Meanmna: Book One of the Daearen Realms Read Free

fall. Somehow I made contact with a crystal and cut my hand on the jagged points. Taking a deep breath, I looked around to see who might have witnessed my escapade. No one . “Great,” I said aloud and threw up my hands in a victory pose. That’s when I heard another giggle. I turned slowly and this time I saw a child poking her head up from behind the counter.
    “You’re funny,” she said with a little awe in her voice. “Your colors are so pretty. I’ve never seen them look like that.”
    I wasn’t sure what she meant about colors; I was wearing earth tones. Feeling more embarrassed than anything, I nodded and smiled to the girl. She came around the counter. Standing before me was a strawberry-haired pixie, about five years old and as cute as could be, with big green luminescent eyes and pink cheeks. She had a silver band across her forehead that looked like a crown. She was holding a clear crystal wand with an amethyst spirit crystal on the end. A spirit crystal has a large quartz in the center, like a spire, and small crystals growing out of it. It’s shaped kind of like a pineapple, and this one was the most beautiful one I had ever seen. I’m not sure why a kid would have one, since they are very rare and are indigenous to the Magaliesberg Mountain region of South Africa. Thanks, Mom the geologist. I feel smart.
    “Hello. That is a beautiful wand for a beautiful girl!”
    “Thanks!” She grinned, twirled around, and said, “So, do you know what kind of the fair people you are yet?”
    “Huh?”
    “Paige …” Celine said as she walked through a beaded curtain from the back room. A sign hung above the opening that read “Employees Only”, quite comical since Celine was the only employee. She stopped, her eyes widening when she saw the little girl. Turning to me, Celine said, “I see you met my . . . um . . . niece . . . Paige.”
    Breaking the totally strange silence, I walked to Paige with my hand out. “Hi, Paige. I’m Sarette.” She looked at my hand like she had no idea what to do with it. That’s when I noticed the blood. “Oh , shoot! I cut my hand on the crystal.” I grabbed a tissue from the Kleenex box on the counter to clean it up. The bell on the door rang. Glancing up at the mirror behind the counter, I saw the door slowly swing open and then shut, but no one was there.
    “Got anything to keep me from losing the rest of my mind?” I asked Celine. She was staring with a frown on her face at something behind me and to my right. After a moment, she smiled and gently patted me on the arm.
    “Oh, sweetheart. That’s an old door. You’re not going crazy. So, why are you here besides the coo-coo candle?”
    “Is there a coo-coo candle?” That half-laugh—more of a snicker—sounded behind me again. This time I pretended I didn’t hear it. No need to alienate anyone else with my crazy weirdness. “My water candle burned up again.”
    Celine gave another quick look behind me.
    “I’ll get it!” Paige yelled as she ran around the crystal table and past me, glancing and giggling to the door as if there was something there. That’s it. I’m leaving here and checking into a mental hospital. What the hell is going on? For as long as I can remember, I’ve had the feeling of being watched. The feelings had grown increasingly intense since last spring, and for the past week,  I had been hearing and seeing things. Like laughing when no one is there and doors opening without assistance. Then there was the weird buzz I felt coming from the crystal that I had just cut my hand on. Wait a minute. I did feel something, didn’t I?
    I went back to the table to t ake a better look at the crystal. It was a translucent dark green stone with little white swirls that appeared to be moving inside of it. About the size of a baseball, it had a relatively smooth bottom and several jagged edges on top. I clasped the crystal in my hand and felt a little buzz or tingle again. “What kind of crystal is