The Ambrose Clique - now published on Amazon

13 - Stuck in Limbo

- updated -

"Wait you're a what?"

I'd pushed Felix into his dorm and explained everything that I'd found out from Hazelle, which left him sat on the bed, gaping at me. We were lucky Theo was out so I could speak freely. I was tired of secrets and whispers.

"A witch," I confirmed simply.

"Does that make Aurel a – a thingy?" He gulped visibly at the word witch and had cringed each time I said it myself.

"No, that's why I'm here. Skye basically told me that she's the only witch in the group. But we know they're not human now, Fe. You were right all along." I certainly sounded a lot more confident than I felt. I didn't even know how much of this I believed, but it was the only way to move forward.

"So you're certain? This Charles, their dad, is the same Charles from the history book?" He sounded uncertain himself. I nodded enthusiastically.

"It's a lead we can follow, which is more than we've had from looking in the library every night."

"Well I know someone we can talk to. I can take you there now, it's only one o'clock so we have time today," he offered after checking the time. Only one? It felt like a completely new day, not four hours since I met Skye.

"Who? Who can prove any of this?"

"My grandpa," he replied calmly, brushing over my outburst. In truth, I felt ridiculous.

"Why am I meeting everyone's grandparents today?"

Felix laughed quietly. "Old people have stories, they've been around for a while. They learn things."

Well, that would make ninety percent of the Fallyn's population valuable.

"Let's go!"

* * *

Felix's grandpa lived in a care home. I'd never liked them much, from what I'd seen of them. I had no family to visit, and I dreaded the day my mother would be a resident. The place was a limbo between life and death, a sort of holding room until you were completely ready.

The room was full of the elderly, sunk into overly cushioned armchairs and holding the hands of younger generations. There was a small man sat alone on a red armchair in the corner, one of the only inhabitants who was alone. He wore a brown flannel shirt and a red cap, with faded and torn blue jeans. His tanned skin resembled leather, dried and wrinkled. He didn't look very grandfatherly, he was rather rough at the edges. But he looked like he'd had a full life. As soon as I'd noticed him, Felix's pace sped up.

"Grandpa!" he called, moving to kneel beside the old man. I perched on an arm chair opposite them.

"Felix! Good to see you, son. Who's this?" He smiled at me, a smile that lacked a few teeth but reached his crinkled eyes.

"This is May. I brought her here because we have a few questions."

The old man grunted and nodded. "The name's Mick. I'll answer what I can."

"Grandpa, you grew up around here with all of the legends, right?

"I sure did. They weren't legends, boy. They're as real as you and I." His voice was rough and aged. He was staring at me the way you would stare at someone you recognised but couldn't place. Felix laughed, a small laugh that filled the rapidly growing silence.

"Well, did you know Charles Laurence?" he asked. I stayed silent, this felt like a conversation I wasn't a part of – despite the fact it was I who had gathered the information.