Deep in the woods behind Allie McGee’s house, a faint yellow glow crept up from a spot of cold ground and hung in the air. The only creature who took any notice of this was a raccoon, and he had no idea of the significance of what he was about to witness. In the very place where the glow began, a tree began to grow. It started as a small shoot coming out of the earth and grew in a matter of seconds what would have taken an ordinary tree many years. The yellow glow grew brighter as its branches shot toward the heavens, and its roots plunged deep into the earth. Just when it seemed the tree was finished, its trunk ripped apart with a loud crack and a golden mist poured out of the opening.
The raccoon did not know that inside this mist stood a secret portal to the wood of Halainn, a land in a different world, which now found itself in great peril. Allie had visited this world once before, to rescue her seven-year-old brother, Pete, from the evil King Olshek. When they had returned safely to their world, they had destroyed the portal as they had been instructed to do. They had watched sadly as the tree vanished, and along with it their chances of ever seeing their friends in Halainn again. If Allie had witnessed what the racoon had, she would have understood instantly the ramifications of what had just taken place. The raccoon, however, did not care for portals to other worlds. He found the acorns he was munching on in these dark morning hours much more interesting, and as soon as he had finished them, he turned away and resumed his scavenging among the fallen leaves for another tasty morsel.
Meanwhile, Allie was hard at work in her bedroom, studying for her seventh-grade history midterm, filling her head with facts about the U.S. Constitution. When she felt she could study no more, she looked up at the clock. It was 3:47 A.M. Her mind was full, but her stomach was empty, so she headed downstairs to grab a snack. She pushed open the door to the kitchen and found Pete sitting on the countertop, slurping a mug of hot chocolate. They jumped at each other in surprise. Pete recovered first.
“Ha! Scared you!” he cried, causing Boomer, their beloved Beagle-Dachshund mix, to raise his head drowsily from his spot on the tile floor beneath him. Upon seeing it was only Allie, the dog promptly flopped his head down and went back to sleep.
“What are you doing up?”
Pete sighed. “Bad dream.”
“Again? What was it this time?” The poor kid hadn’t had a good night’s rest since they’d been back. He had an overactive imagination. That was true. But these dreams were about scary things that had, in fact, happened to him in the castle. Even in the light of day, he couldn’t shake the idea that somehow Olshek would get his revenge on them for escaping.
Pete jumped down from the counter. “Want me to make you some hot chocolate?”
“Sure. No marshmallows though.”
Pete rolled his eyes as he grabbed a packet of Swiss Miss from the pantry. “You’re crazy. Marshmallows are the best part.”
“Agree to disagree. Why are you changing the subject? Don’t you want to talk about it?”
Pete balanced on his tiptoes on the stepstool as he carefully poured the water from the kettle. “It was about Olshek again. But this one was different. He was here, Allie. He was standing out there in the backyard, just staring. And he looked so angry. I was afraid he was going to kill us.” He shook off a chill as he stirred the cocoa.
“It was just a dream, Pete. When we destroyed the portal that severed our worlds forever. Olshek can’t get to us now, no matter what.”
Pete scrunched up his tired face. “It just felt so real.”
She took the mug from the counter and took a cautious sip. “Yeah. But look, let’s try to just forget about Olshek, okay? I think we’re both gonna go crazy if we keep dwelling on all this stuff.”
“I’m not crazy, and neither are you.”
Allie shrugged. “I know, Pete. But we’ve got to move on.”
“Well, I don’t want us to forget. Even if it’s scary, and even if nobody believes us.”
“Look, we just have one more day of school to get through, and then it’s Christmas break. Then all we have to think about for two whole weeks is baking cookies and wrapping presents.”
“I bet Mabry makes awesome Christmas cookies,” he said with a sigh. Mabry was an old woman who lived in Halainn and had been a true friend to them both. Despite her age, she loved adventures and had played a pivotal role in their escape from Olshek’s clutches.
Allie patted his head. “Don’t torture yourself. Why don’t we go try to get a little more sleep? It’ll help the time pass faster.”
“Alright. I’m gonna sleep in the living room.”
“Good idea. I’ll join you.”
In five minutes, they were snuggled in front of the crackling fire with Joy to the World playing softly on the stereo. Their dad, Nick McGee, knew how to make the best fires and made sure their house was always warm in the winter. An idea struck Allie as she watched the flames dance among the logs. Her dad had said he believed their story, and he had offered to take a look at where the tree had been. Allie had declined, knowing that there was no trace left of the portal. But tomorrow, after school, she would ask him to take them out there. Maybe if Pete could see with his own eyes that the portal really was gone, his nightmares would stop, and they could get on with their lives.
A few hours later, Laura McGee awakened her children and prodded them until they finally got ready for school and out the door. The day inched by, no matter what Allie tried to speed its passing. Her mind kept wandering to what they might find in the woods today after school. Although she had told herself she wanted to prove to Pete that there was no trace of the portal, she found herself getting excited at the possibility that it might’ve somehow returned. When the last bell rang, Allie ran the entire way home, and was out of breath when she plopped her book bag inside the entryway.
“Pete! I’m home!” she called up through the ceiling. Pete thundered down the hall and down the stairs, and in another second he and Boomer came sliding into view.
“It’s about time! I asked Mom to make cookies, and she said we had to wait on you.”
“Well, that was nice of her.”
Pete grinned sheepishly. “What? I thought you’d enjoy a nice plate of cookies to celebrate Christmas vacation.”
“Whatever, you just wanted to get all the cookie dough to yourself,” she said as she bent down to scratch Boomer behind the ears. He leaned his head against her hand appreciatively and thumped the floor with his tail.
“I call the bowl!” Pete yelled as he sprinted away.
“You can’t call the bowl!” she said, taking off after him.
They burst into the kitchen, which caused their mother to fumble the mixing bowl she had just taken out of the cabinet. It fell to the floor with a clang.
“What have I told you two about running in the house? It’s a good thing that bowl is metal,” she said as she stooped over to pick it up.
“Sorry, Mom!” said Pete and Allie, as they tackled her in a bear hug.
Laura smiled as she squeezed her two kids. “Well, I’ll let it slide for today. After all, Christmas break has officially begun. How’d your history test go?”
“98,” said Allie with a grin.
“Uh-oh! You mean Miss Perfect got one wrong?” Pete said in mock horror. He always knew just the right buttons to push to get under her skin, and he saw by the glare on Allie’s face he had hit his target.
“Knock it off, Pete. Congratulations on your test, sweetie,” she said, patting her on the back. “Now then, which cookies should we make today?”
“I saw a recipe for double chocolate chunk peppermint that I thought looked pretty good,” volunteered Allie.
“Did your father put you up to that?” Laura asked with a suspicious look. It was a well-known fact that Nick McGee had an abiding love for all things chocolate mint.
“He may have cut out the recipe and replaced my bookmark with it. Is he home yet?”
“No, he’ll be getting in late tonight. He’s got inventory at the store.”
Allie’s heart sank. Her plan would have to wait for another day.
“Bummer,” said Pete.
“But you know what? Maybe we could take some cookies to him as a surprise. I bet he’d appreciate that.”
“Yeah, and then maybe he’ll give me my actual bookmark back,” said Allie.
“I’m sure he will. Now then, let’s get down to business,” Laura said as she clapped her hands together. “Petey-boy, wash those filthy hands and then do the same to that bowl you made me drop.”
“Aye, aye captain!” Pete said as he gave his mom an exaggerated salute.
She turned to Allie. “Can you go grab that recipe?”
Allie sprinted out of the kitchen and was already halfway up the stairs by the time she heard her mom yelling another reminder not to run in the house. She slowed down to a fast jog and made a beeline for her room. Her copy of A Christmas Carol sat on her nightstand, right next to the broken key she had brought back from Olshek’s castle. Had she paid more attention, she would have noticed there was a faint yellow glow hanging over it. Oblivious, she grabbed the book and sprinted back downstairs to the kitchen.
When Allie pushed open the door, her mom was just getting off the phone.
“Sorry kiddos, but we’ve had a change of plans. That was Jimmy. Jeannie just called in sick, and I’ve gotta go cover her shift.”
“Do you have to?” Allie asked.
“Yeah, come on, Mom, it’s Christmas cookies! You promised!” wailed Pete.
Laura sighed. “You’ll understand when you’re grown up and have kids of your own. There’s nothing I’d love better than to be here with you two. We just need the money right now.”
When she saw the worried look on her kids’ faces, she hastened to add, “Don’t fret. Every new business takes time to get started and our little book store is no exception. We all just have to sacrifice a little right now.”
“We understand, Mom. You want me to make you some food before you go?” asked Allie.
“Nah, that’s the perk of working at Jimmy’s. They feed me all the burgers and fries I can handle,” she said, patting her stomach. “Oh shoot! That reminds me, the ground beef for dinner is still frozen. I was going to make meatloaf and mashed potatoes.”
Pete silently pretended to gag behind his mom’s back. When he saw Allie was trying hard not to giggle, he really got into it. Just as Laura started to turn around, which would have certainly led into her standard lecture about starving children in various parts of the world, Allie grabbed her mom’s arm. “That’s okay! We’ll have meatloaf tomorrow. Tonight I’ll just make us a box of mac and cheese.”
Pete pumped his arms in victory at the mention of one of his all-time favorite meals.
Laura frowned. “Ugh, I’m never going to get mother of the year with this kind of record.”
“Come on! You’re the best mom in the history of the whole world!” said Pete, squeezing her tightly. “Especially if you let us have mac and cheese!” he added as he looked up at her hopefully.
She relented. “Alright. Just be good, okay? No more bickering. And no going out into the forest and having wild adventures in a different world,” she said with a wink as she hugged Pete, then Allie.
“Yes, Mom,” they said in unison.
After Laura had left for the diner, Allie sat on the couch trying to read A Christmas Carol, but the smell of the cedar logs crackling in the fireplace kept drawing her mind back to Mabry’s house in Halainn. She wondered what the kind old woman was doing now.
“I’m bored. Let’s do something,” said Pete, flopping down on the cushion next to her.
“Why don’t you try reading a book?”
“Come on, Allie, I meant something fun!”
“Want to make the cookies?”
“Not without Mom!” he said, glaring at Allie as if she had just committed treason.
“Okay, okay,” Allie said, putting her hands up defensively. “What about a board game?”
Pete made a face.
“Movie?”
“Nah. I only want to watch Christmas ones, but not without Mom and Dad.”
Allie shut her book. “Well, what do you want to do?”
“Wanna go for a walk?”
“A walk? Who are you and what have you done with my brother?” she demanded playfully.
“I’m serious. Why don’t we go take a walk, you know, back there?” he said, pointing towards the area just beyond their backyard.
“The Forsaken Forest? You remember what Mom and Dad said, right? Do you want to be grounded for the rest of your life?”
Pete shrugged. “I just want to check.”
“Look, I didn’t want to get your hopes up, but I had planned on getting Dad to take us out there today. I just didn’t think about inventory. But maybe tomorrow we can go, okay?”
Pete rolled his eyes. “Yeah right. He’s too busy. He’s got inventory tonight, he’ll work all day tomorrow, and it’ll be dark when he gets in. We’ll never get to go see it if we wait on him. Come on, Allie. Let’s just go today. Me and you.”
“I’d rather not spend Christmas break grounded, thank you very much. We’re not going, so just put it out of your head.”
“But what if my dream was like a sign or something? What if Halainn is in danger? Isn’t it our responsibility to at least go check?”
Pete saw from the look on her face that he had hit a nerve. It would indeed be their duty to warn their friends in Halainn if the portal had reopened. Pete saw that Allie’s resolution was wavering, and he continued his push. “Look, we’ve got plenty of time to get there and get back before Mom and Dad get home. They would never have to know.”
“That’s dishonest, Pete. We would have to tell them if we went, and just take our punishment.”
“You’re such a goody goody.”
“Well, it doesn’t matter, anyway. It’s too late to go today. It’ll get dark soon and there’s no way I’m walking through that forest at night.”
“We have plenty of time! You just took the long way before because you didn’t know where to look. We can be there in 15 minutes.”
Allie looked out the window and then back at Pete, studying his tired face. If they went now and he saw with his own two eyes that the portal was gone, he could rest tonight, and so could she. And if the portal was there? Allie pushed away the thought. It wouldn’t be, so there was no use getting her hopes up about it.
“And then when we find nothing at all, will you swear that you’ll stay out of the Forsaken Forest for the rest of your life?” Allie asked.
“Scout’s honor,” he said, holding up two fingers.
“You’re not a Scout.”
Pete gave her a mischievous grin. “Let’s go!”
They had been running for ten minutes straight through the woods with Boomer nipping at their heels before Allie fell behind. Pete turned a deaf ear to her pleas for him to slow down, and soon he and Boomer passed over a ridge and out of sight. She sprinted up and over the hill and then stopped dead in her tracks. The tree was there, and Pete was marching straight for the gaping hole.
“Peter Nicolas McGee!” she yelled.
Pete turned around and waved her over excitedly.
“Ha! I knew it! I told you so!” Pete shouted gleefully as she drew near. “This is the best day ever! We get to go to Halainn, and I get to play with Declan,” he said, and then added with relish, “and you were wrong and I was right. Come on, slowpoke. Let’s go!” he said as he poked his head through the opening.
“Whoa there, mister!” she said as she grabbed his shirttail and pulled him back out. “We’re not going anywhere. I’ve gotta think.”
Pete groaned. “Ugh, Allie. Come on! We were gone for a long time before and no time had passed here. We can go for a quick visit, then we’ll go back home, and you’ll have plenty of time to make me that mac and cheese you promised.”
“No! That’s just it, Pete. We don’t know exactly how the time works. What if we go this time and when we come back, years have passed? We can’t do that to Mom and Dad. We’re going back home and that’s that,” she said as she turned and started heading in that direction.
“Suit yourself,” he said. Allie turned around just in time to see Pete disappear into the golden mist.
-End Excerpt-