They had been worried alright, worried enough that Amanda had started getting out the ingredients for a tracking spell.

  “Wolf, where have you been?” she demanded as he walked out of the forest. “We were getting worried.”

  “Did you hear the gunshot?” Falco asked.

  Wolf nodded. “I tried to track the shooter.”

  “Didn’t you think we might be worried?” Amanda chided him.

  He nodded at the ritual she was in the middle of and then at the nearby sign. “You’re not supposed to be doing magic here.”

  “It was at the boundary edge,” Amanda grumbled as she packed up the stuff.

  “Does that mean, not even our natural powers?” Indi asked

  “Did you see the shooter then?” Cat asked

  Kass nodded to show she wanted an answer to that question as well, and the others all looked at him with interest.

  Wolf shook his head. “They vanished.”

  “Vanished?” Indi asked, forgetting her previous question.

  Wolf nodded. “The trail just stopped. There was nothing after that, not even a whiff.”

  “Teleporter?” Amanda asked.

  Wolf shrugged. “Maybe. They shot a rabbit.”

  “Alright, well, shall we keep moving then?” Cat asked impatiently.

  “Poor rabbit,” Indi said softly as everyone started moving.

  Wolf was glad she hadn’t seen it. A dead rabbit was bad enough, but that kill had been gruesome.

  Amanda fell in beside Wolf as they walked. Speaking low enough, that only Sirius and Wolf could hear, she whispered to Wolf, “You don’t think it was for pest control do you?”

  He shook his head.

  Amanda had always been remarkably perceptive. It was something she and Kass seemed to have in common, Wolf thought, as he caught a slight glance back from Kass. She was trying to listen without being too obvious. He didn’t think she could hear from here. He could tell she wanted to walk slower so she could eavesdrop, but if she dropped back any further, it would have been obvious. He wondered if Indi could hear them. She was walking beside Falco, just a little ahead of Kass. Vampire ears were quite something else. Indi often acted the fool but he had been starting to think she noticed more than she let on. Cat, on the other hand, who was currently leading the group beside Lily on their charge in, he knew was completely oblivious. As was Falco. Zephyr was generally perceptive but currently completely preoccupied with his new girlfriend. Wolf wondered if they should be hiding such things from them all. Maybe from Cat it made sense. She was brash and unpredictable. Although Indi could be the same, but then she was probably listening any way. He was sure of it.

  “What do you think it was?” Amanda asked, still keeping her voice low.

  Not low enough though. Wolf wondered if he should tell her that Indi could hear. He didn’t. Instead he just shook his head and shrugged. “Maybe it’s the keepers of Witchaven trying to warn us to stay away.”

  Amanda frowned. “The keepers?”

  He shrugged again. “You know? Mercy, the HPL.”

  From the look on her face he could tell Amanda didn’t believe it. Truth was, he didn’t believe it either, but he didn’t have a better explanation, just a gut feeling that something wasn’t right. Whatever it was it seemed to have gone now though. It was probably the sort of silly idea Indi would find credence in. He felt kind of bad for thinking that, after all, some of her ideas were good, and she was kind of starting to grow on him.

  He’d been annoyed at her hogging his book for so long in the car and now it turned out that was what would save his book. Well, if he was being honest, he knew it wasn’t really her he had been mad at. He’d mostly been frustrated at himself and his inability to resolve the Lily situation. He didn’t know what to do. He didn’t even know if he should be trying to convince Amanda not to pursue further preservation of the girl.

  Maybe he should have a chat to Sirius later. That man had a good head on his shoulders.

  The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

  As they walked along the road, the surrounding forest fell away into farmland. Sheep and cattle roamed green pastures. Slowly buildings started to crop up, a barn there, a house here. They passed several wooden cottages built in a little cluster. Then came the people.

  “They look almost old-fashioned,” Indi remarked as she stared at each one they passed.

  Wolf might have reminded her that it was considered rude to stare if not for the fact that every single person they passed, was doing the exact same right back. They weren’t exactly trying to hide it either. Every single man they passed, and it was all men, not a single woman, stopped what he was doing, and watched them as they walked.

  “I’m surprised none of them come say hello,” Amanda remarked. “You think they’d never seen a visitor before.”

  “They probably don’t get many,” Wolf replied. Then he added, “You’re gonna want to keep your fangs hidden, Indi.”

  She turned to him with a sad look and large eyes. He wasn’t sure how she did it, but Indi could make her eyes look as big and round as a doll's.

  “Exactly,” he replied, annoyed that her sad look was getting to him.

  But then it shifted, and as fast as she’d looked sad, her eyes now took on a gleam and the corners of her mouth curved upward. She kept her lips pressed together though in a very uncharacteristic smile. It was a little unnerving and made Wolf feel like she was up to something.

  Keeping the grin, she simply replied, “Got it,” and then turned around again.

  “This place is creepy,” Cat remarked after a horse-drawn cart passed them by. It was carrying yet another two men both wearing baggy trousers and loose shirts, definitely not a style from this century. Both men narrowed their eyes at the newcomers.

  Wolf had to agree with Cat and he was starting to think that this was a terrible idea and that they should all just turn around and go home.

  “Why? Cause there’s no cars?” Amanda asked.

  “That and the way the locals keep staring at us.”

  “Maybe you should hide your gun better,” Kass suggested.

  Cat spun. “Me?”

  Kass swallowed and gave a nod.

  “What about...” Cat had been about to point out that Amanda was also wearing a gun on her hip, but when she’d spun, she’d found Amanda unclipping her holster and handing it over to Sirius to put inside his coat.

  “You should hide yours better, put it your side holster,” Kass said

  “I already have two guns in my side holster,” Cat replied.

  “You have three guns on you?” Kass queried in surprise.

  “Sure, where are you hiding yours?” Cat asked as her eyes studied every inch of Kass.

  “None of your business,” Kass replied sharply as her cheeks went a bright red.

  Cat turned back to Amanda. “What are you gonna do if there’s trouble?”

  Amanda just raised her eyebrows in a way that suggested Cat knew exactly what she was gonna do if there was trouble.

  “It’s better if we look approachable.” Amanda explained. “If we come in armed to the teeth, they’ll find us threatening and close ranks.”

  “She’s right,” Kass agreed.

  “I don’t like it when you two agree with one another,” Cat told them. “It’s weird.”

  “Are we all supposed to give Sirius our guns?” Falco asked, looking down at his own gun.

  “I’m gonna run out of pockets,” Sirius remarked.

  Amanda snorted. “I’ve seen how many pockets you have in that coat.”

  “Ain’t nobody taking my guns off me,” Cat declared with a tone of finality.

  They all turned when they heard the pounding of footsteps coming up behind them a moment later.

  A younger man, who looked to be in his 20s or 30s had been sitting on the back of the cart dozing. When he’d opened his eyes and seen the newcomers he’d jumped off the back of the cart and ran after them.

  His clothes were a little more modern than the others. He wore a simple red t-shirt, jeans, and sneakers.

  “Howdy!” he called as he reached them. “What news do you bring from the outside? Are you witches? We don’t allow witches here you know.” He spoke in a serious yet somehow jolly tone and he grinned broadly.

  Amanda gave him a warm smile. “No, we’re regular folks. You don’t get many visitors then?”

  “Well actually we’ve had a few lately. None of them are witches either, hah!” His eyes jumped from Amanda to Kass and then he shrugged. “Well, as long as you don’t do any magic, you’re welcome to stay for a short time. Some of the others don’t think so but they’ll be polite, long as you’re polite to them. And I won’t tell, I promise. You can trust me.”

  “Who else has visited recently? Are they still here? Can you take us to them?” Amanda asked.

  “Well sure.” The man started walking and the rest of them followed. “You’ll find a strange fellow at the tavern around five in the evening, like most folks. Claims he’s from the other world he does. He’s got some wild stories. Says even the humans can fly over there. Now I had a friend who left here reckoned she could fly with plastic sheet. She’s jumped off all sorts of things. But over there in the world this guy is from, he says that they pack lots of people into a tin can and send em flying real fast all around the entire globe. Crazy eh?”

  “You mean like an airplane?” Indi asked.

  “A what?” The guy looked at her blankly.

  “An airplane. We have them here too. Well, maybe not here here.” Indi glanced around them. The hills were less tall at this end of the valley and covered with forest. They actually looked climbable. Not like what they’d driven past earlier. Still too close to proper peaks to not worry about dragons though. “But in other parts of the world, where dragons are less common.”

  The man nodded solemnly. Then he perked up again. “Anyway, the name’s Olly.”

  Amanda did the introductions.

  “And what brings you to Witchaven?” Olly asked.

  “We’re looking for someone. Think they might stopped here,” Amanda told him honestly.

  “Friend of yours?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Man or woman? We had a girl come through a few days ago, not sure if she’s still here, and a couple, looked like hikers.”

  “Uh... man I think.”

  “You think?” Olly raised his eyebrows but he never stopped grinning. His eyes swept the group. His smile didn’t quite reach those. They were dark brown and contrasted against his fair hair.

  Amanda just smiled back, but even her smile looked slightly strained for once. Indi smiled too, although she wisely kept her mouth shut, and her teeth hidden.

  After a moment of awkward silence, Amanda spoke. “Is there an inn we could stay at?”

  “Sure, I’ll show you the way. You sure you lot ain’t witches? You can tell me. I won’t tell the others, promise.”

  The others looked to Amanda who just gave him a smile. “We’re sure.”