Chapter 13

CHAPTER 13

P aige held her breath, her stomach twisting into a tight knot. "Problem? What problem?"

"Flat tire," Cassie said with a wrinkled nose.

"Really? Like…sabotaged?"

Cassie shook her head. "No, just flat. I just need to change it. I've got a full-sized spare. Actually, Damien is changing it. I should get back out there to help him, but I just wanted to let you know not to rush."

Paige sucked in a breath and nodded. "Thanks, Cassie."

"Flat tire, huh?" Dewey said with a shake of his head as he bit into another piece of bacon. "That stinks. How random."

"Typical with our luck."

"Yeah. Oh well, seems like we'll be on our way in no time." Dewey guzzled down a glass of orange juice.

"Stop drinking so much. We'll be stopping for a bathroom break two minutes into our drive."

"Will you stop policing me? This is an adventure. I'm in a mansion and enjoying a lovely breakfast. Calm down, Paige."

"I can't calm down." She leapt from her seat, her fingers curling into fists. "We are only halfway through finding these keys. Then we need to go into the wilds of Maine to use them. And then we need to get back with the serum."

"And we will."

"But how much time will have passed? My mom was in Bucksville for a really short amount of time but like six months passed in the real world." She plopped into her seat. "Dewey, what if we don't make it in time?"

Dewey heaved a sigh, finally pushing his plate away. "Paige, we're doing the best we can. We're working hard to find these keys, and that's all we can do."

"But what if it's not enough."

Dewey rubbed her shoulder, his expression turning serious. "If our best is not enough, then that's the way it is. I know this is hard, but twisting yourself into a pretzel over it isn't helping. It's just going to drive you crazy."

A tear fell to her cheek, and she flicked it away with a sniffle. "Wrong answer."

"No, it's not the wrong answer. The answer is you need to think positive. We're doing the best we can do. You need to believe that we'll make it."

"Do you think we will?"

"Heck yeah!" Dewey answered. "Look what happened with my parents. We randomly got stuck in the jungle just when they needed us the most. And we saved them."

Paige bobbed her head, sniffling again. "Right. We can do this."

"Yes, we can. We'll find these keys and save your mom."

Paige pressed her lips together as she continued to nod. "Yes. We can do this. We will do this."

"That's it. That's the positive thinking we need."

"We've beaten werewolves, vampires– "

The smash of a cup on the floor startled her and stopped her words. She glanced up to find Kelly, mouth open in a wide O, staring at her. "You've beaten what? "

Heat washed over Paige as she shot a panicked glance at Dewey.

"Vampires and werewolves," Dewey answered. "In a game, of course. We play a role-playing game. Paige and I don't always like to admit it because it's a little dorky, but…"

"Oh," Kelly answered, a smile crossing her face as she pressed a hand to her chest. "Good thing. For a second there I thought we were about to get another shock."

She bent down to pick up some of the larger pieces of the smashed mug. "Can you imagine? Vampires and werewolves?"

She chuckled, and Paige and Dewey joined in with her laughter.

"That's insane," Paige answered, still nervously chuckling.

"Right? I mean, I know we inherited a mansion by pure chance, but…that goes too far."

Paige continued her nervous chuckling. "Right, totally."

Cassie shuffled into the room, and Paige leapt from her seat. "Ready? Are we ready?"

"Yep. Tires all changed. Damien's washing his hands, and then we'll be ready to roll."

Kelly crossed to her and pulled her into a hug. "Aw, this was too short of a visit. I hope you and your mom can come back again soon."

"Hey, I didn't even get to ride the carousel, so, we will definitely be back."

Kelly grinned at her before they exchanged a hug.

"Ready?" Cassie asked Paige with a grin.

"Yep." Paige glanced over her shoulder at Dewey who shoved another strip of bacon into his mouth as he crossed the room.

"Ready," he murmured.

"Sorry to pull you away from the bacon," Cassie said with a chuckle .

"It's okay. I hope the bed and breakfast has good bacon."

Cassie nodded. "Ellie makes a mean breakfast."

Dewey stopped, his features crinkling. "What about dinners?"

Cassie laughed as they stepped into the hall. "She does pretty good with that, too, but given our short notice, we may just head to the diner. You'll love it. Great burgers and shakes."

"That sounds promising. I love a good burger," Dewey answered as they reached the foyer.

Lily and Damen waited for them, and after a set of goodbyes that left Paige antsy, they finally headed out the door.

Paige eagerly climbed into the backseat of Lily's SUV and clicked on her seat belt. She slid her eyes sideways to the doll propped in the seat next to her. "Did she spend the night in the car?"

Lily glanced in the rear-view mirror as she swung around the weeping woman fountain. "No, Cassie snuck her in last night and out this morning."

"Sleep, bed," the ghost said.

"Oh, that's good," Paige answered. "So, about a five-hour drive?"

"Yep." Lily patted Dewey's arm. "Don't worry, we'll stop for lunch."

"Oh good," Dewey answered. "I was wondering about that."

Lily chuckled as the mansion faded behind them, and they headed for the highway with Cassie trailing behind them. "My husband was the same way. We wouldn't be finished with one meal before he was asking about the next."

"That's Dewey," Paige said with a chuckle.

They spent the next few hours chatting on and off. Anxiety rose in Paige as the time ticked by. She tried to study the scenery, but she felt anything but relaxed. Her mind continuously wandered to her mother. How was she faring? Would they make it in time?

The stop for lunch proved tedious, with Paige tense and shoveling her food down in her best effort to get back on the road.

"Hey, you okay?" Damien asked as they waited outside of the bathrooms for Lily and Cassie.

Paige shifted the takeout container in her hands. "Yeah, just…anxious to get going. With every second that passes, I just feel like…we're going to be too late."

Damien pressed his lips together in a consoling half-smile. "Yeah, I get it. But we're going as fast as we can. And we've got some pretty great help."

"Yeah," Paige said with a nod. "Yeah, they're pretty nice. I mean…they dropped everything to chauffeur us around and make sure we find these keys."

"Cassie's pretty fun. It's a shame she's had so much tragedy."

"Uh-oh, do you like Cassie?"

Damien chuckled. "I do…as a friend. Believe me, we don't need to go further than that with the life I lead."

"Yeah, well, her mother is carting around a ghost in her backseat, so…her life is pretty weird, too."

"Not as weird as mine," Damien answered with a chuckle. "Or yours, apparently."

"Okay," Lily said with a deep breath in as she emerged from the bathroom. "We're ready."

"Great." They made their way to the car and climbed back in to continue the last bit of their journey. Paige sat with the foam container on her lap, staring down at it. "Uh, what should I do with the food?"

"Just open the container and put it on Ri's lap. She'll handle the rest. "

Paige wrinkled her nose as she popped open the top and glanced at the ghost.

"Eat," Ri said.

Paige set the food on the doll's dress before she flicked her gaze out the window again.

A few minutes later, she glanced back, finding the container half-empty. "Oh, she's eating it."

"Yep. Just like the tacos. She's a good eater."

"That's…"

"Weird," Lily said with a chuckle as she pulled off the highway. "Cassie thinks so, too. And don't even get me started on how Wyatt feels about it."

Paige's heart thumped a little faster against her ribs as the highway turned to homes. "Is this Salem Falls?"

"Close," Lily said. "It's just ahead. We'll pass through it on the way to the B&B."

As the buildings filled in around her, Paige studied the beginnings of the quaint small town. They continued down Main Street past shops and restaurants.

The town fell away just as quickly as it popped up, and the road turned curvy. After another minute, Lily flicked on her turn signal and pulled onto a gravel driveway. The car bumped along until a rambling Victorian became visible through the trees.

"Oh, wow," Paige said as she ducked to view it. "Looks nice."

"It's really great," Lily answered with a smile as she brought the car to a stop. They climbed out as the front door popped open. A dog bounded from inside, howling at the top of her lungs.

"Whoa," Dewey said, leaning back against the car. "Down, boy."

"She's a girl, and Lola's bark is worse than her bite," a woman said as she descended the few stairs to the ground. "Hi, I'm Ellie."

"Nice to see you again, Ellie," Lily said with a smile before making introductions. "Thanks for accommodating us on such short notice."

"No problem," Ellie answered with a smile as she shoved her hands into her pockets. "I'm always glad to help. Come on in."

They grabbed their bags from the back of the car and lugged them up the stairs into the grand old Victorian.

Paige's eyes raised up the ornate staircase before she glanced at the grandfather clock ticking the time away, mentally cataloging a place where the key could be.

"So, I haven't seen this key before, but there are some pretty secretive hiding spots in this old place. I'll bet if we put our heads together, we'll be able to find it," Ellie said as she shuffled in behind them.

The dog bounded behind her, her nubby tail wagging as she sniffed Dewey. "Ellie, he smells weird."

Paige's eyes went wide as she glanced up at Dewey.

"Sorry," Ellie said with a grin, "Lola is very friendly, she just barks a lot. You can pet her if you'd like."

"Ellie, no, he smells like an animal, not a human."

"Who smells like an animal?" a sassy voice asked.

Paige scanned the room in search of another human but didn't find any. Instead, a black cat slinked down the stairs, peering through the banister.

"This one," Lola answered, staring up at Dewey. "He smells funny."

The cat sniffed in the air. "Ew, he does. What kind of animal is that? Smells like a reptile."

Ellie grinned as if nothing was happening. "Why don't we get you settled in your rooms? "

Paige crinkled her nose, wondering if the woman heard them talking or not.

"Ew, Ellie, don't put that reptile in here. If he stays, I go." The cat arched her back in the air, hissing at Dewey.

"Stop that, Cleo," Ellie said with a nervous chuckle. "She's friendly, too…once you get to know her. Follow me."

They mounted the stairs, climbing up to the second level. Ellie showed them each their rooms. Paige shuffled into hers and dumped her bag on the luggage rack with a sigh. At least this place wasn't bigger than the last one, but where would they even start?

A knock sounded at her door, and she pulled it open, finding Dewey on the other side.

He pushed inside, and she slid the door closed.

"Ugh," he groaned, tugging the ring off, "I need a second to be me."

"Did you hear the pets talking or have I officially lost it?"

"No, I could hear them, but no one else was reacting, so I just didn't say anything. Especially after that dang cat accused me of being a reptile." Dewey smashed a fist against his paw as he floated in the air.

"Well…you kind of are."

"Dragons are…okay, we're reptiles, but she didn't have to say it like that. I didn't say, ‘Ew, Paige, it's a feline.'" Dewey rolled his eyes.

"No, but you like cats. And this cat…she doesn't seem to like anybody."

"No, she's a real sass-mouth, that one. The dog seems nice, though."

"Yeah," Paige agreed with a nod. "I wonder if they can help us find the key."

Dewey opened his mouth to answer when a shriek sliced through the air, startling them both. Paige's heart stopped as she wondered what had just happened to elicit the blood-curdling exclamation.

With wide eyes, she glanced at Dewey, afraid to move.