Post by StoryGirl83 on Jun 27, 2011 0:48:39 GMT -5
Chapter Four – Reacting
Nathan had decided to just get back to work. He didn’t believe in magic. He didn’t believe in blessings or curses. He believed something odd had happened, but he believed there was a scientific explanation, even for the chilling feeling he still felt that evil had somehow possessed him.
Wyatt did not agree with him. He knew magic and this was magic. It wasn’t good magic either. He scrutinized the description, but found nothing that could explain what happened. This was not a blessing by any stretch of anyone’s imagination. This was magical and this was a curse. Of this Wyatt was sure.
The questions that now pursued Wyatt as he examined the description were who or what had cursed this stone and what was the curse.
The door to the store room opened and Andrew Parker, young man who worked as a tour guide for school groups, entered. “I just let in that accountant who’s going through Lauren’s accounts. He wanted to talk to you, Wyatt. Can you spare a few minutes?”
Wyatt glanced back at Nathan. His friend was busy sorting through boxes finding which ones went to the new exhibit they were opening in Monday. “Is Lauren here yet?”
Andrew shook his head. “She won’t be here until ten.”
Wyatt frowned. “Does she know she’d being audited?”
“Andrew nodded. “She said she doesn’t have anything to worry about, so why should she show up early.”
Wyatt sighed. “Would you mind calling her and telling her to take the day off?”
“And how do you explain that to Hal?” Andrew wanted to know. “Oh!” he exclaimed as he ran over to help Nathan keep a box from toppling over.
To Wyatt’s shock the green glow traveled through Andrew from the top of his head down as the action brought Andrew in contact with Nathan. Wyatt groaned and dug into his pocket. This was worse than he thought. He slipped his head into his pocket and pulled out his cell.
“Hey!” Nathan yelled, running at him. “What are you doing?”
Wyatt slipped out of the way, the image of Andrew with the green glow running down his body after touching Nathan still fresh on his mind. “I just need to call my brother. Would that be alright?”
Nathan frowned. After several seconds he nodded. He waved his hand at Wyatt. “Go ahead.”
Wyatt pulled out his phone, again. Stepping away from both Nathan and Andrew, he held his phone next to his ear. “Apartment.” He watched them as the phone dialed. He scowled when he got a busy signal. He disconnected the call and started another. “Chris.”
“Hey, that’s two calls,” Nathan protested.
Andrew looked at Nathan with a frown. “What’s the big deal?”
“He said he needed to call his brother,” Nathan informed him, trying to explain.
Andrew just looked confused. “But his brother is Chris.”
“Yeah, but the first one wasn’t Chris.”
“Chris doesn’t like to carry his cell,” Wyatt informed him quickly as the voice mail turned on. “Look, I need to leave a message.” He walked away, so that he was out of ear shot, or as close as he could get. “Chris, problem. I need you to find out everything you can about the Aphrodite Crystal. I think it’s cursed.”
Nathan must have heard him, because he stalked toward Wyatt.
Wyatt gulped. “There was a green glow,” he added as he stepped backward, “around Nathan and then Andrew.” He hit the wall. “What do you want, Nathan?”
“Give me the phone,” Nathan demanded, reaching out his hand.
“I think Nathan’s loosing it,” Wyatt whispered and closed the phone. “Catch!” Wyatt called out as he tossed the phone up in the air. He used Nathan’s distraction to get out of the way. He didn’t want to get infected unless he was sure he could get uninfected.
Nathan caught the phone in mid air and threw it to the ground. As Wyatt and Andrew watched in shock, Nathan ground it under his shoe.
Wyatt grimaced and looked at Andrew. “Can you stay down here with Nathan while I go talk to that accountant?”
Andrew snorted. “Are you kidding me?”
“Don’t leave,” Nathan ordered, though it wasn’t clear whom he was ordering.
“Andrew will stay here,” Wyatt informed him. “The accountant asked for me. Remember?”
Nathan looked questioningly at Andrew.
Andrew sighed and nodded. “I’ll be here. Just hurry back.”
Wyatt nodded quickly. “How about you make that call to Lauren while I’m gone,” he suggested.
“No phones,” Nathan demanded.
Wyatt sighed and looked at Andrew.
“Just go,” Andrew insisted. “The sooner you go . . .”
“The sooner I get back,” Wyatt finished. “Yeah, yeah. See you soon.” He didn’t bother waiting for an answer. As soon as he was out the door he closed it behind him. He glanced down the hall in both directions and orbed out.
Or he tried to.
Blue-white orb lights surrounded him, but nothing else happened.
Wyatt groaned. If he hadn’t already been sure there was something demonic going on, this would have settled it. Something might be up with his powers, but there was still the normal way to exit a building. Hopefully once he left he could orb out . . . or at least find a telephone. He needed to finish his call to Chris.
Since the front door was closer than his office and the phone there, he headed that way.
Wyatt reached the front entrance of the museum and pushed on the door. It didn’t even vibrate. It wasn’t that he expected this to be easy, not after he failed to orb at least, but he had expected the door to open.
He waved his arm at the door and got thrown across the room into the wall, slamming his shoulder hard against it. Wyatt pushed himself up and stared at the door. Did the door just deflect my powers?
Wyatt rubbed his shoulder as he walked over to the ticket booth. He unlocked the door and grabbed the phone from in the wall. After several seconds it became clear that there was no dial tone and there wasn’t going to be a dial tone.
Wyatt groaned. He needed to tell Chris what was going on and each additional fact he found scared him more. Someone had magically locked them in with a gem that was doing strange things to Nathan’s personality and likely to Andrew’s given too much more time. And now they’d cut the phone lines.
Wyatt did a mental inventory of who was in the building. He needed to keep anyone not yet exposed away from Nathan, Andrew and the gem. Considering he was already expected by the accountant, he decided to start there.
With one last look at the door he sighed and headed for the stairs. If someone had cut the phone lines and magically sealed the door, he wouldn’t put it past them to have done something to the elevator, too.