Page 46 of Mystery of Magic

CHAPTER 20

Iclosed the book and put it under my arm. “Between this and the information Lia gave us, we should be able to find the entrance of the cave, but that doesn’t mean we will find the Dark Witch’s prison.”

Daryn glanced toward the door when we heard another vehicle pull up. “The former council never wanted that prison found. It may not be accessible no matter what we do, but I want to find out who is looking for her and why, either way.”

We exited the cabin and met Indy and Kaine. They were followed by Marlin and his team. The hunters gathered outside the small cabin, waiting for Daryn to give them an update. Once everyone was standing in the dirt lot, he motioned to the book in my hands.

“We think someone is looking for the Dark Witch. We have a rough idea of where the entrance to her prison is, but there are no guarantees we can get to it. Someone is looking for her and that person has ties to the council or someone with pull in the supernatural community. Marlin, your team will comb this cabin for any other clues and return the hybrid body to the base when you are done. Kaine and Indy are with us.”

The hunters nodded and Marlin led his team inside while Kaine and Indy got into the back seat of our vehicle.

They waited for Daryn to pull out of the parking area before Indy spoke. “Do you have any idea who is behind this?”

Daryn shook his head, but kept his eyes on the road. “I assumed it was Cage, but the magic used is not his.”

Kaine grunted. “Cage is in it for the money. Anyone without scruples would simply offer him money and a way to get back at you, and he would do just about anything for them.”

Daryn nodded. “I suppose that is true.”

I ran my hand over the book. “That doesn’t explain how the perpetrator knew about the artifact and how to use it. I have never even heard of the Legacy Idol.”

Indy leaned forward. “I thought the Legacy Idol extended a person’s life. Provided the recipient had sufficient donors.”

Daryn turned onto the road when he exited the private driveway to the cabin. “That is what it was created for, but it is a transfer of essence. Someone is using it for nefarious purposes. I just can’t figure out why or how. Only masters were able to activate that artifact and only if they had certain magic.”

Indy texted into her phone. “I will have Lochlan pull everything he has on that artifact. Its use was banned hundreds of years ago, so nobody has working knowledge of its power.”

“Are we headed back to the park parking lot?” I asked.

Kaine, who was staring at his phone, looked up. “No. I have been studying the picture of the trail map from the video as well as Lia’s. There is a trail close to the road that will take us to the general area we want. Pull over to the side of the road in ten minutes and we will bushwhack to get to the path. It will save us a half hour of walking.”

Daryn drove until Kaine indicated for him to pull over. As our car veered to the side of the road, we exchanged determinedlooks, knowing that it was time to venture into the dense foliage that would take us to the mountain.

The air was thick with anticipation as we stepped out of the vehicle. With every step into the underbrush, the trees seemed to conspire to slap our faces, a reminder of the wild, untamed nature that surrounded us. Or a warning that we should turn around.

The sunlight filtered through the towering trees, casting dappled shadows on the forest floor. It was as if the woods themselves were shrouded in secrets, whispering tales of mystery and adventure. The foliage seemed unyielding, but so were we, and we pushed forward, forging our own path through the tangled undergrowth.

As we continued, the foliage began to thin, revealing the trail that would lead us to the mountain.

Daryn pointed to the right. “It’s that way, but we don’t have an exact location.”

Kaine continued to glance at his phone and swipe between screens as we pressed on. The twigs cracked under our boots as we neared the mountain, and it was obvious this was not a trail many people used. It was thinner than the others and fairly grown over.

Kaine put his hand up. “Wait.”

We all stopped and glanced around as Kaine crouched down and put his fingertips on a small broken sapling. “This is fresh. Someone went by this way recently.”

Daryn stared at the dense underbrush. “Follow those signs. Kaine, you are up front.”

Kaine took point with Daryn and me between him and Indy as we followed the signs of disturbed dirt and broken shrubs.

It was a half hour before we emerged from the brush again and stood in front of a strange rock formation.

Kaine ran his hand over a smooth part of the stone. “This is the symbol from the map. There must be a way to get past this.”

I blinked several times. “Jesus. I would never have realized this was the rock. It looks different in real life.”

Kaine nodded. “The artist was not overly skilled, so the symbols are quite rudimentary.”

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