“Not really,” Rowena said. She fiddled with the loose threads on her sleeves. “It’s a lot to explain.”
“I have all the time in the world.”
Rowena sighed and took my elbow. We walked down the street, the two of them flanking me as they had when I took walks as a child.
“The thing is, we have to go through another witch to find her,” Rowena said. “The former is a gatekeeper of sorts.”
I cocked my head. “Like a bodyguard? Do all witches have another witch guarding them?”
Theodora made a face that told me I had said something extremely foolish. “I’m sorry, dear. This must be confusing you.”
Rowena snorted. “Never mind that. Let’s hurry.”
A short minute’s walk led us to a very familiar building.
“The post office?” I asked, staring at the painted blue door.
Rowena shook her head and opened the one beside it. I exhaled. Of course. Miriam’s Terrariums.
This time, the snail lady was draped in shawls of mustard and tangerine. A gaudy turquoise turban sat on her head and wobbled when she threw out her arms to welcome us. “Hello and welcome to...oh, it’s you two again.”
“Yes, Miriam,” Theodora said, sounding almost annoyed. “We need to use the passageway.”
“Really? I thought you swore never to step foot in the village again,” Miriam lowered her arms and stared at me. “Unless it’s because of her?”
Rowena stepped forward, blocking me from view. “That’s none of your business. And we need you to take us to Lana.”
Miriam tutted. “Ah, then it is my business,” she said, throwing yet another shawl over her shoulder. Her brass bangles clinked together as she crossed her arms. “No one has passed through here for sixteen years.”
“Which is exactly why we need to pass now,” Theodora said.
The two stared at each other until Miriam broke her gaze.
“Very well,” she said with a scoff. “Come along then.” She strode through a beaded curtain and motioned for us to follow.
Behind the curtain was a small sitting area. We wove through the poufs and rugs that littered the floor, stopping in front of a poorly woven tapestry. Miriam lifted it out of the way, revealing a rectangular piece of brick wall. She pressed in five bricks in no particular order. The wall rolled back with a rumble. Before I knew it, a set of dusty stairs appeared, leading to a dark pit below.
“There’s a passageway in your shop,” I said stupidly.
Theodora patted my shoulder. “It leads to Witch Village,” she said. “There are few such passageways throughout Olderea. This one happens to be the closest.”
“They require very complex magic to make,” Rowena continued. “Witches with great skill can materialize one on the spot and it’ll take them wherever they wish. Most, however, can only use preexisting ones like this.”
I suppose my nannies thought spouting trivia would distract me from the fear boiling in my gut and the nerves weakening my legs.
“Yes, yes. Hurry now,” Miriam said, shooing us forward.
“You’re not bringing a lamp?” I said in a small voice.
Miriam shrugged and grabbed a lamp from a low table. The light didn’t penetrate far into the dense darkness, but it was still some comfort as Theodora and Rowena led me down the stairs. The air cooled as we descended. When the stairs ended, the ground beneath was rough and uneven. Theodora and Rowena’s hands in mine were my only source of comfort.
“I can’t see a thing,” I said. Miriam’s lantern was nothing but a weak blob of light, as if the darkness was suffocating the flame.
“That’s the point,” Rowena said in a cheery voice. I knew she was speaking so for my sake. “It discourages trespassers.”
“How is anyone supposed to see where they’re going?” I muttered.
“There are no real directions,” Theodora said, squeezing my fingers. “We just have to walk forward until the passageway opens for us.”
