I carefully picked my way over branches and rocks until the overgrown trail reached the illuminated path of the riverbank. The thunderstorms that had plagued Alloway the last two days had rolled through, leaving a tiny sliver of moon to guide me in the clear night sky. As I rounded the bend, I spied Vee sitting on a bench a few steps from the old bridge.
Aunt Gracie’s ruby ring sparkled from her finger as she lifted it to the light. The way she gazed at it, I half expected her to crouch over and start crooning, “My precious.”
As I approached, Vee’s head swiveled in my direction, relief shining from her luminous doe eyes. “I knew you’d come.”
“Of course. Remember that time as kids, I spent the whole night helping you search for the second star to the right? Or the time you read that museum story and I cashed out my entire piggy bank so we could hop a bus to Los Angeles and live inside Disneyland? And we would’ve made it if my dad hadn’t busted us.”
Rather than smile, Vee stubbornly shook her head back and forth. “This isn’t like that. I just need to find more proof.”
That was my cue. I pulled the leather volume from my back pocket and pressed it into her trembling hands. “Here … It’s not like I was going to read it anyway.”
Walking past my bestie, I stopped at the mouth of the bridge. Due to the streetlamps, it was as bright as high noon. There was no swirling mist, and thankfully no mythical kingdom in the distance. An unwelcome pang of disappointment registered as I accepted my aunt’s insanity. “What now, Vee?”
In the quiet, she walked up beside me, arms crossed over her chest. “How do you think the rings work?”
They don’t.
But if she needed proof to get to that conclusion, might as well get started. “Why don’t we test them? Right here—right now.”
Vee’s eyes grew wide as I reached into my pocket for Uncle Cameron’s ring and made a big production of placing it on my finger. Then I stepped onto the ancient cobblestones of the Brig o’ Doon.
Nothing happened. Nada—zip—zilch.
Vindication coursed through my veins as I charged to the center of the arch and pivoted to face Vee. “This myth is sooo busted! There are no magical forces at work here. No alternate dimensions or fantastical portals. I’m wearing Uncle Cam’s ring and I’m still right here in modern day.”
With a half turn, I crossed to the far end of the bridge. “At least I believe I’m still in the present. The ultimate test will be when I step off the other end.”
“Kenna, wait—”
Flinging my hand up to cut her off, I stepped onto the embankment with exaggerated movements and turned to challenge my best friend, my hands on my hips. “If Doon is supposed to be my legacy, where is it?”
Under the circle of lamplight, Vee’s crestfallen face had a jaundiced glow. She’d been throat punched by disappointment her whole life. First, her dad did a Houdini act, vanishing into thin air. Then her mom, reverting to her natural state of selfishness, blamed Vee for ruining her life. Finally, Eric cheated on her with a girl dumber than a box of Beanie Babies and lied about it. No wonder she fantasized about escaping into a perfect society that would treat her like royalty.
I hated to shatter her delusions, but better now than after wasting the summer on some fantasy. “Now you,” I said, trying to temper the harshness in my tone. “Cross the bridge.”
Vee stayed put. She shook her head vigorously back and forth as a distant clock began to toll the hour. Although I didn’t count the chimes, I guessed midnight—and the irony was not lost on me.
Several tense seconds passed before Vee spoke. “What if nothing happens?”
“That’s kind of the point, sweetie. Doon’s not real. And I’m not moving until you admit it. I’ll stay here all night if I have to.”
“So you’d rather believe that your aunt was crazy than open up your mind to the possibility that Doon exists?”