The Temple of Indra’s Jewel: by Rachael Stapleton Read Free Book Online

corked bottles labelled in Latin and stacked on shelves that went all the way to the ceiling. One particular book protruded from a shelf, or perhaps the gleam of the fire on it caught my attention; either way, when my eyes lit upon it Rochus moved to stand between me and the book. I bumped into a table, knocking over a bottle that shattered on the stone floor.
    “Damn it!” I could no longer control myself, and I began to cry. The old man stared at me for a moment, scrutinizing me from every angle, and then his jaw dropped.
    “ Scheiße ! Something went wrong, didn’t it?”
    “I think so.” I broke down and told him the story about waking up disoriented in the Princess’s bed.
    We sat at a wooden table, the fire burning in the hearth at our side. Hanging from the ceiling were all kinds of flowers and herbs, all jumbled together and releasing heady fumes.
    He handed me a cloth to dry my tears on, and to add some comfort, I supposed.
    “ Ein Zauber, ” he started.
    “Pardon?”
    “ Bitte. Magic . It never works as it’s supposed to.” He spit out, “I didn’t know it would erase your memory.”
    “It didn’t. My memory is fine. It’s just, I’m not Sapphira. I’m Sophia Marcil. I’m a librarian from the twenty-first century. Do you understand? I’m from the future.”
    He stayed silent and stroked his long white beard as I expelled the entire story of Nick, falling off the island’s edge on Sainte Marguerite and the swirling underwater cavern. He took it all in stride, absorbing my situation much better than I was myself.
    “I’m not delusional. I realize how ridiculous this sounds, but it’s true and I can prove it.” I took Gigi’s ring out of my pocket. “This is my great-grandmother’s; it’s the only thing that seems to have made the journey with me.”
    He continued to just stare. I realized it didn’t prove a thing. Such items were available in this time. I cursed under my breath and slipped it on my finger.
    “May I see it?”
    I held my hand out to him. The old alchemist peered at the ring gleaming in the firelight.
    “Pieces of the Purple Delhi Sapphire! The Princess showed it to me once. She wore a chip of it in an amulet around her neck, always hidden beneath her dress.”
    He examined it for another two minutes. When he spoke again, his voice was unexpectedly deep and calm. “So the tale is true.”
    “What tale?”
    If he felt surprise at the situation we found ourselves in, he did not show it.
    “You… Sapphira came to me in the middle of the night over a week ago desperate for help. She believed her brother, the Prince, was in danger because she was about to refuse marriage,” he said, handing over a mug of dark, strong-smelling liquor before taking a swig from his own.
    “I read that! In her diary! That’s what led me to you, but marriage to who?”
    “I do not know. My name is written in her book?” He didn’t look happy, but he went on. “ Mein großmutter had the sight. Her Serene Highness required me to look into her future.”
    “Your grandmother was clairvoyant?” I said, beginning to understand his accent a little better. I sniffed my mug and took a small sip. The strong taste of brandy took my breath away but made my throat warm.
    “I’m not as gifted as mein großmutter was, but I have her book and I can work potions and spells, so I gave Sapphira an enlightening potion instead. Or rather I’d thought I’d given her one.”
    “What’s that?”
    He turned and looked at me as though I had just asked what the sun was.
    “What do you think, mein lieber ? A potion to enlighten, of course.”
    “So this potion brought me here or switched us? Did you create some sort of wormhole in time? Can you do that?” I spit my questions out rapid fire, letting all my anxiety spill out.
    “A wormhole? I have no conception of what you mean, but I must know more of your magical jewel.”
    “Magical jewel?” I gasped. “No, this… it’s just a ring.”
    “Mmm