The Dark Stranger

Strange unions

"The Dark Stranger"
© VeGirl 2014

Esme has arranged for our departure and a bag is placed in the trunk of the car just as I join her. "It's all set."

"What exactly have you done?"

She wiggles her brows with a secretive smile. "Trade secret..."

I roll my eyes. "Get in the car!"

She snickers as she is seated next to me and I get the car rolling. "I have prepared the motion that I have to complete with a spell as we reach the other side," she explains.

I furrow my brows in confusion. "I don't understand."

"I know..." The smile on her face is smug.

I purse my lips and rev the car. With gravel spurting behind us I set us in motion. My irritation is soon vanished as I recall that we are on a rescue mission to get Vincent.

"Stop here," she says right before we exit the tunnel through the mountain that separate this mysterious place from the rest of the world. "We'll stay here inside." She explains as I cut the engine off. "And you'll stay indoors," she ads stern. "You might want to cover your eyes if you don't want to get nauseous or the migraine from hell." A wicked smile flashes over her as she exits the car.

Bemused I notice her grabbing the bulky bag from the trunk; reminding me of a doctor's bag. She sits down on the ground in front of the car and she is a mere dark silhouette against the backlight.

Methodically she places items before her. I recognize her grimoire but other than that I don't know what she has there. With handgestures I know the spell has started. It is of course impossible to hear the words she is chanting, but by now I am familiar enough to know she does that.

After a while the light is starting to flicker and I start to feel nauseous. Soon the outside of the tunnel feels like a giant stroboscope and my ears are ringing painfully. Gladly I shut my eyes and involuntarily I press hands over my ears to relief the pain. This weird feeling stops as abrupt as it started.

The car door slams shut, making me jump high. "So, now we can go find him."

"Jesus!" I glare at Esme who has a secretive smile on her face. "What did you say?" I remove the hands that have been covering my ears and she repeats the sentence.

"What happened?" I ask as the nausea has subsided.

"I reset the clock."

I am still feeling like an airhead. "You mean that you have turned back time?" I gasp as she nods pleased with her performance. "And that works?"

"I'm pretty sure, but we'll find out as soon as you'll meet your cousin. Now let's go!"

I shake my head as if to shake some wit into it before I start the car.

"Have you done this before?"

"Just a few times. Things might be a little weird, and that is not good. It can backfire." She gives an embarrassed smile. "I remember one time when the house of parliament had made a bad decision and when they got a chance to do it again, they made the same stupid mistake again, even if I had told them otherwise."

I furrow my brows. "What are you talking about?"

"And the other time when there was this volcano, and I did my best to get the people of that small town to leave, but it did squat."

I sit there gaping.

"Stop glaring at me like that! It's nothing I do if I'm running late in the morning," she growls and after some glaring from my part I start to snicker.