“I can’t say goodbye to my family. I think I would lose my nerve. Once I’ve crossed, could you give them these letters?” Lora opened her bag and pulled out three letters addressed to each family member. She handed them to Maja, who hesitantly accepted them.
“I can do that. I think my dad can hook you up with some spelled tech. If you’re able to send messages from Liraen, you’ll let me know you’re safe, right?”
“Of course.”
“And keep me updated if you meet any hot fae.” Maja’s concerned expression vanished as she smirked.
Lora welcomed the attempt to lighten the mood and smiled genuinely. “I don’t think this will be like one of your books where every fae is a charming, perfect gentleman,” she teased.
“Oh, they’re not all gentlemen. But definitely irresistible and sexy as hell.” Maja sighed as she probably imagined stepping into the fictional world of her better-than-reality books.
“I promise I’ll give you all the details when I’m back.” Finally, a promise Lora was sure to keep—assuming she survived. Maybe no promises could be assured. Maybe some are meant to be broken from the start, the promised words accepted besides their inevitable emptiness.
“You better,” Maja said with a wink before she added in a more serious tone, “Okay, let’s call my dad.”
* * *
Hours later, Lora found herself in a car driving towards the promise of hope or her ultimate demise. Two very different outcomes. She tried to focus on the first option, hoping the more she believed it would work, the more likely it would become reality. But if life worked that way, she would have never found herself in this position to begin with.
Her brother had texted her earlier asking when she’d be back home. She could almost hear his disappointed voice when she had read the message. He would soon be even more upset. The thought increased the heaviness that threatened to crush her. The only thing keeping her upright was knowing it would all be worth it if she got a cure. If not...well, she was still trying to erase that possibility from her mind.
She glanced at the driver next to her. Maja had been able to persuade Marcel quicker than she had expected. He had accepted her promise to share the cure with him and merely asked that they wait until evening when less suspicious minds would cross paths with them in the black market.
She had agreed and thus followed a day of obsessing over every possible outcome as she waited at the diner. Maja had tried to distract her but even she was at a loss for once. It wasn’t every day that you found yourself in the middle of a pandemic, waiting to step into an even more deadly reality—assuming the journey there didn’t kill you first. Lora had tried to divert the attention to Maja’s family, asking about her mother, but their conversations always seemed to come back to the inevitable.
Marcel stared straight ahead, dark brown eyes focused on the road. Lora wondered what was going on inside his mind. She didn’t know Maja’s father that well but since he was also her mum’s friend, she had seen him at her house many times over the years. Did he simply agree because of the potential business opportunity or did he desperately want to save Karla’s life too? He must know her mum well enough to know she would never agree to Lora’s plan, yet he hadn’t questioned her. Lora was aware she should let it go, yet the curiosity wouldn’t let her.
“Why did you agree to this?”
Marcel briefly glanced in her direction before shifting his eyes back to the road. “Does it matter?”
Avoiding the question made Lora think that there was indeed more to it. “I don’t know, does it?” She didn’t let her stare break as she waited for an answer.
Marcel gave her another quick glance, then shook his head as he said, “You’re still as stubborn as ever.” He kept one gloved hand on the wheel as he reached for his long sleeve and pushed it up.
Lora realised his motive before her eyes even focused on the swollen, dark purple veins sticking out beneath his sweater. Thinking back, she now realised he had kept his distance from them in the diner today.
“Don’t tell Maja. She doesn’t need to know yet. Maybe she never will,” Marcel said as he pulled into an almost empty parking lot. “Look, Lora. I don’t know exactly why you think you can cross, but I know there’s something your mum has been keeping secret for a long time.” He paused, catching her gaze. She traced her heart-shaped pendant with one finger. “And I’m sure you both have your reasons, which is why I won’t push further.”
Lora wanted him to say more but she sensed there would be no further discussion.
Marcel turned off the engine. “Pull your hood up and keep your head down, okay? And don’t speak until we’re at my work station.”
Lora nodded, her anxiety increasing. She couldn’t believe this was really going to happen. But she knew she couldn’t escape it, not when she was the only one who could save them.
She pulled her cobalt blue hoodie over her head and reached for her bag on the back seat. Her legs felt shaky as she climbed out of the car and surveyed her surroundings. The parking lot belonged to what looked like an old factory, a fitting place for a secret entrance. Marcel headed in the opposite direction. He must have sensed Lora’s confusion because he slowed down, looking over his shoulder at her.
“The entrance isn’t here. We park here as a cover.”
They crossed the street and walked until more buildings came into view. Lora could see the faint shimmer of the portal in the distance, beckoning her. Marcel stopped in front of an old, unsuspecting building and opened the door to a small corner shop. Lora’s friends would have never guessed the entrance was here when they’d dared her to go to the black market.
Marcel held the door for Lora and looked at her expectantly. She quickly forced her legs to move again. Marcel didn’t waste time as he led her to the back of the shop, walking past the shop owner who didn’t look at them twice, to a locked door. After moving past several heavy doors that Marcel unlocked with ease, two flights of stairs, and a long darkly lit corridor, they seemed to have reached their destination.
Marcel stopped in front of a massive steel door with a keypad. He entered the code with no trouble and they were greeted by an aggressive-looking man who frowned at them. Lora didn’t fail to notice the gun strapped to his waist. The man looked Lora over with wary eyes.
“This is my daughter. I’m showing her the ropes,” Marcel said. He gave Lora a proud look and didn’t wait for an answer as he led her further down the corridor.
They rounded a corner and entered what looked like a maze of more shiny, grey corridors, each one leading to yet another door. A few people were walking around, some sorting through piles of shiny onyx boxes while others pulled small wagons with packed items. Some rooms provided a look inside as the top half of the door was open, inviting buyers. Lora tried to read some of the many signs plastered around the walls, listing prices and advertising special deals, mostly for indigo wine, spelled tech, and other items that promised to make one’s life easier. One of the signs advertised spelled jewellery that supposedly ensured good luck. Lora would never understand why humans bothered with these black market items.
