Page 101 of Lunar Diamonds
“The diamonds await,” the figure spoke with a voice wrapped in distortion. “The Moon is here. Step forth. Find them.”
Look how pretty that veil glimmered. Like moonlight, the only thing standing in my way to increase my power.
They belong to me. Diamonds. Diamonds. Diamonds. Mine.
Dad gave me a diamond ring. He knew I was one special boy. Knew all about my destiny. His son, The Moon. Shining moon of hope and magic. Chosen. Born to be something greater.
My brain whined, shoving Dad away. He wasn’t welcome right now. He left me and lied to me and gave me a diamond and it didn’t make any sense.
Special.
Special boy.
I can be amazing if I step through the door.
The figure beckoned me forward, a blurry finger curled in invitation.
“Let’s go back and think this through,” Alice cut in.
“Good idea,” Isaac agreed.
“Riley?” Drake’s voice, so rich and yummy. But even he couldn’t break my curiosity. My hunger spiked as if I stood before a banquet, the temptation undoing me.
My diamonds. My diamonds.
That tickle inside me wouldn’t stop. I took a step forward, increasingly mesmerized by the veil, the figure, the proximity of my diamonds.
Alice bleated on about leaving. Too dangerous. Let’s investigate. Translation: delay, delay, delay. Why? What did that achieve when the diamonds were right there? She heard thefigure. They all had. We couldn’t mess around any longer. Drake found the diamonds, and here they were. Ripe fruit on a tree, ready to be plucked.
I licked my lips.
Tickle, tickle on my skin….
Power. Power. Power.
“Riley?” Drake again.
“Yeah?” I responded.
“What are you thinking?”
“We need to leave, sir,” Alice implored.
I sighed, seeing sparkly jewels in my mind. “Diamonds.”
“You’ll have them soon,” the Bramble sibling replied.
Soon? Who did she think she was to tell me that? Lesser witch. Jealous she couldn’t have the power all to herself. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Raining on my parade because of her shortcomings.
The figure waved both its hands.
Did it agree with me? Did it smell the stink of jealousy right here in this briny cave?
They wouldn’t stop me. None of them would stop me.
I summoned my power of illusion, weaving a lie for their eyes and minds. Let them leave, let them believe I’d given in to being marched away from my destiny.
The magic stopped, done. I heard the fake me agree to leave, following them out.
