“Yes, it has. So where’s the location?” Annie asked.
Robin rolled the scroll across the desk. Annie picked it up and straightened out the parchment; written on the scroll was a latitude and longitude.
She grimaced.
“I had to lean on him heavily for that. I think it’s worth a look.”
“How much do you trust this contact?” Annie asked.
“As far as I can throw him. He’s… he’s a vampire,” Robin admitted.
Annie glanced at him with a raised eyebrow and sighed. “Meet at my house at eleven?”
“I’m there.”
*
Annie teleported to her neighborhood by way of a cluster of trees at the end of her street. She stepped along the sidewalk and glanced at her phone. It was still early, 5:30 p.m., and the sun was bright and warm. The closer she came to her house, the more relaxed and happy she felt.
Neighbors pulled into the subdivision, rode around the block to the back alley, parking in their garages or finding empty spots outside their homes. Those already home gathered mail, watered plants, or cut the grass. It was a pleasant summer evening, which struck Annie as funny. She wondered what her neighbors would think of her father miraculously back from the dead—until she realized most of them hadn’t lived here before either of her parents died.
The din from traffic several streets away hung over the neighborhood like a comfortable blanket, the sound of laughter and music from various houses was familiar and easy. Stopping briefly, she turned and scanned both sides of the street before continuing home. As she passed Mrs. Wexler’s house, she waved to the older woman, who was pulling mail from the mailbox and sorting each piece.
“Hey, Mrs. Wexler. How’s it going?” Annie asked.
“I’m good, Annie dear. You look like you’re working too hard again,” Mrs. Wexler said.
Annie chuckled. “Not really. Have a good night.” Annie walked up her front sidewalk and entered her porch.
The door was opened a crack. She glanced at the handle and lock. It hadn’t been forcibly open, but she hesitated anyway and stood beside the door to eavesdrop. She heard two voices speaking softly.
Zola!
She ran inside to see Zola and her father at the kitchen table. Zola looked tired, her cream skin smudged with dirt, her lip split, dried blood covering her bottom lip.
“What the hell happened?” Annie shouted as she reached Zola.
“I was followed and someone nabbed me. It took a little time to escape his grasp,” Zola explained.
Annie grimaced and bit her lip as she thought.
“What is it, sweetie?” Jason asked.
“I feel like I’m being followed or someone is watching me. I’m not surprised you’d be too, but I am surprised they tried to take you,” Annie said. She glanced at Jason, whose jaw clenched tightly. “Dad?”
“If they were after Zola, it might be because they took your mom to weaken you. I’m not surprised they’d take your Aloja fairy. She can find you easily, she can heal you. Without Zola, you would be weaker and easier to get at,” Jason said.
“Did they take you someplace? I was worried when you didn’t come home,” Annie said.
Zola shook her head. Her hands were shaking. “I went to my ancient fairy home in the mountains. Someone knew where the Aloja Fairies live and how to get there. I barely got away.”
“Why did you go back there? I thought you already made a deal for my life,” Annie said. She hadn’t meant to be blunt; it just came out.
Zola looked at her incredulously. The wrinkle in her forehead deepened, and she shook her head. “I didn’t…” She glanced at Annie, unable to lie, and said, “I was going back there to make sure your lifeline was still long.”
“And?” Jason asked.
“It’s still long and very strong.” Zola looked at her long, thin fingers.
Annie observed Zola carefully. Not only did the temporary gray irises tell Annie that Zola was emotional; the fairy’s inability to contradict her theory told her she was correct. Annie sat beside her friend and took her hands.
“The charm you gave me wouldn’t have saved my life, not completely. And I won’t ask what deal you made to save my life.”
“Thank you. It puts me in a difficult position, choosing between my family in the mountains or my charge. I love you. That’s all you need to know.”
Annie felt a pang of heartbreak and feared Zola gave up something considerable. She chose her words carefully. “I will always appreciate what you did to bring me home, whatever that was. But I need you to be careful. If Dad’s correct, they might be trying to take out my inner circle. I can’t lose you too.”
“We’ll stop them,” Jason said.
Annie shook her head. “The Fraternitatem had eleven hundred years to plan this. Your files and their grimoire tell me nothing new, no way to stop them.”
“I’m pretty sure I know the answer to this, but have you looked for your mom?” Jason asked.
Annie glanced at Jason, not surprised by his question. Of all the people who knew her, he’d be the one to know that she would have started to look for Emily. “As soon as I found the pictures, I asked the computer expert at Wizard Hall, Bucky Hart, to search for Emily. Even with his impeccable skills, we’re dealing with the Fraternitatem and he’s been unable to find her,” she said.
“That doesn’t surprise me. I’m sure they figured you’d go looking. They’ll hide her until she’s ready to come for you,” Jason said.
Annie looked at an injured Zola and a worried father. Her own anxiety increased, and the magic continued to bubble under her skin until the itching became unbearable and the world around her spun quickly. She wanted to run and to be free of them, of all of this. Annie pushed herself from the table, pushing the chair with such force, it bounced against the table.
Jason jumped. “Annie?”
Annie walked to the den window that faced the forest and looked inside the trees. For weeks, it had felt like she was being watched. Her breathing became faster and shallow; she couldn’t catch her breath or take in oxygen. It terrified her. Jason put his hand on her shoulder.
“Slow breaths.”
Annie nodded. “They’ve been watching me and probably everyone I know, learning how to get to me.” She practiced her breaths. “No matter how much research I do, they’re still going to come, and they’re going to kill me!” Her voice growing high with fear, Annie made a fist and opened her hand; bright, white magic flew from her palms, blowing behind her into the kitchen. It sped across the kitchen table, splintering the thick, wooden tabletop into two halves. Annie, Zola, and Jason watched with their jaws open as each half of the table fell sideways and crashed on the floor.
“Crap!” Annie shouted as she glanced at her table and then her palms, which were covered in large scorch marks. “I love that table.”
“What the hell was that?” Jason asked.
Annie held her hands out. A white mist trailed from her palms and billowed upwards as if the magic was leaking from her body. “This isn’t MY magic coming out, is it?” she cried out with a wave of panic. She closed her fists, but the magic continued to escape through the cracks of her fists. Her anxiety grew and her chest tightened. Magic hung in the air around her, buzzing and humming as if alive. Jason and Zola stared helplessly.
“Annie?” Jason took her hands. “Are you hurting?”
She shook her head.
The white mist sparkled and rose to the ceiling. “What the hell?” Cham asked, entering the kitchen and racing to Annie. “What happened?”
Through shallow breaths, she explained her anger, the table, the magic. Cham glanced at table laying in two halves and then at her hands. He summoned his crystal and ran it across the magic that escaped from her palms. She hyperventilated as he glanced inside the rock.
“I recognize your signature. This is not yours. It’s… it must be the new powers,” Cham said.
Annie glanced at her hands, at the magic billowing from her palms.
“I still don’t know what this magic is. What powers I possess,” Annie admitted. She glanced at Jason. “What did they tell you?”
“The prophecy wasn’t specific. You know that. You conjured me and made me corporeal. We know that has to be the powers. Has anything else happened to you?”
Annie watched the magic stream from her palms, slowly dissipating, leaving behind scorch marks at the center of her palms.
“I thought I was having prophetic dreams.”
“That might be one of the powers. Look at the table. The magic is stronger. Wilder,” he noted.
“What do they want with them? What could the powers possibly have that makes them want to kill me for it?”
“Conjuring the dead is a pretty powerful magic. Only the Fates can control life or death,” Zola said.
“Necromancers?” Annie asked.
“They animate the dead, much like creating zombies. It’s not the same,” Jason added.
“Do you know what other powers I have?” Annie stared at Zola, her lips tightly pursed as the magic floated about her head.
“Like your dad said, the prophecy wasn’t specific. I’m not sure who would know for certain as you’ve just received them. I’ve only heard rumors. Impossible-to-believe rumors of you controlling the elements.” Zola chuckled.
“You’re right. No one would really know what the magic is. I haven’t discovered it yet and there’s nothing written.” Annie smiled. “I wonder if Sturtagaard lied to the Fraternitatem about how powerful the magic would be.”
“To bargain for his life, I’m sure he would’ve done that,” Jason said.
“Awesome. He charmed them with lies and now my life is in danger. Damn vampire.” Annie scratched at her arms, grimacing at the pain in her palms.
Cham reached for her hand, turned it over, and stared at the scorch mark at the center of both palms. He summoned a water bottle, floated the water above the burn mark, and healed it gently before repeating the process on the other hand. “How’s the itching?”
Annie made a fist and released it, watching the magic burst from her palms. She repeated the process several times until the magic seemed to lessen. “Still there, but not as bad,” she admitted as she looked at her newly healed palms.
“Maybe you need to work the magic out. Like repetitive spells, strong magic, fireballs. The magic could be building up,” Cham suggested.
“I guess I can go to the lab and use that space.” Annie sighed. She glanced at her hands. The scorch marks were gone. “I should fix the table,” she said, standing.
“I’ll fix it. You rest up,” Cham offered.
Annie shook her head. “No. I think I’m done resting. After they came for Zola, there’s no more waiting for Emily to come for me.” She marched back to the kitchen and stared at the table.
Cham rested his hand on her shoulder. She resisted the urge to move it away. “Bucky is looking for her and you’re learning about the Fraternitatem. We will take control of this situation,” he said.
“And how’s that going?” She took a deep breath. “Sorry. I just need to find her. I don’t want any surprises.”
Cham wrapped his arms around her. “I expect nothing less from you because I know how you work. Just be careful and tell us what you need. Please.”
Annie nodded. She looked at Zola, at her dad. “I promise. No going off on my own. I’ll keep safe.”
“Then we should eat, I’ll make a sleeping potion, and we’ll call it a night,” Cham offered.
“As great as that sounds, I’m going with Robin tonight. He thinks he has a really good lead on the market,” Annie told him.
“Well then, you need to eat,” Zola said as Jason and Cham magically repaired the table.
*
Annie and Robin landed at the edge of a swamp in Southern Louisiana. The air was heavy, moist, and sticky, hanging over the land like a moldy, stale blanket. Immediately after landing, a swarm of mosquitos descended on them. Annie feverishly swatted them away.
“This is awesome,” Annie said as she smacked the mosquito biting her cheek.
“Sorry. It could have waited,” Robin said, wiping bugs from his hair.
“Eh. It’s the job.” They listened carefully, and when they were certain they were alone, Annie turned on her flashlight and scanned the grasses and trees for unwelcome wildlife or someone they may have missed. “Baddies are getting wickedly clever. This location sucks,” Annie grumbled. Twigs cracked and water sloshed. Annie turned in her spot, her flashlight highlighting enough to tell her they were still alone.
Robin looked into the trees. “Is there anything out there?”
“Nothing,” she said.
While Annie continued to act as a lookout, Robin reviewed the map. “Sorry, but it’s only going to get worse. We have to walk through the water to reach the portal. You sure you’re okay?”
Annie highlighted their watery path hoping to find the portal magic hanging in the air. From her angle, she couldn’t see anything unusual and grimaced as she took a step into the cold water that seeped up her legs.
“Yeah, yeah. I’m fine. For this, you need to tell me the name of your contact. I’d love to thank him.” Annie was merely making conversation, taking her mind off of the fact she was in a swamp and not particularly fond of high water.
Robin groaned as he stepped into the water. “You really want me to squeal?”
“I know the game, but it could prove helpful.” Those with contacts around the markets were careful to not release their names as being a snitch could be dangerous for them or their associates.
“Don’t tell him I’ve said anything. It’s Godfrey and he lives somewhere in the ninth district in New Orleans,” Robin said. “He is a vampire, so maybe I should have distrusted his help.”
Annie held her hands out, feeling for changes in the air; all she found were mosquitos biting away at her hand. “Don’t worry about it. The council really wants to find the black market. It’s still a priority, though not at the expense of our other duties,” Annie reiterated.
Annie made a fist and released it; small sparks of magic popped from her palm. It was only when she remembered the magic that she felt it boiling up inside her, making the itching unbearable. She scratched at her belly for relief and took another step in the muddy water.
“A good way to keep out the riffraff,” Robin joked.
“In this scenario, I’m the riffraff.” Annie chuckled.
Robin held his crystal as it searched for the magic. When it glowed dark purple, he glanced inside the rock and showed Annie. “We’re here,” he said.
Annie read the magic trace.
Dark magic.
Annie illuminated the air space. The hazy anomaly hung beside them. She reached out, though the portal chilled her arm. “Here it is. Godfrey wasn’t lying about the portal. Let’s see what’s inside,” she said and summoned her cursed athame, a knife magically imbued with a black magic, to open the portal.
“This could be the black market,” Robin said.
Annie shrugged and looked at her knife in the light. “How sure are you he’s not setting us up in a trap?” she asked. She could feel the chill from the portal.
“You mean the vampire?”
They glanced at each other and then to the portal. Footsteps sloshed through the wet earth. “I think someone’s coming,” Annie whispered. She shut off her flashlight and climbed up to dry land, hiding behind a tree.
A tall, lanky creature came through the trees, glanced around his location, and stepped into the water. He took out his knife, but just as he was going to plunge it into the portal, he paused and sniffed the air.
Annie recognized the profile, the glowing white skin in the moonlight. “Damn!” She slid from behind the tree. “What the hell are you doing here?” she asked Sturtagaard.
She hadn’t seen the vampire since she returned to the present. Everyone, even Annie, had believed she was going to stake Sturtagaard when she returned, but she hadn’t. Robin
warned her before she left not to let Sturtagaard’s knowledge taint her judgment. It had, and she hadn’t killed him yet as a result.
He got me again.
“I’m following a lead. And you?” the vampire inquired. He offered an amused smirk. Annie knew he was trying to piss her off.
“Is this the market you claimed to know the location of?” Annie asked.
He pursed his lips and smiled. “You haven’t gone in yet then?”
“Deciding if it’s a trap. Vampires aren’t known to be trustworthy,” Annie commented. “So, why the hell are you here?”
“Like I said, this is a lead. As much as I’d like you to finally stake me and put me out of my misery, you won’t until you know where it is,” Sturtagaard said.
Annie knew he’d drag it out as long as he could. Once he helped find the market, he’d find something else to bargain for his life.
I should have killed him when I got home. But I didn’t.
Seeing his family in the past had given Annie an insight to the vampire she hadn’t had before. While she still hated the him, she now had some sympathy for the former husband and father who watched his family die. While she carried that sympathy back to the present with her, she realized staking him wouldn’t change the past. Her family was irreparably changed; the die was cast, and the story was being unfolded.
Until she saw Sturtagaard outside the portal. Now she felt confused and had difficulty reconciling her sympathy and hatred.
Reluctantly, she motioned for Sturtagaard to open the portal and waited patiently as he slid his cursed athame into the magic. Air whirled violently, lightning sparked, and static popped. Sturtagaard shrugged and stepped one foot into the portal.
“You coming?” he asked.
Annie stepped beside him and looked inside. It was unlike the original market in that the original market had been roughly fifty acres of booths and animal corrals with a large dungeon and elf dormitory beneath the circular market, which had been shaped like a wheel with spokes.
This market was much smaller and consisted of five aisles parallel to each other. The booths were thinner; three booths were squeezed into the same space that would have been occupied by one in the original market. Cautiously, Annie stepped inside, taking in the entire market. For her, this market was more familiar than the last two they’d visited, right down to the stench of dung and burnt flesh. She shuddered, thinking this could be what they were after.
Wizard Hall Chronicles Box Set Page 142