Best Witches Issue 8
We all sat in the workroom staring silently at the book. We had been sitting here in silence for almost an hour: Steve, myself, Finley, and Peyton. My hands were clasped, propping up my chin, elbows on knees. No one had even moved to touch it.
“Soo,” I finally said. I barely got a twitch out of the others. We all seemed to be lost in our own thoughts. “I say we open it and see what happens.”
Peyton rolled her eyes at me. “Of course, you have no problem popping open the cursed book.”
“Well, I mean I opened it already, so it’s less…explosive now,” I said. “It just seems to have a mind of its own.”
“I agree. Let’s open it. But Riley should do it. It might not like other people.” He had been stroking his goatee for the last ten minutes or so.
I am under the impression he thinks it makes him look wise. He tends to strut like a peacock around the girls. I don’t think he even noticed he did it. Sighing I got up from my seat and walked to the table. I took a deep breath, steeling my nerves for what it might show me now. I put my hand out and flipped the cover back.
The wind picked up and whipped the book to a random page. Light spilled out of the pages once more. This time no family tree appeared; instead, it was a map. Of the Midwest. Strange.
Everyone had piled around me. Peyton’s chin was on my shoulder and I could hear Steve breathing by my other ear and Finley was peaking around my side. I couldn’t help but smile at my friends as the map started to expand showing a line from Omaha up to the Great Lakes by Wisconsin with a stop, it seemed, in Chicago.
“Road trip!” Finley exclaimed.
“Camping and kayaking!” Peyton squealed.
“Girls,” Steve said. “This is not a vacation; this is a…well, mission, I guess. For lack of a better term.”
“Can I have some time off for a…mission?” I asked.
Steve hmphed in my direction. “Who says I’m not going to go?” Steve asked.
“You won’t even touch it. How are you supposed to get directions?” I retorted.
“Fine. Bring me back a shot glass.” He dusted off his hands and stretched his back out, standing straight.
The book started flipping pages again. It stopped on a blank page, and slowly words began to appear. Steve stopped mid-stretch and walked back over to peer at the book. Peyton and Finley hadn’t left my side.
“It looks like it’s drawing some sort of dagger. It says it belonged to Anastacia Thornbridge,” Steve said.
I stiffened. I hadn’t brought up the family tree I had seen the other night.
“What’s in doing in the Midwest?” Finley asked.
I just shrugged. “It’s been decades. I’m sure things of hers are scattered all over the globe by now.” I tried to brush it off as nothing. No one seemed to notice as they all just shrugged.
“Well, I assume the three of us are all going?” Peyton asked.
“I have time off,” I said smiling.
“I just need to ask work, but I’m sure I can find out in the next couple of days,” Finley said. Peyton nodded.
“Let’s plan for next week and see if we can make that work. We can just take a long weekend.” Everyone nodded.
“You and I can review the book some more, see what type of supplies you might need. I don’t expect getting Thornbridge’s dagger will be as easy to just walk in and walk out.” Steve said, which made sense.
I turned back around to the book and flipped the pages, but they stayed blank. “Well you’re just a moody little thing, aren’t you?” I muttered.
Steve was leaning over the book with a magnifying glass. He reached out with a single finger and instantly pulled back as the book zapped him with some static electricity. “Well, fine.” He growled.
Reaching over I closed the book. “We’ll get back at it in a few hours and see if it has anything more to say.”
Finley squeezed my shoulder and Peyton headed towards the door.
“We’ll get together some camping supplies, look up places to stay in Chicago, find a great kayaking place in Wisconsin, oh, and some of the great places to stop on the way.” Finley started muttering to herself, already in full planning mode. I smiled at my two best friends as I walked them to the front of the store.
“Let me know when you guys hear from your jobs about getting some time off. I’ll let you know if Steve and I figure anything new out about the book. We’ll do some research on Anastacia Thornbridge and that dagger.”
“Road trippppppp!” Finley and Peyton both yelled as they headed out the door making fools of themselves throwing their hands in the air and making faces.
I blew kisses at the both of them. I could hear Steve groaning from behind me.
“You three are ridiculous. This is not going to end well.” I stuck my tongue out at him as I closed the store door.
“You love us. It’ll be fine.” Yet, I hated how I was a bit nervous about what this meant and where this book was taking me.
Thank you, Sean Eike, for the image this week.
