"I felt it too, Agnes," I said, brushing down my knees. "But it's gone now. It was like the earth was, I don't know, angry."

Agnes looked at me. "The earth doesn't get angry, Evie," she said.

Her words confused me, but before I could ask what she meant, a loud shout from down the road cut through our conversation. We turned to see two figures having a heated argument by a small copse of trees on the edge of the village.

"That's Geraint Miller and Alun Davies," Agnes said, peering into the distance. "They've been arguing over that plot of land for as long as I can remember. "

Agnes pointed out Geraint a centaur pointing a finger at Alun, a thin man with a beaky nose and shifty eyes.

"Why does Alun remind me of someone?" I asked.

"You're observant. Alun was Thomas's brother."

"Thomas?" I asked.

"The man you found murdered," said Agnes. As I looked at him more closely, I could see the resemblance.

The men were both shouting now, their voices carrying across the peaceful landscape.

"Let's see if we can calm things down," Agnes proposed. It seemed intrinsic to her to want to heal.

As we got closer, I could hear their argument.

"You can't take that land from me!" Geraint was yelling. "It's been in my family for generations!"

"And it's been in disrepair for just as long!" Alun retorted. "It's time someone did something with it!"

I shivered as I watched the two men. "They're like wolves fighting over a scrap of meat," I said to Agnes. "It's like. I dont know. Would people ever kill over something like this?"

Agnes looked at me. "Evie, what are you saying?"

I shrugged, wrapping my arms around me as if I was feeling a strong breeze. "I'm just saying Thomas Davies died under strange circumstances, didn't he? And here's his brother, trying to take land from Geraint. Wasn't Thomas a property developer?"

Agnes fell silent, watching the two men. "That's a dangerous path to walk, Evie," she said. "Rumours can cause more harm than good."

"I'm not trying to create a rumour," I said. "I mean, it just seems strange to me. What if this argument has something to do with the murder? Shouldn't we report it?"

"I don't know," Agnes said. "But we can't go making wild accusations."

"I know," I said. "But don't you think Gethin should be told about it?" I looked at the land they were arguing about. It looked like any other in this area, wild and overgrown. "What's so special about that piece of land, Agnes?" I asked.

Agnes frowned, considering my question. "I'm not sure, Evie," she said. "But there have been rumours."

"Rumours?" I asked. Despite myself, I felt intrigued.

"Yes," Agnes said. "Some people think the Davies boys were looking for something. I remember when they were children, they had treasure maps and hunted round the village for gold."

"Gold, hidden in a little wood?" I asked. It was strange to hide in an ordinary place.

Agnes smiled. "The story of Llyncroft is that it used to be a smugglers' town. There are passages that lead down to the harbour carved through the rocks. What if there's something more than trees on that plot of land?" she said. "It's not much to look at but to someone like Alun, I imagine he could do all sorts of things with it."

"Alun?" I said, turning to look at the thin man now jabbing his finger into Geraint's chest.

"Yes," Agnes said. "As a warlock, Alun would use gold in his spells. I remember as a kid, his obsession with gold meant he tried to work out the secret of turning ordinary metals into gold. We used to joke Thomas had the Midas Touch making loads of money with his business deals. The rivalry between brothers could push Alun to do crazy things."

I looked at her, my mind racing. Could there be a connection between this land, the gold, and Thomas's murder? I wanted to find out more. I didn't want Thomas's death to overshadow my new start in Llyncroft.

"Agnes," I said, turning to her. "Do you think this has something to do with Thomas's death?"

Agnes sighed and shrugged. "I don't know, Evie," she said. "But it's possible."

My heart pounded in my chest as I looked back at the men. My curiosity aroused. "Where could I find out more about the land and the treasure?"

"Don't get involved with this Evie. You might not like what you find."

"What aren't you telling me, Agnes?"

Agnes studied the land the men were fighting over. "They say the gold is cursed," she said, almost spitting out the word.

I frowned, the word rattling around in my head. "Why is the gold cursed?"

Agnes turned to me, her eyes filled with a mixture of concern and resignation. "The gold, Evie. It's not just any ordinary treasure. It's said to be cursed by the very land itself."

I couldn't help but feel a shiver run down my spine at her words. "What do you mean, cursed by the land?"

She sighed, looking out over the rolling hills. "There are stories, passed down through generations of my people, about the gold and the misfortune it brings to those who seek it. They say that long ago, a group of pirates or smugglers hid their treasure in these woods. But the earth, it didn't take kindly to the greed and violence that was used to collect the treasure."

I listened intently. I'd always loved the tales of pirates my gran told me. "What happened to the pirates?"

"They say that the earth itself turned against them," Agnes continued. "The trees twisted and grew, trapping them within the woods. The very ground beneath their feet shifted, swallowing them whole. And the gold, it remained hidden, waiting for its next victim."

I couldn't help but glance at the arguing men, wondering if they knew the history of the land they were fighting over. "Has anyone ever found the gold?"

Agnes nodded solemnly. "There have been a few who have tried over the years. But each time, misfortune befell them. One man, he lost everything he owned in a single night: his house, his livestock, even his family. Another, he went mad with greed, driven to the brink of insanity by the lure of the cursed treasure."

I felt a chill run through me, despite the warmth of the sun on my skin. "And you think that's what Alun and Thomas are after? The cursed gold?"

"I can't say for certain," Agnes replied. "But I do know that the land holds many secrets, and some of them are best left buried. I just hope that whatever they're searching for, it doesn't lead them down a dark path."

"What other secrets?" I wondered, but didn't expect Agnes to share.

"There are always consequences when you dig for treasure like this. You're harming the earth. You're upsetting the balance."

"In what way?" I asked.

Agnes looked at me, her eyes filled with an ancient sadness. "Nymphs are tied to the land. We feel its joys and its sorrows. When the earth is ripped apart, it's like we're being wounded. The land takes years to recover, and during that time, we're weakened."

I felt sick. "So by fighting for this land, Alun could be hurting your kin?"

Agnes reached out and placed a hand on my arm. "Be careful, Evie. You're walking into a very old fight, which you don't understand."

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