Into the Dark

Chapter 35

After the wall was fixed and we all settled down to a peaceful breakfast, questions that needed mentioning were finally brought up.

"Alright, so my understanding is that you four are looking for some kind of castle that could possibly be housing Galendale, right?" Vivian asked. "As in, the all powerful, M.I.A. wizard known for his unsettling spells?"

"Oh, so you know him," Odis joked without a smile.

"Yeah, I told you, Vivian. His coin is why Bella is here. We've been traveling for awhile and been through hell just to get her back home," Maeve butted in.

"Are you sure he can reverse a time travel spell? I've heard enchanted items like that are only a one time deal," her aunt answered. "Plus, rumor is that Galendale's screwup was sincere. He had no clue how he did it."

"It's worth trying. We don't know what else to do," I mentioned quietly. The way Vivian talked really lowered my spirits. She wasn't the only one who had serious doubts about the plan.

"I've heard of the castle, but it's one of those places that really gives you the creeps, ya know? Rumor has it that it was built on top of a graveyard, so many spirits decided to house themselves inside of it. It's kind of like a 'sacred ground' or something like that," she said, taking a sip from the glass of wine she had on the table. The red lipstick she wore left an obvious stain on the side.

"Do you know where it is?" Odis asked.

"Uh, no," the witch answered with a huff. "I'm a ghost whisperer but I've never gone looking for the damn castle. I don't have a death wish nor the guts to go somewhere that creepy."

"Well, who would know where it is?" Kade asked, seeming as aggravated as the rest of us.

Vivian looked around at our gang with a strange look. She bit her lip and appeared to trail off into thought, tapping her black nails on the table in an odd rhythm. I could tell she was debating whether or not she should say her answer; I was already sitting on the edge of my uncomfortable chair to hear it.

Finally, she inhaled a deep breath and leaned forward. "The ghosts."

"Uh uh," Maeve said while shaking her head. "We're not confronting them. What you do is already bad enough, but we're not asking them for directions. They always want something in return and it's always something incredibly impossible. If we don't give them what they want in return, bad shit happens." She shifted her jaw with anger, the boys doing the same as they crossed their arms. Maeve even tapped a demanding crimson nail on the table and leaned across as if to make her point clearer.

"First of all, what I do is nothing bad. I help people connect with their dead loved ones. Second of all, 'bad shit' doesn't always happen. It only occurs if you pick the wrong ghost. I have experience with the good ones and the bad ones... you don't," her aunt barked in return. Their faces came closer together, and I wasn't ready for a family fight to break out so soon. I gently pushed Maeve back and tried to meet Vivian's dull eyes.

"I'm in, but only if you're sure that this will work. I don't want... 'bad shit' to happen," I said carefully.

"Of course I'm sure. You're talking to a professional, Bella," she responded confidently. I smiled as she winked at me and pushed away from the table. "Well, we've no time to waste, children! Let's get a move on it. Follow me, if you will."