[Overthrow, Mundane]

  Lottie arrived at Madd Maggie’s about the same time Lily, Paula and Salome were returning from the Apprenticeship Opening Ceremony.

  “Lottie, how was Ryan this morning any noticeable difference?”

  “No Lily, but you can only tell by a medical test, a blood test is the fastest test to run. It’ll take about an hour.”

  “Paula and Salome are both going with you. Salome has never been to Boston so would have no frame of reference for the jump. Paula has been to Harvard so can safely jump you to the quad lawn at the school. Because Paula is wanted by the US government for exposing the plot to end democracy in the U.S. she’ll jump back right away. Salome will have no trouble jumping you both back here, when the test is done. Here’s a portal muffin for each of you, just in case something goes wrong. While you two are getting the test results, Paula and I will do a second bake with the Crystal Rye. In case the Stormgrain Floor was ineffective. Then we’ll try a third bake with the two ingredients combined. Any questions?”

  “Wow Lily, way to take charge, I like it. Will you be this assertive when you take me on that date?”

  Lily blushed furiously. “Just get going, sooner begun, sooner done.”

  ***

  Lottie, Paula and Salome blinked into existence on the Harvard quad. Then some shouts and cheers erupted. The three froze as they were mobbed by students sunning themselves on the quad. Cell phones were out filming the three.

  “Thank you, for exposing the plot, Paula.”

  “Trump will never catch you, Harvard is a safe space for you.”

  “We stand with you, Paula.”

  “You two get out of here, I don’t want you associated with me alright. I’ll be fine. I’ll talk to the kids for a little bit. Then jump back and help Lily. Quick, now go.”

  Lottie and Salome wormed their way through the crowd. Salome was just amazed at the size of the buildings and the sheer crowds of people, but Lottie noticed and took her by the hand. Virtually dragging her to Shattuck St. They heard sirens and saw FBI agents in bullet proof vests rushing toward the quad. Then a whole mini bus load of I.C.E. agents, faces covered up like terrorists, pulled up.

  ***

  Meanwhile back on the quad.

  “I worked as a spy for the United States government for eight years, before I found out about the plot. I wasted my life working for a corrupt government, don’t waste yours.”

  “Why did you feel you had to give the proof to the BBC and not the American media?”

  “CBS had just settled their lawsuit with Trump. Everyone knew it was a bribe, and CBS got what they wanted, their merger. I would have given it to NPR but I couldn’t be certain that the person I was giving it to wasn’t an agent. Look, I used an acting troupe to escape and the government put out warrants on all of them. Ninety Nine percent of those actors had no idea they were being used. I want to apologize to them for making them fugitives from their own country. Hopefully when this tyrant is no longer in power with his private little I.C.E. army, they’ll be welcomed home and exonerated."

  “Paula Becker, you are surrounded, put your hands up, or we will shoot.”

  “You kids get away from me, the last thing I want to see is one of you getting hurt. Go on, start backing up, keep filming, they're going to want this footage for the news.”

  A space starts to clear around Paula hundreds of cell phones, Tic Toc was blowing up. Paula with her hands held high.

  Paula shouts, “Agents I was used by this government, I was complicit, you have a choice. Freedom vs Tyranny. He won’t be in power for long. Pick the right side.”

  Paula blinked out of existence.

  Trump sent federal troops to Boston, where they surrounded Harvard’s Boston Campus. Meanwhile I.C.E. and F.B.I. agents ransacked the school’s building looking for the fugitive. Scientists in the end after studying hundreds of videos of Paula’s disappearance concluded that Paula had never actually been on the quad. She was some three dimensional hologram dreamed up by either Harvard or MIT students to make the government look incompetent. They’d interviewed dozens of professional magicians who after examining the scene claimed a hologram was the only possible explanation.

  ***

  Then she was back at the bakery.

  “What took you so long? I thought the plan was to jump those two and jump back. Did anything go wrong?”

  “No, everything went fine. I just got to have my say about the lies they were spreading about me. I’ll get a fire started in the oven, I’m sorry if I worried you.”

  “It’s OK, I’m glad you got to tell your side of the story.

  “The Crystal Rye dough just started its second proof so it’ll still be a little while before it’s ready to be baked. I’m going to start a batch with the two ingredients combined.”

  “I should have some good even coals in about 20 minutes. Then I’m going to jump to Blackpool and bribe a medical school to use their phlebotomy labs. It’s about time I used my head and spent a little money. It’ll be much safer for Lottie to jump to England, after the little show I just put on in Boston.”

  Twenty minutes later, Lily put the Crystal Rye bake into the oven and started turning the hourglass three times before checking for the first time. It certainly smelled good but it wasn’t done. Lily kept checking every minute for the next five before she deemed it was done. Taking it out of the oven and setting it on the cooling rack. She was getting better at baking outdoors. She added a few of the larger stick’s Paula had recommended she use to the fire. Then put in half of the dough with both Crystal Rye and Stormgrain Flour.

  Lottie and Salome popped into existence in the bakery backyard, with two pieces of bad news. The first was Ryan was still infected. So the Stormgrain didn’t have a healing effect. The second was that they had barely gotten away from some I.C.E. agents that were searching for the two accomplices that had appeared on the Harvard Lawn with Paula.

  “They had TV’s all over the hospital and every one of them was Paula talking to the students then to the agents. It was so exciting but then some of those agents noticed us and yelled for us to stop. So we just jumped.”

  “The problem is now I won’t be able to go back to the hospital to test the next blood sample.”

  “Don’t worry, Paula’s already on it, something about bribing a Medical School Hospital in Blackpool England. The first of the bakes, the Crystal Rye is done, go have Ryan eat it. Draw the blood and come back, hopefully Paula will be back with a new lab for you to use. Paula is very resourceful and determined. We’ll figure this out Lottie. Now get going. Sooner begun, sooner done.”

  “I really do like this assertive Lily.” Said Lottie before leaving to try the magical bake on Ryan.

  ***

  Paula called Dan Watson her MI5 contact and explained she had an American doctor friend in Blackpool with her son, who needed access to a lab to process blood work for her son. Is there any way he could help her out?

  Half an hour later he called her back. The Blackpool Victoria Hospital would be happy to help out, her doctor had full access to the lab and staff to assist if she required any assistance.

  Paula herself was trending world wide with her disappearing trick being played on loop by the news channels. Trump was going scorched earth on senior FBI and ICE agents for letting his nemesis escape again.

  Paula jumped back into the bakery. Talbert was waiting for her.

  “Hello Paula”

  “Hello Paula, what were you thinking about jumping into Boston like that?”

  “I was trying to help, Lottie, her son is very ill. We tried a magical cure and she needed a blood test result to see if he was cured. Hopefully he was. If not I’ll be jumping her to Blackpool, to a government hospital that MI5 arranged for me to have access to. I wasn’t planning on a bunch of college kids filming me but as long as I was there I thought I’d set the record straight. I’m sorry if you're mad, it wasn’t planned.”

  “Becker, I'm not mad. I was just worried about you. You should have just contacted me or Rose and just asked us to author you a lab you own. I jumped to Enigmatic Parchments to make sure you were OK and this wasn’t some crazy Rose plan. I love that girl but. Anyway she knew nothing about it. As long as you are safe, I’ll leave you to it, unless it’d be easier if I author you, your own medical lab, just say the word or check with the doctor.“

  “I have a question before you leave, did you know that Juliet and her whole village can see what Rose is doing, and if Rose asks they can take over her body.”

  “No I never heard of that but you better believe that I’ll be speaking to Rose about that.”

  “Well someone asked me if I could do it and I said I wouldn’t even try it without your permission.”

  “Go ahead and try it.”

  I tried, and tried, but I probably just looked constipated.

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  “No, I’m not sure if I’m doing it right. But I got nothing, Talbert.”

  “Well I’d like us to be close but not that close.”

  “But you can see inside my head, my thoughts, my feelings.”

  “Becker, I only did that for the novel I was writing. I haven’t looked in your head since then. I won’t ever be looking into your head again, you didn’t want to do a sequel. I respect that. God, that must make Lu crazy, knowing all those people are watching her and Rose. She’s such a private person.”

  “Did you ever find anything in your notes about Dr Charlotte Li? That’s who I was helping. Her son is very sick, dying in fact.”

  “I did find her, she was meant to be the main character in a medical thriller about a world wide pandemic. A month later covid hit and my agent told me I’d never sell that book in a million years. So I dropped it. The reason I didn’t recall her was because the original main character was Charlene Apple. It was only shortly before the end that I replaced Apple with Li, then the book got canceled. But she must have still been in my head when I wrote your book and came in as a background character.”

  “I’ll tell her if you don’t mind. First she was freaking out that she was fictional, just like I did. But when you couldn’t even remember her, she felt even worse.”

  “Becker. None of that stuff was intentional. First off back then I thought my characters were just words on a page. I didn’t know that characters were living beings with their own hopes, dreams and fears. Second, tell her I was looking forward to writing the medical thriller. I still have the outline and a couple of first draft chapters, I’ll print those out and give them to her. You and Lottie were my most bad ass female characters. My agent is always pushing for male main characters because they sell more copies in the thriller action novels I usually write, until you came along and took the world by storm.”

  “I’m sorry Talbert, if you ever really need the money, I’ll do a sequel if that would help you out. I’ve really treated you unfairly. If you hadn’t done everything just the way you have. I wouldn’t be here in Emain Ablach, and I’ve never been so happy. So here’s the long overdue apology and a heartfelt thank you for everything.”

  “Becker, you don’t owe me anything, I made a ton of money off that novel now, the agent is negotiating film rights so I’m about to make a whole lot more. Of course I also get tons of death threats from alt right Trump fanboys.”

  “Did you ever think about moving here? It’s lovely here and you already have a bunch of friends.”

  “I couldn’t, I’m born to write, but I was born to write on a word processor. I couldn’t even imagine having to write out a novel long hand.”

  “Talk to Ruby, her former company makes a magical typewriter that does everything your word processor does and more of if you use the magical paper it automatically saves a copy. Guess where?”

  “Knowing this crazy place, a real cloud.”

  “No, your copy is stored on the Moon. You have to talk to Ruby about all those writer products.”

  “I will, at the cast party after the play, Henry and Martha are coming by the way.”

  “That’s great, it'll be wonderful to see them, remind them that there will be tons of kids around. No fooling around in the library. Although my girlfriend caught a couple in the cooking section. Daisy tipped off Rose who tipped off Eldara.”

  “Becker I never got a chance to tell you, Eldara is lovely, and also one of the most beautiful people I’ve ever seen.”

  “Yeah, she’s pretty great. Thank you for coming to check on me. I’d really like us to become good friends.”

  “Me too, don’t forget if you need that lab or anything else, either I or Rose can write one for you in England. Please stay out of the United States right now, it’s not safe for anyone, especially you.”

  ***

  Lily took the combination bake out of the oven and put it on the cooling rack, this one was a tiny bit burnt on the bottom. She added a few more of the larger sticks to the coals as she prepared the other half of the Crystal Rye dough. Greasing the pan very well with lots of grease, this helped keep the first Rye bake from burning.

  Lottie came back with the blood sample.

  “Lottie, I have the combination bake completed and cooling, do you want to have Ryan try this and take two blood samples at once? It might be quicker for you.”

  “That’s a great idea Lily. I’ll label the vials so I know which one works. If any of them does.”

  “We’re not giving up until your son is cured. I have tons of magical ingredients we’ll just keep combining and checking. Do you hear me? I hope one of these three bakes will do the trick, but if it won’t we don’t quit. Right.”

  “Thank you Lily, you are the kindest person I’ve ever met. I’ll be back soon.”

  Paula came out of the bakery.

  “Lily, what can I do to help?”

  “Nothing right now thanks, I’m starting to get the hang of the fire, although I have no idea how to start it, but once you get it going, I’ve just been adding medium sized branches to try and keep the heat even.”

  “This would work so much better with charcoal, I’ll pick some up when I’m in England.”

  “No need Paula, the blacksmith has charcoal, he uses it in the forge. He might sell us a small amount and tell us where he purchases his.”

  “I’ll go right now and try and get some, I’m sorry I didn’t think of it before, it should give a much more even burn, make the baking go much easier. Be right back.”

  ***

  Becker was back twenty minutes later with a metal bucket filled to the brim with charcoal.

  “Lily the blacksmith said the collier comes to deliver once a week, the next time he comes to the blacksmith he’ll send him over. He also said to keep the bucket, and wouldn’t take any money for any of it. He said you fed his brother and his family when he was out of work two winters ago, a bucket and a little charcoal is nowhere close to what he owes you.”

  Just then Lottie came back with the two labeled tubes.

  “Ready to go Lottie?”

  She held up the two tubes.

  “I’m ready, now we have two chances for a cure. I'm feeling more optimistic.”

  “Me too, we’ll be a lot safer in England. I have permission to use the lab from the government and it’s a government hospital. They said you have full use of their staff as well. Let’s go.”

  I jumped it to Blackpool beach and we took an uber to Blackpool Victoria Hospital. I told them at the front desk who I was and Dan had informed them I’d be arriving. A woman in a white uniform took us to the lab, swiped a key card and we were in. A staff member came over to assist Lottie. I sat down on a stool next to a counter full of gleaming equipment. A few minutes later Lottie grabbed a stool and sat next to me.

  “Talbert came to see me today after noticing that we were in Boston causing a scene.”

  Lottie laughed. “To be clear, you were the one causing a scene.”

  “True, very true. But it felt good to say all that stuff to those kids and even better to tell those agents I was complicit, like them. But not anymore.”

  “Way to wave the red flag in front of the bulls. I'm just glad they didn’t shoot you, I’d never have forgiven myself.”

  “I’m glad they didn’t shoot me too. By the way Doctor, you weren’t meant to be a background character or a side kick. You were supposed to be the main character of a medical thriller. That Talbert started to write before the covid pandemic. You were a late replacement for a Charlene Apple, who Talbert didn’t like in the role and then decided on you. Then her agent called and told her to stop, with covid killing people a medical thriller just wasn’t going to sell. So she started on something else. She’s going to bring paper copies of all her notes on you and the first couple of chapters.”

  “This is really dumb, but that actually makes me feel a lot better. My self esteem took a pretty big hit when she told me she didn’t remember me. How worth less can a fictional character get when her own author can even remember who she is.”

  “She remembers now Lottie, she was looking forward to writing the medical thriller and she says were are her two most badass female characters.”

  “Well Paula definitely has the top spot after today. You should have seen that hospital in Boston FBI and ICE were running all over the place looking for the three of us. It was crazy.”

  “I’m sorry I put you in such a difficult situation. I’ve just been so angry and those kids were so supportive. I just shot my mouth off without thinking of the consequences.”

  “There were no consequences, Salome had a ball watching you on the hospital TV and when the agents showed up we just jumped. Better that the government is chasing some phantoms they can never catch than some poor illegal mother, right? They’ll waste resources all along the east coast I'd bet.”

  “Excuse me Dr. Li, we have your results ma’am. Negative ma’am. Your patient no longer has tuberculosis.”

  “On both vials or just the second?”

  “On both ma’am”

  “Thank you so much.”

  “You're more than welcome. I saw you both on TV today and you’re both my heroes, so I’m really happy that I could give you some good news.”

  Wow, we did it, we really did it. Magic really is amazing. Emain Ablach is really amazing and Lily is really amazing. The third bake of her life and Lily cured a young child of tuberculosis, amazing. Lottie thanked the lab tech again, hugged me. We left the hospital.

  “I’m so happy that Madd Maggie sent me to Emain Ablach. I was in the hospital, having almost been killed by my ex. But the worst thing for me laying in that bed was knowing that I was going to have to watch my precious little boy die. Probably in a few months. I had access to and tried every possible cure, he’d have died on Earth. No question about it. He never knew it, I told him one of these experimental treatments is bound to work. He didn’t know that he was going to die, but he knew he couldn’t go out with people. Play with friends, it’s been a horrible year for him and for me. If he’s fictional at least he got his happy ending we both did. Let’s go home. I have to thank Lily, Salome and Lu for helping to build the oven. How will I ever repay you all?”

  “I’m sure they will all tell you the same thing, no one wants to be repaid. Just knowing that your son is healthy is enough repayment.”

  Lottie started crying. I jumped us home.

  ***

  Lottie was crying hard now, tears of relief, tears for the stress and excitement of the day. As soon as she saw Lily, Lottie hurried to her and crying even harder started hugging her like she was never going to let go.

  I walked into the bakery to give them both some privacy and also to tell Salome that it’d worked. But she was at the other end of the store whispering with Ruby about something. Maybe some boy in town had struck the two girls fancy. So I coughed lightly to signal my presence.

  “It worked Salome, you helped cure a boy of a horrible disease.”

  “Nah, you and Lily and Lu deserve the credit, all I did was a little jumping. But you were something else I was telling Ruby they have TV’s all over the hospital just like having hundreds of Doug. Can you imagine? Telling all those agents off, people in the hospital were listening then clapping and cheering for you.”

  “Well I didn’t even think about those kids with the phones, I just had some things I needed to get off my chest. It felt good, I’m glad I got to say them, because really now I feel like I’m done with earth for good. Saying those things made me feel like I was closing that chapter. Now here I am in the magical bakery with everyone. Those years I thought I wasted, weren’t wasted because they got me here with all of you. And who knows what crazy thing Rose is dreaming up for us all to do next.”