“What are these books?” For them to be this old, they must be important. I grab one of them and hold it in my hand. There isn’t a title page, but when I flip it open, there is spell after spell for water. “Holy crap. This is a book full of water spells.”
Charlie walks over beside me and grabs one himself. “So is this one. This one seems to focus on crop growth.”
Huh, that’s interesting. “This one concerns health ailments.”
He puts his book down and grabs another one. “Hey, check this one out.” He holds it out so I can look at it.
“Wait…” Would she really leave us in here with this? “That’s the Water Artifact we’re looking for.”
“I thought it looked strange.” He stares at it and squints his eyes. “It’s just three small round circles of water that float in the air. That’s odd.”
Yeah, tell me about it.
“Let me see.” Dax walks over to us and looks over my shoulder. “That’s what we’re looking for?”
It is rather anticlimactic when you see it, but it’s more powerful than it looks. “It’s water. Everyone always underestimates it.”
“That I’m not arguing with.” Dax takes the book from Charlie’s hand and stares at it. “But at least, we all three now know what it looks like. That should help in the search.” He puts the book back and places the other two around it like we never touched this section. “But we need her to think we didn’t touch these. We need her to think we are considering abandoning our search.”
There’s truth to that logic as well. That’s one reason why I like him around. He helps put things in perspective. “So, she said to make ourselves at home; and if we’re going to be here for a little while, I guess we should explore more than just this room.”
“Then, let’s get to it.” Charlie winks at me and grabs my hand, pulling me toward an opening in the back.
Another short set of stairs takes us to a landing. There’s a small kitchen-like area to the left. There is no sink but a large glass container of water. There’s a pantry full of green vegetables and fruit and a small square table in the center of the room.
“Well, at least there are four chairs.” If we decide to stay, there is a spot for each of us and Ria.
“Yeah, but are there four beds?” Dax raises an eyebrow.
“All we need is three, so let’s hope for that.” Charlie heads out to the landing again and into the next room.
Oh, dear God. Why is he pushing this right now in front of Dax? I need to smooth it over; at least somewhat. “He’s right, Dax. We only need three, especially with how my powers are being. It wouldn’t hurt to have him close by.”
Dax Dax opens his mouth to speak and closes it again. Instead, he simply shakes his head. “Let’s go look and see what we have to work with.”
Thankful that he dropped the conversation, I hurry out. I join Charlie and glance into the room. It’s not a huge room, and there are cushions on the floor like the ones in the living area but longer. They are assorted colors with a thick blanket laying on top of each. That’s the only thing in the room except for a small closet in the corner. “They live simply, don’t they?”
“Apparently so.” Charlie grabs my hand and pulls me out.
We look at the next three rooms, one of which is a large bathroom that looks just like the ones back home. The other two rooms are identical to the first bedroom except that the second and third bedrooms share a bathroom.
“Wow, I expected a little more for some reason.” It’s very simple, and there aren’t any televisions or radios.
We walk back down into the living room when the front door opens again.
Ria enters, and her lavender eyes scan us over. “So… you three seem like you’ve been busy.”
Is she trying to make us nervous? I’m not falling for it. “Well, you did say to make ourselves at home, right? We just scoped out the house.”
She stops in her tracks and blinks. “Oh, you did?”
Hmmm… She seems shocked. Why wouldn’t she expect us to take her up on the offer? “Yes, your offer was generous, so we want to get acclimated since we’ll be staying here a while.”
“Oh, that’s great.” She forces a smile and clears her throat. “I was worried it would take more coaxing, so this is wonderful news.”
Not sure I'm buying that. "Well, you had some valid points that were hard to ignore, and you're right. It's not like I'm going to be able to find the artifact, especially with the way the powers affect me outside your home."
"So, does that mean she'll be stuck in here the rest of her life?" Charlie makes his tone sound light, but there is a dark undertone to it.
"Well, no." She reaches into her bag and pulls out a gold necklace with a flat gold amulet attached that's about the size of a half dollar. "This is actually something for you that will help you get outside these walls."
"How does that work?" Dax steps up next to me and stares at it.
"It has the same qualities as the walls of the home, but it's not as strong since it's small." She hands it to me and clasps my hands. "However, you can go outside for a few hours and live a normal life and explore this world."
This is what we need. A way for me to still seek the Water Artifact. "Thank you."
She arches a teal eyebrow and tilts her head. "This is only yours since you're considering staying. If you change your mind, you must give it back. Do you understand?"
"Of course, I do." Even if Charlie and I do stay, I plan on living a
