The Fairytale Life of Doris McQueen [#1] ✓

TEN

She read everything about this power and closed her eyes. She pictured her Dad, glasses awry and clothes dirty and torn. Nothing was happening but she kept on focussing on the picture in her mind. According to her Mom, mind-portals were about concentration. If you could tune out the other pictures from your mind a mind-portal would open to the person that you wanted to talk to.

Beads of sweat appeared on Doris' forehead and just about when she was about give up she felt something being pulled out from her. With a jerk she was now in a cell and her father was looking at her with wide eyes and open mouth.

"D-doris?" He asked, tears creeping into his voice. "Is that really you? Are you really here?"

"I don't know," Doris said, trying to walk towards him but finding it an incredible effort to move ahead. "I have Mom's diary and there was something about a mind-portal there-"

"Yes, yes, I know. Your Mom used to talk to me by a direct link. She taught me a thing or two," Alexander said, a smile creeping up his features. "She wasn't a fan of phones but that's not the point. Laurine and her guards after you. They think you stole some shoes of glass that are one of the power keys of Laurine's kingdom. They have banned her from entering the place ever again but if she has the shoes she can bargain her way in."

"She's after me?" Doris gulped. Dark raven hair and a cold, proud face flashed in her mind. She had no doubt that Laurine could do a lot of dangerous stuff. "How do I stop her?"

Alexander's shoulders slumped, "I don't know but you have to. Arabella never told me much about her old life. Laurine's got some weird plans. She's strong and from what I know, her plans are near completion. This couldn't bode well for humans or faeries."

"What sort of plans?"

"Be the Queen of Court and have a lethal army at her disposal to do her bidding," Alexander rattled off. He had been doing a lot of eavesdropping. Corporate success owed a lot to eavesdropping and spying, it seemed.

Doris remembered Laurine's vow of squashing humans like insects under her feet. She said decidedly, "Don't worry. I'll figure out something. Any chance of you being able to escape?" She didn't want her Dad to be there when Laurine decided to take revenge.

Alexander smiled proudly, "Have I ever failed at anything?"

Doris couldn't help smiling at her Dad's confidence. True, he never lost but he competed with humans like him and not superior beings like faeries. She hated making a distinction between humans and faeries like that but the truth was the truth. She wasn't taught to underestimate any situation and she wasn't going to start now. The room suddenly swung in front of her vision. She swallowed back a strong feeling of nausea.

Her hair swished to mid-thigh and she tried pushing it out of her eyes. The dizziness was bad enough as it. Add long, unmanageable hair to the equation and you get a very irritated Doris.

Alexander squinted at his daughter, "Didn't you have shorter hair?"

Doris gave a rueful laugh, "All part of the deal, Dad."

 "But tell me, you said you were with friends?" Alexander asked, knowing well that his daughter didn't have friends.

"Yeah...Dad," Doris said trying to not throw up. Her eyes threatened to close, "I'm with...I'm with Aunt Gemima and a boy from..." Her vision darkened and she felt as if she had just broken to the surface of a pool. She breathed deeply filling her lungs with air and willing her eyes to open.

"Doris, you scared me!"

Doris groaned at the sound of Adam's voice. The mind-portal was broken.