by Sarah Noffke
Akio gave Liv a strange look, full of mystery. “I think that if anyone has any secret tactics, it is you. One day the teacher should become the pupil, and you can teach me what you know.”
Liv was about to protest when he stepped through the Door of Reflection.
“Is it too late for everyone in the House to start acting normal?” she asked, then realized that Plato wasn’t there, or wasn’t visible, or whatever.
Liv sighed and stepped close to the Door, getting ready for whatever horrific image it would show her—probably her parents’ deaths, or her own impending doom. She was certain that it would be something horrible that would infect her sleeping dreams.
Liv stepped through the Door of Reflection, but the image she saw wasn’t what she’d expected. She was frolicking across a green meadow, holding hands with Sophia as puffy white clouds rolled overhead. She halted, breathless, trying to understand the strange scene. Sophia laughed and sprinted toward Clark, who had his arms wide. His blue eyes sparkled with delight.
In the distance, Stefan stood, his long black cloak majestically rippling in the wind. He was joined by Rory on one side, and Rudolf on the other. Liv spun around and around, wondering who was laughing until she realized it was her.
She was laughing, a sound that was seemingly unending. Trying to catch her breath, she doubled over, and realized she was wearing a corseted dress. Liv straightened, and the horror of the moment hit her: she was happy. Unabashedly happy. It was such a fragile feeling, as if at any moment, something might swallow it, taking her world away from her. But worse than that was the feeling that followed: I have no right to be happy when they are all dead.
Liv stepped through the Door of Reflection with the most horrific realization she’d had since first entering the Chamber of the Tree: she was afraid of being happy. It was an impossible reality. It was wrong. After her parents had died, and then Ian and Reese, she’d subconsciously pulled that possibility off the table. Liv could save the world. Not that she would, she thought with a laugh.
She could sacrifice herself for the truth. She could push every single boundary set up by Adler and the House, but there was one thing that she couldn’t do.
Liv Beaufont wasn’t allowed to be happy.
That was a genie in a bottle that had shattered into a million pieces the moment her parents died, and it wasn’t like she was on the brink of some treasure trove, with the new stark reality facing her. It was only that she knew no matter what happened, no matter how many friends she made or whatever progress happened, she could never be truly happy.
The peace that John had found wasn’t one she could replicate for herself, mostly because she couldn’t fathom being happy when the best people she’d ever known had been stripped from the Earth before their time. Happiness was found in the arms of her parents. Happiness would be knowing the truth while they were alive. Happiness would be doing everything she’d done with them watching her.
What she was doing now was nothing. It was too late, and too little.
“So, Ms. Beaufont, you’ve decided to join us,” Adler said as she stumbled onto her circle, aware that Stefan was beside her and Decar was on the other. All the Warriors were there: Trudy, Stefan, Decar, Akio, Emilio, and Maria.
Not since the first time she’d been in the Chamber of the Tree had all the Warriors been there. It was like some strange family reunion.
Liv found herself bowing slightly. “I’ve arrived, and I am ready for my mission.”
If Adler knew that Liv had figured anything out, he wasn’t showing it. “We’ll deal with you later.” He looked at the Warrior two circles down from Liv, who shared Bianca’s snotty expression. “Mr. Mantovani, are you ready to take over the elf negotiations?”
Liv’s attention perked up, remembering how Decar had apparently messed up those negotiations by slaughtering a few elves.
Emilio nodded and strode away.
“Mr. Ludwig, why are you here?” Adler asked. “Shouldn’t you be hunting demons?”
Stefan snapped to attention. “I’m here to give my report on my cases.”
Adler sighed, apparently not buying that story. “What is your report, Mr. Ludwig?”
“I’ve been killing demons,” Stefan answered, nearly making Liv burst into laughter.
The white tiger appeared beside her seemingly out of nowhere, as Plato often did. She turned her gaze and met his green eyes. He was nearly as tall as her. Made giddy by the strangeness of the moment, Liv reached out like she was about to pet the tiger. She had done so the one time. The animal seemed amused by this, bowing his head as if tempting her to do it.
“Ms. Beaufont!” Adler yelled. “What are you doing?”
Liv turned her attention to the council, catching the seriousness in her brother’s eyes. She winked at Clark and smiled at the rest of the council. “I was just thinking that it’s strange that you call the Warriors Mr. and Ms. instead of giving us the title we deserve, Councilor Sinclair.”
The Chamber of the Tree fell silent. The white tiger laid down at her feet, nearly touching her as he did.
Liv wasn’t deterred by the look Clark gave her. The way Liv figured it, Adler had it out for her, no matter what. Whether it was because she was a pain in the ass or that he knew she was onto something, she wanted to give him a reason for whatever he was going to do next. Or maybe, she didn’t want it all to be in vain. If he was going to hate her, she was going to make it worth it.
“It should be of no concern how I address you,” Adler stated.
“I couldn’t agree more, Adler,” Liv stated, drawing out his name.
She couldn’t help but notice the smile Stefan quirked or the laugh that fell out of Trudy’s mouth.
She might have gone too far, but that was her prerogative at this point.
“Well, it seems that Ms. Beaufont is bored with her previous cases,” Adler stated. “Hopefully what we have next will both satisfy your boredom and also keep you out of trouble, since we all know you have a way of dabbling where you don’t belong.”
If Liv had wondered if Adler was on to her, she had a strong indication now.
Chapter Six
Was it Liv’s imagination, or was the white tiger nearly lying on her? She could feel his weight pressed into the side of her foot, but she didn’t dare glance down.
Maybe it had been wrong to egg Adler on when she was trying so hard to keep him from knowing what they’d discovered about the House. However, she reasoned that if she started acting nice all of a sudden and not spouting off, it would be even more suspicious. No, the right thing to do was to be her normal pain-in-the-ass self and cover her tracks better. The busy bee clip would help, and she’d been playing with other ideas to keep Adler or others from discovering what she was doing. If she had learned anything from her family’s deaths, it was to be extra cautious.
“This is a case that we’d usually assign to two Warriors,” Clark dared to argue.
Adler rolled his shoulders up, back, and down, as if working out tension.
It must be very stressful being a grumpy old man, Liv thought.
“Mr. Beaufont, the council has already voted on this, haven’t they?” Adler replied, condescension in his voice.
“Yes, but it’s very unorthodox to send Liv on a case of this sort without backup,” Clark argued.
“That was what you said about the fae case and the demon-hunting,” Bianca countered. “Maybe you’ve allowed your closeness to your sister to cloud your judgment?”
“Well, he is only human,” Liv remarked. “Maybe you can give him pointers on how to be a cold, heartless b—”
Adler cut her off before she could call Bianca what she wanted. “I would remind you that Warriors are supposed to show the utmost respect to the council.”
“Bot,” Liv chirped.
“Excuse me?” Adler asked.
“Cold, heartless bot,” Liv finished. “I was simply commending Councilor Mantovani on her incredible ability to show zero emotion
, much like a robot.” She batted her eyelashes at the woman. “Please pass along tips on how you’ve managed to cut off emotions while sending your fellow magicians on cases they are ill-prepared for while you sit in your cozy chair.”
“That’s quite enough!” Adler yelled, slamming his fist on the bench in front of him. “This is the way the House was designed, and if you have a problem with it, then—”
“Warrior Beaufont is right,” Hester cut in, making Adler fume even more. “It shouldn’t be easy for us to assign these cases. That’s the burden the Council endures. I don’t think that she’s slamming all the Councilors, but rather the ones who show little compassion for the dangers our Warriors must face when carrying out our orders. I’ve never taken it lightly that we send them out to do things most wouldn’t do. And the ones who haven’t returned? Well, I know their blood is on my hands.”
Adler rolled his eyes, apparently having heard this speech a few times. “Yes, yes, Ms. DeVries, we know that your ability as a healer makes you more sympathetic than the rest of us, but—”
“I also share this burden,” Haro said, interrupting Adler. “It isn’t easy to make these assignments, and I think in the instance of Warrior Beaufont’s current case, we have an obvious divide.”
Raina glanced up from her tablet, a strange confusion on her face. “I don’t remember voting this way.”
“And yet you did,” Adler stated simply. “Your memory issues aren’t the problem of the House. The record clearly states that you voted for Ms. Beaufont to tackle this case.”
“Clark is right, though and usually with a case like this, we’d assign two Warriors,” Raina stated, reviewing the information on her screen, her eyes growing wider as she scanned.
“But we don’t have an extra Warrior who can chaperone Ms. Beaufont,” Adler said in a tired voice.
“I’m free,” Trudy DeVries chirped.
“I too have a break in cases and could accompany Warrior Beaufont,” Akio stated.
Adler shook his head roughly. “No, we have important cases for you two, as well as the others.”
“I think,” Raina said, drawing out the word, “that Adler is correct.”
This caused both the Councilors and Warriors to stir. Not only because she was agreeing with him, but also her casual use of his first name. Maybe she was still under his influence, although Stefan had slipped her something to keep her from getting brainwashed again, or so they’d thought.
Raina held up her hand. “Although I don’t like the idea of sending Liv on this case alone, the vote has already been cast. However, after the initial part of the case is completed and you report back, then we the council can vote again—and maybe this time I’ll remember what happened.” She glared down the bench at Adler, who was undeterred by this blatant show of suspicion.
“I second that suggestion,” Clark stated at once.
“And so do I,” Haro and Hester nearly sang together.
Adler tensed, his eyes turning into narrow slits as he regarded Liv with fury. “Fine. We will reconvene after Ms. Beaufont has completed the first part of the case. The reconnaissance portion.”
Reconnaissance, Liv thought. That didn’t sound so bad. It made her feel like she was a spy. What were Hester and Clark so worried about? Liv was a great detective, or so she’d like to think.
Adler cleared his throat, reading from his tablet. “Now, regarding your assignment, Ms. Beaufont, It has come to the council’s attention that the village of Lupei in Romania has recently had a werewolf problem.”
Liv gasped, making the white tiger glance up from his nap. Yeah, it’s time to wake up, little kitty, she thought. Shit just got real. “Werewolves? Are you kidding me? That’s a real thing?”
Bianca laughed like this was funny. The chip in her head must be malfunctioning.
“If you’d taken the Warrior training offered to you by the House, you’d know about werewolves,” she told Liv in a snide voice. “Really, if you’d been formally educated like the rest of us, this would be common knowledge to you.”
“So sorry. My parents were busy teaching me how to be a decent human being while you were learning how not to act like one,” Liv quipped.
She was ready for the glare of disapproval Adler shot her and the seething stare from Bianca. What she wasn’t ready for was for Haro to agree with a nod.
“If Warrior Beaufont’s education is lacking in this regard, then ours was too,” he said, indicating himself and Akio. “The werewolf population was brought under control by Warriors long ago, but that isn’t common knowledge. I only learned of it while doing research for this specific case.”
“A history lesson isn’t what we need at the moment,” Adler stated. “Yes, Ms. Beaufont, werewolves are real. It would do you good to read up on them in the library or wherever you prefer to get your information from.”
“Wikipedia,” she chirped, knowing that interrupting him once more would really get under his skin.
Adler paused as if he were taking a moment to picture her death. “As I was saying, the town of Lupei has a werewolf problem.”
“Actually, it has always had werewolves,” Lorenzo chimed in, finally breaking his long silence. “That is where werewolves originated, and where the strongest pack currently resides.”
Adler nodded like his interruption was welcome. “That’s right, but recently the pack has gotten out of control, attacking tourists and hikers in the woods. That’s against the agreement that we have set up, and therefore your case is to go into this village and determine who the pack members are, but more specifically, who the leader is.”
That didn’t sound so hard, Liv thought. She just had to ensure she wasn’t eaten in the process.
“Once you know that,” Adler continued, “you can report those names to us, and we’ll assign you the next part of the case.”
“Is the next part that they have to go through obedience training?” Liv asked.
Adler didn’t think this was funny, although Hester apparently did, her mousy giggle catching the white tiger’s attention.
“No. After you report back to us, we’ll give you further orders,” Adler stated. “The key in this case is to go undetected. Otherwise, you won’t be able to discover who all is in the pack.”
“So don’t wear that green dress you wore to the kingdom of the Fae,” Stefan said with a sly smile.
“I burned that,” Liv retorted.
He shook his head. “That’s too bad.”
“If you two are quite done?” Adler asked, glaring at the two Warriors.
“He was only advising me about how to dress so as to go undetected,” Liv told him.
“What you wear on this reconnaissance mission will matter very little,” Adler stated.
“Yes, because werewolves are very sensitive to magic,” Bianca explained. “They will sense you a mile away, knowing that you’re a magician.”
Werewolves weren’t the only ones, Liv realized. Most magical creatures seemed to spot her for who she was right away. And when she was on Roya Lane, they all also knew she was a Warrior, and kept a safe distance from her, seemingly on their best behavior.
“That’s correct,” Adler stated. “Which is why it’s imperative that for the first part of this case, we lock your magic.”
“Say what?” Stefan voiced this exclamation of disbelief.
“Mr. Ludwig, what are you still doing here?” Adler asked in a terse voice. “I do believe you’ve been dismissed.”
“Locking a Warrior’s magic is very unorthodox,” Stefan argued.
“And yet, if the pack senses her magic and that she’s near, then they will go into hiding since they are well aware that they are in violation of the agreement,” Adler explained. “Once they are in hiding, we will lose our advantage and have no way of telling who the pack members and leader are. Therefore, the only way to keep this from happening is to take away Ms. Beaufont’s magic.”
“Liv should at least have backup then,” Stefan stated
. “Sending her into werewolf-infested territory without magic is too dangerous. Let me hang out on the fringe in case anything happens.”
Hester gave a minute shake of her head. She’d advised before that this wasn’t a case Stefan could handle. Liv knew why now. If Stefan was anywhere near werewolves, he’d probably lose all objectivity, since they were associated with evil and he had a strong reaction to that since almost becoming a demon.
“Mr. Ludwig, the council has already voted on this matter,” Adler stated, obviously more annoyed by this stand of solidarity than anything else. “Ms. Beaufont will most likely be fine on her own without magic.” He flashed her a wicked smile that made his face look all wrong. “That is, if she keeps her mouth shut. Werewolves are notorious for their quick tempers and rage.”
“Not to mention that the Romanians won’t get my dry wit and sarcasm,” Liv interjected.
“Liv, this is serious,” Clark said, leaning forward. “We’re going to have to lock your magic for part of this case.”
Part of this case, Liv wondered. She didn’t want to know what the other half would entail. Something told her that she wasn’t going to like it, but she’d deal with one thing at a time.
“I realize that,” Liv stated with confidence. “I agree to have my magic locked. However, will I experience a surge of power like I did the last time once it’s unlocked again?”
The Councilors shuffled, many of them looking down at their tablets to check something.
“Although we still believe it to be an anomaly,” Adler said, reviewing his own tablet, “it appears that your magic is still at uncommon levels.”
“At some point, you all might have to just admit that she’s a really powerful magician and this isn’t just a momentary fluke,” Trudy said, leaning forward and offering a wink to Liv.
“Again, when did the other Warriors decide that it was acceptable to interject when they aren’t being assigned a case presently?” Adler asked.
“When do I need to have my magic locked?” Liv asked, realizing the gravity of the moment. She was done with jokes, at least for a little while.