Garthia: The Forgotten King

Chapter Seventeen

~Chapter Seventeen

I hold Cam as he sobs over his grandfather's dead body. He keeps saying things like "He was all I had left." and, "He's gone." as if he can't believe it. I start to tell him everything's going to be alright, but the words die on my lips. He just lost his last close family member. Of course it's not going to be alright.

Eventually Eve comes over and comforts him along with me. But Fera just stands back with her arms crossed. But there's something different about her. Something that I hadn't seen once in the short time I've known her.

It's in her eyes. They aren't full of anger and hatred towards the world. Instead, they're filled with sadness and pity. She gazes longingly at Can as he cries, like she wants to comfort him, but she can't bring herself to do it.

Can dries his tears and sniffles before standing. His eyes have changed too. Just as Fera's had changed from anger to sadness, his have changed from sadness to anger. He stands straight and glances down at his dead grandpa one last time before he says with finality, "I will find whoever did this and they will pay. No one takes the person a care-I mean cared about most in this world and gets away with it."

"I'm sure you will." Fera says quietly. Then she quickly changes back to her normal, aggressive self. Like I said, I haven't know Fera that long, but I know it takes a lot to make her depressed like that. I don't blame her though. It's pretty tragic that he's lost everyone he cared about. Only the devil himself would be able to look him in the eyes and not feel bad for him.

"So what's the game plan?" I ask.

"I don't know about you, but I'm going to find whoever murdered my grandfather." Cam begins to march out of the store, but I call after him. "What," he snaps, stopping and turning to face me.

"I want to help you."

"Really? And why should I let you?" He steps closer to me so that we're only about a foot apart.

I try desperately to find an answer. "Because you're my friend, and I want to help you solve this thing. And besides, it might be connected to the Forgotten King somehow. We'll be killing two birds with one stone." I do my best to smile at him, but he doesn't return it. He opens his mouth to speak, but Eve steps forward.

"Hayden's right," she says. "We'll be helping a friend and solving a crime. It seems to me like there's no better way to do it." He still doesn't look convinced. Then, surprisingly, Fera speaks up.

"It seems like a good idea to me." He raises an eyebrow at her, looking just as confused as the rest of us. She sighs and rolls her eyes. "Look, Air Head. I know what it's like to loose someone you care about. It's not fun. So I just want to help you, okay?" She quickly adds, "But don't think I'm becoming soft. This is a one time thing. So take it or leave it." She crosses her arms and stares at across the room at a dusty pile of old books.

Cam ponders this for a second. "Fine," he says. "You can help."

"Great!" Eve chirps, clapping her hands cheerfully. "So where do we start?"

Cam apparently didn't think about that. "Um, I guess we should examine the crime scene for clues like they do in those TV shows like NCIS."

"I can help with that," Fera interjects. "Not only is my magic good for collecting data, it's also good for analyzing it. By the way, what is an NCIS?" At first I think she's joking, but she looks genuinely confused. Of course she would be. I doubt they watch TV in Garthia as much as we do in America. No wonder they're smarter than us.

"Don't worry about it," I tell her. "Right now, we need to focus on the task at hand." I gesture at the body, trying not to look at it out of fear that I might barf. Maybe it's the smell that will get me. Sawyer's body is starting to stink.

"I need all of you to get out." She cracks her knuckles and rolls her neck like she's preparing to get into a fight. "All of you might interfere with my work." She kneels in front of the body and closes her eyes, holding one hand out over the reeking old man.

Eve ushers us outside before we have time to move. "If Fera gives an order and you don't follow it right away, she gets pissed, and you don't want to see her when she's pissed." she explains as the door swings shut behind us.

"She can't be any worse then she is now." It sounds more like a question than a statement. Eve's clear blue eyes widen and she nods her head slowly, a sign to Cam that she can, in fact, get much worse.

Cam sits against the brick wall like all of his energy is suddenly gone, and squints up at the store's sign. He smiles weakly, his eyes brimmed with tears. "I'm gonna miss this place," he murmurs softly so that I can barely hear him.

"So what, you're just not coming back?" I blurt. He turns to me and the tears spill down his cheeks.

"It wouldn't be the same without him."

"Hayden's right," Eve protests. I smile at her gratefully. It's good to know she still has my back, especially after everything that's happened. "You can't just give up on this place. It's your home, even without Sawyer."

He doesn't look angry. He just stares at us blankly. It's almost as if he's given up. "I don't expect you to understand," he sighs. "I mean, Eve, you're part of the royal family of Garthia," I think I catch a flash of anger in Eve's eyes, but I probably just imagined it. "Even if all of your family was gone, you still have all of Garthia to back you up. And you, Hayden," he turns his gaze to me. "I know you lost your mom, but you've still got the rest of your family." He pulls his legs to his chest and sets his chin on his knees. "But me, I don't have anyone."

"Wrong," I kneel down beside him and give him a stern look. "You're one of us now. We're your family from now on whether you like it or not." Eve nods in agreement.

" Yeah. You might have been annoying at first, but what can I say," she shrugs. "You've grown on me. I'm here for you Cam, and I'm sure Fera would say the same thing. But she would probably say Air Head instead of Cam."

Cam laughs as he wipes away the tears. "Thanks guy. I really appreciate it." The door bursts open and I scramble out of the way before I get hit.

Fera's eyes lock with Eve's and she commands, "Come here. Now." Eve doesn't hesitate to follow her inside. I wouldn't either. Fera looked like she was ready to go burn down all of Charleston.

And then there were two. And if course I had to be left alone with Cam, of all people.

He sticks one hand in his pocket and runs the other one through his dark hair. "Sorry about crash-landing into you earlier." he apologizes. He gives me a one-sided grin, and I my legs start to feel like jelly. No guy has ever made me feel like this. Maybe it's because most guys are cocky jerks who just want to kiss you then diss you. Cam is actually kind, funny, considerate...Argh! Stop it, Hayden! Why him, and why now?!

"Oh, it's fine." I turn to the side so that he doesn't see me blushing. Ugh what is wrong with me!

"Hey, Hayden," he grabs my arm and spins me so that I'm forced to look at him. I try to focus somewhere on his face rather than his eyes. Anything but those beautiful purple eyes...I mentally slap myself in the face, which helps a little, but I still can't look him in the eyes. "What you did for me was great. I was really down in the dumps about my grandpa, but you helped me get back on my feet. Literally." We both laugh, and in about to tell him that it was no big deal, but I'm cut off by the door busting open again, missing me by inches.

"Hey! Watch it!" I shout. Fera gives me an infuriated look that says, Do you really want to test me right now, because I can have you pinned on the ground faster than you can scream for help. I shut my mouth.

Without a word, Fera marches down the street. Eve trails after her like a little duckling following its mother. Before she can go far, I pull her back and ask what's going on.

"We're going back to Garthia," she explains glumly. "Turns out Sawyer was killed by a Garthian blade."