Chapter Four

I reached Sabine’s house in no time, cautiously looking around me the whole time. 

My mom greeted me in surprise that I was home so early. I explained the schools policy  and told her I’ll probably have to find a job, and asked if Sabine was here or at her shop. 

I walked out to the garden where Sabine was; she didn’t bother to look up at it as she tended whatever plants were in the lines of pots. 

“Is this necklace Amethyst?” I asked, trying to keep my voice calm. 

She nodded her head, and continued to work. 

“Ok and how would someone know that just by looking at it?” 

She paused for a second, but then continued. 

“The color, dear “

“Is it true that it protects my thoughts?” I asked, thinking back to the strange man. 

She stopped now turning her attention to me, her eyes narrowing.

“That depends if I give you the answer, will you give me the reason why you’re asking.”

“I ran into a man on my way home. He looked at my necklace and asked what secrets I was keeping.” 

I had thought about hesitating and making up some lie, but I had a feeling she would see through it. 

My Aunt had a sense about her like she always seemed to know more than she was letting on.

“What did he look like?” She pressed on. 

“Pale. That’s all I really remember.” 

Sabine walked around the pots coming closer to me and when she got almost face to face... she sniffed me. 

I staggered back at the action in shock. Sabine was out there, I knew she was definitely someone who believed in things outside of the normal. Especially since she had a business selling herbal remedies, spells and potions. Not that I believed in any of it, but it seemed like a lot to the town. 

“Smells sweet. Unnaturally sweet.” She said calmly, almost lost in her own thoughts. 

“I was in the diner” 

Sabine waved her hand dismissively. 

“After school you should come to my shop. I can drive you home from there.” 

I reluctantly agreed, only because I had genuinely been afraid of my life for a minute there. 

Sabine returned to her gardening without another word. 

I walked to my room deciding to call one of my old teammates. Searching through my duffle bag, I finally found my cell phone. It still had half a battery, but I had no missed calls or texts. I also noticed I had absolutely no service. Great; maybe they have been trying to reach me and they couldn’t. At least I hope so. 

Walking around Sabine’s house I realize she didn’t have a computer here. The downstairs had a small living room to the left of the front door with a small beige couch, a wood coffee table and some mirrors and plants hanging up. No TV either.  The dining room  was just past the living room, it had a small dark wooden table set with 4 matching chairs. The kitchen was to the left of the dining room, with a door leading directly to the backyard where Sabine had a porch before her giant garden started. To the right of the front door was a long wall with two doors, one was a closet and the other was a half bathroom that simply had a toilet and sink. The stairs were at the end of the wall.  The upstairs was just as small as the downstairs. The stairs lead to a small landing before turning the other way so you were directly over the living room, dining room and kitchen. Sabine’s room was over the living room and she had her own bathroom. The door was always closed so I really had no idea what it looked like. Mine and my mom's room were to the right with a bathroom connecting both of ours. I was glad each room had their own door to the bathroom. However, I didn’t like that my window was directly above the backyard and the woods behind our house was my view every night. 

I knocked on my mom's door softly, after a few minutes with no answer. I set out for Sabine again. It was only 3pm and I really had no idea what to do with my time. With no computer or working cellphone, I was forced to see what else this town has to offer. The only problem was I really didn’t want to walk by myself again. 

“Is there any place with internet here?”

I asked Sabine who was still in her garden. 

“Possibly the library? I’m not really sure. The town  doesn’t  really have a need for it.”

“Wait, no one in town has internet?” I asked in confusion. 

“You know what? I need some crystals from my shop to keep the fairies out of my garden. I can drive you if you want?” Sabine offered, ignoring my question. 

Fairies?? I really should consider taking Meghan’s offer at the diner instead. 

Sabine drove me into the town which is a nice 10 minute drive, instead of the 30+ minute walk. 

She dropped me off in front of what looked like an old cottage. This building had been a few blocks off the main strip with a majority of the other shops. She told me she would pick me up in a few hours. 

I walked into the cottage and was surprised how large it actually was. Every wall was lined with books, large cushion chairs were placed through the home; small tables and a lamp placed near each chair. 

“Hi! Welcome to the library! Are you new here? I’ve never seen you before. Do you want to see my favorite book? I can read it to you if you want!” A small girl no older than 6 or 7 said excitedly as she came running towards me. She has a bright pink dress on with two bright pink bows in her brown hair to match. 

“Madeline! What have I told you about approaching strangers?” An older woman came around the corner. She quickly grabbed Madeline before the little girl had a chance to plow into me. She gave me an exhausted look but a gentle smile. 

“I’m sorry. We don’t see people much so I’m afraid she has no sense of who is friendly and who is not.”

I smiled at them both. There was a sense of warmth in this place that I hadn’t expected. 

“It’s fine really. I’ve never met someone so excited to read before. I am new by the way. I’m Hayley.” 

“Maya. There’s really no rhyme or reason to the placement of the books. Sorry. My grandparents built the place and they were book hoarders. It wasn’t really meant to be a library, it just kind of became one. I may or may not know where a subject is, but you can always ask.” She said, pushing Madeline towards the back of the house where they had come from. 

“I was kind of interested in crystals or stones or gems. I’m really not sure what they’re called, but especially about Amethyst” 

Looking this up on the internet would have been ten times faster, but apparently this town lives in the Stone Age and I would have to do it the old fashioned way. 

Maya thought about it for a minute before saying,

“Afraid we don’t have much. But if you go on the Main Street, there’s a shop called Sabine’s Apothecary. She would know more than anything you could find in my books.” 

I grimaced, Sabine only shared what she wanted to share. And it seemed like she wasn’t willing to share much with me. 

“Alright I’ll try that. But I have time to kill now so I guess books about Vampires?”

Maya let out a big smile. 

“That I do have! Do you want fact or fiction?” 

“What do you mean?” I asked curiously. Shouldn’t all books on vampires be fiction? But then again I was the crazy one who wanted to read about it because the man I met might be one. 

Maya looked at me suspiciously before turning to a shelf, and handing me a book labeled “Vampires: Need to Know”. The book almost looked like a personal journal. Majority of the pages looked hand written with some really nice illustrations. 

Maya paused before walking away. 

“You know it doesn’t hurt to believe in things you’ve never seen. It’s better to be prepared for the impossible instead of dead.” 

She left me to read, disappearing before I could reply.