The Lost Secret of the Green Man by Tiffany Turner
In the spirit of St. Patrick’s Day, I wanted to post a scene from my new book The Lost Secret of the Green Man. Wanda is traveling to Ireland in hopes to meet the Green Man. She is hoping he may have some answers to help save the fairies, again. She is following her leprechaun guide when she spots a patch of luck. This excerpt is from Chapter 7, pages 53-55 Hardcover edition:
He headed up the narrow path covered in a green blanket of clovers. I had a chance to spot the number of leaves. I glanced down and noticed a four-leaf clover among the others. An impulse over took me to pluck it. I remembered what Broc has said that sometimes the Fairy World made you feel compelled towards things you would need. So, I put it in my jacket pocket. Never could hurt to have a little portable luck.
When I was done, I looked up to see both of them gone. “Brewford? Brewford?” What was the leprechaun’s name again? I’m so bad with names. “Leprechaun…friend? Where did you disappear to?”
The mists swirled around me. I couldn’t see down or up. The swirling turned green and black. A voice started to speak within the mist in front of me.
“Turn back Wanda. You will never find what you seek. Travel the Fairy Path no longer.” The voice echoed backwards into the fog and formed a shadow in front of me. The shadow figure formed into a man shape with red eyes. Glistening spaces in the maw of its mouth seemed pointed into a smile. Then he formed into a pale, thin man. He had on a grey and dark purple robe that swirled about him. He held a large walking stick, which could have passed for any wizard’s staff. His pale complexion made him look sick and ill humored. He started to twirl his thin, black mustache. “ So we meet at last.” His nasal voice echoed in my mind after he spoke.
I tried not to smile as the thought came to me and answered, “No, at first.” If this was the Green Man, maybe he had a sense of humor. “And you are the Green Man I presume?” There, that sounded straight from a movie. I might be getting this hero thing right after all.
He only gave me a smile and said, “No, I wouldn’t presume to be him. I’m someone much more important to you.”
He didn’t seem overly friendly, and there was something not right about him. This guy just seemed down right creepy. Maybe he was another kind of trap. He made my skin feel prickly as he looked at me.
Then, I remembered the clover. I held it in my pocket and it tingled. Maybe there was something to the luck being in a four-leaf clover.
“You will let me pass.” I felt bolder. “For it is my choice.” I reached in my pocket and rubbed the clover in my coat pocket. “I don’t have time to deal with super, spooky wannabe shadows.” I started to walk past him.
“Wanda, surely you know not what faces you.” He blocked my path. “I am who you seek.”
“Oh come on! I’ve heard better lines in most horror films. You’ve got to do better than that.” I went to walk past and he blocked the way in front of me. “I’ve faced shadows before. You were never real.” I tried again, and he took two steps back with me.
He seemed to rise up a bit in front of me and said, “I do remember how you faced my allies in the real world. But now, you are in the World of Fairy. And here, fear can become reality in the speck of an instant.” His red eyes gleamed down. “We will meet again. Luck is with you today, for I cannot touch you with a charm of the Fairy Realm held within your hand. But…”
He leaned forward. I could smell his stink like a strong whiff of a cat box right after usage. “We will meet again; sooner than you think.”
A whoosh of black mist ended his words stronger than a period. I was waiting for the whoosh of fire to come up like in the Wizard of Oz. But there was only a strong wind with the scent of rotten leftovers.
Wanda? Wanda? Brewford swept through the murkiness to me. Where have you been? His whiskers were smoothed back against his face. They started to lower some when he continued, along with the fur on his back. He even looked concerned. We lost you in the fog. And then Balkazaar appeared.
“We thought for the worst, friend Keeper.” Lubdan rushed up next to him. His hat was gripped in his hand as if he had been running with it. “Were you frightened with the Master of Shadow Sorcerers blocking the path? We thought surely he would do away with you.”
I noticed a shiver escape my shoulders as I pulled out the four-leaf clover. It was a bit crumpled now, but still whole. “I don’t know what really happened back there, but I know one thing, I definitely had a bit of luck.”
The Lost Secret of the Green Man is available at Amazon and Barnesnoble.com.
Kindle Edition also available.
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