Witch War in Westerham

by Dionne Lister

  I felt a tap on my arm. Oops, seemed I’d zoned out on my guest. How rude of me. “Sorry. Here.” I gave it another chip.

  Footsteps sounded from behind me. I turned, and the squirrel froze. We both stared at Will. He stopped and eyeballed us. He pointed at me, then the squirrel. “Um, what the hell have you got going on here? How did you get a squirrel to join you for afternoon tea?”

  “Abby is a wonderful event coordinator. We really should pay her more.”

  “So, is that what you’ve done all day? Picnic with a squirrel?”

  “And what if it is? It’s not like I can watch TV. I’m making my own reality TV—except it’s not being filmed. It’s purely for my own enjoyment.”

  He put his hands up in a placating gesture. “No judgement from me.”

  “If you really want to know, I can also walk on my hands, but my arms are sore because it took me a couple of hours of practice.”

  He quietly walked around my chair, careful not to startle my new friend, and sat in the chair next to me. “It’s good to see that you’re not entirely wasting your time.”

  I smiled. “Thanks. So, how was your day?” I gazed at the window. “It’s not dark. What are you doing home?”

  “I have news.”

  My heart beat harder, the thud reverberating through my chest. “And?”

  “The chateau is a go.”

  “When?”

  “Tonight.”

  “Wow, give a girl some notice. I haven’t had a chance to get my hair done. And whatever will I wear?”

  “Ha ha, very funny. Ponytail and black. There, done.”

  “Don’t ever give up your day job to become a stylist.”

  He pouted. “You’re so mean, crushing my dreams like that.”

  I turned to the squirrel. “What do you think? Am I mean?” It chittered. I blinked and turned to Will. “Was that a coincidence, or did Grayson really speak to me?”

  “Grayson?”

  “It’s better than calling him or her it. I have no idea what gender it is.”

  “I can’t believe I’m having this conversation.” He put his palm to his forehead. “Seriously.”

  I grinned. “Are you saying it’s crazy that all your dreams are coming true?” I waggled my eyebrows.

  He looked at Abby. “Help me out here. You started this.” She meowed and gave him an irritated look.

  “Tell me what she said. Come on.”

  He rolled his eyes. “She denied starting anything.” He looked at her. “If you hadn’t pandered to Lily, the squirrel wouldn’t be here, and I wouldn’t be having this ridiculous conversation.” He sighed dramatically, and Abby flicked her nose into the air and turned her back on him.

  I laughed. “I don’t need to read minds to know she just told you to you-know-what.”

  He laughed. “Yep.” His joviality disappeared. “Are you prepared for tonight?”

  “There’s not much I need to do other than grab my camera and go. I know what we’re looking for.”

  “Okay. I know I don’t need to say it, but I will—don’t forget your return to sender, and if anything happens, make your doorway and come straight back here.” I met his serious gaze. How could I promise to abandon him and Imani if things went pear-shaped? “Lily….” His gravelly tone had that warning I’d heard a million times before… from Angelica and my brother.

  “I don’t want to just leave you if something happens. You might need my help.”

  “Please, please, please, just promise.”

  A deluge of sadness drowned my previous squirrel-induced good mood. “Why can’t you ask me to promise something else? It goes against who I am to ditch my people in times of need. How would you like it if I asked you to do the same thing?”

  “It’s different. I’m an agent. It’s my job to protect you and everyone else. I’ve trained years for this, Lily. Why do you have to make it so hard? I hate putting you in harm’s way in the first place.”

  “This is my battle, Will. RP did need taking down, obviously, but we wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for my parents going missing. I’ve been on this journey since I got here. I’ve placed myself in this, and, in fact, I’m putting you in danger.” I folded my arms and my forehead tightened as I gave him my best concerned angry-person glare.

  “Please.” It came out as a desperate whisper.

  A person was only as good as their word, or so the saying went. I was about to become the biggest opposite of good there ever was. “Okay. I promise.” …to always love you. Okay, so if I finished the sentence in my head, was it really a lie? I was at least telling myself the truth. Hmm, semantics, Lily. If it was a battle I thought he and Imani could handle, I’d be out of there faster than a racehorse out of the gate, but if not….

  “Thank you.” The way he gazed at me with those gorgeous grey eyes, trusting me…. I sucked.

  Time to change the subject. “So, do you think Angelica would mind if Grayson moved in?”

  If guilt kept someone warm, I’d be sweating up a storm rather than shivering. Clouds obscured the stars as we hid in the bushes outside the stone walls of Gabriel’s chateau in eleven degrees Celsius—I’d checked the weather app on my phone. It had just gone 1:00 a.m., and the security guard service they used had driven in there ten minutes ago. Surely they’d be finished soon. Apparently, they visited twice a night at random times. This was the second time, according to James, who’d done the shift from ten when the security guards went on duty. There must be a few rich people out here who used their services. And thank you to Cardinal for getting all this information. There was a lot more, apparently, but it would take time to sift through and make sense of.

  “Are you shivering?” Will asked from behind me.

  “Yes, but it’s okay. We’ll be inside soon.”

  He moved to stand behind me, then pressed his chest against my back and wrapped his arms around me. “See if this helps.” If we weren’t about to break into someone’s house, it would be so romantic. Come to think of it, it was romantic anyway.

  “Argh, you guys can’t keep your hands off each other for five minutes.” There was a hint of mirth in Imani’s tone. Sigh. Things just got way less romantic, but at least I was warmer.

  “If you’re feeling left out, come here, and I’ll cuddle you.” I snorted.

  “That’s not a bad offer. I’ll consider it.”

  I laughed. Then stopped. Headlights shone through the wrought-iron gates, and the quiet hum of an engine reached us. Will dropped his arms from around me, and we all crouched. The car drove through and turned onto the road. Once they were out of sight, Will’s magic tingled my scalp. “Okay, perimeter cameras and alarms disabled.” He reached down and grabbed the ladder James had magicked there earlier. He leaned it against the wall. “Once you get to the top of the wall, just hang from your fingertips and drop. It won’t be far at all.”

  “Yes, boss.” I scaled the ladder and stayed low as I reached the top of the eight-foot-high wall. I slid to the other side on my stomach, my legs dangling over the chateau side. I gripped the top of the fence and lowered myself, then dropped the rest of the way. It had been a damned sight easier than last time Will had helped me get over a fence when we were trying to catch Liv’s fiancé. Gee, time went quickly. Where the hell did it go?

  Imani dropped over next, then Will. His magic tingled my scalp again. “Ladder, back to where James got you from.” He and Imani pulled their guns out, and I checked my return to sender was up for the fourth time since we’d arrived. It was becoming a nervous habit. “We’ll get to the tree line, then I’ll have to disable the home security system, so once you get there, just wait for my signal before moving to the chateau.”

  “Okay,” we both replied.

  As we walked, old leaf litter crunched underfoot, and I cringed at each crunch. Every now and then, Will stopped to listen. The third time we stopped, leaves still crunched. My heart galloped, and I held my breath for as long as I could. Whoever was coming towards u
s, still came. Rustle, rustle, crunch. Will pointed his gun into the gloom. Then a few feet away, from behind a large tree, a deer appeared. I let my breath out in a whoosh. The deer stopped and jerked its head towards us, then turned and ran the other way. Will swore quietly.

  “I second that,” I whispered.

  “Come on.” Will started walking again.

  Finally, we reached the border where trees met lawn and pool. It was still a good fifty metres to the house, a gorgeous three-storey neo-Gothic chateau that was the size of a hotel. Man, this place was huge.

  Will closed his eyes. His magic tingled my scalp again, and an owl hooted. If I wasn’t a witch, I’d be even more scared, but I supposed I was in my natural environment. I swallowed a giggle. I’d never seen myself as spooky before, but perhaps I was. Time to own it, maybe?

  After a couple of minutes, Will opened his eyes. “We’re clear. Let’s go.”

  We sprinted across the lawn. Instead of going to the front doors, Will headed around to the back of the chateau. If the security guards happened to do a third check, they wouldn’t see us before we saw them. At least, that’s why I thought Will was headed around the back.

  He stopped at tall french doors, which he unlocked using something he pulled out of his back pocket. “Why aren’t you using magic?” I asked.

  “I’ve disabled all the alarms and cameras, but what if they’ve got a subtle one that detects magic? I’ll know more once we’re inside.”

  “Fair enough.”

  The lock clicked, and we were in.

  Trespassing was not on my list of favourite things to do. My back itched, as if someone were watching and we’d be sprung at any time. Will and Imani entered first, guns drawn. Once they confirmed the room was clear, I went in.

  The sweet, dusty odour of old books folded me in a heady embrace. Dim light from Imani’s phone revealed wall-to-ceiling shelves filled with books on three walls. The furnishings were as you’d expect in an expensive French chateau library—numerous leather and fabric chairs, rugs, dark timber shelves, parquetry floors, and ornate ceilings.

  Imani turned to Will. “I’ll clear out this side of the house; you clear out the other.” He nodded, and they went through different doors. I stayed and turned my camera on. “Show me my mother at the party the week before she was at Mont Saint-Michel.”

  Nothing changed. She probably hadn’t been in this room. I took the route Will had taken and walked into a living room, then repeated my question. This time, the room changed from dark to light. Electric wall sconces were on, as were two chandeliers. Twenty-seven people dressed in evening wear stood in groups, most with drinks in hand. Two butlers with serving trays filled with full glasses were also in the shot. I wandered around and made sure I got everyone in at least one shot. When I was done, I went back to my mother’s group. She stood with three other women, none of whom looked familiar. My mother, dressed in a strapless red gown that hugged her figure to her waist, then fell in soft folds to the floor, was stunning, as always. My heart filled with the infinitely painful spikiness of love, yearning, and loss that always hit me at these moments. “Miss you, Mum,” I whispered.

  I moved to the next room—another large entertaining space, filled with plush furnishings and more people. I asked the question and took more photos of the numerous guests. Gabriel made an appearance in this room, as did three young women in servant’s attire. They held trays of hors d’oeuvres. Even though my mother was here, my dad was nowhere to be seen, and there was nothing suspicious about anything. I took photos of everyone and kept going.

  And so it continued through the rest of the ground floor. I ran into Imani at the bottom of the staircase in the grand foyer. “Lily, I’ve found his study. I’m thinking this is the most likely place we’ll find something.”

  “Okay. Lead the way.”

  At the top of the stairs, Imani took a left and hurried along the corridor. We passed three doors before she stopped at the fourth, which was already open. Another huge room awaited, with a timber desk in front of a shuttered window. Imani shut the door and turned on the light. “No one will be able to see the light with the shutters closed. I’ve used a small amount of magic to cast a no-light-leak spell.”

  “Is that specific to the PIB?”

  “Yes. You end up with an interesting cauldron of tricks when much of your job comprises sneaking around. Anyway, best get going. We’ve been here for twenty-three minutes.”

  “Crap. That went quickly.” I raised my camera. “Show me my mother the night of the party.” Hmm, that was odd.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “I’m not getting anything. Hmm….” Maybe Mum stayed at the party and acted like a lookout for Dad? “Show me my father at the party the week before he was at Mont Saint-Michel with Mum.” I smiled. “Gotcha!” The light was on in the past. My father stood behind the desk, going through the top drawer. I took a photo of him, then walked over to the desk and took a picture of the document face up in the drawer. “Is there anything else I should see?” That was kind of a broad question, but I had a feeling I wasn’t getting the full story. It was akin to asking my magic to show me more. After all, showing me one piece of paper wasn’t much. I doubted my father risked being found out snooping if there hadn’t been something important here.

  The light was on, and my father held a piece of paper in his hand, but his gaze was on the door. I snapped a pic of him, then turned. Oh, crap. Toussaint stood in the doorway, my mother behind him, her hand on his upper arm, maybe trying to stop him? Her frantic gaze met my father’s. Toussaint’s eyes radiated anger, and his mouth was pinched closed. He gripped the door handle so hard, his knuckles protruded alarmingly. I snapped off a shot. But hang on a minute. I’d caught him the moment he was looking slightly to my father’s right and up. The only thing there was the window. I carefully shuffled a few steps to where my father had been and photographed the paper in his hand… a map. Interesting.

  I lowered my camera. “I’ve got some good info, but there’s something else I want to check out. Look at this. Toussaint isn’t quite looking at my dad.” I showed her the shots from the beginning. When I reached the one of Gabriel, Imani screwed up her face. “What are you talking about, love? How can you even tell? All I see is a man looking across the room.”

  Damn. I was the only one who could pan across the whole scene and understand the context. I lifted my camera again. “Show me what Gabriel was looking at.” Nothing. Damn it. I lowered my camera and made my way behind the desk. I turned my head to look at Imani. “Can you kill the light? I need to open the shutters.”

  She shrugged. “Okay.” She turned the light off, and I drew my sleeve down and opened the shutter on my left—as amateur as I was, I was not going to leave fingerprints behind. The shutter had covered a thick windowsill decorated with ornate timber panelling. I tapped it. I had no idea what I was looking for, but seeing as how they did this in movies all the time, maybe it would reveal something. Imani came over to me. “What are you doing?”

  “Looking for something.”

  She grinned. “Why don’t you try pulling the sconces next to the fireplace?”

  “Oh, can you while I do this?”

  “You numpty. I was kidding. Seriously, what are you doing?”

  “There might be a cavity or something hidden here. I swear Toussaint was looking at this.”

  She sighed. “Fine. Let me put you out of your misery. At least you’ll know we looked.” She grabbed gloves out of her pocket and put them on. Then she gave me a gentle push to move me out of the way and placed her palm on the thick timber covering the wall of the window nook. She used a breath of magic that only just feathered the back of my neck. I shivered. There was a small click. She looked at me, her eyes widening as if to say, would you look at that? She slid the timber panel across so it stuck out more and more, until it stopped.

  “There’s a cavity here.”

  I jogged around the desk to look over her shoulder. She reached i
nto the hole and pulled out a small metal box. This time, she held it and shut her eyes.

  “I’m checking for booby traps…. Looks clean.” She magicked a lock picking implement to herself and got to work. “I don’t want to leave more magic signatures behind than I have to. The less magic I use, the fainter the signature. Hopefully, the one I’ve already used will fade by the morning.” She slid the implement into her inside jacket pocket and flicked the lock across.

  The lid opened, and she reached in.

  “What’s in there?” It was hard to see in the gloom, and I knew she didn’t want any lights on because someone might see it shining from outside, not that there was anyone within cooee of the chateau in its massive grounds.

  “A skeleton key and a small stone. I’ll show you when we get home.” She pocketed the items, shut the box, and slipped it back into the wall. She returned the timber panel to its original position and closed the shutter. “Let’s check out a couple more rooms, just to make sure we haven’t missed anything. Then we’ll grab Will and get out of here.”

  “Okay.” We went back to the three rooms we’d passed earlier. Each was a bedroom. The first two we got nothing, but in the third, Toussaint had his arms around one of the young women who’d been serving food downstairs. He looked down into her eyes, a lascivious, sly expression on his face, while her eyes emanated fear. She had her palms against his chest, as if trying to get away. Click.

  “You got something?”

  “Yeah, and it just helps build a case proving Toussaint is the world’s biggest di—”

  “Hey, how are you two going?” Will asked as he walked in.

  I jumped. “Can you not scare me like that every time?”

  “Sorry. It wasn’t intentional.”

  “Lily’s gathered a lot of evidence. What about you? Anything interesting?”

  “I’m not sure. There was a notebook in one of the bedside tables that had names and phone numbers. I took photos, and I’ll follow it up later. Not sure if it’s relevant, but you never know.”