Page 82 of Akarnae

“Whoa,” Alex said, impressed. “Tough break.”

William laughed and nodded in agreement. “It sure has its moments.”

Alex didn’t ask any more questions, not wanting to sound even more naïve. Instead, she ate her food and listened to the comfortable sounds of a loving family. She found herself fighting off a wave of nostalgia as memories flooded in from meals she’d shared with her parents over the years. Her mother and father might have been caught up in their passion for work a lot of the time, but they’d always tried to spend at least one meal each day with Alex. It didn’t even matter that many of their ‘family dinners’ had been shared around a campfire at one dig-site or another with any number of work colleagues, because they were still some of the best memories Alex had from her childhood. And now, being with the Ronnigans and experiencing their version of a family meal… well, it was extremely comforting. And Alex loved every minute of it.

After dinner, Gammy disappeared into her flat off the side of the house, William said he had some work to catch up on, and Dorothy took Evie upstairs to get her ready for bed. Jordan, Bear and Alex decided to settle in the lounge room, which had cushy couches and a large projector screen.

The three of them watched movies for the rest of the night using the Ronnigans’ high definition virtual reality projector. Just like in the Rec Room, Alex literally felt like she was a part of the show, and after the second movie she was so exhausted by the special effects that she had to excuse herself. She crawled her way upstairs and into Blake’s bed, sighing contentedly when she realised that it was even more comfortable than it looked.

Twenty-Six

Over the course of thenext week Alex spent most of her time with the Ronnigan family who embraced her as one of their own. She played games with little Evie, watched Gammy cook meal after meal, and even helped Dorothy work on a new evening dress design. Jordan and Bear spent most days with Alex too, but they also went off to do their own things. Where they went and what they did, she didn’t want to know.

When Kaldoras Eve finally rolled around, Alex realised that she still hadn’t bought any presents, and since Jordan and Bear were out exploring the forest, she took off into the village on her own.

It was easy enough to find something for Bear. Dubble Bubble was the perfect shop for him. The owner, Anton Grey, helped Alex pick out a vial of Liquid Light that, when unstoppered, would last for up to three hours. He even threw in a second vial for her to keep as a freebie after Alex knocked into one of his experiments and started a fire. She felt horrible, but he congratulated her on causing the chemical reaction he was after and invited her to stop by again anytime.

Jordan was trickier to find a gift for, but remembering his comment about the puzzle store Mind Over Matter, Alex purchased him a gift voucher so that he could pick something out for himself later.

She bought a packet of colourful sherbet fizzes from The Sweet Tooth for Evie, and then she tried to figure out what to get the rest of the Ronnigans. The entire family had been so nice to her and even though she’d yet to meet Johnny and Blake, she still wanted to get something for them—as well as Dorothy, William and Gammy.

Knowing that it would be too weird to buy something from Dorothy’s Designs to give Dorothy’s family, she bypassed that shop altogether. Which left only one store—Ye Olde Bookshoppe.

Alex crossed the street and stepped into the dark interior of the store, squealing when she accidentally walked through a thick spider’s web. She shuddered as she dropped her bags and brushed the stringy web off her clothes, shaking out her hair for good measure.

When she was positive that no spiders were clinging to her, Alex finally looked up and took in the room. The sunshine from outside didn’t help to illuminate the store since the windows were completely boarded up, so it took a few moments for her eyes to adjust to the darkness on the inside. When she could see properly, she gazed around in awe.

There were books, all right. Shelves and shelves full of them, sprawled about the room in complete disarray. There was also a glass cabinet of jewellery in one corner, directly opposite another cabinet that looked like it held antiquated weapons from before the dawn of time. All around the shop were cobwebs so strategically placed that it was almost as if they were set there for decorative purposes.

Before Alex could decide if she should enter further or back out completely, a voice directly beside her caused her to jump in surprise.

“You wish to speak to Lady Mystique?”

Alex stared at the hunched-over woman addressing her. She wasreallyold. Not like Gammy old; more like ‘I was alive with the dinosaurs’ old. The wisdom in her gaze was at once entrancing and terrifying.

“No, thank you,” Alex said hesitantly. “I’m just here to look around.”

“You wish to speak to Lady Mystique?” the woman asked again, stepping even closer to Alex, who backed away instinctively.

“Err—no. Thanks. Some other time, perhaps.”

“You wish to speak to Lady Mystique?” The old woman continued to step forward, and Alex continued to step away from her.

What was with this woman? Could she only ask the one question?

“I’m just browsing,” Alex said in a firm, loud voice, hoping that the raised volume might help.

“You wish to speak to Lady Mystique!”

Alex actually jumped again with the force of the old woman’s order. It didn’t sound like she was asking a question anymore, and Alex quickly glanced back at the doorway she’d come through, hoping to make a quick exit. But the woman had backed her into one of the bookshelves and was blocking her path. Talk about a pushy salesperson.

“Fine,” Alex relented. Other than shoving the woman out of the way, she didn’t have many other options. “I’ll speak with your lady if you promise to leave me alone after that.”

The old crone’s face transformed. She actually looked amused, if her crooked smile was any indication.

“You’re a stubborn one, Alexandra Jennings,” she said. “But Lady Mystique is pleased to make your acquaintance.”

“You’reLady Mystique?” Alex frowned at her. “Why all the fuss?”

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