The Amulet was something I had started just to understand the character's in my novel a little more. It ended up being a good idea for this years idea of a KPN annual contest called ViNoWriMo....thier version of NaNoWriMo. It is still a work in progress and needs lots of editing. It also has some spoilers for my actual novel- The Apprentice.
Synopsis- 16 year old Geoffrey McPherson still has memories of a life that isn't supposed to exist anymore. His uncles and father were supposed to have erased it as if it had never happened. Unfortunatley, he is not the only one that remembers. The man that had caused all the problems, John Ridaille, remembers as well and plans to change everything back as soon as he gets the gift that had made it all happen before- Uncle Max's Amulet. With the amulet, anyone can control a third of the Heir's power- the magick Uncle Max, Geoff, and Marcus, Geoff's little brother, can control. Ridaille is making a bid to get either Geoff or Marcus on his side because with an Heir and the amulet not even the combined powers of the McPherson's will be able to stop him.
With his constant reminders of what he was once able to control and his father trying to keep him at the level he is, Geoff struggles with keeping true to his family and fulfilling his own dreams for himself. How can he ever convince his father that he can handle his legacy without giving into Ridaille's promises?
The Amulet-
Prologue
Light filtered through the leaves above him. He still had enough time to reach the spot before the guards spotted him. Slipping through shadows of the trees, he stayed alert to the closest sounds and watched every corner he could see. Lightly, he sent a trace racing through the undergrowth searching for his predators. His lips turned upward slightly at the return. They were still too far away to notice anything unusual. Oh, but they would soon find out the truth. They would learn not to underestimate him. He was the best and they should know that. They should have remembered; after all the years he had spent with them, all the time he had spent training them!
A twig snapped off to his left and he froze behind the pines next to him. A squirrel followed by a hungry looking fox raced past his feet. His lips turned upward again. He and his enemies were like that fox and squirrel. Only in this race, the squirrel would finally grow tired of being hunted. This time, the squirrel would turn and face the fox. This time the fox would know what it was like to be the prey.
When his surroundings were once again still, he crept from his hiding place inching around the spots of light. Soon enough he would be able to stand in that brilliant shine and be recognized for his genius. Now it was safer to stay within the shadows, to remain hidden until he had his prize in hand. The prize they had tried to deny him all these years. He had earned this reward and everything that went with it. They could not keep it from him forever.
“Ah, finally!”
His voice echoed in the stillness around him and he froze for a second time. Nothing moved and he breathed. Kneeling at the base of the hidden grave, he stared at the marker- a simple wooden cross, rotting away in this deserted place. He shook his head as he brushed back the fallen dead leaves scattered across the grass.
“Such a great man does not deserve so worthless a memory,” he whispered to the ground. “Soon your memory will not be one people will fear or scorn. Soon, my master, you will be remembered for what you truly are- a hero.”
Removing the small shovel from the bag at his side, he inched on his knees to the cross. “But first, there is something I must do. Please do not hate me.”
With his last words, he stuck the small shovel into the ground at the bottom of the cross and began to dig. Once under the dead earth, he put the shovel aside and began to push the soft earth aside with his bare hands. He dug until sweat began to drip down his face and the night breeze whispered softly at his neck. The sun dipped below the trees and he could feel the predators returning to their usual vigilance.
Not yet, he whispered to himself. He only had a few more inches to go and surely, his master would want him to have the gift those fools had left in such an accessible spot.
Just as the footsteps of horses approached, he touched something that was not dirt. His lips lifted one last time and his fingers slowly wrapped themselves around the dirt and cloth. Gently, he lifted them from the ground and held them to his chest. He turned his head sharply behind him at the crack of another twig. Forgetting the hole he had created, he got to his feet and disappeared from the clearing and into the shadows of the trees once more.
He watched as the guards held lanterns over the hole and at the footprints left in the pile of dirt. He watched them scratch their heads and move their lights all around the grounds looking for their intruder. Laughter bubbled in his chest and he could not suppress the gleeful chuckle that immerged as the stars began to light the skies.
As the lanterns and their owners circled together at his chuckle, he pulled his hands from his chest to look at the prize he had so cleverly won. They opened slowly, his eyes glued to the wrapping dangling from the ends of his fists. Once open, he took a moment to stare at the round shape in the center of the wrapping. Then, he shook himself and opened the package.
“NO!”
Geoff sat up, his breathing mere gasps of air. He could not wait any longer. Even if his father got mad at him, he had to go the castle. He had to talk to Uncle Gregory and his mother before his and Marcus’ nightmare became a reality. Again.
He moved slowly out of bed and across his room to the wardrobe. His father was just across the hall and any squeak of the floorboards would alert Daniel that he was awake. He did not want to here any lecturing now that the yelling had finally stopped. Geoff dragged his bag from the hole his father had tossed it into yesterday. He threw it across the room and onto his bed as he moved to the dresser and started pulling clothes from the drawers.
He crossed back to his bed and dropped the clothes in his arms to open the bag. As he started to pile the clothes inside, a knock echoed on his door. Had his father heard him after all? He relaxed when the door opened and his Uncle Max slipped inside.
“I thought I heard movement up here,” Max started. When he noticed the bag and the clothes, he shook his head. “Geoffrey…”
“It’s not what you think, Uncle Max,” Geoff muttered cutting him off. “I’m not running away again. I need to go see Uncle Gregory and mom. Something’s come up and they need to know before anything happens.”
“Are you planning on telling your father before you take off?” Max asked. He leaned against the door and crossed his arms.
Geoff nodded and looked down at the bag. He could feel his uncle watching him, but kept stuffing clothes into it. His uncle moved from the door as he pulled the bag closed and tied the top down. Uncle Max grabbed his upper arm and turned him around to face him.
“What is going on, Geoff? You know you can tell me.”
“He’s coming back, Uncle Max,” Geoff answered. “I think I brought the nightmare back.”
Max dropped his hands from Geoff’s arm and murmured, “He never left.”
Geoff watched his uncle walk away. “Where are you going?”
“To tell your father to come talk to you,” Max answered as he opened the door. “Unless of course, you want him to find you with a bag in your hands without some kind of warning?”
Geoff felt the heat rising in his face and shook his head. Max’s lips twisted up, “I did not think so. Finish grabbing whatever you think you will need and I will have him meet you downstairs.”
He listened as Max walked down the hall and closed his eyes. The rest of the images from last night immediately popped up and Geoff barely stopped the shiver racing through his blood. He had seen a similar spell of death only once before- when Uncle Max had tried erasing his mistakes by sending everyone back in time as far as his powers would allow him. If that spell was in use again, then his father and uncles had not erased the nightmare as completely as they had hoped. And if the nightmare was not gone, then Marcus was in trouble and so was their mother.
Renee 2010
