C H A P T E R T H I R T Y T W O
Hobbling to the edge of the cliff, Lila took in a deep breath. She could smell the salty water and taste it in her mouth. Sitting down, she made sure that her legs dangled over the edge, but not so much that there was a risk of her falling. She still wasn't strong enough to save herself completely. It had been a month since she got back. Two weeks since Ronnie's trial had started (since he was still alive) and two weeks since she'd read the diary. As she read further into the book, she realised it was Papi's. A journal of his journeys and the one which lead him to the stone.
Opening the journal, she read it as she fiddled with the stone. She'd hung it on her neck for safe-keeping on this trip she and Logan had taken. They thought they needed to it to do it on their own.
May 1947
On my trip throughout Egypt, I realised that the desert's held many secrets. Not only did they hold the pyramids, hiding their King's bodies, but I found an old house. A cave.
Of course, being nosey and a traveller, I explored. Let me tell you, there was nothing there. Nothing for an adventurer like me. I wasn't going to give up though. The best secrets are hidden extremely well.
Carefully walking deeper into this cave, I felt as if there was something calling for me. I did hear an anguished cry from deep within the cave. I knew it meant that there were more to this cave. More secrets it could hide.
The cave got wetter as I travelled deeper. It was almost like a river moving. Following the river's flow, I came to a circled room. All along the walls were various hieroglyphs. I couldn't make out what they meant but I took photos of them. Turns out, I didn't need to.
In the middle of the room, sat a man. An old, wrinkly looking man. I wasn't sure whether to leave or ask what he was doing. It looked like he'd been there for a while. His bones were prodding out of his skin and he looked feeble. Almost like if he were to move, he'd break every bone in his body.
But when he spoke, that was when I was frozen. He spoke like an old wiseman. It seemed that he possessed an infinite amount of wisdom.
“Son...” His voice rang towards me. “Come closer. I dare not hurt you.”
Me, being the young, naïve man I am, listened and stepped foot over the threshold. Instantly, the walls connected together, trapping me in that room. I was frightened to what was going to happen.
“Who are you?” I had asked, acting brave. My wolf was telling me this man meant no danger, but I was still wary. He must've been strong to survive in here. It was basically dust and it had taken me hours to get down to where I was then.
“Me? I am a carrier, like you, Gary Edward Yang.” When he said my full name, I had gone onto an instant alert. I'd never seen that man before yet he knew my name.
“A carrier? Of what?” I had asked him, wanting to know what he meant. I should have been more focused on my well-being but no, I decided against that. This man was a curious case. He was odd.
“Of the stone. Of the stone of power.” He said. Stretching his arms out, I saw a bright, red, sparkling jewel in his hands. “Take it. It's yours now.”
Making my way over there, I gently took the stone from his hands. After, he had retracted them.
“You must hide that stone, and give it to your grandchild.” I was baffled. I don't have grandchildren! I hadn't even met my mate yet!
“I do-” He interrupted me.
“When you do. She who bears the Taijitu symbol will be the one who will end the chain. The original will rest and the world will be safe, once again.” I rose my eyebrows at him – he was delirious! “My time is nearing and it cannot stay here without a guardian. They have failed and now she seeks a new host. Your grandchild will be one of them. Give the stone to your mate when the time is right. She will guide it to The Guardians and they will know what to do.”
A flash of bright light danced across the room and it transformed into my room. The one where I was staying temporarily. Where I'm writing this now.
The man isn't here, but he's saying something. And one day, I'll remember and write it down.
Smiling at the entry, Lila realised that Papi had written that ages ago. He'd held onto the stone for over fifty years – there was dedication right there!
Looking around, she realised that all she could see was endless sea. Papi had told her to come here. She'd read it in the diary. Everything added up to endless rivers and where could she think of a place like that? Land's End. And that what she and Logan were doing here, and reading the final letter from Papi.
“Li, you ready?” Logan asked, as he placed himself beside her. Nodding, she placed the notebook next to her and extracted the envelope. Because of the strong wind, she was being careful. If the letter blew away, they were in a tough spot.
Thankfully, she managed to get the letter out and opened and was able to read it. It felt extremely heavy... but the paper was thin? She felt Logan's arms slide around to her waist to hold her close. Taking a deep breath, she started to read aloud the letter.
“Dearest Lila, my sweet granddaughter,
If you are reading this, then you must have read the majority of my journal and I must have passed. I knew when my end was coming and so did the mysterious man I met in my twenties. You must be wondering, how did my Papi know? Well, being a carrier means several things.
Your lovely Mamaw was a prophet. Destined to guide you down the right path, but we all know you'll follow the path you want to. It's how she knew a lot of things, however, once you finish your task, Mamaw will no longer have her powers. I wouldn't feel bad, I think she'd like to not know things once in a while.
As for me, I was destined to carry the jewel. I soon went on a journey to learn about it, but didn't record it. The man I met told me it was dangerous, and I learnt way. That jewel holds an incredible amount of power. The ability to control the undead, the ability to become immortal... it holds all the traits of every supernatural creature out there. It's hunted by many, and wanted destroyed by many.
The man was right about you destroying the jewel. I bet you are sat near the ocean, right? You've been following the records of water? I thought so.
I'm writing this to you, because I know it will help you. You don't want the jewel, do you? The man told me you'd go through some extreme lengths and that you, and your loyal mate, would end up wanting to destroy it. Get rid of it. And that's why I led you to water.
There is no way to completely destroy it. But what that man did, was hide it in a deep, hidden cave where no one would enter. And he hid there for a long time. That jewel had never seen the light of day until I showed it. If you saw the entry, you saw that he said something to me.
You see, a carrier passes the message on until it gets to the right person at the right time. The message was delivered to me, finally, a few hours ago. A few hours after I found out I was terminally ill. Yes, not long ago was it? It made me realise that there was no way of prolonging it. The longer I waited, the weaker I got, the higher the consequences were.
I could have dropped dead at any moment. It wasn't just a terminal illness, it was the curse of being a carrier. A shorter lifespan, so that the message wouldn't fall into the wrong hands.
My message, my last message, is to you Lila. This message that was sent over the years was meant to arrive to you, and it finally has. Those words that man said to me?
“A jewel of power can be hidden inside a cave. Inside a river. Inside the ground. To completely remove it from the world, the jewel should be dropped at a cliff's edge with the last message wrapped around it. Hidden from the world, the world will be saved.”
I know you are a smart girl. You'll figure out the last message and where the stone should be dropped. In fact, I bet you are at a cliff's edge, holding the last message with your mate.
Know that I love you and your brother and Mamaw with all my heart, and make sure you all never forget it.
Papi. xxxxx
Trails of fresh tears were falling out of Lila's eyes at the end. The final message? This was her last message and... she couldn't even keep it!
The odd thing was how Papi knew. He knew he'd die, and he knew what Lila would have to do. She wondered how he knew...
“So, we have to wrap the stone around the last message... and then throw it into the sea?” Logan asked, confirming Lila's thoughts. She nodded.
“I... I guess so.” Taking off the necklace, she passed it to Logan. “Can you take the jewel off the end?”
“Why?”
“Because we can tie the paper to the jewel using that.” Lila explained. The paper would fall off surely?
Logan nodded, and tried to figure out how to take apart the necklace without letting it fall into the raging sea below them. It took him a while, but they were there all day. It was a break from the world they'd been heavily involved in. No-one could find them here. Not even the alpha knew they were here. He just thought they were off to bury the jewel.
When he finally managed to separate the jewel from the chain, Lila opened the letter up for Logan to place the jewel in. After he placed it in the middle of the letter, Lila wrapped it around the jewel delicately. She then let Logan tie the chain around the parcel like a ribbon.
Holding it in her hands, she let the tears continue to fall. This was her last letter from Papi and she was forced to chuck it into an ocean. Thankfully, she could keep the journal.
“Are we doing this then?” Lila asked, her voice thick with tears.
“We have to.” Logan told her, wrapping his hands around hers. They were both holding the parcel.
“Together?” She asked, looking at Logan.
“Together.” He agreed. They held out their conjoined hands over the dark water, and let go simultaneously.
Watching as the parcel fell freely, they waited for it to dive into the water. As soon as it touched the water, ripples of a variety of colours followed it. They felt the earth rumble, and as they turned, they saw a single red rose rise, with a little label attached.
Smiling, Lila heard that all too familiar annoying voice in her head, except this time, it was something which she was delighted to hear.
“Thank you.” Evangeline told her. Lila could feel that Evangeline felt at peace.
Helping Lila up, Logan held her. Enjoying the moment, Lila closed her eyes and felt the cool wind blow across her face. She could taste something sweet in the air, and knew it was freedom. They were finally free.
“Lila...” Logan started, Lila slowly fluttered open her eyes and stared at Logan. “I love you.” He told her, with a small smile playing on his face. Lila gave him a small grin of her own.
“As I love you.”
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Okay, I'll upload the Epilogue sometime during the week, I'll start to write it after I've written a chapter for Falling For Grace and Unmasking My Truths! (Would love it if you could check them out!)
Hope you enjoyed the chapter and the story! :) x