not seem crazy.

I didn't wanna tell him the insane dream I had on the train here. "It's nice to finally meet you." We told each other before hugging. His hug felt warm and inviting. He helped me with my bags and when I got into the car I was surprised once more. Theresa was sitting in the driver's seat. Barns introduced us, and I acted like I didn't know who she was. I found it odd that my dream was kind of parallel to real life. But I just brushed it off to coincidence. "Welcome to Babylon." Barns said with a small smile as he joined me in the back of the car.

The End

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