if not a Calling, Kenna commented, “I was right, wasn’t I? Doon’s going to become the next Harry Potter World.”
Duncan placed a hand on her shoulder, his mouth dropping open as his eyes flared. “I wouldna be so sure.” As I turned to follow his gaze, the blast of trumpets filled the air, their sound so mighty and unexpected that my knees buckled beneath me.
CHAPTER 48
Mackenna
Catching Vee mid-swoon, I tried to take it all in: the trumpets, the blinding gold light, and the awe-inspiring creatures heralding from the Brig o’ Doon. Angels, just like the ones so many of the Destined had described seeing, lined both sides of the bridge like a celestial chorus line.
Along with the sound of trumpets, their terrible voices were lifted in song. Feeling like Dorothy and her companions about to meet the wizard, Jamie, Duncan, Vee, and I stepped onto the bridge and slowly walked to the center. Doonians and Destined, filling both sides of the riverbank, watched in breathless reverence.
Suddenly, the modern world—the tourists and the streetlamps—faded away as a voice as quiet as a blade of grass in the wind and more booming than a thousand giants pronounced, “Choose.”
My friends and I looked at each other uncertainly. “Choose what?” I asked.
“The modern world,” the voice replied. “Or a new covenant.”
As much as I vowed to accept the cost of breaching the borders, my heart leapt with this new proposition. After everything, would the Protector offer a new covenant that would safeguard the kingdom of Doon and its inhabitants from becoming the eighth wonder of the world?
Beside me, Duncan murmured, “The choice of the suspended man.”
I squeezed his hand and sought Vee’s gaze. “Doon,” she said in a clear, musical voice. “I choose Doon.”
“Me too!” I added.
Jamie and Duncan spoke over one another, choosing Doon, followed by Fiona and Fergus. One after the other, both Destined and Doonian made their choice—all of them chose the new Covenant—until a last person, a boy with blue-and-green streaks in his hair, stepped forward.
“That’s the magician dude,” I whispered to Vee. “The one with his own YouTube channel.”
Eyes shimmering with the force of his conviction, he addressed the queen. “Your Majesty, have you thought about how we’re going to explain what happened here today? The modern world will be looking for a plausible explanation. And I think I have one to offer.”
Vee nodded. “Go on.”
“You see, Majesty, I’m an illusionist. Although I’m only eighteen, I’m fairly well known. And if you’ll allow it, I’ll take credit for this. I will make Doon my greatest illusion. If people think it was a magic stunt, they’ll be more likely to let it go. News will eventually fade away, and this will become part of urban legend, just like the story of the bridge before.”
Vee gawked at him. “You’d sacrifice your Calling to protect Doon.”
The boy tucked a wayward strand of colorful hair behind his ear with a shrug. “I think this is what I’ve been Called to do. I’m supposed to protect Doon from the outside. Is that okay?”
“Yes.” She hugged the boy. “And thank you!”
We watched Jeremy walk resolutely into the mists toward Alloway. Once he had disappeared, my friends and I joined hands and set off in the opposite direction with assurance of a new Covenant and the promise of a bright future.
CHAPTER 49
Veronica
Sunlight tumbled through the leaves, creating muted patterns on the carpet of moss under my feet as I trudged up the steep trail. A sweet, verdant breeze pushed the hair off my face, causing me to pull the shawl tighter around my shoulders. Morning in Doon was my favorite time for a leisurely stroll, but this day I was headed toward the hunting lodge on a mission. Jamie had been conspicuously absent the last two weeks, showing up for the occasional dinner peckish and exhausted. Whenever I’d question him about his day, his answers were evasive at best, and the night before, he’d fallen asleep at the table with his head propped in his hand.
The business of rebuilding the kingdom kept us both busy, and Jamie had taken a special interest in getting our latest Destined settled into their new lives; not to mention the fresh crop of kids he’d recruited for the Crew.
However, his recent preoccupation and secretive smiles told me he was up to something unrelated to restoring order to his land. As I still viewed any surprise as a bad thing, a few days ago I’d begun systematically searching the kingdom. The