Emma was disappointed that she didn't get a call from Tancred that night. Her sadness wasn't really from hearing what was going on with the Bloor's, but mostly because she wanted to hear Tancred's voice. She didn't understand why she was falling so head over heels for him.
She went through the next day like a zombie, ignoring all the rude comments from kids at school and her lessons.. She even bombed a math test. But when the school bell rang, she jumped out of her seat and hurried through town towards Bloor's. When she got there, Tancred hadn't arrived yet. She was alone.
The bird girl began heading towards the spot where her and Olivia had hid, but a noise made her change her mind. There was a weird scraping sound coming from the charred ruins of the old school. Emma couldn't help but go near it. She slipped into the woods and made her way closer to the sound. She reached the sound after a few minutes.
From where she stood, she could vaguely see a man, probably no older than twenty near the man in a wheel chair looking over a table. There looked like metal scraps spread across the table. Emma leaned closer to see what they were, but while she crept through the woods, she tripped over a branch and tumbled to the ground.
The scraping sound stopped and both of the people in the ruins turned. Emma knew they couldn't see her, but they knew she was there.
The young man began heading towards the woods, jumping over the gap in the burned wall. Emma stood shakily and began running for her life. The man was behind her, shouting at her. She swore he could reach her as she broke through the trees into the open air. She spotted Tancred standing across the street, looking around.
"Tancred!" She yelled, crossing the street.
"Hey, Em--" She grabbed his arm and tugged him down the street towards the Cathedral, running past it and headed on towards her aunt's bookshop. She pulled the door open once they arrived and hurried inside.
She'd never run so much in her life. She collapsed in the doorway, gasping for air. She had been so scared, she hadn't even thought of changing into a bird. Running was never her strong point.
"Emma, what was all that about?" Tancred wondered, kneeling down so he was level with her. Julia Ingledew was already heading towards them, leaving a customer at the counter, mid-sentence.
"Emma, sweetheart, are you okay?" She wondered joining Tancred on the ground.
"I-- he-- there was--" She stammered not able to find the words. She was afraid to know what that man could do. He'd been so close to grabbing her. Now she'd ruined the cover for their whole group. They wouldn't be able to spy any longer.
"Take her into the back room." She told Tancred, "I'm going to take care of this customer, then I'll come back, okay Emma?"
Emma nodded and stood, heading towards the back room slowly, with Tancred behind her. Once they were in the room, Emma fell onto a coach, which, surprisingly, wasn't covered with books. Tancred moved some from an armchair across from her and sat down.
"So, Emma, what's wrong with you? We're supposed to be watching the Bloor's. We weren't supposed to leave," he was very confused about the situation and was worried about Emma.
"You need to call whoever is supposed to go in next and watch that building and tell them not to. I'm afraid our cover has been blown. Sorry," Her mind was so jumbled she couldn't even remember who was supposed to go in after them. But she was frightened to the core. The Bloor's were endowed, she remembered being told. She could only imagine what that young man's endowment could have been. She hoped she would never have to find out.
"I'll call them after you tell me what happened."
Emma sighed and collected her thoughts before speaking. She told him everything, from the moment she'd arrived there to when they reached the bookshop.
"It's a good thing he didn't catch you. That person coming after you was Manfred Bloor. He's a hypnotist, from what I've heard from Charlie's uncle, Paton. I think you should talk to Paton and get the whole story about the Bloor's. It's rather long, I hear. They have an extremely awful history. Personally, I've never heard all of it." Tancred said just as Julia entered the room.
"All of what?" She wondered.
"Nothing." Tancred shook his head, "Where is your phone. I need to make a couple phone calls."
"It's on the counter in the front. While you're out there, if anybody comes in, deal with them the best you can."
"Okay," Tancred nodded and stepped out of the backroom into the store.
"So, Emma, what's got you so shaken up?" Julia wondered, taking Tancred's seat. She listened to Emma tell the story again attentively. "I'll definitely have to get you to Paton. He's related to the Bloor's, in a way. He'll clear everything up for you."
"Thank you, Auntie." Emma smiled as Tancred entered the room.
"I'm stuck here for another hour until my mother can come and get me." Tancred sighed. "I hope you don't mind." He was looking at Julia.
"Not at all," She shook her head. "But I've got to get back to the store. There's some juice in the refrigerator if you guys get thirsty." She left the room.
"Are you feeling better?" Tancred wondered.
Emma nodded, "Yeah. I'm just so thankful Manfred didn't catch me. I can't imagine what he would have done to me."
"I wouldn't have let him hurt you. None of us would have. We would have found a way to get you out safe." Tancred promised.
"Really?" She'd never had anybody tell her that before. No one had ever cared enough for her.
"Yeah, definitely," Tancred smiled, making Emma blush slightly, "Us endowed need to stick together. We're like a family. At least, the good side is."
"What do you mean?" Emma inquired.
"Well, we can't all be good, can we? There's some more of us, but they're bad news. We think that they communicate with the Bloor's, especially Manfred. He's like their ring leader, I guess. It's probably because he can get just about whatever he wants."
"I hope I don't have to meet those people." Emma said.
"Trust me, you will. I never wanted to meet them either." He admitted.
"How did you meet them?" Emma asked.
"I just ran into one on the street. Her name is Dorcas Loom. She was with her brothers and her dogs. They're quite a gruesome bunch. And with my…stormy personality, we sort of got into a little disagreement. It couldn't be helped."
"What can Dorcas do?" I wondered.
"I think she bewitches clothes, but I'm not sure. Bewitching clothes isn't something that you can tell easily."
"True." Emma said, "Let's go to the front and sit with my aunt. I'm sure she feels lonely."
Tancred nodded and they headed out there. Julia did appreciate them coming out. As they settled themselves into a couple folding chairs, the door opened to reveal an aging man. He looked sort of mad.
But Emma wasn't really paying attention to him. Her eyes were on the young man behind him. It was Manfred Bloor.
okay, i finally updated this story... i have to admit it might turn out a little different than i originally planned, since i've sort of forgotten some of the stuff i had planned fromt he long break i had with this story, but it will still be good. i promise. i'm not going to have a review limit on this story any more, but the more reviews i get, the more i'll update.. maybe. i'm always tired and stuff from school, so i might not always update right away.
So please press the magical review button!!
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