III. The Impact of Her

Once I arrived, I quickly hopped off of Lady and entered the bakery.

Thankfully, Grandpa Ben was there. “Grandpa Ben!” I called as I rushed over to him. People stared at me with judgmental eyes but I didn’t care. I needed to get to the bottom of everything.

And my voice was loud enough for Grandpa Ben to turn his head to my direction. “Robert!” he smiled. He walked to me, wiping his hands with his apron. “I didn’t expect that you would be back so soon. It’s always a delight to see you,” he continued.

“It’s a pleasure to see you again, Grandpa Ben,” I returned a smile. “Your creations are something that are not of this world. It has left me wanting more.”

“But I know that our food isn’t the main reason whenever you come and visit. Am I correct, son?” Grandpa Ben asked with a teasing look.

I laughed nervously as I scratched my nape. It might have been too obvious, I supposed. Laura had always been the excuse for me to come here.

After a sigh, I replied, “I can’t hide anything from you, Grandpa Ben. You already know too much about me.”

He crossed his arms as he smirked even more. “Your mouth can try and hide the truth. But your eyes give everything away.”

I shook my head as I chuckled. I was never born to be a good liar. And I thought I already took enough lessons to be better at it. Alas, I was still terrible at it. “I don’t want to waste your time, Grandpa Ben. I can see that the bakery is filled once again,” I said as I briefly looked at the crowd. “I want to ask if you know where Laura has been hiding.”

“Hmm,” Grandpa Ben rested his chin on his knuckles as he had some time to think. “Have you tried looking in places where she can possibly go?”

“Yes, I did. But she isn’t there,” I said.

Grandpa Ben returned to thinking once again. This town wasn’t that huge, which made no sense as to why we didn’t know where she went. I was at the point of defeat because there was only one place in town that we shared together. And that was the field.

After a while of thinking, he replied, “She probably visited the swamps of Dashury.” He then smiled at me as he put his hands behind him.

“Dashury?” I asked, baffled.

Dashury was once a flourishing village in the plains. It stood a few miles from this town. According to the stories, it used to be a utopia, a peaceful place. However, a mysterious fire destroyed everything. It left nothing behind but ashes.

Since the day it was burnt, it was abandoned and nobody dared to live there again. No one would even enter as they feared that the former town had been cursed.

Grandpa Ben nodded. “Laura has some kind of connection with the abandoned town. For some reason, she has always been fascinated with that place. If she can’t be found within the town, surely, she’s there.”

“Thank you, Grandpa Ben,” I smiled. I ran back to Lady and rode to Dashury as fast as possible.

Lady and I finally arrived in Dashury.

Upon entering, the burnt remains of the town filled the air. My heart broke as we made our way through the entrance. Everything was nothing but ashes.

Most of the houses were gone. A few remained but they were burnt entirely on the inside. Scraps of clothes were scattered. Bones of the dead could be seen everywhere.

This was said to be the most colourful place in this realm, some said. Now, it was nothing but a forgotten memory; a myth that people were afraid to speak about.

After a horrifying scene, I noticed a swamp behind a row of houses. I hopped down and headed towards it. As I reached it, a small pier appeared with a wooden boat tied to it. I expected to see floating corpses or crocodiles on the water. But all I saw was the dark colour of green that conquered the murkish water.

I stood on the pier and called out into the open. “Laura? Laura, are you here?” I waited for a reply but all I heard was the echo of my voice. “Laura?!”

“Robert?” a soft voice spoke behind me. I turned my head… and there she stood. With her was a sack that was about the height of her legs.

I immediately stepped down from the pier and rushed over to her. “I found you,” I remarked, relieved. “I can’t believe I finally found you,” I continued, unable to contain the happiness within me. I wanted to hold her but I didn’t. All I could do was look at her from head to toe continuously, satisfied that she was now in front of me.

“I didn’t expect that you would look for me,” she said, confused. She continued, “How did you know I was here? This place is very far from town, perhaps even from the entrance to your realm.”

“It doesn’t matter how I knew,” I replied as I moved closer to her. “I rode all this way to find you… because I need to talk to you.”

She took a deep breath before she looked around us. “Do you want to ride on the boat?” she asked as she turned back to me.

“Of course,” I nodded. I offered to carry the sack but she insisted on doing it herself. I didn’t argue with her and simply followed her to the boat. I settled across her and she grabbed the oars, slowly rowing away from the pier.

“I’m surprised that this place doesn’t faze you,” she said as she looked everywhere else but to me. “Most people are scared to even think about this place.”

“I should be the one to say that,” I grinned. I continued, “There is no one here. The nearest town is in mere miles. You should be the one who is afraid of this abandoned town.”

“Should I be scared of the place where I used to live?” she answered softly as she looked at me.