Sage stared at the woman, taking in the distinctive face, the way the body was held, and the attitude; there was no denying it.

"You're a Channing," Sage whispered, "why are you here? I thought Channing's weren't allowed to live here."

"I have an ancestor who was a Channing, but I'm a Cooper by blood," the woman said, "now … answer my question, who are you?"

"My name is Sage," Sage said, "I was sent here to work on the legend of the house; I have a short time frame to get it done and submit it to the company that sent me."

The woman narrowed her gaze on Sage as the light from the doorway moved across her face, "You remind me of someone," she whispered, "someone who was here many years ago but is no longer with us …" she sighed, "… it looks like our time is running out. What is your full name?"

"Time … what?" Sage spluttered, "Why do you want my full name?"

"It will help me decide which way we "assist" you," the woman said, folding her arms at her waist.

"Um … okay," Sage sighed, "never knew my list of names was going to be this darn important," she muttered before clearing her throat, staring at the woman momentarily before inhaling, exhaling and shaking her head, "Fine… here it is …. Sage Caroline Mary Annabella Rosemary Cooper-Channing." Turning toward the entrance, Sage began to walk toward the sunlight; anywhere away from these people would be good. Suddenly, a tall man stepped before her, barring her way. "Please let me pass," Sage said, slowly raising her eyes to his. It was a long way up, but the steely gaze she saw told her she would remain there until the woman allowed her to leave. Looking over her shoulder, Sage stared at the woman, whose expression seemed stunned; she shook her head and waved Sage to follow her; glancing at the man who waited for Sage to follow, she whispered, "What's wrong with her?"

"You will be told," his voice rumbled softly on the space between them, "please …" he indicated the direction the woman had gone.

Shaking her head, Sage followed through an obscure entrance into a brightly lit area at the back of the cave. Slowly moving forward, she took in the large cave. An eating area could be found on one side, neatly rolled sleeping bags were stacked against a section of the wall, and a sitting area had been put together with wooden crates near the other side of the cave. Looking up, Sage felt small; the cave ceiling couldn't be seen from the ground, and a darkness formed above the reach of the lights.

"How big is this place?" she whispered as she turned in a circle, finding large, long wooden crates against the other wall, "Pirates and smugglers," she murmured, "it's still happening?"

The woman turned toward her after she finished speaking to a small group of men, "We have never found the roof," she said, striding into the cave, "you can never go down the hill trail if you come up it," she said, "it will mean your demise."

"Who will kill me? Jeffery?" Sage asked.

The woman froze, slowly turning toward Sage, and the men around her became alert, "Is he back?"

"I don't know if he ever left, but he's been present for some time," Sage said, "he's becoming quite a nuisance when it comes to Maddy's safety, and I've seen him lurking in the garden of the house at night, but other than the first time Jeffery broke into the house, he hasn't been inside ... besides I've heightened security."

"Broke into the house?" the woman asked, frowning, "how?"

"Picked the door leading into the garden from the kitchen," Sage said, "now we bolt it into the floor and ceiling. He did invite himself to tea once … rather out of the blue, but neither Maddy nor I joined him, so he drank and ate alone."

"He's getting too confident," one of the men said, "just now we'll find him looking for the secrets of the house and trying to prove he owns it."

"Oh, he already told me that," Sage said, chuckling, "I think he was going for a horror movie vibe, but with the family, I have …" Sage sighed, "… I wasn't close to feeling threatened."

"Who are your family?" the woman asked.

"Since you think I look familiar," Sage said, "I'm going to assume you know Rosemary," the woman nodded, "then I'm her Granddaughter," Sage said, "do you know Rosemary's family tree?"

"We do," the woman said, "they are not very nice people."

"Well then ... Rosemary's son is my father," Sage said, "I don't even want to talk about my mother or brother …" Sage closed her eyes and shuddered, "… never mind my sister-in-law."

Silence met Sage's words as the woman ambled toward her, "You don't get on with your family."

"Not in the slightest," Sage said, "I never have … I'm just grateful that my Grandmother raised me and I didn't have to live with them either … well, not until I had to."

"You're Rosemary's heir," the woman whispered, nodding, "this is making more sense."

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

"How do you know about Rosemary's heir?" Sage asked, staring at the woman, "Did Maddy tell you?"

"Maddy is not permitted to come to the caves until Jeffery no longer comes to the islands," the woman said, "we know everything about what is supposed to be happening here."

"Islands… you mean cove," Sage said, watching a flicker of annoyance move over her features, "… is that why they need the Magi's Coronet?"

"What do you know of the Magi's Coronet?" the woman asked sharply.

Sage stilled, straightening as she took in the bristling men gathering around them. Understanding that she may not leave here alive dawned on her active mind, nodding. Sage sighed.

"Apparently more than I'm supposed to know," she said, "I've been reading the journals and doing my job …" she said, meeting blank stares, "… research."

"You could get into the archives holding the knowledge of the Magi's Coronet?" the woman hissed, "no one can … no one should be able to know about that precious piece."

"I don't know what to tell you," Sage said, "I followed the leads where they took me, and I came across the information … what do you think I did? Steal it?"

"It has been done before," a tall, well-built man sneered before getting a frowning glare from the woman and falling silent.

"Who stole it before?" Sage asked.

"That is not your concern," the woman said, "but our concern is that an outsider has access to this knowledge and that we cannot have."

Sage froze, the words sounding familiar; she had heard them often while living with her parents and brother; this woman definitely had Channing blood in her; even the way she said the words resembled the Channing way of implanting fear. Shaking her head, Sage almost felt sorry for her; nothing she would try in the next few moments would work.

"Are you going to chain me to the wall? Kill me? Interrogate me until you're satisfied I'm telling the truth?" Sage asked. "You forget who you're talking to," she sighed, "all I want to do is get home for dinner before Maddy sends out a search party."

"Let her go, Sally," a deep, familiar voice spoke from a space at the cave's far end, "she tells the truth."

Sage turned toward the voice, unbelief written on her face.

"Stuart," she whispered, "what are you doing here?"

"I've come to take you home," Stuart said, walking through the parting bodies, "Sally, she is who she says, and she did find the information fairly … Rosemary set it up that way."

Sage stared at the pair, taking in their resemblances, "You're brother and sister."

"We are," Stuart said quickly before Sally could speak, "but we're not doing anything wrong, and we're both Coopers."

"One of you definitely is," Sage said, looking at Stuart.

"Are you saying I'm a Channing?" Sally asked, bristling.

"I believe you when you said you're a Cooper by blood," Sage said, "but everything else tells me you're also a Channing."

"Sally, would you relax," Stuart said, placing a hand on his sister's shoulder as she stepped toward Sage, "she has a right to say that, and you know it."

"You're defending her?" Sally asked, her incredulous expression taking in her brother's calm expression.

"I'm not defending anyone," Stuart said, "just stopping you from doing something you will regret. Not a hand is to be laid on her."

"Under whose instructions?" Sally asked.

"Rosemary's," Stuart said, "assist only."

Sally glared at Stuart before meeting Sage's steady gaze, "There must be something essential about you."

"I've been wondering about that myself," Sage said, shaking her head, "I do not understand why, but I do hope I'll be able to save Coopers Cove … and the islands."

"You know about the Islands?" Stuart asked.

"I don't, but I'm hoping you'll tell me about them," Sage said, smiling hopefully at him.

"Then how?" Stuart asked.

Sage smiled at him before looking at Sally, who blushed violently.

"Sally, how could you?" Stuart asked, incredulous and angry.

"I thought she knew," Sally said, "she was talking about the Magi's Coronet and well … how was I supposed to know she was approved and legit."

"Do you know her full name?" Stuart asked.

"She told us," Sally said, "what does that have to do with it?"

"The name alone is a passkey," Stuart said, "we're on a clock, and she is the one who can stop it before it's too late for all of us."

"Oh, this again," Sally scoffed, "what is our doomsday clock pointing to now?"

Stuart pulled a folded paper from his pocket and handed it to Sage, "Read that and tell us how long we have."

Sage looked between brother and sister; this wasn't sibling banter … it was serious and, by Stuart's expression, severe, and for some reason, she was in the centre of it. It was something she would never understand how she landed in these situations. Taking the paper from Stuart, she opened it and began to read; her blood chilled in her veins as she reached the bottom of the page.

"Where did you get this?" Sage whispered.

"Rosemary's lawyer sent it to her," Stuart said, breaking eye contact with Sally and meeting Sage's gaze, "how long?"

"I have three months left before Jeffery and his family take over Charlotte's estate … and Coopers Cove," Sage said, "after that, they plan to turn this piece of land into an exclusive resort and …" Sage swallowed hard, "… find and use the islands for financial gain."

"They can't do that," Sally said, "all those people …"

"I know," Stuart said, "I need to get her home … to the house."

Nodding, Sally waved the men aside, "Let them go."

"We'll do everything we can to stop this," Stuart said, gripping his sister's shoulders, "I promise."

"I trust you," Sally whispered before glancing at Sage, "the jury is still out."

"I don't blame you," Sage said, "it's not easy putting your entire future into someone else's hands … but I promise I will do my best."

Sally nodded and sighed as Sage followed Stuart toward the back of the cave, "I hope it's good enough."