Enchanted High Book I
Chapter Twelve: Deadline

‘June?’ Kendal yelled in James’s voice. ‘What happened?’

June gulped, ‘James – th-they found –’

‘Found what?’

June paused, tearing her gaze away from Gilda’s dead eyes. ‘They found Gilda. She’s dead.’

There was no reply from him.

‘We need to talk to Charlie,’ June told him. She could picture Charlie’s understanding expression back at Salvatore’s office, hoping that she hadn’t just imagined it. ‘He’s the only who will believe us.’

‘But what are we going to tell him?’ James replied. ‘That it wasn’t us even if there is all this evidence?’

‘We’ll have to try,’ said June. ‘Meet me and Nicole in the office later.’

‘Got it.’ Kendal remained frozen for seconds. The, he blinked and looked up at June.

‘What’d I miss?’ he said.

Nicole stared at June, her eyebrows arched worriedly. ‘What are we going to do now?’

June stepped aside for the women to walk past, without uttering a word to them. She watched them walk down the corridor, towards Salvatore’s office probably. ‘I told James to meet us in the spy office. Charlie might be able to work something out to help us.’

Nicole nodded, agreeably.

June swung opened the office door, rushing into the grey office.

James and Dominic were seated on the couch with Charlie, leaning against the desk. As soon as they stepped in, June sensed the air of intense anticipation. She wanted Charlie to say something, something to comfort them, to reassure them, but nothing of the sort came. For a moment everyone just stared at the grey-carpeted floor.

‘Charlie, you have to believe us. We’re not guilty. We didn’t –’ June was afraid to use the word kill.

He didn’t reply.

’We did go to the library,’ Nicole pitched in, ‘against your instructions and everything, but we didn’t commit arson, or murder, or theft.’

‘We’d do anything to get out of this situation,’ James murmured.

June looked at Charlie, hoping again that his understanding wasn’t her imagination. Finally, Charlie looked up at them; he had on a new expression.

‘It’s okay,’ he said, smiling. ‘I know for a fact that you didn’t steal it. So,’ he weaved his fingers together. ’I made a deal with your Headmaster.

‘A deal?’ June frowned.

Charlie nodded. ‘Yes. I asked him to give you four a chance to prove your innocence. That’s the fair thing to do before he goes around handing punishments.’

‘Prove our innocence,’ Nicole repeated. ‘How are we going to do that?’

Charlie silenced and straightened up so he was standing instead of leaning. ‘That’s what Salvatore asked, too. I told him not to worry about how; we’ll think of something.’

‘How much time do we have?’

Charlie glanced at June and then at the floor. ‘Blgh,’ he coughed.

‘Huh?’

‘Two weeks –’ he mumbled.

‘Two weeks?’ Nicole repeated, almost yelling. ‘And what about the final exams? They start on Monday! What are we going to prove in two weeks?’

Charlie paused to look at her. ‘Start by telling me everything from the beginning that happened that night.’

‘How is that going to help?’ Nicole asked.

‘Just tell me.’

They told him everything once again, even the not so important parts, parts that Salvatore had failed to mention. They told him about the spell that was used – the relocation spell.

When they reached the part about James’s incident, James stood up, eyes wide.

’I did that?’

‘Yes, you did,’ said Dominic, ‘and it was freaky, mate.’

‘Hmm,’ Charlie stroked his chin, nodding. ’Just as I thought, someone was in there with you four, someone you didn’t see; someone with the ability of mind control.’

June kept silent. She saw a cloaked man, didn’t she? Something held her back from telling this to Charlie. You don’t have to admit you’re going crazy, she told herself.

Charlie looked at their astonished faces. ‘There was somebody else in there last night.’

They listened intently.

‘Who?’ Dominic asked.

Charlie took a deep breath before continuing. ‘I found this,’ he reached into his pocket and pulled out two small, smooth black stones, molded in the shape of a heart. June felt it in her hands; it was cold at the touch, its blackness reminded her of Salvatore’s eyes. On one side, there was a glistening silver letter; a single serif font letter – X.

‘See this,’ Charlie pointed to the letter.

‘So?’ Nicole frowned. ‘What’s that supposed to mean?’

‘I found one in the library and another in the spot the tree used to be, in your Sorcery class, before it vanished. Got there before the school staff did. I stowed it.’ He paused. ‘Then I found this.’ He pulled out a thin brown stick; A wand.

‘And here,’ again, he pointed to the silver writing, in the same font as the stone, engraved onto the side. ‘Xavier Nine Hundred.’

June frowned. Xavier Nine Hundred. ‘What is this about, Charlie? These two heart-shaped stones? A wand?’

He raised a hand, telling her to listen. ’I’ve been reading about Xavier since I was a child and the story that he was one day going to re-incarnate fascinated me. I believed it wasn’t just a legend; most of the legends in this world are hardly mere stories. And my knowledge on Prince Xavier says that he’s the only one who owned this powerful wand. He loved power; he grew stronger at seeing other people weak.’ Charlie looked down at the wand, turning it in his hands. ‘It doesn’t even exist anymore. Factories stopped manufacturing toys, or play decoys of them a hundred years ago. And the black heart was his symbol; look in any book and it will tell you that. Every village he destroyed and looted, every person that he murdered, he would leave one heart behind, as a mark, to say that he was there once.’

June blinked back the madness. Charlie was being childish; a sucker for the legend he wanted to be true, to exist. But she decided to keep that thought to herself, in case she was wrong. It wasn’t easy to believe such things, but in a place like Comikaycrest, ideas like this proved a challenge to ignore. ’Are you saying The Prince Xavier set us up?’

‘It’s a guess.’

Nicole snorted. ‘It’s an absolutely insane guess!’

‘I know, but do you have any other theories, huh?’ Charlie pointed a finger at her. ’Can you come up with something that you think makes more sense? I assure you, you’ll only end up walking in circles, and returning to this same conclusion. ’

June was stunned. In the entire year, this was the only time she had seen Charlie actually a little angry, frustrated maybe. Nicole fell silent, her cheeks red.

‘There isn’t,’ Charlie continued, in a more calm tone now. ‘With the wand and the two hearts, there is no other explanation. I even checked the authenticity of the wand and there’s no way somebody could have forged it.’

‘So, what now?’ June asked, straining to hold back her confusion too. ‘You don’t expect us to tell Salvatore your wild guess, do you?’

‘No,’ Charlie shook his head. ‘Keep it a secret. Until we can prove it.’

There was silence.

June spoke again, pushing the limit with questions. ‘How does this guess of yours explain what happened to James?’

‘Well, it does make sense; Xavier casted a spell on James. He was able to control him. Then he said to you – what exactly did he say to you, June?’

June felt her blood run cold. ‘I warned you.’ She remembered.

Charlie nodded once.

Nicole bit her lip. ‘The tree, Lexis –’

‘Yes, to assume that Xavier is behind the tree is a valid guess – I found a heart there.’

‘Hold on,’ Dominic blurted. ‘Let me get this straight. Xavier is reincarnated –’

‘Yes, in a different form. He lives among us.’

‘He casted a spell on Lexis to steal the tree.’

‘Yes.’

‘And he casted a spell on James to warn us about his return.’

‘Couldn’t have explained it any better.’

‘But why would he want the tree?’

‘Think, what does the tree do? It’s a powerful plant, a wish granter – he wants to make a wish of course,’ said Charlie. ‘He wants his bride – he wants Linasia.’

‘Linasia is here, too?’ James inquired.

‘I’m afraid it could be the only reason why he’d target our school.’

Nobody said anything. There was nothing to say.

‘What if we found Linasia before he did?’ Nicole offered.

Charlie thought about it. ‘I don’t think there’s enough time for that. I think our first step should be towards the location of the tree. If it’s in the possession of Xavier, we’d be led straight to him.’

June wanted to know what he planned on doing once they came face-to-face with Xavier. Would he return the tree if they said please?

They returned to their dorms with solemn faces. Kendal was asleep, as usual. Alexia was grooming herself when they entered. She fluttered her wings excitedly at the sight of June, nudging her snout against June’s ankle. Her eyes sparkled.

‘That reminds me,’ said Nicole mysteriously.

June listened intently.

‘I had Beast and Creature science today,’ Nicole continued. ‘Silong let us choose pets. She made us wait the entire year. A few other classes didn’t get their pets either. She says she wants to see qualities that will make her feel better about sending creatures off.’

June was surprised. Silong had let her class choose their pets in their very first lesson.

‘I left him back at the simulation cage; I wanted to introduce him to you myself.’

‘What is it?’

Nicole grinned. ‘Well, I can’t tell you that now. I should leave you in a bit of suspense, right? We’ll head over down tomorrow.’

June nodded thoughtfully, suddenly sleepy. ‘Tomorrow.’ She mumbled.

I saw a tail! A large, scaly tail! I’ll catch the creature tomorrow, if it’s the last thing I do.

Love from all the fur on my back,

-THUG.