Chapter Five: "Finders Losers"
The sound of birds and the glow of light coming through the window awakened me early the next morning. There was a welcome weight upon my shoulder I realized belonged to Ami's head. My left hand was tingling and numb though I didn't mind. I would lay here with her like this forever, were it not for Aggi's warning that we leave the premises at the first sign of light.
"Hey," I said to try and rouse her before shaking her gently.
She hummed in my ear and fluttered her eyelashes open. "I was having the craziest dream! You were a knight and I was a lady-in-waiting. There was a lot of yelling and screaming going on because there was a fire-breathing dragon circling the village overhead."
"You weren't that far off," I told her in case sleep had stolen away her memory.
The next sound coming from Ami was a groan. "That's what I was afraid you were going to say. By the way, what is this stuff we're lying on?"
With my other hand, I picked up some of the soft material covering the floor of the shed and studied it.
"It was too dark in here last night to tell, but I believe these are wood shavings."
"There's a lot of them in here."
"Good thing," I responded, rolling away from her touch to stand and help her up. "Or we would've been sleeping on the cold, hard ground."
With enough light that was now filling the room, I could make out a variety of carving tools, as well as a collection of carved handles, spoons, and bowls hanging from the ceiling above a workbench.
"The man has some talent."
"He could make a decent income if he wasn't stuck in this town."
A quick kiss was placed to my cheek. "Good morning."
I returned the favor, only choosing her lips instead. "Good morning. Let's get out of here."
The door creaked a little when we opened it and when I looked toward the house, I saw Aggi standing in the doorway, holding a mug. She quickly motioned for us to leave the opposite direction in which we came.
Silently, I grabbed hold of Ami's hand and hid behind the shed before jogging through someone else's back yard. Just beyond lay one of the main streets and we slowed to a casual walking pace once we realized the town was coming alive. Just now, the sun was making its appearance over the distant ocean.
"It can't be much after 6:00. These people don't mess around."
We turned onto the road that would take us directly to the inn, watching with interest as one shop after another opened for business. When we arrived at the inn, the door wasn't only unlocked, it was standing wide open, being held that way by a heavy crock.
Ami and I were greeted immediately and enthusiastically by Mrs. Peterson.
"There you two are! I knocked a few minutes ago, but you'd already stepped out. My, my you're early risers! Breakfast will be served in an hour and a half if you'd like to freshen up a little."
I'd done my best to rid ourselves of any clinging wood material, though we still appeared as if we'd slept on the ground.
"That's a good idea," Ami answered politely. "But we'll just take coffee."
"Oh." The plump woman seemed almost disappointed. "Well, the coffee is already prepared. Be my guest."
"I'll grab us a cup if you want to go on up."
"Thanks," Ami took advantage of my suggestion and walked up the stairs. I watched her as she went, taking full advantage of the view.
When I entered our room a few minutes later, two mugs in one hand, I noticed she had done her best not to disturb the dangerous bed and had tossed our suitcases onto a nearby chair. I set the mugs onto the dresser, put my luggage on the floor, and left hers on the chair by itself. Once I'd retrieved my needed toiletry items, I walked toward the bathroom, only to be met by her smiling face. She was rubbing her hair dry and was wearing a plain red robe. If only there was more time.
"I wasn't going to say anything," she admitted in passing. "But apparently these people don't heat their bathing water. Enjoy!"
Perhaps a cold shower was what I needed right about now.
Ami had been correct about the water. I'd never taken a quicker in my life!
Soon, I'd made myself more presentable and stepped out to discover Ami had already repacked. She stepped inside the bathroom, grabbed my belongings to put in my suitcase, and securely closed it.
"My thoughts exactly," I told her. "As soon as we find Quinn, we need to get out of here. Come on."
We left our empty coffee mugs on the dresser and gladly left the room, unable to find Mrs. Peterson downstairs.
"Maybe she's in the kitchen," Ami guessed.
It was a good assumption. After leaving the large key on the reception desk, we headed toward the car.
"How are we going to find this castle?" I asked while driving us away from the inn.
Ami peered out the windshield. "There do seem to be several hills surrounding the village, though I doubt they all have castles on them."
She was kidding, of course, because once we'd driven out of the village, it was obvious where the home of Asa Voss was located.
"That's huge!" Ami exclaimed as we drove closer.
"Yeah, but who'd want to live in a castle? It would always be damp, drafty and cold." That was my argument anyway.
"You're right I'd prefer a palace anyway."
"Queen Ami?" I played along.
"I like the sound of that."
A winding road led us up to the towering medieval structure. There was no gate or even a fence, so I assumed Miss Voss didn't mind company, although the feeling I was experiencing at the moment wasn't a good one.
"This place gives me the creeps."
Ami had expressed my own thoughts. "Me too, which is why we should locate Quinn quickly so we can get the hell outta here."
The door knocker on the tall, heavy oak door was of some type of winged creature I didn't recognize. I knocked twice before stepping away to wait.
I wasn't sure who would open the door. A butler, possibly a maid. Maybe Asa Voss herself would answer it. I didn't expect to see who I did, however, and stood on the front step with my mouth open in surprise for a few seconds.
"Ben? What are you doing here?"
Quinn himself stepped outside and shut the door behind him.
"Mr. Quinn!" Ami finally managed to say. Apparently, she had been a little tongue-tied herself. "We've been looking all over for you!"
"For what reason? I phoned the office the other day and informed Iris of where I'd be."
I felt Ami's eyes move toward me and yet I struggled with what to say. Why exactly had we hurried all this way to bother a man on vacation? Because that man never took a vacation, that's why!
"Quinn, is everything all right?"
"Everything's fine! Now, I want the two of you to get in your car and head back to the city! I'll see you there myself as soon as I've cleared up a certain matter."
"What certain matter?" I asked. If he was on vacation, what matter could there possibly be to clear up?
"A, uh, a fishing license matter. Now, off with the both of you or I'll sic the dogs onto ya."
He still had his sense of humor, though my senses were telling me something was wrong. Terribly wrong. He was lying and he'd never lied to me before.
"Get going, both of you, and don't worry about me."
After a smile and a wink, Quinn stepped inside and shut the door.
Slowly, I made my way across the stone drive back to the car and silently slipped inside and shut the door. Ami joined me, though looked at me just as suspiciously.
"We aren't doing what Mr. Quinn asked, are we?"
"Of course not."
Several seconds passed by without another word. I was starting to believe that Asa Voss had some sort of power over Quinn to make him send us away when he should've at least invited us in. He was hiding something and I was determined to find out exactly what it was.
"Then what do we do?" Ami reminded me I hadn't said anything for a while.
"We go back to the library. There's something going on here that Aggi hasn't told us about. She said Miss Voss was keeping everyone a prisoner. What does that mean exactly?"
"How can they be prisoners when there are roads leading out of town in several directions?"
I was glad Ami was in agreement with me, although she usually was. We made a good team.
"Aggi has the answer."
"If she'll tell us," Ami pointed out. "She seems to be frightened."
I started the car's engine and pulled out and away from the castle. "Then it's our job to make sure she feels safe."
"How are we going to do that?"
Ami wasn't asking me any questions I hadn't already asked myself. The truth is, I was running short on ideas. I was kinda making this up as I went. Honesty might jar an idea from her mind. She was, after all, the more intelligent one in the car.
"I'm not sure."
I drove on and looked at Ami twice before she turned her head to gaze out the window. Apparently, she had nothing to offer either. This trip might not turn out as well as I'd hoped.
