“So, that was it? The baby was just gone?” Maggie asked, surprised as to how desperate her voice sounded, as if the information was vital.
“In all likelihood.”
“Why do I get the feeling that you don’t believe that?” Maggie asked, her brow raised skeptically.
“Nothing gets by you, does it?” His lip pulled up into a charming, crooked smile. “Well, the baby would grow up to be a powerful witch, especially with someone like Hazel as her mother, no matter where she ended up.”
The words hung in the air as Peter jogged ahead. The cliffside came sharply to their right, but parallel to it was a long line of caves. The openings were like tall mouths, each exhaling gusts of cold air as they passed them by. An unforgettable darkness lay within the caves, and sounds echoed from the deepest depths.Peter remained quiet as he eyed the openings, careful not to pass through any of the thresholds until he was absolutely certain.
Maggie wanted to step over Hazel’s story like it was simply a story, but it wouldn’t loosen its hold over her subconscious. The words hovered over her like a cloud, echoing faintly and never leaving. She could almost imagine it: a torrential storm approaching over the horizon, a baby wailing for her mother, and a love so strong it was capable of saving lives. Perhaps that was the most magical piece of it all, that Hazel’s unforgetting and unwavering devotion to her only blood was strong enough to keep them all alive, even if it meant being separated.
Why does it matter so much?Maggie shook her head until it rattled as she followed close behind Peter. There were far more important things at hand than a story from far too long ago.
“Peter,” she called out.
The King of Neverland held out his hand, silencing her in a split second. He nodded his chin toward one of the cave openings, one that had a crackling sound coming from the dark depths. Maggie inched close to Peter’s heel, grasping onto his hand like a lost child. Though she was embarrassed, Peter only intertwined their fingers and drew her as close to her side as possible.
“This is it,” he whispered.
Maggie gulped. “How can you be so sure? It’s just…dark!”
He grinned as he looked over his shoulder at her. “Have a little faith, Magpie.”
Peter led the way into the dark. The cave was eerily cold and ominously quiet as they reached the end of it, where a single torch held an undying fire beside a wooden door. The air pushed the wood and made it creak, though it wasn’t until Peter rapped his knuckles against the frame that real noise stirred from behind it.
A latch at the center of the door snapped open, revealing a set of pale colored eyes and green-tinged skin.
“Who goes there?” a voice bellowed.
Peter leaned forward. “It is the King of Neverland,” he announced. “And a friend.”
The eyes narrowed. “And why have you come to our caves?”
“We wish to make a deal with the goblins.”
Maggie watched as the eyes held onto them closely, inspecting every inch of them before the voice released a guttural sound of approval. The small latch snapped shut, and gentle steps could be heard on the other side. A series of latches and locks were opened and removed, the entire process dragging on for a few awkwardly quiet minutes.
“About the baby,” Maggie whispered. “Are yousureyou don’t know what happened to her?”
Peter looked down. “Huh?”
“Hazel’s daughter! Is it possible that the daughter of a powerful witch could just be…lost like that?”
He laughed lightly. “Why’s it got you so transfixed?” Before she could come up with an answer that she didn’t have, Peter shrugged his shoulders and sighed with an unavoidable heaviness. “There’s no good answer, Maggie. No one knows and there is no way of knowing anything more than what I’ve already told you.”
Maggie frowned as her brow furrowed tightly. The answer hardly felt like enough. Despite Peter giving all the information he had, Maggie couldn’t help but wonder what it was that he didn’t know, and why the missing knowledge tempted her in such a poignant way. She took a deep breath, unable to hide her insatiable hunger for more.
“But –”
The door swung open.
A short and squat figure who carried the eyes of the previous speaker stood in front of them. The goblin only had pale green skin, with even paler eyes to match. Wispy grey hairs spiked up at the top of his round head, though there were only a handful of them. Clothes that couldn’t cover his belly barely held onto his roundish figure, though the goblin didn’t seem to mind.
“Welcome,” the goblin proclaimed, “King of Neverland and guest, to the goblin tunnels!” The creature side-stepped and brandished a short arm into the darkness of the caves.
Peter walked over the threshold, tugging a hesitant Maggie to follow close behind. The door swung close behind them, the final exhale of fresh air following along with them.
15
