Loved Up

by A. A. Albright

  My mother might not have known anything about Operation Long Leash, but she could tell that I had a lot going on. As leader of the coven, she’d delegated the job of looking into Johnny Goode’s attractive visitor. And seeing as I hadn’t asked about it since, I was feeling like I might have just dropped a very big, very heavy ball.

  I logged onto the Wayfair system and looked up the Johnny Goode file, to see who my mother had tasked with looking into the girlfriend’s background.

  ‘My mam gave the job to Gabriel. Looks like he opened up a new file.’ I clicked on the file, and turned my computer screen towards Finn. ‘Loretta Banks. She works as a nail technician at a salon called Transformations. Went to school at Bramblewood – that vampire boarding school in North Dublin. No further education, except a few nail courses here and there.’

  Finn looked it over. ‘Gabriel says that he checked out her salon, chatted to her co-workers ... and what did they say, I wonder?’ Finn grabbed a pen from my desk and chewed on it while he read. ‘Hmm. Her co-workers mentioned she had bad taste in guys, and that they hoped she’d break up with Johnny now that he was in Witchfield. I can see why they hoped for that.’ He took a step back. Man, he was really going to town on that pen. Max would have a fit if he saw him. ‘I mean, it looks like Gabe has done his homework. Loretta has nothing about her that would suggest Dark Team. But she’s all we’ve got right now. So let’s do some more digging.’

  Bowie hopped onto my lap, and Dizzy fluttered to my shoulder. ‘You could try hacking the salon’s customer list,’ Dizzy suggested.

  As if on cue, my mobile buzzed – a text message from Paul had arrived on the screen. ‘Yeah, I could try,’ I said with a grin. ‘But I think our cheese wizard might be a tad better at that than me. And guess what? As we speak, he’s on his way over here. He’s cracked the microwave’s wiz-board.’

  18. Six Thousand Dead Werewolves by Eight Thousand Dead Weredogs

  The microwave was sitting on the edge of my bed, plugged in, and attached via series of mysterious leads to a computer in my no longer secret room.

  ‘Okay, so I’ve been playing about with it, and I’ve figured out how it was programmed,’ he said. ‘Wanda, key in 999, the way Barry did before he disappeared. Don’t worry – I’ve made sure it won’t transport you.’

  I pressed the timer buttons on the microwave as he’d directed, and ran back to the computer.

  ‘See?’ Paul pointed to the screen. ‘This is showing what that number sequence really tells the microwave – and it sure isn’t how long a triple cheese pizza needs to be reheated.’

  Finn, Gretel and I peered at the screen, all of our mouths hanging open in shock. The screen read:

  Six thousand dead werewolves by eight thousand dead weredogs.

  Bowie and Jewel looked confused, but Dizzy, who was on my shoulder, said, ‘Hey, Wanda ... aren’t they coordinates?’

  I patted his head and smirked at Jewel. ‘Why yes, Dizzy. That does seem to resemble the sort of sequence one finds in travelling coordinates. How clever of you to work that out.’

  Jewel rolled her eyes. ‘That’s not a string of coordinates I’ve ever seen.’

  ‘Me either,’ said Bowie. ‘And Nancy took me all over the world.’

  ‘The bat must be wrong,’ Jewel concluded. ‘Wanda’s just trying to make him feel better about himself. I mean, who would come up with such a disgusting set of coordinates?’

  Paul looked at the familiars. ‘Okay, the thing is, I know that these guys are saying stuff, but I don’t actually understand them.’

  ‘Max understands familiars,’ Dizzy pointed out.

  ‘Yeah, but weredogs and werewolves tend to have an affinity with animals,’ I said. ‘And no one more than Max. Most people need power to understand familiars. Y’know, unless you guys can make a concerted effort to speak to Paul. If he pays hard enough attention, he should soon be able to follow what you’re saying, and once he understands you once, he’ll understand you forever.’ I noted the look of impatience on Finn’s face. ‘But ... maybe another time.’

  ‘What do you think, Paul?’ Finn said. ‘Dizzy and Wanda think these are coordinates? But I kind of agree with Jewel – who would come up with such a macabre sequence?’

  Gretel shrugged. ‘Oh, I don’t know. Maybe the Dark Team.’

  ‘They’re all like this,’ said Paul. ‘Of course I can’t possibly know all of the sets of coordinates that might have been used, but I’ve found a few sequences that give equally shiver-inducing readouts. I’m now a hundred percent positive that it is a teleportation device, but like I said to Wanda, I’ve made sure it can’t transport anyone or anything for the moment. I mean, I hardly want to send something into the Dark Team’s secret lair. It might give them a slight inkling that we’re on to them.’

  Finn let out a huff of air. ‘But I’m still not wrapping my head around this. I’ve just accessed my inner map, and I don’t get so much as a feeble twinkle when I concentrate on those coordinates.’

  It was true. I’d accessed my own inner map, looking for Six thousand dead werewolves by eight thousand dead weredogs. Nothing lit up.

  The inner map was something I had to study for one of my recent examinations. Witches could travel to any area by clicking their fingers, and the easiest way to do this was to picture the destination in your mind. But that was only useful if you’d been to the place before. So when a place was unfamiliar, witches accessed the inner map. It was a network that lived inside all witches, just like our magic did. Knowledge was added to it every day, and that collective knowledge was there for us to tap into whenever we needed.

  Even though it was called a map, to me it looked like the universe. Or at least what I imagined the universe to look like. I could see everything, the whole world and all of the planets, when I closed my eyes and concentrated. If I thought of an unfamiliar coordinate, like Six thousand dead werewolves by eight thousand dead weredogs then a part of that inner map began to shimmer. All I had to do was close my eyes, and follow the light.

  But with the coordinates Paul managed to find programed into that microwave, there was no light to follow.

  ‘I’m sure they’re coordinates,’ I said. ‘But isn’t it impossible for coordinates to exist in the first place without being added to the map?’

  ‘No,’ said a voice behind us. ‘It’s not impossible. It’s not impossible at all.’

  19. Dark Road

  I turned around and stared at Melissa.

  ‘Welcome to Operation Long Leash,’ I said. ‘When did you get here?’

  ‘Just now,’ she replied, brushing past me and staring at the computer screen. ‘Hi.’ She extended a hand distractedly towards Paul. ‘I’m Melissa Wayfair. And this is ... this is something I really wished wasn’t true.’

  ‘What do you mean?’ asked Gretel. ‘Melissa, do you know what these words mean? Are they coordinates?’

  Melissa turned from the screen, looking directly at me. ‘Wanda, can I talk with you alone?’

  I glanced at Finn. ‘I’ll just be a minute,’ I said, and led Melissa from the room. As we passed Max’s bedroom, she tossed her head longingly towards his bed. ‘I came back to talk to you,’ she said. ‘To explain why I left last night. It was because of Max, although I have a feeling you already know that. Oh Wanda, I made such a fool of myself–’

  I held up a hand, cutting her off. ‘Melissa, I really want to talk with you about Max, but not right now. I thought you were going to tell me something about those coordinates.’

  ‘Oh yeah, of course. It’s just that I can’t get him out of my head. And I have a feeling that it’s you he loves, but I was just thinking ... well, you don’t love him do you? You have Gabriel. So maybe after a little while, he’ll get over you and see that I’m a decent second choice.’

  My jaw dropped. ‘Melissa!’ I hissed. ‘The coordinates. Please! What do you know about them? Is it a vampire thing? Is that why you didn’t want to tell me in front of the others?’

>   She looked apologetic. ‘I’m sorry. I know I need to focus. Yes. It’s a vampire thing. You know I’ve been studying up as much as I can so I can help your dad and I ...’ Her voice trailed off as she looked, once again, at Max’s room.

  I spun her to face me. I needed to get to the bottom of what was wrong with the other Wayfair women, but it would have to wait until our lives were out of danger. ‘If you don’t focus, you’re putting Max’s life at risk. You’re right, Melissa – he does have feelings for me, which means he’ll probably be the first person they go after.’ I had no idea if that was true or not, but it was worth a punt.

  Her face grew pale. ‘Okay. Yeah. Well, you’re not the only one who’s been doing a bit of extra digging into the Dark Team. Because I was studying up on vampire hypnosis anyway, I thought I might as well look for clues about them while I was at it. There’s this website, see, where vamps go to talk about ways to advance their power. Someone got to talking about this thing called Dark Road one day, and first I thought it might be like Silk Road – you know, the dark web, that part of the human internet where dubious information is exchanged?’

  I nodded. ‘I’ve heard of Silk Road and the dark web, but never Dark Road.’

  ‘You wouldn’t. You have to prove yourself to even get into the chatrooms I got to. Psychic tests, proving your telekinetic abilities across the internet. I posed as a full-on vampire trying to hone my skills, and ... and one day, someone made a joke to me. They said that if I kept this up I’d soon be asked to work on the Dark Team. I typed back that I hadn’t got a clue what they were talking about, but that if it could increase my telekinetic skills, then I was interested in finding out more. The conversation dropped. Then the other day, someone sent me this.’

  She pulled a piece of paper from her bag. There were coordinates neatly typed upon the page: Sixteen dead dayturners by eighteen roasting unempowered witches.

  Just reading the words made me sick. Witches often used animals in their coordinates because there was once a time when we went a bit sacrifice happy. But if this Dark Road, and these coordinates were new, what did it mean? Were they mere words on a page, or did they refer to something more? Were these the places where dark deeds took place, or where they were conceived?

  ‘I think it was a test,’ Melissa said, her mouth curled in distaste. ‘I think ... I think that given some of the conversations I’ve had online and some of the tests I’ve already passed, it might be some sort of initiation into a secret vampire society. Maybe ... maybe even the Dark Team.’

  I couldn’t decide whether I wanted to shake her by the shoulders, or hug her. ‘Melissa, why didn’t you tell me any of this?’

  She tossed her hair and snorted. ‘Oh, you mean the same way you told all of us what you were up to with Finn and Gretel? We’re all doing the same here, Wanda. Trying to help your dad, trying to find the Dark Team. And trying to protect each other.’

  She was right. ‘I’m sorry. And did you ... did you do anything with these coordinates? Do you even know how to access them?’

  She looked at her shoes. They were red, and high. Not her usual style, but she wasn’t exactly acting like her usual self. If she was trying to impress Max, though, she’d be better off wearing an old pair of boots, preferably covered in mud from walking with him and Wolfie.

  ‘I haven’t tried, but I do have an idea of how to access them. When I was working with Gabriel, he taught me how to control and suppress my vampire abilities. But since I’ve been trying to crack your dad’s hidden memories, I’ve been working on enhancing them. And Wanda, they’re big. Scarily big. I think I’m really close to performing hypnosis so strong that it could overwrite whatever was done to your dad all those years ago. I might be able to literally force him to remember. And as for these coordinates.’ She gave the piece of paper another disgruntled glance and waved it in the air. ‘Yeah, I have an idea how to access them. But it involves opening myself to the darkest part of my power – the part that most vampires chose to abandon centuries ago. The sort that would open me up to things I’m afraid to even think of.’ Tears filled her eyes. ‘The more I’ve worked with your dad, the closer I’m getting there anyway. I’m walking a fine line, Wanda. But if it’s the only way to protect the people we love – to protect you, and my mother, and Max – then I’m willing to step over it.’

  I stood back from her, shaking my head. I wanted to get to the bottom of all of this more than anything. But I would never put Melissa at risk. Her vampire ancestry was so far back in her family line that her own power shouldn’t even exist. She was an anomaly, and I knew she wasn’t happy about the fact.

  There was a reason why vampires used to be forced to list themselves on the Dark Powers Register. Most vamps I knew were amazing people, lovely people who had decided to live good lives. They were as far from the vampires of the past as witches were from their sacrifice-happy ancestors. As far as humans were from hunting with spears. We all, each and every one of us, wanted to be the best version of ourselves. There was no way I was going to make Melissa be her worst. ‘No,’ I said. ‘Not in a million years. We’ll find another way.’

  She sniffled back some tears. ‘Okay. But if we don’t get anywhere within the next few days, I’m going to go for it, Wanda. I’m going to follow these coordinates.’

  20. Angel Enterprises

  The next morning, Gretel and I went out alone. Finn was stuck in a meeting with some Materialization companies, organising the build of the first ever Wayfarer Headquarters on Warren Lane. As commissioner, my mother was supposed to be the one taking the meeting, but she was yet again otherwise engaged.

  The night before, I managed to convince a reluctant Ronnie to test the coven (and herself) for evidence of love potions. There wasn’t even the barest trace. I’d sent all of our samples to one of Ronnie’s assistants to be double checked, but if it wasn’t a love potion, then I was stumped.

  I’d had myself tested too, just to show willing. I knew there was nothing wrong with me, of course. Max and I had taken a long time to come to the realisation that we were destined for one another, sure. But that was the way these things sometimes went.

  ‘I’m still not sure about this Dark Road thing,’ said Gretel, as we left the Happy Hippy after having breakfast together. ‘I mean, if Melissa only heard a rumour through a criminal she was defending, then we probably shouldn’t rely on it. Surely we would have heard something before this. And how could someone hide something from the inner map, anyway? Only witches use coordinates to travel, which means that a destination is either on the inner map or it’s not.’

  I had bought a cup of tea to go, and I sipped at it, concentrating very hard. Melissa had made me promise not to tell anyone how she knew about Dark Road, so I’d quickly come up with the lie about her having heard the rumour at work. I used to think she hid her vampire abilities because she was afraid that the old prejudices witches had against vampires would rear their ugly head. Usually, when a witch and a vampire had a child, one or another set of traits came out on top – most often, the witch gene. In days of old, if a vampire dared to mate with a witch, it was seen as bad enough – but if that child then became a vampire, even the poor kid was treated like they were the spawn of the devil.

  After yesterday’s conversation, though, I had a better understanding of Melissa. She wasn’t concerned about prejudice. She was afraid of herself.

  ‘Earth to Wanda!’ Gretel waved a hand in front of my face. ‘Did you hear a word I said?’

  ‘Sorry, yeah,’ I let out an embarrassed laugh. ‘I get what you’re saying, Gretel. I’d never heard so much as a whisper about Dark Road until yesterday, same as you. But I believe it exists. Those are coordinates. For travel, teleportation, or both. You’re going to have to trust me on this one.’

  ‘If you say so.’ Her nose scrunched up as we slowed our steps and stopped at our destination. ‘Hey, shouldn’t we be standing in front of a salon right now?’

  I stared at the premises where Joh
nny’s girlfriend worked – or at least where she used to work. The salon had been cleared out. A To Let sign hung above the door.

  Gretel and I got to work, checking out the inside of the shop with an Open spell, and talking to the business owners nearby. After an hour or so, we hadn’t found a single person who knew where – if anywhere – the salon might have relocated to. According to almost everyone, the business had been a flash in the pan, there for so little time that they could barely even remember the staff.

  ‘I guess we could contact the letting agency,’ said Gretel

  ‘Good idea,’ I agreed. ‘Hey, have you got that client list Paul pulled from the salon’s website?’

  We were lucky that Paul had managed to hack the salon’s computer last night, because this morning he texted me to say that their website had gone down, as well as any trace of them ever existing in the world of ones and zeros. Gretel pulled out her tablet and brought up the list. ‘There’s hardly any customers here,’ she said. ‘Hey.’ Her eyes narrowed and she pointed to a name halfway down the short list. ‘Angel Enterprises – isn’t that the name of the outfit who own the Wyrd News Channel?’

  I gave Gretel an impressed grin. ‘Wow, how do you know that? I don’t even know it, and I go out with one of their presenters.’ Well, I thought to myself – I wouldn’t be going out with him much longer. Despite Finn’s protestations, I planned to speak with Gabriel this evening. Because if I had to go much longer without taking things to the next level with Max, I might just explode.

  Gretel chewed thoughtfully on the rim of her cardboard tea cup. ‘Y’know, I can’t quite remember how I know. I get that sometimes. I take note of things without knowing when or where. Let me think ...’