A Mischievous Tale of Magical Mayhem

12 | A Welcome Respite

As Harvey and Holly slept, Maisie built a small fire in the hearth while Ben and Fann  searched the house's outer perimeter for more fuel. Once the fire crackled merrily, Maisie lit a candle she'd found in a dusty cupboard and set off to explore the old mansion.

Half rotten floorboards creaked beneath her feet, and several doors had fallen from their hinges. Anything of value had been looted long ago, but if one knew how and where to look, useful items might still be waiting to be found.

Upstairs, Maisie made her way down a long hallway. A thick layer of dust lay upon everything, spiderwebs clung to the walls and beams, and the carpet crumbled under Maisie's feet.

Most rooms told the same story: patches of slightly less dust coated spaces where furniture had been, leaving behind only debris and animal droppings in rooms with broken windows. A tiled bathroom remained, including a rusted tub and a cracked porcelain toilet.

At the western end of the hallway, the decor became more extravagant, with faded wallpapers painted in shades of forest green, autumnal brown, deep shadows, and bright light filtering through the canopy.

Maisie had dutifully inspected each room, just in case something useful might be found, which included looking beneath loose floorboards and rapping on solid walls to check for hidden cavities.

Her luck came in the most extravagant room. A hand-painted mural depicting the sea as viewed from the cliffs across the Ardenian Channel from Ballsdeep covered the walls. The windows had remained intact, shielding a few pieces of furniture from the elements. In an adjoined room, a cracked full-length mirror in an ornate frame stood vigil, witnessing the passage of time in  eerie silence.

The space immediately beside it was lighter than the rest of the floor, as if something bulky had stood there for countless years—likely a wardrobe.

Suddenly, the weak sun filtering through the window hit the glass at just the right angle to focus the beam, and fell upon something bright. Maisie dropped to her knees to inspect the floor. She carefully pried at each plank until one came loose. Beneath, nestled in  a small hole, lay a stack of letters tied in green string and a tiny pouch. Taking the pouch first, Maisie found a finely crafted silver ring designed to look like intricately interwoven vines. Also inside was a blue and silver ribbon, which Maisie couldn't make heads nor tails of. For a moment, she hesitated, struck by a new dilemma: did she bring the items to the queen, or should she leave them here?

No, she decided, shaking her head. If Aeslin was angry, so be it. If not, perhaps the Queen could locate a surviving family member and return the letters and ring. If she left the items here, other thieves would surely plunder them.

With her explorations complete, Maisie returned to the grand room and laid out a simple breakfast.

Ben had already packed their bags with all the gear they weren't currently using and helped Maisie with her kitchen chores.

Within ten minutes, their companions rose as well. After leading their pony outside to relieve itself and eat from a bag of feed, the man and his granddaughter returned with their own contributions for breakfast.

After that, the real task—repairing the wagon—began.

"Will this work, Grandad?" Holly asked, holding out a long, thin branch for her grandfather to inspect.

The old man took the proffered piece of wood and held it out, gazing down its length before shaking his head.

"I fear not. It must be at least as thick as my thumb, though not more than twice so. Neither can it be green, or rotten. It must be strong and straight."