Boelik Read Online Free Page B

the door. There were workbenches and strange herbs and
liquids in vials scattered through the house. The house itself had
a hundred different scents that assaulted Olea’s nose.
    “ So, do you know where he
might be?” Helena asked, going over to a shelf filled with the
vials, lifting and turning some to better inspect their
contents.
    “ No, I lost the trail some
while back.”
    “ Well, then I have just the
thing,” Helena said, bringing over a golden liquid in a small
gourd-shaped vial. “Hold this, please.”
    “ Okay,” Olea said,
carefully taking the bottle between her hands.
    Helena grabbed a long, twisted stick from
where it leaned against a workbench.
    “ Why are you bringing a
stick?”
    “ Staff,” Helena corrected.
“I’m a white witch, dear.” She walked over to Olea’s side and held
her around the waist. “Now, drink the vial and imagine your Bo on
his given path. We should appear a few strides ahead of him, so be
prepared to step aside.”
    Olea looked over at her and nodded, uncorking
the vial and downing it. She closed her eyes and envisioned Bo. A
breeze churned around her and there was a bout of nausea for a
moment, and then both were gone. Opening her eyes, she and Helena
instantly parted as Bo ran through them, skidding to a stop.
    “ Olea?” he exclaimed,
breathless, whipping around.
    “ Bo!” she cried, throwing
her arms around him. He started at her touch.
    “ What are you doing here?”
he asked as he refrained from returning the embrace.
    “ Helping you. This is
Helena; she helped me find you.”
    Helena did a little wave as Bo peered over at
her. “Hello. Now, I believe we have a prince to throw off?” Bo and
Olea separated and nodded. “All right then. Now, hide behind those
bushes, both of you,” she commanded, pointing to some bushes next
to a broad tree. “I’ll be up in the branches of this tree. Don’t
come out until I tell you to, and then seem as threatening as you
can.”
    “ What are you going to do?”
Bo asked.
    “ I’m going to shake a
powder from my staff that I mixed to scare off troublemakers. It
makes a person see anything as its most horrifying possibility. For
example, I would seem a horrid black witch,” Helena said with a
mischievous smirk.
    Bo nodded. “I understand. You don’t want us
to fear one another.”
    “ Right. Naturally, the
effects wear off after some time, but by then you may have damaged
the way you see one another.” In a moment, the trio heard crashing
coming from the surrounding forest and heading straight for them.
“Hurry!” Helena hissed, sprinting to the tree and rushing
upward.
    The three got into their spots and hid,
keeping even their breaths to a minimum. Soon Mar and his paladins
were in earshot, and the horses had come to a halt. “Where is it?”
Mar yelled. Bo tensed beside Olea, who sidled closer to him and
stifled a whimper. The leaves almost completely blocked the pair’s
view. “Where did the creature go?”
    “ I don’t know, sir. The
tracks seem to end here.”
    “ Then it must be—” Mar was
interrupted by a bout of coughing, and his men soon joined him.
Even the horses began to sneeze.
    “ Now!” Helena’s voice came.
Bo and Olea jumped up and jerked around, trying to look as
frightening as possible. Bo even made animalistic noises that alone
would have scared Olea. The men and horses screamed, immediately
bolting in the other direction.
    Once sure that the hunters were gone, the
trio regrouped on the ground, the stars winking into existence in
the dusk. Crickets surrounded the group, their chirping filling the
air.
    “ We did it,” Olea
sighed.
    “ Barely,” Bo said. Helena
smacked him on the shoulder with her staff. “Ow! What was that
for?” he growled, shooting her a glare.
    “ What do you say to the
lady?” Helena pressed, unperturbed by Bo’s cranky face.
    Bo looked at Olea, the irritation already
gone from his gaze. “Thank you for the assistance.”
    “ You’re welcome,”